DAILY BYTEThis week we’ve listened to the songs of Elizabeth and Mary. Today it’s the turn of Zechariah and Simeon.
For those of you not immediately familiar with where Zechariah fits into the scheme of things, he was Elizabeth’s husband and the father of John the Baptist. We read of his & Elizabeth’s story right at the beginning of Luke’s gospel. He was a priest, and together with his wife Elizabeth lived a righteous and upright life. They were both pretty old, but they had no children.
One day, while Zechariah was serving in the temple, an angel of the Lord appeared to him and told him that Elizabeth would have a son. Zechariah was amazed, for he knew that elderly couples don’t just have kids. Well, he was literally dumbstruck, and couldn’t speak a word, a condition that lasted throughout Elizabeth’s pregnancy. It was only after their son was born, on the 8th day, when he was being circumcised, that Zechariah regained his capacity for speech. We read that he began to speak, praising God, and sang a song:
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
he came and set his people free.
He set the power of salvation in the center of our lives,
and in the very house of David his servant,
Just as he promised long ago
through the preaching of his holy prophets:
Deliverance from our enemies
and every hateful hand;
Mercy to our fathers,
as he remembers to do what he said he'd do,
What he swore to our father Abraham—
a clean rescue from the enemy camp,
So we can worship him without a care in the world,
made holy before him as long as we live.
And you, my child, "Prophet of the Highest,"
will go ahead of the Master to prepare his ways,
Present the offer of salvation to his people,
the forgiveness of their sins.
Through the heartfelt mercies of our God,
God's Sunrise will break in upon us,
Shining on those in the darkness,
those sitting in the shadow of death,
Then showing us the way, one foot at a time,
down the path of peace.
(Luke 1:68-79 The Message)
Simeon was an old man who was in the temple when the baby Jesus was presented on the 8th day to be circumcised. He had been waiting for the restoration of Israel. As he took the baby Jesus in his arms, Simeon praised God and sang:
"Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,
you now dismiss your servant in peace.
For my eyes have seen your salvation,
which you have prepared in the sight of all people,
a light for revelation to the Gentiles
and for glory to your people Israel."
(Luke 2:29-32)
Both Zechariah’s and Simeon’s songs point to the fulfillment of God’s promises, and the light that breaks into the darkness for those who watch and wait in hope-filled expectation.
The beautiful prayer below ties this theme together in a challenging and comforting way. Maybe you would like to make this prayer your own today.
PRAY AS YOU GO
‘Waiting and watching’ by Rev John van der Laar
You call me to wait on You, Lord,
but I get tired of waiting.
Your answers to my prayers,
Your call for me to serve You,
the promise of Your coming Kingdom,
they all seem to take so long.
You tell me to watch for Your coming, Lord,
but I’m not sure how to prepare for…
a thief in the night,
an undisclosed time,
and Your disconcerting habit of secrecy and mystery.
Yet, something inside whispers
that You’re not all that hard to find;
That You’re always coming to me,
and that both the waiting and the watching,
are more about being open to You now,
than about trying not to be surprised in the future.
And so I will keep waiting,
and I’ll try to stay alert,
so that I can catch the glimpses of Your glory
that fill my day, every day.
Amen.
