In the first chapter of Luke, two persons were told that God was going to bless them with a miraculous birth, what I found interesting is that one person, Zechariah, was made mute for his unbelief and the other, Mary, was called blessed for she did believe. They both asked a similar question so I was puzzled as to how one person was considered not believing and the other believing.
"But Zechariah said to the angel, “How can I be sure of this? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years?” And the angel answered, saying to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you, and to tell you the good news of these things. And now you will be reduced to silence and not be able to speak until the day in which these things happen, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.” -Luke 1:18-20 MOUNCE
"Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I have no sexual relationship with a man?” And the angel answered, saying to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you: therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called the Son of God. Look, your relative Elizabeth, she also has conceived a son in her old age; indeed, this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible for God.” So Mary said, “Behold, the maidservant of the Lord! Let it happen to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her." -
Luke 1:34-38 MOUNCE
"Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.” -
Luke 1:45 MOUNCE
In order to solve this puzzle, I concentrated on Zechariah's words,“How can I be sure of this?" and Mary's, “How will this be...". The two questions sound very similar but are they? So I looked at the Greek words used for these questions.
In Greek, Zechariah asked, "Kata ti gnōsomai touto" and Mary asked, "Pōs estai touto". They both said, touto, so let's look at that one first. Touto is a demonstrative pronoun that can mean this, he, she, or it.
Now let's look at Zechariah's words, "Kata ti gnōsomai". Kata is a preposition that can mean "down from, i.e. from a higher to a lower plane, with special reference to the terminus (end-point)" (J. Thayer). Ti is an interrogative pronoun that can mean who, which, what, or why. Now, gnōsomai can mean "to know, especially through personal experience (first-hand acquaintance)", which is interesting for it is the same word for sexual relationship that Mary uses when she tells the angel that she has had no sexual relationship with a man. It's as if Mary was saying that she had no intimate relationship with man; whereas Zechariah was saying he had no intimate relationship with God.
Now, Mary says, "Pōs estai". Pōs is an interrogative adverb that can mean how, in what manner, or by what means. This is a very legitimate question given Mary's situation. Estai is a verb that can mean "to be."
So it appears that Mary was just speculating in what way will she get pregnant since she was a virgin and did not intend to take control of the situation and get herself pregnant. Whereas, Zechariah's question was on a much deeper level. He was asking by who or what will the first hand experience come down to him that will allow him to know that this will happen. Hmmm......sounds like unbelief. And we know that unbelief is a sin, "whatever is not from faith is sin." (Romans 14:23 MOUNCE)
So now that we know that Zechariah sinned due to unbelief, it is very interesting to note that he was made mute until the birthing and naming of his son. [I heard of selective mutism. Would this be considered spiritual mutism? I digress.]
"The time arrived for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had greatly displayed his mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her. On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they wanted to call him by the name of his father, Zechariah. But his mother responded, saying, “No; he is rather to be called John.” And they said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who is called by this name.” So they motioned to his father to find out what he would like him to be called. He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And they were all astonished. Instantly his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he began to speak, praising God." -Luke 1:57-64 MOUNCE
Why was Zechariah made mute? As punishment for his unbelief? I don't believe so. I believe there are much deeper reasons for his mutism. It appears to me that he was made mute so that his unbelief will not be spread by his words for it does say, "...no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison." (James 3:8 ESV)
Consider these following scriptures, as well.
"The one who speaks in a tongue edifies himself." -1 Corinthians 14:4 MOUNCE
"Keep your tongue from evil And your lips from speaking deceit." -Psalm 34:13 NASB
" I said, I will take heed and guard my ways, that I may sin not with my tongue; I will muzzle my mouth as with a bridle while the wicked are before me." -Psalm 39:1 AMP
"... my tongue is the pen of a ready writer." -Psalm 45:1 NASB
"Your tongue devises destruction, Like a sharp razor, O worker of deceit." -Psalm 52:2 NASB
"My soul is among lions; I must lie among those who breathe forth fire, Even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows And their tongue a sharp sword." -Psalm 57:4 NASB
"If someone thinks that he is religious, yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless." -James 1:26 MOUNCE
"And the tongue is a fire! The tongue is a world of iniquity set among our members; it defiles the whole body, sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell." -James 3:6 MOUNCE
"There are six
things which the Lord hates,
Yes, seven which are an
abomination to Him:
Haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
And hands that shed innocent blood,
A heart that devises wicked plans,
Feet that run rapidly to evil,
A false witness who utters
lies,
And one who spreads strife among
brothers."
-Proverbs 6:16-19 NASB
"The tongue of the righteous is as choice silver, The heart of the wicked is worth little." -Proverbs 10:20 NASB
"The mouth of the righteous flows with wisdom, But the perverted tongue will be cut out." -Proverbs 10:31 NASB
"There is one who speaks rashly like the thrusts of a sword, But the tongue of the wise brings healing." -Proverbs 12:18 NASB
"A soothing tongue is a tree of life, But perversion in it crushes the spirit." -Proverbs 15:4 NASB
"Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they who indulge in it shall eat the fruit of it [for death or life]." -Proverbs 18:21 AMP
"He who guards his mouth and his tongue, Guards his soul from troubles." -Proverbs 21:23 NASB
"For “The one who desires to love life and to see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit." -1 Peter 3:10 MOUNCE
The verse I like best is "... my tongue is the pen of a ready writer." (Psalm 45:1 NASB) It paints the picture of our words writing upon the pages of our lives. As our mouth speaks so our lives will be, which is why I think Zechariah was made mute. It was very important that John's birth not be surrounded with words of unbelief. I believe that words are more important that we think.
When we first married, my husband and I lived with my mother, sister and brother for about five years. It was quite challenging at times; but the Lord had told me that it was crucial that my husband and I live with them for they believed unswervingly that God can and will deliver my husband from the host of mental illnesses he was diagnosed with. God told me that my husband needed to be surrounded with people that believed in his deliverance and healing. Furthermore, my family never allowed my husband to speak anything that was not aligned with his continual deliverance and healing.
Before our marriage, many of his friends and relatives told me that I had to accept that my husband will always be in the state he was in. My family and I always vigorously stated that we will not accept this and believed in God's deliverance. As a result of our belief and the support of our church, we have seen God and continue to see Him do miraculous and mighty works in my husband's life. I no longer get told that I have to accept his plight.
I believe that it was necessary that the birth of John and Jesus be surrounded with words of belief from those that mattered. If you notice, Zechariah's words were words of praise when God lifted the mutism. Also significant were the responses of those witnessing these events.
"Fear came upon all who lived around them, and all these things were being talked about throughout the whole hill country of Judea." -Luke 1:65 MOUNCE
The Greek word for fear used in this verse is "phóbos", which can mean "withdrawal, fleeing because feeling inadequate (without sufficient resources, Abbott-Smith)." Perhaps God had them flee so they could not infect Zechariah's family with words of unbelief. For if they will filled with belief then there would be no reason to flee due to fear for they would have been with sufficient resources. Consider Simeon's and Anna's response to Jesus.
" Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting expectantly for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. So he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, he received him in his arms and blessed God and said, “Now, Master, you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; because my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory for your people Israel.” His father and mother were amazed at the things that were being said about him.
Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Take note, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that will be opposed (and a sword will pierce your own soul also), that thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”
Now there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from her virginity, and then she was a widow until she was eighty-four years old. She did not leave the temple, worshipping night and day with fasting and prayer. At that very hour she came up and began to give thanks to God and continued to speak of him to all who were waiting expectantly for the redemption of Jerusalem." -Luke 2:25-38 MOUNCE
I can't help wonder if my confession does not stem from belief then will God allow me to draw near to His mighty and perfect works?
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