Gospel of the Holy Twelve
1THERE was in the days of Herod, the King of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia; and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.
2And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.
3And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his course, according to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple IOVA. And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of the offering of incense.
4And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing over the altar of incense. And when Zacharias saw, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him. But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias, for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth, shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name Iohn.
5And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth; for he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall neither eat flesh meats, nor drink strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.
6And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God; And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, 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 the Lord.
7And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife is well stricken in years. And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to announce unto thee these glad tidings.
8And, behold, thou art dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, then shall thy tongue be loosed that thou mayest believe my words which shall be fulfilled in their season.
9And the people waited for Zacharias, and marvelled that he tarried so long in the temple. And when he came out, he could not speak unto them; and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple; for he made signs unto them, and remained speechless.
10And it came to pass, that, as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house. And after those days, his wife Elisabeth, conceived, and hid herself five months saying, Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men. Lection 1.1 The opening paragraph of this Gospel was evidently before the eyes, or in the mind of St. Paul when he wrote Romans 1-4. (See Luke 1:5) This is only one of several instances where this Gospel, or the words of Iesus recorded in it, are used subsequently, without specially indicating the fact (as shewn further on), being well-known to his hearers at that time.
