THE BOOK OF ZECHARIAH
God will Defeat our Enemies
Zechariah 1
2/13/11 SCC
INTRODUCTION
Who is Zechariah?
v A
contemporary of Haggai the prophet, Zerubbabel the
governor, and Joshua the high priest.
v He
returned with 50000 exiles from Babylon to Jerusalem after 539BC when Babylon
fell to Persia.
v The
northern kingdom was exiled in 722 BC; the southern in 586BC. The southern Jews
returned during Zechariah’s time but the northern tribes began to return in the
run-up to nationhood in 1948AD.
v Southern Jews
returned to rebuild their temple 70 plus years later. Despite opposition from
locals Both Haggai and Zechariah encouraged the exiles to spiritual renewal
motivating them to finish rebuilding the temple.
v Zechariah
motivation came by revealing to the Jews God’s plan for Israel’s future.
v Why
rebuild the temple? Israel’s existence revolved around Temple worship. Jesus
coming 500 years later would require a temple to authenticate his ministry,
which was both at the beginning and end when he threw out the moneychangers.
After entering this temple again on Palm Sunday there was no more need for it.
The Romans in 70AD destroyed it.
v The
message of Zechariah is their future is connected to the coming of their
Messiah established with a new temple.
OVERCOME
YOUR TENDENCY TO DISOBEY GOD AND DETERMINE TO OBEY 1-6
1. The second year of King Darius is around 520BC. Then the Word of the Lord
came to Zechariah. Daniel, Ezra, and Nehemiah were contemporaries. What was
that word? The bottom line is a call for these newly returned exiles not to be
like their fathers who had rebelled, disobeyed, and were exiled. Like the fresh
generation returning from 40 years wandering in the wilderness and entering the
land in belief and not unbelief (the assumption that I know what is in my best
interest better than God does). This word included a number of things. (1)
The Lord was very angry with your fathers. This is probably the disobedient
ones who originally went in to exile to Babylon in 586BC. (2) The message is
to repent and return to God. They were to return to their God and from
their evil ways and evil deeds made them estranged vs
3-4. (3) They did not listen or did they heed the
warning vs 4. So God sent them prophet’s vs 4. The prophets were God’s spokesmen pleading and
arguing for the people to return to God and obey Him. (4) Eventually the
exiles came to their spiritual senses in vs 6. It
was through the word of the prophets, which had overtaken them. Though these
prophets had died and the fathers too, God’s Word bore fruit and caught them.
They recognized they deserved God’s punishment as they had violated the
covenant. Some of these may have genuinely repented after being exiled and
forgiven. These are now restored back to the land. So these now must decide
what they are going to do. God will return to them in this land if they remain
repentant and obedient.
2. The contrast is to not be like your fathers. Imagine how difficult this is
for any of us. The most significant model we have in our lives is our father.
Asking us to not be so is nearly impossible. Yet as God does again and again,
He is asking for the impossible, the improbable. He does not want them to be
like their fathers because their fathers did not turn to God. We may want to
use the excuse that our backgrounds, our habits, our traditions, our culture,
the ones we now have; the ones we grew up with, keep us from being committed to
holiness, God’s will, and obedient to His Word. That excuse will not cut it
with God. If He demanded they not follow their father’s unbelief, He expects
nothing short of this for us. James says we can draw near to God and He will
draw near to us (4:8). We have this choice no matter the difficulty in making
it because of our fathers. Like the prodigal son, the Father awaits our return;
but we must decide to do that if we have strayed.
WORLD
PEACE COMPROMISES TRUTH & RIGHTEOUSNESS WHILE GOD’S PEACE WILL ESTABLISH
IT
A patrol finds peace and quiet
amongst the nations
7-11 Zechariah
has a series of 8 visions all on the same night vs 8.
In each vision there is a revealing angel. The reason for these visions: “I am
exceedingly jealous for Jerusalem and Zion” vs 14. A
man riding a red horse with other horses behind him v 8 who had done this
patrol. This rider is standing among myrtle trees. The others had gone out to
patrol the earth v 10 and came back with a report. They said the earth was
peaceful and quiet during the second year of King Darius. This was actually a
report about world peace. There was not war amongst the nations against Israel
and Jerusalem any longer v 14. So this peace and quiet is ominous not hoped
for.
This peace was at the price of
Israel’s safety and security
12-17 It is
the angel of the Lord who speaks v 12 designated as Jesus Christ. Jesus must be
the man standing amongst the myrtle trees and asks the Lord of Hosts, the
Father, how long will he have no compassion for Jerusalem—especially as this
relates to the 70 years of captivity v 12. This is a lament since the 70 years
are over and the city remains un-built. God answered Jesus who was speaking to
Zechariah v13 gracious and comforting words. These words are the message of v
14-17 and come from the Father interpreted to Zechariah by the angel of the
Lord, the son in response to the Son’s question. This message encompasses
several themes:
1. God is exceedingly jealous
for Jerusalem and Zion. God has a burning zeal for the covenant made to His
city and its people. This zeal caused their exile after they rebelled. This
same zeal burns for their security and return after they repent.
2. God is very angry with the
nations at peace that were used to judge Israel v 15. They had extended their
punishment of Israel making it prolonged and intensive. They had added to
Israel’s calamity overstepping God’s limits with brutal punishment from anger
and rage and envy and revenge—the same thing Ezekiel had prophesied about these
nations in Ezekiel (Chp 25-32) who were
the instruments of God’s wrath against Israel. Christ is angry about
these nations who are at peace.
3. God is going to rebuild and
re-establish his people in the land v 16-17. Specifically, God says He will do
5 things for Jerusalem: (1) I will return to Jerusalem with compassion. This is
in stark contrast with his departure of the divine glory from the temple in Eze 10-11. (2) My house will be rebuilt. So there will be a
rebuilding of His house in Jerusalem. Even though a preliminary temple is built
in Zechariahs day and Herod’s is built in Jesus day—neither one of these is the
rebuilding God is talking about here. We know in both of those temples Gods Shekinah glory never returned to the holy of holies. It
will only come in the 1000 year temple where Christ will bring it in His glory
as He rules from Jerusalem then. (3) A measuring line will be stretched over
Jerusalem. This refers to construction of the city itself. (4) God’s cities
will be overflowing with prosperity v 17. Isaiah says of this that the overflow
of this wealth will be such that the city walls will be unable to contain it
(Isa 60:4-9). (5) The Lord will again comfort Zion and again choose Israel. God
will fulfill His gracious promises exactly as he has promised when Christ
returns to establish this new covenant for the nation.
SIGNIFICANCE:
Christ is angry about the peace the world establishes. Peace is always
tentative and usually a compromise in some way with truth and righteousness.
There seem to be only two kinds of peace in the Bible: (1) is peace between
individual through forgiveness, compassion, and loving our enemies. (2) Is
peace brought about by the judgment of God where He judges sin and confirms
people to His standard of righteousness. But political
peace is always a compromise, which offends Gods character not conforms to it.
We know that God defines peace as everyone conforming to His standard The 1000 year kingdom will be God’s political peace on
earth. Until then, peace will be a compromise. It is good to look for Christ’s
on return, anticipate His return, and put our hope in that alone as the
solution to the world’s problems. World peace without the return of Christ
should never be considered valuable because of the compromise with God’s
character to bring it about.
GOD
WILL DEFEAT OUR ENEMIES 18-21
Four
Horns Zechariah
sees four horns v 18. These horns are nations God used to scatter Israel v 19,
21. Specifically, these nations had scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.
Regionally these nations are identified in Ezekiel as Ammon,
Moab, Edom, Philistia, Tyre, Sidon, and Egypt. World
powers include Assyria, Babylon, Persia, and eventually Greece and Rome. The
point is that these horns have scattered God’s people from the land.
Four
Craftsmen The craftsmen
have come to tear down those who scattered Judah particularly v 21. Some of
this work has already been accomplished and some yet to be fulfilled. In any
case this reveals that God raises up instruments of
judgment and deliverance of His people from all of her enemies. This judgment
will bring terror and the nations will be crushed so as to never be empowered
like this again.
SIGNIFICNACE:
Vengeance is mine I will repay says the Lord. So you cannot take revenge on
those who have ‘scattered’ you. God will do that and apparently will do so by raising up people to do that. God will bring people to
rebuild you as well just as he brings people to scatter you. In either case,
our focus must be on God not on the people he is using against us or for us.
God is in charge of His plan for you and that plan usually unfolds in the
context of relationships—all kinds of them. Make sure you stay focused on
righteous decisions along the way.