And the child grew and became strong in spirit; and he lived in the wilderness until the time of his public appearance to Israel.
We have here the song wherewith Zacharias praised God when his mouth was opened; in it he is said to prophesy (Luk 1:67), and so he did in the strictest sense of prophesying; for he foretold things to come concerning the kingdom of the Messiah, to which all the prophets bear witness. Observe, I.
Commenting on Luke 1:67-80
And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit,.... That is, John, the son of Zacharias and Elisabeth, grew in stature of body, and increased in wisdom and knowledge, and fortitude in his soul: and was in the deserts; or "desert", as the Syriac, Persic, and Ethiopic versions read; not in the wilderness of Judea, where he came preaching, but either of Ziph or Maon...
Verse 80. Waxed strong in spirit. That is, in courage, understanding, and purposes of good, fitting him for his future work. The word wax means to increase, to grow, from an old Saxon word. In the deserts. In Hebron, and in the hill country where his father resided. He dwelt in obscurity, and was not known publicly by the people. Until the day of his showing.