Charles Ellicott Commentary Luke 1:63

"And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all." — Luke 1:63 (ASV)

A writing table.—The tablets in common use at this time throughout the Roman Empire were commonly of wood, covered with a thin coat of wax, on which men wrote with the sharp point that has left its traces in our language, in the word “style,” in its literal and figurative senses.

His name is John.—There is something emphatic in the use of the present tense. It was not a question to be discussed. The name had already been given.

And they marvelled all.—This confirms the view given above regarding the previous deafness of Zacharias. There would have been no ground for wonder had he heard the discussion. It was the coincidence that surprised them, hardly less than the utterance.