PROPHET TO PREPARE THE WAY FOR THE PRINCE OF PEACE
And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for Him,
to give to His people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the DawnG395 will visit us from on high,
to shine on those who live in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peaceG1515.
Luke 1:76-79 (Malachi 3:1; Isaiah 40:3 Isaiah 9:2)
Malachi 3:1 (BSB) “Behold, I will send My messenger, who will prepare the way before Me. Then the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to His temple—the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight—see, He is coming,” says the LORD of Hosts.
Zachariah was not only pronouncing a blessing on his son, John, but was declaring a prophecy concerning his future. John the Baptist would be the forerunner of the Messiah, the preface to the Living Word, that Isaiah had written about centuries earlier:
Isaiah 40:3 (NLT) Listen! It’s the voice of someone shouting, “Clear the way through the wilderness for the LORD! Make a straight highway through the wasteland for our God!
The “Dawn” is a reference to the Messiah, who is the Light that shines in the darkness. Israel had been subject to Rome and their king, Herod, was Rome’s puppet. It was indeed a dark, shadowy time. John the Baptist’s birth signaled that the Light would soon burst upon the scene, and no one could extinguish it. We found the definition for the Greek word for “Dawn” in The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament:
G395. ἀνατολή anatolḗ; gen. anatolḗs, fem. noun from anatéllō (393), to rise. The dayspring or dawn, used only in a spiritual sense (Luke 1:78). (44)
John 1:5 (NLT) The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.
Malachi 4:2 (NLT) “But for you who fear my name, the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing in his wings. And you will go free, leaping with joy like calves let out to pasture.
The MacArthur Study Bible explains what it looks like for calves to be let out to pasture and how that relates to us spiritually:
Malachi 4:2 Calves, when confined to a stall for extended periods of time, leap for sheer joy when turned loose into the sunlight. The picture is one of a joyful, vigorous, and carefree life. (45)
Jesus, the Messiah, the Prince of Peace, would bring joy and peace to all who trusted in Him. The thing about the calves was puzzling until we realized they had been set free from their stalls to graze, run, and play in the pasture, like a baby cow dance party! Jesus sets us free from our bondage to sin—anything that separates us from Holy God. We should be singing and shouting and maybe even leaping with joy. Do you have that peace with God that Jesus died to provide for you? If not, or if you are not sure, please read the Jewels of Salvation in the back of this book. Or if you prefer, contact us through our website, www.preciousjewelsministries.com, if you have questions or need to solidify your understanding of surrendering your life to Jesus.
Father, help us to never take our peace with You for granted! Let us rejoice in the fact that we are set free from the bondage of sin, that which deserves the exacting of Your righteous wrath, because Jesus died in our place. May that truth give us peace that saturates our being even in the middle of our trials.