Why did they use signs to communicate with Zechariah in Luke 1:62? Passage in Focus “Then they made signs to his father to find out what he wanted to name the child.” (Luke 1:62) Immediate Narrative Setting Zechariah, a priest of the division of Abijah, is struck silent in the temple after doubting Gabriel’s announcement that Elizabeth would bear a son (Luke 1:18–20). When the child is born eight days later, relatives assume the baby will carry the father’s name. Elizabeth objects, affirming the angel-given name “John.” Because Zechariah cannot speak, the relatives “made signs” to him; he writes “His name is John,” his tongue is loosed, and he praises God (Luke 1:59–64). Physiological Possibilities Ancient and modern medicine recognize that loss of hearing and speech often coincide (congenital or sudden trauma). Luke, the “beloved physician” (Colossians 4:14), supplies the detail that Zechariah’s tongue “was loosed” (1:64), implying muscular or neurological restraint fully reversed at once—classic description of instantaneous healing rather than gradual recovery, fully consonant with biblical miracle accounts and modern medically documented recoveries recorded, e.g., in Craig Keener’s compendium Miracles (2011). Second-Temple Communication Practices 1. Writing tablets: Archaeologists have retrieved stylus-and-wax tablets from Masada (c. AD 73) and Ein-Gedi, confirming Luke’s incidental detail that families possessed such tablets. 2. Gestures for the deaf: Rabbinic literature (m. Gittin 5:7) describes hand motions used to communicate with the deaf regarding legal matters. 3. Temple precinct silence: Priests exiting the sanctuary customarily communicated by gesture until overtly purified (Josephus, B.J. 5.5). Luke’s audience would therefore expect relatives to employ signs. Comparative Biblical Precedent • Ezekiel is struck mute except when God opens his mouth for prophetic utterance (Ezekiel 3:26–27). • Daniel experiences temporary sensory impairment after angelic visions (Daniel 10:15). • These narratives frame muteness as a divine sign that intensifies the revelatory moment, fulfilled in speech once the message is believed and delivered. Theological Purpose of the Sign 1. Judgment for Unbelief: Gabriel’s explicit reason—“because you did not believe my words” (1:20). 2. Prophetic Foreshadowing: John the Baptist’s role as “voice” crying in the wilderness (Isaiah 40:3) is introduced by a father who has no voice until he affirms God’s promise. 3. Corporate Witness: The relatives see the supernatural sequence—angelic prophecy, muteness, confirmed name, instant healing—providing irrefutable evidence that “the hand of the Lord was with him” (1:66). Practical and Pastoral Applications 1. God disciplines unbelief but restores the repentant. 2. Physical limitations may serve redemptive purposes, drawing attention to divine initiative. 3. Community participation (relatives making signs, neighbors in awe) models the congregation’s role in recognizing and testifying to God’s works. Answer Summarized They used signs with Zechariah because Gabriel’s judgment rendered him not only mute but functionally deaf; gestures and a writing tablet were the normal, culturally attested means to communicate with a deaf-mute person in first-century Judea. This mode of communication highlights the severity of Zechariah’s initial unbelief, sets the stage for a dramatic, verifiable miracle, and reinforces Luke’s overarching theme that God’s word, once embraced, unleashes praise and prepares the way for the Messiah. |
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