ZECHARIAH FOR TODAY
Chapters 1 - 3
The prophet Zechariah began his ministry two months later than
his contemporary Haggai. The series of visions in chapters 1-8
were the basis for encouraging the Jews in rebuilding the Temple.
God has a long range plan for His people. In chapters 9-14 the
coming of the Messiah and the establishment of the ultimate
kingdom are vividly projected.
(From my old KJV Study Bible).
We here have book that is very similar to that of Daniel and
Revelation. All three books are INTERTWINED with each other in
many ways.
In Zechariah we have the classic example of prophecy that
was for his day, the day beyond, and the time of the and of this
age. It moves back and forth; it will give you an truth of
Zechariah's day and take that truth and within one verse bring
you down to the ultimate truth of the Messiah that that then
truth is really the point of all of God's plan for His people of
Judah and Israel. You will have symbols that need to be
interpreted by the Bible not by the imagination of men, for men's
imagination comes up with a thousand different ideas.
The basic truth and the main message is clear to see in
Zechariah's visions. Do not take your mind off that and you will
come to understand the wonderful, awesome, inspiring book of the
prophet Zechariah.
CHAPTER 1
Call for Repentance
The eight month of the second year of Darius was 520 B.C.
The word of God came to Zechariah, a grandson of the prophet
Iddo. The Lord tells Zech (I'll use for short) that He has been
very displeased with the fathers of Judah. Zech is to tell them
to TURN to the Lord and He will turn to them. They are not to be
as their fathers, whom the former prophets cried out to in
telling them to turn from their evil ways and doings. But they
would not listen to the Lord. And where are those people today?
Do they live forever in the flesh? No! They are dead, even the
prophets are dead.
"But my WORDS and my STATUTES, which I command my servants the
prophets, did they not take hold of your fathers? And they just
turned and said, 'so as the Lord has determined to do to us for
our sins and iniquities; let it be so; let him deal with us'"
(verses 1-6).
......
You talk about just THUMBING your nose at God, this is
exactly what the fathers of Zech did when God sent them the
prophets to warn them of their wickedness and the punishment to
come. So it is today. Most people if made to read this Website
and what I have said through the prophets of God, would just
laugh! They would NOT listen. The leaders of the lands of Israel
would just go to their prophets and religious leaders and listen
to them as they would say I'm a false prophet and I'm the one
that deceives. It was no different in the days of the prophets of
God of old; it is no different today!
......
Vision of the Horses
Before jumping to fancy speculations, as many do, we need to
reed verse 12! This section from verse 7-17 has nothing to do
with our time or the future. It has everything to do with the
time of Judah and the time of Zech in the days after the 70 year
captivity of Judah in Babylon.
The red horse, bay (margin) horse, and the white horse, are
as in Revelation 6 and Matthew 24 - wars, false religion and
famine (black or bay horses are dark).
God had sent these plagues to walk to and fro in the hub of
the world. They in personification, said to the Lord they had so
walked (verse 11) and the earth was now at rest. The Babylon
Empire had indeed brought peace to the hub of the world, but
through much suffering and it certainly had its religious
deceotions.
Now the cry goes out for God to REMEMBER and have MERCY on
Jerusalem and Judah as the promised 70 years captivity was now
over.
The Lord speaks good and comforting words to the angel and
to Zechariah (verse 13).
God is JEALOUS over Jerusalem and Zion. The Lord is sore
displeased with the heathen; they overstepped their bounds; they
afflicted more than needed. God will therefore RETURN mercy to
Jerusalem. The House of the Lord will be REBUILT! The towns and
cities of Judah will yet again be prosperous and spread abroad.
Zion will yet be comforted. And Jerusalem shall yet be chosen!
(verses 14-17).
So it was, the Jews, many of them, did return to the Holy
Land and the Temple was built under Zerubbabel. The Priesthood
was restored, and the cities of Judah were once more inhabited
and prosperous.
CHAPTER 1:18 THROUGH CHAPTER 2
With the introduction of the promise that the towns of Judah
would again be inhabited and prosperous, we have God moving to
the same situation that will exist at the time of the end, way
down the centuries to the coming of the Messiah God back to the
earth to dwell in Zion and Jerusalem.
Four horns Zech sees (verse 18). Do not jump to imaginations
of the mind. we are given the basic interpretation in chapter
2:6. The prophecy concerns Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem being
SCATTERED, the CARPENTERS (verse 20 - four of them) come to end
the scattering that took place over the land of Judah. Whatever
the actual carpenters are (which is not revealed to us - could be
angels) the MAIN POINT, is that they END the horns of the
GENTILES. The 4 horns are Gentile powers and also the four winds
of the heaven (verses 21 and chapter 2:6). Judah, Israel, and
Jerusalem, have be SCATTERED TO THE FOUR WINDS - NORTH, SOUTH,
EAST AND WEST! All the prophets tell the same story for the end
time of this age. I have covered it for you many times already in
the prophetic books of the Old Testament.
Jerusalem will be delivered at the time of the end from the
Gentile powers. The Gentile powers that will do the scattering
are indeed 4 basic ones. ONE - Babylon Beast of Europe. TWO - The
powers of the East over the Euphrates. THREE - The Palestinians
and Jordanians who will happily help the scattering of Judah.
FOUR - The people of Edom/Turkey who will stand in the way as
many Jews flee north to escape the Babylon Beast of the king of
the North when Jerusalem and Judah is taken by that mighty end
time power.
God will be a FIRE round about Jerusalem and be her glory in
her midst (verse 5). Zion is to be DELIVERED, she who dwells with
the DAUGHTER of Babylon - the end time Babylon who will conquer
her. Those that touch Jerusalem do touch the apple of God's eye.
The Lord will shake His hand over them, they will be under
and not above.
Zion/Jerusalem is to SING!
"For, lo, I COME, AND I will DWELL IN THE MIDST OF YOU, SAYS THE
LORD. AND MANY NATIONS SHALL BE JOINED TO THE LORD IN THAT DAY,
AND SHALL BE MY PEOPLE: and I will DWELL IN THE MIDST OF YOU, and
you shall know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you. And the
Lord shall inherit Judah and His portion in the holy land, and
shall choose Jerusalem again. Be silent, O all flesh, before the
Lord; for He is raised up out of His holy habitation" (verseS 10-
13).
How many nations are JOINED to the Lord today? I KNOW OF
NONE!! There is not one nation of earth today that has the Lord
as its HEAD and GUIDE. Not one nation today can be called by the
name of the Lord. God is NOT dwelling in the midst of ANY nation,
literally or spiritually or figuratively! Not one nation on earth
today knows that Zechariah has been sent to them. But they will
ONE DAY in the future! God has not yet been raised up out of His
holy habitation to come and dwell in Jerusalem and Judah. But the
day comes when He WILL COME TO EARTH AND WILL LIVE IN JERUSALEM!
ALL THE PROPHETS OF OLD PROCLAIM THIS GREAT TRUTH!
CHAPTER 3
Now the prophecy slips back to the then present in the days
of Zechariah. He is shown Joshua the High Priest sanding before
God and Satan contending. The Devil is rebuked for God has chosen
Jerusalem, for that city will be plucked out of the fire so to
speak and saved.
Joshua as a man was clothed with filthy garments, for our
righteousness is but filthy rags before God, who is perfect and
holy. His filthy garments are to be taken away, his iniquities
are cleansed, he will have a change of garment. He is to have a
good mitre upon his head and clothed him with new garments. An
angel stood by. The angel tells Joshua that if he will walk in
the Lord's ways, keep His charge, he will judge in the house of
God, and find his companionship is with those who stand by in the
service of God (verses 1-7).
All of this is a LEAD UP to the MAIN MESSAGE of the type
just given.
Within one verse the true scene is given! All of this is to
portray the FINAL HIGH PRIEST, THE BRANCH of Judah! Ah, it is
Isaiah 11:1; Acts 13:22,23; and Zechariah 6:12. It is THE BRANCH
OF DAVID, THE ROOT OF THE TRIBE OF JUDAH. IT IS THE ULTIMATE HIGH
PRIEST OF ISRAEL.
NOW WE ARE TAKEN TO THE VERY END TIME, THE END OF THIS AGE,
WHEN THE SERVANT BRANCH, THE MESSIAH GOD IS TO COME. The stone
laid before Joshua with SEVEN EYES - seven the number of
PERFECTION AND COMPLETENESS - and whatever else the eyes may
represent as God seeing all and the end from the beginning, it is
the time all prophecy waits for.
"I WILL REMOVE THE INIQUITIES OF THE LAND IN ONE DAY. IN THAT
DAY, SAYS THE LORD, SHALL YOU CALL EVERY MAN HIS NEIGHBOR UNDER
THE VINE AND FIG TREE" (verse 8-10).
Are iniquities yet removed from the land, ANY land? You bet
they are not! Not one nation has iniquities removed. Can people
call every man his neighbor? I guess not! There is hate and
violence and distrust among all nations.
THIS IS THE PROPHECY OF THE HOLY RIGHTEOUS BRANCH OF DAVID,
THE MESSIAH CHRIST JESUS COMING TO DWELL IN JERUSALEM, AND TO
MAKE ALL NATIONS COME UNDER THE GRACE OF GOD, THE SALVATION OF
GOD, AND BRING THE AGE WHEN INDEED ALL PEOPLE WILL BE ABLE TO
CALL EVERY MAN HIS NEIGHBOR IN TRUTH AND IN SPIRIT!
WE WAIT LORD FOR YOUR COMING!
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To be continued
2. Zechariah For Today
Chapters 4 to 7
CHAPTER 4
The Golden Candlestick
Zechariah is as a man wakened out of his sleep, by and
angel. He sees A candlestick of gold with a bowl on top of it; it
has SEVEN pipes to SEVEN lamps.
It is ONE candlestick! That is important to remember.
Zech asks the angel what this is all about (verses 1-5).
The somewhat mystic answer is: "Not by might, nor by power,
but by my SPIRIT, says the Lord of hosts" (verse 6).
Then immediately Zerubbabel is talked about (verse 7). And
God says, "The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of
this house; his hands shall also finish it. So you shall know
that the Lord of hosts has sent me (the angel) unto you (Zech).
For who has despised the day of small things? For they shall
rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel,
with those SEVEN; THEY ARE (the Bible interprets itself) the EYES
OF THE LORD, WHICH RUN TO AND FRO THROUGH THE WHOLE EARTH!"
(verses 8-10).
So with what we have in these verses its first understanding
should be obvious. There was to be a Mighty work DONE IN
JERUSALEM; IT WAS THE RE-building of the TEMPLE under Zerubbabel.
It would be accomplished not so much as by human hands (of course
human hands did the work of building) BUT BY THE POWER of the
SPIRIT OF GOD!! (verse 6). It took some miracles of various sorts
to get the job done of continuing and finishing the work on the
Temple. The Spirit of God had to do some inspiring, encouraging,
some power to get men pushed into finishing the work that was
started but had come to a stop. The Temple was started under
Zerubbabel and it would be finish under Zerubbabel.
If anyone was despising the day of small things ... just not
much happening, people dragging their feet and sitting on their
backside, then it was time to rejoice, for under Zerubbabel the
Spirt of God would GET THINGS MOVING AGAIN WITH ZEAL!
The golden lamp could well first represent the immediate
time frame. It represented the ONE SPIRIT OF GOD working with the
man Zerubbabel. The seven pipes to seven lamps are interpreted
for us a the SEVEN EYES of the Lord that run here and there. The
seven eyes are connected to the Spirit of God - all working to
finish the work of the Lord in that time frame of re-building the
Temple under Zerubbabel.
Seven is the number of PERFECTION or COMPLETENESS as God
uses numbers. Now, let's use some common logic. The seven eyes do
not represent trees, or lakes, or forests, or any such inanimate
objects, that can not possibly run to and fro. Logical sense
would have the seven eyes as representing 7 spirit creatures or
angelic beings of some kind, that run to and fro on this earth,
in the SERVICE of, doing the will of God in whatever ways to help
the Eternal do His work, in whatever age or time frame. So they
are seven created spirit being that are the eyes of the Lord,
going here and there seeing what is being done, and reporting
back to the Eternal.
That may seem strange to people who believe God personally
does EVERYTHING. But such people may never have thought that
perhaps God does NOT want to do everything. That would be His
choice would it not?
The CONTEXT would have us understand the ONE candlestick is
the SPIRIT of God and in that time frame, using Zerubbabel to
finish building the Temple. And he is fully supported by seven
spirit beings who unseen, are a huge power behind the Spirit of
God working this work that was started by Zerubbabel and was
going to be finished under the watch-full work of Zerubbabel.
The Two Olive Trees?
Back first to the one candlestick. It is ONE candlestick and
so it is NOT THE SAME as what John sees in the book of
Revelation. John sees SEVEN CANDLESTICKS - SEVEN INDIVIDUAL
CANDLESTICK, WITH JESUS WALKING IN THE MIDST OF THEM. YOU'LL FIND
ALL THAT IN THE FIRST CHAPTER OF REVELATION.
THIS VISION THAT ZECH HAS IS ***NOT*** THE SAME AS IN
REVELATION.
AND THE CONTEXT WOULD ALSO DISPROVE IT. THE CONTEXT IS GOD'S
SPIRIT - ZERUBBABEL - AND SEVEN SPIRIT-BEINGS WITH EYES THAT CAN
GO ALL OVER TO REPORT TO GOD WHAT IS HAPPENING TO AND FRO ON THE
EARTH.
The context of Revelation is seven INDIVIDUAL CANDLESTICKS
with Jesus walking in their midst and seven STARS in His hand.
The interpretation then given is the STARS represent the ANGELS
of the SEVEN CHURCHES (Revelation 1:12-20).
So the two visions, one for Zechariah and one for John are
NOT representing the same thing at all. They are DIFFERENT!
Back to Zechariah. We have TWO OLIVE TREES by the ONE golden
lamp-stand. The interpretation is given in verse 11-14. No need
to guess, we are told. The olive trees are one on the right and
one on the left of the candlestick.
They have golden oil emptying out of themselves. Gold is
pure, as pure as you can get on this physical earth, The olive
trees represent the two ANOINTED ONES that stand by the Lord of
the whole earth.
The context is Zerubbabel and the building of the Temple
through the power of the Holy Spirit, with the help of 7 spirit
beings looking and reporting as from going to and fro. The whole
objective is to get the Temple built and finished under
Zerubbabel. Zerubbabel started it and he was to be the one to
finish it (9).
It would take the help from the Holy Spirit and the 7 spirit
beings to accomplish the task of the completion of the new Temple
to be built in Jerusalem after the 70 year captivity of the Jews
in Babylon.
The two olive branches .... well in the recorded history of
the rebuilding of that Temple we have TWO MEN who played a hugely
important task - EZRA and NEHEMIAH. THEY WOULD REPRESENT THE MANY
JEWS THAT RETURNED TO JUDAH AND JERUSALEM UNDER THOSE TWO GREAT
LEADERS - Ezra (457 B.C.) Nehemiah (444 B.C.).
THIS VISION IS NOT THE SAME AS IN REVELATION! HERE IS ONE
CANDLESTICK AND IN REVELATION THERE ARE SEVEN CANDLESTICKS. THE
TWO ARE NOT THE SAME.
JESUS WALKS AMONG THE CANDLESTICK OF REVELATION. NO SUCH
WALKING AMONG IS GIVEN HERE.
FOR TODAY
There could be a connection for us today. The golden
candlestick and Zerubbabel COULD represent Christ!! The Spirit of
God in Christ doing the over-watching of the Temple to be built
in the 1,000 year age, the Kingdom of God on earth.
The SEVEN EYES could be SEVEN STARS OF REVELATION 2:20. WE
SEE THE SEVEN STARS IN REVELATION ARE THE SEVEN ANGELS. THE SEVEN
CANDLESTICKS ARE THE SEVEN CHURCHES.
IT IS THE MIGHT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN CHRIST, AND IN TYPE
PICTURED ALSO BY ZERUBBABEL, TOGETHER WITH THE HELP OF SEVEN
SPIRIT BEINGS, WHO WILL IN SOME WAY SERVE AND HELP CHRIST, WHO
WILL BUILD THE TEMPLE THAT IS TO BE BUILD WHEN THE MESSIAH COMES
IN POWER AND GLORY TO ESTABLISH THE KINGDOM OF GOD ON EARTH AT
JERUSALEM; WHEN A NEW EZEKIEL TEMPLE WILL BE BUILT.
THE TWO OLIVE TREES AND TWO CANDLESTICKS OF REVELATION 11:4
ARE FOR THAT TIME OF THE END IN HISTORY; AND WILL REPRESENT THE
TWO WITNESSES WITH POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, AS THEY WORK THEIR
WORK IN JERUSALEM FOR THE LAST 42 MONTHS AT THE END OF THIS AGE!
The two anointed ones in Zerubbabel's day were Ezra and
Nehemiah. The one golden candlestick in Zechariah 4 representing
the Holy Spirit (working with Zerubbabel); the seven lights from
the candle stick represent the seven eyes of the Lord - spirit
beings sent to watch over - the work of the finished Temple under
Zerubbabel. The two olive tree represented Ezra and Nehemiah (we
have two books of the Bible with their names on them), and they
were the great leaders to bring the people back to Jerusalem and
Judah from Babylon.
In modern times. Christ would be THE Zerubbabel Temple
builder, powered by the Holy Spirit. The eyes or spirit beings
serving in ways not revealed to us, as they go to and fro in the
earth. The Messiah is the ONE who is to build the Ezekiel Temple,
through the power of the Holy Spirit. The two olive trees
standing near by represent the two great witnesses to proclaim
the truth of God for the last 42 months of this age in Jerusalem,
during the reign of the king of the North and the kings of the
East, leading up to Zerubbabel Christ Jesus coming to earth to
build the new Temple for the new age.
Most orthodox Jews teach that the Messiah is the only one to
build the NEXT Temple in Jerusalem. All prophecy would bear this
out to be the truth of the matter.
CHAPTER 5
A Flying Roll
Zech sees a flying roll. Its length is 20 cubits and its
breadth 10 cubits. We are told it represents the "curse" that
goes over all the earth. The two commandments, one stealing, the
other swearing, one on each side of the roll. One commandment is
in the first FOUR commandments of the Great Ten commandments -
swearing; the other - stealing - is in the other SIX of the Ten
commandments. Most Bible readers know we have the first 4
commandments towards God and the last 6 towards man (verses 1-3).
Those who are breaking the commandments of the Lord, the
curse roll, will enter and consume. It is a way of saying and
picturing that SIN brings DEATH. Those who will not REPENT of
sin, shall earn the wages of sin which is death (Romans 6:23).
All of this applies to any age and any time frame within any age.
The Woman in the Ephah
Zech is led to see an ephah, the usual common measure of
grain among the Jews. Then there is a weight piece of LEAD, which
we are told represents "the woman that sits in the midst of the
ephah." In the prophetic books of the Old Testament, a woman
often represents the children of Israel, either the house of
Israel or the house of Judah or both. We have that imagery in the
book of Ezekiel (see Ezekiel 16 and the two sisters of the women
of chapter 23).
Lead is HEAVY and in value is pretty small as say compared
to GOLD.
Then WICKEDNESS is cast into the ephah and the weight of
lead upon the mouth. Lead is a good weight to close the door on
wickedness, if we are to use symbols to close up, shut the door
on sin. And it is a good representation of the heavy reward of
sin - punishment and death and captivity.
Judah is the woman of wickedness and will have to be
rewarded accordingly.
Two woman with wings of a stork are now seen in vision
carrying the ephah to the land of Shinah, to be establish there
(verses 9-10). Shinah is Babylon.
Zech was writing AFTER Judah had been in the 70 year
captivity in Babylon. Here we have wickedness carried to Shina or
Babylon. What can this mean in the end time scene of the world.
There is only one thing tied to wickedness and Babylon at the end
of this age: the destruction of Israel and Judah for their
wickedness and sins, and their deportation to the Empire of the
Beast Babylon of Europe.
CHAPTER 6
Zech now sees FOUR chariots - a red one - a black one - a
white one - a bay one. Immediately Revelation 6 comes to mind.
The red chariot horses = war. The black chariot horses = famine.
The white chariot horses = religious deception. The bay or pale
or grisled chariot horses = pestilence.
They, the chariots represent the spirits of God, spirit
beings that will go forth from the Lord of heaven. The spirit
world is much more fluent and busy and complicated than we can
ever imagine. You get a glimpse of its workings in the book of
Daniel. Take care to notice it all as you read the book of
Daniel.
Again let me say that in prophecy there is often a first
fulfilment, often during the time frame that the prophet taught
and preached, and another fulfilment at the end time, at the
close of this age. It does not hold true for every passage of
prophecy but many times it does as certain verses within a
context make clear.
For the first fulfilment of these verses I recommend you
study some of the popular Bible Commentaries like Adam Clarke,
Albert Barnes etc.
For today and beyond these FOUR horses here have their equal
in the book of Revelation chapter 6. I refer you to my study on
the book of Revelation in the series of "The New Testament Bible
Story" (verses 1-8).
Coronation of Joshua
As some like Adam Clarke (in his Bible Commentary) have
seen, this Joshua here REPRESENTS the Messiah Christ - the
BRANCH, as we have seen in other prophecies. The BRANCH is the
root and offspring of David, the man called the Son of man, the
Son of God, as He came to earth from the line of the seed of
David. Christ the Messiah is THE BRANCH!
Notice verse 12. It is the BRANCH - the MESSIAH, who is to
BUILD THE TEMPLE OF THE LORD! One of the first works Jesus will
do when He comes again to establish the Kingdom of God on earth
is to over-see the building of the Ezekiel Temple, as we have see
when we went through the book of Ezekiel.
This is the verse as to why many of the orthodox Jews do not
believe a new Temple in Jerusalem can be built BUT BY THE MESSIAH
BRANCH of David.
This Branch Messiah Christ will BEAR THE GLORY of building
the Ezekiel Temple. He shall sit and rule on His throne - the
throne of David as other prophetic passages also show. He will be
THE priest, THE LORD OF LORDS, KING OF KINGS, PRIEST OF PRIESTS!
He will be the COUNSEL OF PEACE for the whole world in that new
age to come (verses 12-13).
Jesus the Branch Messiah, as we have seen will RESTORE
Israel and Judah, bring them back from captivity, from far away
lands, when He returns to earth. And when they are in the Holy
Land, they will help Christ build that Temple; and indeed they
will know that the prophet Zechariah was sent to proclaim all
this good news; they will surely obey God in that day (verse 15).
CHAPTER 7
Question about the Fasts
The fasts here mentioned are not any fast day in the books
of Moses. As most Bible Commentaries explain, they are the fast
day of the 5th month, to bring to remembrance the burning of the
Temple on the 10th day of that month. And the fast of the 7th
month was on the 3rd day, for the murder of Gedaliah and the
dispersion of the remnant of the people that were with him. See
Jer.41:1 and 2 Kings 25:25.
The lesson is that doing outward religious signs such as
fasting, should be to bring you closer to the Lord. It is to help
you hear the Words of the Lord, help you understand the words of
the prophets, that were given when all seemed good and
prosperous. Those fasts should have helped you see the message of
the prophets, that sin and wickedness will be rewarded with
destruction and death.
It would seem that Judah had gone to sleep again during the
fasting of those months while in the 70 year captivity (verse 5).
Such religious practices should bring you closer to the truth and
words of the Lord, but often people follow such religious
practices in outward form only, and there is no DEEP INNER
renewing of the mind and heart. Going through the motions of
"religion" gets you no points for victory with the Lord, unless
it produces INNER GODLY RENEWING of the mind towards walking in
the true ways of the Eternal.
Causes of the Exile
The prophecy now slips back as to the reasons why God must
punish Judah in the end time of this age.
There is lacking true judgment, little mercy and compassion
to neighbors. The widow, the fatherless, the stranger, the poor,
are not cared for as they should be. There is too much evil as
brother towards brother, even in the heart.
The people of Judah refuse to harken, they pulled away, they
stopped the ear from hearing the truths of God. They made their
hearts as adamant as stone, LEST they should hear the LAW, and
the words which the true prophets gave as coming from the Lord.
Put in one single word, it is the WICKEDNESS of Judah that will
finally bring the wrath of God upon them (verses 8-13).
I have said before and will say it once more: the people of
Judah, the Jews, are MAINLY SECULAR, there is no deep root of
religion among them. They have mainly turned away the ear, mind,
and heart, from seeking God, His law, and His ways to live.
So it will come to pass, that as God cried out and they
would not listen, so as they cried out in the Great Tribulation,
at the close of this age, God will for a time NOT HEAR! (verse
13).
The Lord will scatter them as with a whirlwind among all
nations, and for a while the land of the State of Israel in the
Holy Land, will be DESOLATE! (verse 14).
The king of the North, the Beast of Babylon Mystery religion
of Europe, will come and destroy Jerusalem and Judah; that last
days Empire will bring the abomination of desolation. That Empire
of Europe will be an ABOMINATION to God, but it will be used by
the Lord to DESOLATE Jerusalem and the Jews in the Holy Land,
when the last 42 months of this age is to come, as decreed when
the Almighty says all things that are written must come to pass.
There is yet to come a GREAT DESOLATION upon the Jews and
Jerusalem. Though the Jews claim another HOLOCAUST will never
come their way, they do not have the power to prevent it, not
when God has said it will come because of their sins and
wickedness, and from refusing to listen to the law and words of
the Lord.
Everywhere in the prophets, we find that at the coming of
the Messiah Christ, the Jews are in a captivity and desolate
destruction state of living, that He must deliver them out of and
restore Judah and Jerusalem. All this RESTORATION we shall see
unfold to us as we proceed through to the end of this book of the
prophet Zechariah.
....................
To be continued
3. Zechariah For Today
Chapters 8 to 9
CHAPTER 8
Promise concerning Restoration
The word of the Lord came to Zech saying:
"I was jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I was jealous
for her with great fury. I am RETURNED unto Zion, and I will
DWELL in the midst of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called a
city of TRUTH; and the mountain (government) of the Lord of
hosts, the HOLY mountain (government).
There shall yet old men and old women dwell in the streets
of Jerusalem, and every man with his staff in his hand for
multitude of days (margin). And the streets of the city shall be
full of boys and girls playing in the streets" (verses 1-5)
God is not now dwelling in Zion or anywhere in Jerusalem.
The people of Jerusalem are mainly SECULAR - mainly not
religious. Jerusalem can hardly be called a city of TRUTH, or the
mountain government of the Lord of hosts. The streets can hardly
be said to be safe for the very old or for children playing in
them. The words portray in them a time of rest and peace and
safety, which Jerusalem does not have at this time.
As we shall see the context is a restoration of Judah and
Israel to a time under the government of God, when the Lord will
indeed literally dwell in Zion/Jerusalem as all the prophets
foretell.
"Thus says the Lord of hosts; Behold, I will save my people from
the east country and from the west country. And I will bring
them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and they
shall be my people, and I will be their God, in TRUTH and in
RIGHTEOUSNESS" (verses 7-8).
Can it be said the people of Jerusalem are truly people that
belong to God in their ways of life? Can the Lord really say He
is their God in TRUTH and in RIGHTEOUSNESS? Jesus said, "Thy
(God's) word is TRUTH." Are the people of Jerusalem trying to
live by every word of God, in all that they do. Righteousness is
defined as "All thy commandments are righteousness (Ps.119:172).
I do not think very much of either has taken hold in any serious
deep way in the people of Jerusalem.
In the next verses God encourages. He says the weak hands
should be strong, as they hear the words of the prophet, which
were before and which are again. There was little comfort and
peace before in all the afflictions, but now the Lord is going to
reverse that state of affairs, and the former days of
tribulation, even the Great Tribulation of the last days of this
age are coming to an end. The seed that is left of Judah and
Israel:
"Shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the
ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their
dew; and I will cause the REMNANT of this people to possess all
these things.
And it shall come to pass as you were a curse among the heathen,
O house of Judah and house of israel (notice both are still
separate at this time, scattered in the land of their enemies);
so will I SAVE you, and you shall be a blessing: FEAR NOT, but
let your hands be strong" (verses 9-13).
I think there is much fear in so many ways in the lands of
Israel and Judah today. The day is yet to come when there will be
no fear of any kind.
The Lord of hosts had decided to punish then when their
father went astray, and He did not change His mind. So again He
has thought to do well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah
there will be no fear (verses 14-15).
I'm very sure there is much fear in the land of Judah today.
This is an end time prophecy to come about when God in the form
of Christ Jesus is dwelling in their very midst. And what will
the people do in those days, we are told:
"These are the things that you shall do; Speak you every man the
TRUTH to his neighbor; execute the judgment of TRUTH and PEACE in
your gates: And let none of you imagine EVIL in your hearts
against his neighbor; and love no FALSE OATH: for all these are
things that I hate, says the Lord" (verses 16-17).
Is every man speaking TRUTH to everyone, in any nation on
earth today? No! I guess not. Is there any people, any nation,
that is executing judgment of truth and peace in their land? No!
There is no nation with God's judgment of truth and peace. And so
it is with verse 17.
All nations on earth today are FAR from fulfilling what we
have just read about in those two verses.
The Fasts
The fasts here spoken about are HISTORIC days of ancient
Judah, much like say, the 4th of July is to the USA.
The fourth month fast is 2 Kings 25:3,4 - the taking of
Jerusalem; the fifth month fast is 2 Kings 25:8,9 - in memory of
the ruin of the Temple; the seventh month fast is 2 Kings 25:22-
25 - For the murder of Gedaliah (Jer.41:1-3); the fast of the
tenth month is 2 Kings 25:1; Jer.52:4; Ezek.24:1-2 - in
commemoration of the seige of Jerusalem which began on the tenth
day of the tenth month.
These fasts will become joyful. As Adam Clarke's Bible
Commentary says "You shall find all your evils so completely
redressed, that these mournful fasts shall be turned into joyful
feasts."
So the Jews of Judah are to LOVE TRUTH and PEACE. There is
certainly not much loving of the truth (Jesus said God's word was
truth - John 17:17) and peace in their land today. But the day
comes when all this prophecy will be fully competed.
Nations to Seek God
There is no way that verses 20-23 have been fulfilled in
their completeness. Yes, a few Gentiles in the first century A.D.
and during the days of the Apostles, did come to Jerusalem to
worship the God of Israel. But CITIES of people going to another
city and saying, "Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and
to seek the Lord of hosts: and I will go also" can hardly be said
was taking place in the days of the apostles.
So likewise, "many people and STRONG nations shall come to
seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord"
can not be said to have EVER taken place as yet, but one day the
reality of this will happen when the Kingdom of God is
established on earth under Jesus Christ.
Has there EVER been the fulfilment of verse 23? Ten people
to every Jew, taking hold of the garment of the Jew and saying,
"We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you."
This in its magnitude HAS NEVER HAPPENED YET! People from
here and there have never in such large numbers been seeking out
the Jew and saying they would go with them for they have heard
God is among them. But when Jesus the Messiah comes to DWELL with
Judah and live in the city of Jerusalem in the 1,000 year age to
come, then this prophecy will take place, for it will be the time
when the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the
waters cover the sea beds.
CHAPTER 9
Judgment on Surrounding Nations
This had it MAIN fulfilment in the days of Zechariah, BUT it
will have a fulfilment in type during the last 42 months of this
age. The original land where these cities stood will be the
possession of ALL THE TRIBES of Israel (verse 1), when the eyes
of mankind, like those of all Israel, will be TOWARDS the Lord!
All the eyes of all Israel have never been towards the Lord. As
the apostle Paul said in Romans 9 through 11, it is only a few in
Israel who are called to grace, the rest are still spiritually
blinded.
We have seen there will come in type an end time TYRUS -
strong with gold and silver - a trading power over the seas. This
will be the end time 7th resurrection of the Holy Roman Empire in
Europe. Rich in physical wealth and Strong in the might of
battle. But it will be cast down to the earth and be devoured by
the fire of battle.
We have seen the pride of the Philistines - the Palestinians
today - shall be cut off - the blood from his mouth shall stop,
the abominations of their words shall stop. They will be punished
as will other nations. Those left of them will be CONVERTED to
the God of Israel, and will be noble as a governor in Judah.
It is the time of the beginning of the 1,000 year age. Not
all nations will immediately fall into line with the God of
Israel. We have seen how some nations at the start of the new
age, will not even fully understand that God literally dwells in
Jerusalem, and may want to harm or invade the Holy Land, for they
will hear about how fruitful it is. So, because of this, God
says:
"I will guard my Temple and protect it from invading armies. I am
closely watching their movements. No foreign oppressor will ever
again overrun my people's land" (verse 1-8).
Such words as the last few sentences have never been
fulfilled as yet, for history shows that the Roman Empire DID
invade, conquer and DID finally destroy the Temple of God in
Jerusalem in 70 A.D.
In the age to come, when the Ezekiel Temple is built, this
prophecy will take full effect, and it will indeed be so, that no
invading army (i.e. Ezekiel 38,39) will ever again overrun the
Holy Land, now fully belonging to ALL TRIBES of Israel.
Restoration under the humble King
Verse 9 had its fulfilment in Jesus, at His first coming to
earth as a flesh and blood man. It is the somewhat famous, Jesus
riding the donkey and the people praising the Lord. It was
fulfilled in Luke 19:38. That verse 9 was fulfilled, BUT verse 10
is YET FOR THE FUTURE!
"And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from
Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and He shall
speak peace unto the heathen: and His dominion shall be from sea
even to sea, and from the river to the ends of the earth."
Verse 10 is for the coming end time, when nations will not
lift up sword against nations and they will not learn war any
more (Isaiah 11:9). It is the time when weapons of war will be
destroyed. As the New Living Translation puts it: "Your King will
bring peace to the nations. His realm will stretch from sea to
sea and from the Euphrates river to the ends of the earth."
God will be faithful to His covenant, sealed with blood, and
will set free His Israel people who will be prisoners of death in
waterless dungeons. God says, "Come back to the place of safety,
all you prisoners, for there is yet hope! I promise this very day
that I will repay you two mercies for each of your woes! Judah is
my bow, and Israel is my arrow! Jerusalem (Heb."Zion") is my
sword, and like a warrior, I will brandish it against the Greeks
(Heb. "sons of Javan").
It is the time that God will fight for His people Israel and
Judah. The men of the East (Javan) may come (as in Ezekiel 38,39)
to invade the land of Israel, but God will be the battle axe to
defeat them. He says through Zech:
"The Lord will appear above his people; his arrows will fly like
lightning! The Sovereign Lord will sound the TRUMPET; he will go
out against his enemies like a whirlwind from the southern
desert. The Lord Almighty will protect his people, and they will
subdue their enemies with sling stones. They will shout in battle
as though drunk with wine, shedding the blood of their enemies.
They will be filled with blood like a bowl, drenched with blood
like the corners of the altar" (the New Living Translation,
verses 11-15).
Yes, we have seen, that when the Messiah comes in power and
glory, to free His people Israel and Judah, they will fight their
enemies in that day, as the Holy Land and Jerusalem are liberated
from the hands of the Gentile armies. God will fight, with His
angels and resurrected saints in the great battle of Armageddon
over and around Jerusalem; but the physical Israelites will fight
their enemies also. This we shall see again in the last chapters
of Zechariah.
"When that day arrives, the Lord their God will rescue his
people, just as a shepherd rescues his sheep. They will sparkle
in his hand like a jewels in a crown. How wonderful and beautiful
they will be! The young men and women will thrive on the
abundance of grain and new wine" (The New Living Translation,
verses 16,17).
It is the time and day of the coming of the Messiah to
establish the Kingdom of God on earth. He will free and rescue
the people of Israel and Judah from captivity, restore them to
the Holy Land, where they will blossom and bloom and shine as
jewels in His crown. The Lord and Israel will fight their
enemies, it will be the battle of all battles, and of course the
Lord and Israel will win the day. God will then be the only
protector that Israel will have, as they settle down to live in
un-walled towns and with no war machines of any kind. The Eternal
God, in the person of Jesus Christ, will be Israel's only
protection from any nation who may desire to invade the Holy
Land. Eventually all nations will come under the rulership of
Christ. All swords will be beaten into plowshares, implements of
farming. Nations will learn war no more. There will be world-wide
peace, joy, prosperity, as indeed the knowledge of God covers the
earth as the waters cover the sea beds.
THE WORLD WILL BE AT ONE WITH GOD!
FINALLY THE DAY OF ATONEMENT FEAST WILL BE FULFILLED!
THE NATIONS WILL HAVE GONE THROUGH SOME AFFLICTION INDEED.
AS THE FEAST OF ATONEMENT IS A FEAST OF FASTING AFFLICTION, BUT
ALSO JOY IN WHAT THE FEAST SYMBOLIZES, SO IT WILL COME TO PASS,
FOR A SHORT WHILE AFFLICTION ON THE EARTH, BUT AFTER THE JOYFUL
FRUITS OF THE RIGHTEOUSNESS AND SALVATION ON THE KINGDOM OF GOD
ON EARTH!
...................
To be continued
Zechariah For TodayChapters 10 to 11
You will better understand these chapters if I present them to
you from:
The New Living Translation
CHAPTER 10
The LORD Will Restore His People
1 Ask the LORD for rain in the spring, and he will give it. It is
the LORD who makes storm clouds that drop showers of rain so that
every field becomes a lush pasture.
2 Household gods give false advice, fortune-tellers predict only
lies, and interpreters of dreams pronounce comfortless
falsehoods. So my people are wandering like lost sheep, without a
shepherd to protect and guide them.
......
We are in the time frame when Israel and Judah are in
captivity, wandering among the nations. It is the last 42 months
of the end of this age.
......
3 "My anger burns against your shepherds, and I will punish these
leaders.* (Heb."these male goats") For the LORD Almighty has
arrived to look after his flock of Judah; he will make them
strong and glorious, like a proud warhorse in battle. 4 From
Judah will come the cornerstone, the tent-peg, the battle bow,
and all the rulers. 5 They will be like mighty warriors in
battle, trampling their enemies in the mud under their feet.
Since the LORD is with them as they fight, they will overthrow
even the horsemen of the enemy.
......
Indeed we have seen in the other prophets of old, that a
large part of the blame as to why Israel and Judah had to be
punished for their sins and wickedness, falls upon the LEADERS -
both civil and religious. They will not go unpunished; the truth
of their falsehoods and lies and deceit, will be made wide open,
and they will suffer public disgrace, and many of them will
suffer death in the destruction of the government nations of
Israel.
But at the very end, when christ the Messiah comes again,
Judah, the Jews scattered in the region of the Holy Land, will
rise up with the power of the Almighty God, and be strong
warriors to help defeat the Beast Babylon in the Holy Land and
whatever armies are there at that time, from the kings of the
East.
......
6 "I will strengthen Judah and save Israel* (Heb. "save the house
of Israel"). I will reestablish them because I love them. It will
be as though I had never rejected them, for I am the LORD their
God, who will hear their cries. 7 The people of Israel* ( Heb.
"of Ephraim") will become like mighty warriors, and their hearts
will be happy as if by wine. Their children, too, will see it all
and be glad; their hearts will rejoice in the LORD. 8 When I
whistle to them, they will come running, for I have redeemed
them. From the few that are left, their population will grow
again to its former size.
......
The people of Judah will have strength in those days and
Ephraim Britain will be saved. God will hear their cries to Him.
Once more Israel will be HUMBLE and will turn again to their God.
He will hear them, and He will save them and their children. Yes,
from the few that are left when the end of those last 42 months
come on this earth, God will redeem and they will come running
with a true repentant heart when He calls them. They will again
grow into a multitude on the earth, as it was before the days of
the Great Tribulation and Day of the Lord.
......
9 Though I have scattered them like seeds among the nations,
still they will remember me in distant lands. With their
children, they will survive and come home again. 10 I will bring
them back from Egypt and Assyria and resettle them in Gilead and
Lebanon. There won't be enough room for them all! 11 They will
pass safely through the sea of distress, for the waves of the sea
will be held back. And the waters "of the Nile" (is not in the
Hebrew) - will become dry. The pride of Assyria will be crushed,
and the rule of Egypt will end. 12 I will make my people strong
in my power, and they will go wherever they wish by my authority.
I, the LORD, have spoken!"
......
Nothing will hold back the return of Israel, they will come
from Assyria Germany and from Egypt - from the lands of the king
of the North and the king of the South. No water, rivers, sea,
will hold them back. Miracles God will perform so His people will
return to the Holy Land.
......
CHAPTER 11
A Day of Visitation
1 Open your doors, Lebanon, so that fire may sweep through your
cedar forests. 2 Weep, you cypress trees, for all the ruined
cedars; the tallest and most beautiful of them are fallen. Weep,
you oaks of Bashan, as you watch the thickest forests being
felled. 3 Listen to the wailing of the shepherds, for their
wealth is gone. Hear the young lions roaring, for their thickets
in the Jordan Valley have been destroyed. This is mainly towards
Judah.
......
Ah, when Jesus Messiah comes there will be fire and
brimstone, earthquakes and lightnings, hailstones, and a mighty
shaking of the heavens above as He descends from the clouds with
the resurrected saints, and battles the tyrant armies gathered to
fight Him around Jerusalem. so it is all recorded in the book of
Revelation.
......
The Good and Evil Shepherds
4 This is what the LORD my God says: "Go and care for a flock
that is intended for slaughter. 5 The buyers will slaughter their
sheep without remorse. The sellers will say, 'Praise the LORD, I
am now rich!' Even the shepherds have no compassion for them. 6
And likewise, I will no longer have pity on the inhabitants of
the land," says the LORD.
......
The Beast Babylon power and the kings of the East have done
whatsoever evil on many nations of the earth, they had no mercy
or compassion; so now it is time for God to have no mercy or
compassion on them; Judah shall fall in destruction.
......
"I will let them fall into each other's clutches, as well as into
the clutches of their king. They will turn the land into a
wilderness, and I will not protect them."
7 So I cared for the flock intended for slaughter - the flock
that was oppressed. Then I took two shepherd's staffs and named
one Favor and the other Union. 8 I got rid of their three evil
shepherds in a single month. But I became impatient with these
sheep - this nation - and they hated me, too. 9 So I told them,
"I won't be your shepherd any longer. If you die, you die. If you
are killed, you are killed. And those who remain will devour each
other!"
......
Zech is acting out the situation of the last days, the very
end of this age, when as Jesus said, if they were not cut short
no flesh would be saved alive. The three shepherds to be
destroyed are the evil "political" "military" and "false
spiritual" leaders. There was blood spilt by these leaders, so
what is left of their world will come to the state of devouring
each other. The time has come for Judah to be destroyed.
The staff "beauty" and "bonds" - peace, prosperity, and a secure
home for the Jews in the Holy land, will be broken.
......
10 Then I took my staff called Favor and snapped it in two,
showing that I had revoked the covenant I had made with all the
nations. 11 That was the end of my covenant with them. Those who
bought and sold sheep were watching me, and they knew that the
LORD was speaking to them through my actions. 12 And I said to
them, "If you like, give me my wages, whatever I am worth; but
only if you want to." So they counted out for my wages thirty
pieces* of silver.
13 And the LORD said to me, "Throw it to the potters" - this
magnificent sum at which they valued me! So I took the thirty
coins and threw them to the potters in the Temple of the LORD.
......
Not much value left in the world by the time Christ returns,
all will seem lost, worth nothing, to the big powers of the world
- the Babylon Beast of Europe will have been destroyed by the
mighty kings of the East. The last TWO woes - the 5th and 6th
TRUMPETS will have blown. The battle between East and West would
be the battle to destroy all flesh IF Jesus did not come and stop
it.
This is also the great prophecy of Jesus being betrayed for
30 pieces of silver by Judas Iscariot.
Also Judah will be in the eyes of the enemy, worth very little.
Note the nature of prophecy at times; it can have a
fulfilment from one verse a few thousand years out of the
CONTEXT. For the context of this prophecy is for the VERY END of
this age, when Christ will come as a fighting warrior.
......
14 Then I broke my other staff, Union, to show that the bond of
unity between Judah and Israel was broken. There will be no helping
each other; Israel will no longer be able to help Judah. From many
other prophecies we know that BOTH Israel and Judah will fall
together into destruction.
......
The bond of unity that NOW exists between Judah and Israel
(chief of which is Britain and the USA) will not exist in the
last years of this age. It must for a while be broken.
......
15 Then the LORD said to me, "Go again and play the part of a
worthless shepherd. 16 This will illustrate how I will give this
nation a shepherd who will not care for the sheep that are
threatened by death, nor look after the young, nor heal the
injured, nor feed the healthy. Instead, this shepherd will eat
the meat of the fattest sheep and tear off their hooves. "Doom is
certain for this worthless shepherd who abandons the flock! The
sword will cut his arm and pierce his right eye! His arm will
become useless, and his right eye completely blind!"
......
At the end of time, this age, there will arise a "false shepherd" -
man shepherd, who, the bottom line, will not really care for any of
the sheep, any Jews in the Holy land or inhabitants of the world,
in general, only himself and his power and desire to rule the world.
He will do whatever it takes in the situation he is in. Those who
knew a destruction was coming and were sitting by not caring for
the sheep but leaving them while they fled or were looking after
themselves first....the sword shall come upon them. What they
saw, with the eye; what they could do with their arm; whatever
they had to escape and not care for anyone but themselves, it
will be of no avail; they will also have the sword come on them.
Chapter 11, 12, 13, 14, is one CONTINUOUS prophecy. Judah will
fall and Jerusalem will indeed be a cup of trembling to the nations
now gathered in the Holy Land.
......
CHAPTER 12
Future Deliverance for Jerusalem
.............
To be continued
Zechariah For TodayChapters 12 to 14
From The New Living Translation
CHAPTER 12
Seige of Jerusalem
1 This* (Heb. "An Oracle") message concerning the fate of Israel came
from the LORD: This message is from the LORD, who stretched out
the heavens, laid the foundations of the earth, and formed the
spirit within humans. 2 "I will make Jerusalem and Judah like an
intoxicating drink to all the nearby nations that send their
armies to besiege Jerusalem. 3 On that day I will make Jerusalem
a heavy stone, a burden for the world. None of the nations who
try to lift it will escape unscathed."
......
It is God who forms the "spirit within humans." Many do not
realize that God gives a special "spirit" to work with the
physical brain. It is a unique spirit that gives mankind the mind
he has to do all the things that humans can do. There is NOT ONE
animal on land, sea, or air, that can perform all the things that
mankind has and will yet do. As science continues to expand and
expand, it is just mind blowing what the human mind can master
and invent. It is the "spirit in man" together with the physical
brain that makes human kind so dominant over all other physical
creatures. The truth of the matter concerning this "spirit in
man" can be found in studies on this Website.
These THREE chapters use the phrase "On that day" or "In
that day" quite a number of times. To understand the time that
this phrase is referring to, one must look to the CONTEXT.
The context of the first use of this phrase, is the context
of Jerusalem being besieged by a number of nations, and it is the
time when Judah is to be like a burning torch among sheaves of
grain.
This CANNOT be the beginning of the last 42 months of this
age, as at that time Judah will go into CAPTIVITY, as we have
seen over and over again from all the prophets of the Lord. It
then must be referring to the very last day or days of this last
42 months, the time when Jesus the Messiah will come to deliver
Jerusalem from the Gentile nations, and also deliver Judah and
Israel from captivity.
The Beast Babylon of Europe will have destroyed Jerusalem,
killed many in Judah, driven more out to flee for their lives,
and enslave any Jews left in the Holy Land. This happens at the
BEGINNING of the Great Tribulation. We are into the last 42
months or so (Daniel remember gives extra days - Daniel 12) of
the end of this age. The kings of the East will have also come
into the Holy Land to overrun some nations there. By the time the
end of this 42 months comes, Jerusalem will be the center of
world politics and dispute and down and out fighting over this
historic city, that is Jerusalem. God goes on to show in the rest
of this prophecy from Zechariah that indeed Jerusalem will be a
HEAVY STONE, A BURDEN FOR THE WORLD, NONE OF THE NATIONS WHO TRY
TO LIFT IT WILL ESCAPE UNSCATHED!
......
4 "On that day, says the LORD, I will cause every horse to panic
and every rider to lose his nerve. I will watch over the people
of Judah, but I will blind the horses of her enemies. 5 And the
clans of Judah will say to themselves, 'The people of Jerusalem
have found strength in the LORD Almighty, their God.'
6 On that day I will make the clans of Judah like a brazier that
sets a woodpile ablaze or like a burning torch among sheaves of
grain. They will burn up all the neighboring nations right and
left, while the people living in Jerusalem remain secure." 7 The
LORD will give victory to the rest of Judah first, before
Jerusalem, so that the people of Jerusalem and the royal line of
David will not have greater honor than the rest of Judah. 8 On
that day the LORD will defend the people of Jerusalem; the
weakest among them will be as mighty as King David! And the royal
descendants will be like God, like the angel of the LORD who goes
before them! 9 For my plan is to destroy all the nations that
come against Jerusalem.
......
From all the prophets (including Revelation) we know this: On
the day of Christ's coming to fight the nations, the armies of
those nations will gather at the plain of Megiddo, about 70 miles
north-west of Jerusalem. At the same time the Jews in and around
Jerusalem will be freed from captivity and will, with the
strength of the Lord with them, also fight their enemies. It will
truly be for Judah, "Let the force be with you." The force of God
will give mighty power to the Jews at that time.
......
10 "Then I will pour out a spirit of grace and prayer on the
family of David and on all the people of Jerusalem. They will
look on me whom they have pierced and mourn for him as for an
only son. They will grieve bitterly for him as for a firstborn
son who has died. 11 The sorrow and mourning in Jerusalem on that
day will be like the grievous mourning of Hadad-rim-mon in the
valley of Megiddo.
12 All Israel will weep in profound sorrow, each family by
itself, with the husbands and wives in separate groups. The
family of David will mourn, along with the family of Nathan,
13 the family of Levi, and the family of Shimei. 14 Each of the
surviving families from Judah will mourn separately, husbands and
wives apart."
......
It is the time and day that Judah, the Jews, will KNOW that
the very Jesus Christ of 2,000 years ago, is the Son of man and
the Son of God, that He is the Messiah! They will weep and cry in
joy but also in repentance, for not accepting Jesus as THE SAVIOR
MESSIAH who came to them 2,000 years ago. They will weep an individuals
whereever they mat be, personal weeping as is personal repentance.
......
CHAPTER 13
A Fountain of Cleansing
1 "On that day a fountain will be opened for the dynasty of David
and for the people of Jerusalem, a fountain to cleanse them from
all their sins and defilement."
2 "And on that day," says the LORD Almighty, "I will get rid of
every trace of idol worship throughout the land, so that even the
names of the idols will be forgotten. I will remove from the land
all false prophets and the unclean spirits that inspire them."
......
Yes, what we read about in Revelation 16:12-21 and unclean
spirits will be VANQUISHED. Jesus will be the victor over all
evil, sins, deception, and all false religion. Truly after that
battle ends, no one will want to continue any of the Satanic
deceptions of the Devil. The Holy Land will be HOLY, and the
Christ will be King of kings and Lord of lords. Yes, the THREE
unclean spirits that came out of the mouth of the Dragon, the
mouth of the man "beast" and out of the mouth of the false
prophet (Rev.16) will be GONE!
......
3 If anyone begins prophesying again, his own father and mother
will tell him, 'You must die, for you have prophesied lies in the
name of the LORD.' Then his own father and mother will stab him.
4 No one will be boasting then of a prophetic gift! No one will
wear prophet's clothes to try to fool the people. 5 No, he will
say. 'I'm not a prophet; I'm a farmer. The soil has been my means
of livelihood from my earliest youth.'"
......
Most teachers of the Christian religion today SHOULD NOT BE
TEACHING, THEY SHOULD BE FARMING! Or doing other than saying they
are a teacher of the Word of God! Most today are FALSE teachers,
that do and have, deceived MANY! The prophets of fundamental
Christian theology (and many are out there with their books and
CDs and DVDs) SHOULD BE FARMING! They are not the prophets of
God, they are false prophets!
In that day, those still alive, will admit they should have
been farmers, or ranchers, or construction workers, ANYTHING but
trying to teach Bible prophecy!
......
6 "And if someone asks, 'Then what are those scars on your
chest*?' (Or "scars between your hands) he will say, 'I was
wounded at the home of friends!'"
......
This is a verse that seems out of place, but it is not. It
is in the right place, the day of Christ's coming. IF (does not
say there will be) someone should look at Christ and should ask
Him why He has scars in His hands, He will tell them how they
came to be there - He will have to point out He was killed on a
stake of wood by His very natural blood-bound friends, His Jewish
family, but also, and more importantly, the very friends of His
human race of people, because of sins. This must always be
remembered as the number ONE reason why Christ has scars in His
body of flesh and bone. He was nailed to a piece of wood and died
for ALL sinners, which means he died for EVERY flesh and blood
person, for as the apostle Paul said, "ALL have sinned and come
short of the glory of God."
......
The Scattering of the Sheep
7 "Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, the man who is my
partner," says the LORD Almighty. "Strike down the shepherd, and
the sheep will be scattered, and I will turn against the lambs."
8 "Two-thirds of the people in the land will be cut off and die,"
says the Lord. "But a third will be left in the land. 9 I will
bring that group through the fire and make them pure, just as
gold and silver are refined and purified by fire. They will call
on my name, and I will answer them. I will say, 'These are my
people,' and they will say, 'The LORD is our God.'"
......
Any shepherd knows how true verse 7 is. If there is NO
shepherd over the sheep, the sheep will soon become lost and
easily ready for the devouring enemy to kill and eat.
In these few verses God gives an overall summery of the
detestation to come on the Jewish people living in the Holy Land
during the last 42 months of this age. TWO THIRDS will be slain.
ONE THIRD will be left in the land, but they must come through
some terrible trying fire as like gold and silver being purified.
In the end those still living WILL CALL OUT to God. The Lord will
answer that they are His people and they will acknowledge He is
their God. As I've stated a number of times, the Jewish people
today are in the MAIN: NOT RELIGIOUS! THE LARGEST part of those
Jews living in the Holy Land today are SECULAR! The time and day
will come when all Jews will be deeply CONVERTED to God, which
will also mean they acknowledge and accept Jesus Christ as
Messiah, the Son of God!
......
CHAPTER 14
The LORD Will Rule the Earth
1 Watch, for the day of the LORD is coming when your possessions
will be plundered right in front of you! 2 On that day I will
gather all the nations to fight against Jerusalem. The city will
be taken, the houses plundered, and the women raped. Half the
population will be taken away into captivity, and half will be
left among the ruins of the city.
......
Here we have the phrase "day of the Lord." Now it is
possible that it is talking about the somewhat common "day of the
Lord" in many of the prophets. Or it may simply here mean, a time
is coming that God allows such and such to take place.
If the former, we are into the last part of the last 42
months of this age, when for whatever reasons not specified,
Jerusalem and its inhabitants, will face more destruction and
sorrow and pain. If the latter, then it is talking about the
Beast Babylon of Europe entering the Holy Land and desolating
Jerusalem and its people; the start of the Great Tribulation on
earth, the like of which has never before been seen nor ever will
be seen again.
......
3 Then the LORD will go out to fight against those nations, as he
has fought in times past. 4 On that day his feet will stand on
the Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east.
......
On what day, a literal day this time, will His feet stand on
the Mount of Olives? Well it is the literal day Jesus comes forth
to FIGHT the nations at Jerusalem. The day He fights the battle
is the day His feet land on the Mount of Olives. Nothing could be
more clear!
......
And the Mount of Olives will split apart, making a wide valley
running from east to west, for half the mountain will move toward
the north and half toward the south. 5 You will flee through this
valley, for it will reach across to Azal.* (The meaning of the
Hebrew is uncertain) Yes, you will flee as you did
from the earthquake in the days of King Uzziah of Judah. Then
the LORD my God will come, and all his holy ones with him.
......
This earthquake has NEVER TAKEN PLACE in Jerusalem in any
age. It is a prophecy for the yet future. A KEY to knowing all
this is still to come to pass. Not until Jesus returns to fight
the nations will it be fulfilled.
The holy ones with Christ will be both the angels and the
saints resurrected from the dead or "changed" as the apostle Paul
spoke about it in 1 Thessalonians 4 and 1 Corinthians 15, at the
LAST TRUMPET, THE 7TH AND FINAL TRUMPET. They will come with Christ
from the CLOUDS where they have been gathered together by the angels
to meet Jesus on the sea of glass. The saints will have met Christ
in the air, in the clouds, on that sea of glass, and from there they
will all descend to the Mount of Olives and Jerusalem, to destroy
the armies of the nations in the "battle of Armageddon" (Revelation 16).
As I prove in many studies the saints are NOT NOW living,
walking, talking, playing on harps, or looking down on us, from heaven.
They are asleep in death, waiting for the day of the resurrection, when
they will be with Christ in the clouds and come down to the Mount of Olives
at Jerusalem.
......
6 On that day the sources of light will no longer shine,*
(Heb."there will be no light, no cold or frost") 7 yet
there will be continuous day! Only the LORD knows how this could
happen! There will be no normal day and night, for at evening
time it will still be light. 8 On that day life-giving waters
will flow out from Jerusalem, half toward the Dead Sea and half
toward the Mediterranean,*(Heb. "half towards the eastern sea and
half towards the western sea") flowing continuously both in
summer and in winter.
......
It will be one of those strange days, one in a million we
might say. It will be the literal day, the 24 hour day, of the
return of Christ. It will be the day when the great earthquake of
the Mount of Olives splitting in two as we've read in verse 4;
the day of life giving waters flow to the seas, for much life has
been lost in the sea during all that is ti happen in the last 42
months of this age, as foretold in the book of Revelation.
......
9 And the LORD will be king over all the earth. On that day there
will be one LORD - his name alone will be worshipped. 10 All the
land from Geba, north of Judah, to Rimmon, south of Jerusalem,
will become one vast plain. But Jerusalem will be raised up in
its original place and will be inhabited all the way from the
Benjamin Gate over to the site of the old gate, then to the
Corner Gate, and from the lower of Hananel to the king's
winepresses. 11 And Jerusalem will be filled, safe at last, never
again to be cursed and destroyed.
......
Once more this shows this prophecy is for the yet future;
Jerusalem is not a safe city today, it is still being cursed and
destroyed in various ways at various times.
......
12 And the LORD will send a plague on all the nations that fought
against Jerusalem. Their people will become like walking corpses,
their flesh rotting away. Their eyes will shrivel in their
sockets, and their tongues will decay in their mouths. 13 On that
day they will be terrified, stricken by the LORD with great
panic. They will fight against each other in hand-to-hand combat;
14 Judah, too, will be fighting at Jerusalem. The wealth of all
the neighboring nations will be captured - great quantities of
gold and silver and fine clothing.
......
It is mind-bending to think that human being will try to
fight the very God who created them, but the demonic powers that
are ruled by Satan the Devil will have deceived the "beast man"
and the false prophet and the kings of the East (over to the East
and above the Euphrates river - Rev.16) to think they can fight
and defeat this invasion from outer space. And we see again here,
the people of Judah will also fight their enemies in that day.
It will be no contest as Jesus with the saints and angels with Him,
shall melt away the enemy.
......
15 This same plague will strike the horses, mules, camels,
donkeys, and all the other animals in the enemy camps.
......
A way of saying even the space age implements of war will
melt away.
......
16 In the end, the enemies of Jerusalem who survive the plague
will go up to Jerusalem each year to worship the King, the LORD
Almighty, and to celebrate the Festival of Shelters. (Tabernacles
- KJV). 17 And any nation anywhere in the world that refuses to
come to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD Almighty, will
have no rain. 18 And if the people of Egypt refuse to attend the
festival, the LORD will punish them with the same plague that he
sends on the other nations who refuse to go. 19 Egypt and the
other nations will all be punished if they don't go to celebrate
the festival.
......
This does not mean every person in every nation on earth
will go to Jerusalem to observe the Feast of Tabernacles. A city
large enough to house all people from all nations of the world
during the 1,000 years, is hard and even silly to imagine. It
means "representatives" from all nations will go up to Jerusalem
to observe the Feast of Tabernacles. If nations refuse to send
representatives to the Holy City, then God will punish them by
sending no rain - drought will reign (pun intended) down on them.
......
20 On that day,
......
The context for the phrase "on that day" is the context of
the nations of the earth coming to Jerusalem to observe the Feast
of Tabernacles, hence a period of time (years perhaps) has taken
place.
......
Even the harness bells of the horses will be inscribed with these
words: SET APART AS HOLY TO THE LORD. And the cooking pots in the
Temple of the LORD will be as sacred as the basins used beside
the altar. 21 In fact, every cooking pot in Jerusalem and Judah
will be set apart as holy to the LORD Almighty. All who come to
worship will be free to use any of these pots to boil their
sacrifices. And on that day there will no longer be traders*
(Heb. "Canaanites") in the Temple of the LORD Almighty.
......
Yes, we have seen, the Ezekiel Temple will be built! The
priesthood and sacrificial system will be RESTORED! There is a
full in-depth study on "animal sacrifices in the Millennium" on
this Website.
It will be an age unlike any other in the history of
mankind. An age of PEACE and SALVATION for all nations. An age
when the knowledge of God and His Word will cover the earth as
the waters cover the sea beds!
PRAISE THE LORD, GIVE HONOR TO HIS NAME; FOR WHAT IS WRITTEN
CONCERNING THAT AGE WILL SURELY COME TO PASS. WHAT HE HAS
PROMISED FOR THAT AGE WILL COME TO FULFILMENT. ISRAEL AND JUDAH
WILL YET TO UNITED AS ONE PEOPLE AGAIN, AND WILL BLOSSOM AS A
ROSE GARDEN; THEY WILL YET BE THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD TO ALL
NATIONS. JERUSALEM WILL YET BE THE CAPITAL CITY OF THE WORLD, THE
HOLY CITY, WHERE DWELLS THE GOD OF ISRAEL. HE WILL INDEED THEN BE
THE LORD OF LORDS AND KING OF KINGS, RULING PLANET EARTH FROM THE
THRONE OF DAVID!
....................
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