Why did the angel Gabriel announce the coming birth of John the Baptizer, who was to prepare the way for the Messiah, to his father, the priest Zechariah, at the altar of incense in the Temple?

Unlike the counterfeit chief priests from the Sadducees who controlled the Temple politics, Zechariah was a true priest from the division of Abijah. Zechariah had been called for duty and for the only time in his life, Zechariah, advanced in years, had finally been selected for the honor of tending the altar of incense. This special altar was in front of the curtain that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies.

Behind the joy of this day for Zechariah lay the disappointment he and his wife, Elizabeth, experienced because they had been unable to have children. So imagine Zechariah’s surprise when the angel Gabriel tells him that he would have a son who would be the forerunner to the promised Messiah.

Luke specifically notes that this announcement came to Zechariah as Gabriel stood at “the right side of the altar of incense.” The smoke rising from this altar symbolized the prayers of God’s people rising before the Lord. Both Zechariah’s prayer for a son and Israel’s prayer for a Messiah were about to be answered!