1v5-7: — In the time of Herod ^• king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. Both of them were upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord's command-ments and regulations blamelessly. But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren; and they were both well on in years.

One of the distinguishing features of Luke's Gospel is the attention he pays to ordinary people. Here he focuses his literary lights on an old couple ("they were both well on in years") living in the closing years of Herod the Great, king of Judea since 40 BC. Herod died a painful death in 4 BC; his family cared little to mourn his passing, and the Jews he ruled hated him.1 Herod's death, however, is—in the setting of the present story—still another four or five years in the future.3

We cannot ascertain exactly what Luke means when he speaks of Zechariah and Elizabeth as being "well on in years." Is this expression to be understood in terms relative to their ability to bear children? Or was he quite literal, i.e., that they were in the range of, say, late 40s to 50?2 If it was the latter, as is likely, then Zechariah and Elizabeth would have seen much that would have chilled the spirit of any God-fearing person. They would have learned as little children about the horror of the office of the high-priest being decided by who could pay the higher bribe. Of brothers fighting one another tooth and nail for the office, of turning to foreigners (Syrians and Romans) for help to secure it, and ending up with the Roman general Pompey marching into Jerusalem and demanding to enter the Holy of Holies to satisfy his curiosity of what all the fuss was about. As adolescent or young adults they would have witnessed their high-priest, Hyrcanus, being captured by the invading Parthians and having his ears bitten off so that, mutilated, he could no longer serve as high-priest. They would had seen how their Jewish nation had slipped from their mooring and its govenmnet taken over by the Idumeans (ancient Edomites), of whom Herod the Great was the most famous (or notorious). Yes, they would have witnessed the incredible refurnishing of the temple complex in Jerusalem all paid for by Herod to keep the people happy. But they would also have recognized the corruption and superficiality of all the religious busyness around them. They would have been stunned to see how, in a rage of meaningless jealousy, Herod had put to death his wife Mariamme, the granddaughter of Hyrcanus. Just about now, or soon after, where Luke begins his narrative, they would be witnessing—and horrified in its witness—Herod putting to death his two sons by Mariamme, suspicious that they were plotting against him for the throne.

What were they to do in times like this? Well, they chose to do what was right with God. Zechariah—his name means 'Yahweh remembers'—chose to marry a woman belonging to the line of Aaron, as priests ideally should. They lived "observing all the Lord's commandments and regulations blamelessly." The Greek sentence here uses an OT expression; "walking in all the commandments and regulations of the Lord". Zechariah and Elizabeth "walked" their talk. It is noted, additionally, that in their moral character, they were "upright in the sight of God." From the biblical perspective, this was the highest praise that could be said of any person.

"But they had no children." They must have looked forward to having children; it was the stuff of Jewish married life to "be fruitful and multiply." They would have been blessed at their wedding by guests and friends, as Boaz was blessed when he took Ruth to be his wife, "Through the offspring the Lord gives you by this young woman, may your family be like that of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah" (Ruth 4:12). But Zechariah seemed to have been forgotten by God. And now "they were both well in years." How they must have been horrified with incomprehensibility that Herod could contemplate putting his sons to death! How their hearts must have ached the lonely emptyness that is the curse of being barren in ancient times, and especially in a society where offsprings are the clear signs of divine blessing and approval. It would have been easier, we can be sure, if Zechariah was not a priest. But he was. He would have had countlessly blessed young couples on their weddings that God would bless them with children. He would countlessly also have seen his prayers for them answered; these young couples with their bundles of joy afterwards; thanks to his prayer. God works wonders. God works miracle. Only not for Zechariah, the man God seems to have forgotten. Little wonder that the circle of faith in which he stood became smaller and smaller until there was no space left in it for an angel when it did come to him. Disappointments have a habit of doing that to us.

The circle of faith in which we stand often becomes smaller and smaller until there is no space left in it for an angel
even when it comes.
Disappointments have a habit
of doing that to us.
Don't let them.