WEEK THREE INTRODUCTION
TITLE: ZECHARIAH’S SONG: THE BENEDICTUS
Luke 1:67–79
December 12–18

Now Zachariah was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying:

“Blessed is the Lord God of Israel,
For He has visited and redeemed His people,
And has raised up a horn of salvation for us
In the house of His servant David,
As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets,
Who have been since the world began,
That we should be saved from our enemies
And from the hand of all who hate us,
To perform the mercy promised to our fathers
And to remember His holy covenant,
The oath which He swore to our father Abraham:
To grant us that we,
Being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
Might serve Him without fear,
In holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest;
For you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways,
To give knowledge of salvation to His people
By the remission of their sins,
Through the tender mercy of our God,
With which the Dayspring from on high has visited us;
To give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death,
To guide our feet into the way of peace.”

The angel Gabriel appeared to Zechariah with the news that his wife Elizabeth would bear the forerunner of our Lord. While Elizabeth and Mary with unwavering faith fully embraced the announcements and miracles they were the recipients of, the priest Zechariah found it difficult to believe. So the angel struck him mute and deaf until John the Baptist was born. Nine months of silent listening and learning from God resulted in a Spirit-filled torrent of praise to God once his tongue was loosened. While Mary’s Canticle focuses on God’s new, upside-down kingdom, Zechariah’s Canticle emphasizes the Messiah’s spiritual deliverance as a continuation of God’s ancient covenant with Israel. “The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save” (Zephaniah 3:17).

Zechariah’s Canticle is divided into two parts. The first part of the song talks about God’s promises and their fulfillment to his chosen people. The second part of the canticle describes the relationship between John the Baptist and God’s Savior, Jesus Christ. Zechariah quotes from a variety of Old Testament prophets. The “Horn of Salvation” Zechariah proclaims, is one who seems to be incomprehensible without an understanding of the Old Testament. God is now honoring his covenant with Abraham: “In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:3). Author Walter Wangerin writes, “Abraham and Sarah once introduced a fresh covenant between God and the earth, so Zechariah and Elizabeth now introduce the final covenant of grace, and the lines between them run unbroken. All history is, like a woman in labor, concentrating on this single, central event: the coming of the Son of God among us.”

Day 15 - Sunday, December 12
Title: ANSWERED PRAYER
Scripture: Luke 1:5-13, 19-22

There was in the days of Herod, the King of Judea, a certain priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years.

So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division, according to the custom of the priesthood, his lot fell to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. And the whole multitude of the people was praying outside at the hour of incense. Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And when Zechariah saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.

But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son. And the angel answered and said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and was sent to speak to you and bring you these glad tidings. But behold, you will be mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their own time.”

And the people waited for Zechariah, and marveled that he lingered so long in the temple. But when he came out, he could not speak to them; and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple, for he beckoned to them and remained speechless.

Poetry:
from For Unfruitful Land
by Anonymous 
after S.A.J.’s translation

                 Let the plough be driven 
 Forwards and the first furrow opened up. Say, 

“Hale may you be, earth, mother of mortals.
Grow pregnant in the embrace of God, 
Filled with food for mortals’ use.” 

Then take flour of every short, let a loaf
Be baked as big as the hollow of your hands.
Knead it with milk and with holy water,
And lay it under the first furrow. Say,

“Field full of food for humankind, 
Brightly burgeoning, may you be blessed 
In the holy name of him who 
Shaped the sky and earth on which we live. 
The God who wrought the depths 
Grant us increasing grace,
So that each kind of corn may turn out to our profit.”

THE GIFT OF SILENCE

The response of Gabriel to Zechariah has always puzzled me—why strike Zechariah mute for his unbelief?  Why would an imposed silence be an appropriate response to Zechariah’s understandably startled and hesitant reaction?  At first glance, it feels almost punitive.  After all, can we blame the priest for being “troubled” and fearful after unexpectedly encountering a divine being?  Furthermore, when Zechariah questions, “How can I be sure of this?” in verse 18, this seems to be such a human response—who wouldn’t be reluctant to embrace the promise of an heir after years of praying and receiving no answer?

As I reflect on this passage more, however, I wonder if Zechariah being struck mute (and deaf) is less of a rebuke and more of a gift. Verse 6 characterizes both Zechariah and Elizabeth as “righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.” We also know that they longed fervently for children. Like the hymns for today’s reading, Zechariah and Elizabeth probably also cried out, “Hear our prayer, O Lord;/incline thine ear to us” and “Pass me not, O gentle Savior,/Hear my humble cry.” Their cries to be heard and seen parallel the speaker in the poem, who also supplicates passionately for a fruitful harvest. Yet Zechariah’s immediate reaction to Gabriel’s prophecy suggests that he may have lost hope and allowed this long-cherished dream to wither. I wonder if Zechariah illustrates for us how it is possible to be walking faithfully with the Lord and yet still have pockets of our inner lives  remain impervious to belief and faith. We may believe in God’s working in many areas of our life but there is still that one thing where we live as functional atheists.      

After all, it is no small feat to persevere in asking and waiting on God. Zechariah might have noted when Elizabeth’s age was nearing the point where it would truly be physically impossible for her to bear children. Maybe his prayers faded then.  Perhaps to all others he was serving diligently in his priestly duties but deep within him remained this secret pain, a place where the light of God could not penetrate. Thus when Gabriel finally addresses this wound directly, Zechariah’s response is initially that of trouble and fear, which typifies what it means to allow God into the place of intense disappointment, grief, and pain.

By striking him mute, God, through Gabriel, actually offers Zechariah the gift of deep healing. In removing the noise of the external world and his ability to speak, God grants Zechariah silence and stillness to face his pain and disappointment with God. God gives Zechariah nine months to process the past and future in light of this culminating promise. Most importantly, it enables Zechariah to recalibrate his understanding of who God is. The pronouncement of a son bestowed to Zechariah is more than simply a long-cherished desire or prayer fulfilled; it is also a picture of God seeing Zechariah in his place of pain and initiating the process of healing. This dynamic is also suggested by artist Alexander Andreyevich Ivanov in his 1824 painting, which depicts the encounter between angel and priest as one where Gabriel reaches out his hand toward Zechariah, as if to place it on his shoulder. Zechariah’s outstretched hands signals his receptivity to Gabriel, as if humbly acknowledging that the necessary internal transformation within him must be marked outwardly as muteness.

Are there such places in your heart that you have also buried and allowed to wither?  Which disappointments, hurts, or painful experiences do you need to acknowledge and allow the empathic presence of God to heal? 

Prayer:
Jesus, help us to make space for silence and stillness so that you can speak into the deepest recesses of our heart that need your healing touch.  Allow us to truly experience you as Immanuel, “God with us,” even in our pain and disappointments. 
Amen.

Devotion Author:
Dr. Maria Su Wang
Associate Professor of English
Biola University

For more information about the artwork, music, poetry, and devotional writer selected for this day, we have provided resources under the “About” tab located next to the “Devotional” tab. 

Please note that today there are three short songs that will play in succession one after another.