Zechariah and Elizabeth

Biblical Account

The couple appears in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 1. During the reign of Herod over Judea, Zechariah was a priest of the division of Abijah, one of the groups of priests who served in the temple in rotation. His wife, Elizabeth, was a descendant of Aaron. Scripture describes both as righteous before God and blameless, yet it also records that Elizabeth was barren and that they had no children even in their old age (Luke 1:5–7).

Zechariah was chosen by lot to burn incense in the Temple in Jerusalem, and while he was doing so, the angel Gabriel appeared to him. The angel told him that his prayer had been heard and that his wife would bear a son, whom he was to name John (Luke 1:13). Zechariah asked how he could know this, since he and his wife were old. Because he did not believe the angel's words, he was made unable to speak until they were fulfilled (Luke 1:18–20). Afterward Elizabeth conceived and kept herself hidden for five months.

In the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy, her relative Mary came to visit after receiving the Annunciation, the angel's announcement that she would conceive Jesus. At that moment the child in Elizabeth's womb leaped, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, blessed Mary, saying, "Blessed art thou among women" (Luke 1:41–42). When the child was circumcised on the eighth day, the relatives wanted to name him after his father. Elizabeth said he was to be called John, and Zechariah wrote on a writing tablet, "His name is John." At once his mouth was opened, and, filled with the Holy Spirit, he sang a song of prophecy (Luke 1:59–79). Luke 3:2 refers to John the Baptist as "John the son of Zacharias."

Significance Within Scripture

Luke opens his Gospel with this couple's story, linking the priestly tradition of the Old Testament with the coming of the Messiah. The account of an elderly, childless couple receiving a son of promise is often compared with the stories of Abraham and Sarah and of Hannah. The angel declared that John would go before the Lord "in the spirit and power of Elias" (Luke 1:17), that is, of Elijah, recalling the prophecy of Malachi 4:5–6.

Interpretation and Issues

• Zechariah's silence: Interpreters differ on why Zechariah lost his speech while Mary, who asked a similar question, was not punished. A common explanation is that Zechariah demanded proof, whereas Mary asked how it would come about. Some interpreters, citing the verse in which people made signs to him (Luke 1:62), hold that he was made deaf as well.
• The Song of Zechariah: The song in Luke 1:68–79 is called the Benedictus, from its first word in Latin. The Catholic Church and the Anglican tradition sing it regularly in their morning prayer.
• Elizabeth's blessing: Elizabeth's words to Mary are included in the Catholic Hail Mary. Protestants read the passage as Scripture but do not use it as a prayer.
• Traditions outside the biblical text: The second-century apocryphal Protoevangelium of James relates that Zechariah was killed in the temple for refusing to reveal his son's whereabouts. Another tradition identifies the couple's home, "a city of Juda" in "the hill country" (Luke 1:39), as Ein Karem near Jerusalem. Neither account appears in the biblical text. The Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church commemorate the couple as saints.
• Spelling of the name: Korean Bible translations spell Zechariah's name differently. The Korean Common Translation renders it Jeugariya, and the Korean Catholic Bible renders it Jeukareuya.

In the Korean Church

Korean churches frequently take up this story around Advent and Christmas, together with the birth of John the Baptist. The words "thy prayer is heard" (Luke 1:13) are often cited in sermons on long-awaited answers to prayer. Sunday schools also teach the couple's story when presenting the birth of John the Baptist.