Here we see God’s sovereignty over the leader of the nation of Rome to make sure that His prophetic word in the Scriptures regarding the Messiah will take place and get fulfilled (see Matthew 2:1-6).
Here John is called a prophet of God. Not only was he a prophet, but he was also above those before him because of the unique role that God had given him before he was born (see Matthew 11:9-11 & Malachi 3:1-5).
Everything that came about, Elizabeth, who was barren, got pregnant, Zechariah being mute, and the words of praise that were said got the people wondering; what was God going to do with their child (John the baptist).
The people were perplexed with Elizabeth for naming her son John. In the first century, it seems that the people reused names from within their families, as the name familiarize the person’s family.
When we read in the Scriptures about salvation, we can be confident that those who have placed their trust in Jesus Christ will go to heaven after death.