Year 3, Day 273: Malachi 1

Malachi – History and Background

Malachi was a prophet in a time period just after Haggai and Zechariah.  Haggai and Zechariah wrote in order to urge the people to complete the temple; and the people responded.  However, their work was purely physical.  When the temple was completed and the Messianic age didn’t begin, the people lost faith.  Their worship became shallow once more.  Malachi comes alongside the people to remind them to repent and live truly spiritual lives.  It is possible that Malachi comes alongside the people around the time of Nehemiah when the wall of Jerusalem is being restored.

Burden

Since the writing of the New Testament we have grown to understand the true message of the prophetic writings – especially as they pertain to Christ as the Messiah.  Thus, we have come to translate the opening of many of the prophetic books as “an oracle.”  However, in true Hebrew context the word means “burden.”  So this book – and many of the prophetic books, actually – says, “The burden of the word of the Lord.”

What is this burden?  It is simple.  Covenant promises require covenant faithfulness.  The burden of Malachi was that even after the return from exile someone needed to stand up and tell the people that they were doing it wrong!  Even after the exile things headed down a bad path.  The burden of the word of the Lord is that we always focus on the wrong things and need to be reminded to repent.  The burden of the Lord is that the call to faithfulness is a difficult call that many people don’t want to hear.

Life was tough for the Hebrew people returning from exile.  The people were subject to the Persian governors.  The people were subject to the threats of the native interlopers who have come since the exile occurred.  It was a dangerous time, and the people grew angry with God that they had to live in such circumstances.  So they rebelled once more.  Malachi had to come and remind them that their rebellion would be pointless.

Pollution Among the Priests

God now sets Malachi loose among the priests.  God gives two analogies regarding His relationship to the people.  God is either Father or Master.  If God is Father, then there needs to be relationship, identify, and submission through honor.  If God is Master (King), then there needs to be power and authority through fear.  When God looks at the people – especially the priests – God sees neither honor nor fear.  The priests do not honor Him as a son would honor their father.  Neither do they fear Him as one fears their ruler.

The priests ask God what it is that they have done wrong.  God’s reply is that they are giving to Him to worst of the portion.  They are offering blind sacrifices as the leftovers from what they didn’t give in tribute to the Persians and take for themselves.  God’s point isn’t that He doesn’t want the blind or the outcast.  God loves the blind and the outcast and the downtrodden and the oppressed.  God’s point is that He wants to be first in the pecking order.  God wants the people to desire relationship with Him more than anything else. 

This isn’t a passage telling us that we must dress up when we go to church or look our best when doing ministry.  This is a passage to get us to question our motivations.  Are we putting God first in our life?  Are we giving God what He desires that we should want to give Him?  Or are we pursuing our own needs first and giving to God out of whatever should remain?

Here’s the scary part of this passage.  If the priests couldn’t be counted on to be in a faithful relationship with God, then who could be counted on?  If the leaders of the culture fall away, then what is the best that can be hoped among the people?  This is God’s issue with the priests.  As they lead, the people will follow.  Again it seems as though we come back to the issue of burden.  To be a spiritual leader is also to embrace the burden of leadership.  As the leaders do, so shall most of the people.

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Year 3, Day 272: Zechariah 14

The Day of the Lord

Once more we have this indicator of time.  The Day of the Lord is declared.  Given most of the content of this passage, it is easy to see this chapter as a time that has not yet been fulfilled.  After all, have all the nations gone up to fight against Jerusalem?  Do the major nations send representatives to Jerusalem to worship God?  No, of course not.  Therefore it is easy to read this chapter as a chapter of the fulfillment of time to come.

However, we also need to be careful to not read this chapter as though it is speaking of the Day of Judgment, either.  As we read through this chapter, certainly the possibility for rebellion still exists even after the Day of the Lord should happen.  Through Zechariah, God tells about the punishment for those who do not come up to Jerusalem and worship God.  Zechariah tells us that there will be no rain upon those lands in addition to the plagues upon the people.  Certainly rebellion is possible after the Day of the Lord that is being spoken about in this chapter.

So what are we to make of this time?  Again, I think that this chapter has more than one time of fulfillment.  It shouldn’t surprise you, then, that I believe much of this chapter is symbolically fulfilled in the first coming of Christ.

Christ as the First Fulfillment

How is it possible to see Christ as the fulfillment of this chapter?  Well, for starters we can look at the nations coming to war against Jerusalem.  In Jesus’ day, Rome was considered the master of most of the known world.  Rome controlled a significant portion of Europe, a significant portion of northern Africa, and a significant portion of the Middle East.  What happens within a few decades of Jesus’ crucifixion?  Rome comes to Jerusalem to put down a rebellion.  The city is sacked.  The temple stones are pulled down and left in ruin.  Rome – essentially the whole of the known world – comes and plunders Jerusalem.

What happens to Rome after this?  Their leaders become increasingly prideful.  Soon people from Africa begin to rise up and threaten Rome.  Vandals from northern Europe come down and threaten Rome.  The Empire begins to fall.  It is eventually split into an Eastern and a Western Empire.  They fall into disarray and the Roman Empire crumbles, leaving the broken European states as we know of them today.

For the record, in the time since God has become increasingly forgotten we’ve become focused on our own needs, our own satisfaction, our own knowledge, our own understanding, even our ability to think that we can save ourselves.  As we’ve forgotten God, our world has experienced turmoil.  Has anyone recently seen studies on the growing desertification of the world over the past millennia or so?  Less and less rain falls.  Humanity has grown to fear things like the Bubonic Plague, Smallpox, Cholera, Measles, Anthrax, Typhoid, Yellow Fever, Malaria, and I can go on.  I’m not saying that these are all the direct cause of rebellion, certainly.  Rather, I lift them up so that we can see that humanity history is riddled with epidemics and plague and lack of rainfall.  Symbolically at least, we can see truth in these words of Zechariah even in the days since the first coming of Christ.

Christ as the Second Fulfillment

Having said that, I think it is absolutely possible to look into the future and see a second fulfillment of this text.  Certainly when John wrote the book of Revelation he saw a day in the future when the might of the world would be amassed against the might of the Lord and His heavenly host.  John saw this in a very literal way of conflict, much more than the symbolic interpretation I put forth in the last section.  Therefore, I believe that we can look forward through the lens of Zechariah into events to come.

This concept of multiple fulfillments can be hard to accept at first.  After all, we tend to see prophecy as being spoken about one time in the future and then it is done.  However, much of human behavior is truly cyclical.  We repent, know forgiveness, then rebel, and need to repent all over.  Generation after generation moves along an even greater cyclical pattern of repentance and rebellion.  In fact, we saw it in the Hebrew people as we’ve moved through our study of the prophets!  Again and again human beings cycle.  So this concept of multiple fulfillments on varying levels really shouldn’t bother us.  If it was God’s plan to send His Messiah to the world twice, why shouldn’t we also accept multiple fulfillments of other prophetic voices, too?

In the Day of the Lord to come, we can expect a much more literal understanding of these words.  God will come to earth.  He will fight against the nations who rise up against Him.  Even after God displays His superiority, humanity will still rebel.

But we can take comfort in several of the images at the beginning.  On that day there will be a different kind of light in the world.  In a sense, we have a taste of that already in the spiritual light that Jesus brings into our life.  But we will get a much greater taste of His incredible light in the day to come.  His truth will guide our paths.

Another image that we can take solace in is that there will be a spring to rise up out of Jerusalem.  This is described as living water – water for the true sustaining of life.  We will know that true sustenance comes from God and the things of God rather than through our human and natural endeavors.  Again, we see this symbolically in Christ when He came the first time.  We will see it on more than spiritual terms when He comes again.

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Year 3, Day 271: Zechariah 12-13

The Stone upon which the Nations Hurt Themselves

I’m going to go away from the typical “millennial” interpretation of the end of Zechariah which often sees Zechariah 12-14 in terms of the last days, God’s Judgment, the Battle of Armageddon, etc.  Mind you, it isn’t that I think such an interpretation is invalid.  Rather, it is that I think there is a more easily understood interpretation in the past.  This leaves the future understanding often spoken about as an addition fulfillment of this scripture as only the Holy Spirit can do.

In these verses we hear about Jerusalem becoming a cup of staggering.  We hear about something happening in Judah upon which all the nations will stumble.  Anyone who tries to enforce their will upon this thing that is happening will truly hurt themselves.  In that day light will come into the world as the clan of Judah will become like a blazing torch.  In that day Judah will be saved first.  {Note the use of the word first, not only.}  In that day the feeblest among the faithful people of Judah will be like David.

Now, when I hear those words I cannot help but think not of the second coming of Christ but rather of the His first coming!  Is not the life and death of Jesus one of the preeminent discussions of “stumbling” for most of the world?  Do not those who try and enforce themselves upon the Gospel of Christ – either from within or without – eventually end up hurting themselves?  Is Jesus Christ not the light of the world, bringing in a truth through humble submission unlike anything else we’ve ever known?  Did not salvation come through Judah to the Jews first?  In Christ, are we not all transformed into priests – even the lowest and feeblest among us?

Say what you will; let the commentaries be silent.  I think that it is clear that these verses first look to the coming of the Messiah – the humble servant Lord Jesus Christ who was to be crucified.  Only after we see them in that light can we look ahead to a future interpretation.

Him Who Was Pierced

Again I see the first coming of Christ in the closing words of Zechariah 12 – although to be fair I would confess that clearly these words speak about the time following the crucifixion.  Certainly we live within a time period when people look upon the Christ who was crucified and mourn with sorrow.  We mourn because we know that it is our human sinfulness that put Him there.

At the same time, those of us who do contemplate Jesus upon the cross are struck with a sense of mercy and compassion.  We do seek grace.  We do plea for help.  We do mourn on account of our recognized sinfulness.

And I do believe that there is a fountain that has been opened for us.  In the coming of the Holy Spirit we have access to a bubbling fountain within.  Yesterday I spoke of the fact that the Holy Spirit works on sanctifying our heart.  Today I again assert that it is this Holy Spirit dwelling within us that is a fountain of life within a dark and dying shell of life.  Through God we receive grace and the purification of our souls.  We are cleansed because of what we have found in Christ.  The Holy Spirit is the guarantee of that salvation.

Idolatry and False Prophesy

Here again we have scripture that is being fulfilled in our midst.  Idolatry is put away.  When we truly turn to Christ, we put away the idolatry that our flesh craves.  It is happening within us here and now and has been happening in the people of the world for nearly two millennia.

Furthermore, we also see an end to false prophesy.  People who truly accept Christ and who truly listen to the Spirit within are coming to an end of their false prophesy.  The messages change from “do as you desire” and “do what feels good” to “wait upon the Lord” and “follow what He says is good.”

However, here we also get a sense that these words of Zechariah 12-14 may yet be fulfilled again in a new way.  For you see, not all people have put away their idols.  Even within those of us who try, we still have idols.  Not all of us have put away false prophecy.  Even in those of us who try, the occasional false prophecy slips out.  I believe a day is coming when all idolatry and false prophecy will be done away with for good.  I believe these words were fulfilled in Christ.  I also believe that in Christ’s second coming they will be fulfilled again and fulfilled on a new and universal level.

Shepherd Struck

It is this passage that leads me even more fervently to believe that we should see Zechariah 12-14 as pointing more to Christ’s first coming than His second.  After all, the authors of the New Testament seem to agree.  For example, see Jesus’ own words in Matthew 26:31 and the surrounding context of that verse.

We see that in Jesus’ days He is struck and His disciples scatter.  We see that while a good number of Jews do convert to Christianity at Pentecost and beyond – it is certainly a minority that converts.  Even into the present day, much of the Jewish nation has remained true to the traditional Judaism rather than converting into Messianic Judaism.  We do understand that the time following Pentecost but before Christ’s second coming is indeed a time of spiritual refinement.

Those who follow Christ are God’s people – be they Gentile or Jew.  He will listen when they call to Him.  Because they follow spiritually and not just in show they will indeed be welcomed into His fold and refined by His hand.  Again we are left with a sense of being welcomed into a dynamic that we certainly do not deserve.

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Year 3: Day 270: Zechariah 11

The Flock

This passage is a bit confusing to hear at first, because in Zechariah’s context things seem to be going well.  The people are returning from exile.  Communities have become established.  The work on the temple is progressing nicely.  So why would Zechariah come among a people that appear to be headed in the right direction only to proclaim a message like this?

I believe the answer is that appearances can be deceiving.  Even the healthiest looking person can have a cancer deep within them working upon them.  The most stately and ornate building doesn’t necessarily have health happening within its walls.  The most glorious nation in the world may not have the healthiest of infrastructures or unity among the people.  Just because things appear to be going well doesn’t mean that they actually are.

I believe this is the case here in Zechariah.  This is another point in which we can read the words coming after the exile and realize that the inclusion of humanity has introduced sin into the system.  Yes, the people were changed through their exile into Babylon, but that doesn’t mean that sin can’t rear its ugly head.  In fact, we know that it does.

Let’s look at the progression of Judaism after the exile.  In order to try and not make the same mistakes that led to the exile, the religious leaders establish a long list of legal ordinances that must be obeyed.  The Pharisees develop as masters of how to apply the Law to one’s life and they become impressive managers of the smallest of details.  We know how Jesus responds to this cultural dynamic when He comes upon the scene.  Jesus rebukes their legalism.  They have gone too far in the other direction!

This is exactly what Zechariah is speaking about here with respect to the “flock.”  The flock has gathered, but the flock isn’t being the flock that God desires.  They are a flock doomed for destruction, which would be a hard word to hear having just come out of exile!  They went through the motions, but their heart was elsewhere.

I actually love this focus upon this particular dynamic of humanity.  Here’s what we can see as we look upon the story of the Hebrew people.  When given freedom, the human heart turns away and ends up in rebellion.  When corrected, the human heart turns to legalism and still ends up in rebellion.  It is a problem of the human heart.  We cannot be righteous regardless of our focus.

Why do I love this?  It’s simple.  This understanding brings alive the incredible dynamic of truth found in the New Testament.  Jesus came to atone for our sin.  However, God knew that atonement is enough to save us, be we still need more help to sanctify us.  Our hearts are horribly corrupt.  After Christ dies we have the Holy Spirit come to us to dwell within us.  The Holy Spirit takes our corrupt heart and begins to transform it slowly over time.  God knows our problem is a problem of the heart.  So He sends us Christ to deal with our human nature and He sends the Holy Spirit to deal with the human heart.  Without God dwelling within us, we would always be a flock doomed for slaughter.

Good Shepherd

So Zechariah is told to become a shepherd over this flock doomed for slaughter.  Zechariah becomes a foreshadowing of Christ – the ultimate shepherd.  Zechariah takes into His hand the rods of Favor and Union.  Note that Christ was about favor and union.  In Christ, we see God’s favor upon a people who do not deserve it.  In Christ we also see two aspects of union: we see that we can have union with God and we also see that Jews and Gentiles alike can have union through our union with God. 

As the shepherd, Zechariah demonstrated his superiority of the three shepherds.  We aren’t told who these three shepherds are, but traditionally the three shepherds are thought to be the prophets, priests, and kings.  In this act, Zechariah is demonstrating that the true shepherd will be master of all things.  He will rule over our lives with respect to our spirituality as well as our civil action.  God’s Messiah will govern all.

However, the flock under Zechariah could not bear his leadership.  Soon the rods are broken.  Soon favor is forgotten.  Soon unity is rejected.  The flock doomed for destruction is cast away by the shepherd.  God’s Messiah is rejected.

What is sad is that the natural outcome of the rejection of God’s Messiah is a breaking of unity.  We no longer desire God’s favor.  We no longer desire unity among each other.  Look at the world around us.  Do we desire God’s favor?  Do we really desire unity?

Unfortunately, I also have to look within the church.  Do we truly desire God’s favor within our midst?  If we do, then why are we a disunited people?  I heard a scary statistic the other day.  Prior to Martin Luther, there was one Christian faith.  In the ensuing 500 years, we now have more than 30,000 Christian denominations.  I can’t help but wonder how many of those denominations are a direct result of rejecting the unity that should come from being under Christ.

Worthless Shepherd

Then Zechariah is told to portray a wicked shepherd.  The wicked shepherd comes because the flock rejects the true shepherd but they realize they still need to follow someone.  So they follow anyone.  Like the humans they are, they follow a shepherd that only cares for himself and not for the needs of the flock.  When we reject the true shepherd, we are only left with imposters who can’t help but lead us into wickedness.

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Year 3, Day 269: Zechariah 10

Restoration

 Zechariah 10 is a chapter about the restoration of the Hebrew people.  As I’ve mentioned often in Zechariah, remember the situation of the people.  Yes, they are returning from exile.  But there is much work ahead of them.  There is the danger of the interlopers who have come into the land while the Hebrew people were in exile.  Their restoration has begun, but it is a difficult road ahead.

However, there is a point that we need to remember as we move forward.  Restoration comes from the Lord.  The Lord is the one who acts.  Let’s look at the message of this chapter and hear just how much the Lord promises to do for His people.

The Lord reminds His people that it is He who brings the rain!  The Lord makes the storm clouds.  The Lord brings the showers.  The Lord does not forget the fields, even though the only things dwelling in them are plants!

The Lord brings about good leadership.  The Lord makes men mighty in battle.  The Lord rallies the warriors simply because of His presence.

God has compassion when it is undeserved.  God forgives when He is clearly the one who was wronged.  He is the one who treats the rejected as though they are not.  He answers the call when we call upon Him.

He gathers His people in.  He whistles and we come to Him.  He creates home within us.

We don’t deserve any of this, yet He lavishes all of these things upon His people.  It is truly Him and His hand at work.  Salvation comes, and it comes from His hand.

The Shepherds

Outside of the wonderful words of restoration upon which we have just now focused, there are some very scary words back at the beginning that I would like to go back and ponder.  The Lord speaks about the shepherds of His people.  The Lord has nothing too favorable to say about them, either.

God says that His people wander as though they are afflicted with the lack of a shepherd.  In other words, although there are leaders, the leaders didn’t do any true leading!  You see, in the world leadership is all about the life of the leader.  Worldly leaders get people to make their lives easier.  Worldly leaders get the people below them to do all the hard work.  Worldly leaders live off of the fat of the land.  This is how the leaders of the Hebrew people acted, and I daresay that leaders in the modern era are likely to follow in such example. 

But Godly leaders are to be the opposite.  God expects His leaders to choose godliness over worldly gain.  God expects His leaders to choose Him even when everyone else is choosing the world.  God expects His leaders to be an example of submission to Him in a world that struggles to submit.  Rather than leading the charge of His people into sin, He expects His leaders to be a bastion away from sin.  In a nutshell, God expects His leaders to be different.

But this was not the case with the leaders of God’s people.  They led the people into sin.  They encouraged unrighteous behavior.  Their behavior made it easy for people to lose faith in God.  Therefore, the anger of the Lord burns against them.  What an awful position to find oneself!

Future Hope in a Familiar Package

As we now turn to the ending of this passage, we see how it is that the Lord drives home the point of salvation.  God has already spoken about how He will save His people.  Now to drive home the point He reminds His people about the Exodus.  His people shall pass through the trouble of life just like the Hebrew people of old passed through the sea.  The waves of the sea of life will be struck down by God just like the waves of the sea were driven back so that His people could walk across on dry ground.  As the pride (wealth) of the Egyptians (and Assyrians, for the record) was plundered, so shall the world be laid low in the face of the redemption of God’s people.  In summary, when God comes to save His people, He is capable of fulfilling His promises.

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Year 3, Day 268: Zechariah 9

Judgment Upon the Nations

Here in Zechariah 9 we hear Zechariah look towards the nations and forecast doom.  Of course, this is a theme with which we have grown quite familiar.  Let’s take a look at what Zechariah says with respect to the reason for judgment.

If we look at Syria (Damascus) and Phoenicia (Tyre and Sidon) we see that the usual issue rears its ugly head again here in Zechariah: wealth.  These people were merchants and were masters at it.  They made money through their business transactions.  What does Zechariah say about them?  They heap up silver like dust and fine gold like mud on the streets.

Imagine a place where gold is so common it seems like mud on the streets!  Or imagine a culture where silver is so common it is described in the same sentence as dust!  Yes, the main issue with Damascus, Tyre, and Sidon is their wealth.  They were a shrewd, affluent, and economically focused pair of nations.  They made profit from others, consuming more than their fair share of wealth – disproportionately way more than their fair share!

What does the Lord promise with regard to them?  The Lord will strip her of her possessions.  Yes, it is indeed wealth that is their issue.  Their wealth has come between them and any understanding of God that they might find.  Their affluence has become an obstacle – an obstacle that has become so commonplace that they value it about as much as one values dust!

Zechariah next turns to Philistia (Ashkelon, Ashdod, Ekron, Gaza).  The issue here is violence.  They are bloodthirsty.  They enjoy war.  Their enjoy conflict.  They enjoy physical confrontation.

What will happen to Philistia?  God will rise up against them.  The Philistines will either be driven out or merged with the Hebrew people.  They will become like His own children as the Jebusites did under the time of David.  The Jebusites were the native population of Jerusalem before David conquered the city.  When it was conquered, the people of Jerusalem (Jebus) were assimilated into Hebrew culture.  Philistia would not endure when judgment came.

Before moving on to the next section of text, I can’t help but wonder what God might do to a nation that had all of the problems mentioned so far.  If wealth brought about God’s wrath as did having a people who love violence, then what about the country that is wealthy and that loves violence?  What might God think about such a place?

The Lord’s King

In the next section Zechariah talks about the coming king of the Lord.  The Lord speaks about the one who will rule.  Naturally, the ruler in the time of Zechariah was Zerubbabel, but he was no official king.

Let’s look for a moment at how this king comes.  The king comes riding in on a donkey (you should think about the Triumphal Entry, here).  The king will also be reason for the people to shout and call out loud (here is more evidence of the Triumphal Entry).  The king has salvation with him when he comes (you should think about the crucifixion here).

However, there is more subtle evidence here that tells us that these verses bring us to Christ as a fulfillment of God’s words.  Notice that in these words the chariot and the bow and the war horse are cut off.  The Lord’s King will not come and become king through warfare and violence.  Rather, it is through peace that the Lord’s King shall be known.

When I think of Jesus, I always think of peace.  Yes, Jesus healed people and drew the outcasts to Him.  In that respect He was about peace.  But even more importantly and far more deeply Jesus was about peace between mankind and God.  Until Jesus died on the cross, mankind and God were at war.  With Jesus’ atoning death upon the cross mankind came into peace with God.  The cross more than any other part of His story is an implement of peace.  How is it that Jesus comes to be the Lord’s King?  He dies so that we might know peace with God.

Protection

In the last section of the text we hear about a time when the Lord will protect His people.  We don’t truly know when it is in history that Zechariah is referring.  But in the end, that isn’t really all that important.  What we can glean from this text is that the Lord fights for His people.  He is their deliverance.  He saves.  He lifts up His people like jewels on a crown.

Passages like this remind me just how awesome God is.  He could have walked away from us and let us destroy ourselves.  He could have judged us all into misery.  But instead He saves us and treats us like jewels upon His crown.  That’s an amazing God!

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Year 3: Day 267: Zechariah 8

Promise of Peace

In the last chapter we spoke a good bit about ritualism.  In this chapter we speak about the other extreme.  Here in this chapter Zechariah will put the emphasis upon conformity to God’s will.

God tells Zechariah that He will come and dwell among His people.  He will come to Jerusalem and be with His people.  Because He comes back to Jerusalem, it will be called the faithful city.

But the profound effect of the presence of God is in the inhabitants.  People will grow old there.  This may not seem like a big deal, but remember their context.  They are rebuilding a city that has been torn down because they themselves have been in captivity for several generations.  Hebrew people haven’t been growing old at all in captivity!  So for God to promise that there will be old people in Jerusalem implies that the city will still be around in which they can grow old!

However, Jerusalem will not just be full of old people.  Young boys and girls will play in the streets.  So there will be a healthy mix of intergenerational people.  And the city will be safe in which to play.  Remember that before Jerusalem fell, they were under siege for a few decades.  It had been almost a century since children had the freedom and the desire to play in the streets of Jerusalem!

This is what happens when God comes among us to dwell and we receive Him.  Sure, we as human beings will never live in a utopia and we will always get things a little messed up.  But when we are humble about our failings and still live with God in our midst, things will go better.

To emphasize His point, God then speaks to those who have been a part of the return from exile from the very beginning.  He reminds them that times are changing.  Life used to be difficult and dangerous in the land during the exile and even when the refugees were returning.  But now that they have undertaking the rebuilding of the temple as well as their homes, God is going to allow them to sow peace.  God promises the people that He will make them strong.  Their remnant will keep hold of the land.

Purpose

God then reminds the people about His promises and His own faithfulness to His Word.  Before the exile, God purposed that the people would be destroyed and they were.  Because of their rebellion, God promised that they would reap the destruction that they sowed.  God also reminds the people that He did not relent.  When His anger came due, it was paid in full.

But now God promises that He will bring good.  As His promises came true in the past, they will likewise come true in the future.  When God purposes good for us it will happen just as often as when God purposes judgment against us.

What do the Hebrew people need to do in response to this promise?  Speak truth.  Render fair judgments.  Make peace.  Do not devise evil for another person.  Do not enjoy false oaths.  Again we see a common theme in the Minor Prophets: God is about righteousness in the heart far more than He is about a shallow yet public demonstration.

So what is the end of all of this promise?  Why are the Hebrew people brought to this moment of glory?  Is it all about the Hebrew people after all?  Is it all about their fame and glory and supremacy?

No.  It is all about God.  People will come from far and near because the Lord dwells in Jerusalem.  People will come because these people are in relationship with God.  People will come to seek the Lord.  Jew and Gentile alike shall desire to be in the presence of God.

That day has begun to come.  Gentile did begin to come to God.  Then Christ came and even more Gentiles have come to follow God.  One day in the future all people who remain on the planet will come and seek God.  What a glorious day that will be.

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Year 3, Day 266: Zechariah 7

The First Message

We’ve just finished up a series of visions that Zechariah received from the Lord about the time that the temple building project was restarted.  After two years – about half the time that it took Zerubbabel to rebuild the physical temple – Zechariah receives a series of messages from the Lord.  Note that these are not visions like the chapters before.

The first message is in response to a query that came from some of the exiles.  Be aware of where the question originates.  The people come from Bethel, which is a city 12 miles north of Jerusalem.  Bethel was one of the two major places of worship for the northern kingdom that went into exile under the Assyrians.  It is in Bethel that things went tragically wrong as the people of the northern kingdom fell away from God.  To put it bluntly, the return from exile is still in its first stage and … well … here we go again!

These people come from Bethel and ask Zechariah if they need to continue the fast in the fifth month.  Note that this fast wasn’t a divinely appointed fast from the Law of Moses.  Rather, this fast to which the people from Bethel are referring is a fast that was instituted to remember the Ammonite treason with respect to the murder of Gedaliah.  Gedaliah was the regent set up by the Babylonians, and it is the murder of Gedaliah that ultimately brings about Jeremiah’s kidnapping and his removal to Egypt.  In this way, the Hebrew people were denied both Gedaliah’s leadership under persecution as well as Jeremiah’s spiritual leadership throughout their captivity.

Therefore, through the first message to Zechariah God asks the people who it was that originated the fast.  Was it God’s Law that told them to fast for Gedaliah or was that an event of human institution?  If it was an event of human institution, then humans have every right to stop it, too!  Why does God need to get involved in the process of breaking things that He did not even ask to establish?

As I read this first message I can’t help but return to the concept of organized religion.  How much of what we do in our public worship is instituted by God?  How much is instituted by mankind?  Perhaps the more important question is how much of the way that we worship is of God and how much is of man?  Have we bound ourselves to the traditions of God and the freedom to fulfill them as we are called?  Or have we bound ourselves to obedience of manmade fulfillment?  Are we truly going through a spiritual process when we gather for worship or are we simply passing through manmade routine in a rote manner?

I should be clear here that I am not intending to place judgment on any particular style.  I truly believe that one man’s rote behavior can be another person’s genuine spirituality.  What is important to me is not how things are done but that things are done by all people with a true sense of spirituality.  It is the spirit of the act that is more important to me than the act itself – and I believe this is part of God’s first message here in this chapter.

The Second Message

Here is the second half of the chapter we get Zechariah’s second message from God.  God’s point is blunt.  God says that He cares more about rendering true justice to the poor and the weak that about ritualistic observances.  In a sense, God is saying that He cares far more about the status of the heart than the physical act.  This is very much kin to Jesus’ teachings on the Law when He says, “You have heard it said that you should not _____, but I tell you that one who has _____ed in their heart is already guilty.”  {See Matthew 5:21-30 as a great example of this.}

God doesn’t want us to put on a false image.  God doesn’t want some public show or demonstration.  As a wise woman that I have the privilege of discipling continues to bring to the front of many discussions, God wants us to be the same person in church that I am with my wife, while watching TV, while shopping at Walmart, etc.  The spiritual walk is not about periodic grand demonstrations of showiness.  True spirituality is about unifying my walk and being true to God in every circumstance.

The people who have come to Zechariah shut their ears.  They just don’t want to hear it.  As I said earlier, here we go again.  They are simply proving how people need to be constantly reminded of this point!  God gives us a little success and the next thing you know we are off on some tangent thinking we are invincible and no longer wanting to be obedient to God.  We constantly need people in our life to remind us to be not just observant but submissively humble and obedient.  We need people to remind us just how ridiculous we look when we stop up our ears and refuse to listen to God.

As I hear of the reaction that these people from Bethel have to God’s word through Zechariah, I can’t help but think of a few Bible stories.  Proverbs 1:31 tells us that “they shall eat of the fruit of their own way and be filled with their own devices.”  Revelation 3:20 reminds us that Christ stands at our door and knocks, but we must open to door and submit to listening to Him.  Matthew 25:1-13 reminds us of the peril of just going through spiritual motions while not actually preparing ourselves to truly be spiritual people.

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Year 3. Day 265: Zechariah 6

The Vision of the Horses and Chariots

This vision brings us right back to where we started in this text.  Remember the first vision of Zechariah?  There were horses of various colors and scouts who were going about the land.  The horses and scouts were going to and fro and reporting back what they found.  These scouts went to and fro under the cover of the grove of myrtle trees.  At the end of the cycle of visions the horses go back out.  But they are no longer going out to scout.  These horses are teamed up and set before war chariots.  They go forth boldly setting out from between two strong and noticeable mountains.  These horses go out to make war in bringing judgment.

The colors of the horses are interesting, and no doubt when combined with the first vision are also the inspirations for John’s writing of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse in the New Testament book of Revelation (Apocalypse).  We are not told what the colors mean here in Zechariah, but their colors are still fairly universally accepted.  Red stands for war.  Black stands for death and famine.  White symbolizes triumph and victory.  Dapple (pale because of spotting, perhaps?) stands for plague and pestilence.

There is a reason that there are four.  The number four is often used to represent universality, especially with respect to the whole world.  After all, there are four points to the compass.  Thus, symbolically God is telling Zechariah that the judgment which is pouring out from heavens is universally applied to the whole earth.  Yes, it may be specifically applied to the north and south in this vision, but it is a measure of judgment to which the whole earth will be held accountable.  God sets the same bar for all of humanity.  Those of us who live in one area or another area are all still expected for be obedient to God’s ways.

In this particular vision, however, the horses and chariots are sent out specifically to the north and the south.  From the perspective of Israel, this would mean Babylon and Egypt no doubt.  Assyria had already been judged and now it was time for both Babylon and Egypt to pay for their part in the rebellion against God’s ways.

What is interesting is that after the horses go out we are told that the Spirit of God is at rest.  The Spirit of God is at peace.  Here’s the reason that this is particularly interesting.  Normally we think of God’s Spirit being at peace as a good thing where spirituality, joy, love, peace, and prosperity abound.  But in this text God’s Spirit is at peace immediately following the execution of justice.

This tells us about the righteousness of God’s character.  You see, peace is not only about the happy times for the righteous.  A righteous God cannot be at peace while sin is running rampant throughout the world.  A loving God cannot smite unrighteousness immediately without allowing for a time of potential repentance.  So God is always balancing His loving character with the building turmoil against the unrighteousness of the world.  Eventually God has enough and judgment must issue forth.  After judgment comes, God can once more be at peace.  It is odd and perhaps sometimes feels misleading to consider God as arriving at peace through the process of judgment.  But viewed from the right perspective it makes absolute sense.

The Crown atop Joshua’s Head

At first pass, this passage seems to be a confusion of facts.  After all, is it not Zerubbabel who builds the temple?  Sure, Joshua is there as the high priest no doubt supporting Zerubbabel’s work.  But the voice of scripture is uniform.  It is Zerubbabel who is God’s chosen instrument to rebuild the temple after the Babylonian exile.

So what is going on here?  I think God is trying to once more demonstrate where His focus truly resides.  Yes, God desired the physical temple to be built so that people could come and worship Him together.  But truthfully, God is more concerned about the temple built within each one of us.  He is more concerned about both the spirituality of the collective and the individual within the collective than He is concerned with the actual physical construction.  Just as God desires a broken spirit and a contrite heart more than He desires physical sacrifice – see Hosea 6:6 and Psalm 51:15-17, so God also desires the spiritual temple among men more than the physical temple.

Who is it that will bring about this spiritual temple?  The religious leaders!  Literally it is the work of the Branch – the Messiah, the Christ, Jesus.  But symbolically speaking, the ones sent among the people to bring them back to God are those who build the temple through the power of Christ.  Thus it is Joshua who receives the crown and is told that he will build the temple.

As an interesting aside, don’t forget that the Greek name of Jesus is actually Joshua in Aramaic and Hebrew.  So not only does Joshua receive the crown here in Zechariah 6 but we also realize a literal Joshua who is God’s Messiah and who is the cornerstone of the true spiritual temple!

We also hear that the “counsel of peace will be between them both.”  It is easy to wonder how we can be talking about one person – the Branch – and suddenly have “both.”  What God is saying here is that a priest shall sit upon the throne.  That is, God’s Messiah will be a spiritual leader and a kingly ruler.  The both does not refer to people; it refers to the office of priest and king.  In God’s day there will be unity between the spiritual and political leadership because one person will fill both roles.  Christ is both our spiritual authority as well as our political ruler.

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Year 3, Day 264: Zechariah 5

The Vision of the Scroll

In this chapter we have two visions.  The first of the visions has to do with a flying scroll.  This scroll apparently has writing on both sides which will be used in judging different kinds of people.  Since Zechariah gives us length and width, we can assume that this scroll is not rolled up but unfurled as it goes through the air. 

Again we see that Zechariah sees the vision, but he doesn’t understand it immediately.  Zechariah must wait for an understanding and for an interpretation.  Like all of us, even the prophets had to wait to get their understanding from God.

There is some really neat symbolism that is happening here.  The fact that there is writing on both sides may hearken us back to the stone tablets of the Law (See Exodus 32:15).  In fact, if we recall those tablets and pick out the middle commandment of each half (3^rd and 8^th commandment) we get an amazing result (See Exodus 20:7 and Exodus 20:15).  The third commandment is that we should not take the name of the Lord in vain.  (Remember that in ancient cultures people made oaths – swearing – based upon the virtue of their god.)  The 8^th commandment tells us that we should not steal.  These are precisely the two topics to which the vision of the scroll refers us.

It is as if this vision is a reminder to Zechariah as the people come back from exile.  God wants Zechariah to remember with intention that the Law was given.  The Law is the standard against which we all shall be judged; and subsequently we shall all be found to desperately to be in need of the atonement that comes through His Messiah.  We can say with reasonable certainty that this vision was given to Zechariah so that he might know that all those who violate God’s Law are condemned.

This is poignant for the Hebrew people coming back from exile as well as for us.  The Hebrew people who went into exile thought themselves untouchable.  They were God’s “chosen ones.”  They were God’s holy people.  Certainly God wouldn’t judge them!  Yet, God did.  They were chosen not to be untouchable but rather to be obedient!  Any who are not obedient fall into judgment, even the chosen ones. 

Therefore, as the people come back from exile they need something to keep them from developing another invincibility complex.  It would be far too easy for them to say, “God brought us back; He must love us the most.”  No, that must be defeated.  Likewise, it is easy for those of us who live under God’s grace to say to ourselves, “I have Christ, I am invincible.”  No, that too must be defeated.  Christ is not an invincibility clause against God’s judgment.  Christ is a call to humble submission to God’s ways.

The Vision of the Woman in the Basket

First of all, while our modern English Bibles speak about a basket, we must not lose sight of the fact that the technical word used here is an ephah.  You might recognize that as a unit of measure among the Hebrew people.  In fact, it is the largest unit of measure for dry goods.  Do not overlook this fact, because in the vision God has to put wickedness in the largest unit of measure known to the Hebrew people.  What is God’s point?  God is saying that there is significant wickedness among the Hebrew people.  Just in case anyone is curious, this is true for us, too, not just the Hebrew people.

Also, I do want to make a very clear point here.  Do not read into the gender of “wickedness.”  In the Hebrew, the term for wickedness is a feminine noun.  Thus, wickedness was often made into analogy as a woman.  This is not a comment upon the nature of women; it is a linguistic issue and only a linguistic issue.

As we look upon this ephah, notice that there is a lid over the ephah and the lid had a lead weight upon it.  It wasn’t enough to contain wickedness; wickedness had to be kept in the ephah.  Wickedness wants to get out.  Wickedness will get out.  Unaccounted, wickedness will spread and escape and corrupt and pervert.  Wickedness must not just be contained, it must be vigilantly contained.

Also notice that the ephah is being taken away from the land.  Wickedness must have more done to it than simple containment.  It must be removed and taken away.  Wickedness that is simply locked up is not enough.  Wickedness is such a dangerous enemy that it must be imprisoned and removed.  I find this to be an incredibly deep truth that speaks into my life as I grow old.  It is far too easy to underestimate the power of wickedness.

The wickedness is being taken away to Shinar.  What is Shinar?  Shinar is a plain in southern Babylon.  Interestingly enough, Shinar is thought to also be the general location for the Tower of Babel story (See Genesis 11:2).  It would seem that God is making a judgment upon Babylon even in their defeat to the Persians.  Babylon captured Jerusalem and took the Hebrew people among them.  In doing so, God used Babylon to cleanse the Hebrew people of their wickedness.  However, the wickedness did not dissipate.  Instead, the wickedness stayed and resided in Babylon.  We must be careful, spiritually speaking, when we are actively bringing wickedness into our midst.  In most cases, it is extremely insipid – a reminder back to the lead weight upon the ephah.

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Year 3, Day 263: Zechariah 4

A Confusing Vision

Zechariah 4 is about as confusing as Zechariah 3 was powerful!  Here we have a vision about an olive tree and a pair of lamp stands.  You might be wondering just what is going on here.

Here’s the good news.  Zechariah was just as confused as I am on a first pass through this text.  Zechariah asks again and again for understanding.  And what’s more is that the angel doesn’t really seem all that interested in giving Zechariah much of an answer!   How’s that for the working of God!

This can tell us many things.  First, just because I or you may be smart, intelligent, and called by God doesn’t mean we always know what is going on.  Zechariah was called by God and shown this vision, yet he didn’t get it at first!  Second, sometimes God is intentionally unclear.  After all, would we ever learn to think if every time God spoke He wrote clearly on a wall somewhere?  Think about this as a parent or teacher.  Do we always give our kids every answer or do good parents and teachers help their kids learn to reason things out?  Third, it teaches us that things happen to us at God’s timing.  Zechariah asks the questions, but God’s messenger answers the questions when the angel thinks the time is right.

As I go through this thinking and begin to extrapolate for myself, I can’t help but wonder how many people would react to hearing these things about God.  How many people will react well to hearing that God’s people don’t always get it because God isn’t always that clear, He isn’t always interested in explaining Himself fully, and He isn’t interested in giving us what we think we need when we think we need it?  I think modern people are soft.  We want what we want, refusing to accept that the best things are gained through struggle and hard work.  Is it possible that many people are ceasing to believe in God because they don’t want to believe in a God that will make them work for understanding?

God’s Point

One of the primary points of the vision – although not the understanding of the vision – is that Zerubbabel will complete the temple.  Historically, we know that he does.  When he does, people will know that it was from God.  They will give praise to God’s name for working among them.

Given the context of this book, this point makes sense.  The Hebrew people had already gotten distracted in building their own homes first.  There was some persecution from the people who lived in the land while the Hebrew people were in exile.  This message would be pleasing and inspiring to those who had the hard task of resettling the land.

Interpreting the Vision

Now we turn to perhaps the most difficult part of this chapter.  What exactly did the vision mean?  Sure, we can learn from Zechariah’s reaction.  We can learn God’s overarching message for Zechariah’s contemporaries.  But what does the vision actually represent?

Zechariah sees a lamp stand, which is a common temple instrument.  However, this lamp stand is different.  This lamp stand has a bowl above it with tubes leading from the bowl to the lamp stand.  This bowl no doubt keeps the lamps full of oil so that the light from the lamp stand never dies.  Surrounding the bowl is two trees, and there is some sort of connecting pipe between the bowl and the trees.  The trees apparently keep the bowl filled with oil so that the bowl can keep the lamp stand filled with oil.

So what does this mean?  The lamp stand certainly represents God’s light going out into the world.  Some people believe that the lamp stand represents the Hebrew people – God’s chosen ones.  Others believe that the true fulfillment of this passage is the Church, who take the fulfillment of the Gospel message to the world at God’s beck and call.  Either way, the lamp stand has a traditional understanding as God’s light of salvation spreading throughout the world.

So what, then, are the two trees?  Well, there is even greater debate about the two trees.  Those who believe the lamp stand symbolizes the Hebrew people are split.  Some say that the two trees represent the kings and the priest as these were the leaders of the Hebrew people.  Considering that for most of the history of the Hebrew people it was the kings and the priests against whom God’s anger burned the fiercest, I find this explanation unlikely.

The other position held among those who believe the lamp stand represents the Hebrew people is that these trees are specifically Zerubbabel and Joshua as the leaders of the post-exilic people.  This understanding is more palatable, but certainly this is not an understanding that perseveres through time.

However, I believe that the lamp stand encompasses more than the Hebrew people.  I believe the lamp stand represents all the faithful of God – Jews and Gentiles alike.  Given this understanding, some have said that the two trees are the Hebrew people and the Gentiles.  However, it doesn’t make sense that both the lamp stand and the trees should represent the same things.

I believe there is something that makes the most sense in understanding that the lamp stand is all the faithful people.  The whole of God’s message is said to rest upon the Law and the prophets.  Another way of envisioning this is Law and Gospel or Law and Grace.  What feeds the proclamation of the faithful people is the Law – an understanding of God’s ways – and the call to repentance and forgiveness and grace that naturally comes out of the Law.

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