and faithfulness on Israel’s part. Second, because God remembers his promise to Israel’s ancestors, his mercy is a sustaining grace that stretches from generation to generation. Despite Israel’s sufferings and faithlessness then and now, the people continue to trust that YHWH remembers them and his promises to them (1:54–55). Third, God has the power to save. The exodus is the paradigmatic event of God’s deliverance of his people. Through the time of the judges, the kings, the exile, and the post-exilic period, Israel continued to experience God’s help when their enemies came upon them. Israel was lowly, oppressed, afflicted, and weak, but God always came through. God’s past acts of deliverance form the basis of Israel’s hope for future salvation.
Mary depicts God as the divine warrior who shows strength with his arm (1:49, 51), exercising justice as he extends mercy (Exod 6:6; cf. Deut 4:34; Ps 77:15). He liberates those who need deliverance and punishes those who deserve condemnation. On the one hand, the lowly, the poor, the oppressed, and the underprivileged are lifted up. On the other hand, the proud, the rich, the arrogant, and the powerful are brought down.40 The reversal levels the playing field. While the historical backdrop of the song comprised actual wars that God fought for Israel, Mary is expressing a hope that transcends nationalism and militarism (1:51–52). She envisions a subversion of socio-economic power structures toward mutuality and equality, as expressed in the chiastic arrangement of verses 52 and 53:
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
and lifted up the lowly;
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty.
But that is not all. The polarities between power and lowliness, hungry and rich, and so on, have a spiritual dimension. The lowly ones who earnestly seek after God will enter the kingdom, and those with power and an inflated sense of self-righteousness will be denied (cf. 5:29–32; 6:20–25; 18:9–14). The theme of reversal will continue to play out in the mission, teaching, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Mary and Elizabeth are poised at the cusp of change. Their supernatural conceptions testify that God is setting in motion his final act of salvation by sending the Davidic Messiah and his forerunner. Not only does this song provide assurance, it engenders hope that defies even the uncontested power of Rome.
The scene ends with a statement that moves the timeline toward the next important event, the birth of John. If Mary remains with Elizabeth for another three months, it is possible that she stays long enough to be present at the next scene (1:56a). Then Mary returns to her father’s house (1:56b), still a virgin betrothed to Joseph, bearing the Son of God in her womb. How heavy a responsibility that is for a young maiden to carry!
Song of Zechariah (1:57–80)
The announcement of John’s birth takes us back to Gabriel’s appearance to Zechariah (1:57–58). Gabriel’s prophecy that Elizabeth “will bear a son” (gennēsei huion, 1:13) is now fulfilled. Luke uses near-identical language here: “she bore a son” (egennēsen huion, 1:57). Gabriel predicted that Zechariah “will have joy (chara) and gladness, and many will rejoice (charēsontai) at [his son’s] birth” (1:14), and here the neighbors and relatives “rejoiced (synechairon) with her” (1:58). The theme of joy, already echoed in John’s leaping in his mother’s womb (1:44), will appear in the birth of Jesus as well (2:10). But for now, Zechariah will have more to say about the future role of his son, which sets the stage for the coming of the Messiah.
Customarily, Jewish male babies were circumcised on the eighth day (Gen 21:4; Acts 7:8). The rite of circumcision was a sign of the covenant between God and Abraham, and stood at the core of Jewish identity and self-understanding as God’s chosen people (Gen 17:9–14; Lev 12:3). Naming a child at circumcision was a departure from traditional practices.41 Traditionally, a child was given a name at birth (Gen 25:25–26). Greeks, however, named their children seven to ten days after birth. That John is named on the day of his circumcision may reflect an adoption of a popular Hellenistic practice in first-century Palestine.
At this joyous occasion, neighbors and relatives function as well-wishers and witnesses to the parents’ obedience to the law. When a dispute arises over the naming of the child, the spectators turn from being witnesses to challengers. Their expectation that the baby be named after Zechariah does not stem from any specific custom that must be followed, though naming a boy after his father or grandfather was not uncommon in that culture (1:59).42 In their enthusiasm and presumptuousness, the bystanders overstep their boundaries and begin to deliberate over what to call the child. The flurry of opinions has created a tense moment in an otherwise celebratory occasion.
But Elizabeth holds her ground: “No, he is to be called John” (1:60). The naming of a child by the mother was not an issue even in that patriarchal society.43 Perhaps Elizabeth has not divulged that God has already named the child (1:13). Her words fail to satisfy the relatives, whose objection that the name “John” is not used elsewhere in the family seems arbitrary (1:61). Unconvinced, they gesture to the one who is yet unable to speak to overrule his wife. Unfazed by the commotion, Zechariah puts an end to the dispute. He writes on a wax-coated wooden tablet: “His name is John” (1:63). The phrasing has a definitive ring to it. The name “John” is a constant reminder that “YHWH has shown favor” to Elizabeth, Mary, and all Israel. Immediately his tongue is loosened and his punishment is over (1:20, 64).
The people are amazed, and the news spreads like wildfire (1:65). Even though a clear picture will not emerge for another few decades, the people’s wonderment concerning the destiny of this newborn child invites another song (1:66), in which Zechariah picks up where Mary leaves off and offers an interpretation of these evolving events. Filled with the Holy Spirit, Zechariah pronounces a blessing on God’s saving provision for Israel and a prophecy of his son’s future role in it (1:67). Poetic in form, what follows connects thematically with Mary’s song, circling back to the themes of remembrance, Abrahamic covenant, divine mercy, promise of salvation, etc., and at the same time moves the audience further in their anticipation of the future mission of John as the Messiah’s forerunner.
The Song of Zechariah opens with a familiar blessing: “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel” (1:68; cf. Pss 41:13; 72:18). First, Zechariah blesses God for having fulfilled the promise given to Israel through the prophets by sending a messianic redeemer (1:69–71). This divine deliverance has a political or nationalistic dimension. The descendant of David is expected to rule over Israel, teach God’s people, and exercise justice, but above all he is to be a warrior king or “a mighty savior” who can lead Israel to military victory against her enemies.44 Behind the translation “a mighty savior” in the NRSV is the Greek phrase keras sōtērias, “a horn of salvation.” An animal fights with its horn, making it an effective symbol of power and strength. While David calls God “the horn of [his] salvation” (2 Sam 22:3; Ps 18:2), another psalmist applies the metaphor directly to the royal Messiah: “I will cause a horn to sprout for David; I have prepared a lamp for my anointed one. His enemies I will clothe with disgrace, but on him his crown will gleam” (Ps 132:17–18). As such, the Davidic Messiah will assume a role attributed to God; he will become Israel’s horn of salvation.
Second, God saves in order for Israel “to serve (latreuein) him without fear in holiness and righteousness” (1:74–75). When God sent Moses to Pharaoh, the rationale was the same: “Let my people go, so that they may serve (latreusē) me in the wilderness” (Exod 7:16). Since the verb latreuō encompasses the ideas of both worship and service, divine rescue is not only from imprisonment to freedom but also from malicious domination to beneficent lordship. All this has little to do with what Israel can offer but everything to do with God’s
