Zechariah

Zechariah (Zacharias in the King James Version of the Bible) was the Father of John the Baptist, the primary forerunner of Jesus as the Messiah. Zechariah was a priest of the line of Abijah, during the reign of King Herod the Great around the turn of the common era. He was husband of Elizabeth, whose lineage was connected the priestly family of Aaron. According the Luke's gospel, Zechariah received a revelation from the angel Gabriel while ministering in the Temple of Jerusalem, telling him that Elizabeth, though well beyond the age of child-bearing, would bear him a son. He was struck dumb for not initially believing this prophecy. Elizabeth did conceive, and during her pregnancy, she and Zechariah offered hospitality to Elizabeth's cousin Mary. After three months, it became clear that Mary, too, was pregnant, and she left Zechariah's house for Nazareth. After the birth of John the Baptist, Zechariah prophesied that he would be possessed of the "spirit of Elijah."

Zechariah's death is not recorded, although some believe erroneously that he was reported to have been murdered in the Temple. Aprocryhal traditions, especially the Protoevengelism of John, give additional details about Zechariah. In Unification tradition, Zechariah is believed to have been the physical father of Jesus. Although his relationship with Mary was inspired by the Holy Spirit, he failed to fulfill his responsibility to protect her child and was thus partly responsible for Jesus' rejection by the priestly classes.

Zechariah's story

Zechariah is identified in Luke's gospel as belonging to the priestly division of Abijah, one of priestly families assigned Temple ministry in 1 Chronicles 23-24. The evangelist states that both Zechariah and Elizabeth were righteous before God, strictly observing all of the traditional commandments and ordinances. Like many couples in the Hebrew Bible, however, their marriage was still childless. Elizabeth was barren and, like her husband, was advanced in years (Luke 1:5-7).

Encounter with Gabriel

Luke relates the Zechariah during his clan's turn to serve in Jerusalem, Zechariah was chosen by lot to "to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense." (1:9) Priestly duties at the Temple in Jerusalem alternated between each of the families that had descended from those appointed by King David (1 Chronicles 23:1-19). While priests were routinely allowed in the inner courtyard of the temple, to enter the building was a rare privilege. The offering of incense was one of the most solemn parts of the daily worship. Some experts believe that, owing to the large number of eligible priests, no priest could hope to perform the task more than once during his lifetime.

While Zechariah ministered at the golden altar of incense, an angel of God announced to him that his wife would give birth to a son, whom he was to name John, a strict Nazirite from birth who would fulfill the mission of the prophet Elijah as the forerunner of the long-expected Messiah.

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. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth. Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. (Luke 1:14-17).

Citing their advanced age, Zechariah asked for a sign whereby he would know the truth of this prophecy. The angel identified itself as the Archangel Gabriel, sent specially by God to make this announcement. He declared that because of Zechariah's doubt, he would be struck dumb and not able to speak until the day that these things happen. Consequently, when Zechariah went out to the waiting worshipers, he was unable to pronounce the customary blessing (Luke|1:18-22).

With Elizabeth and Mary

Zechariah returned home to the hill country of Judea, and Elizabeth indeed conceived a son. For five months she remained in seculsion, while Zechariah himself continued to be speechless. In the sixth month, Zechariah and Elizabeth received and apparently unexpected visit from Mary, Elizabeth's cousin. The young woman, who was betrothed to Joseph of Nazareth, remained in Zechariah's home until it became apparent that she, too was pregnant, around three months.

Lttle is said about the relations among the three resisdents of Zechariah's house. In Unification tradition, however, it is believed that Jesus was conceived during this period. She then returned to her betrothed husband in Nazareth.

The birth of John

Soon, Zechariah's son was born and eight days later the family gather for the traditional circumcision ceremony. Elizabeth declared that his name was to be John, but the family objected to this on the grounds that the name was not known be used by any of his ancestors. Zechariah, however, confirmed the name by writing on a tablet: His name is John. Miraculously, he regained the power of speech. Luke preserves Zechariah's ensuing prophecy:

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.

Some scholars believe this section of Zechariah's prophecy indicates that John the Baptist himself was its subject, being a descendant of David on Elizabeth's side and Jesus had not yet been born. In is known historically that John the Baptist had a wide following who continued to honor him as a possibly messianic figure even after his death. According to this theory, the Christian movement later appropriated traditions about John and subordinated them to Jesus. In any case the final prophecy of Zechariah makes it clear that John is not the Messiah himself, but his forerunner:

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. (Luke 1:60-79)

The child grew up and became strong in spirit, but nothing more is said of Zechariah.

Zechariah's death

A good deal of confusion exists about the death of Zechariah. In fact, it is not recorded in the Bible. However, a passage in the Gospel of Matthew quotes Jesus as refering to "Zechariah son of Berekiah," whom he identifies as having been "murdered between the (wall of the) temple and the (courtyard) altar." (Matthew 23:35) Some commentatators identify this Zechariah with Zechariah the father of John. However, this is clearly not the case, for "Zechariah son of Berekiah" is identified in the Old Testament as none other than the author of the Book of Zechariah who lived during the reing of Darius I of Persia in the fifth century B.C.E.

To make matters more confusing, Matthew (or Jesus) himself seems confused about the facts of the case. According to the Book of Chronicles, it was not Zechariah son of Berekiah who was killed by the altar in the temple courtyard, but "Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest" (2 Chronicles 24:20), who was "stoned to death in the courtyard of the Lord's temple" for opposing the king's tolerance of Asherah poles and idol worship.

Matthew 3:1) until he assumed his ministry (Luke 1:80) that was to earn him the name John the Baptist (sometimes translated Baptizer).

He is commemorated as a prophet in the Calendar of Saints of the Lutheran Church on September 5, as in the Eastern Orthodox church, the same day as his wife Elizabeth, who is considered as a matriarch. Islam also believes in the historic existence of Zechariah as the father of John the Baptist, though in Islam he is known as Zakariya, and Muslims regard him as one of the Prophets of Islam.

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