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John's parents: Zechariah, Elizabeth
Luke 1:5 “There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.”
The Hebrew name for Zechariah H2148 – zᵊḵaryâ is two words: Yah Zakar, meaning YHWH Remembers. The name Elisabeth H472 – ‘ĕlîšeḇa, have a double meaning. El, for Elohim which means God, and Seba H7651 – šeḇaʿ means seven in Hebrew, or Saba H7650 – šāḇa means to make an oath. Did you know, that not only was Johns’ mother a descendent of the High Priest Aaron, but Elisheba was also the High Priest Aaron’s wife, from Exodus 6:23, “Aaron took to himself Elisheba, daughter of Amminadab, sister of Nahshon, as wife”. So both Johns’ parents names, who were very respectable and righteous people, meant YHWH Elohim remembers His Oath!
But what is also interesting, is that just like in the case with Abraham and Sarah, going even further back in history, they too didn’t have any children, and in their old age got a word from YHWH for a son, and questioned if it could be true.
John in Hebrew
Luke 1:13 “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.”
The Greek name for John is Johannes G2491 – iōannēs, and the Hebrew name is Yohanan H3110 – yôḥānān, from two words: YHWH H3068 – yᵊhōvâ and Hanan H2603 – ḥānan, meaning “YHWH Mercy“.
From Luke 1:17 we read that John will have the Spirit of Elijah, “He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘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 YHWH”. This was confirmed by Yeshua from our post in Matthew 11. Elijah in Hebrew is EliYah H452 – ‘ēlîyâ, meaning “YHWH Elohim”, or my El (God) is YHWH.
Nazareth - Bethlehem
Luke 2:4 “Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David”
Nazareth
Matthew 2:23 “And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, “He shall be called a Nazarene.””
No where in the old testament is Nazareth ever mentioned, so what could Matthew have meant that Yeshua would be called a Nazarene according to the Prophets? We read in John 1:45-46 when Philip told Nathanael about Yeshua of Nazareth, he said, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”. Nazareth was a small town, with a negative reputation and Galilee was generally looked down upon by Judeans. This is a reminder of the words from Psalm 22:6-7, “But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by everyone, despised by the people. All who see me mock me; they hurl insults, shaking their heads”.
From Isaiah 11:1 we have the prophecy about the Messiah, “There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, And a Branch shall grow out of his roots.” The word Branch in Hebrew is Neser H5342 – nēṣer. In Hebrew they didn’t have consonants, only the letters NZR. So in Hebrew they could have said, He dwelts in the city NZR (Branch) and was called a NZR – as Yeshua was obviously called a Nazarene, but He was also called the Branch everyone was waiting for. In Zechariah 6:12 we read, “Thus says YHWH of hosts, saying: “Behold, the Man whose name is the BRANCH! From His place He shall branch out, And He shall build the temple of YHWH”. Yeshua shall branch out.. He said in John 15:5, “I am the vine; you are the branches.”
Bethlehem
Matthew 2:4-6 “And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet: ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, Are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler who will shepherd My people Israel.’, which is a prophecy from Micah 5:2.
From our post in Ruth 4, where she went to Bethlehem, we looked at the meaning of the name Bethlehem. While most translations and search results will say “House of Bread”, if you look at the meaning of the words, it is more close to “family of sustenance/food“. Yeshua’s father Joseph, comes from the lineage of Ruth and King David, and thus Yeshua had to be registered in Bethlehem.
