 At that time, his relatives wanted to name the child after his father, and Zechariah wrote, ""His name is John"", whereupon he recovered his ability to speak (; ).Following Zechariah's obedience to the command of God, he was given the gift of prophecy, and foretold the future ministry of Jesus this prophecy forming the text of the Benedictus canticle.At the Annunciation, when the angel Gabriel appeared to the Virgin Mary to inform her that she would conceive of the Holy Ghost, he also informed her that Elizabeth, her cousin, was already six months pregnant ().