His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying,
“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for He has visited and redeemed His people,
and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of His servant David,
as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets of long ago,
that we should be saved from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us,
to perform the mercy promised to our fathers
and to remember His holy covenant,
the oath which He swore to our father Abraham,
to grant us that we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies,
might serve Him without fear,
in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our lives.
“And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest;
for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to His people
by the remission of their sins, through the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise from on high has visited us;
to give light to those who sit in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he remained in the wilderness until the day of his appearance to Israel. Luke 1:67-80 Modern English Version (MEV)
This is the second of the four songs. Zechariah, filled with the Holy Spirit, speaks words of praise and prophecy with references to salvation, promises and Light, referring to Isaiah 9:2: “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them the light has shined…” Listen! You can hear his joy!
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Joy to the world! The Lord is come
Let earth receive her King!
Let every heart prepare him room,
and heav’n and nature sing, and heav’n and nature sing,
and heaven and heaven and nature sing!
