1:67 Zechariah’s praise of God mentioned in Luke 1:64 is probably set out for us here. The filling of the Spirit in Luke-Acts is connected with speaking the word of God. The Baptist as a prophet is filled with the Spirit in his mother’s womb (1:15). When Elizabeth is filled with the Spirit, she, in a prophetic oracle, declares that Mary is the mother of her Lord (1:41–43). When the disciples are filled the Spirit on the day of Pentecost, they speak in tongues and prophesy (Acts 2:4; cf. Acts 2:18). Peter, filled with the Spirit, boldly speaks the word to religious leaders (Acts 4:8). When the disciples are filled with the Spirit, they boldly speak God’s word (Acts 4:31). Paul is filled with the Spirit and proclaims that Jesus is the Christ (Acts 9:17–22), and when he is filled with the Spirit he exposes the evil of Elymas (Acts 13:9–11). So too here we have the inspired and Spirit-filled words of Zechariah.

1:68 Zechariah begins by blessing God, that is, praising God, and the word “blessed” reaches back to the OT (e.g., Pss. 41:13; 72:18; 106:48). He is praised as the God of Israel, the God of his covenant people, whom he chose. God is praised for visiting and redeeming his people. The word “visited” can be used of God’s coming near to judge or to save, but here it clearly denotes God’s saving visitation. God visiting his people begins and ends Zechariah’s thanksgiving (Luke 1:78), forming an inclusio.24 We see an example of the Lord’s saving visitation when Israel bows in worship upon hearing that God had visited his people and would save them from Pharaoh’s oppression (Ex. 4:31; cf. Pss. 111:9; 130:7). Is the visitation here physical or spiritual? The dichotomy is a false one, for the context of the entire song clarifies that both are in view, as we shall see.

1:69 The visitation and redemption of Israel will become a reality through Jesus as the son of David. The reference to David indicates that the Lord will visit, redeem, and save his people through a Davidic king, in fulfillment of the covenant made with David (see 2 Samuel 7; 1 Chronicles 17; Psalms 2; 89; 132; Isa. 9:2–7). Horns symbolize strength, as oxen gore what they are attacking with their powerful horns (e.g., Ex. 21:28–29; Deut. 33:17). And Jesus as the heir to David’s throne, as the powerful King, will bring salvation (cf. Judg. 3:9, 15; Ps. 132:17). He is the triumphant and conquering King. Hannah predicted a king would come and that the Lord would “exalt the horn of his anointed” (1 Sam. 2:10; cf. 2 Sam. 22:3). Zechariah proclaims that this king is at hand.

1:70–71 The promise of redemption and salvation through a Davidic king fulfills the message of the prophets from the OT period. The theme of fulfillment of the OT is picked up in Jesus’ proclamation in Nazareth (Luke 4:18–19) and is fundamental to the Lukan message (24:25; cf. Acts 3:21). The covenant promises that God will protect his people and that they will experience deliverance and salvation from their enemies. Is this promise political or spiritual? Zechariah probably understands—since he is godly (Luke 1:6) and knows Israel’s history well—that ultimately the political and spiritual cannot be separated. Israel is oppressed by the Romans because of its sin, and thus it needs both spiritual and political deliverance. Zechariah does not realize that spiritual deliverance will come first and political deliverance will follow in the eschaton, that the new order of the ages will be realized when the kingdom arrives in its fullness.

1:72–73 The spiritual and physical deliverance of the people fulfills the covenant made with the ancestors, the covenant enacted with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Gen. 12:1–3; 18:18–19; 22:17–18; 26:3–4; 28:14). The covenant represents God’s grace and “mercy” (Gk. eleos) for Israel. Micah affirms that the Lord will be faithful to the covenant he swore to the ancestors (cf. also Gen. 22:16–18; 26:3), promising that his “steadfast love” (eleos) will not be withdrawn from Israel (Mic. 7:20 LXX; cf. Ps. 105:8–9).

1:74–75 The covenant made with the ancestors promises, as we saw in Luke 1:71, deliverance from enemies, and as a result Israel will live out its days “in holiness and righteousness” (cf. Eph. 4:24). Does Luke refer to a physical or a spiritual deliverance? We probably have an allusion to Zephaniah 3:15 here, and this verse helps us answer that question: “The Lord has taken away the judgments against you; he has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall never again fear evil.” Israel’s triumph over its enemies takes place when the Lord removes punishment, and Israel has been punished before its adversaries because of its sin. We see once again, therefore, that the physical and spiritual are intertwined.

1:76–77 Thus far Zechariah has been praising the Lord for fulfilling the promise to Abraham through the coming of the Christ. In Luke 1:76–79 he turns to the role of his son, John. John is designated as a “prophet,” and we know from 7:26–28 that John is the greatest of the OT prophets since he is in the unique position of announcing to the world the Christ (cf. 20:6). In saying that John prepares the way for the Lord, Zechariah draws on Malachi 3:1: “Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me.” He also draws on Isaiah 40:3, in which a way is prepared for the Lord in the wilderness (cf. Luke 3:4–6). Some think the Lord here is God the Father, but the parallel in 3:4–6 and the emphasis on the coming of the Christ in 1:68–75 make it likely that Jesus is in view.

John will go before the Lord; in doing so he will provide “knowledge of salvation,” and this knowledge will be attained through the forgiveness of sins. We read later of how John calls upon people to repent for the forgiveness of sins (3:3). In light of Luke’s entire Gospel we know that forgiveness is granted through Jesus’ name (24:47) and secured through his death (22:19–20). The notion that forgiveness is given ultimately through Jesus fits with the emphasis on Jesus’ role in 1:68–75 of Zechariah’s hymn.

1:78–79 That forgiveness is ultimately through Jesus is evident when we consider the logical relationship between verses 76–77 and 78–79. The word “because” (v. 78) tells why the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of sins will become a reality. Forgiveness stems from the covenant mercy of the Lord, from his grace and kindness. Because of his mercy, “the sunrise shall visit us from on high.” The word “visit” has a positive sense, as in verse 68. The phrase “on high” indicate that the sunrise comes from heaven, from the transcendent realm. The word “sunrise” (Gk. anatolē) is very significant. We see the same word in Zechariah 3:8 LXX, and the word has messianic associations (Jer. 23:5; 33:1525; cf. Zech. 6:12). When the anatolē (the ESV translates the Hebrew here as “branch”) comes, Yahweh will “remove the iniquity of this land in a single day” (Zech. 3:9). In Zechariah it is not always clear if the branch is the king or the priest, but in any case the role of the priest and king is fulfilled in Jesus Christ. In Jeremiah the term “branch” clearly refers to the promise of a Davidic king (Jer. 23:5; 33:15). We probably have an allusion as well to Isaiah 60:1, where Israel is to “arise” and “shine” since the nation’s “light” has come and “the glory of the Lord has risen [LXX anatetalken]” upon them. Thus the forgiveness of sins and knowledge of salvation come from Jesus the Messiah, who, as we shall see, shares the divine identity.

The sunrise sheds light on those in darkness, on those who live “in the shadow of death.” In other words, he grants peace to those who experience his radiant light. In Luke 1:79 we have a clear allusion to Isaiah 9:2: “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.” The light here is the branch, the sunrise, the Messiah. He is the “son,” and “His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isa. 9:6). People are in darkness, are in death, and lack peace because of their sin; the sunrise has come to shine his saving light and to bring life and freedom where there was once death (cf. Isa. 42:7). The sunrise on high is preexistent, since the word “visit” suggests a divine being (cf. Luke 1:68; 7:16). He has a heavenly origin since he is “from on high,” and he brings light as a divine, angelic figure.26

1:80 Luke concludes the reference to the Baptist by summarizing the years in which he grows up, indicating his progress in body and spirit (cf. Judg. 13:24). The words “grew and became strong” match what is said about Jesus in Luke 2:40. In the statement that John “became strong in spirit” we could see a reference to the Holy Spirit, but it is more likely that John’s human spirit is intended. Some have suggested that John’s time in the wilderness indicates he was nurtured in the Qumran community, but we lack any firm evidence that he came from Qumran.27 John’s ministry was centered in the wilderness (cf. 3:2), and Luke leaves the story of John until his public ministry commences.