Zacharias prophesied of Christ when his son John the Baptist was born.
"And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy
Ghost, and prophesied, saying, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath
visited and redeemed his people, and hath raised up an horn of salvation
[mighty Savior] for us in the house [the royal line] of his servant David;"
- Luke 1:67-69 KJV
God overshadowed the young woman Mary making Himself a body
so He could visit His people, dwelling among them. God did this so He could
shed His own blood for the remission of their sins and redeem them. (Acts
20:28, Leviticus 17:11, Matthew 26:28, Hebrews 9:22). He came in His name JESUS.
A horn (H7161), of an ox, a goat, or a ram, is a metaphor of
strength and power. The first mention of the Hebrew word for horn is Genesis
22:13. When Abraham was being tested, he prophesied: “God will provide Himself
a lamb…”
"And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold
behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took
the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son."
- Genesis 22:13 KJV
The horn from a ram, (a shofar), is used as a call to
repentance and a reminder of the love of God for His people. It is a reminder
of the ram that replaced Isaac on the altar as a sacrifice. A ram is a male
sheep.
The Hebrew word for “ram’s horn,” “yovel” (H2986), is also
the word for “jubile.”
"And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim
liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof: it shall be a
jubile unto you; and ye shall return every man unto his possession [all properties
return to original owners], and ye shall return every man unto his family [all
slaves are freed]." - Leviticus 25:10 KJV
Jesus is God our Savior, the horn of salvation. The ram that
took Isaac’s place as a sacrifice is a metaphor for Jesus. Jesus (the Lamb of
God which taketh away the sin of the world that hung on a tree) took our place
as a sacrifice, just as the ram (a male sheep caught on a tree) took Isaac’s
place as a sacrifice. Jesus is our Jubilee. We were slaves to sin and death but Jesus
sets us free. (Hebrews 2:14-15, Acts 20:28).
We claim the freedom Jesus purchased for us when we turn our
back on sin by repentance, we are baptized in the name of Jesus for the
remission [forgiveness] of our sins, and we are filled with the power of Jesus
to overcome sin and death when we receive the gift of His Holy Ghost. (Acts 2:38-39).
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