Zechariah the Priest

A song of ascents. - Psalm 121
“I lift up my eyes to the mountains— where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.” …

     Tonight begins a season called Advent, “the arrival of a notable person, thing, or event.”
     In Christian terms, this means we are awaiting the arrival of Christmas, or more importantly, the coming of the Messiah into the world to bring Salvation for those who will accept and believe, and peace on earth.

Advent Journeys - a great book to read during December

     The season did not begin with the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. It did not begin in the New Testament, the story of Christmas can be seen throughout the entire Bible. Many verses in what is known as the Old Testament set the foundation and predict the arrival of the Messiah. The idea for Christmas began in the heart of God before the foundation of the world.

Floor of Beit Alpha Synagogue

     In the Christmas season this year, I want to focus on things of God that will prepare our hearts for the traditional Advent of Christ on December 25. The blogs this month will go along with the book Advent Journeys, which I would encourage everyone to read. [This can be done by purchasing a book, a Kindle e-book, or by reading the devotions on Amazon Prime].

Ein-Kerem, where Zechariah the Priest lived

     The first Journey of Christmas begins with a Priest named Zechariah. This man is often unfamiliar to readers of the New Testament, but his story occupies a large part of Luke 1. In this chapter, God connects us to the Hebrew Bible, called the Tanakh or Old Testament, to the words of the prophets, and to the world of Judaism in the days of Jesus.

Approaching Jerusalem from Mt. Scopus

     Zechariah is a Priest, a descendant of Levi, who serves in the Temple on rotation about five weeks each year. This system was set up by King David and instituted by King Solomon in order to create efficiency in Temple operations. Through the use of what the Jewish people call mishmarot or ma’amadot, every Levite between 30 and 50 years of age was able to serve in the Temple. (See 1 Chronicles 24-26) Zechariah the Priest is of the mishmarot of Abijah.

Temple model from Israel Museum, Jerusalem

     The story of Zechariah in my book Advent Journeys will take many Christian readers into unfamiliar territory. Worship today, whether in the Jewish Synagogue or the Christian Church has changed since the first century. The building called the Temple along with its traditions and practices was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. However, the things of the Temple were very familiar in the days of Jesus, and to his Disciples.

The Temple from model at the Israel Museum

     The Gospel of Luke originates in the Holy Place o f the Temple. It shares some similarity to Isaiah 6, where God breaks into history with a message for His people. Through the acts of God, the Priest Zechariah is able to carry the message of Christmas to his family and friends so that they and others might understand the coming of the Messiah.

Website - www.KosherCopy.com

     Please take time this week to read Advent Journeys and this year’s embellishments that are contained in this blog.

Psalms of Ascent, Going to Jerusalem

During the first week, in our new book Advent Journeys, we walk with Zechariah the priest.  Zechariah was the husband of Elizabeth and the father of John the Baptist as recorded in Luke 1 of the New Testament.  In the introduction we learn Zechariah was a priest of the order of Abijah and he and his wife were without children.

As I wrote the chapter on Zechariah, the first thing I noted was that he was of the order of Abijah.  Abijah is one of twenty-four orders of the Levitical priesthood of Israel.  These divisions of priests first organized by King David are called Mishmarot & Ma'amadot.  In the times of Jesus each division of priests would serve five weeks per year (three weeks of harvest festivals where all Priests were to serve and two other weeks served in a rotation of divisions). {more on this tomorrow}

We are told that Zechariah and Elizabeth are advanced in age and can not have children.  This bears similarity to the stories of Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, Jacob and Rachel, and Elkanah and Hannah.  According to the Torah Zechariah was advanced in age, but he was still serving in the Temple.  This means he must have been about fifty years of age (Numbers 8:25).  And as all of the other aged parents, Zechariah was a man who was faithful to God.

Because Zechariah was faithful to God, it can be read between the lines that he enjoyed his week of service in the Temple.  I tried to capture this joy as I wrote the first week of journals for Zechariah in the book Advent Journeys.  On his way to the Temple for his work duty Zechariah would have recited (or sung) the Psalms of Ascent: Psalms 120-134.  These Psalms, as I read them, captured a sense of things which impacted the life of Zechariah.  I placed one or two Psalms of Ascent as a scripture reading each day during the first week of Advent. The journal of Zechariah will often reflect something in these Psalms.

In our twenty-first century world I hope we, as believers, can reflect the joy Zechariah felt as he approached the Temple.  I hope this joy is evident as we attend worship service each week, and also in our daily lives as a reflection of our love for the Lord.