After Zachariah wrote John’s name on the tablet, “his mouth was opened instantly, and his tongue loosed, and he spoke blessing God” (v. 64). In 1:67-79 we have a record of Zachariah’s prophecy. According to verse 67, when Zachariah prophesied, he was filled with the Holy Spirit.
In verse 68 we have the beginning of Zachariah’s prophecy: “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, because He has visited and accomplished redemption for His people.” Here we see that Zachariah’s prophecy is concerning God’s redemptive move for His people unto their salvation. God moved redemptively for the salvation of His people by raising Christ as a horn of salvation in the house of David in His humanity and as the rising sun from on high in His deity through God’s rich mercy according to His holy covenant (vv. 68-73, 76-79). Zachariah’s prophecy brings in more light concerning the divine-human Person and the saving work of the Man-Savior than Elizabeth’s blessing brings in, yet it still bears an Old Testament color in the Old Testament style and flavor, just as that borne by Mary’s praise and Elizabeth’s blessing.
Zachariah’s prophecy concerns God’s move. This is the move of God’s redemption for His people resulting in their salvation. By raising up Christ as a horn of salvation and as the rising sun, God’s redemptive work results in the salvation of His people.
In 1:69 Zachariah says, “And raised a horn of salvation for us in the house of David His servant.” This horn of salvation is Jesus the Savior, who came out of the house of David (Jer. 23:5-6). A horn signifies fighting power. Hence, the horn of salvation is the fighting power of God’s salvation in the house of David. The phrase “the house of David” indicates that this salvation is in the humanity of the Man-Savior.
In verse 70 we see that the raising up of the horn of salvation was according to what God spoke “through the mouth of His holy prophets from of old.” This refers to God’s faithfulness in keeping His word.
After speaking of Christ in His humanity, Zachariah goes on to speak of Him in His deity: “Because of the merciful compassions of our God, in which the rising sun from on high shall visit us, to appear to those sitting in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace” (vv. 78-79). Jesus the Savior is the dawning sun to the dark age. His coming ended the night of the Old Testament and began the day of the New Testament. As the fruit in Elizabeth’s blessing (v. 42), He is life to us (John 14:6); as the sun in Zachariah’s prophecy, He is the light to us (John 9:5; Matt. 4:16). As such a One, He is the Accomplisher and the center of God’s redemption for His people’s salvation.
In 1:78 Zachariah speaks of the Lord as the rising sun from on high. Whereas the horn of salvation is from the house of David, the rising sun is from on high, that is, from God. This means that it is in His deity that the Lord is the rising sun from on high.
When we compare Zachariah’s word in verse 69 with that in verse 78, we see that he speaks concerning Christ’s dual Person. He speaks concerning His humanity and His deity. In His humanity Christ is the horn of salvation raised up by God in a human house, the house of David. In His deity He is the rising sun from the heavens. The Lord, therefore, is both Man and God. As Man, He is the horn of salvation; as God, He is the rising sun. God’s redemptive work for the salvation of His people is accomplished by raising up Christ in the two aspects of the horn of salvation and the rising sun.
God’s redemptive work is also through His mercy according to His holy covenant. Regarding this, Zachariah says, “To show mercy to our fathers, and to remember His holy covenant, the oath which He swore to Abraham our father” (vv. 72-73). Here Zachariah says that God remembered His covenant. This refers to God’s faithfulness in keeping His word, which was made His covenant by His oath.
God’s covenant is enacted upon His promise (Heb. 8:6). A promise is a common, ordinary word, a word without confirmation. In the Old Testament, after God made a promise, He sealed it with an oath. He swore by His Godhead to confirm His promise, by His oath thus making the promise His covenant.
In verses 74 and 75 Zachariah goes on to say, “To grant us that, having been delivered out of the hand of our enemies, we might serve Him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him all our days.” Literally, the word rendered “serve” in verse 74 means to serve as priests. This service will be in holiness and righteousness. Holiness is mainly toward God, and righteousness is mainly toward men. This Gospel stresses the humanity of Jesus. Hence, it singles out holiness and righteousness here as the main characteristics of human behavior toward God.
In verses 76 and 77 Zachariah prophesies concerning his own son, the forerunner of the Man-Savior: “And you also, young child, shall be called a prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare His ways, to give knowledge of salvation to His people in forgiveness of their sins.” The “Lord” in verse 76 is Jesus the Savior (1:17; Mal. 3:1).
Zachariah prophesied that the forerunner would go before the Lord to prepare His ways. The angel had told Zachariah that his son would turn many of the sons of Israel to the Lord their God and “prepare for the Lord a people made ready” (Luke 1:16-17). He would prepare the way of the Lord by changing people’s minds, turning their minds toward the Lord and making their hearts right, thus causing every part of their hearts to be straightened by the Lord through repentance so that the Man-Savior could enter into them to be their life and take possession of them.