Luke 1:57-66 - The Birth Of John The Baptist

⁵⁷ When the time came for Elizabeth to have her child, she gave birth to a son. ⁵⁸ Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.

⁵⁹ On the eighth day they went to circumcise the child. They were going to name him Zechariah after his father, ⁶⁰ but his mother said, "Absolutely not! He must be named John."

⁶¹ Their friends told her, "None of your relatives has that name." ⁶² So they motioned to the baby's father to see what he wanted to name him. ⁶³ He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, "His name is John." And everyone was amazed. ⁶⁴ Suddenly, Zechariah could open his mouth, his tongue was set free, and he began to speak and to praise God. ⁶⁵ Fear came over all their neighbors, and throughout the hill country of Judea all these things were being discussed. ⁶⁶ Everyone who heard about it kept thinking what had happened and asked, "What will this child become?" because it was obvious that the hand of the Lord was with him.