Luke 1:8-20

⁸One day, when Zechariah was officiating as priest before God, during the turn of his division,

⁹it fell to him by lot, in accordance with the practise amongst the priests, to go into the Temple of the Lord and burn incense;

¹⁰and, as it was the Hour of Incense, the people were all praying outside.

¹¹And an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right of the Altar of Incense.

¹²Zechariah was startled at the sight and was awe-struck.

¹³But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, whom you will call by the name John.

¹⁴He will be to you a joy and a delight; and many will rejoice over his birth.

¹⁵For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; he will not drink any wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit from the very hour of his birth,

¹⁶and will reconcile many of the Israelites to the Lord their God.

¹⁷He will go before him in the spirit and with the power of Elijah, to reconcile fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, and so make ready for the Lord a people prepared for him.”

¹⁸“How can I be sure of this?” Zechariah asked the angel. “For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years.”

¹⁹“I am Gabriel,” the angel answered, “who stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.

²⁰And now you will be silent and unable to speak until the day when this takes place, because you did not believe what I said, though my words will be fulfilled in due course.”