NT Text: Luke 1:78
OT Source(s):
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Reference Type: Allusion
Connection Method(s): Promise-Fulfillment + Typology (Direct Type, Forward-Looking)
Anchor Text: Zech 6:12-13 — The Branch Priest-King
Significance: Zechariah's Benedictus describes the Messiah as the "Dawn" (anatolē) who will "visit us from on high" (Luke 1:78), employing the Greek word anatolē, which the LXX uses to translate the Hebrew ṣemaḥ ("Branch" or "Sprout") in Zechariah 6:12 and Jeremiah 23:5. In Zechariah 6:12, the divine oracle concerning Joshua the High Priest reads: "Behold, the man whose name is the Branch (ṣemaḥ; LXX anatolē) — he will branch out from his place and build the temple of the LORD." By using anatolē rather than simply "dawn" (hēlios anatelōn), Zechariah the priest-prophet almost certainly alludes to this messianic Branch oracle, casting Jesus as the fulfillment of the priestly-royal figure who would arise to rebuild God's true sanctuary. The dual resonance of anatolē — both the rising of the sun and the budding of a branch — makes the Benedictus a richly compressed messianic announcement.