Luke 1:11

Luk_1:11

An angel of the Lord

Angelic visits

The angels will come to us when we are doing the Lords business--even though that business be routine, and we have become almost weary with its mechanical repetition, yet the radiant messenger can find us in our obscurity, and open before us new and enchanting prospects.

Are you impatient for the coming of the angel? Then by so much you are leaving incomplete the work to which you have been Divinely called. It is better to work steadily for the Master than to be waiting fretfully for the vision of angels. (Dr. Parker.)

Absence from the sanctuary

Suppose Zacharias had not been there. Suppose that his functions had been to him nothing except perfunctory services, and he had absented himself. Might not the great annunciation have been transferred? Instead of Zacharias might not Simeon have been chosen? and instead of Elisabeth, Anna? I pause to put the question, for I wish to arouse your half-day attendants in Gods house, to a recognition of how possible it is to miss of a special blessing when we are not in the way, and place, and time of religious duty. I knew of a case wherein an anxious inquirer would have heard the sermon that brought deliverance and peace to her five years sooner had she been in Gods house on the day it was originally preached. As it was she walked for five years in gloom, and at last heard it semi-accidentally. (Dr. Grosart.)

Intercourse between visible and invisible world

The narrative of an angelic visitation does not bring us into a supernatural region. We are in one already. The Temple-worship meant nothing if there were not an actual established intercourse between the visible and invisible world. (F. D. Maurice.)

Angels present in church

I think I see in this passage that a more special blessing attends the prayers offered up by Gods ministers at the hours appointed by the Church, and that angels are more particularly present to carry up the sacrifice of prayer and praise then offered by the priest, on which hang (as it were) the supplications of the whole congregation. Consider this, O my soul, and let it be a constant incitement to thee never to forsake the house of thy God, when opportunity offers for thee to join thy prayers with those of all thy fellow-Christians. (Dean Hook.)

The angels as observers and witnesses

The holy angels of God are observers of our prayers and good actions on earth, and the relaters and remembrancers of them in heaven. Not but that the all-seeing God of Himself knows and takes notice of all the good actions of men, and records them to perpetuity in the most faithful register of His Omniscience; but He would have His holy angels to be conscious of our good actions, not only that they might congratulate our happiness, as fellow-servants and members with us, under Christ, their and our Lord and Head, but also and especially that they might be the witnesses of His righteous judgment at the last day, when His Son shall come in His glory with millions of His holy angels to judge the world. (Bishop Bull.)

Seeing the angels

According to Holy Scripture, we are surrounded by angels (2Ki_6:17; Psa_34:7), whom God employs to defend us; but in our ordinary condition we have not the perception necessary to make us aware of their presence. For this we need a peculiar state of receptivity. That was the state of Zacharias at this time. He had been prepared for it by the sanctity of the place, by the solemnity of the service which he was about to fulfil, by his lively sympathy with those who prayed for national deliverance, and finally by the sense of his own domestic trial. (Prof. Godet.)

Reality of the spirit world

To me the spirit world is tangible. It is not peopled with ghosts and spectres, shadows and outlines of beings, but with persons and forms palpable to the apprehension. Its multitudes are veritable, its society natural, its language audible, its companionship real, its love distinct, its activities energetic, its life intelligent, its glory discernible; its union is not that of sameness, but of variety brought into moral harmony by the great law of love, like notes which, in themselves distinct and different, make, when combined, sweet music. Death will not level and annul those countless differences of mind and heart which make us individual here. Heaven, in all the mode and manner of expression, will abound with personality. There will be choice, and preference, and degree of affinity there. Each intellect will keep its natural bias, each heart its elections. Groups there will be, and circles; faces, known and unknown, will pass us; acquaintance will thrive on intercourse, and love deepen with knowledge; and the great underlying laws of mind and heart prevail and dominate as they do here, save in this, that sin, and all the repellance and antagonisms that it breeds, will be unknown, and holiness supply in perfect measure the opportunity and bond of brotherhood. (Murray.)

Character of the angels

The very names assigned to angels, says Dwight, by their Creator, convey to us ideas pre-eminently pleasing, fitted to captivate the heart and exalt the imagination; ideas which dispel gloom, banish despondency, enliven hope, and awaken sincere and unmingled joy. They are living ones; beings in whom life is inherent and instinctive; who sprang up under the quickening influence of the Sun of Righteousness, beneath the morning of everlasting day; who rose, expanded, and blossomed in the uncreated beam, on the banks of the river of life, and were nourished by the waters of immortality. They are spirits, winged with activity, and formed with power, which no labour wearies and no duration impairs; their faculties always fresh and young, their exertions unceasing and wonderful, and their destination noble and delightful, without example, and without end. They are burning ones, glowing with a pure and serene, with an intense and immortal flame of Divine love; returning, without ceasing, the light and warmth which they have received from the great central Sun of the universe, reflecting with supreme beauty the image of that Divine luminary; and universally glorious, although differing from each other in glory.

The annunciation to Zacharias

Ah, friends, if God were as strict to punish us for our distrust of His word as he was to punish Zacharias for his, how many of us also would He strike dumb! Who knows but that some of the calamities which befall us are really punishments for our own unbelief? This incident of the annunciation to Zacharias is rich in lessons. I will mention but two. First, the ministration of angels. In fact, the Bible from beginning to end is radiant with angels. And as it was in the past, so it is to-day. Angels are still ministers of God, executing His will alike in the physical and in the spiritual world. What though we do not see angels? It does not follow that, because they are invisible, they are therefore, according to our scientific tests, unreal or inoperative. In fact, it is the invisible things which are the most real. Did any human being ever see the Holy Spirit? Yet what Christian doubts His existence? Were our spiritual eyes open, as were the eyes of Elishas servant at Dothan, doubtless we also would see all around us horses and chariots of fire circling to protect us. Lastly: Hours of worship are hours of angels annunciation. Not that we may ever expect in this teen of the world to behold visions of angels; for ours it is to have something better than to have glimpses of supernatural figures; ours it is to have the presence of the Holy Spirit Himself.

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Luk 1:11-12. There appeared unto him an angel — About four hundred years had passed since God had vouchsafed to his ancient people any supernatural communication, either by prophecy, the ministry of angels, or in any other extraordinary way. But as he was now about to send them the Messiah, and establish through him a new dispensation, by which a new and more spiritual way of intercourse with himself should be opened and settled, he sends an angelic messenger to announce his intentions, and prepare their minds for the reception of so great a blessing. For as the law, an inferior economy, was given at first, in a great measure, by the ministry of angels, it was proper that the gospel, a more excellent institution, should not want at least an equally extraordinary and honourable introduction. When Zacharias saw him, he was troubled — Although he was accustomed to converse with God, yet we see he was thrown into a great consternation at the appearance of his angelic messenger, nature not being able to sustain the sight. Is it not then an instance of the goodness, as well as the wisdom of God, that the services which these heavenly spirits render us are generally invisible?

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Luk 1:11. Ἄγγελος, an angel) the name of whom was afterwards communicated to Zacharias, Luk 1:19.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Luk_1:11-12. Ὤφθη] not a vision, but a real angelic appearance, Luk_22:43.

ἐκ δεξιῶν] on the propitious side of the altar, at which Zacharias was serving. See Schoettgen, and Wetstein, ad Mat_25:33; Valckenaer in loc.

ἄγγελος] an angel. Who it was, see Luk_1:19.

φόβος ἐπέπεσεν ἐπʼ αὐτ.] Comp. Act_19:17; Exo_15:16; Jdt_15:2; Test. XII. Patr. p. 592. Among the Greeks usually found with a dative, as Eur. Andr. 1042: σοὶ μόνᾳ ἐπέπεσον λῦπαι.

Meyer — Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament — English translation by Peter Christie, edited by Frederick Crombie (T&T Clark, 1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Luk 1:11-17 . A celestial visitant .

Luk 1:11 . ὤφθη : the appearance very particularly described, the very position of the angel indicated: on the right side of the altar of incense; the south side, the propitious side say some, the place of honour say others. The altar of incense is called, with reference to its function, θυμιατήριον in Heb 9:3 .

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Ver. 11. Here, with the appearance of the angel, begins the marvellous character of the story which lays it open to the suspicion of criticism. And if, indeed, the Christian dispensation were nothing more than the natural development of the human consciousness, advancing by its own laws, we should necessarily and unhesitatingly reject as fictitious this supernatural element, and at the same time everything else in the Gospel of a similar character. But if Christianity was an entirely new beginning (Verny) in history, the second and final creation of man, it was natural that an interposition on so grand a scale should be accompanied by a series of particular interpositions. It was even necessary. For how were the representatives of the ancient order of things, who had to co-operate in the new work, to be initiated into it, and their attachment won to it, except by this means?

According to the Scripture, we are surrounded by angels (2Ki 6:17; Psa 34:8), whom God employs to watch over us; but in our ordinary condition we want the sense necessary to perceive their presence. For that, a condition of peculiar receptivity is required. This condition existed in Zacharias at this time. It had been created in him by the solemnity of the place, by the sacredness of the function he was about to perform, by his lively sympathy with all this people who were imploring Heaven for national deliverance, and, last of all, by the experience of his own domestic trial, the feeling of which was to be painfully revived by the favour about to be shown him. Under the influence of all these circumstances combined, that internal sense which puts man in contact with the higher world was awakened in him. But the necessity of this inward predisposition in no way proves that the vision of Zacharias was merely the result of a high state of moral excitement. Several particulars in the narrative make this explanation inadmissible, particularly these two: the difficulty with which Zacharias puts faith in the promise made to him, and the physical chastisement which is inflicted on him for his unbelief. These facts, in any case, render a simple psychological explanation impossible, and oblige the denier of the objectivity of the appearance to throw himself upon the mythical interpretation.

The term ἄγγελος κυρίου, angel of the Lord, may be regarded as a kind of proper name, and we may translate the angel of the Lord, notwithstanding the absence of the article. But since, when once this personage is introduced, the word angel is preceded by the article (Luk 1:13), it is more natural to translate here an angel.

The entrance to the temple facing the east, Zacharias, on entering, had on his right the table of shew-bread, placed on the north side; on his left the candelabrum, placed on the south side; and before him the golden altar, which occupied the end of the Holy Place, in front of the veil that hung between this part of the sanctuary and the Holy of Holies. The expression, on the right side of the altar, must be explained according to the point of view of Zacharias; the angel stood, therefore, between the altar and the shew-bread table. The fear of Zacharias proceeds from the consciousness of sin, which is immediately awakened in the human mind when a supernatural manifestation puts it in direct contact with the divine world. The expression φόβος ἐπέπεσεν is a Hebraism (Gen 15:12).

Was it morning or evening? Meyer concludes, from the connection between the entrance of Zacharias into the temple and the drawing of the lot (Luk 1:9), that it was morning. This proof is not very conclusive. Nevertheless, the supposition of Meyer is in itself the most probable.

The message of the angel: Luk 1:13-17. “But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elizabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John 14. And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. 15. For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb. 16. And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. 17. And he shall go before Him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

The angel begins by reassuring Zacharias (Luk 1:13); then he describes the person of the son of Zacharias (Luk 1:14-15), and his mission (Luk 1:16-17).

In the 13th verse the angel tells Zacharias that he has not come on an errand of judgment, but of favour; comp. Dan 10:12.

The prayer of Zacharias to which the angel alludes would be, in the opinion of many, an entreaty for the advent of the Messiah. This, it is said, is the only solicitude worthy of a priest in such a place and at such a time. But the preceding context (Luk 1:7) is in no way favourable to this explanation, nor is that which follows (Luk 1:13 b); for the sense of the καί is most certainly this: “And so thy wife Elizabeth...” Further, the two personal pronouns, σοῦ and σοί, “thy wife shall bear thee,” as also the σοί, “thou shalt have (Luk 1:14), prove positively the entirely personal character of the prayer and its answer. The objection that, according to Luk 1:7, he could no longer expect to have a child, and consequently could not pray with this design, exaggerates the meaning of this word.

The phrase καλεῖν ὄνομα is a Hebraism; it signifies, properly, to call any one by his name. The name ᾿Ιωάννης, John, is composed of יהוה, H3378 and חָנַן, H2858: Jehovah shows grace. It is not the character of the preaching of this person which is expressed by this name; it belongs to the entire epoch of which his appearance is the signal.

The 14th verse describes the joy which his birth will occasion; it will extend beyond the narrow limits of the family circle, and be spread over a large part of the nation. There is an evident rising towards a climax in this part of the message: 1st, a Song of Solomon 2 d, a son great before God; 3d, the forerunner of the Messiah. ᾿Αγαλλίασις expresses the transports which a lively emotion of joy produces. The beginning of the fulfilment of this promise is related, Luk 1:64-66. The reading γενέσει is certainly preferable to γεννήσει, which is perhaps borrowed from the use of the verb γεννᾶν (Luk 1:13).

The ardour of this private and public joy is justified in the 15th verse by the eminent qualities which this child will possess (γάρ). The only greatness which can rejoice the heart of such a man as Zacharias is a greatness which the Lord Himself recognises as such: great before the Lord. This greatness is evidently that which results from personal holiness and the moral authority accompanying it.

The two και following may be paraphrased by: and in fact.

The child is ranked beforehand amongst that class of specially consecrated men, who may be called the heroes of theocratic religion, the Nazarites. The ordinance respecting the kind of life to be led by these men is found in Num 6:1-21. The vow of the Nazarite was either temporary or for life. The Old Testament offers us two examples of this second form: Samson (Jdg 13:5-7) and Samuel (1Sa 1:11). It was a kind of voluntary lay priesthood. By abstaining from all the comforts and conveniences of civilised life, such as wine, the bath, and cutting the hair, and in this way approaching the state of nature, the Nazarite presented himself to the world as a man filled with a lofty thought, which absorbed all his interest, as the bearer of a word of God which was hidden in his heart (Lange).—Σικέρα denotes all kinds of fermented drink extracted from fruit, except that derived from the grape. In place of this means of sensual excitement, John will have a more healthful stimulant, the source of all pure exaltation, the Holy Spirit. The same contrast occurs in Eph 5:18: “Be not drunk with wine..., but be filled with the Spirit.” And in his case this state will begin from his mother’s womb: ἔτι, even, is not put for ἤδη, already; this word signifies, whilst he is yet in his mother’s womb. The fact related (Luk 1:41-44) is the beginning of the accomplishment of this promise, but it in no way exhausts its meaning.

Vers. 16, 17. The mission of the child; it is described (Luk 1:16) in a general and abstract way: he will bring back, turn; this is the הֵשִׁיבof the Old Testament. This expression implies that the people are sunk in estrangement from God.

The 17th verse specifies and developes this mission. The pronoun αὐτός, he, brings out prominently the person of John with a view to connect him with the person of the Lord, who is to follow him (αὐτοῦ). The relation between these two personages thus set forth is expressed by the two prepositions, πρό, before (in the verb), and ἐνώπιον, under the eyes of; he who precedes walks under the eyes of him that comes after him. The Alex. reading προσελεύσεται has no meaning.

The pronoun αὐτοῦ (before him) has been referred by some directly to the person of the Messiah. An attempt is made to justify this meaning, by saying that this personage is always present to the mind of the Israelite when he says “he.” But this meaning is evidently forced; the pronoun him can only refer to the principal word of the preceding verse: the Lord their God. The prophecy (Mal 3:1), of which this passage is an exact reproduction, explains it: “Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me; and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the Covenant, whom ye delight in.” According to these words, therefore, in the eyes of the prophet the Messiah is no other than Jehovah Himself. For it is Jehovah who speaks in this prophecy. It is He who causes Himself to be preceded in His appearance as the Messiah by a forerunner who receives (Luk 4:5) the name of Elijah, and who is to prepare His way. It is He who, under the names of Adonaï (the Lord), and the Angel of the covenant, comes to take possession of His temple. From the Old as well as the New Testament point of view, the coming of the Messiah is therefore the supreme theophany. Apart from this way of regarding them, the words of Malachi and those of the angel in our 17th verse are inexplicable. See an αὐτοῦ very similar to this in the strictly analogous passage, Joh 12:41 (comp. with Isaiah 6).

It appears from several passages in the Gospels that the people, with their learned men, expected, before the coming of the Messiah, a personal appearance of Elijah, or of some other prophet like him, probably both (Joh 1:21-22; Mat 16:14; Mat 17:10; Mat 27:47). The angel spiritualizes this grossly literal hope: “Thy son shall be another Elijah.” The Spirit designates the divine breath in general; and the term power, which is added to it, indicates the special character of the Spirit’s influence in John, as formerly in Elijah. The preposition ἐν, in, makes the Holy Spirit the element into which the ministry of John is to strike its roots.

The picture of the effect produced by this ministry is also borrowed from Malachi, who had said: “He shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.” The LXX., and, after their example, many modern interpreters, have applied this description to the re-establishment of domestic peace in Israel. But nothing either in the ministry of Elijah or of John the Baptist had any special aim in this direction. Besides, such a result has no direct connection with the preparation for the work of the Messiah, and bears no proportion to the threat which follows in the prophetic word: “Lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.” Lastly, the thought, “and the heart of the children to their fathers,” taken in this sense, could not have substituted for it in the discourse of the angel, “and the rebellious to the wisdom of the just,” unless we suppose that in every Israelitish family the children are necessarily rebellious and their parents just. Some explain it thus: “He will bring back to God all together, both the hearts of the fathers and those of the children;” but this does violence to the expression employed. Calvin and others give the word heart the sense of feeling: “He will bring back the pious feeling of the fathers [faithful to God] to the present generation [the disobedient children], and turn the latter to the wisdom of the former.” But can “to turn their hearts towards” mean “to awaken dispositions in”? For this sense εἰς would have been necessary instead of ἐπί (τέκνα); besides, we cannot give the verb ἐπιστρέψαι such a different sense from ἐπιστρέψει in Luk 1:16. The true sense of these words, it seems to me, may be gathered from other prophetic passages, such as these: Isa 29:22, “Jacob shall no more be ashamed, neither shall his face wax pale, when he seeth his children become the work of my hands.” Isa 63:16, “Doubtless Thou art our Father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not; Thou, O Lord, art our Father, our Redeemer!” Abraham and Jacob, in the place of their rest, had blushed at the sight of their guilty descendants, and turned away their faces from them; but now they would turn again towards them with satisfaction in consequence of the change produced by the ministry of John. The words of Jesus (Joh 8:56), “Abraham rejoiced to see my day, and he saw it, and was glad,” proves that there is a reality underlying these poetic images. With this meaning the modification introduced into the second member of the phrase is easily explained. The children who will turn towards their fathers (Malachi), are the Jews of the time of the Messiah, the chilaren of the obedient, who return to the wisdom of the pious patriarchs (Luke). Is not this modification made with a view to enlarge the application of this promise? The expression, the rebellious, may, in fact, comprehend not only the Jews, but also the heathen. The term ἀπειθεῖς, rebellious, is applied by Paul (Romans 11) to both equally.—Φρόνησις δικαίων, the wisdom of the just, denotes that healthy appreciation of things which is the privilege of upright hearts.

The preposition of rest, ἐν, is joined to a verb of motion, ἐπιστρέψαι, to express the fact that this wisdom is a state in which men remain when once they have entered it.

It will be John’s mission, then, to reconstitute the moral unity of the people by restoring the broken relation between the patriarchs and their descendants. The withered branches will be quickened into new life by sap proceeding from the trunk. This restoration of the unity of the elect people will be their true preparation for the coming of the Messiah.

Some interpreters have proposed to make ἀπειθεῖς the object of ἑτοιμάσαι, and this last a second infinitive of purpose, parallel to ἐπιστρέψαι: “And to prepare, by the wisdom of the just, the rebellious, as a people made ready for the Lord.” It is thought that in this way a tautology is avoided between the two words ἑτοιμάσαι, to prepare, and κατεσκευασμένον, made ready, disposed. But these two terms have distinct meanings. The first bears on the relation of John to the people; the second on the relation of the people to the Messiah. John prepares the people in such a way that they are disposed to receive the Messiah.

Of course it is the ideal task of the forerunner that is described here. In reality this plan will succeed only in so far as the people shall consent to surrender themselves to the divine action.

Is it probable that after the ministry of Jesus, when the unbelief of the people was already an historical fact, a later writer would have thought of giving such an optimist colouring to the discourse of the angel?

Frédéric Louis Godet — Commentaries on Luke, John, Romans, and 1 Corinthians — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1870s–1890s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

right side--the south side, between the altar and the candlestick, Zacharias being on the north side, in front of the altar, while offering incense [WEBSTER and WILKINSON]. But why there? The right was the favorable side (Mat 25:33) [SCHOTTGEN and WESTEIN in MEYER]; compare Mar 16:5.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 11. There appeared - an angel of the Lord] There had been neither prophecy nor angelic ministry vouchsafed to this people for about 400 years. But now, as the Sun of righteousness is about to arise upon them, the day-spring from on high visits them, that they may be prepared for that kingdom of God which was at hand. Every circumstance here is worthy of remark:

1. That an angel should now appear, as such a favour had not been granted for 400 years.

2. The person to whom this angel was sent-one of the priests. The sacerdotal office itself pointed out the Son of God till he came: by him it was to be completed, and in him it was to be eternally established: - Thou art a priest for ever, Ps 110:4.

3. The place in which the angel appeared - Jerusalem; out of which the word of the Lord should go forth, Isa 2:3, and not at Hebron, in the hill country of Judea, where Zacharias lived, Lu 1:39, which was the ordinary residence of the priests, Jos 21:11, where there could have been few witnesses of this interposition of God, and the effects produced by it.

4. The place where he was when the angel appeared to him - in the temple, which was the place where God was to be sought; the place of his residence, and a type of the human nature of the blessed Jesus, Joh 2:21.

5. The time in which this was done - the solemn hour of public prayer. God has always promised to be present with those who call upon him. When the people and the priest go hand in hand, and heart with heart, to the house of God, the angel of his presence shall surely accompany them, and God shall appear among them.

6. The employment of Zacharias when the angel appeared - he was burning incense, one of the most sacred and mysterious functions of the Levitical priesthood, and which typified the intercession of Christ: confer He 7:25, with He 9:24.

7. The long continued and publicly known dumbness of the priest, who doubted the word thus miraculously sent to him from the Lord: a solemn intimation of what God would do to all those who would not believe in the Lord Jesus. Every mouth shall be stopped.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(11) The altar of incense.—The altar stood just in front of the veil that divided the outer sanctuary from the Holy of Holies. It was made of shittim wood, and overlaid with gold, both symbols of incorruption (Exo_30:1-7; Exo_40:5; Exo_40:26). Its position connected it so closely with the innermost sanctuary that the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews (Heb_9:4; but see Note there) seems to reckon it as belonging to that, and not unto the outer. It symbolised accordingly the closest approach to God which was then possible for any but the high priest, when, in his typical character, he entered the Holy of Holies on the day of Atonement.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

11. an angel] St Luke dwells more than any of the Evangelists on the ministry of angels, Luk_1:26, Luk_2:9; Luk_2:13; Luk_2:21, Luk_12:8, Luk_15:10, Luk_16:22, Luk_22:43, Luk_24:4; Luk_24:23, and frequently in the Acts. Compare the births of Isaac, Samson, and Samuel.

the right side] i. e. the South. It was the propitious side so to speak, Mar_16:5; Mat_25:33; and ib. Schöttgen, Hor. Hebr.

the altar of incense] A small movable table of acacia wood overlaid with gold. See Exo_30:1-38; Exo_37:25; 1Ki_7:48. In Heb_9:4 the word may possibly mean ‘censer.’

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord,.... Gabriel, as seem's manifest from Luk 1:19 the same angel that had appeared to Daniel, about the time of the evening oblation, near five hundred years before, and gave him an account of the time of the Messiah's coming, Dan 9:21. The Jews sometimes speak of divine and wonderful appearances to their priests, at such times, and in such places:

"it is a tradition that R. Ishmael ben Elishah should say, one time I went in, , "to burn incense": and I saw Actariel (one of the names of God with them) the Lord, the Lord of hosts, who was sitting on a throne, high and lifted up. (m).

And so they say of Simeon the just, that there was always an appearance when he went into the holy of holies; it is related thus (n):

"Simeon the just, ministered unto Israel in the high priesthood, forty years; and in the last year, he said to them, I shall die this year: they said to him, from whence dost thou know it? He replied to them, every year that I have entered into the holy of holies, there was, , "one old man" clothed in white, and veiled in white, that went in with me, and came out with me; and this year he went in with me, but did not come out with me.

And according to Josephus (o), the high priest Hyrcanus received an oracle, or answer from God, as he was offering incense; so that the Jews ought not to discredit such an appearance to Zacharias:

standing on the right side of the altar of incense; of which, see Exo 30:1 the situation of it, according to the Jews, was this (p):

"the table (of showbread) was in the north, two cubits and a half distant from the wall; and the candlestick was in the south, two cubits and a half distant from the wall; and the altar (of incense) was in the middle, and stood between them.

And to

"this agrees the account of Maimonides (q), who says, the candlestick was on the south, on the left hand, as you go in; and the table of shewbread on the right hand, and both of them on the side of the holy of holies without; and the altar of incense was between them both without.

So that it was on the north side that the angel stood,

(m) T. Bab. Berncot, fol. 7. 1. (n) T. Hieros. Yoma, fol. 42. 3. (o) De Bello Jud. l. 13. c. 18. (p) T. Bab. Yoma, fol. 33. 2. (q) Hilch. Beth Habbechira, c. 1. sect. 7.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

11 And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense.

Ver. 11. Standing on the right side of the altar] As Satan stood at the right hand of Joshua to molest him, Zec 3:1, so stand the angels at our right hand, in the public assemblies especially, to withstand him. And to signify this, the curtains of the tabernacle were wrought full of cherubims within and without.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

An angel - An “angel” is a messenger sent from God. See the notes at Mat 1:20. It had now been about 400 years since the time of “Malachi,” and since there had been any divine revelation. During that time the nation was looking for the Messiah, but still with nothing more than the ancient prophecies to direct them. Now that he was about to appear, God sent his messenger to announce his coming, to encourage the hearts of his people, and to prepare them to receive him.

On the right side ... - The altar of incense stood close by the veil which divided the holy place from the most holy. On the north stood the table of showbread; on the south the golden candlestick. As Zechariah entered, therefore, with his face to the west, the angel would stand on the north, or near the table of showbread. That table was 18 inches square and 3 feet high. The top, as well as the sides and horns, was overlaid with pure gold, and it was finished around the upper surface with a crown or border of gold. Just below this border, four golden rings were attached to each side of the altar, one near each corner. The staves or rods for bearing the altar passed through these rings, and were made of the same wood with the altar itself, and richly overlaid with the same precious metal. Upon this altar incense was burned every morning and every evening, so that it was literally perpetual, Exo 30:8. Neither burnt-sacrifice, nor meat-offering, nor drink-offering was permitted upon this altar; nor was it ever stained with blood except once annually, when the priest made atonement, Lev 16:18-19.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Though we translate it appeared, yet in the Greek it is, there was seen of him. An angel indeed was there; whether the angel Gabriel or not, or in what form he appeared, it is not said. It is by some observed, that until the Urim and Thummim ceased, no angel appeared to any priest executing his office; after this, it is observed by others, that most appearances of angels to the priests were when they were employed in their service in the temple.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

11. Angel of the Lord—See note on Mat_1:20. The appearance of this angel is the opening of the miraculous dispensation of grace.

On the right side of the altar—Zacharias at the proper signal ascending the steps behind the Great Altar, passes through the Porch, and walking the gilded floor, (for ceiling, walls, and probably floor, were sheeted with a complete overlay of gold,) approaches the altar upon which the censer has been placed. In this sanctuary no glare of day ever penetrates; but from the golden chandelier, with its seven branches crowned with lamps, pours a blaze of golden light over the golden altar and table, filling the golden room with richest splendour. The column of incense rises to soften the light and fill the air with fragrance. In this scene of dim magnificence a more than mortal form presents itself to the eye of Zacharias. Between the candlestick (8) and the Golden Altar (7) stands the angel Gabriel on the right side of the altar, (not on Zacharias’s right hand,) and, therefore, on the south side of the altar and on the right side of God, whose Shekinah, or Presence, once dwelt between the cherubim in the Most Holy, or Holy of Holies. This is the post of divine honour suitable to the being who announces that the age of Christ has approached, and that his harbinger is now to be born.

Though the system of miraculous revelation ceased with the closing canon, yet, if we may believe the Jewish historians, there were exceptional manifestations made in the Holy of Holies, or in the Holy Place, at this same Altar of Incense, to former priests. Ezra, the inspired Scribe, upon the return from the Captivity, established the Great Synagogue, consisting of one hundred and twenty grave and holy men, among whose presidents are enumerated Haggai, Zechariah, and Zerubbabel, which lasted one hundred and twenty years, terminating with the close of the presidency of the renowned Simon the Just, who died about 320 years before Christ. This was specially the age of the Soferim or Scribes. Simon the Just, it is related, filled the High Priesthood forty-nine years; and in the last year he said, “I shall die this year; for every year that I have entered the Holy of Holies there has been an Ancient One, זקז אהד, clothed in white, and veiled in white, that entered and came out with me; this year he entered but came not out.” Josephus narrates of the High Priest Hyrcanus, that upon the day that his sons fought at Cyzicenus, he was offering incense in the temple alone, and he heard a voice declaring that they had just conquered Antiochus; and this, going forward from the temple, he announced to the people in front. The annunciation was verified by the result.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord. Critics have especially found grave fault with this "Hebrew" portion of our Gospel, complaining that it needlessly introduces the marvelous, and brings uselessly into everyday life beings from another sphere. Godet well answers these criticisms by observing "that as Christianity was an entirely new beginning in history, the second and final creation of man, it was natural that an interposition on so grand a scale should be accompanied by a series of particular interpositions. It was even necessary; for how were the representatives of the ancient order of things, who had to cooperate in the new work, to be initiated into it, and their attachment won to it, except by this means? According to Scripture, we are surrounded by angels, (2Ki_6:17 Psa_34:7) whom God employs to watch over us; but in our ordinary condition we want the sense necessary to perceive their presence for that condition a peculiar receptivity is required. This condition was given to Zacharias. Origen ("Contra Censure") writes how, "in a church there are two assemblies one of angels, the other of men,... angels are present at our prayers, and they pray with us and for us." Standing on the right side of the altar of incense. The angel stood between the altar and the shew-bread table. On entering the holy place, the officiating priest would have on his right the table with the shew-bread, on his left the great candlestick, and before him would be the golden altar, which stood at the end of the holy place, in front of the veil which separated this chamber and the dim, silent holy of holies.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The angel messenger:

v. 11 And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense.

v. 12. And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.

v. 13. But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias; for thy prayer is heard, and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son; and thou shalt call his name John.

v. 14. And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth.

v. 15. For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb.

v. 16. And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord, their God.

v. 17. And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

While Zacharias was engaged in the work of his ministry, while the fumes of the incense in the censer were being wafted upward before the veil of the Most Holy Place,, there suddenly appeared to him an angel of the Lord. It was not a revelation in a dream or in an unconscious state, but an actual appearance, about whose definiteness there could be no doubt. On the right side, that is, on the south side of the altar of incense, the heavenly visitor stood. Zacharias was not in an ecstatic state, his mind was perfectly clear, he noted every detail. But he was deeply moved at the sight, greatly perturbed, as might be expected under the circumstances. And this perturbation took the form of fear, which fell upon him. Well might a sinful man be filled with fear in the presence of a sinless messenger from the holy God. But the angel made haste to reassure him, to tell him there was no need of fear and disturbance. It is a message of joy that he is bringing. It was not only on this day that the thoughts of Zacharias in his prayer had dwelt upon the cross that he was bearing, but it seems that this calamity was a cause of constant supplication to God. Note: When God gives His children a cross to bear, He tests their fortitude and patience, their faith and trust in Him. Even if all experience of man is against a Christian in his prayer, he trusts in the merciful Father for help and, in childlike faith, brings his petition before the throne of God again and again. God will hear at His time and in His way. Thus the angel here announced to Zacharias the fulfillment of his prayer. His wife Elisabeth would bear him a son, and he should call the name of this son John, which Luther renders: the Lord’s favor or mercy. This happening, the angel says, will be the occasion for joy and exultation on the part of the father. But other people also would rejoice with the parents on account of this son. The angel does not merely mean the relatives, who, indeed, did not disappoint them at the time appointed, but there is here a hint also of the joy which the true Jews, the believers, would feel at this indication of the consummation of their hopes, for some surely would recognize in John the forerunner of the Lord, the Messiah. The cause for this joy in the highest degree will not merely be parenthood realized, but the fact that this son would be great before the Lord, in the sight of God. He shall be esteemed highly in the sight of God, but shall also receive such regard for service in the field of religion. One of his characteristics would be that of the Nazarites of old: he would drink neither wine nor strong drink, any intoxicating beverage made from fruit outside of grapes, Num 6:3. But his greatest distinction would be this, that he would be filled with the Holy Ghost, not only from the hour of his birth, but before he would have seen the light, from his earliest origin. And a great and wonderful work will be his: Many of the children of Israel will he turn, convert, to the Lord, their God. Repentance and conversion will be his great aim and watchword. Such a spiritual renewal or Revival was badly needed in Palestine at this time, since there was too much dead orthodoxy and not enough living faith among the people. In performing this work, John would be fulfilling the prophecy spoken of him, Mal 4:5-6. The spirit and power of Elijah would be living in him, to turn the heart of the parents to the children, to make them realize the responsibility that rests upon them in the bringing up of the little ones in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, to make them realize that a supplying of the physical needs of the children is not sufficient to meet the demands of the Lord, to make them understand that their duty is not fulfilled when they go through the perfunctory, prescribed formula for teaching their children the outward observances of religion. And incidentally, John’s work would consist in turning the disobedient, the faithless, in, or by means of, the sound common sense of the righteous. To wander away from the Lord and follow the bent and inclination of one’s own evil heart, is, in the last analysis, the height of foolishness. The only true common sense is that found in those that live their life, with God’s help, in accordance with the rules of God’s holy Word. By such means, and in this way, John would prepare for the Lord a ready, instructed, adapted people. That is the order in the kingdom of Christ: by the preaching of repentance the way is prepared for Christ and for the Gospel of the mercy of God in Christ. Only where the hearts are previously influenced properly by such preaching, can sound Christian character grow out of the love of Christ.

Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Whilst Zacharias was praying to God, an angel appears to Zacharias: When we are nearest God, the good angels are nighest us: they are most with us when we are most with him. The presence of angels with us is no novelty, but their apparition to us is so. They are always with us, but rarely seen by us. Let our faith see them, whom our senses cannot discern: their assumed shapes do not make them more present, but only more visible.

Observe, 1. The place as well as the time where the angel appeared, in the temple and at the altar, and on the right side of the altar of incense. As the holy angels are always present with us in our devotions, so especially in religious assemblies; as in all places, so most of all in God’s house; they rejoice to be with us whilst we are with God, but they turn their faces from us when we go about our sins.

William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

11. An angel. His name was Gabriel (verse 19). This is the first messenger of the New Dispensation. The altar of incense. It was of cedar, overlaid with gold (1 Kings 6:20; 1 Chron. 28:18), was a cubit (about two feet) in length and breadth, and two cubits high; it stood in the Holy Place before the veil which separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

Connecting Statement:

While Zechariah does his duty in the temple, an angel comes from God to give him a message.

Now

This word marks the beginning of the action in the story.

appeared to him

"suddenly came to him" or "was suddenly there with Zechariah." This expresses that the angel was present with Zechariah, and not simply a vision.

Zechariah ... was terrified ... fear fell on him

These two phrases mean the same thing, and emphasize how afraid Zechariah was.

When Zechariah saw him

"When Zechariah saw the angel." Zechariah was afraid because the appearance of the angel was frightening. He had not done anything wrong, so he was not afraid that the angel would punish him.

fear fell on him

Fear is described as if it was something that attacked or overpowered Zechariah. (See: Metaphor)

Do not be afraid

"Stop being afraid of me" or "You do not need to be afraid of me"

your prayer has been heard

This can be stated in active form. It is implied that God will give Zechariah what he has asked for. AT: "God has heard your prayer and will give you what you have asked for" (See: Active or Passive and Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

bear you a son

"have a son for you" or "give birth to your son"

translationWords

angel

altar of incense

fear

John (the Baptist)

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

11. ἄγγελος. The ὤφθη implies an objective vision. St Luke dwells more than any of the Evangelists on the ministry of angels, Luk 1:26, Luk 2:9; Luk 2:13; Luk 2:21, Luk 12:8, Luk 15:10, Luk 16:22, Luk 22:43, Luk 24:4; Luk 24:23, and frequently in the Acts. Compare the visions at the births of Isaac, Samson, and Samuel.

ἐκ δεξιῶν. i.e. on the South side. It was the propitious side, so to speak, Mar 16:5; Mat 25:33; and ib. Schöttgen, Hor. Hebr.

τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου. A small movable table of acacia wood overlaid with gold. See Exo 30:1-38; Exo 37:25; 1Ki 7:48. In Heb 9:4 the word may possibly mean ‘censer.’

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

11.] The altar of incense, Exo 30:1, must not be confounded with the large altar of burnt-offering: that stood outside the holy place, in the court of the priests. It was during the sacrifice on the great altar that the daily burning of the incense took place: one of the two priests, whose lot it was to offer incense, brought fire from off the altar of burnt-offering to the altar of incense, and then left the other priest there alone,—who, on a signal from the priest presiding at the sacrifice, kindled the incense: see Exo 40:5, Exo 40:26.

This is no vision, but an actual angelic appearance. The right is the favourable side: see Mat 25:33. “We must understand the right as regarded the officiating priest, who stood with his face to the altar. It would thus be on the N. side of the holy place, where the table of shew-bread stood, whereas on the S. side was the golden candlestick.” Bleek.

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

11. ὤφθη δὲ αὐτῷ ἄγγελος Κυρίου. It was the most solemn moment of his life, when he stood alone in that sacred spot to offer the pure and ideal symbol of the imperfect prayer which he and those outside were offering. The unique circumstances contributed to make him conscious of that unseen world which is around all of us (2Ki 6:17; comp. Luk 15:7, Luk 15:10). For ὤφθη see on 22:43 ; and for an analysis of the psychological facts see Lange, L. of Christ, bk. ii. pt. ii. § 2 ; Eng. tr. 1:264. But must we not choose between admitting an objective appearance and rejecting the whole as a myth? To explain it as a “false perception” or optical delusion, i.e. a purely subjective result of psychological causes, seems to be not admissible. In that case Zacharias, like Lord Herbert of Cherbury,1 would have accepted the sign which he supposed that he had received. To believe in the reality of a subjective appearance and not believe its testimony is a contradiction. Moreover, the psychological explanation leaves the dumbness to be explained. Again, we have similar appearances ver. 26, 2:9, 13, 22:43, 24:4. Can we accept here an explanation which is very difficult (2:9, 13) or inadmissible (24:4) elsewhere? Are all these cases of false perception? See Paley, Evidences of Christianity, prop. 2Ch_1.; Mill, Pantheistic Principles, 2:1, 4, p. 123, 2nd ed. 1861; Edersh. L. & T. 1. p. 142, 2. p. 751.

ἐκ δεξιῶν τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου. The place of honour. It was “the right side of the altar,” not of Zacharias, who was facing it. Comp. Act 7:55, Act 7:56. The right side was the south side, and the Angel would be between the altar and the golden candlestick. On the left, or north side, of the altar was the table with the shewbread.

International Critical Commentary — older volumes (1896–1929), various authors — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.