His wife was the Righteous Elizabeth, it was thought that she was unable to bear children.
One day when Zachariah was in the temple an angel of the Lord appeared before him
and told him that his aged wife would bear a son who "will be great in the sight of the
Lord (Luke 1 : 15) and will go before him in the spirit and power of Elias" (Luke 1:17).
The prophet doubted that this prediction would come true and for his weakness of faith
he was punished by becoming mute.
When Elizabeth gave birth to a son, through the inspiration
of the holy spirit, she announced that his name was John, although no one in their family
had this name.
When Zachariah was asked he wrote down the name of John on a tablet..
Immediately the gift of speech was returned to him, and inspired by the holy spirit he
began to prophesy about his son as the forerunner of the Lord.
.
King Herod knew about John's unusual birth, fearing that he was the foretold King of the Jews he ordered
the killing of all the boys born about that time.
When Elizabeth heard this she hid herself and the infant in the hills, The murderers searched
everywhere for John to no avail.
When they were getting near to Elizabeth she implored God for their safety, and immediately the hill opened up and concealed her and the infant from their pursuers.
During these tragic days St Zachariah was taking services in the temple when Herod's soldiers slaughtered him because he wouldn't reveal the whereabouts of his son.
Elizabeth died forty days after her husband and St. John, preserved by the Lord, dwelt in the wilderness until the day of his appearance to the nation of Israel.
It was said that he existed on honey and locust.
 |
| St John the infant. |
 |
| St John preaching to the people of Israel. |
My thanks to Denise and Roger and all the helpers for keeping the ZESTY ABCW going from strength to strength!
Happy New Year,
Nice piece of seasonal history.
ReplyDeleteROG, ABCW
I have a picture in my mind of John the Baptist calling from a far hill at the Passion Play we attended in Drumheller, Alberta. His words were distinct and audible even from that distance and I wondered at the time if the real John the Baptist reached as many people with his message.
ReplyDeleteNicely summarized for my education.
ReplyDeleteFRANKLY MY DEAR
A happy new year to you too!
ReplyDeleteHistory out of the bible, interesting !
ReplyDeleteGattina
ABC Wednesday
Interesting information.
ReplyDeleteRoger: I like to read parts of the Bible now and then, after reading up about Zachariah I now have my bible by my side and intend to read part of it each day.
ReplyDeleteIt's so uplifting particularly about John the Baptist preparing the people for the coming of Christ.
best wishes,
Di. x
Hildred
ReplyDeleteThe Passion plays held in Drumheller Alberta Canada are world renown, how wonderful for you to be able to witness one.
In Oberammergau, a village in Bavaria, Germany, the residents stage The Passion every ten years, the last one was in 2010, who know I may be able to see it in 2020, even if it's only on TV!
It says in the book of John 1:23 that 'John's voice was a lone voice in the wilderness'.
I guess he would need a pretty loud voice to call for all sinners to repent and be baptised in the River Jordan, as you mentioned remembering him having a particularly loud voice.
Best wishes,
Di. x
Photo Cache:
ReplyDeleteGattina:
Rajesg:
Thank you for stopping by and you kind comments,
Best wishes,
Di.xx
Hi Thud,
ReplyDeleteLovely to hear from you again,
Happy New Year to you and your fab family, I bet things are quieter now Mr Ho ho ho! has been and, gone back to Lapland, for a long well earned rest!
Best wishes,
Di xx
Fascinating story about Zachariah. Lyndon has customers coming from far afield for his tripe offering.
ReplyDeleteHi Gerald, glad you liked the story
ReplyDeleteI must go to Lyndon for some of his tripe I just love it!
best wishes,
Di.
ABCW scene.
I always like the bit about him eating honey and locusts in the desert.
ReplyDeleteNever knew this. Very interesting post.
ReplyDeleteHappy ABCW!
Happy New Year!
Thanks for reminding me of this beautiful story. Blessings!
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year to you :-)
ReplyDeleteCabbage tree: a source of food, particularly in the South Island, where it was cultivated in areas where other crops would not grow. It provided durable fibre for textiles, anchor ropes, fishing lines, baskets, waterproof rain capes and cloaks, and sandals.
ReplyDeleteHi Ann, Chen Jie Xue:
ReplyDeleteThat is so interesting about The Cabbage Tree so many uses too! how is it cooked? It sounds as if it could be quite tough.
Thank you for your comments, Best wishes.
Di..
ABCW team xx
Hi Cherie,
ReplyDeleteAll good wishes to you for 2015,
Di.xx
ABCW team.