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VII.
THE BIRTH OF JOHN THE BAPTIST
Luke
1:57-80
Victor M.
Eskew
INTRODUCTION
A.
The announcements of two
births have been given. In this
section, we will be looking at the fulfillment of the promise with regard to the
birth of John the Baptist.
B.
Fill out the following
questions before we begin the class discussion.
a.
In Luke 1:57-64, four things
are fulfilled that had been told to Zacharias by the angel Gabriel. What are they? (See Luke
1:12-17).
A.
B.
C.
D.
b.
The word “fear” in Luke 1:65
means “alarm, fright, dread, or terror.”
Why would the events surrounding the birth of John produce these kinds of
feelings in those who heard of these things?
c.
Prepare a list of the things
Zacharias praised God for in Luke 1:68-75.
List at least 5 things.
There may be more than this in the passage.
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
C.
Outline
I. THE
DAY OF BIRTH (Luke 1:57-58).
A. The
Delivery (Luke 1:57)
B. The
Delight (Luke 1:58)
II.
THE DECISION FOR A NAME
(Luke 1:59-63)
A.
The Designation (Luke
1:59).
B.
The Declination (Luke
1:60-61)
C.
The Determination (Luke
1:62-63)
III.
THE DUMBNESS REMOVED (Luke
1:64-66)
A.
The Dialogue (Luke
1:64)
B.
The Dread (Luke
1:65)
C.
The Deliberation (Luke
1:66)
IV.
THE DISCOURSE BY ZACHARIAS
(Luke 1:67-79)
A.
The Derivation (Luke
1:67)
B.
The Declaration (Luke
1:68-79)
V.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF JOHN
(Luke 1:80)
I. THE
DAY OF BIRTH (Luke 1:57-58)
A. The
Delivery (Luke 1:57)
Now
1.
In her old age, Elisabeth
bore this child to the full-term of pregnancy.
2.
She gave birth to a
son.
a.
This was in fulfillment of
the angel’s promise (Luke 1:13).
b.
Lesson: God’s promises, regardless of how
puzzling or difficult they appear to us, will be brought to
fruition.
B. The
Delight (Luke 1:58)
And her
neighbors and her cousins heard how the Lord had shewed great mercy upon her;
and they rejoiced with her.
1.
Allowing Elisabeth to bear a
son was an example of God’s mercy.
a.
Mercy
(1656):
1)
Strong: compassion,
translated elsewhere as tender mercy
2)
Thayer: kindness or good
will toward the miserable and afflicted, joined with a desire to help
them
b.
Psalm 52:8; 86:15
But I am like a
green olive tree in the house of God:
I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever…But thou, O Lord, art a God
full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and
truth.
2.
This display of God’s mercy
caused her neighbors and cousins to rejoice with her.
a.
They were glad that she was now a mother. They also rejoiced in her safe delivery
at such an old age.
b.
This rejoicing was also predicted by Gabriel (Luke
1:14).
And thou shalt
have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his
birth.
II. THE DECISION FOR
A NAME (Luke 1:59-63)
A.
The Designation (Luke
1:59)
And it came to
pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they called
him Zacharias after the name of his father.
1.
Circumcision
a.
Circumcision had been commanded first to Abraham (Gen.
17:9-14).
b.
It was the sign of one’s being in a covenant relationship with
God.
2.
During the time of the circumcision, the male child was named. (The females were usually named when
they were weaned from their mother).
a.
This time was probably chosen because the name of Abram and Sarai were
changed when God gave the covenant of circumcision (Gen. 17:5,
15).
b.
As was the custom, they attempted to name the child after his father,
Zacharias.
1)
It was common to name one child after the father.
2)
Since this was going to be the one and only child of this couple, this
name seemed very appropriate.
B.
The Declination (Luke
1:60-61)
1.
The Refusal (Luke
1:60)
And his mother
answered and said, Not so; but he shall be called John.
a.
Gabriel had told Zacharias that the child’s name would be called John
(Luke 1:13).
b.
Zacharias had probably communicated this name to his wife
Elisabeth.
2.
The Rebuttal (Luke 1:61)
And they said
unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this
name.
a.
The Jewish custom was to
have at least ten family or friends present to witness the
circumcision.
b.
This group strongly
protested the name “John” because it was not found anywhere within their
genealogy.
C.
The Determination (Luke
1:62-63)
1.
The Reiteration (Luke
1:62-63a)
And they made
signs to his father, how he would have him called. And he asked for a writing table, and
wrote, saying, His name is John.
a.
Perhaps with some agitation, the group turned to Zacharias. The Greek indicates that they were
demanding of Zacharias: “What is
he?”
b.
They made signs to Zacharias which indicates that he was not only dumb,
but also deaf.
c.
They probably thought that the father would agree with them and desire to
name the child, Zacharias.
d.
He did not. He obeyed the
voice of the angel and confirmed the name “John.”
1)
The name means: Jehovah’s
gift.”
2)
Boles: “…it was fitting that
the harbinger of the new dispensation should have a name not found among his
natural connections…” (p. 39).
3)
Writing table:
a)
A small writing tablet covered with a light coat of
wax
b)
Used only here in the NT
c)
Used by medical writers of a physician’s notebook
2.
The reaction (Luke 1:63b)
And they
marveled all.
a.
Marveled (2296)
1)
Strong: to wonder, by
implication to admire
2)
Thayer: to wonder, marvel,
to be had in admiration
b.
Lesson: If a name is not
important, why couldn’t the name of Zacharias have been used instead of the name
of John? Wasn’t that just “a small
thing”?
III. THE DUMBNESS REMOVED
(Luke 1:64-66)
A.
Dialogue (Luke 1:64)
And his mouth
was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake, and praised
God.
1.
The angel had told John that his dumbness would continue until the day that these things shall be performed
(Luke 1:20).
2.
The child was now born and named.
Zacharias’ punishment was lifted and his tongue was
loosed.
3.
Boles: “The first use of his
recovered speech was not in complaint, nor in conversation with his wife or
friends, but in praising or blessing God.
He blessed God, not merely for himself, but for the child, and for what
God was about to do for his people by the Messiah and his forerunner” (p.
41).
B. Dread
(Luke 1:65)
And fear came on
all that dwelt round about them:
and all these sayings were raised abroad throughout all the hill country
of
1.
Fear (5401)
a.
Strong: “phobos”…to be put
in fear; alarm or fright
b.
Thayer: fear, dread, terror,
that which strikes terror
c.
It had been hundreds of years since miraculous events had happened in
2.
News of the events at the home of Zacharias began to circulate throughout
the hill country of
D.
Deliberation (Luke
1:66)
And all they
that heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, What manner of child shall
this be! And the hand of the Lord
was with him.
1.
The Jews realized that there
was something special about this child.
2.
Their eyes would now be upon
him.
3.
As they watched him develop,
they saw that “the hand of the Lord was upon him.” It what ways, we are not
told.
4.
NOTE: From texts like these, fanciful stories
developed about the life of John.
These, however, are only the figments of man’s
imagination.
IV. THE DISCOURSE BY
ZACHARIAS (Luke 1:67-79)
A.
The Derivation (Luke
1:67)
And his father
Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied,
saying…
1.
To be “filled” with the Holy
Ghost was to be filled with His power.
a.
This is a figure of speech known as a “metonymy,” specifically, a
“metonymy of the cause.” “A
Metonymy of the cause is used in Scripture, when the person acting is put for
the thing done, or the instrument by which a thing is done is put for the thing
effected, or when a thing or action is put for the effect produced by that
action” (seekfirstwisdom.com).
b.
The Holy Spirit was the cause of Zacharias’ ability to prophesy,
therefore, the Holy Spirit (the cause) was put for the power given to
Zaharias.
c.
This was a miraculous ability.
It involved the revelation of the divine will (See II Pet.
1:20-21).
Knowing this
first, that no prophecy of scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by
the will of man: but holy men of
God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
B.
The Declaration (Luke
1:68-79)
1.
Introduction
a.
Thus far, we have seen two special texts of scripture in Luke 1: The “Ave Maria” and “The
Magnificant.” Here, we are
introduced to a third. This is a
hymn called “The Benedictus.” The
word is taken from the term “blessed” that begins the hymn (Luke
1:68).
b.
“Its structure is a form of Hebrew poetry, and abounds in Hebrew idioms”
(Boles, 42).
c.
Speaking of Zacharias, McGarvey writes: “This his prophecy is the last of the
old dispensation and the first of the new, or Christian era” (p.
20).
d.
The hymn is divided into two parts:
1)
Recognition of God’s involvement in these events (Luke
1:69-75).
2)
Review of the mission of this newborn child, John (Luke
1:76-79).
2.
Recognition of God’s involvement in these events (Luke
1:69-75)
Blessed be the
Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people, and hath raised
up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David: as he spake by the mouth of his holy
prophets, which have been since the world began: that we should be saved from our
enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us; to perform the mercy promised to
our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant; the oath which he sware to our
father Abraham, that he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the
hand of our enemies might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness
before him, all the days of our life.
a.
Blessed (2128)
1)
Strong
a)
It is the word from which we get the term “eulogy.”
b)
Adorable
2)
Thayer: blessed,
praise
3)
Zacharias praises God for what He has done for
b.
There is a list of several things that God did:
1)
He hath visited and redeemed his people (Luke
1:68).
a)
Visited (1980):
-
Strong: to inspect…by
extension to go see, relieve
-
Thayer: to look upon,
inspect, examine with the eyes…to look upon in order to help or to
benefit
b)
Redeemed (3085):
-
Strong: a
ransoming
-
Thayer: a ransoming,
redemption
-
To redeem involved the purchasing of one’s release
-
This redemption was to come in the form of the blood of the Son of God
shed upon the cross of
2)
He hath raised up an horn of salvation in the house of David (Luke
1:69).
a)
Because of the great strength of the horned animals of the
b)
The horn of our salvation is Jesus Christ the Son of
God.
3)
He has fulfilled the words spoken by His holy prophets which were spoken
since the world began (Luke 1:70).
a)
As early as Genesis 3:15, God began to bring to pass His scheme of
redemption.
b)
Many holy prophets foretold of the days that were about to unfold (Heb.
1:1).
4)
He would save them from their enemies and from the hand of all who hated
them (Luke 1:71).
a)
This is a quote from Psalm 106:10.
b)
The salvation would be from spiritual enemies:
-
Satan (Heb. 2:14)
-
The evil agencies of Satan which wage warfare against the souls of men
(Eph. 6:12; Col. 2:15).
5)
He had shown mercy to the fathers by remembering His covenant, especially
his oath to Abraham (Luke 1:72-73).
See Genesis 12:3; 17:4; 22:16-17
6)
He had delivered them from their enemies that they might serve Him
without fear, in holiness and righteousness, all the days of their lives (Luke
1:74-75).
3.
Review of the mission of the new-born child, John (Luke
1:76-79)
And thou, child,
shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the
Lord to prepare his ways; to give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the
remission of sins, through the tender mercy of God; whereby the day spring from
on high hath visited us, to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the
shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.
a.
John would be called “the prophet” of the Highest.
1)
The people acknowledged John as a prophet (Matt.
21:26).
2)
Jesus also acknowledged John as a prophet (Matt.
11:9-11).
b.
There were two major components of his mission:
1)
He would go before the Lord to prepare His way (Luke 1:76). See Mal. 3:1; 4:5; Isa. 40:3; Matt.
3:3
2)
He would give knowledge of salvation (Luke 1:77).
a)
The Jews needed a proper knowledge of salvation.
b)
They needed understanding of sin and their need of delivery from
it.
c)
John’s mission, therefore, involved the preaching of the remission of
sins by means of baptism (Mark 1:4).
John did baptize
in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of
sins.
d)
This salvation came through the tender mercy of
God.
1)
It involved “the day spring from on high.”
-
Day spring: the rising of
the sun, or “the dawn of a heavenly day”
-
The prophets loved to picture Messiah’s advent as a sunrise (Isa. 9:2;
60:1-3; Mal. 4:2).
-
Christ’s coming was the dawn of a new day for
2)
This “day spring” would shine and do two things:
-
Give light to them that sat in darkness and in the shadow of
death.
+
Night signaled the time when animals stalked their
prey
+
Travelers in the Judean mountains often waited for the light of day lest
they should lose their lives by a false step taken in
darkness.
-
Guide their feet in the way of peace. The “way” of peace is found through
Jesus Christ (John 14:6) and His gospel (Acts 10:36).
The word which
God sent unto the children of
V. THE
DEVELOPMENT OF JOHN (Luke 1:80)
And the child
grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his
shewing in
A. This
verse spans 30 years of time.
B. “’The
child grew’ in a physical, mental, and spiritual sense; he was gradually fitted
for the great work of preaching repentance to a wicked nation” (Boles,
46).
C.
Was in the
deserts:
1.
Deserts:
a.
Sparsely inhabited districts of southeast
b.
In I Samuel 23:19, this region is called Jeshimon or “the
Horror.”
2.
Some believe that John’s parents died while he was young and that he
became a part of the
3.
He remained in the desert until “his showing” unto
a.
Showing (323): public
announcement of an official nomination
b.
The day when he began his public ministry in
…the word of God
came unto John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness. And he came into all the country about