Zechariah Chapters 1-4 Introduction
The name Zechariah means, “Whom Jehovah remembers”. This was a popular name among the Hebrews for there are at least twenty-seven men bearing the name who are mentioned in the Old Testament. Zechariah identifies himself as the “son of Berechiah (behr ah KIE uh), the son of Iddo (IH doe)”. Apparently, this is the same Iddo mentioned in the book of Nehemiah (12:1,16). Ezra and Nehemiah refer to Zechariah as “a descendant of Iddo” (Ezra 5:1; 6:14; Nehemiah 12:4,16). This may imply that his father had died young and Zechariah became the successor of his grandfather. Like Jeremiah and Ezekiel before him, Zechariah came from a priestly family. Zechariah was a contemporary of Haggai the prophet, Zerubabbel the governor, and Joshua the high priest (Ezra 5:1-2; Zechariah 3:1; 4:6; 6:11). Zechariah had returned to Jerusalem from Babylon with almost 50,000 other Jewish exiles.
Time Table
August 29, 520 B.C.
Haggai’s first sermon (Haggai 1:1-11; Ezra 5:1)
September 21, 520
Temple rebuilding resumed (Haggai 1:12-15; Ezra 5:2)
October 17, 520
Haggai’s second sermon (Haggai 2:1-9)
October-Nov. 520
Zechariah’s ministry begun (Zech. 1:1-6)
December 18, 520
Haggai’s third and fourth sermons (Haggai 2:10-23)
1
February 15, 519
Zechariah’s eight visions (Zech. 1:7-6:8)
December 7, 518
Delegation from Bethel (Zech. 7)
March 12, 515
Temple dedicated (Ezra 6:15-18)
Chapter 1
1:1 This would have been October/November of the year 520 B.C. At the time of Israel’s return from the Babylonian exile, she had no king of her own by which to date events. So Zechariah’s prophecy---as well as Haggai’s—had to be dated by the reign of Darius, king of Persia and suzerain of Judah.
1:2 “The Lord was very angry with your fathers”: This statement should have reminded the Jews who had returned that the exile they had recently returned from was the direct result of God’s wrath against their unfaithful forefathers. The temple they were now rebuilding had been destroyed because of the sins of their ancestors. Divine wrath will even come upon God’s own people if they depart from His will, and the threats in the Law had been fulfilled against Jewish unfaithfulness (Exodus 20:5; Lev. 26:14ff; Deut. 28:15-68). “This manifestation of God’s displeasure was still very vivid in the memory of the Jews who had returned only fifteen years before. The lesson of the exile and God’s avenging justice ought never to be forgotten” (Laetsch p. 407). 1:3 God’s favor is conditional. We must first return to Him (Jeremiah 18:1ff; Ezekiel 18). 1:4 We must learn from the past! God had never overlooked disobedience and rebellion among His people, and His mercy has never unconditionally covered human rebellion. He always does exactly what He has spoken through His prophets. The expression “do not be like your fathers”, suggests that the present generation was starting to manifest some of the same stubbornness as was seen in their fathers. God expects this generation to have a greater loyalty to Him than to their fathers (Matthew 10:37). The “former prophets” were men like Jeremiah and Isaiah who had lived before the exile. 1:5 “Your fathers, where are they? And the prophets, do they live forever?” 2
Their fathers were dead from the sword, famine, and pestilence. Here is a challenge to compare the frailty of men, versus the permanence of God and the sureness of His word. Their fathers had been swept away in God’s judgment. The prophets do not live forever. Their ministries are brief, so the opportunity for repentance, which they offered, should not be ignored. 1:6 The words spoken through such prophets proved to be certain, sure, and steadfast. They “took hold” of God’s unfaithful people. “God’s words and statues, edicts, decrees, firm and unwavering, were like policemen, following the footsteps of your fathers, finally catching up to them and delivering them over to imprisonment and death” (Laetsch p. 407). See Deuteronomy 28:15,45. The First Vision: 1:7-17 1:7 Converted to the modern calendar the day of Zechariah’s visions is February 24, 519 B.C. This is exactly five months after work on the temple resumed (Haggai 1:15), and two months after Haggai’s last speech (Haggai 2:10,20). “Shebat” was the Babylonian name for the 11th month. 1:8 The myrtle tree was a large flowering bush that still grows in Palestine, and was once very common in Jerusalem. This tree grows to about 15 or 20 feet, with small glossy green leaves and delicate fragrant white flowers. The term “sorrel” is uncertain, some identify it as dappled, grizzled, or speckled. 1:9 Here is the explanation. 1:10 “These are those whom the Lord has sent to patrol the earth”: This was a heavenly reconnaissance troop. “Like the Persian monarchs who used messengers on swift steeds to keep them informed on all matters concerning their empire, so the Lord knew all about the countries of the earth, including the Persian state” (Gaebelein p. 611). 1:11 “And behold, all the earth is peaceful and quiet”: This statement agrees with secular history. During the first two years of Darius’ reign there was political unrest in Persia, but Darius in 19 battles had defeated nine rebel leaders and had subdued all his enemies. Consequently the empire was virtually quiet by 520 B.C. While the Persian Empire, as a whole, was secure and at ease by this time, the Israelites in Judah were oppressed and, of course, still under foreign domination, as the next verse makes clear.
3
1:12 Zechariah hears the angel of the Lord offering up an intercessory prayer on behalf of the Jewish people. These seventy years of indignation had started in 586 B.C., with the destruction of Jerusalem. By the date of this vision that period had almost run its course. As yet, however, there was no sign that the divine indignation was at an end. Judah was still ruled by Persia and the temple has not yet complete. 1:13 A positive and comforting response was given. The essence of this comforting message is summarized in the words that follow. 1:14-15 God’s love for His people is expressed in the words “very jealous”. This burning zeal was expressed against Judah for 70 years, but now His anger is turned toward the nations. He was angry at the nations because of the false security they enjoyed and because they were excessive in their punishment of God’s people. They overstepped the limits God had intended for Israel’s punishment (Isaiah 47:6). The nations had wished to destroy Israel completely. Do not get frustrated when the wicked are at ease, for such peace is temporary, false and can end at any minute (Psalm 73). 1:16 This is not idle human speculation, hype or wishful thinking. God Himself says that these blessings will happen. The temple will be rebuilt, and such would be proof that God had compassion on His people. “And the measuring line will be stretched over Jerusalem”: The city would eventually be rebuilt as well as the temple. This was done when Nehemiah returned to rebuild and repopulate Jerusalem in 445 B.C. 1:17 Consider the word “proclaim” (1:14). God wants everyone to hear this message. In the years that followed many villages in Judea were very prosperous. Jerusalem would yet again play a role in God’s program. “That city would be the stage on which the great drama of redemption would be performed —the crucifixion, resurrection, and initial proclamation of the gospel” (Smith p. 521). The Second Vision: 1:18-21
1:18-21 A horn when used symbolically indicates strength and power. These four horns symbolize proud heathen nations, which had scattered Judah, Israel and Jerusalem. Perhaps, these horns represent Assyria, Egypt, Babylon and Persia which had scattered Israel. God would raise up powers to terrify and 4
humble the nations, which had oppressed and opposed God’s people. “The vision clearly teaches that Jehovah is the Judge of all and that every nation meets it match in Him” (Hailey p. 329). Chapter 2 The Third Vision: 2:1-5
2:1-5 About 75 years after this message, Nehemiah rebuilt the walls of physical Jerusalem. Some see this as a reference to spiritual Jerusalem, i.e. the church (Hebrews 12:22), which does not need any walls. This spiritual Jerusalem would encompass all nations (Mark 16:15). “The Church of God does not need any wall of stone or metal. The Lord Himself will be like a wall of fire (2 Kings 6:17) round about His Church so that no power of man or Satan can overthrow it (Matthew 16:18; Hebrews 12:28)” (Laetsch p. 418). Yet, there may be a lesson to the present generation. This message would have motivated the Jews to move into Jerusalem, rebuild their homes, and trust God for protection. 2:6-7 The term “Ho!” is designed to arrest attention. “Thus, out of his great concern for what is about to happen in the land of the north, the speaker calls upon God’s people to flee the scene” (Smith p. 527). The Jewish exiles had been spread about as the four winds of the heavens. A great number of exiles still remained voluntarily in Mesopotamia. They had become rich and prosperous. God now warns them to flee. During the reign of Darius the city of Babylon was twice captured in brutal fighting. 2:8 This angel has been sent “after glory”, that is to get glory to God by taking vengeance upon the nations which had plundered Israel. To mistreat God’s people is to touch the “apple of His eye”. The apple or gate of the eye is exceedingly delicate and capable of great pain when touched or affected by on outside substance. God takes very personally any mistreatment against His people. He is very sensitive to how people treat faithful Christians! 2:9 By simply waving His hand over heathen powers God can bring them down. Here we see the power of God and the ease by which He can bring a nation to its knees. God makes clear predications and doesn’t expect us to have a naïve faith, but expects us to accept the clear evidence. The fulfillment of all these things would simply prove that Zechariah did speak for God.
5
2:10 The daughters of Zion are the true believers in the nation. The temple currently under construction would be His dwelling place, but more importantly, eventually, God Himself, in the flesh would come and dwell among His people (John 1:1,14). 2:11 In that time period, many Gentiles would be converted. We see this happening in the book of Acts. 2:12-13 This is the only place were the term “holy land’ is found in Scripture. Since God has already mentioned the conversion of the Gentiles (2:11), “Judah” and “Jerusalem” here must refer to spiritual Israel, the church. All flesh (mankind) is commanded to be silent before the Lord. This would be a word of encouragement to God’s people to be patient and wait in awe for these events to arrive. It is also a warning to the nations that God is coming to execute judgment upon those who resist His purposes. God was already preparing even as the prophet spoke these words, to fulfill all His promises to believers, and His threats to those who oppose Him. “Do not be impatient! He will come in His own time, not a minute late!” (Laetsch p. 420). Chapter Three The Fourth Vision 3:1 Joshua was the high priest when the people returned from captivity (Ezra 3:2,8; 5:2; Haggai 1:1). The high priest was not only the representative of the priesthood, but also of the entire nation (Exodus 28:1, 9-12; Lev. 16:15f, 20-22,34; Hebrews 5:1-3). At the right hand of Joshua stands Satan, the adversary, opponent, accuser (Job 1:6-8,12; 2:1-4,6-9), and Satan is “resisting him”. This is Satan’s characteristic trait (Revelation 12:10), for he habitually and unceasingly seeks to accuse God’s people. Satan challenges Joshua’s right to appear as mediator before God, since he is a sinner, unworthy to stand in the presence of God. With brazen shamelessness (and hypocrisy) he appears before God (Job 1:6), and arrogantly places himself on the right hand of Joshua. Satan is our enemy! He doesn’t want us saved, he challenges God’s right to forgive us or extend salvation, and he wants all men and women condemned to hell! So what in the world are we thinking when we do his bidding? 3:2 “The Lord rebuke you Satan!” The term “rebuke” means to scold or reprimand. The Lord had chosen Jerusalem, and He doesn’t owe Satan any explanation or apology. The “fire” in this verse refers to the exile, which seemed to be a hopeless end, the final destruction of Jerusalem and the nation. Yet God 6
had plucked them out of the fire that threatened to consume them. One of these brands plucked out was Joshua. God could pluck these people out of the fire because they had repented, learned their lesson, and manifested obedient faith in God. God wasn’t rewarding stubborn people, and He had punished the nation for her sins. Satan had nothing to complain about! 3:3 The fifthly clothes seem to represent the sins of the nation. Thus, Satan was accusing Joshua and the entire nation of being unfit for God’s blessings. Notice how Satan doesn’t serve God, but expects everyone else to follow God’s law and argues with God when something doesn’t seem right to him—what a hypocrite! 3:4-5 Joshua is given clean clothes, which symbolize forgiveness. God could forgive men like Joshua, for they were humble and repentant (Micah 6:6-8). What really seems to get under Satan’s skin is the fact that God will forgive sinners. Every time God forgives a former sinner, Satan is upset—for there is no forgiveness for him. His fate is sealed (Revelation 20:10), and the best way for humans to irritate him, is to humble themselves and seek God’s mercy. 3:6-7 Notice the repetition of the word “if” in verse 7. If Joshua would faithfully serve God and keep His requirements, then Joshua would have continued service in the temple, be successful in guarding the temple from idolatry and other corruptions and “free access among these who are standing here”, that this, access to God in prayer, comparable to that of the angels. “Among the host of angels the people would have access to Jehovah through the newly cleansed and sanctified high priest; but this honor would be his on the conditions stipulated” (Hailey p. 336). Even many Christians fail to appreciate the free access to God that is available for the faithful (Hebrews 4:14-16). No longer do we need a human high priest, but rather, Christians have direct access to God through Jesus Christ (Heb. 10:19). 3:8 “My servant the Branch”: This is a clear reference to Jesus (Isaiah 11:1; Zechariah 6:12-13). Jesus is called “My servant”, because of His willing, patient and perfect obedience to His Father. Joshua’s “friends” appear to be fellow priests, and these men were for a sign. Joshua and his fellow priests were to be regarded as types prefiguring the New Testament priesthood. Jesus will come and establish an entire spiritual nation of priests (1 Peter 2:4-10).
7
3:9 A stone is set before Joshua, having seven eyes. The stone also had engraving on it, but the text does not say what the engraving is or said. All of this is connected with God removing sin in one day, which seems to point to Jesus’ death on the cross. This stone is either Jesus or His kingdom (Daniel 2:44). Isaiah spoke of a “land” being born in one day (Isaiah 66:8), which is the land (people) that would submit to Jesus’ rule. The seven eyes may represent the completeness and fullness of God’s watchful care over His people. 3:10 In the day that forgiveness is a reality, the result would be contentment and peace among those forgiven. To sit under one’s vine and fig tree was a symbol of peace enjoyed in the midst of safety and security (1 Kings 4:24-25; Isaiah 36:16; Micah 4:4). In addition, those in this new spiritual kingdom would invite their neighbors to share in this peace (Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 8:4). Do we view personal evangelism as an opportunity to share peace and contentment with people? “Come and sit with me under my vine and fig tree?” “Come and enjoy rich blessings?” “Come and find a place of security in an insecure world?”
Chapter 4 Vision Five: The Lamp stand and the Olive Trees: 4:1-5
4:1 After the fourth vision Zechariah had fallen asleep. The angel then came to awaken him. “The prophet had seen the first four visions while fully awake. He had been a deeply interested observer. But, like Daniel, he was human. The intense strain on his physical and mental powers had exhausted him so that he had fallen into a stupor-like sleep (Daniel 8:17f; 10:8-10)” (Laetsch p. 427). 4:2-4 From verse 12 we learn that this golden lamp stand had a continual supply of oil from the two olive trees. Apparently, golden pipes emptied oil from each tree into the bowl on top of the lamp stand (4:2), which in turn continuously fed seven lamps. While the vision was clear, the meaning wasn’t so clear to the prophet. 4:5 Apparently, the angel thought that Zechariah should have understood the vision. 4:6 The term “might” is a general word for human resources such as physical strength, ability, wealth, military power and force. In rebuilding the temple 8
Zerubabbel would not have at his disposal the armies of workers and tons of wealth, which Solomon employed in the first building of the temple. The point of the vision is this: The lamp stand was fed with oil not by man’s hand and without human effort. So the temple would be restored not by the mere strength of Zerbubbabel’s hands or mind but by the Spirit of God. God would providentially see to it that resources and help would come from other sources. The task of rebuilding the temple with such meager resources had probably been very discouraging to Zerubabbel. Here is an encouraging word from God to this Jewish leader. 4:7 Zerubabbel is further encouraged by the assurance that all obstacles that stand in his way will be removed. The “great mountain” represents all the obstacles that presently seem to stand in the way of finishing this project. Zerubabbel will bring forth the top stone (not the corner stone, for that already had been laid), but the finishing stone, the last stone that would complete the construction. It will be placed amid shouts of “grace, grace, to it”. The finished temple would stand as visible proof that God had been gracious and merciful to His people, without His favor, this would have never happened. 4:8-9 The finished temple would stand as proof that God had indeed sent Zechariah. 4:10 “For who has despised the day of small things?” “A rhetorical question brings to light one of the difficulties which Zerubabbel was facing in his construction project” (Smith p. 542). Many great things, which God has started, started out with a very small beginning (i.e. the ministry of Jesus, the church). In the day of small things the critics are numerous. In spite of all the critics, and nay-sayers, Zerubabbel is to press on with his work and with the help of the faithful few. The glorious completion of the temple would put to shame all those who sneered at the meager beginnings of the work. 4:10 “These seven”: That is, the seven eyes of Jehovah (3:9), will rejoice as they behold the plummet, a plumb bob or plumb rule put to stones in proper alignment, in the land of Zerubabbel the builder. The plummet was a string attached to a weight, which enabled the builder to determine a true right angle. “The point is that God took pleasure in the sweat and toil of those few who were committed to seeing this house rebuilt in Jerusalem” (Smith p. 543). In the eyes of the world, the New Testament church is a “small thing”. Notice, God wasn’t rejoicing in the great achievements of Persia or other world empires. His eyes were upon a small band of people who were rebuilding a small temple. 9
4:11-14 “These are the two anointed ones, who are standing by the Lord of the whole earth”: In the Old Testament, kings and priests were anointed (Exodus 30:30; 1 Samuel 10:1). Some see the two anointed ones being Joshua the high priest and Zerubabbel. The two offices of priest and king would eventually be united in Jesus, the Priest-king to come (6:12-14). Kings and priests “stand by the Lord” in the sense that they are near to do His bidding. They had access to God on behalf of the people they represented and they faithfully were carrying out God’s will on earth. Through these leaders, God will meet the needs of His people. Closing Comment
Thus the meaning of the vision is that through men like Joshua the high priest and Zerubabbel the governor, a continual supply of blessings will flow to the Jewish nation (which is the lamp stand). These blessings would include divine revelation and wisdom, providential care, protection, mercy and grace.
10