Early Christian Faith as Reflected in the Fresco of Zechariah’s Death in Cappadocia
Jun-woo Son, Jae-hyun Park, Sang-o Geum, and Ji-eun Lee Members of the Asia Minor Studies Association
In our previous article introducing Cappadocia, “Cappadocia: Early Christian Sites in Türkiye,” we provided an overview of the region’s history and its early Christian sites.[1] That article also briefly introduced the frescoes of Tokalı Church[2] and the traditions associated with them. In this article, we examine the scene depicting the death of Zechariah in Tokalı Church and the tradition behind it. We also explore how this scene may be related to “Zechariah son of Berechiah” in Matthew 23:35.
The Scene Depicting the Death of Zechariah
The scene depicting the death of Zechariah is found in the Old Church (Eski Kilise) of Tokalı Church, a Byzantine rock-cut church generally dated to the late tenth or early eleventh century. The Old Church originally consisted of a single nave with a barrel vault. Its ceiling is divided into several panels containing a cycle of frescoes depicting the life of Jesus. The death of Zechariah appears as the final scene in the upper-left ceiling panel, following the Adoration of the Magi, the Massacre of the Innocents, the Flight into Egypt, and the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple (T. C. Kültür ve Turizm Bakanlığı, n.d.).
Epstein (1986) identifies this scene as the “Death of Zacharias” and describes it as depicting Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, being attacked by two figures. He also identifies chapter 23, verse 3 of the Protoevangelium of James as the source of the scene (Epstein, 1986).
The death of Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, is not recorded in the canonical Gospels, but an account of his martyrdom is preserved in apocryphal literature. Local guides explain this scene in Tokalı Church by connecting it with the martyrdom of Zechariah mentioned in Matthew 23:35. But does the fresco in Tokalı Church actually depict the Zechariah referred to in Matthew 23:35? This interpretation, found in the Eastern Christian tradition, receives relatively little attention in contemporary Protestant biblical commentaries. We will therefore first examine how major commentaries interpret Matthew 23:35 and its parallel passage, Luke 11:51, before turning to the traditions of the early Eastern Church.
Interpreting Matthew 23:35
Matthew 23:35 (New International Version, 2011)
And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.
Luke 11:51 (New International Version, 2011)
from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, this generation will be held responsible for it all.
Who is the Zechariah mentioned in Matthew 23:35? This question has long been a subject of debate among biblical interpreters. Matthew identifies Zechariah as “the son of Berechiah” and records that he was killed between the temple and the altar. In the parallel passage in Luke, however, the name of his father is not mentioned.
Biblical commentaries offer various interpretations of this passage. Five individuals are commonly discussed in connection with the Zechariah in Matthew 23:35. Among them, three are regarded as the main candidates: Zechariah in 2 Chronicles, the prophet Zechariah in the Book of Zechariah, and Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist. Two other figures are also sometimes considered because of similarities in their names or their connection with historical events: Zechariah mentioned in Isaiah 8:2 and Zechariah ben Baruch, recorded by Josephus.
Zechariah son of Jeberechiah, mentioned in Isaiah 8:2, is sometimes considered because his father's name resembles the expression “son of Berechiah” in Matthew. However, neither the biblical text nor any known tradition records that this Zechariah was killed in the Temple. He is therefore better regarded as a figure worth considering because of the similarity in the names of the fathers, rather than as a direct candidate for identification.
Meanwhile, Zechariah ben Baruch, recorded by Josephus, was killed in the Temple around AD 68 during the Jewish War. It is difficult, however, to argue that Jesus was historically referring to this individual. For this reason, this article will not include him among the main candidates.
Let us first consider the interpretation most widely supported: that the Zechariah in Matthew refers to the Zechariah in 2 Chronicles 24. According to 2 Chronicles 24:20–22, Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada, was stoned to death in the courtyard of the house of the Lord. The primary reason many commentators identify this Zechariah with the figure in Matthew is that the location and circumstances of the two deaths correspond closely. The Zechariah in 2 Chronicles was killed in the Temple after delivering God's message. In Matthew, Jesus refers to Zechariah as someone who was killed between the temple and the altar, while condemning Jerusalem for its repeated persecution and killing of the prophets sent by God.
Furthermore, in the traditional arrangement of the Hebrew Bible, Chronicles comes at the end. Thus, the expression “from Abel to Zechariah” can be understood as symbolizing the entire history of the killing of God's prophets, from its beginning to its end.
The difficulty, however, is that the two passages give different names for Zechariah's father. Some scholars suggest that the name may have changed in the course of transmission. Others attempt to explain the relationship between the two different paternal names, Jehoiada and Berechiah.
Second, the prophet Zechariah in the Book of Zechariah is introduced in Zechariah 1:1 as the son of Berechiah. His father's name therefore matches the name given in Matthew. It is worth noting that the Zechariah in 2 Chronicles and the prophet Zechariah in the Book of Zechariah share the same Hebrew name, זְכַרְיָה, in the original Hebrew text.
Some scholars argue that Matthew may have had the prophet Zechariah in mind. They point to the close relationship between Matthew's Gospel and Old Testament prophecy, as well as the possible connections between the judgment pronounced in Matthew 23 and the eschatological and judgment-related themes of the Book of Zechariah.
However, the Bible contains no record that the prophet Zechariah was killed in the Temple. He ministered after the Babylonian exile, during the rebuilding of the Second Temple, and there is no historical evidence to suggest that he was murdered there.
Regarding this issue, Walton et al. (2010) suggest that Matthew's account contains both a reference to the prophet Zechariah and an allusion to Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada. In his analysis of the Zechariah tradition in Matthew, Moss (2002) argues that the expression “son of Berechiah” should be understood not as a mistake but as an intentional choice serving Matthew's theological purpose. The event itself evokes the martyrdom of Zechariah in 2 Chronicles 24, while the name “son of Berechiah” deliberately connects the figure with the prophet Zechariah in the Book of Zechariah. Through this connection, Matthew seeks to emphasize more strongly the tradition of the shepherd-Messiah found in the Book of Zechariah in relation to Jesus.
Third, the interpretation that identifies the Zechariah in Matthew 23:35 as the father of John the Baptist can be found in the tradition of early Eastern Christianity. Origen (ca. 185–253/254) addresses this question in his third-century commentary on Matthew.
In discussing the Zechariah in Matthew 23:35, Origen also pays attention to traditions that are not included in the biblical canon. He emphasizes the expression “whom you murdered” in Jesus' words and interprets it to mean that Zechariah was killed by the scribes and Pharisees. In Origen's discussion, Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist—a figure associated with the period close to Jesus' own time—is also treated as an important candidate for interpretation.
In this connection, it is necessary to consider the tradition preserved in the Protoevangelium of James. This early Christian text deals with the birth and childhood of Jesus and recounts the death of Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, in the Temple in connection with Herod's massacre of the infants. According to this tradition, Zechariah is killed because he refuses to reveal the whereabouts of John the Baptist to Herod. Thus, the account of the martyrdom of Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, developed and was transmitted in Eastern Christianity as a distinct tradition, separate from the canonical Gospels.
Not all the Fathers of the Eastern Church interpreted the Zechariah in Matthew 23:35 as the father of John the Baptist. For example, John Chrysostom (ca. 347–407), in his commentary on Matthew, identifies this Zechariah with the son of Jehoiada in 2 Chronicles. On the other hand, according to Gallagher (2014), Basil (ca. 329/330–379), Gregory of Nyssa (ca. 335–395), and Cyril of Alexandria (ca. 376–444) interpreted the Zechariah in Matthew 23:35 as the father of John the Baptist.
Their interpretations demonstrate that the tradition of the martyrdom of Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, was regarded as significant in early Eastern Christianity. Basil and Gregory of Nyssa, together with Gregory of Nazianzus, are known as the three Cappadocian Fathers. It is noteworthy that Basil and Gregory of Nyssa identified the Zechariah in Matthew 23:35 as the father of John the Baptist. This interpretive tradition provides important background for understanding the Christian faith and fresco tradition that developed in later Cappadocia. It also offers a context for understanding the tradition of Zechariah that took shape in this region within Eastern Christianity.
What the Zechariah Fresco at Tokalı Church Reveals to Us
Regardless of which Zechariah is intended, the central message of Jesus' words in Matthew 23 is clear. Jesus condemns Jerusalem for rejecting and persecuting the righteous and the prophets whom God had sent. Abel is the first example in the Bible of the death of a righteous person. If the Zechariah in Matthew is identified with the Zechariah in 2 Chronicles, he can be understood as the final figure symbolizing the death of the righteous in the history of the Hebrew Scriptures. By contrast, if the passage refers to Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, the death of the righteous is connected with the persecution that took place around the time of Jesus' birth.
The Eastern tradition that connects the father of John the Baptist with Matthew 23:35 therefore offers another theological resonance. The expression “from Abel to Zechariah” need not be understood only as referring to the beginning and end of the history of the Old Testament. It can also be understood more broadly as tracing the suffering and martyrdom of the righteous from the beginning of God's work of salvation to those who bore witness to the one through whom that salvation would come.
When viewing the Zechariah fresco at Tokalı Church, it is not enough simply to seek a definitive answer to the question, “Who is the Zechariah in Matthew 23:35?” Rather, the fresco reveals how early Christians remembered and interpreted the events surrounding the births of Jesus and John the Baptist.
Matthew's Gospel contains a solemn warning concerning the blood of the righteous. The Book of Chronicles tells of Zechariah, who was killed in the Temple after proclaiming God's word. The Book of Zechariah introduces the prophet Zechariah, the son of Berechiah. Early Christian tradition recounts the death of Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, who was killed in the Temple during Herod's persecution. And in the Byzantine world, the death of Zechariah was preserved in a church fresco. The Zechariah fresco at Tokalı Church stands at the intersection of these complex and richly layered traditions.
Thus, this fresco does not simply settle the debate over the identity of the Zechariah in Matthew 23:35. Rather, it serves as a valuable visual source showing how biblical texts, early Christian traditions, and Byzantine Christian faith and art are interconnected.
Viewed from this perspective, the Zechariah fresco at Tokalı Church becomes more than an old tourist site. It emerges anew as a testimony to early Christian faith—a faith that remembered and interpreted the death of the righteous and the unfolding of God's work of salvation.
References
Epstein, A. W. (1986). Tokalı Kilise: Tenth-century metropolitan art in Byzantine Cappadocia. Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection.
Gallagher, E. L. (2014). The blood from Abel to Zechariah in the history of interpretation. New Testament Studies, 60(1), 121–138. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0028688513000246
The Holy Bible, New International Version. (2011). Zondervan.
Moss, C. M. (2002). Zechariah and the Gospel of Matthew: The use of a biblical tradition [Doctoral dissertation, Durham University]. Durham E-Theses. https://etheses.durham.ac.uk/4220/
Son, J., Park, J., Keum, S., & Lee, J. (2025, October 20). Cappadocia: Early Christian heritage sites of Türkiye. MMI Global Bridge. https://www.mmiglobalbridge.org/post/cappadocia-early-christian-heritage-sites-of-türkiye
Taveneaux, A. (2011, July 6). Tokali kilise 11.jpg [Photograph]. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=15971079
T. C. Kültür ve Turizm Bakanlığı. (n.d.). Tokalı Kilise. Kültür Portalı.
https://kulturportali.gov.tr/turkiye/nevsehir/gezilecekyer/tokali-kilise
Uysun, M. (2021, February 26). Göreme Açık Hava Müzesindeki Tokalı Kilise [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bycCWEcHfH4
Walton, J. H., Matthews, V. H., Chavalas, M. W., & Keener, C. S. (2010). IVP Seonggyeong baegyeong juseok [The IVP Bible Background Commentary] (O. B. Jung, Trans.; rev. ed.). Hanguk Gidok Haksaenghoe Chulpanbu. [In Korean]
[1] Jun-woo Son, Jae-hyun Park, Sang-o Geum, and Ji-eun Lee, Members of the Asia Minor Studies Association, “Cappadocia: Early Christian Heritage Sites of Türkiye,” MMI Global Bridge, October 20, 2025, https://www.mmiglobalbridge.org/post/cappadocia-early-christian-heritage-sites-of-türkiye (accessed October 31, 2026).
[2] Tokalı Kilise is a Byzantine rock-cut church located in the Göreme Open-Air Museum in Nevşehir Province, Türkiye. It is known as one of the oldest rock-cut churches in the region. The complex consists of four sections: the Old Church (Eski Tokalı), a single-nave structure; the New Church (Yeni Tokalı); the Lower Church; and the Side Chapel. According to the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the church dates from the late tenth to the early eleventh century. Its interior frescoes depict various biblical scenes, including episodes from the life of Jesus Christ. T.C. Kültür ve Turizm Bakanlığı, “Tokalı Kilise,” Kültür Portalı, https://kulturportali.gov.tr/turkiye/nevsehir/gezilecekyer/tokali-kilise.
