Post by Admin on Nov 21, 2019 20:14:18 GMT
The scripture reading for the night’s discussion was pretty long, so we spent only a moment considering our reactions to modern instances of post-menopausal women getting pregnant and successfully delivering a healthy child. The full story of the experiences of John the Baptist’s parents is rarely considered in detail. We might recall the part where the Zacharias is made mute after questioning the angel who portends John’s birth, and that he could speak again once he confirmed the new baby’s name; maybe we remember that he and his wife were older. We rarely delve into the rich details of the story.
To start, we noted Luke’s intro to this story, actually to his entire gospel story. Luke emphasizes the testimony of witnesses to prove the truth of Jesus’ life and ministry, and in this story, we read not only Zacharias and Elizabeth’s personal testimony, we see throughout the observations and reactions of the people around them. The preliminary preparation for Christ’s mission to earth, as well as his life, ministry, death, and resurrection, aren’t secret events, they are seen and experienced by many who witness to the truth.
We took the story in two parts, first the set-up and Zacharias’ encounter with Gabriel, secondly the resulting birth, circumcision, and Zacharias’ song of prophecy. After considering the gospel’s characterization that Zacharias and Elizabeth were righteous and followed the law, we also balanced that with the fact that they were small town, not prominent leaders, and probably looked down upon since they were childless. Much discussion revolved around Gabriel (“no-nonsense,” and no sense of humor!) and his message and Zacharias’ response, all of which are told by necessity from Zacharias’ point of view. We felt that Gabriel had made very clear who he was and how he was conveying God’s gift (so dearly prayed for, maybe even up to this day of old age), even before he summed up in verse 19 and then lowered the boom on Zacharias, making him mute. Various translations convey Zacharias’ doubting question (verse 18) in more respectful or more scoffing ways – again, since he is telling the story it’s possible he was very challenging. We absolutely felt empathy for Zacharias' uncertainty, particularly in light of no contact like this from God in 400 years. In any event, we came to wonder if muting Zacharias was, in addition to proof of Gabriel’s power, a way to present Zacharias from eroding belief in the vision and pronouncement by talking himself out of it.
There were many other aspects of the story that felt new. Elizabeth hid her pregnancy for five months, perhaps to be sure she would keep the baby before making the blessing public, perhaps for concern that people would think something inappropriate had transpired (she and he were barren before, what changed – why did they not want to take Zacharias’ name for the baby???). The song of prophecy that Zacharias sings was interesting to break down, particularly given that this entire episode, from Gabriel’s message to the song of Zacharias, constituted God’s breaking 400 years of silence. Something, indeed, was finally happening.
To start, we noted Luke’s intro to this story, actually to his entire gospel story. Luke emphasizes the testimony of witnesses to prove the truth of Jesus’ life and ministry, and in this story, we read not only Zacharias and Elizabeth’s personal testimony, we see throughout the observations and reactions of the people around them. The preliminary preparation for Christ’s mission to earth, as well as his life, ministry, death, and resurrection, aren’t secret events, they are seen and experienced by many who witness to the truth.
We took the story in two parts, first the set-up and Zacharias’ encounter with Gabriel, secondly the resulting birth, circumcision, and Zacharias’ song of prophecy. After considering the gospel’s characterization that Zacharias and Elizabeth were righteous and followed the law, we also balanced that with the fact that they were small town, not prominent leaders, and probably looked down upon since they were childless. Much discussion revolved around Gabriel (“no-nonsense,” and no sense of humor!) and his message and Zacharias’ response, all of which are told by necessity from Zacharias’ point of view. We felt that Gabriel had made very clear who he was and how he was conveying God’s gift (so dearly prayed for, maybe even up to this day of old age), even before he summed up in verse 19 and then lowered the boom on Zacharias, making him mute. Various translations convey Zacharias’ doubting question (verse 18) in more respectful or more scoffing ways – again, since he is telling the story it’s possible he was very challenging. We absolutely felt empathy for Zacharias' uncertainty, particularly in light of no contact like this from God in 400 years. In any event, we came to wonder if muting Zacharias was, in addition to proof of Gabriel’s power, a way to present Zacharias from eroding belief in the vision and pronouncement by talking himself out of it.
There were many other aspects of the story that felt new. Elizabeth hid her pregnancy for five months, perhaps to be sure she would keep the baby before making the blessing public, perhaps for concern that people would think something inappropriate had transpired (she and he were barren before, what changed – why did they not want to take Zacharias’ name for the baby???). The song of prophecy that Zacharias sings was interesting to break down, particularly given that this entire episode, from Gabriel’s message to the song of Zacharias, constituted God’s breaking 400 years of silence. Something, indeed, was finally happening.