Zechariah
I have been cultivating the habit of reading daily from the Bible. Sometimes, I can only read for a few minutes; other times, I have read for a full hour.
One man who has made a strong impression on me is Zechariah. He appears in Scripture only in the first chapter of the Gospel of Luke. Yet his role in God's plan, though small, is a weighty one. In Luke 1:11, Zechariah is the first person to hear the Good News of the New Testament.
Perhaps due to my Catholic upbringing, the scene is easy for me to visualize: the aging priest, alone, burning incense on a barren altar ("all the worshippers were outside", reads v.10) when the angel Gabriel appears before him:
"Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord."
For disbelieving in God's power, Zechariah is struck dumb. Both he and Elizabeth were descendants of Aaron the high priest (v. 5). Zechariah's muting seems senseless (Mary questions Gabriel because she is a virgin, but is not condemned) unless we interpret it as stopping the mouth of the Aaronic priesthood. Zechariah will beget John, who will herald Jesus, the True Priest whose sacrifice on the cross saved us from sin and death.
Let's look at a book written specifically for Jewish Christians, Hebrews 10:11-14: "Every priest stands daily at his ministry, offering frequently those same sacrifices that can never take away sins. But this one offered one sacrifice for sins, and took his seat forever at the right hand of God. Now he waits until his enemies are made his footstool; for by one offering he has made perfect forever those who are being consecrated."
So it is entirely befitting that the New Covenant should manifest itself first to a Jewish priest of the old covenant. The same, that Zechariah the priest should be struck dumb - both a physical fact and a metaphor for Jesus's soon-to-be abolishment of the Aaronic priesthood. The same, that the angel Gabriel presents Zechariah's paternity as a trustworthy sign to Mary (vs. 36-37): "Even Elizabeth your cousin will bear a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For all things are possible with God."
Most Christians have some recollection of the Magnificat, Mary's wonderful hymn of praise to God upon the occasion of her visit to Elizabeth (vs. 46-55). Hardly anyone knows Zechariah's song of praise after his son, John the Baptist, is born and named, ending his period of muteness (vs. 67-79):
"Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has come and has redeemed his people.
He has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David
(as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),
salvation from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us—
to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant,
the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,
and to enable us to serve him without fear
in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,
to give his people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven
to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peace."
To Zechariah's song, I say: Amen.
One man who has made a strong impression on me is Zechariah. He appears in Scripture only in the first chapter of the Gospel of Luke. Yet his role in God's plan, though small, is a weighty one. In Luke 1:11, Zechariah is the first person to hear the Good News of the New Testament.
Perhaps due to my Catholic upbringing, the scene is easy for me to visualize: the aging priest, alone, burning incense on a barren altar ("all the worshippers were outside", reads v.10) when the angel Gabriel appears before him:
"Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord."
For disbelieving in God's power, Zechariah is struck dumb. Both he and Elizabeth were descendants of Aaron the high priest (v. 5). Zechariah's muting seems senseless (Mary questions Gabriel because she is a virgin, but is not condemned) unless we interpret it as stopping the mouth of the Aaronic priesthood. Zechariah will beget John, who will herald Jesus, the True Priest whose sacrifice on the cross saved us from sin and death.
Let's look at a book written specifically for Jewish Christians, Hebrews 10:11-14: "Every priest stands daily at his ministry, offering frequently those same sacrifices that can never take away sins. But this one offered one sacrifice for sins, and took his seat forever at the right hand of God. Now he waits until his enemies are made his footstool; for by one offering he has made perfect forever those who are being consecrated."
So it is entirely befitting that the New Covenant should manifest itself first to a Jewish priest of the old covenant. The same, that Zechariah the priest should be struck dumb - both a physical fact and a metaphor for Jesus's soon-to-be abolishment of the Aaronic priesthood. The same, that the angel Gabriel presents Zechariah's paternity as a trustworthy sign to Mary (vs. 36-37): "Even Elizabeth your cousin will bear a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For all things are possible with God."
Most Christians have some recollection of the Magnificat, Mary's wonderful hymn of praise to God upon the occasion of her visit to Elizabeth (vs. 46-55). Hardly anyone knows Zechariah's song of praise after his son, John the Baptist, is born and named, ending his period of muteness (vs. 67-79):
"Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has come and has redeemed his people.
He has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David
(as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),
salvation from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us—
to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant,
the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,
and to enable us to serve him without fear
in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,
to give his people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven
to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peace."
To Zechariah's song, I say: Amen.
posted by Jason at 12:50 PM
1 Comments:
You've given me something to think about in the difference between Zechariah and Mary's reactions, or rather, what the difference is, if anything. I like your interpretation that the muting of Zechariah is symbolic of the ending of the Aaronic priesthood, but it seems to me when I read the text, that Zechariah speaks in a spirit of doubt, whereas Mary is accepting that her pregnancy can come about and simply wants to know how. They both ask how these unexpected/impossible pregnancies can come about, but perhaps Zechariah asks in a scoffing manner, rather than one of faith.
Hmm, will keep thinking!
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