Gabriel Appears to Zechariah

In the days of Herod, the king of Judea, there was a certain priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah. His wife, Elizabeth, was a descendant of Aaron. They both were righteous in the sight of God. And they walked blamelessly in all the commandments and decrees of the Lord. But they had no children because Elizabeth was barren. And they both were advanced in years. 

One day, while Zechariah's priestly division was on duty, and Zechariah was serving as priest before God, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And at that hour, all the people were praying outside.

Just then, an angel of the Lord appeared to Zechariah, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw the angel, he was startled and gripped with fear.

But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for 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 at his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. He will turn many children of Israel 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.”

But Zechariah, though a priest, and speaking with an angel, had doubts. He asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well along in years.”

At that, the angel replied, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. But now you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things come to pass because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled at their proper time.”

Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he took so long in the temple. When Zechariah came out and was unable to speak to them, they realized he had seen a vision in the temple. He kept making signs to them but remained speechless. And when the days of his priestly service were complete, he returned home.

Soon afterward, his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion. In her joy, Elizabeth declared, “The Lord has done this for me. In these days He has shown me favor and taken away my disgrace among the people.”

(See Luke 1:5-25)

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