The Birth of John the Baptist

⁵⁷ When Elizabeth's son was born, ⁵⁸ her neighbors and relatives heard how kind the Lord had been to her, and they too were glad.

^59 (A) Eight days later they did for the child what the Law of Moses commands.^[a] They were going to name him Zechariah, after his father. ⁶⁰ But Elizabeth said, “No! His name is John.”

⁶¹ The people argued, “No one in your family has ever been named John.” ⁶² So they motioned to Zechariah to find out what he wanted to name his son.

⁶³ Zechariah asked for a writing tablet. Then he wrote, “His name is John.” Everyone was amazed. ⁶⁴ At once, Zechariah started speaking and praising God.

⁶⁵ All the neighbors were frightened because of what had happened, and everywhere in the hill country people kept talking about these things. ⁶⁶ Everyone who heard about this wondered what this child would grow up to be. They knew the Lord was with him.

⁸⁰ As John grew up, God's Spirit gave him great power. John lived in the desert until the time he was sent to the people of Israel.