The Advent of John the Baptist, Pt. 3
Naming John & Zachariah's Great Praise, Pt. 1
Grace Fellowship Church
Pastor/Teacher, Jim Rickard
The Gospel of Luke
II. The Identification of the Son of Man
with Men, Luke 1:5-4:13.
C. The Advent of John the Baptist, vs. 57-80.
1. The Birth of John and rejoicing, vs. 57-58.
2. The Circumcision and Naming of John, vs. 59-66.
3. Zachariah’s Proclamation and Prophecy, vs. 67-80.
2. The Circumcision and Naming of
John, vs. 59-66, Pt. 2.
Now at this
point, (after vs. 64), Luke could
have gone on to give us Zachariah’s great proclamation found in vs. 67-79, and in fact, the “speaking,” LALEO, Luke references in
this verse, is just that. But, before Luke gives us the proclamation, He tells
us of the impact all of this had on Zachariah’s relatives, neighbors, and those
living in the surrounding region in vs.
65-66.
In vs. 65, as a result of Zachariah’s
healing and speech, “fear,” PHOBOS,
“came on all those living around them,”
using the Verb PERIOIKEO, “dwell around,”
which is only used here in the NT, as we noted the Adjective in vs. 58. We could say, “their
neighbors,” which is the group we noted in vs.
58.
Yet, this
“fear” reached even more people than did the previous rejoicing of their
neighbors, as it included all those living in the “hill country of Judea,” ORIENOS HO IOUDAIA, of which ORIENOS,
“hilly or mountainous,” is only used here and in vs. 39, in the NT, as we noted previously. The reaction of those
gathered was one of a deep reverence and awe at what God had done, cf. Luke 5:26; 7:16; Acts 2:43; 5:11; 19:17.
The phrase, “being talked of,” is the Progressive
Imperfect, Passive, Indicative of the Verb DIALALEO that means, “discuss or
converse together,” that is only used here and Luke 6:11. In Luke 6:11,
it is used for the Pharisees plotting to get rid of Jesus, so it carries
somewhat of a negative connotation of “continuous talk back and forth between
people.” We do not see the rejoicing here by the people, but more of a
perplexity as to what was going on, as also seen in vs. 66. Nevertheless, we do see in their hearts a respect and awe
at what God was doing.
Another
important Lukan theme begins to appear in this verse, i.e., miracles as
catalysts for the proclamation of the good news, “Luke 2:17; 4:37; 5:15; 7:17; 8:39; etc.” This event had moved the
people deeply. Their awe over what had happened to Zachariah and Elizabeth
caused them to commit these things to their memory and speak about them to
others.
“Kept in mind” in the Greek says, “laid
up in their heart.” This is an idiom meaning, “to store information in the
mind, with the implication of its being valuable.” Mary would later respond in
a similar way at Jesus’ response to her and Joseph when they found Him in the
temple, Luke 2:51. Hopefully, the
people of the hill country of Judea were cycling this doctrine in the right
lobe of their souls. The question they were pondering was, “What then will this child turn out to be?” Luke used PAIDION
for “child” that means, “young child or infant,” and the Future, Middle
Deponent, Indicative of EIMI, for “will
be?” This reflects that they were not quite sure what this child would do
or accomplish, maybe only in detail, but still understanding he was to be the
forerunner to the Christ.
Principle: When you receive the Word of God, it
should cause you to want to delve further into it, with a desire to know more.
Questioning is not a sign of unbelief. It may be if the questioner has an
attitude of antagonism. Yet, those who question typically have a heart and desire
to know more, which God will provide to those who are positive in their
volition.
Then we have
Luke’s closing comment, which hopefully was also in the heart of the people of
the hill country. It was, “for the hand
of the Lord was certainly with him.”
Cf. Acts 11:21; 13:11; Ezek 1:3; 3:14,
22, as the “hand of the Lord,”
CHEIR KURIOS, was the Greek translation of a common OT phrase. It is only used
three times in the NT, here and in Acts
11:21; 13:11. This means that the demonstrated power of God was with John
the Baptist for all to see and know, and that God had a plan for his life. This
is also true of every believer. God’s power is available for you 24/7, and He
definitely has a plan for your life!
3. Zachariah’s Proclamation and
Prophecy, vs. 67-80.
This the
Zachariah’s great psalm of praise as to what God was doing through Mary’s son
and his own. In vs. 67, like his
wife Elizabeth in vs. 41, we see
that he had the enduement of the Holy Spirit, (PLETHO PNEUMA HAGIOS), which is
the temporary empowering, enabling ministry of God the Holy Spirit for Jewish
Dispensation saints. With this empowerment, he “prophesied,” the Verb PROPHETEUŌ προφητεύω that means, “prophesy,
speak by Divine inspiration, foretell the future, or be a prophet.” It is used
about 30 times in the NT to mean, “proclaim a revelation or message received
from God.” Here, it was the message of
the coming Messiah and His forerunner.
In vs. 68, "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for He has visited us and
accomplished redemption for His people.” Zachariah begins by praising God,
just as we all should begin our prayers or psalms with praise to God. Here, Luke
used the Adjective EULOGETOS that means, “blessed or praised.” The object of
his praise is, “the Lord God of Israel,”
KURIOS HO THEOS ISRAEL. He then states the reason for this praise, which is
also the main principle that runs throughout the proclamation, “He visited us and accomplished redemption
for His people.”
This “visited,” is not directly speaking of
the First Advent of Jesus Christ, per se. It is speaking more of the mercy that
God has had and is now displaying towards man. It is the Greek Verb
EPISKEPTOMAI, ἐπισκέπτομαι that means “look for, inspect, visit, look after,
etc.,” that is also used in vs. 78,
for “visit.” Here, it is referencing God the Father
“looking down on” or “inspecting” man and finding him wanting due to sin.
Because of this need and God’s great mercy, He will provide a Savior in His Son
that is emphasized throughout this psalm of praise, as we see in vs. 78.
Then we see
what God will do, “accomplished
redemption,” that uses the Aorist, Active, Indicative of the Verb POIEO
meaning, “the work” of God “completed.” The work that God had
completed was “redemption,” the payment of our sins.
It is
wonderful how Zachariah praised God from a past tense view point, even though
God was just now sending the Savior and His forerunner into the world.
Zachariah knew of and proclaimed God’s great plan of salvation through
redemption from the view point of God’s perspective; omniscience. Zachariah was
viewing it from the view point of eternity past, as already being completed or
accomplished, just as God views it as completed from the foundation of the
world, cf. Heb 4:3; 9:26; 1 Peter 1:20;
Eph 1:4.
Heb 4:3, “For we who have believed
enter that rest, just as He has said, ‘As I swore in My wrath, they shall not
enter My rest,’ although His works were finished from the foundation of the
world.”
Heb 9:26, “Otherwise, He would have
needed to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now once at the
consummation of the ages He has been manifested to put away sin by the
sacrifice of Himself.”
1 Peter 1:20, “For He was foreknown
before the foundation of the world, but has appeared in these last times for
the sake of you.”
Eph 1:4, “Just as He chose us in Him
before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before
Him, in love.”
Zachariah was
now standing in great faith, as opposed to his previous doubting
unfaithfulness. He learned a lot about God and His great plan during his time
of silence.
“Redemption,” is the Noun LUTROSIS that
means, “release, deliverance, or redemption.” It comes from LUTROO, which means,
“to release by paying a ransom or to redeem.” LUTROO is from the root LUO, a
primary verb meaning, “to loose, to release, or to dissolve.” So, LUTROSIS
comes to mean, “a ransoming, a redemption.” It is only used here and Luke 2:38; Heb 9:12.
Heb 9:12, “And not through the blood
of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once
for all, having obtained eternal redemption.”
No comments:
Post a Comment