Within the priestly line of Tzadok, there were several well-known priests, according to Nehemiah 11:11, which included such personalities such as Jeremiah the Prophet (Jeremiah 1:1) and Ezra the Priest/Scribe (Ezra 7:1-5).
Previously, I focused on the priestly line of Aaron and how it came to be established through his firstborn son, Eliezer, who passed on his elected authority to Pinchas, who then passed his authority on to Tzadok (1 Chronicles 24:3 and Nehemiah 12:4) as he was the chosen priest for the House of Solomon, the Son of David. Further downline, according to Luke 1, Zecharias was chosen by lot to offer incense in the House of Yehovah. But remember, only those of the House of Tzadok were permitted for the job according to 1 Chronicles 23:13 and Numbers 4:16, and Zecharias was called "righteous" and "blameless."
Zecharias and Elisheva brought a son into the world who was named Yochanan or John. But why did the Angel Gabriel tell Zechariah to name his yet unborn child Yochanan or John? There appears to be a connection to the last known and legitimate high priest in the line of Aaron, dating to around 175 BCE. The priest was called in Greek Onias III, but according to the Scroll of Ben Sirach Chapter 50, Verse 1, his name in Hebrew was בֶּן יוֹחָנָן הַכֹּהֵן (“Yochanan the Priest”), corresponding to the abbreviated name "Honi."
In naming the child Yochanan or John, it connected the earthly Zadokite priesthood of John the Baptist to the last known and legitimate Zadokite priesthood of Yochanan (Onias III) just before the whole Zadokite line was removed from their Temple service about 50 years before the birth of Yeshua. Through John the Immerser, the nearly broken Zadokite priesthood of Earth was given legitimacy to the Melchizedek/Zadokite line of Heaven, establishing an eternal connection to Melchizedek/Yeshua (Genesis 14:18) to Daniel 9:24.
Join us for Real Israel Talk Radio, Episode 138, and Part 25 in my series on the last Passover Week Chronology and Timeline of Yeshua.