Then people in Israel began to hear of great events. A child named John was born to a couple, Zechariah and Elizabeth (Luke 1:5-24, 57-80), even though Elizabeth was too old to have children. An angel, using words from Malachi 4:5-6, announced,
“… and he [John] will go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared“ (Luke 1:17).
John’s father, Zechariah, also used words from Malachi 3:1. By God’s Spirit, Zechariah prophesied (told ahead of time):
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare His ways (Luke 1:76).
God’s promises made through Malachi 400 years earlier were coming true! God was ending His long silence! Just as He promised, He was speaking through an “Elijah.”