4 Observations From the Life of Elisabeth

Who are the main characters in the Christmas story? Well, there’s Mary, Joseph, Jesus, the angels, the shepherds, Herod, and the list goes on. But what about the story that precedes Mary and Joseph? Have you ever spent any time considering the character of Elisabeth who was the mother of John the Baptist? Let’s take a look at the life of Elisabeth and what the Lord reveals to us about her character so we can learn from her in this important narrative leading up to the Incarnation.

Take some time before reading further and just read with fresh eyes the account of Elisabeth and Zacharias in Luke 1:5-80.

When studying the life of someone in Scripture, it is good to start with some background about the person. Names in the Bible had great significance. Elisabeth means “God is my oath” or “a worshipper of God.”

Zacharias alludes to her name’s meaning in Luke 1:73. She bears the same name as the high priest Aaron’s wife. And it is important to note that she obeyed what God told her in naming her son John.

​What about her family connections? Luke 1:5 describes her as a daughter of Aaron which means she came from a priestly line (Exodus 6:23). We know she was the wife of Zacharias who was himself a priest. Looking at 1 Chronicles 24:10 helps us see that Zacharias was from the course of Abia, one of the classes of priests who ministered in the Temple from one Sabbath to the next. So, there was priestly descent on both sides of this family. Zacharias had followed the admonition of Leviticus 21:7 and married a godly woman. Other family connections to consider as we study Elisabeth bring us to her being the mother of John the Baptist, the great forerunner of Jesus Christ. This connection eternally connects Elisabeth and Zacharias to the Christmas narrative. We also know from Luke 1:36 that she and Mary were cousins.

Now that we know the family, let’s set the stage historically. The Jewish people had been given many prophecies looking forward to the coming of the Messiah, last of all of these being found in Malachi 4:5-6. Then there were over 400 years of silence between those promises and the time of Zacharias and Elisabeth. These were oppressive years full of fear and hate for the Israelite nation. There was corruption in both the church and the state. The priesthood was largely controlled by and was at the mercy of the corrupt Roman rulers. Herod was a cruel leader who snuffed out the lives of anyone who threatened to take the throne from him. The religious leaders were entangled in the political system which would eventually lead to their involvement in sentencing Christ to crucifixion for nothing other than defying their sinful way of life. However, the darker the night of sin, the brighter the light of Godly people like Elisabeth and Zacharias shines.

Now, having set the stage around Elisabeth, let's look at four observations from her life that will encourage and challenge us today:

1. Elisabeth was a Godly woman.

As a priest’s wife, she helped preserve the blessed traditions of Aaron and his descendants. Luke 1:6 calls her and her husband “righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.” “Righteous” and “blameless” are terms that God uses infrequently when describing a sinful human race. This is not something to just gloss over — we find similar words used in Hebrew in describing Job as “perfect and upright” in Job 1:1. This is a coveted commendation coming from the Lord. Could the same be said of us? Could this be why God chose to inflict the struggle of barrenness on this couple just as God took Job’s children from him? Both situations were used to bring glory to God.

When Mary comes to visit Elisabeth, there is not any jealousy in this much older woman that her younger cousin was chosen to carry the Messiah rather than she. Elisabeth, as a descendant of Aaron, fulfilled her role to be a worshipper of the Messiah while Mary, as a descendant of Judah, was chosen to give birth to the Messiah. Elisabeth’s only response was to worship her Lord in true humility! (Luke 1:41-45)

2. Elisabeth was a childless woman.

Elisabeth was righteous toward God and most faithful to her husband, but five words encompass heartbreak almost indescribable for any married woman in Jewish days and even so today for many women — Luke 1:7 — “And they had no child…” Elisabeth and Zacharias would have prayed for a child and longed for a child, yet now in their old age, the prospect of a natural-born child had passed. A childless state was a heavy burden to bear for anyone. Think of Sarah and Abraham (Genesis 15ff) as well as Hannah and Elkanah (1 Samuel 1). The Bible describes the anguish of these people who only desired what is natural for a married couple – to have a baby. However, this burden was especially heavy for the daughter of a priest and the wife of a priest. She would not be able to help perpetuate the priestly line of Aaron with a child of their own. In those days, this was a huge disgrace for the wife of a priest. For she, just like every Israelite woman, dreamed that it might be her privilege to be the Mother of the Messiah promised to Eve in Genesis 3:15. Even amidst this heavy burden to bear, God speaks of the faithfulness of this couple to Him.

Are we faithful to God even in the midst of the struggles of life — when things don’t go as we expect them to? Have we considered that God has a perfect plan in place? If Elisabeth had been given children prior to this time of her life, she possibly wouldn’t have recognized the miraculous working of God in their lives. Even though we don’t always understand why we can trust God that He has a perfect plan in place!

3. Elisabeth was a privileged woman.

Although her baby did not fulfill Eve’s promise in Genesis 3:15, God had chosen this Godly woman and her husband to parent the forerunner of Christ in a miraculous way. An angel announced their miracle of birth in old age to her husband Zacharias while he was faithfully fulfilling his priestly duties. According to Luke 1:9-23, we are not told of Elisabeth’s response, but we get a glimpse into what happened between Zacharias and Gabriel. Zacharias questioned Gabriel and suffered the whole pregnancy with being mute because of his unbelief. It wasn’t until he declared in writing what John’s name would be proving his faith in God’s plan for their son that he was released from that suffering. Zacharias immediately spoke of his belief in God’s plan with the song of praise he sang after his tongue was loosed (Luke 1:59-80). At the six-month mark of her pregnancy, Elisabeth meets the Christ-child when her cousin Mary comes to visit her just after Jesus’ birth was announced to Mary by Gabriel (Luke 1:26-38). Even from the womb, John recognizes the Christ-child and leaps in Elisabeth’s womb when he hears Mary’s greeting to Elisabeth. Elisabeth’s response in Luke 1:41-45 is the first verbal declaration of Christ’s Lordship we have recorded in Scripture. Elisabeth’s steadfast faith in God’s word to perform these things encouraged the young Mary to believe what the angel had declared to her (Luke 1:45). Elisabeth is also a witness to Mary’s song of magnifying the Lord in Luke 1:46-55. What a great privilege for her.

Are we not privileged people to have the Word of God in our hands for the edification of our hearts and to use in evangelizing the lost? Elisabeth was witness to history at the incarnation, and she worshipped the Lord because of it. What are we doing with the privileges we have in Christ?

4. Elisabeth was an obedient woman.

According to what happens in Luke 1:59-64, we can assume that Zacharias told Elisabeth what happened in the Temple the day Gabriel spoke to him and “tied his tongue” due to his unbelief. Elisabeth displays her obedience to God’s plan when she speaks at the circumcision of the child to name him John. This was against all tradition as the people pointed out since there was no one by that name in their family (Luke 1:61). Elisabeth believed God despite the customs of her day and faithfully obeyed His command in naming him John – which means “the mercy and favor of God.” Zacharias’ confirmation of what she said loosens his tongue so that he is able to magnify the Lord because of this miraculous birth.

We know from the testimony of John the Baptist that Elisabeth and Zacharias obeyed God in preparing John for the special tasks God had planned for him (Luke 1:15-17). And Elisabeth is honored by the high praise Jesus gives John in Matthew 11:11 – “Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist.”

Every child is a gift from God given to their parents with the sacred obligation to:

• Teach them God’s Word.
• Inspire them by a good example.
• Walk blameless before God.
• Pass on to their children sanctified character traits.

​Elisabeth and Zacharias were obedient in this aspect of their lives. Are we being obedient in the things we know the Lord would have us do today?

As we close the scene here, consider what we can learn from the great example Elisabeth left for us in a very unusual situation. Because of her faith and obedience, people recognized the hand of God in John’s life. Are we being good examples of faith and obedience in our lives to point others to Christ?

Do you think that Elisabeth ever wavered in her faith, wondering why God had allowed her to be barren? We are not told that she did. She was doing all the right things, and yet this personal hardship and possibly public shame had to have weighed on her. BUT God had a perfect plan in His perfect timing. In the darkest days of your life, remember that God has a perfect plan for your life which He will shed His light on when His timing is perfect. When was the last time you thanked God for His timing in the events of your life? Are you able to trust God in the timing of what He is doing in your life? Without the context of the “rest of the story,” Elisabeth confesses the truth of the Messiah coming in the flesh. Her faith was impeccable! She didn’t hope Mary’s baby was the Messiah or question it when Mary arrived. She confidently proclaimed what she believed — “Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” (Luke 1:42-43). We have the context of the whole story and yet are often reluctant to share our faith.

May Elisabeth’s faith encourage us to be bold in our witness of the One Who came to earth, born to die for our sins

"BUT God had a perfect plan in His perfect timing." I love that statement! How have you seen God work His perfect plan in His perfect timing in your life?