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<p>You trampled the sea with your horses, churning mighty waters- The waters represent individual peoples. God’s riding forth to save His people inevitably churned the waters; Gentiles were affected. Israel’s salvation out of Egypt required the fall of Egypt, their potential salvation from Babylon required the fall of Babylon; Lot’s salvation from Sodom required the fall of Sodom (<a href='B:680 2:6-9'>2Pe 2:6-9</a>), just as Noah’s required the destruction of the world around him (<a href='B:680 2:5'>2Pe 2:5</a>; <a href='B:680 2:9'>2Pe 2:9</a>; <a href='B:670 3:20-21'>1Pe 3:20-21</a>). The picture is clear- out of the judgment of the Gentiles there emerges God’s redeemed, saved people who would otherwise have been overcome by those Gentiles. In Judah’s context, they would only go to Babylon for their sins; but God would destroy Babylon so that spiritually and physically they might emerge free, to restore God’s kingdom. It’s a tragedy that they didn’t do this; but the potential will finally be realized in the fall of latter day Babylon.</p>


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<h4>I heard, and my body trembled- What began as a prayer ended up in a Divine revelation. Whilst we don’t receive prophetic revelations in the way Habakkuk did, it’s true for us that intense personal prayer often leads to spiritual realizations and God opening our eyes to truths. Habakkuk believed what he had understood so deeply that his body trembled. Such trembling was to be the effect upon Judah when God’s judgments came (<a href='B:290 5:25'>Isa 5:25</a>; <a href='B:290 13:13'>Isa 13:13</a>; <a href='B:290 14:16'>Isa 14:16</a>; <a href='B:290 32:11'>Isa 32:11</a>). Habakkuk identified so strongly with his sinful people that he took all this deeply into himself, and felt as they would, although he had the personal hope of resurrection to blessing (:17). In this he looks ahead to the Lord Jesus, representative of sinful man, internalizing the judgment for our sins so deeply that He carried them for us, to rise again in triumphant resurrection.</h4><p>My lips quivered at the sound- "The sound" may be that of God’s word pronouncing judgment; or the sound of the invaders which he had heard. His lips quivered rather than his ears because he had to speak this forth to others. What a challenge to us, to speak forth God’s word of judgment and salvation with lips quivering at the reality of it all.</p><p>Rottenness enters into my bones, and I tremble in my place, because I must wait quietly for the day of trouble- This is an intimation that he must die and wait quietly in the grave [another evidence against heaven going] until the day of Jacob’s final trouble which would herald the Lord’s return, the resurrection and establishment of God’sKingdom in Israel (<a href='B:340 12:1-4'>Dan 12:1-4</a>).</p><h4>For the coming up of the people who invade us- This coming up could be the general arising of the Babylonians which was yet future to Habakkuk’s time (<a href='B:420 1:5-6'>Hab 1:5-6</a>), or their coming up upon Judah. Although Habakkuk would not personally experience it, he had to "wait quietly" in the grave, he still felt that he would be amongst those invaded ["invade us"] and suffer with them. This contrasts with Hezekiah who was delighted that judgment wouldn’t come in his day, and got on and enjoyed himself.</h4>


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<p>For though the fig tree doesn’t flourish, nor fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive fails, the fields yield no food; the flocks are cut off from the fold, and there is no herd in the stalls- The promised covenant blessings aren’t going to be experienced by Habakkuk in this life, and yet he accepts that finally he personally will be saved (:18) and rejoices in this. See on 1:2 Will You not save? His opening objections in chapter 1 to the way God is operating, and his struggle with the problem of suffering, are all now revealed as being a desire to have blessing right now. This is a natural human desire, reflected in the "How long?" question of all the faithful.</p>


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<p>Yet I will rejoice in Yahweh. I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!- See on 1:2 Will You not save?. As noted on :17, Habakkuk had expected to see the covenant blessings of a Messianic Kingdom come in his lifetime. But he had been told like Daniel that he must quietly wait in the grave (:16), and Judah must be abused by Babylon before emerging from that abuse as a people ready for God’s Kingdom blessing. Habakkuk concludes by focusing upon his personal salvation, which he rejoices in. This perhaps is the answer to the problem of suffering articulated in chapter 1. Like Habakkuk we may not find the ideal explanation, and yet even without that intellectual satisfaction, we can still rejoice in our personal salvation.</p>


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<h4>Yahweh, the Lord, is my strength. He makes my feet like deer’s feet, and enables me to go in high places- Despite being still intellectually dissatisfied over the answers to the problem of evil with which he began in chapter 1, Habakkuk concludes full of joy at the prospect of being like a deer, able to climb any mountain in God’s strength. This is not spiritual selfishness, focusing upon ourselves and disregarding the wider suffering of others. As noted on "invade us" in :16, this was not how he was. But although the wider questions remain, these should not diminish our personal faith in salvation. That is the crescendo of this prayer which was turned into a temple song.</h4><h4>For the musical director, on my stringed instruments- As noted on :1, Habakkuk was apparently a Levite and he wanted his personal prayer to be sung by others. He knew that his questions about the problem of evil and suffering were those of every man. And he wished to share with others the simple, joyful truth of his personal salvation.</h4>


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<h4>The word of Yahweh which came to Zephaniah, the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah- The detail is perhaps given because the "Hezekiah" could be king Hezekiah, although the generations would have been quite short. In this case, Hezekiah would have been a relative of king Josiah, in whose reign he was prophesying. Putting the listed names together here we have "Yahweh is strength He has spoken, He is great but blackness has come (to His people) because He has hidden His face". The fact Hezekiah had a son with the ’Yah’ Name in it might indicate that he did not totally lose faith in his last 15 years.</h4><h4>In the days of Josiah, the son of Amon, king of Judah- ‘Top down’ leadership was never very effective in Israel; repeatedly there is evidence that the reforms of Judah’s good kings had little effect upon the people. They practiced idolatry at the very same time as the reforms took place, and publicly returned to it as soon as the King was dead. Zephaniah’s prophecy is full of exposure of Judah’s sins- which were going on at the very time of Josiah’s apparently sweeping reforms. The way that “all” in Asia turned away, after all Paul’s work there, is proof enough that one good leader, no matter how charismatic and sincere (as Paul was) will not necessarily develop a faithful community. God has always worked with individuals through direct personal relationship</h4>


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<p>I will utterly sweep away everything off of the surface of the earth, says Yahweh- "The earth" here is not the eretz but the literal ground or soil. The total destruction of everything on "the surface of the earth" at the time of the flood is in view. But "sweep" is the word translated "gather" in <a href='B:10 6:21'>Gen 6:21</a> concerning the gathering of animals, people and food into the ark to avoid that destruction. As always with the threats of judgment, there is the hint that a remnant would survive- if they responded.</p>


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<p>I will sweep away man and animal. I will sweep away the birds of the sky, the fish of the sea, and the idols along with the wicked. I will cut off man from the surface of the earth, says Yahweh- A cataclysm similar in nature to the flood is in view; see on :18. Such total destruction of even birds and animals from the "earth", the ground / soil, recalls the language of the flood. But something of this nature never happened; I suggest that God formulated the plan, but relented because of the intercession of the righteous remnant; or perhaps simply from pity for His own creation. We note that "man" and "idols" are mentioned as being swept away along with absolutely everything else. Perhaps the idea is that we get a picture of the huge collateral damage caused by human idolatry. This is the nature of sin- that it has such collateral damage to others, far beyond a man quietly bowing before an idol in a "high place" in some remote rural spot.</p>


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<h4>I will stretch out My hand against Judah, and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place: the name of the idolatrous and pagan priests- Zephaniah prophesied during the time of Josiah, who later in his reign tried to extinguish Baal worship. But there was a "remnant" of Baal still in the temple, from where Zephaniah was prophesying ("this place"). Judgment was to come on all because of this; so whether Zephaniah prophesied before or after Josiah’s reforms is irrelevant. Those reforms didn’t in fact extinguish Baal worship, not even from the Jerusalem temple (see on :1). "All" were to be judged for the sake of a remnant of Baal worship remaining in the temple, and pagan priests being allowed to operate there. Presumably these were priests of Yahweh who taught that Baal worship was an acceptable form of Yahweh worship; see on :5. Such attempt to do our own thing in the name of serving God has always been the toughest temptation for us all. It was not that the majority ("all the inhabitants") were punished for the sin of a minority. That majority empowered and enabled that minority, just as a population often get the leadership or teachers they themselves really want in their hearts; quite regardless of whether any system of democracy is used or not.</h4><h4>The AV and some other versions offer: "the name of the Chemarims with the priests", literally the black ones, perhaps a group of priests who wore dark clothing rather than the white clothing of the Levitical priests.</h4>


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<h4>Those who worship the army of the sky on the housetop- Clearly Josiah’s reforms were not as they appeared. The housetops of Jerusalem were full of worshippers of the stars, and this was tolerated within society. Hence the condemnation of "all" Jerusalem society in :4.</h4><h4>Those who worship and swear by Yahweh and also swear by Malcam- As noted on :4, the priests were advocating the worship of Baal in the name of Yahweh worship. It is this dualism which is the abiding temptation of every believer of all ages. <a href='B:120 23:10'>2Ki 23:10</a> records Josiah’s reforms specifically targeting Molech worship. But clearly the population wriggled around this by saying that their worship of Molech was in fact Yahweh worship; even though the Mosaic law mentioned the sin of offering children to Molech more than any other idol is mentioned (<a href='B:30 18:21'>Lev 18:21</a>; <a href='B:30 20:2-5'>Lev 20:2-5</a>). Such wriggling around plain Divine teaching is unfortunately something we are all adept at. "Molech" is formed from the same consonants in melech, "king"; hence the LXX speaks of those that "swear by the Lord, and them that swear by their king". They had two kings. But the Lord Jesus observed that no man can serve two masters. We cannot have two kings.</h4>


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<p>Those who have turned back from following Yahweh, and those who haven’t sought Yahweh nor inquired after Him-&nbsp;This was God’s perspective. As explained on :4 and :5, the people had not formally rejected Yahweh. But their claim to worship other gods in His Name was seen by Him as turning their backs on Him. <a href='B:330 8:16'>Eze 8:16</a> describes men within the temple having their backs toward the sanctuary as they worshipped the sun. They had turned their backs on Him, but claimed they had not. This is all helpful challenge to ourselves in our self-examination. To seek an inquire after Yahweh is to worship Him; but worship doesn’t mean we know it all. We are searching and seeking Him closer, and this is understood by Him as worship.</p>


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<h4>Be silent at the presence of the Lord Yahweh, for the day of Yahweh is at hand- The silence called for may be an appeal for repentance; a call to respect Him and no other king or god. Such times of literal silence in meditation, without distraction, will also elicit our repentance.</h4><h4>For Yahweh has prepared a sacrifice, He has consecrated Hisguests- The sacrifice in view was the total burning of Jerusalem. The guests had been prepared; be they Babylonians, Assyrians or whoever. As noted on :3, God had framed a cataclysm against His people and Jerusalem in particular. It never happened on the scale planned, because of the repentance of a remnant and perhaps simply His pity. All manner of possible futures are prepared by God, but may never happen because He is so open to change in His great respect of human freewill decisions.</h4>


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<h4>It will happen in the day of Yahweh’s sacrifice that I will punish the princes, the king’s sons- The ruling dynasty would come to an end. These words seem particularly relevant to Zedekiah and his sons at the time of the Babylonian conquest of Jerusalem. But "the king" in Zephaniah’s context was Josiah who also had sons who were princes. This intended judgment was rescheduled and reapplied (see also on :4) because of the repentance of a remnant, perhaps in response to Zephaniah’s ministry. Again we see the openness of God to human repentance, His supreme sensitivity to man.</h4><h4>And all those who are clothed with foreign clothing- We noted on :4 that the Chemarim wore back clothing and served as priests; but likely many of the Levitical priests were serving both as priests to Yahweh as well as to other gods, especially Moloch and Baal. It was this dualism which so angered God.</h4>


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<p>In that day, I will punish all those who leap over the threshold, who fill their master’s house with violence and deceit- The priests may particularly be in view, whose master was Yahweh and whose house, the temple, they had defiled by their idolatry. The leaping over the threshold was an imitation of the Philistine custom of not treading on the threshold, after&nbsp; the head and hands of Dagon were cut off on the threshold before the ark of Yahweh (<a href='B:90 5:5'>1Sa 5:5</a>). The idea is that the temple of Yahweh had been effectively turned into that of pagan gods- despite Josiah’s apparent reforms. This whole message is a stern warning against mere tokenism in repentance and reform, and challenges to the core all our self-examination and the results thereof. These priests were filling Yahweh’s house with the rewards of their violence and deceit. Typical of the prophets, Zephaniah focuses upon the apparently negligible (the personal gains arising from deceit) rather than what we might consider the more obvious issues of offering children to Moloch.</p>


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<h4>In that day, says Yahweh, there will be the noise of a cry from the fish gate- This was on the northern entry to Jerusalem, the point which the northern invaders (Babylon, Assyria) would reach first.</h4><p>A wailing from the second quarter- A reference to the ’second city’, "the city of David", original Jerusalem, being "the first". The second city was highly fortified, but there would be wailing from that too; for human defence cannot in any way stave off Divine judgment.</p><h4>And a great crashing from the hills- The hills which famously surrounded Jerusalem.</h4>


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<h4>Wail, you inhabitants of Maktesh, for all the people of Canaan are undone!- ’Canaanite’ and ’trader’ are related words in Hebrew. Maktesh was the market quarter; there appears to be a play on words between maktesh, ’crushed to powder’, and makdosh, a holy place. No longer was Jerusalem holy; it had already been crushed to powder in judgment. The prophets consistently criticize the Jews for deceitful business practices; we have just read of how deceit had lead to material gains which were stashed in the temple storerooms (:9). It was appropriate therefore to focus upon the destruction of the market quarter.</h4><h4>All those who were loaded with silver are cut off- Their wealth, acquired by deceit of their brethren (:9), burdened them down so that they were unable to flee.</h4>


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<h4>It will happen at that time that I will search Jerusalem with candles- The Lord may have had this statement in view when He spoke of how the Father searches as a woman searches with candles to find the lost (<a href='B:490 15:8'>Luk 15:8</a>). As with all the messages of judgment, there is the implication that the remnant are being searched for. The candle is used to represent the human conscience inPro 20:27. The purpose of the judgments was to elicit self-examination. Jeremiah perhaps alludes to this prophecy by urging the exiles to search themselves and repent (<a href='B:310 3:40'>Lam 3:40</a> s:w:).</h4><p>&nbsp;And I will punish the men who are settled on their dregs- The same figure is used in <a href='B:300 48:11'>Jer 48:11</a> to describe those who had not experienced captivity in foreign lands, likened to wine being poured out into different vessels so that it doesn’t become settled on its dregs. Yet again we see that exile was intended not only as judgment for its own sake, but to stir up the people to repentance and spiritual improvement.</p><h4>Who say in their heart, Yahweh will not do good, neither will He do evil- The state of the human mind, our self talk, is of critical importance to God. There was the idea that God was somehow distant, unresponsive to good or evil, and never going to openly act. They were not atheists, but God was felt to be so distant that He would not act. This problem of thinking that God exists but is inactive and unresponsive::. is an abiding temptation for all God’s people of whatever generation.</h4>


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<p>Their wealth will become a spoil, and their houses a desolation. Yes, they will build houses, but won’t inhabit them. They will plant vineyards, but won’t drink their wine- This is clear allusion to the curses for breaking the covenant in Leviticus 26. To live unsatisfied lives, never enjoying the work or wealth acquired, is the great curse of those who live after the flesh. The threat that "the men who are [present] tense settled::." (:12) and the reference to the king’s sons (:8) would imply that the threatened judgment was imminent. Those who had planted vineyards would not be there next harvest season. This situation was averted, it seems, by the repentance of a remnant in response to Zephaniah’s ministry- and that of other prophets contemporary with him.</p>


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<h4>The great day of Yahweh is near. It is near, and hurries greatly, the voice of the day of Yahweh- The judgment day of Yahweh is therefore not a fixed calendar date; for here we read that it is hasting, it was being brought forward in the Divine program, according to Judah’s sin and lack of repentance. The last day can likewise be hastened by spiritual development and prayer (<a href='B:680 3:12'>2Pe 3:12</a>). The actual date is not set, although the preconditions are; there is a final, unknowable algorithm which will be mixed with God’s basic pity and love to determine the day.</h4><h4>The mighty man cries there bitterly- Bitter weeping is the language of condemnation at judgment day. The man who trusted in his own might is pictured as already weeping. We too are to live as if future judgment is already upon us; for we live life every moment before the judgment presence of God.</h4>


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<p>That day is a day of wrath, a day of distress and anguish, a day of trouble and ruin, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness- Other prophets use the same language, perhaps borrowing from Zephaniah, who at this point doesn’t name the invaders because of the principle discussed on :14- that there could be different outworkings of these prophecies, in accordance with whether Judah repented. "Distress" is the word for "trouble", and is used of the time of Jacob’s trouble (<a href='B:10 35:3'>Gen 35:3</a>; <a href='B:300 30:7'>Jer 30:7</a>; <a href='B:340 12:1'>Dan 12:1</a>); and this time has a distinctly latter day application, when Zephaniah’s words will come fully true. The time of darkness and gloom is that of <a href='B:50 28:29'>Deu 28:29</a> [s:w:]- the punishment for unfaithfulness to the covenant.</p>


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<p>A day of the trumpet and alarm, against the fortified cities, and against the high battlements- We have here an intentional mixing of meaning. The trumpet was sounded as an alarm to prepare the cities for an invasion. But the day of the alarm is also the day of judgment (:15). In this we see the intensity of the prophetic message- the day of sounding the alarm was also the day of judgment. God had formulated and stated His judgments, they were as good as executed (see on :14); but in the gap between the statement and the execution of it, there was still the chance for repentance. And this was and is the intensity of the moments in which we live, just as Judah lived in them. Repentance and total surrender to God must be urgent, and our appeal for it and baptism of people upon their repentance must likewise be done with a speed appropriate to the urgency of men’s position before God.</p>


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<h4>I will bring distress upon men- "Distress" is the same word translate’siege’, the punishment for breaking the covenant (<a href='B:50 28:52'>Deu 28:52</a> s:w:). The "men" are therefore Israel and Jerusalem in particular; "men" is adam, alluding to Adam’s representation of Israel in his sin and resultant punishment, of being sent out of the eretz to the east, just as was to happen to Judah. But the men of Judah had themselves distressed or besieged the just (<a href='B:370 5:12'>Amo 5:12</a> s:w:); what they had done to their brethren was to be done to them. And that is a principle of Divine judgment which challenges us today.</h4><p>So that they will walk like blind men, because they have sinned against Yahweh- Walking like blind men suggests walking in a line with their hand on the shoulders of the blind man in front of them. This was a picture of Judah being led into captivity. And yet the very same term is used in <a href='B:290 42:16'>Isa 42:16</a> of how the blind will ’walk’ or be lead back to the restored Kingdom of God.</p><h4>And their blood will be poured out like dust, and their flesh like dung- The sense of the Hebrew is that this would happen immediately- hence GNB "and now their blood will be poured out like water, and their dead bodies will lie rotting on the ground". As noted on :8 and :13, the judgment was imminent. It was to happen right away. The day of the alarm being blown was the same day of judgment (:16). It only didn’t come in Zephaniah’s time because God graciously responded to the repentance of a remnant.</h4>


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<h4>Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to deliver them in the day of Yahweh’s wrath- There is the vain hope in human beings that wealth can purchase all things, even salvation. Only in the day of judgment will some people learn this; it is for us to learn it before then.</h4><p>But the whole land will be devoured by the fire of His jealousy- Fire was the result of jealousy in the practice of husbands burning adulterous wives. As found in Hosea, God like Hosea had emotions. Judah’s unfaithfulness to Him meant that He felt like burning them for ever; but His love for them was yet greater than that legitimate rage and fury. And so He relented, just as Hosea did of his plans to destroy Gomer. Likewise the whole land was not devoured; always a remnant was saved and in wrath God remembered mercy.</p><h4>For He will make an end, yes, a terrible end, of all those who dwell in the land- As explained above, God intended to make a total end of everyone in the land of Judah; but He didn’t. A remnant was saved, and far from everyone was slain. As explained on :3, God had prepared a cataclysm similar in nature to the flood, intending to destroy all animal and bird life, and certainly every human being. But such is His sensitivity to the prayer and spirituality of a minority that this didn’t happen, just as Nineveh was not in fact destroyed after 40 days- because there was repentance. "A terrible end" is literally ’a hastened end’; as explained on :14, the day was being hastened, speeded up; and yet a stop was put to that accelerated program by the likes of Zephaniah and the minority who responded to him. Such is God’s sensitivity to every thought and act of spirituality and repentance.</h4>


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<p>Gather yourselves together, yes, gather together, you nation that has no shame- Although judgment was so closely upon them that it had effectively arrived, Zephaniah calls the people to repentance. He calls those who "had no shame". He means that those who had not repented should gather together and repent. Shame is associated with condemnation; to have no shame means they had not yet been condemned. To repent means that we bear shame for what we have done; we realize that what we have done or been condemns us, we feel that condemnation ahead of judgment day, and repent; and thereby the verdict is changed. Paul develops this idea throughout Romans 1-8.</p>


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<p>Before the appointed time when the day passes as the chaff, before the fierce anger of Yahweh comes on you, before the day of Yahweh’s anger comes on you- Zephaniah had clearly stated that that day had already come; see on <a href='B:430 1:14-16'>Zep 1:14-16</a>. But still there was a desperate, last moment opportunity for repentance. This was and is the intensity of the appeal. The day of judgment would be one of threshing and winnowing, when the chaff would be blown away. They were the chaff and needed to become the wheat.</p>


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<p>Seek Yahweh, all you humble of the land, who have kept His ordinances. Seek righteousness; seek humility. It may be that you will be hidden in the day of Yahweh’s anger- As explained on chapter 1,God’s purpose is open ended. The day of judgment was being brought closer at an accelerated speed because of their lack of repentance (<a href='B:450 1:14'>Zec 1:14</a>); but the Divine intention was that they would repent. He had planned the cataclysmic destruction of absolutely all people in Judah; see on <a href='B:430 1:3-4'>Zep 1:3-4</a>. But "it may be" that the righteous remnant would be spared and hidden. And <a href='B:290 26:20'>Isa 26:20</a> suggests that this possibility was as it were agreed by God. There was to be no assumption that the remnant would be spared destruction; it would be by grace. Although they were already righteous and humble, they were to even more intensively seek those things. A truly spiritual person will never consider they have arrived at a position of enough righteousness or humility. That itself would not be humble.</p>


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<p>For Gaza will be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation. They will drive out Ashdod at noonday, and Ekron will be rooted up- "For::." warns God’s people that their neighbours were to be judged by the same invaders. And their level of responsibility was far less. There are many word plays here, e:g. between the Hebrew for "Gaza" and "forsaken", "Ekron" and "rooted up", as if Zephaniah intended this to be memorized. In the era of mass illiteracy, such devices would have been necessary. If these four Philistine cities were to be judged, then Judah should be the more aware that they were even more responsible and would be judged the more. Israel should have driven out the Philistines; they ought to have made those cities to be forsaken by the Philistines, they should have desolated and rooted them up. But although they didn’t do so, Divine judgment all the same would come upon the Philistines. Judah are also hereby warned not to consider that they were somehow superior to the Gentiles. They had acted as Gentiles, worshipped their idols and intermarried with them; they were no better.</p>


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<p>Woe to the inhabitants of the sea coast, the nation of the Cherethites! The word of Yahweh is against you, Canaan, the land of the Philistines. I will destroy you, that there will be no inhabitant- The "seacoasts" are a very small geographical area. This prophecy has never had such a fulfilment- but God’s word will come true. The final victory in the area, however, will be by a "remnant" of Israel, suggesting the majority perish in the last days, just as required in Zechariah 14. The fate of Gaza is connected with that of Ashkelon (:4), which is currently in Israeli hands. It would appear that this city must briefly be taken by the Palestinians / Philistines. We note too that the Palestinians / Philistines in Gaza are connected with the people of Cush [:12; North African Moslems, many of whom are attracted to Islamic jihad at this time], Moab and Ammon [Jordan / Kurdistan], and a latter day Assyria [which is reforming in the form of Islamic jihadism]. The connection between these groups and Hamas in Gaza is clearly established. The destruction of the ’coastlands’, the Gaza Strip, is prophesied as being due to a direct Divine ’intervention’; and that surely speaks of the return of Christ to save the remnant of Israel. The ’remnant’ is a term used in Bible prophecy not merely with reference to a numerical minority within Israel, but specifically to the righteous, repentant remnant. The picture seems to be of Israel being crushed militarily until a remnant remain, who repent and turn to Christ. And then He appears for their salvation and the final destruction of their enemies. It’s not good news for secular Israel, whatever short term military victories they may achieve in their own strength.</p>


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<p>The sea coast will be pastures, with booths for shepherds and folds for flocks- Instead of the intensive agriculture required by the large urban populations, the land would be used for grazing. This suggests a very sudden change, with the majority of the Philistine inhabitants slain or deported. But this didn’t happen under either the Assyrians nor Babylonians; rather did the Philistines only gradually become subsumed into the Persian empire. This then was the prophetic potential, the Divine ’Plan A’; but the whole scenario didn’t work out as planned. A remnant in Judah did repent, and so the scenario of mass cataclysm upon the whole area planned by God in <a href='B:430 1:4'>Zep 1:4</a> didn’t come about, and thereby indirectly the Gentiles within the land were saved from the planned destruction.</p>


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<p>The coast will be for the remnant of the house of Judah. They will find pasture there. They will lie down in the evening in the houses of Ashkelon, for Yahweh their God will visit them, and restore them- Again the prophetic potential didn’t come about; most of the Jews didn’t want to return from exile, most of those who did still wouldn’t repent, and so this picture of returned Judean captives pasturing their flocks in the ruins of Ashkelon didn’t happen as planned. So much Divine potential is wasted; so much is possible, but human short termist thinking precludes it.</p>


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<h4>I have heard the reproach of Moab, and the insults of the children of Ammon, with which they have reproached My people- God is intensely aware of every word said and thought even by Gentiles. And He is particularly sensitive to what is said or felt against us His people. This should stop us in our tracks in any hard thoughts or words against any who are God’s children.</h4><h4>And magnified themselves against their border- God had given bounds to the Gentile nations in relation to Israel (<a href='B:50 32:8'>Deu 32:8</a>). Any attempts to break Divinely imposed limits may appear to initially succeed, but will incur His judgment. And again we have here a challenge for all time.</h4>


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<p>Therefore as I live, says Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel, surely Moab will be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah, a possession of nettles and salt pits, and a perpetual desolation. The remnant of My people will plunder them, and the survivors of My nation will inherit them- The prophetic potential was that the returned, repentant exiles would pasture their flocks in the deserted Philistine cities (:7); Moab and Ammon would be struck with Divine judgment in a form as dramatic as that upon Sodom, and then the Jews would plunder them and inherit their territory. This didn’t happen when the exiles returned from Babylon, just as the temple system they could have built in Ezekiel 40-48 didn’t happen. In essence, the possession and judgment of Judah’s neighbours will come true in the last days, but perhaps not in every literal detail. We notice the language of nettles, recalling the judgment upon the land for Adam’s sin.</p>


text:
<p>This they will have for their pride, because they have reproached and magnified themselves against the people of Yahweh of Armies- We likely would have chosen many other reasons for the condemnation of Moab and Ammon before coming to "their pride". But this is typical of the prophetic perspective; God focuses on things like pride and injustice as the worst sins imaginable. And indeed they are. Thinking ourselves greater than God’s people is a sin worthy of condemnation. We see these Gentiles being condemned for doing so; but in our church lives we continually interact with God’s people. Our attitudes to them are so critically important in God’s eyes. We note that the people of God in this context were spiritually weak and under Divine judgment; but all the same, Moab and Ammon are condemned for their attitude towards them.</p>


text:
<h4>Yahweh will leave them awestruck, for He will starve all the gods of the land- There would be famine which would reveal all the fertility gods and the Baals to be frauds. Most of the idols were connected with fertility, and famine and drought revealed them as powerless and not in fact existent. We marvel at God’s saving passion- He wished to convert even those Gentiles who had mocked and abused His beloved people.</h4><h4>Men will worship Him, everyone from his place, even from every border of the nations- Those who had once tried to push back those borders (:8) will now respect them, and worship Yahweh once they accept that their idols were as it were dead. This scenario could have occurred when the captives returned; but it didn’t. Most of the exiles preferred to stay in captivity, they didn’t repent, and neither did the Gentiles around them. But this will happen in the last days.</h4>


text:
<p>You Cushites also, you will be killed by My sword- God’s sword was Babylon and Assyria (<a href='B:290 10:5'>Isa 10:5</a>), and Ethiopia ["Cush"] was destroyed when Nebuchadnezzar attacked Egypt (<a href='B:300 46:2-9'>Jer 46:2-9</a>; <a href='B:330 30:5-9'>Eze 30:5-9</a>). Those whom Judah had relied on instead of Yahweh would be permanently destroyed; with the implication that Judah would be left with none but Yahweh to trust in.</p>


text:
<p>He will stretch out His hand against the north, destroy Assyria, and will make Nineveh a desolation, as dry as the wilderness- The northern enemy is here clearly defined as Assyria- not Russia. The making of Nineveh so dry would imply God changed the microclimate around Nineveh after the Medes sacked Nineveh. Or the reference may be to the destruction of the complex system of irrigation upon which Nineveh’s fertility depended. But Jonah offered Nineveh a way out of this desolation, and for a time they responded. So again we see the openness of God’s plan with people and nations. It has been pointed out that "the Hebrew verbs are not in the simple future, but in the imperative or optative mood,"Let him stretch out his hand,"etc:; as though the prophet were praying that the enemies of his people might be overthrown". And so we have an insight into the way God takes so many factors into account before acting in this world. The faithful had prayed forNineveh’s destruction, and yet Jonah offered them repentance and some of them prayed for the sentence of destruction to be voided.</p>


text:
<h4>Herds will lie down in the midst of her, all the animals of the nations- The literal animals who would live in the ruins represented the wild nations. Perhaps in view are the Scythian hordes who also ransacked Nineveh along with the Medes.</h4><p>Both the pelican and the porcupine will lodge in its capitals- Unclean animals.</p><h4>&nbsp;Their calls will echo through the windows. Desolation will be in the thresholds, for He has laid bare the cedar beams- The desolated thresholds recalls the condemnation of Judah for fearing to step on thresholds (<a href='B:430 1:9'>Zep 1:9</a>), in that they followed the pagan fear of stepping on thresholds.</h4>


text:
<h4>This is the joyous city that lived carelessly, that said in her heart, I am, and there is none besides me- We bear the Name of Yahweh / Jehovah, by reason of our baptism into it. His Name is declared as His character- merciful, truthful, judging sin, patient etc. (<a href='B:20 34:5-7'>Exo 34:5-7</a>). He who will be who He will be, manifesting His characteristics as He does so, must have His way in us too. Babylon and Nineveh were condemned for having the attitude that “I am, and there is none beside me” (<a href='B:290 47:8'>Isa 47:8</a>; <a href='B:430 2:15'>Zep 2:15</a>). Their self-perception was a parody on the Name and being of Yahweh: He alone can say “I am, and there is none else” (<a href='B:290 43:11'>Isa 43:11</a>; <a href='B:290 44:6'>Isa 44:6</a>; <a href='B:290 45:6'>Isa 45:6</a>; <a href='B:290 45:21'>Isa 45:21</a>) and seek to be who He is. He alone can seek to articulate the characteristics that make up His Name onto the lives of others, and onto the things that comprise His Kingdom. We are not to be who we are; to ‘just be yourself’; to ‘just do it’, as foolish slogans and adverts encourage us. We are here to show forth His mercy, truth, judgment of sin, patient saving of the weak etc:, not our own personality. We are, in the very end, Yahweh manifested to this world, through our imitation of the Lord Jesus.</h4><p>The language here applied to Nineveh is used later about Babylon in Isaiah, as noted above. This could simply be because God’s judgments have a similar theme and reason to them. But we could also consider that there were different prophetic scenarios which could have come about, as discussed on <a href='B:430 1:3-4'>Zep 1:3-4</a>. The intention to destroy Nineveh was as it were reapplied to Babylon. The focus was to move from Nineveh to Babylon. This refocusing and reapplication of Bible prophecy is common, as God’s purpose adjusts to human behaviour; especially to repentance or lack of it.</p><h4>How she has become a desolation, a place for animals to lie down in! Everyone who passes by her will hiss, and shake their fists- Note the confusion of tenses; she "has become::.", but the judgment is yet future ("will hiss::."). This is God’s perspective, speaking of those things which currently are not as if they are (<a href='B:520 4:17'>Rom 4:17</a>); and the life and thinking of faith adopts that perspective, rejoicing in what is not yet as if it is.</h4>


text:
<h4>Woe to her who is rebellious and polluted, the oppressing city!- This section could be applicable to both Jerusalem and Nineveh, which is the subject of the preceding verses. The relevance to Nineveh would be in that she had repented at the preaching of Jonah, so deeply that the Lord Jesus says that some of those Ninevites will be resurrected to salvation in His Kingdom. But the Ninevites had let it slip, and as explained in commentary on Nahum, the community of believers there had declined, despite having been joined by some captives from the ten tribes.</h4><h4>Jerusalem was the oppressing city exactly because they had oppressed Gentiles and other vulnerable people (s:w. <a href='B:330 18:12'>Eze 18:12</a>; <a href='B:330 22:7'>Eze 22:7</a>; <a href='B:330 47:8'>Eze 47:8</a>; <a href='B:300 22:3'>Jer 22:3</a> and often). And yet the same word is used of how Gentiles oppressed them. Again we see that all Judah’s judgments were in essence what they had done to others. Maarah, "rebellious", is a word play on Moriah. Such literary devices were important in an illiterate society, where the words of the prophet would be repeated and reflected upon</h4>


text:
<p>She didn’t obey the voice. She didn’t receive correction. She didn’t trust in Yahweh. She didn’t draw near to her God- This would be relevant to Nineveh, who had initially responded to the voice of God through Jonah, but now had slipped back into their old ways. We note the parallels between trust, obedience, receiving correction, and drawing near to God, which is an idiom for serving Him in the sanctuary. God had drawn near to His people (<a href='B:50 4:7'>Deu 4:7</a>), but they would not respond. It is the scene of love unrequited, tragically so, seeing the colossal love of God was on offer. Judah "didn’t receive correction" and this was the reason for giving her up to the Babylonians (<a href='B:300 5:28'>Jer 5:28</a>; <a href='B:300 7:28'>Jer 7:28</a>; <a href='B:300 17:23'>Jer 17:23</a>; <a href='B:300 32:33'>Jer 32:33</a>; <a href='B:300 35:13'>Jer 35:13</a> all use the very same phrase); :7 says that God tried to correct Judah so that she would not have to be given up to her enemies, but she refused to accept it. And yet in His grace, the punishment of destruction was also an attempted&nbsp; correction. This is why there were waves of invasions before the final onslaught, both in the Assyrian and Babylonian contexts. God’s desire to teach us is amazing. And life gets more messy, with more collateral damage, the more we refuse to hear.</p>


text:
<p>Her princes in the midst of her are as roaring lions, her judges are as evening wolves; they leave nothing until the next day- Lions were the symbol of Assyria, and the same language is used of Assyria / Babylon as it is of Judah. They acted like Gentiles, and so were treated as Gentiles. Hence the dual application of this passage to both Nineveh and Jerusalem. These words are quoted specifically concerning the prophets, the religious leadership of Judah, in <a href='B:330 22:25'>Eze 22:25</a>. This is how God sees false teaching, when it is designed to abuse and get gain. They are pictured here as totally destroying Judah, ’leaving nothing’. As explained on <a href='B:430 1:3-4'>Zep 1:3-4</a>, God had planned a total cataclysm upon Judah which would wipe out the entire area, including all people and animals. But this was ammended, presumably because of the repentance of a minority, and the way that within His personality, the pole of His grace and pity is finally stronger than that of His anger and judgment.</p>


text:
<h4>Her prophets are arrogant and treacherous people- We would likely have focused upon the actual false prophecies of the prophets; God focuses upon their arrogance. This is typical of the prophetic perspective, which sees pride as the cardinal sin, and all the more obvious sins and errors as arising fundamentally from that.</h4><h4>Her priests have desecrated the sanctuary; they have done violence to the law- It was the Babylonians and Romans who desecrated the sanctuary, but here the priests are described as having done this. Their actions were the judgment; sin is its own judgment and punishment. <a href='B:290 43:28'>Isa 43:28</a> quotes these words in saying that "therefore have I desecrated / profaned the princes of the sanctuary". What they had done was done to them. There could therefore be no complaint on an ethical level concerning God’s judgments of His people. These are the priests commented upon in <a href='B:430 1:4'>Zep 1:4</a>; <a href='B:430 1:8'>Zep 1:8</a>. Whilst professing obedience to the law, they taught breaking it by their legal ’get rounds’ of Josiah’s reforms. Again, as noted on <a href='B:430 1:1'>Zep 1:1</a>, we understand how Josiah’s reforms were got around; the law which he personally tried to uphold was ’taken away violently’ by the priests. The taking away of the Law in the Lord’s death was simply doing what effectively the Jews had already done.</h4>


text:
<h4>Yahweh in the midst of her, He is righteous- Yahweh’s presence remained within the temple until the Babylonian invasion; this is symbolized in Ezekiel by the visions of the cherubim of glory departing from Zion and accompanying the captivesto Babylon. God doesn’t operate ’guilt by association’; He remained in the midst of a sinful people for generations. His righteousness was not infringed by doing so. It is a very presumptuous attitude which claims that because God finally acted, therefore so should we in quitting association with the weak and sinful people of God. In terms of the individual sinners within Judah over those generations of patience, He remained patiently trying to correct them until throughout their lives. And who really can claim to have exercised the awesome patience of God before drawing a line and telling a fellow believer: ’That’s it, you’re out, I’m gone’. There may be short term discipline within the family of the local congregation, just as Yahweh tried to correct His people, but that isn’t the same as a breaking of fellowship. the Jews thought that Yahweh’s presence in their midst was their guarantee of salvation (<a href='B:400 3:11'>Mic 3:11</a> s:w:), just as many assume that their membership of a Christian group means that somehow all shall be eternally well with them.</h4><h4>He will do no wrong. Every morning He brings His justice to light. He doesn’t fail, but the unjust know no shame- Court decisions were typically announced in the morning, as in the Lord’s trial. Despite their injustice, Yahweh’s justice was declared by simply allowing them to continue living day by day. And yet they had done wrong, and deserved justice. As explained throughout Romans 1-8, God’s grace operates in such a way that those who justly deserve judgment are not immediately judged. Day by day they are allowed to continue living, with the intention that this goodness of God should lead them to repentance (<a href='B:520 2:4'>Rom 2:4</a>). It was the same at this time; but the unjust would not repent, they refused to know shame, to realize and feel the shame of condemnation ahead of time, and to repent. For this is what repentance is all about; perceiving that we are worthy of the shame of condemnation, and changing that verdict by throwing ourselves in repentance upon God’s grace. We need to imagine how it would be to appear at the judgment seat and be condemned. And in awe and deepest gratitude accept the change of verdict which there is in Christ.</h4>


text:
<p>I have cut off nations, their battlements are desolate; I have made their streets waste, so that no one passes by. Their cities are destroyed, so that there is no man, so that there is no inhabitant- The nations around Judah had been judged by the hoards of Scythians, Assyrians, Babylonians and Romans. The Olivet prophecy taught the same- that there would be a time of war and domination of other nations before it came to Israel. God’s people were intended to learn from that, to perceive that they were no better than the Gentiles, and deserved the same judgment. It was likewise God’s plan to so destroy Judah that not a man would be left, literally (<a href='B:430 1:3'>Zep 1:3</a>); only by grace was that plan changed.</p>


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<h4>I said, Just fear Me. Receive correction, so that her dwelling won’t be cut off, according to all that I have appointed concerning her- The AV is correct: "I said, Surely thou wilt fear me, thou wilt receive instruction". We have here a classic example of the willful self-limitation of God. Just as He can limit His omnipotence, so He can limit His omniscience in order to fully enter into our experience and to engage with us in genuine relationship. Just as an educated, wealthy woman may self-limit in order to enter into a legitimate relationship of equals with an uneducated, simple man from a backward village in a developing country. Therefore God expresses shock, anger, disappointment, dashed hopes and expectations. "Surely they will reverence My Son::." is the greatest example (<a href='B:480 12:6'>Mar 12:6</a>). God had appointed total destruction of Judah; see on <a href='B:430 1:3'>Zep 1:3</a>. But He was ’certain’ that they would respond to all His repeated initiatives to correct and teach them. Hence His anger, disappointment and ’frustration’ when they did not.</h4><h4>But they rose early and corrupted all their doings- Judah abused God’s amazing patience and entrance into their lives and limitations. They purposefully, intentionally corrupted themselves in unfaithfulness to Him; the kind of tragedy played out in the Hosea : Gomer relationship.</h4>


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<h4>Therefore wait for Me, says Yahweh, until the day that I rise up to seize the prey- God here likens Himself to a lion, the symbol of Babylon and Assyria.</h4><h4>For My determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms, to pour on them My indignation, even all My fierce anger; for all the land will be devoured with the fire of My jealousy- God returns to His "determination" of <a href='B:430 1:3'>Zep 1:3</a>, to bring a cataclysm upon Judah which would totally eradicate all life from the area, including all the Gentile nations in the eretz promised to Abraham. But even then, He relented, such is His grace.</h4>


text:
<p>For then I will purify the lips of the peoples, that they may all call on the name of Yahweh, to serve Him with one neck- As with the situation at the flood, God considered that a total destruction of the entire area was going to be necessary in order to produce a purified people; see on <a href='B:430 1:3'>Zep 1:3</a>. And that purified people would be comprised "of the peoples" dwelling within the area He would cleanse by literal fire (:8). As is true today, unity between the peoples would be achieved by a common consent to put their necks under His yoke. The Lord Jesus ultimately will fulfil this intention, seeing that He is the yoke which alone brings about unity between those who come beneath it in order to serve Yahweh; see on <a href='B:470 11:30'>Mat 11:30</a>. It would be a reversal of Babel, when all the eretz was of one lip (s:w. <a href='B:10 11:1'>Gen 11:1</a>). There is implied here a psychological change, brought about by the working of the Holy Spirit in the spirit of men; hence the GNB: "Then I will change the people of the nations, and they will pray to me alone". This is the work of the new covenant.</p>


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<p>From beyond the rivers of Cush, My worshippers, even the daughter of My dispersed people, will bring My offering- It is doubtful whether the Jews were ever dispersed beyond those rivers, presumably referring to the great river of Cush [an intensive plural], the Nile- referring to what is now South Sudan, "beyond" or at the limits of that river. This was part of the potential scenario which never quite came about because of God’s grace and the intercession of a minority. But "the daughter of" the dispersed Jews could refer to a group similar to but not identical with them- perhaps to be fulfilled in Africans turning to the Lord Jesus and coming to Zion when the Kingdom is established on earth. We already have a spiritual foretaste of that in the conversions to Christ in those areas.</p>


text:
<h4>In that day you will not be ashamed for all your doings in which you have transgressed against Me- The total removal of shame is the sign of forgiveness so deep that it involves the psychological action on the mind of the forgiven, so that they feel no shame any more. This is the work of the Spirit promised in the new covenant. The process of judgment reveals all our "doings", our sins; and yet we are left able to see them all tabulated, as it were- and yet we are without shame, so confident are we that they have all been dealt with.</h4><h4>For then I will take away out of the midst of you your proud exulting ones, and you will no more be arrogant in My holy mountain- Again, for all the sins committed on Mount Zion, it is pride and arrogance which was seen as the worst. A difference is made between those who "transgressed against Me", and those who were "proud exulting ones". The idea of the original is that they were proud about "My holy mountain"; they were proud of the externalities of their religion, but would not exalt [s:w. "be arrogant"] God Himself (<a href='B:290 13:3'>Isa 13:3</a> s:w:). This is intensely relevant to those who were raised as Christian believers and socialized into their denomination and all its symbols of faith, rather than grasping the wonder of who God really is on a personal level. The same Hebrew words are used here as in <a href='B:290 13:3'>Isa 13:3</a>, where the faithful are those who exult in God’s pride or highness.</h4>


text:
<p>But I will leave in the midst of you an afflicted and humbled people, and they will take refuge in the name of Yahweh- This appears to be a flashback explaining how the situation in :11 is arrived at. The tiny remnant were intended to repent and be humbled, and turn to God, the only "refuge" from the tribulation. But this didn’t happen after the Assyrian and Babylonian invasions, nor after the Roman one. So the prophecy is rescheduled to the latter day tribulation, which will elicit this humbled and repentant people out of Judah. There may be a parallel with :5, where Yahweh Himself is "in the midst of you"; manifest through the humbled and afflicted. We noted on <a href='B:430 1:3'>Zep 1:3</a> that God had intended to bring upon Judah a cataclysm as total as the flood. There are allusions to the flood narrative throughout Zephaniah. "Leave" here is the same word used in <a href='B:10 7:23'>Gen 7:23</a> of how only Noah and the chosen animals "remained alive". This was how small the minority was to be. But the people were urged to be "humbled" before the tribulation came (<a href='B:430 2:3'>Zep 2:3</a> s:w:); but they would not, and so they had to go through the tribulation in order to be humbled. And it is the same for God’s people in the last days; whether or not they pass through the tribulation depends upon whether they have responded to His word in the lead up to it (see on <a href='B:730 3:10'>Rev 3:10</a>). Again, God’s plans are in this sense open ended.</p>


text:
<h4>The remnant of Israel will not do iniquity, nor speak lies- This quotes :5, which states these things about God who will be in the midst of Israel. Yet as noted on :12, it is the humbled and afflicted remnant who will be left "in the midst". The remnant will have taken refuge in the Name of Yahweh (:12), which refers to His characteristics. They will have the Name counted to the, just as we do through baptism into that Name. All that is true of God, His righteousness, is counted to us.</h4><h4>Neither will a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth, for they will feed and lie down, and no one will make them afraid- They will be so at peace with God, without fear of men, that they will no longer need to be deceitful. Out of all their many sins, having a deceitful tongue might be thought to be well down the list. But typical of the prophetic perspective, this is focused upon. These words are alluded to in <a href='B:730 14:4-5'>Rev 14:4-5</a>, where they are applied to the latter day repentant Jews.</h4>


text:
<h4>Sing, daughter of Zion! Shout, Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, daughter of Jerusalem- The mention of "Israel" rather than Judah suggests the final reunion of God’s people when they repent and marvel together at the extent of their forgiveness. For common experience of grace, repentance and forgiveness is what binds together. Disunity is caused by a lack of personal experience of these things.</h4><h4>These words in the LXX are applied by Gabriel to Mary in <a href='B:490 1:28-31'>Luk 1:28-31</a>. The teenage, poor village girl Mary is set up as the representative and epitome of all Israel / the people of God should have been. She was the seed of David, the daughter of Zion from whom Messiah came. The “highly favoured…blessed” woman (<a href='B:490 1:28'>Luk 1:28</a>) is the daughter of Zion of <a href='B:360 2:21-27'>Joe 2:21-27</a>; <a href='B:430 3:14-17'>Zep 3:14-17</a>; <a href='B:450 1:14-15'>Zec 1:14-15</a>; <a href='B:450 9:9'>Zec 9:9</a>. She “rejoiced” as the daughter of Zion was to rejoice at the coming of her king. She was the “servant Israel”, the “handmaiden” (the female form of “servant”) who was now “helped” by God (<a href='B:490 1:54'>Luk 1:54</a>). The daughter of Zion had not responded as she ought to have done; and so Zephaniah’s words were reapplied and rescheduled, to be fulfilled both in the last days and in Mary and her Messianic child.</h4>


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<h4>Yahweh has taken away your judgments- To "take away" judgments means to not carry out legal judgments; the same phrase is translated to "decline from::. sentences / judgments" in the sense of not carrying out judicial decrees (<a href='B:50 17:11'>Deu 17:11</a>). Here again we have an Old Testament version of Paul’s argument in Romans. The judgment is and was to condemnation; but it has been taken away, it will not be carried out, because as explained on :13, God has imputed righteousness to His repentant people who have identified themselves with His Name, just as we are baptized into that Name and abide within it.</h4><p>He has thrown out your enemy. The King of Israel, Yahweh, is in the midst of you- God has stated that He was right then in the midst of them (:5). Yet here, the time in view is clearly that of the Messianic Kingdom of the future, seeing that in practice the remnant refused to fully repent and accept their king. The Kingdom age will therefore be but a literal manifestation of the spiritual situation which there already is amongst God’s people, for whom He is already their King in their midst, and they His dominion or kingdom.</p><h4>You will not be afraid of evil any more- This must therefore speak of the last days.</h4>


text:
<h4>In that day it will be said to Jerusalem, Don’t be afraid, Zion- This is the same message to Zion as recorded in Isaiah 40. Zion will be assured that she need not fear God’s judgments any more; for she really has been forgiven. The preachers of that message will be us, and indeed we ought to be telling Jewish people right now.</h4><h4>Don’t let your hands be weak- The words spoken to the returned exiles as they rebuilt Jerusalem (<a href='B:150 4:4'>Ezr 4:4</a>; <a href='B:160 6:9'>Neh 6:9</a>). But those exiles did not finally restore the temple nor the kingdom as intended; the temple commands of Ezekiel 40-48 were not fulfilled in that they were not obeyed. Weak hands were a result of fear of Divine judgment to come (<a href='B:330 7:17'>Eze 7:17</a>; <a href='B:330 21:7'>Eze 21:7</a> s:w:). But the reassurance of the new covenant and of God’s gracious forgiveness meant that they need not have fear nor weak hands.</h4>


text:
<p>Yahweh your God is in the midst of you, a mighty one who will save. He will rejoice over you with joy, He will calm you in His love, He will rejoice over you with singing- They needed calming from their fear of judgment for their sins. His strength and might are particularly manifest in His desire to save, even the most sinful. Any review of His majesty in creation must be taken further to this very personal conclusion; that all that might and power are nothing compared to His might and power to save and transform sinners. ’Rejoicing over with joy’ is the language of the groom rejoicing over the bride (s:w. <a href='B:290 62:5'>Isa 62:5</a>; <a href='B:290 65:19'>Isa 65:19</a>). God presents Himself as in love, with all the giddiness of emotion when finally the intended climax of commitment is reached with the beloved. He is presented as He Himself singing as an expression of that joy. Zion, the beloved, is presented as the young woman who needs calming before the expression of all this love, fearful and nervous. And this is on one hand the only appropriate response, for we who are so unworthy to become the object of such love. This rejoicing over Judah to do them good could have come about at the restoration from Babylon (s:w. <a href='B:300 32:41'>Jer 32:41</a>), had the returning exiles entered into the new covenant. It was indeed tragic that they did not.</p>


text:
<p>I will gather those who mourn with longing for the appointed feasts, you will no longer suffer reproach- They could have gathered themselves before the traumas of captivity (<a href='B:430 2:1'>Zep 2:1</a>); but chose not to. And so the tribulation had to come, so that they would desire to be gathered. Again the primary reference is to the captives, unable to keep the feasts in captivity but longing to do so, mocked as they sat by the rivers of Babylon. But when they were "gathered" through the decree of Cyrus allowing them to return, relatively few did; and as the books of Ezra, Nehemiah, Haggai and Malachi make clear, those who did return were not very penitent and had their own selfish agendas rather than any desire to re-establish God’s Kingdom. So much potential was wasted. And so the prophecies of the restoration, which form a large part of the prophets, became reapplied and rescheduled to those who wish to appropriate them to themselves in Christ now, and to the remnant of Judah who will repent in future, around the time of the Lord’s return.</p>


text:
<h4>Behold, at that time I will deal with all those who afflict you- The restoration from Babylon didn’t lead to this; Judah’s lack of repentance meant that the intended scenario didn’t happen as planned. But as noted on :18, it will happen in the last days.</h4><p>And I will save those who are lame, and gather those who were driven away- The allusion is to limping Jacob being regathered to his own land after "the time of Jacob’s trouble" in the last days (<a href='B:340 12:1'>Dan 12:1</a>). Jacob, like Judah and Israel, was driven away for his own deceit and sinfulness. And yet the focus is upon the joy of restoration, rather than mentioning the past sins. The language of "driven away" is used of the exiles who were once driven away being regathered (<a href='B:160 1:9'>Neh 1:9</a> s:w:); but they refused to realize the huge potential for restoration.</p><h4>I will give them praise and honour, those whose shame was once in all the earth- The gift of such honour alludes to the gift of imputed righteousness, covering the shame associated with condemnation, which we have alluded to above.</h4>


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<h4>At that time will I bring you in, and at that time will I gather you- The repeated emphasis upon "at that time" (as in :19) is to underline the point that Judah’s triumphant return will coincide with the time of judgment upon their enemies. The fall of Babylon was supposed to be the signal for Judah to return of their own will. But they didn’t; and so as soon as Cyrus was established over Babylon, in the first year of his reign, he was moved by God to make a decree urging the Jews to return, offering them material incentives to do so. The fact the majority still didn’t return is a tragic example of men refusing to go the way God’s grace wishes them to. And so the prophecies will have their rescheduled fulfilment in the salvation of the repentant remnant at the fall of latter day Babylon.</h4><h4>For I will give you honour and praise among all the peoples of the earth, when I return your captives before your eyes, says Yahweh- This ’giving’ is the gift of grace, of imputed righteousness, as noted on :19</h4>


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<h4>In the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month, in the first day of the month- The many restoration prophecies had stated that the Jews would return from Babylon after Babylon had fallen and restore God’s Kingdom in Judah under a Messianic ruler. Ezekiel 40-48 contains commands more than predictions of how a temple system would be rebuilt, with a "Prince" who was also a priest as the Messianic leader. They would repent and enter a new covenant which would replace the old covenant. Tragically, most of the Jews preferred the soft life of Babylon, and those who did return were impenitent and are revealed by Haggai, Malachi, Ezra and Nehemiah as seeking their own personal gain from emigration to Judah. And so the prophecies were rescheduled and reapplied. There is an element to which they will come literally true in the last days when latter day Babylon falls, a remnant of Judah repent, and the Lord Jesus returns to earth to re-establish God’s Kingdom on earth based in Israel. But they are also reinterpreted in many New Testament passages which allude to the restoration prophecies, being reapplied to Christian believers entering the new covenant and coming out of ’Babylon’ in a more spiritual sense.</h4><p>Some exiles did return and began rebuilding Jerusalem and the temple. But they were several times interrupted by seemingly invincible opposition from the local peoples and the king of Persia. But through the prophecies of Haggai and Zechariah, the exiles were encouraged to keep on keeping on, and against all odds, a temple was rebuilt (<a href='B:150 5:1'>Ezr 5:1</a>; <a href='B:150 6:14'>Ezr 6:14</a>). So we should not read Haggai and Zechariah as merely droning on against the Jews and not getting very far. It was due to their inspired words that the discouraged, spiritually weak people of God were inspired to rise up and do the work of God’s Kingdom, and succeed with every man’s hand against them. In this is their abiding value to us. There is however the repeated theme of wasted potential- so much could have happened at that time, even the re-establishment of God’s Kingdom in the form of the kingdom of Israel, replete with a Messianic ruler. But it didn’t, because of short termist, self-satisficing attitudes, a failure to look beyond the immediate and personal to a far bigger picture.</p><p>The Word of Yahweh came by Haggai the prophet- Literally, ’by / in the hand of’, a classic statement of Biblical inspiration.</p><p>To Zerubbabel- Haggai is addressed specifically to two men, Zerubbabel and Joshua [’Jesus’], who could have been the Messianic rulers at the time of the restoration. They both let the baton drop. It’s a sad story of not using huge potential which is there in God’s plan for men. He is also called Sheshbazzar in <a href='B:150 1:8'>Ezr 1:8</a>; <a href='B:150 5:14'>Ezr 5:14</a>; <a href='B:150 5:16'>Ezr 5:16</a>;&nbsp; Sheshbazzar was probably his Chaldean name; just as Daniel was called Belteshazzar.</p><p><a href='B:290 53:2'>Isa 53:2</a> speaks of Messiah, in a restoration context beginning in Isaiah 52, as ‘growing up’, the same word used to describe the ‘coming up’ from the dry ground of Babylon. This potential Messiah was Zerubbabel, but one wonders whether when he failed to fulfil the prophecies, there was the possibility that another man could have fulfilled his role. Nehemiah ‘came up’ from Babylon, and was “the servant” who ‘prospered’ Yahweh’s work (<a href='B:160 1:11'>Neh 1:11</a>; <a href='B:160 2:20'>Neh 2:20</a>), just as the servant prophecies required (<a href='B:290 53:10'>Isa 53:10</a>; <a href='B:290 48:15'>Isa 48:15</a>); and he was thereby the redeemer of his brethren (<a href='B:160 5:8'>Neh 5:8</a>). He encouraged the singing of praise on the walls of Zion (<a href='B:160 9:5'>Neh 9:5</a>; <a href='B:160 12:46'>Neh 12:46</a>), surely in a conscious effort to fulfil the words of <a href='B:290 60:18'>Isa 60:18</a> - that Zion’s gates in Messiah’s Kingdom would be praise. He was “despised” as Messiah would be (<a href='B:160 2:19'>Neh 2:19</a>; <a href='B:290 53:3'>Isa 53:3</a> s:w:). He entered Jerusalem on a donkey, as Messiah would (<a href='B:160 2:12'>Neh 2:12</a> cp. <a href='B:450 9:9'>Zec 9:9</a>); and <a href='B:160 2:16'>Neh 2:16</a> sounds very much like “of the people there was none with me” (<a href='B:290 63:3'>Isa 63:3</a>). The Gentiles round about came to sit at Nehemiah’s table to eat and drink (<a href='B:160 5:17'>Neh 5:17</a>), just as Isaiah had prophesied could happen on a grander scale at the restoration of the Kingdom. One wonders if the potential fulfilment of the Messianic prophecies was transferred to&nbsp; him? And yet Nehemiah returned to Babylon at least once, and there is no record that on his second visit he stayed on, but rather, the implication seems to be, he returned again to the service of Babylon. The total lack of Biblical information about his later life may reflect this disappointing decision. This train of thought enables us to appreciate the joy and pleasure which the Father had when finally His beloved Son lived up to all that He sought and expected.</p><p>And yet according to Jewish tradition, Nehemiah’s real name was Zerubbabel, the branch (Sanhedrin 38a)- perhaps the same Zerubbabel as mentioned in Haggai and Zechariah. The Hippolytus Chronicle 7:3:37 even claims Nehemiah was a direct descendant of David and in the direct kingly line. His name, ‘comfort of Yahweh’, invites us to see him as the potential fulfilment of the <a href='B:290 40:1-2'>Isa 40:1-2</a> prophecy about a Messiah figure arising to the exiles, giving them God’s comfort. At the time of Judah’s redemption, while the temple had been trodden down by her enemies, the promised Messiah figure of <a href='B:290 63:1-3'>Isa 63:1-3</a>; <a href='B:290 63:18'>Isa 63:18</a> was to come from Edom and Bozrah - both code names for Babylon. The words "Bozrah" and "Babylon" have similar root meanings (’high / fortified place’). And he was to lament how the people of Judah were not with him- "of the people there was none with me". But this is the very spirit of Nehemiah, when he returns to Jerusalem from Babylon and looks around the ’trodden down’ city at night, not telling the people of the Jews about his inspection- i:e. the people were not with him (<a href='B:160 2:11-16'>Neh 2:11-16</a>).</p><h4>Son of Shealtiel- The Salathiel of <a href='B:470 1:12'>Mat 1:12</a>; <a href='B:490 3:27'>Luk 3:27</a>. He was directly in the Messianic line and could have therefore legitimately been the king of Judah. His father is called Pedaiah in&nbsp; <a href='B:130 3:17'>1Ch 3:17</a>; <a href='B:130 3:19'>1Ch 3:19</a> - presumably he was adopted by his uncle Salathiel on the death of his father.</h4><p>Governor of Judah- Sheshbazzar / Zerubbabel was the one given the temple vessels, appointed "governor" of Judah and who laid the foundation of the temple (<a href='B:150 5:14-16'>Ezr 5:14-16</a>).</p><h4>And to Joshua, the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, saying- The Divine intention was that Zerubbabel was to be the king in the line of David, and Joshua [’Jesus’] the high priest.</h4>


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<h4>This is what Yahweh of Armies says: These people say, ‘The time hasn’t yet come, the time for Yahweh’s house to be built’- They reasoned that “the time” of which Jeremiah spoke hadn’t come- even though the temple had miraculously been enabled to be rebuilt, for no human benefit at all to Cyrus (<a href='B:290 45:13'>Isa 45:13</a> “not for price nor reward”). They felt that all the prophecies were “marvellous” in the sense of something incapable of concrete fulfilment in their experience (<a href='B:450 8:6'>Zec 8:6</a>). This is why they are rebuked them for saying “the time is not come…that the Lord’s house should be built”. They didn’t want the prophecy to be fulfilled, because it would mean ‘going up’ from their ceiled houses- both in Babylon and in the farmsteads they had built in Judah- to build the temple.</h4><p>The context of this, according to <a href='B:150 5:1'>Ezr 5:1</a>, was of the people losing heart in the rebuilding because of the opposition from the Samaritans and the temporary ban on the work from Babylon. They argued: ’We’ll do God’s work if we get the chance, but this ban is clearly a sign from God not to go ahead’- when really it was their self-satisfaction with their "ceiled houses" (:4) that made them give up so easily. But the Angels were eager to go ahead! The paltry excuses for shirking the Lord’s work today are no better. As ever, they stem from the apathy born of materialism, but are wrapped up in pseudo-spiritual reasoning.</p><h4>The exiles asked for ‘deliverance’- but they redefined ‘deliverance’ as meaning being allowed to live prosperously in the land of their captivity (Bar_1:12 cp. 2:14), rather than being delivered from Babylon and returning to Judah. In a way, the book of Esther shows how God heard this prayer. But the book of Esther therefore has a sad ending, with the Jews prosperous, loved and respected, and even further away from returning to the land. Indeed, Bar_2:21 records them misquoting <a href='B:300 27:12'>Jer 27:12</a> about the need to obey the King of Babylon during their captivity, and understanding this as meaning they were to remain in Babylon! Bar_6:2 is perhaps the most serious example of misquoting and wilfully misunderstanding God’s word. Here, Baruch [as Jeremiah’s scribe] changes the prophecy of <a href='B:300 29:10'>Jer 29:10</a>, that Israel were to be 70 years in Babylon and then return: “When you reach Babylon you will be there many years, a period seven generations long, after which I will bring you back”. The 70 years are turned into seven generations. This was precisely the mindset spoken against in <a href='B:440 1:2'>Hag 1:2</a>, whereby the Jews reasoned that the time had not yet come to rebuild the temple. “The time” referred to the time spoken of by Jeremiah- but Baruch had re-interpreted the 70 years as meaning seven generations. And yet all this was done with a surface-level reverence for God’s word- the exiles considered themselves blessed because they had God’s law (Bar_4:4). Indeed, much of Baruch is a condemnation of idols and a demand to worship Yahweh.</h4>


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<p>Then the Word of Yahweh came by Haggai the prophet, saying- We may at times wonder whether anything, even God’s word, has the power to shift human complacency. But at least some responded to Haggai: "the elders of the Jews builded, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet" (<a href='B:150 6:14'>Ezr 6:14</a>). Haggai was addressed specifically to Zerubbabel and Joshua, the elders; and initially they did respond.</p>


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<h4>Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, while this house lies waste?- As explained on :1, this prophecy was&nbsp; addressed specifically to Zerubbabel and Joshua, the elders. We can conclude that they particular were living in luxurious houses, focused upon their house rather than God’s. And that is an abiding challenge to us all, especially noting that the Hebrew idea of "house" refers to a family as well as a building.</h4><h4><a href='B:290 60:7'>Isa 60:7</a> prophesied that God would “glorify the house of my glory”. But this was in fact a conditional prophecy, capable of fulfilment through the freewill efforts of the returning exiles. For they were empowered by Artaxerxes “to beautify [s:w. “glorify”] the house of the Lord” (<a href='B:150 7:27'>Ezr 7:27</a>). All their efforts to glorify / beautify the house, therefore, would have had God’s special and powerful blessing behind them. But was the house ultimately glorified? No- for Israel would not. They got sidetracked by beautifying their own homes, building “cieled houses” for themselves (<a href='B:440 1:4'>Hag 1:4</a> AV). The word for “cieled” or "paneled" occurs in <a href='B:110 6:9'>1Ki 6:9</a>; <a href='B:110 7:3'>1Ki 7:3</a>; <a href='B:110 7:7'>1Ki 7:7</a> to describe the roofing of the first temple- which they were to be rebuilding, rather than building their own houses. The glory would have entered the house of God’s glory as it did at the inauguration of the first temple (<a href='B:140 7:1-3'>2Ch 7:1-3</a>). Ezekiel prophesied that ultimately the glory would fill the temple as it had done then (<a href='B:330 43:4-5'>Eze 43:4-5</a>). But God’s prophesy of this in <a href='B:290 60:7'>Isa 60:7</a>, that He would glorify His house, meant that He was prepared to work through men to glorify it. The fulfilment of Ezekiel’s vision of the cloud of glory entering the temple again could have been fulfilled if the exiles had done what Artaxerxes empowered them to do- to glorify the house of glory. And so the fulfilment was delayed. The glory of the temple the exiles built was tragically less than the glory of the first temple; and so it would only be in the last day of Messiah’s second coming that the house shall truly be filled with glory (<a href='B:440 2:3'>Hag 2:3</a>; <a href='B:440 2:7'>Hag 2:7</a>; <a href='B:440 2:9'>Hag 2:9</a>). And the lesson ought to be clear for us, in the various projects and callings of our lives: it becomes crucial for us to discern God’s specific purposes for us, and insofar as we follow His leading, we will feel a blessing and power which is clearly Divine.</h4>


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<h4>Now therefore this is what Yahweh of Armies says: Consider your ways- "Consider" is a key word in Haggai (s:w. :7; 2:15,18). To ’set our heart upon’ (Heb:) our "ways" is difficult- self-examination doesn’t come easy to any of us. Ultimately the exiles didn’t go in God’s ways, their "thoughts" and "ways" of thinking were not God’s- when they should and could have been (<a href='B:290 55:8-9'>Isa 55:8-9</a>; the later chapters of Isaiah are a lament that the returned exiles would not go in God’s way). The root cause for the failure was right in the heart- they were not spiritually minded, God’s passion for His Kingdom was not theirs. The spiritual intention of the exile had been that Judah would consider their "ways" (<a href='B:330 20:43-44'>Eze 20:43-44</a>; <a href='B:330 36:31'>Eze 36:31</a>). They hadn’t done this, and therefore those who returned did so from motives of personal improvement rather than spiritual desire for the things of the Kingdom- as :6 now laments.</h4>


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<h4>You have sown much, and bring in little. You eat, but you don’t have enough. You drink, but you aren’t filled with drink. You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm, and he who earns wages earns wages to put them into a bag with holes in it-</h4>&nbsp;<p>In the context of the restoration from Babylon, Ezekiel and <a href='B:450 8:12'>Zec 8:12</a> prophesied: “For the seed 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 willcause the remnant of this people to possess all these things”. But we know that in reality, Judah were not obedient to the heavenly vision of Ezekiel, and therefore Judah’s agriculture was not blessed in this way; the vines cast their fruit, and the fruit of the ground was destroyed (<a href='B:440 1:6'>Hag 1:6</a>; <a href='B:440 1:11'>Hag 1:11</a>; <a href='B:460 3:10-11'>Mal 3:10-11</a>). The reason was that <a href='B:450 8:12'>Zec 8:12</a> was conditional- upon <a href='B:450 8:16-17'>Zec 8:16-17</a>: “These are the things that ye shall do [i:e. to bring these prophecies about]; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates: And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the LORD”. But Judah abused each other, and didn’t fulfil the conditions for the prophecy.</p><h4>They were gathered back [although they resisted this in that many preferred to stay in the soft life of Babylon], but they hardly dwelt safely or confidently in their land as the prophecies of the restoration had foreseen. They planted vineyards, but received a poor harvest due to their lack of attention to God’s house; their enemies destroyed their fruits, and their vine “cast her fruit before the time” (<a href='B:440 1:6'>Hag 1:6</a>; <a href='B:460 3:10-11'>Mal 3:10-11</a>). Haggai and Malachi criticized Israel for this, saying it could be rectified by their obedience: “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it” (<a href='B:460 3:10'>Mal 3:10</a>). Yet in Nehemiah’s time, Judah refused to pay tithes properly; but even then, if they had thoroughly repented, the Kingdom conditions were still possible. Such was God’s desire to continue working with His hopeless people.</h4>


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<p>This is what Yahweh of Armies says: Consider your ways- See on :5. "Ways" can refer to literal roads. Judah were commanded to return from Babylon in <a href='B:300 31:21'>Jer 31:21</a>: “Set thee up waymarks, make thee high heaps: set thine heart toward the highway, even the way which thou wentest: turn again, O virgin of Israel, turn again to these thy cities”. The same command to flee from the land of the north [Babylon] is to be found in <a href='B:290 48:20'>Isa 48:20</a>; <a href='B:300 51:6'>Jer 51:6</a>; <a href='B:450 2:6'>Zec 2:6</a>; and they were to “get thee up to the high mountain” (<a href='B:290 40:9'>Isa 40:9</a>), using the same word about Judah ‘going up’ from Babylon to Israel. "A woman shall compass a man" (<a href='B:300 31:22'>Jer 31:22</a>) suggests that the woman, Judah, were to take the initiative with God by mapping out the roads they would take back to Zion- the suggestion could be that the 70 year period of captivity could have been shortened had Judah taken the initiative.</p>


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<h4>Go up to the mountain, bring wood, and build the house- &nbsp;The majority of Judah remained in Babylon. And the majority of those who did return, only did so in order for purely personal benefit- of having their own house and land. They ‘went up’ to the land, but not to Zion. With reference to <a href='B:290 40:9'>Isa 40:9</a> [ “get thee up to the high mountain”]Haggai exhorted them: “Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Consider your ways. Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build the house; and I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified, saith the LORD. Ye looked for much [i:e. they expected the promised Kingdom blessings], and, lo, it came to little; and when ye brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why? saith the LORD of hosts. Because of mine house that is waste, and ye run every man unto his own house”. Their focus was on their own lands and farms rather than the glory of Zion (as <a href='B:160 13:10-11'>Neh 13:10-11</a>). They stood related to the things of God’s kingdom, but never ventured beyond their own personal self-interest. They would not accept that God manifestation rather than human salvation and pleasure was the essential purpose of their God.</h4><p>Haggai’s prophecy can be dated quite precisely- it was given August-September 520 BC. This was harvest time. And at this very labour intensive season, where all hands had to be ondeck out in the fields, the prophet called for a dedication of labour to building up God’s house. Yet Judah were too concerned with their own harvests than the harvest of God’s glory. They were asked to do something counter-instinctive- to take time out from harvest, and spend that time on building up God’s house. And they failed the challenge. But it wasn’t that they were simply lazy. <a href='B:440 1:8'>Hag 1:8</a>, a prophecy given 18 years after the decree of Cyrus, orders the people to go up into the hills of Judah and get wood with which to build the temple. And yet according to <a href='B:150 3:7'>Ezr 3:7</a>, the decree of Cyrus 18 years earlier had resulted in cedar wood being brought from Tyre and Sidon, enough for the temple to be built. Where had the wood gone? Is the implication not that the leadership had used it for their own "cieled houses" (<a href='B:440 1:4'>Hag 1:4</a>)? It all seems so petty minded. But this is what we are tempted to do, time and again- build up our own house and leave God’s house desolate and in a very poor second place.</p><p>I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified, says Yahweh- The idea of God ‘accepting’ or taking pleasure in Israel is found in <a href='B:330 43:27'>Eze 43:27</a>; when the temple was built and the sacrifices offered, “I will accept you”. If Judah resumed building the temple according to Ezekiel’s plan, “I will take pleasure” in it, God offered. They should be more committed to building the temple “that I may appear in my glory” (RSV). The glory of Yahweh as described at the end of Ezekiel could have appeared in Haggai’s time- but this wonderful possibility was held back by Israel’s petty minded, self-satisficing laziness. The same word is used in <a href='B:330 43:27'>Eze 43:27</a> - then, when the temple of Ezekiel was built, Yahweh would “accept / take pleasure in” His people and temple. But because they built and served Him with such a mean spirit, He did not “accept” them at that time (<a href='B:460 1:10'>Mal 1:10</a>; <a href='B:460 1:13'>Mal 1:13</a> s:w:). Note how <a href='B:440 1:8'>Hag 1:8</a> describes the need to go up onto the mountain and build the temple- as if to recall attention to Ezekiel’s opening vision of the temple as built on a mountain. But Judah would not, and therefore the Kingdom blessings of corn, new wine and oil, as well as fruitfulness on the mountains, were all withheld (<a href='B:440 1:11'>Hag 1:11</a>).</p><h4>Haggai’s criticism of the returnees is more understandable if we understand that most of them were the poor, who hadn’t ’made it’ in Babylon. It would be fair to infer that only the poor Jews returned from Babylon. The record in <a href='B:150 2:64-70'>Ezr 2:64-70</a> speaks of 42,360 people returning, along with 7,337 servants and 200 singers, making a total of 49,837. And yet only 8,100 animals went with them to transport them. This means that many would have walked. They carried 5,400 vessels for use in the temple- so the picture could be that their more wealthy brethren laded them with goods, but only the poor returned. Further, the list of towns of origin in Ezra 2 suggests it was mainly those who had originally lived in peripheral villages who returned, rather than the inhabitants of Jerusalem and larger cities.</h4>


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<h4>You looked for much, and, behold, it came to little; and when you brought it home, I blew it away- The people expected "much" harvest, and were disappointed at the poor yields in Palestine. This would confirm the suggestion that many of those Jews who did return from Babylon were amongst the poor in Jewish exile society, and returned in home for personal betterment- rather than because they wished to obey the call of the prophets and establish God’s glory in the land. That’s a sober warning for all of us who may go through an external appearance of zeal for our God, whilst having very selfish and human motives underneath. Why, e:g:, does a young woman so zealously attend church? Is it to worship God and build up His family::. or because she perceives it as a potential meeting place with ’Mr. Right’? And so the examples could be multiplied.</h4><h4>Why? says Yahweh of Armies, Because of My house that lies waste, while each of you is busy with his own house- Haggai’s words are full of implication that these men couldhave achieved so much, and yet chose not to rise up to their potentials. <a href='B:440 1:9'>Hag 1:9</a> takes on particular significance when read in this light: "My house lies desolate whilst you run about, each man [i:e. Zerubbabel and Joshua] to his own house. It was those two who preferred to dwell in their"cieled houses"whilst God’s house lay desolate (<a href='B:440 1:4'>Hag 1:4</a>). The reference to"cieled houses"would be only relevant to the upper classes- it would hardly be applicable to all the returned exiles. If this line of interpretation is correct, then we can understand these two men as focusing more on their own homes than on God’s house, and fulfilling the great potential possible if it had been built according to Ezekiel’s specifications.</h4>


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<h4>Therefore for your sake- Perhaps specifically the selfishness of Zerubbabel and Joshua led to a drought which affected many. This is the problem with sin- it affects others, and we learn from the account of Adam and Eve.</h4><h4>The skies withhold the dew, and the earth withholds its fruit- This is exactly the language of <a href='B:110 8:35'>1Ki 8:35</a>, which said that in such case, the people were to repent and pray towards the temple in Zion! But they didn’t want to build that temple, they wanted rather to build up their own glory and homesteads. All things could’ve worked so wonderfully together for good; but they didn’t want to participate in the program God had arranged, and so instead a downward spiral kicked in.</h4>


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<p>I called for a drought on the land, on the mountains, on the grain, on the new wine, on the oil, on that which the ground brings forth, on men, on livestock, and on all the labour of the hands- These are all aspects of the promised Messianic Kingdom which could have come about at the restoration (e:g. <a href='B:360 2:19'>Joe 2:19</a>; <a href='B:360 2:24'>Joe 2:24</a>; <a href='B:300 31:12'>Jer 31:12</a>). The very same sequence of words occurs in <a href='B:160 5:11'>Neh 5:11</a>; <a href='B:160 10:37'>Neh 10:37</a>; <a href='B:160 10:39'>Neh 10:39</a>; <a href='B:160 13:5'>Neh 13:5</a> - instead of giving those things to Yahweh, the Jews stole them from each other, and jibbed about paying them as tithes to Him. And thereby they precluded the possibility of Yahweh richly blessing all His people with those very same things in a Kingdom setting. As with all those who are rejected from God’s purpose, they effectively rejected themselves from His Kingdom by their behaviour, rather than Him rejecting them Himself.</p>


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<h4>Then Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua, the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of Yahweh, their God, and the words of Haggai the prophet, as Yahweh, their God, had sent him; and the people feared Yahweh- see on <a href='B:300 23:18'>Jer 23:18</a>; <a href='B:300 23:22'>Jer 23:22</a>. This was a commendable humility, for it is hard for leaders to repent. It seems that they didn’t maintain this level of intensity of repentance, but all the same, God responded positively to them at that time, in response to their&nbsp; repentance of that moment.</h4><h4>Even amongst those who returned to the land, only a minority wished to take their spiritual possibilities seriously. The returned exiles are called"this people"(<a href='B:440 1:2'>Hag 1:2</a>; <a href='B:440 2:14'>Hag 2:14</a>) or"the people of the land"(<a href='B:440 2:4'>Hag 2:4</a>), but only"the remnant of the people"actually responded to the call of the prophets like Haggai who encouraged them in the work and vision of what was possible.</h4>


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<h4>Then Haggai, Yahweh’s messenger- An example of malak referring not only to supernatural beings ["Angels"] but to men; references to ’sinning Angels’ must be understood as referring therefore to men and not heavenly beings. Haggai is presented as the mediator, taking the message of repentance to God, and Him sending Haggai back to he people with a message. The Messiah figure was to be accompanied by a messenger,"the messenger of the covenant"(<a href='B:460 3:1'>Mal 3:1</a>); and Haggai could have been that to Zerubbabel, whilst he was willing to live up to the call to be the Messianic figure of that time. But he failed, and so the prophecies of the restoration with their Messianic figure and his messenger were reapplied to the Lord Jesus, who was heralded by John the Baptist as the"messenger".</h4><h4>Spoke Yahweh’s message to the people, saying, I am with you, says Yahweh- The allusion is to the repeated promises that"I will be with you"in leaving Egypt and going in to possess the promised land and establish God’s Kingdom there (<a href='B:40 14:43'>Num 14:43</a>). This is what could have happened had the exiles left Babylon and returned to the land wishing to fulfil the restoration prophecies.</h4>


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<h4>Yahweh stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua, the son of Jehozadak, the high priest- In response to their desire to respond to the call for repentance, God stirred up their spirit / mind. He can work directly on the human heart, giving us attitudes and ideas; and He does so especially in response to our desire for this. Here we have a classic Old Testament example of the work of God’s Spirit on human hearts, which becomes such a characteristic of New Testament Christianity. The same word is used of how He stirred up the spirit of Cyrus to allow the exiles to return (<a href='B:150 1:1'>Ezr 1:1</a>), and also the spirits of the exiles who decided to return (<a href='B:150 1:5'>Ezr 1:5</a>). Although their motives were on one hand not right, God also worked on their hearts. Human motivation is complex, but God worked there, confirming them as needed. It seems that the stirring up of spirit occurred when they left Babylon, and now again once they had flagged. It is similar to the New Testament idea of being filled up with the Spirit, as if there are moments of filling and refilling. And this stands true to our spiritual experience.</h4><h4>And the spirit of all the remainder of the people; and they came and worked on the house of Yahweh of Armies, their God- As noted on :12, only a remnant of the people left Babylon and of them, only a remnant repented.</h4><h4>Even with Ezekiel’s prophecies behind him concerning “the prince”, Zerubbabel was easily discouraged in the rebuilding, and needed the prophecies of Haggai and Zechariah to encourage him again. He kept the feast of tabernacles (<a href='B:150 3:4'>Ezr 3:4</a>) but without dwelling in booths (<a href='B:160 8:17'>Neh 8:17</a>)- i:e:, half heartedly. He could have been Messiah, perhaps- he may well have been age 30/33 at the time of the restoration (<a href='B:470 1:12-13'>Mat 1:12-13</a>). When Judah returned, they could have entered into the new covenant, featuring “nobles [an intensive plural, meaning ‘the great noble’]… and their governor shall proceed from the midst of them” (<a href='B:300 30:21'>Jer 30:21</a>). Zerubbabel the Governor could have fulfilled this; but he flunked out. Yet God lifted up his spirit a second time (<a href='B:440 1:14'>Hag 1:14</a> cp. <a href='B:150 1:5'>Ezr 1:5</a>); he was given a second chance, such was God’s enthusiasm that he should achieve what was potentially possible for him. But again, he failed. He saw the glory of Babylon as more attractive than the hard work required to bring about Yahweh’s eternal glory in Zion. It is noteworthy how God worked through this man’s failures, and desired to give him (and all Israel) further opportunities. See on <a href='B:450 5:11'>Zec 5:11</a>; <a href='B:450 11:17'>Zec 11:17</a> for evidence of Zerubbabel’s return to Babylon.</h4>


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<p>In the twenty-fourth day of the month, in the sixth month, in the second year of Darius the king- It took 23 days for the whole process of appealing for repentance, repentance and then Divine stirring up of the minds of Zerubbabel. This seems to connect with how an Angel&nbsp;caused the 21 day - year delay in the rebuilding (<a href='B:340 10:12-13'>Dan 10:12-13</a>; <a href='B:450 3:1'>Zec 3:1</a> etc. ); that was maybe representing the apathy of the Jews as well as the opposition of the Samaritans in the court of Heaven. The two Angel chariots sent to overcome this opposition (see notes on Zechariah 6) would therefore have tried to influence the Jews to be more genuinely committed to Zion’s cause. Part of their work was in the inspiring of Haggai’s words (note the many references to"the Lord of Hosts"in Haggai). Again, the context of <a href='B:150 5:1'>Ezr 5:1</a> must be remembered- Haggai prophesied to encourage the people during the 21 year cessation of the rebuilding (details in Ezra 4).</p>


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<p>In the seventh month, in the twenty-first day of the month, the word of Yahweh came by Haggai the prophet, saying- As noted on <a href='B:440 1:14-15'>Hag 1:14-15</a>, this allowed about a month for the Spirit of God to stir up the spirit of Zerubbabel and Joshua in response to their repentance. But despite that work of the Spirit on their hearts, they still needed to be called to respond to it (:4).</p>


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<p>Speak now to Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua, the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remainder of the people, saying- As noted on <a href='B:440 1:14'>Hag 1:14</a>, only a remnant ["remainder"] returned from Babylon, and out of them, it seems only a remnant were responsive to the Spirit once they returned to Judah. But from this minority of a minority, God was prepared to work- even though there had not been the wholesale repentance and return which He envisaged, still He was eager to work with a handful of people. And yet tragically even they appear to have not responded in the long term to God’s possibilities which He had set up for them. This is encouragement to keep on and on working with people, adjusting to whatever their dysfunction throws back at us, ever seeking the extension of the principles of God’s Kingdom and His glory through whatever we have left to work with.</p>


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<h4>‘Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Isn’t it in your eyes as nothing?- Some very old exiles would have remembered the temple from 70 years ago in their childhood, before the deportation. But the chronologies vary; Daniel 9, 10 would suggest that the 70 year period was extended, hence Daniel’s concern that the period had ended but still there was no restoration. So Haggai may mean ’Who is left who saw the previous temple? Nobody. And how do your eyes see it? As nothing, compared to the importance of your own houses?’.</h4><h4><a href='B:290 60:7'>Isa 60:7</a> had prophesied that God would “glorify the house of my glory”. But this was in fact a conditional prophecy, capable of fulfilment through the freewill efforts of the returning exiles, if they wished to glorify that house. For they were empowered by Artaxerxes “to beautify [s:w. “glorify”] the house of the Lord” (<a href='B:150 7:27'>Ezr 7:27</a>). All their efforts to glorify / beautify the house, therefore, would have had God’s special and powerful blessing behind them. But was the house ultimately glorified? No- for Israel would not. They got sidetracked by beautifying their own homes, building “cieled / paneled houses” for themselves (<a href='B:440 1:4'>Hag 1:4</a>). The word for “cieled” occurs in <a href='B:110 6:9'>1Ki 6:9</a>; <a href='B:110 7:3'>1Ki 7:3</a>; <a href='B:110 7:7'>1Ki 7:7</a> to describe the roofing of the first temple- which they were to be rebuilding, rather than building their own houses. The glory would have entered the house of God’s glory as it did at the inauguration of the first temple (<a href='B:140 7:1-3'>2Ch 7:1-3</a>). Ezekiel prophesied that ultimately the glory would fill the temple as it had done then (<a href='B:330 43:4-5'>Eze 43:4-5</a>). But God’s prophesy of this in <a href='B:290 60:7'>Isa 60:7</a>, that He would glorify His house, meant that He was prepared to work through men to glorify it. The fulfilment of Ezekiel’s vision of the cloud of glory entering the temple again could have been fulfilled if the exiles had done what Artaxerxes empowered them to do- to glorify the house of glory. And so the fulfilment was delayed. The glory of the temple the exiles built was tragically less than the glory of the first temple; and so it would only be in the last day of Messiah’s second coming that the house shall truly be filled with glory (<a href='B:440 2:3'>Hag 2:3</a>; <a href='B:440 2:7'>Hag 2:7</a>; <a href='B:440 2:9'>Hag 2:9</a>), and even that may require a reapplication and reinterpretation of the concept of God’s house. And the lesson ought to be clear for us, in the various projects and callings of our lives: it becomes crucial for us to discern God’s specific purposes for us, and insofar as we follow His leading, we will feel a blessing and power which isclearly Divine.</h4>


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<h4>Yet now be strong, Zerubbabel!’ says Yahweh. ‘Be strong, Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest! Be strong, all you people of the land’, says Yahweh, ‘and work- We noted on :1 that a month had passed since the Spirit of God began working on their hearts. But they still needed to be stirred up to actually use that potential power- to be"be strong::. and work". The Corinthians likewise were given the Spirit, as 1 Corinthians 1 makes clear, but they were"not spiritual"&nbsp; (<a href='B:530 3:1'>1Co 3:1</a>) and needed exhortation to live according to the spiritual potential given them. And we are all in this position.</h4><p>"Be strong::. and work"[Heb. ’do’] is a phrase designed to recall previous usages in the context of returning to the promised land and building the temple. David often used it in encouraging Solomon to establish the Kingdom and build the temple (<a href='B:130 28:10'>1Ch 28:10</a>; <a href='B:130 28:20'>1Ch 28:20</a>); it was the prophetic word to king Asa, encouraging him to re-establish temple worship and a spiritual revival (<a href='B:140 15:7'>2Ch 15:7</a>), and to Joshua in encouraging him to re-enter the land and overcome all opposition from the local tribes there (<a href='B:60 1:7'>Jos 1:7</a>; <a href='B:60 23:6'>Jos 23:6</a>); and particularly of being strong and working in rebuilding Jerusalem and the temple (<a href='B:150 6:22'>Ezr 6:22</a>; <a href='B:160 2:18'>Neh 2:18</a>; <a href='B:160 6:9'>Neh 6:9</a>). They were to accept that God was willing and eager to strengthen their hands in the work; but they had to make use of it.</p><h4>For I am with you’, says Yahweh of Armies- The repeated title"Yahweh of Armies"would have been understood as a reference to Yahweh as captain of armies of Angels. God makes His Angels spirits; they were a vehicle for the work of the Spirit at that time, as the book of Daniel demonstrates. All that Angelic working was behind every effort Judah would make to rebuild the temple. But they didn’t use it."I am with you to save you from Babylon"(<a href='B:300 42:11'>Jer 42:11</a>) focuses God’s presence upon His salvation- Jesus. The prophetic potential became reapplied and rescheduled to us, in that the ultimate term of"I am with you"is in the Lord Jesus and the gift of the Spirit to enable us to extend and establish the work of the Kingdom (<a href='B:500 7:33'>Joh 7:33</a>; <a href='B:500 13:33'>Joh 13:33</a>).</h4>


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<h4>This is the word that I covenanted with you when you came out of Egypt, and My Spirit dwelt among you. ‘Don’t be afraid’-"My Spirit (Angel- <a href='B:230 104:4'>Psa 104:4</a>) remaineth among you"(AV), just as the same Angel was with them “when ye came out of Egypt”. And with us too. God encourages those rebuilding Jerusalem to have faith because the Angel is still among them:"Yet now be strong. . . and work: for I (the Angel) am with you, saith the Lord of Hosts (Angels): according to the word that I covenanted with you when ye came out of Egypt (the Angel made that covenant) so My Spirit (Angel) remaineth among you; fear ye not". Similarly&nbsp;&nbsp; Nehemiah&nbsp; recounts&nbsp; the&nbsp; past&nbsp; activities&nbsp; of&nbsp; God’s&nbsp;&nbsp; Angel (<a href='B:160 9:19-24'>Neh 9:19-24</a>) as a stimulus to faith in God bringing them through immediate problems. See on <a href='B:10 24:40'>Gen 24:40</a>; <a href='B:10 24:56'>Gen 24:56</a>.</h4><h4>But as mentioned on :4, the Spirit was not simply an Angel; it was articulated through the work of God’s Spirit on the human spirit or mind. The word of covenant when they came out of Egypt was the entire old covenant; the phrase is thus used at the time of the exodus (<a href='B:20 24:8'>Exo 24:8</a>; <a href='B:20 34:27'>Exo 34:27</a>; <a href='B:50 29:1'>Deu 29:1</a>). But throughout Deuteronomy, the second statement of the covenant, there was the repeated encouragement:"Fear not"(<a href='B:50 1:21'>Deu 1:21</a>; <a href='B:50 3:2'>Deu 3:2</a>; <a href='B:50 20:3'>Deu 20:3</a> etc:). The context is always of not fearing the local tribes of Canaan, and of being assured that it was simply God’s good pleasure to give them the Kingdom. That essential desire of God was true in Haggai’s time as it had been in Moses’, and it abides true for us. As He sent the Angel before them and amongst them, so His Spirit was and is active in the hearts and circumstances of all who wish to be in His Kingdom and do the work of that Kingdom.</h4>


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<p>For this is what Yahweh of Armies says: ‘Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, the earth, the sea, and the dry land- In a"short time", God would yet once more (GNB) shakes the heavens and earth as He had done at Sinai when Israel had previously entered the land and taken the Kingdom (s:w. <a href='B:230 68:8'>Psa 68:8</a>). The potential was that soon after Haggai’s words [in"a little while"] there would be direct Divine intervention involving earthquakes and the shaking of all nations (:7) to support the re-establishment of God’s Kingdom in Israel under the Messianic rulership of Zerubbabel. This is also foreseen in Zechariah 14, where the earthquake is seen as creating a new plateau upon which a new temple could be built. This plateau was also see in the opening of the Ezekiel 40-48 vision of the commandments as to how to build the new temple complex. But it didn’t happen then. Judah didn’t repent, and Zerubbabel beat it back to Babylon. These words have therefore been reapplied and rescheduled, to the work of the Lord Jesus on the cross and to the final literal establishment of the Kingdom at His second coming; in this context they are quoted in <a href='B:650 12:26-28'>Heb 12:26-28</a>.</p>


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<h4>And I will shake all nations- This is the equivalent of Daniel’s image of the nations being ground to powder and replaced by the mountain of God’s Kingdom which cannot be shaken (:22; <a href='B:340 2:44'>Dan 2:44</a>; <a href='B:650 12:27'>Heb 12:27</a>). Then the prophecy of <a href='B:330 38:20'>Eze 38:20</a> could have come true, that all the nations within the eretz would"shake"(s:w:). These prophecies could have come true then, but they were rescheduled. The nations in the land and also the Medo Persian empire would be shaken to destruction soon, and so the exiles should not fear them and resume the rebuilding of the city and temple. This is powerful encouragement to us, who are to live as if we are on the eve of the Lord’s return. But the Hebrew here is"I am shaking", whereas the shaking of :6 is in a future tense. The idea is that God was already working among the nations to bring about the re-establishment of His Kingdom which was then potentially possible.</h4><p>The precious things of all nations will come- This could mean that they would all donate their wealth to the new system of worship in Jerusalem. Or the phrase could be translated"the desire of all nations", referring to Messiah. We note that the same word is used of Saul, the anointed [’messiah’] king of Israel (<a href='B:90 9:20'>1Sa 9:20</a>). This prediction would then be directly relevant to Zerubbabel, the intended Messianic ruler.</p><p>And I will fill this house with glory, says Yahweh of Armies- Just as Solomon’s temple was filled with glory (<a href='B:110 8:10-11'>1Ki 8:10-11</a>; <a href='B:140 5:13-14'>2Ch 5:13-14</a>; <a href='B:140 7:1-2'>2Ch 7:1-2</a>). Haggai sought to inspire the people when they had flagged in their zeal for the Lord’s house; and the method he chose was to remind them that they could bring about Messiah’s Kingdom if they wholeheartedly worked with God to allow His ideal intentions to come to pass. Note the stress on this house- but that temple they built wasn’t filled with glory, the vision of Ezekiel about the glory returning and entering the temple wasn’t fulfilled- and Solomon’s former temple was more glorious than that of the second temple. Why? Because they didn’t get on and build it and glorify it as they were intended to.</p><p>If"the desire of all nations"does refer to Messiah coming with an earthquake and glory filling the temple, then this is a prophecy of what could have happened at that time, but it has been deferred to the second coming of the Lord Jesus. This is exactly the picture we have in Ezekiel 43, of a Messiah figure entering the temple in glory. But in Haggai’s context, he is encouraging the Jews of his time that this is what really and truly could have happened then and there, had they been obedient:&nbsp;&nbsp; The cherubim visions of Ezekiel 1, 9, 10 are applied in the New Testament to the glorified Christ (<a href='B:730 2:18'>Rev 2:18</a>; <a href='B:670 4:17'>1Pe 4:17</a>; <a href='B:680 2:4-9'>2Pe 2:4-9</a>). This surely implies that they were ultimately fulfilled in the Messiah; and perhaps we are to understand that they could have had fulfilment in a Messiah figure at the time of the restoration.</p><p>It was God’s plan that the light of His glory would enter into Zion at the restoration; but Israel had to act as if they believed this, and likewise show forth glory: “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee” (<a href='B:290 60:1'>Isa 60:1</a>). He eagerly prophesied that “strangers shall build up thy walls… in my favour have I had mercy upon thee” (<a href='B:290 60:10'>Isa 60:10</a>)- not ‘I am prepared to have mercy upon you’, nor ‘I will have mercy…’. God had had mercy upon them, and invited them to respond to it.</p><h4>Perhaps Nehemiah was some kind of potential Messiah- for the surrounding Gentiles ‘came up’ to him and shared in the luxurious temple meals (a common Kingdom prophecy- the same Hebrew words are used for the Gentiles ‘coming up’ to the temple in <a href='B:290 60:5'>Isa 60:5</a>; <a href='B:290 60:11'>Isa 60:11</a>; <a href='B:300 16:19'>Jer 16:19</a>; <a href='B:440 2:7'>Hag 2:7</a>; <a href='B:450 8:22'>Zec 8:22</a>). Those meals could have been the Messianic banquets. &nbsp;See on <a href='B:460 1:10'>Mal 1:10</a>.</h4>


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<p>The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine’, says Yahweh of Armies- This may be in answer to the feeling of the exiles that ’We can’t afford to do this work on God’s house. We need to sort out our own houses first’ (<a href='B:440 1:4'>Hag 1:4</a>). Such reasoning is often encountered amongst believers. God’s response is that all the silver and gold on the planet is His. He would provide. And indeed He had done, through the generous provision of Cyrus for all the material needs connected with the rebuilding project. The reference could also be to the"precious things"of :7 which the nations will bring; they are already His, and to give wealth to Him is only to accept that we do not own it. For we ’give’ to Him what is already His."The silver and the gold"could refer to all the silver and gold [wealth] that there is. This would imply an urgency to the rebuilding- if all the wealth of the surrounding world was to enter the temple as a store house for it, then the temple must be rebuilt to store it. By being slack to rebuild the temple (<a href='B:440 1:4'>Hag 1:4</a>) and not doing so according to the specifications in Ezekiel 40-48, the Divine purpose with it could not therefore come about. Petty human short sightedness therefore precluded the fulfilment of so much Divine potential.</p>


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<h4>‘The latter glory of this house will be greater than the former’, says Yahweh of Armies- As noted on <a href='B:440 1:8'>Hag 1:8</a>, God would have appeared in glory at the restoration of the temple. The glory of God and His presence was to appear in the temple; but if the Jews wouldn’t rebuild the temple, then it wouldn’t. In common with Ezekiel, Zechariah and Isaiah, Haggai speaks here of the possible glory that could have been at the restoration, but which has now been postponed until the second coming. Compare this with what actually happened- the old men wept because the new rebuilt temple was nothing like the former temple; see on :3. The glory of the restored temple was prophesied as being far greater than that of the former; <a href='B:290 60:17'>Isa 60:17</a> alluded to this in prophesying that “For brass [in Solomon’s temple] I will bring gold, and for iron [that was in Solomon’s fixtures] I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron”. But it simply didn’t happen, because God’s people were satisfied with a small, inglorious temple so that they could get on with building their own “cieled houses” (<a href='B:440 1:4'>Hag 1:4</a>; the same word is used in describing how the temple of Solomon was “covered”, or cieled, with cedar).</h4><h4>‘And in this place will I give peace’, says Yahweh of Armies- Peace with God, forgiveness through grace. When the foundation stone of the temple was laid, there should have been excited acclamation: “Grace, grace unto it” (<a href='B:450 4:7'>Zec 4:7</a>). But instead the old men wept when the foundation was laid, knowing that the temple was nothing compared to what it ought to be (<a href='B:150 3:12'>Ezr 3:12</a>). This would have been possible in Haggai’s time, had they built the temple according to the specifications in Ezekiel 40-48. But it was reapplied and rescheduled to fulfilment in the Lord Jesus, and His second coming. God’s promise of peace"in this place"couldn’t come about if Judah would not rebuilt the"place". This is the urgency of the appeal.</h4>


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<p>In the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, in the second year of Darius, the Word of Yahweh came by Haggai the prophet, saying- The wonderful potentials mentioned in the preceding verses were precluded by Judah’s unspirituality, and Haggai now addresses that. In the two months since that prophecy (:1), there had been little progress.</p>


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<h4>Thus says Yahweh of Armies: Ask now the priests concerning the law, saying- Haggai is addressed to Zerubbabel and Joshua the high priest. Perhaps they were being asked to ask this question. The answer of the priests is given in :12 and :13 so we assume this was literally asked and answered. But in :12 Haggai asks the question, so perhaps this is addressed to Haggai. It is a common Divine method to ask a question in order to elicit a conclusion within the conscience of the questioned person.</h4>


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<h4>‘If someone carries holy food in the fold of his garment, and the garment touches bread, stew, wine, oil, or any food, will it too become holy?’. The priests answered, No- The questions of :12 and :13 lead up to the bald statement in :14 that the Jews are"unclean"and their work for God unacceptable. This hard statement is in juxtaposition to all the wonderful Messianic and Kingdom prophecies of the preceding verses, uttered just weeks previously. The questions of :12 and :13 add up to this: Uncleanness can be passed on easily, whereas holiness is not passed on. Just a scrap of sanctified food caught up accidentally in the fold of a robe doesn’t make that garment holy, and if that garment then touches the things offered in sacrifice to God, they are not thereby made holy. This was the essence of the argument being used by the Jews. They considered their unclean offerings were made clean through the most contorted and unrealistic path of reasoning. They thought they could be acceptable to God because of some legalistic, theoretical ’acceptability by association’, even though the Mosaic lawdidn’t support such reasoning. The mentality is seen today, in those nominal believers who imagine that their external association with some organized religion or denomination somehow guarantees their acceptability with God.</h4>


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<h4>Then Haggai said, If one who is unclean by reason of a dead body touch any of these, will it be unclean? The priests answered, It will be unclean- As explained on :12, the Jews were thinking that they were acceptable to God by some quasi spiritual, pseudo logical path of reasoning whereby a fragment of holy bread could pass on to them personal acceptability before God. But the reality was that this wasn’t support by God’s principles in the law. What the law emphasized instead was that uncleanness spreads. And they were unclean (:14).</h4><h4>Judah in the new temple would not “defile” Yahweh’s Name any more (<a href='B:330 43:7-8'>Eze 43:7-8</a>) e:g. by touching dead bodies (<a href='B:330 44:25'>Eze 44:25</a>); but they were lazy to keep the uncleanness laws, they did defile Yahweh by touching dead bodies and then offering the sacrifices (<a href='B:440 2:13-14'>Hag 2:13-14</a> s:w:), just as Israel previously had been defiled by touching the dead bodies of their kings and then offering sacrifices (<a href='B:330 43:7'>Eze 43:7</a>); but now, Judah thought they were above God’s law, and therefore did exactly the same things which had caused the temple to be destroyed in the first place. The promise that Yahweh would dwell in the new temple was conditional on them not touching dead bodies (<a href='B:330 43:9'>Eze 43:9</a>); but <a href='B:440 2:13'>Hag 2:13</a> makes it apparent that they did this very thing at the time of the restoration.</h4>


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<h4>Then Haggai answered, ‘So is this people, and so is this nation before Me’, says Yahweh; ‘and so is every work of their hands. That which they offer there is unclean- The specific work of their hands was surely their partial rebuilding of the temple and offer sacrifice there, but not according to the specifications in Ezekiel 40-48. Their work was so compromised by their wrong attitudes that what they built was therefore unclean. The reference may also be to the animals and crops raised by ’the work of their hands’ (:17) which they then offered as sacrifices; but this was rejected by God as unclean.</h4>


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<h4>Now, please consider from this day and backward, before a stone was laid on a stone in Yahweh’s temple- Every day counted. Haggai asked them to look back through the few months during which he had given his prophecies about the great possibilities for re-establishing the Kingdom with God’s abundant blessing. Even during those days, they had been guilty of not responding, and so the drought had not been lifted.</h4>


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<h4>Through all that time, when one came to a heap of twenty measures, there were only ten. When one came to the wine vat to draw out fifty, there were only twenty- Blessings of good harvests, corn and wine, were all part of the blessings promised for obedience to the covenant. But throughout the days Haggai had been appealing to them, their last harvest had been eaten away by disease and plague ("blight, mildew, and hail", :17). These words may be addressed specifically to Zerubbabel and Joshua (see on <a href='B:440 1:1'>Hag 1:1</a>). They had lost their harvests, because of refusing to respond to the call of Haggai.</h4><h4>This verse gives very precise commentary on the state of the harvests in Judah after the return- grain stores were 50% below the norm, and the amount of wine produced was 60% less than expected. Surely these figures were well known to the people- for they had presumably worked them out, and Haggai is quoting their figures back to them. Notice how the people had worked out the yield of wine which they expected. The implication would seem to be that they returned to Judah expecting material prosperity, good harvests and personal wealth; hence their bitter disappointment when they didn’t get it. This, then, would appear to have been their motivation for the return- rather than obedience to the words of the prophets or a desire to see God’s Kingdom established in His land.</h4>


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<p>I struck you with blight, mildew, and hail in all the work of your hands; yet you didn’t turn to Me’, says Yahweh- This striking of the harvest had been over the two months or so since Haggai had prophesied and encouraged them to live up to their potential; see on :16. They had returned to the land, but not to God. They were still impenitent, blaming their situation on the sins of the fathers and of the Gentiles around them. The afflictions mentioned were the very punishments mentioned for committing unfaithfulness to the covenant, and which would climax in being removed from the land (<a href='B:50 28:22'>Deu 28:22</a>; <a href='B:110 8:37'>1Ki 8:37</a>). They had returned to the land, but were doing the very things which had led to them being expelled from the land, and experiencing the same judgments which they had in the lead up to the exile (<a href='B:370 4:9'>Amo 4:9</a>).</p>


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<p>‘Consider, please, from this day and backward, from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, since the day that the foundation of Yahweh’s temple was laid, consider it- They were being asked as in :15 to think back over the days since the rebuilding program began. Although they had apparently worked to rebuild the temple, day after day had been of drought and pestilence. Their work for God had been"unclean"(:14) because their motives were impure, as noted on <a href='B:440 1:4'>Hag 1:4</a>. But there is a purposeful ambiguity with the word translated"backward"; it can also mean"upward"or effectively ’forward’. In this case, as suggested on :19, Haggai was urging them to repent that very day, and see the changes that would happen in the weather and the fertility of their land."Consider::."was therefore an appeal for repentance. This appeal was repeated in the eighth month (<a href='B:450 1:1'>Zec 1:1</a>; <a href='B:450 1:4'>Zec 1:4</a>; <a href='B:450 1:6'>Zec 1:6</a>); and there was apparent response to that appeal (<a href='B:450 1:6'>Zec 1:6</a>). But now in the ninth month, it was apparent that the repentance was only nominal.</p>


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<p>Is the seed still in the barn? Yes, the vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate, and the olive tree haven’t brought forth. From this day on I will bless you’- The original could imply that God had promised blessing upon them, from the first day the rebuilding program started (:18). But it hadn’t come. Their harvests were so small that it was as if they had never even sown anything, and the seed was still in the barn; and the fruit trees had not born anything. We see here how God can promise things which are conditional even if the conditions aren’t highlighted; and so the promised blessing will not come about automatically. Or the original could equally suggest that although indeed there had been no harvests, from that very day on"I will bless you", because God through Haggai hoped for their immediate repentance that day.</p>


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<p>The Word of Yahweh came the second time to Haggai in the twenty-fourth day of the month, saying- This must be the same 24th day of the ninth month which has been twice mentioned (:10,15). As expounded above, on that very day Haggai had begged for repentance, and invited them to make a note of the day and to see how God’s blessing would be poured out afterwards, whereas before that it had been withheld. Haggai had declared this day a watershed. And now we have a prophecy which seems to assure Zerubbabel that he would in fact be made the Messianic ruler. Perhaps he did repent that day, and so God eagerly went ahead in the following prophecy and assured him that he could indeed achieve the Messianic potential he had.</p>


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<h4>Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying, ‘I will shake the heavens and the earth- The repetition of"I will"is as if to say that the promise of major Divine intervention and the re-establishment of the Kingdom promised in :6 (see note there) would not come about, whereas its fulfilment had been in question. This would fit the suggestion made on :20 that Zerubbabel repented and so the Divine program and possibilities with him resumed.</h4><h4>The day when heaven and earth would be shaken was the day when the second temple was to be filled with glory as Ezekiel had said. Then¸ there would be major war between the Gentile nations, and Zerubbabel would be some kind of Messiah figure. But none of these things happened. Their fulfilment was delayed until the last days, when all nations who come against Jerusalem will slay each other, and “my servant” the Lord Jesus will be proclaimed as Messiah. Then, in our time of the end, the heavens and earth will be shaken (<a href='B:650 12:26-27'>Heb 12:26-27</a>). It could have happened while the second temple was standing- but it didn’t, thanks to Israel’s indolence</h4>


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<p>I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms. I will destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the nations. I will overthrow the chariots, and those who ride in them. The horses and their riders will come down, everyone by the sword of his brother- <a href='B:440 2:6-7'>Hag 2:6-7</a> clearly stated that very soon the desire of all nations would come to the temple, and Yahweh would fill the temple with His glory, just as He had when the first temple was built (this is another proof that the temple of the restoration was to be based upon the pattern of Solomon’s). This was to be brought about by Yahweh shaking all nations, with the result that in a great battle, they would kill each other; and then Zerubbabel “my servant” (a Messianic title) would be the King of God’s Kingdom. But this didn’t happen “soon” after those words were spoken. Indeed, they are quoted in Hebrews 12 as now having relevance to our last days. “I will overthrow…kingdoms” is the language of <a href='B:340 2:44'>Dan 2:44</a> - perhaps it could have been that four kings arose after Nebuchadnezzar and then Babylon would have been destroyed. Thus <a href='B:340 2:42'>Dan 2:42</a> speaks of the singular Kingdom being divided, as if referring to the Kingdom of Babylon / Nebuchadnezzar. Thus the image stood complete when the stone hit it- the whole dynasty of Nebuchadnezzar was to be destroyed. But this didn’t happen, and so other interpretations of the image prophecy became possible, each fitting perhaps less accurately than the intended fulfilment would have done. Likewise <a href='B:440 2:22'>Hag 2:22</a> continues by saying that in that “overthrow”, “the horses and their riders shall come down, every one by the sword of his brother”. This is the language of <a href='B:450 14:13'>Zec 14:13</a>; that prophecy also could have had a fulfilment at the restoration, but it is now deferred until the last days. That same passage&nbsp; also envisages an earthquake around Mount Zion, preparing a plateau upon which the temple could be built, as required in the temple plans of Ezekiel 40.</p>


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<h4>In that day, says Yahweh of Armies, will I take you, Zerubbabel, My servant, the son of Shealtiel’, says Yahweh, ‘and will make you as a signet ring, for I have chosen you’, says Yahweh of Armies- Setting as a signet ring effectively means Divine appointment as the king of Judah, as in <a href='B:300 22:23-25'>Jer 22:23-25</a>. The re-established kingdom could have had a Divinely appointed Messianic king in the line of David, Zerubbabel. Just a few months later, <a href='B:450 3:8'>Zec 3:8</a> speaks of"My servant the branch", a clear reference to Zerubbabel,"branch of God", as the Messianic ruler figure. God says He will do this; but it seems Zerubbabel didn’t want it, and the people weren’t ready or willing for it. And so the prophecy in essence is reapplicable to the Lord Jesus, the"My servant"of Isaiah’s prophecies.</h4><p><a href='B:340 9:25'>Dan 9:25</a> appears to identify “the anointed one, a prince” with the restoration of Jerusalem after the return. The Masoretic punctuation of <a href='B:340 9:25'>Dan 9:25</a> actually suggests that ‘Messiah the prince’ appears after the first seven of the seventy weeks- perhaps there was the possibility 49 day-years after the command to rebuild Jerusalem for a Messiah to have appeared? This would’ve fitted Zerubbabel perfectly. <a href='B:490 3:27'>Luk 3:27</a> describes Zerubbabel as the head / chief / leader. The term Rhesa is incorrectly rendered in many versions as a name. Perhaps Luke’s point was that the Lord Jesus was the final Messiah, after the failure of so many potential ones beforehand. ‘Zerubbabel the chief’ would then be a similar rubric to “David the king” in Matthew’s genealogy (<a href='B:470 1:16'>Mat 1:16</a>). Zerubbabel was the ‘head’ of the house of David (<a href='B:150 4:3'>Ezr 4:3</a>; <a href='B:440 2:23'>Hag 2:23</a>; <a href='B:450 3:8'>Zec 3:8</a>; <a href='B:450 6:12-13'>Zec 6:12-13</a>), as was his descendant Hattush (<a href='B:150 8:1-3'>Ezr 8:1-3</a> cp. <a href='B:130 3:22'>1Ch 3:22</a>). As the grandson of Jehoiachin, Judah’s exiled king, Zerubbabel would’ve been the legitimate king of Judah. Potentially, <a href='B:350 1:11'>Hos 1:11</a> could have come true: “Judah and… Israel shall be gathered together, and they shall appoint for themselves one head [Zerubbabel?]; and they shall go up from the land, for great shall be the day of Jezreel” (RSV). And perhaps as head of the house of David, Zerubbabel was intended to be the “David my servant” who would be the one king and one shepherd who would lead Israel back to the land from exile (<a href='B:330 37:22'>Eze 37:22</a>; <a href='B:330 37:24'>Eze 37:24</a>). Significantly, <a href='B:160 7:7'>Neh 7:7</a> describes Zerubbabel as being at the head of twelve leaders of the returning exiles, who are called “the people of Israel” (cp. <a href='B:150 2:2'>Ezr 2:2</a>).</p><h4>Zerubbabel like his people simply didn’t live up to it; and the prophecies came to be fulfilled finally in Jesus. He could have been Yahweh’s signet ring (<a href='B:440 2:23'>Hag 2:23</a>), His specially favoured son- but he baulked at the height of the calling. These things remain a continual challenge to we who likewise have so much Spirit-enabled potential.</h4>


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<h4>In the eighth month, in the second year of Darius, the word of Yahweh came to Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, the prophet, saying- See on :7. The many restoration prophecies had stated that the Jews would return from Babylon after Babylon had fallen and restore God’s Kingdom in Judah under a Messianic ruler. Ezekiel 40-48 contains commands more than predictions of how a temple system would be rebuilt, with a"Prince"who was also a priest as the Messianic leader. They would repent and enter a new covenant which would replace the old covenant. Tragically, most of the Jews preferred the soft life of Babylon, and those who did return were impenitent and are revealed by Haggai, Malachi, Ezra and Nehemiah as seeking their own personal gain from emigration to Judah. And so the prophecies were rescheduled and reapplied. There is an element to which they will come literally true in the last days when latter day Babylon falls, a remnant of Judah repent, and the Lord Jesus returns to earth to re-establish God’s Kingdom on earth based in Israel. But they are also reinterpreted in many New Testament passages which allude to the restoration prophecies, being reapplied to Christian believers entering the new covenant and coming out of ’Babylon’ in a more spiritual sense.</h4><h4>Some exiles did return and began rebuilding Jerusalem and the temple. But they were several times interrupted by seemingly invincible opposition from the local peoples and the king of Persia. But through the prophecies of Haggai and Zechariah, the exiles were encouraged to keep on keeping on, and against all odds, a temple was rebuilt (<a href='B:150 5:1'>Ezr 5:1</a>; <a href='B:150 6:14'>Ezr 6:14</a>). So we should not read Haggai and Zechariah as merely droning on against the Jews and not getting very far. It was due to their inspired words that the discouraged, spiritually weak people of God were inspired to rise up and do the work of God’s Kingdom, and succeed with every man’s hand against them. In this is their abiding value to us. There is however the repeated theme of wasted potential- so much could have happened at that time, even the re-establishment of God’s Kingdom in the form of the kingdom of Israel, replete with a Messianic ruler. But it didn’t, because of short termist, self-satisficing attitudes, a failure to look beyond the immediate and personal to a far bigger picture.</h4>


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<p>Yahweh was very displeased with your fathers- That may sound obvious; but as Ezekiel 18 explains, the mentality amongst the exiles was the fathers had been punished too severely, and they their children were unfairly suffering the results."Very displeased"translates a Hebrew phrase meaning ’with intense, fiery anger’. And yet even that is described in :15 as God being only"a little angry"compared to the anger He felt against the nations combining to attack Zion (:15 LXX). The comparison is intentional. God is indeed very angry with His people when they turn from Him; but that anger must be seen in context. The fact Judah had so sinned and incurred God’s wrath didn’t mean that He was therefore insensitive to their abusers; His anger with their enemies was so much greater. And so in a strange way,"the wrath of God is [or reflects] the love of God". Who would a man be more angry with? His wife because she cheated on him repeatedly and is exposed; or a bunch of hoods who rape her after her infidelity has been exposed? The man who truly loved his wife would be more angry with the rapists, and so it was with God</p>


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<h4>Therefore tell them: Thus says Yahweh of Armies: ‘Return to me’, says Yahweh of Armies, ‘and I will return to you’, says Yahweh of Armies- The triple repetition of"Yahweh of Armies"/"Lord of Hosts"clearly points towards the Angels, through whom God was practically manifest in Judah’s history. ’Turning’ back to God has the implication of patching up a marriage:"If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man’s, shall he return unto her again?::. yet return again unto Me, saith the Lord"(<a href='B:300 3:1'>Jer 3:1</a>). This is similar to <a href='B:300 31:32'>Jer 31:32</a> and <a href='B:460 2:14'>Mal 2:14</a>, where again God, through the Angel, implies He would be justified in divorcing Israel. <a href='B:460 3:7'>Mal 3:7</a> seems a parallel passage:"Even from the days of your fathers (cp. <a href='B:450 1:2'>Zec 1:2</a>; <a href='B:450 1:4-5'>Zec 1:4-5</a>) ye re gone away from Mine ordinances (given by an Angel), and have not kept them. Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord of Hosts"(Angels).</h4><p>Judah thought they had returned to God by having literally returned to Judah. But here we see the difference between the external and true spirituality. The literal return was to be part and parcel of the return to God which He so earnestly sought. But they had only externally returned, but not internally. Hence this appeal to"return". So easily we can think we have repented when in fact we simply went through a motion of so doing.</p><h4>Time and again in the context of the restoration it is emphasized that God would return to His people if they returned to Him (also <a href='B:460 3:7'>Mal 3:7</a>). And they didn’t return to Him- most chose not to return to the land, and those who did for the most part did not return to their God in their hearts. The whole basis of Israel’s covenant relationship with God was that if they were exiled from the land for their sins, they must repent and then God would return to them (<a href='B:50 30:1-10'>Deu 30:1-10</a>). Yet God graciously states to the exiles:"I am returned unto you"(<a href='B:450 1:16'>Zec 1:16</a>; <a href='B:450 8:3'>Zec 8:3</a>). Here was grace indeed. Passages like <a href='B:330 36:24-31'>Eze 36:24-31</a> therefore speak as if God’s grace to the exiles was effectively a new covenant- which has in essence been extended to us. Having stated the conditionality of His ’returning’ to His people, and recognizing they hadn’t fulfilled their part of the conditions- God all the same returns to them, such was and is His almost desperate desire for relationship with His beloved people. This is a lesson for us in our relationships with others- to continue our acceptance and ’return’ to them, even if they don’t fulfill their part of the deal. For this, day by day, is how our God deals not only with us but with His weak and wayward people as a whole.</h4>


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<h4>Don’t you be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets proclaimed, saying: Thus says Yahweh of Armies, ‘Return now from your evil ways, and from your evil doings’ - This appeal to repent in the eighth month follows on the appeal to repent made in the seventh month (<a href='B:440 2:1'>Hag 2:1</a>). But as noted on <a href='B:440 2:18-20'>Hag 2:18-20</a>, by the ninth month it was apparent that the apparent response to Zechariah’s appeal in :6 was only nominal. The"fathers"in view may have been the generation before them in exile in Babylon, who had refused to repent. Or they could be those of previous generations who had refused the multiple appeals for repentance (<a href='B:140 36:15'>2Ch 36:15</a>). The appeal was to repent of ways and doings- individual acts of sin as well as a general direction of life and thought.</h4><h4>But they did not hear, nor listen to me, says Yahweh- There seems no semantic difference between the terms"hear::. listen"(also in <a href='B:450 7:11'>Zec 7:11</a>). Just as returning to God was more than physically returning to the land, so hearing God was and is far more than literally hearing or reading His word</h4>


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<p>Your fathers, where are they? And the prophets, do they live forever?- The reference may be to the false prophets, in the spirit of <a href='B:300 37:19'>Jer 37:19</a>:"Where now are your prophets who prophesied to you saying, The king of Babylon shall not come against you, nor against this land?". They would contrast with the prophets who were"My servants"(:6). Their fathers died, many of them in the Babylonian invasion. The words of judgment had come true upon them; and now Zechariah’s generation were tempted to think that such judgment could not overtake the returned exiles. But they and the false prophets who appeared at the return from exile were just as liable to judgment as the generation who went into exile. We have a human tendency to assume that ’this shall not happen to me’. But it shall, unless we repent.</p>


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<h4>But My words and My decrees, which I commanded My servants the prophets, didn’t they influence your fathers? Then they repented and said, ‘Just as Yahweh of Armies determined to do to us, according to our ways, and according to our practices, so He has done with us’- We can read this as saying that the prophetic words to their fathers were responded to in repentance. But this would contradict the argument of :5; and in any case, it was historically not the case. The opposite was true."Influence"is also"overtake (AVmg:), as if the threatened judgments did indeed come upon their fathers. For all their token repentances, they did not really repent, and so the Babylonian judgment had come. So I suggest the rhetorical question is asked as to whether their fathers really repented; with the expected negative answer, as to the questions in :5.</h4><h4>The remained of the verse would then be a statement about the response of the people to Zechariah’s words. "They repented", but they go on to state what was merely axiomatic, that God had done to them what He had planned to do. This again hints at a lack of total repentance. This was all in the eighth month (:1). But as noted on <a href='B:440 2:18-20'>Hag 2:18-20</a>, by the ninth month it was apparent that the apparent response to Zechariah’s appeal in :6 was only nominal.</h4>


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<p>On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, which is the month Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of Yahweh came to Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, the prophet, saying- As noted on :6, the repentance of the exiles was at best tokenistic. But God’s response was to assure them of the huge potential power available to them, and His purpose to all the same bring about the restoration of His Kingdom. It was over to them as to whether they wanted to be a part of that, both then and eternally. "Shebat" is Chaldee, reflecting how the Jews had very quickly assimilated with Babylonian language and ways in their exile. But the Hebrew equivalent means "shoot", the month of the shoot. And the shoot was intended to be Zerubbabel, the potential Messiah, whose name meant ’shoot of God’. Allusion may also be intended to how the mountains of Israel were to "shoot forth" (<a href='B:330 36:8'>Eze 36:8</a>) when the exiles returned; rather than suffering the drought of God’s displeasure which existed now the exiles had actually returned, as we see reflected in Haggai who was contemporary with Zechariah. The same allusion to the potentials possible is found in the meanings of the names Berechiah [’knee of Yah’, i:e. His blessing] and Iddo [’timely’]. The time for Yahweh’s blessing had come, if Judah responded to the message of ’Zechariah’, ’Yah has remembered’. He had not forgotten His plan to restore His Kingdom in Judah with a Messianic ruler, as might have appeared through the years of exile. He was now ’remembering’ it, but Judah needed to do their part in bringing about what was potentially possible.</p>


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<h4>I had a vision in the night, and behold, a man riding on a red horse, and he stood among the myrtle trees that were in a ravine- The man is defined in :10,11 as an Angel. The red, speckled and white horses behind him (1:8; <a href='B:450 6:2-7'>Zec 6:2-7</a>) would therefore also appear to be ridden by Angels- indeed they are called "the four spirits (Angels; <a href='B:230 104:4'>Psa 104:4</a>) of the Heavens" in <a href='B:450 6:5'>Zec 6:5</a> (see note there). The visions in this chapter serve the same function as the cherubim visions of Ezekiel- to assure the returning exiles that there had been and still was a huge system of careful, attentive Divine operation goingon in the land and people of Judah, orchestrated by God’s Spirit through the Angels.</h4><p>Myrtle trees were associated with the feast of booths, at the time of harvest. The harvest that year had been very bad, as Haggai explains. The vision was received in the 11th month, literally ’shoot month’, when harvest should have been forthcoming (:7).</p><p>The valley could refer to the Euphrates valley where Babylon and other cities of the exiles was situated. On this reading, we would interpret the situation as one of peace, with the lesson that the various marauding enemies of Judah had been Angelically controlled, and were now at rest, so that the exiles could rebuild the Kingdom.</p><p>"Myrtle trees" is "the [two] mountains" in the LXX, connecting with the later prophesy of <a href='B:450 6:1'>Zec 6:1</a>, where again horses and chariots appear from between two mountains. This is all the language of theophany and the cherubim of Ezekiel’s visions, which speak of God’s potential activity at the time of the captivity and restoration. Zechariah sees the same Angel chariots emerging from between two bronze mountains (<a href='B:450 1:7-11'>Zec 1:7-11</a> LXX, AV "myrtle trees"; <a href='B:450 6:1'>Zec 6:1</a>), perhaps designed to recall the bronze pillars of the temple (<a href='B:110 7:15-22'>1Ki 7:15-22</a>). The rebuilt temple was intended to be the point from which the Angel chariots would go forth; but that didn’t happen at the very limited restoration from Babylon, and so the first four seals of Revelation 6 are full of allusion to this Zechariah vision- it was not left unfulfilled because of Israel’s indolence, but rather was reapplied to the latter day events of which Revelation speaks.</p><p>And behind him there were red, brown, and white horses- Zechariah 1 opens the prophecy with a vision of three kinds of horses- red, white and speckled. These represented the powers which had subdued the land of Judah and left it in the desolate state it was at the time of Zechariah. It’s tempting to interpret them as Assyria, Babylon and Medo-Persia; or perhaps Babylon, Media and Persia. Or it could refer to the surrounding nations-&nbsp; Straight away, we read of four horns, representing the powers who had desolated God’s people; and how they would be destroyed by the carpenters, surely looking forward to the carpenter Messiah. And the vision of Zechariah 6 has four and not three kinds of horses- red, black, white and speckled. This may be Zechariah’s way of saying that because of Israel’s inability to fulfil the required spiritual preconditions, the longer version of the prophetic program was going to come into play. Although as always, there is the distinct message of hope, that finally God’s triumphant purpose with Israel shall come to realization. However we should note that the LXX here has four groups of horses: "behind him were red horses, and grey, and piebald, and white".</p><h4>The first four seals and the four coloured horsemen of Revelation 6, are based upon the horsemen of judgment in Zechariah 1, which vision is repeated in Zechariah 6 but with the difference that the four horsemen go out to judge the nations who have performed these judgments upon Israel, e:g. “the north country”. The four horsemen of Revelation 6 inflict punishments and judgments which are full of Old Testament allusions to prophecies concerning how God would judge His people, and Zechariah 1 and Zechariah 6 are obvious source passages. The focus of the four horsemen is upon God’s people in their land, and especially the city of Jerusalem, in the last days; and this is the focus of Revelation also.</h4>


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<p>Then I asked, ‘My lord, what are these?’. The angel who talked with me said to me, I will show you what these are- An Angel is called adon, demonstrating that adon or "Lord" doesn’t mean ’God Himself’. The Lord Jesus is indeed Lord, but is not God Himself; for the term is used about others who were not God, such as this Angel here. If Zechariah had not wanted to understand, would the explanation have been given? It is a desire to understand God’s word which is so critical, rather than intellectual or exegetical prowess and background knowledge of languages and history.</p>


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<h4>The man who stood among the myrtle trees answered- LXX: "The man that stood between the mountains", i:e. those of <a href='B:450 6:1'>Zec 6:1</a>; see on :8. The Angel who rides the red horse followed by others was the one speaking with Zechariah.</h4><h4>They are the ones Yahweh has sent to go back and forth through the earth- The horses represented the Angels who had controlled the various nations who had devastated the eretz promised to Abraham. It is Yahweh’s "eyes" who go back and forth in that earth (<a href='B:450 4:10'>Zec 4:10</a>); it is through them that He ’sees’ what happens there (<a href='B:10 18:21'>Gen 18:21</a>; <a href='B:140 16:9'>2Ch 16:9</a>; <a href='B:340 4:17'>Dan 4:17</a>). Similar language is used by the Satan-angel in the book of Job; see on <a href='B:220 1:7'>Job 1:7</a>; <a href='B:50 11:12'>Deu 11:12</a>. Job was a real enough story, but I suggest it was re-written under inspiration in the exilic period, as encouragement that the adversaries of God’s suffering people [Job] were under Angelic control. And despite personal failure and lack of help from the accepted religious leadership [the friends], Job as the people of God would be fully restored in the end. The various waves of invaders and desolators had been used to bring the eretz to a position of peace, so that Judah could rebuild God’s temple and Kingdom in Israel (:11).</h4>


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<h4>They reported to the angel of Yahweh who stood among the myrtle trees, and said, We have walked back and forth through the earth, and behold, all the earth is at rest and in peace- Myrtle trees have been seen as a symbol of peace. The idea was that there was peace in the Persian empire and in Judah at this time. As noted on :10, the various waves of invaders and desolators (represented by the horses of various colours and significance) had been used to bring the eretz to a position of peace, so that Judah could rebuild God’s temple and Kingdom in Israel.</h4><p>The horses of Zechariah 1 are those nations who have trampled up and down the earth / land of Israel, subduing it until it is quiet. The chariots / horses of Zechariah 6 are the Angel cherubim representatives of those nations, who are sent out against them in judgment. Such judgment is portended in Zechariah 1 also, where straight after the vision of the horses we read of the four horns who have abused Israel being cut off by the carpenter Messiah of Israel. There is an Angel stationed with the horses in the valley from which they emerge, as if to show that the judgments upon the land were Angelically controlled; Israel was not at the hands of chance human evil, indeed the horses report back to the Angel. This sets the scene for the horses / chariots of chapter 6 going out in judgment against those nations. The land lying still and at rest is explained further in <a href='B:450 1:11-12'>Zec 1:11-12</a> - it was because the cities of Judah were lying in ruins after the horse powers had trampled over them. This all looks forward to how Jerusalem shall be trodden down in the last days, after the pattern of how the Babylonians trod it down (<a href='B:290 5:5'>Isa 5:5</a>; <a href='B:290 28:18'>Isa 28:18</a>; <a href='B:290 63:18'>Isa 63:18</a>; <a href='B:490 21:24'>Luk 21:24</a>)- which is when this prophecy will have its final fulfilment. We can look, therefore, for the three or four entities which trod down the land and people of Israel to have their latter day equivalent, and a like judgment from Heaven. And this is what Revelation 6 is explaining in more detail- in a latter day context. The immediate message in Zechariah’s time was therefore that a future treading down of the land and Jerusalem was to happen, but the silver lining of that cloud was that this would finally lead to the eternal restoration of Israel. This is exactly the same style as in Ezekiel 38; we noted in studying the context of that prophecy that it was given at the time when news of Jerusalem’s fall had come to the rebellious captives in Babylon amongst whom Ezekiel was sitting. They were being told that another even worse desolation was to happen, patterned after the events they were now hearing of, and yet from this would come the eternal restoration of Israel in God’s Kingdom on earth. But not immediately.</p><h4>Yahweh had promised that He would lead His people on that wilderness journey from Babylon to Zion just as He had earlier led His people from Egypt to the same promised land. <a href='B:300 31:2'>Jer 31:2</a> had encouraged them that Israel “found grace in the wilderness” before, and they would do again, “When I go to cause [Israel] to go to their place of rest” (RV). God had promised in <a href='B:300 31:9'>Jer 31:9</a> that He would bring Israel on their journey from Babylon to Judah along the fertile crescent- He would “cause them to walk by the rivers of waters in a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble”:&nbsp; This is why Isaiah’s prophecies of the restoration from Babylon are shot through with allusion to the exodus and wilderness journey (e:g. <a href='B:290 43:2'>Isa 43:2</a>; <a href='B:290 51:10'>Isa 51:10</a>; <a href='B:290 63:11'>Isa 63:11</a>). <a href='B:300 31:2'>Jer 31:2</a> had prophesied of the returning Jews: “The people which were left of the sword found grace in the wilderness; even Israel, when I went to cause him to rest”- just as <a href='B:450 1:11'>Zec 1:11</a> describes the land being “at rest” when they returned to rebuild Zion. My point is that Yahweh didn’t give up with His people because many chose to remain in Babylon, and those who did make the journey didn’t believe His promises of protection very strongly. He zealously worked with whatever they could present Him with. And the conditions for Judah to enter the new covenant of Jeremiah 31 had been prepared by the work of the Angels; the land was now at rest and in peace. But the exiles sadly wasted all this Divine potential, so that the offer of a new covenant was recalculated and offered to the Gentiles through the work of the Lord Jesus. The prophecy will come true in the last days, when after the desolation of the eretz byAngelically permitted and controlled invaders [as explained in Revelation], the eretz will again be cleansed, at peace and the Kingdom can be eternally established upon it.</h4>


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<h4>Then the angel of Yahweh replied, O Yahweh of Armies, how long will You not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah- We have an example here of how Angels pray for more knowledge. They "earnestly desire to look into" spiritual things and seek for signs of the times as much as we do. If we are to made like Angels, this opens up a window into what the nature of eternity will be like. In this particular case the Angel was representing those of God’s people such as Ezra and Daniel who were asking God “how long?”. And in response to that, the Angel seeks to persuade other Angels [“Yahweh of hosts”] to act. See on <a href='B:340 8:15'>Dan 8:15</a>. The way the Angel prays to the "Lord of Hosts" is interesting, as this title refers to His Angelic hosts. Do we have here one Angel asking another Angel or group of Angels? Angels have the same problems grappling with time periods as we do!</h4><p>Against which You have had indignation those seventy years?- The way prophetic words can be rescheduled in fulfilment is demonstrated by the elastic interpretation of Jeremiah’s prophecy of 70 years exile. They came to fulfilment at the time of Daniel’s prayer in <a href='B:340 9:2'>Dan 9:2</a>; but also at the fall of Babylon and edict of Cyrus (<a href='B:140 36:22-23'>2Ch 36:22-23</a>; <a href='B:150 1:1'>Ezr 1:1</a>); and yet also in the second year of Darius (<a href='B:450 1:1'>Zec 1:1</a>; <a href='B:450 1:12'>Zec 1:12</a>). This latter period would have been timed from the actual destruction of the temple (<a href='B:120 25:2'>2Ki 25:2</a>; <a href='B:120 25:8-9'>2Ki 25:8-9</a>); whereas the captivity began before that. And the predicted restoration didn’t happen as prophesied. But it will ultimately happen- at the Lord’s return. Another suggestion is that the seventy years have been rescheduled as seventy jubilees, meaning that the Lord returns to establish the Kingdom at the 70th jubilee. But this is problematic, because Judah has not lain waste for 70 jubilees, and at this time is inhabited by Jews and prosperous.</p><p>"Indignation" translates a strong word, meaning to foam at the mouth. See on :2. God’s anger with Israel was indeed intense. But the same word is used in <a href='B:40 23:8'>Num 23:8</a>: "How shall I defy, whom [i:e. Israel] Yahweh has not defied?". Israel in covenant were counted righteous by grace, and so the wrath of God was not upon them. But they had broken that covenant, and so that wrath was indeed upon them. <a href='B:400 6:10'>Mic 6:10</a> makes the point that it was the apparently minor issues such as having dishonest weights which provoked this intense wrath (s:w:). This is how seriously God views what we might pass off as surface level sins.</p>


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<h4>Yahweh answered the angel who talked with me with kind and comforting words- The enquiry of the Angel was reflective of the "How long?" enquiry of the faithful remnant. In response to them, the consolation of Zion would be forthcoming from God. There is &nbsp;a highly significant connection here with Isaiah 40, the start of Isaiah’s prophecies concerning the restoration, repeated in Isa 57:8 [s:w:]. Nehemiah means ’Comfort of Yah’; ’Nehemiah ye, Nehemiah ye My people’. The Angel spoke comfort to Jerusalem through the words and work of Nehemiah. The ’comforter’ prophecy was refused by the returned exiles, and was reapplied to John the Baptist heralding the coming of the Lord Jesus; and now the promise of the Comforter, the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer, reflects a reapplication of this comfort to those who now flee Babylon and commit themselves to the things of the Kingdom.</h4>


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<p>So the angel who talked with me said to me, Proclaim, saying, ‘Thus says Yahweh of Armies: I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy-&nbsp; "Jealous" being the same Hebrew word translated&nbsp; "zealous", we see the tremendous zeal of God through the Angels for the restoration. Hence the ability of Ezra and Zerubbabel to achieve so much, seeing that they worked with the Angel, the eye of their God upon them for good whilst they wished to work with Him (<a href='B:150 5:5'>Ezr 5:5</a>). The pathetic, half hearted response of the Jews due to their obsession with materialism as decried by Haggai, Malachi, Ezra and Nehemiah must have been so ’frustrating’ for the Angels, who were willing to provide so much power and success for those who would whole-heartedly commit themselves to the work. How many similarities with the new Israel? God’s enthusiasm to work with His people was to be’proclaimed’ by Zechariah, literally ’cried out’. God so wishes to work with us in the Kingdom work, and will overcome all obstacles.</p>


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<h4>I am very angry with the nations that are at ease- LXX "And I am very angry with the heathen that combine to attack her: forasmuch as I indeed was a little angry, but they combined to attack her for evil". This idea of combined attack recalls the historical banding together of the Jews’ enemies against the temple project as recorded in Ezra and Nehemiah. The historical record doesn’t reflect the intense anger of God against the likes of Sanballat. But here we see the depth of His feelings against any who work against the work of building His Kingdom and house. May we not be amongst that group, through our exclusive policies and church politics. These prophecies all have their final fulfilment in the last days, seeing Judah at Zechariah’s time failed to respond in order to enable their fulfilment. The combining together of the surrounding nations against Judah at a time when they are apparently at peace (:11) is the scenario of Ezekiel 38, and perhaps this was the intended primary fulfilment of <a href='B:330 38:11'>Eze 38:11</a>.</h4><h4>For I was but a little displeased, but they added to the calamity- God’s huge displeasure with Judah was indeed fierce, but it was only a fraction of His anger against her abusers. See on :2; <a href='B:450 8:2'>Zec 8:2</a>.</h4>


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<h4>Therefore thus says Yahweh: I have returned to Jerusalem with mercy. My house shall be built in it, says Yahweh of Armies- "I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies: My house shall be built in it, saith the Lord of Hosts, and a line shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem". As the Jews literally returned to Jerusalem, the Angel too physically returned to "My house"- where He used to live. To some limited degree the Angel must have literally been in the temple- as Ezekiel 40 prophesied would happen. The Angel cherubim which departed from Zion in Ezekiel 1, 10 would return. However, in the same way as the temple described by Ezekiel was not built on the scale intended by the Angels because of Israel’s apathy, so maybe the Angelic presence too was greatly diminished to what it could have been. The presence of the temple Angel in Luke 1 indicates that He was there to some degree.</h4><p>God had stipulated that He would return if Judah returned to Him (:3). But He took the initiative and returne to them; such is His grace and earnest desire to rebuild relationship with His sinful people. And yet a far greater level of Divine ’return’ was promised if they indeed repented (see on <a href='B:450 2:10'>Zec 2:10</a>). This is to be our pattern in building relationships with others; forgiving and accepting the impenitent in the hope they will be led by God’s goodness to repentance.</p><p>And a builders’ line shall be stretched forth over Jerusalem’- <a href='B:290 54:2'>Isa 54:2</a> bids the returning exiles to “enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords!”. Yet Isaiah so often uses the idea of ‘stretching out’ the Heavens with reference to His creation of His new Kingdom (<a href='B:290 40:22'>Isa 40:22</a>; <a href='B:290 42:5'>Isa 42:5</a>; <a href='B:290 44:24'>Isa 44:24</a>; <a href='B:290 45:15'>Isa 45:15</a>; <a href='B:290 51:13'>Isa 51:13</a>; <a href='B:290 65:17-18'>Isa 65:17-18</a>). <a href='B:450 1:6'>Zec 1:6</a> cp. 12:1 show that to stretch out Jerusalem is parallel with stretching out the ‘heavens’. The ‘singing’ of the heavens refers to Judah’s intended joy at the restoration (<a href='B:290 49:13'>Isa 49:13</a> cp. 48:20). Israel were being told to peg out their tent as wide and far as they could; because this would be the extent of their Kingdom. The Kingdom would be as ‘large’ for them as they had vision for in this life. And sadly they gave up on the rebuilding plans to focus upon their own houses, as Haggai laments.</p><p>The Lord of Hosts stretched the line upon Jerusalem by the Angel surveying and measuring Jerusalem as described in Ezekiel 40-48. But the prophecy was reapplied in Revelation 11 to mean that the Angels would measure Jerusalem unto destruction in the last days, because they failed to fulfil these prophecies.</p><h4>The exact dimensions of the temple given in Ezekiel recall <a href='B:450 1:16'>Zec 1:16</a>; <a href='B:450 2:11'>Zec 2:11</a>, where the Angel accurately measures Jerusalem in preparation for the rebuilding of the temple. In the same way as it is possible to argue that Christ’s second coming in AD70 was described in detail but was postponed to the last days because of Israel’s lack of spiritual response, it may be that Ezekiel’s visions of the temple were what should have been achieved during the&nbsp; restoration, but were re-interpreted and reapplied in later fulfillment.</h4>


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<h4>Proclaim further, saying, ‘Thus says Yahweh of Armies: My cities will again overflow with prosperity, and Yahweh will again comfort Zion, and will again choose Jerusalem’-As noted on 13: , this was the same “comfort to Zion” of <a href='B:290 40:1'>Isa 40:1</a>. But Israel would not follow God back to Jerusalem, and those who did generally were consumed with their own petty self interest. And so the prophecies and promises of “comfort to Zion” were re-interpretted and fulfilled in a spiritual sense in the ministry of the Lord Jesus. God had gone ahead of them- He had returned to Zion already, and bid Israel follow Him there.</h4><h4>Haggai and Malachi lament the effects of the famine in Judah which was affecting the exiles. The cities of Judah were not overflowing with prosperity; but the tragedy was that they could have done. The choosing of Jerusalem is always associated with God’s respect of the covenant with David (<a href='B:110 11:13'>1Ki 11:13</a>; <a href='B:110 11:32'>1Ki 11:32</a>; <a href='B:110 11:36'>1Ki 11:36</a>; <a href='B:110 14:21'>1Ki 14:21</a>; <a href='B:120 21:7'>2Ki 21:7</a>; <a href='B:120 23:27'>2Ki 23:27</a> and often). Zerubbabel was in the direct line of David and could have been established as a Messianic king in the restored Kingdom of God; but it seems this didn’t work out, and he returned to Babylon.</h4>


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<p>I lifted up my eyes, and saw, and behold, four horns- Daniel 2, 7 envisaged the passage of four kings / kingdoms until a brief confused period leading to the open establishment of God’s Kingdom or mountain in eretz Israel. The sequence of four could have had its conclusion at the time of the restoration. The little horn of Daniel 7 grows out of the fourth kingdom, represented by the fourth beast. But in Daniel 8, a very similar horn grows out of Greece, the third kingdom. We can therefore conclude that the antichrist figure of Daniel 8 would have appeared as an outgrowth of the Greek kingdom, and been destroyed by Messiah’s coming. But this didn’t happen, and Antiochus Epiphanes became but an incipient fulfilment of the antichrist of the last days. Zechariah, like Daniel, contains many conditional prophecies- “And this shall come to pass, if you will diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God” (<a href='B:450 6:15'>Zec 6:15</a>). <a href='B:450 9:13'>Zec 9:13</a> appears to be another such conditional prophecy, similar in reference to that of Daniel 8 about the possibility of Messiah’s coming at the time of the Greek empire. God says He will place Ephraim within the bow of Judah, to be fired at her enemies; and He would “raise up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece” (<a href='B:450 9:13'>Zec 9:13</a>), leading to the final salvation of God’s people, the establishment of Messiah’s Kingdom, and her Messianic king coming unto her (<a href='B:450 9:9'>Zec 9:9</a>). But this didn’t come true; the resistance of the Maccabees was not based on true spirituality, and the Romans took over control of the land from the Greeks. No Messianic Kingdom was established. This would explain the purposeful ambiguity of interpretation which there is in the image of Daniel 2; a good case can be made for the sequence Babylon-Media-Persia-Greece, and yet also for the sequence Babylon-Medo Persia- Greece-Rome. Daniel 8 predicts the breakup of the Greek empire after Alexander’s death into four horns, out of which a little horn arises (<a href='B:340 8:8'>Dan 8:8</a>). The only other prophetic reference to four horns is again here in Zechariah when we read of how the four horns who had scattered God’s people were to be cut off by the carpenters (<a href='B:450 1:18-19'>Zec 1:18-19</a>):&nbsp; The carpenters surely look forward to the carpenter Messiah. He could have appeared and cut off those four horns; but He did not, and so another prophetic sequence was allowed, in which another [fourth] beast arose, this time with ten horns, not just four. And in Revelation we find this developed further, in that seven heads also appear on the beast, and a whore rides the best, sitting upon [another?] seven hills / kingdoms. The number and ferocity of the enemies of God’s people seems to increase over time. If Israel had repented earlier, then all this would have been unnecessary. The three horses of Zechariah 1 thus become four horses in Zechariah 6. The fact the four cherubim chariots are sent out in judgment of those same coloured horses speaks of how all earthly entities have their representative Angels in Heaven. &nbsp;See on <a href='B:450 1:12'>Zec 1:12</a>.</p>


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<h4>I asked the angel who talked with me, What are these? He answered me, These are the horns which have scattered Judah- "Four horns. . . which have scattered Judah, Israel and Jerusalem". The number four is associated with the four cherubim Angels- the four types of Angel-controlled punishment often presented in the prophets. The horns were the powers which scattered Judah, but they refer also to the Angels. The simple takeaway is that all evil in the lives of God’s people is under His strict control. Thus the four horns here would equate with the four living creatures of the cherubim and also of Daniel, and therefore&nbsp; the four nations of Daniel 2. <a href='B:340 8:8'>Dan 8:8</a> provides an example of these links: "When he was strong, the great horn was broken (see the link between horns and the cherubim- Angels in <a href='B:420 3:3-5'>Hab 3:3-5</a>; the Angel behind Alexander); and for it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of Heaven". This would therefore describe the division of Alexander’s Kingdom between four Angels- the "notable ones" or "winds", each of whom controlled one of Alexander’s succeeding generals. His Kingdom was "divided toward the four winds of Heaven" (<a href='B:340 11:4'>Dan 11:4</a>)- the Kingdom was not literally scattered throughout the world, but divided to four Angel-winds.</h4><h4>Israel, and Jerusalem- It was God’s purpose to regather not only Judah but also the ten tribe kingdom of Israel. But very few of the ten tribes wished to return; so again, the fulfilment of the Kingdom prophecies and acceptance of the new covenant was precluded by God’s people not wanting to respond to it, preferring rather to cling on to the shell of their religion rather than experiencing it for real for themselves.</h4>


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<p>Yahweh showed me four carpenters- The horns who dominated the land were Angelically controlled, but so was their destruction. But the LXX here and in :21 reads differently: "And the Lord shewed me four artificers:&nbsp;And I said, What are these coming to do? And he said, These are the horns that scattered Judah, and they broke Israel in pieces, and none of them lifted up his head: and these are come forth to sharpen them for their hands, even the four horns, the nations that lifted up the horn against the land of the Lord to scatter it. The idea could be that the preparation of Judah’s enemies had been in Angelic hands, and so their restoration likewise was.</p>


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<h4>Then I asked, What are these coming to do?- Zechariah assumed that this was a prophecy of future desolation of the land, but was told that the horns were the powers which had already scattered Judah.</h4>&nbsp;<p>He said, These are the horns which scattered Judah, so that no man lifted up his head- Judah was"scattered", throughout the territories controlled by Babylon and later Persia. A man who cannot lift up his head is a man in penitence (<a href='B:490 18:13'>Luk 18:13</a>). The Divine plan was that the exile would elicit repentance amongst the Jews; but this didn’t happen. Only when it occurs in the last days will the Kingdom be re-established.</p><p>But these have come to saw them off, to cast down the horns of the nations, which lifted up their horn against the land of Judah to scatter it- See on :20. The sawing off of animal horns was done to make the beast powerless and no longer dangerous. No longer would Judah need to fear the beasts of the nations. The"horns"are therefore assumed to be on beasts; we therefore have here a repetition of the four beasts of Daniel 7. And the point is that there were Angels appointed to do this for each of the horns; and those same Angels were powerful to restore Judah.</p>&nbsp;<p>The four carpenter Angels"frayed"the horn Angels which had scattered Israel. The Hebrew for ’fray’ means ’to hasten (with anxiety), to frighten’. Thus one group of Angels hastens the fulfilment of other Angels’ work; hence in&nbsp;&nbsp; :12&nbsp; an&nbsp; Angel&nbsp; prayed&nbsp; to&nbsp; the Lord of Hosts (Angels) encouraging them to end their indignation because the 70 years were ended. Similarly the Comforter Angel says that Jerusalem has"received of theLord’s hand (Angel) double (i. e. too much?) for all her sins"(<a href='B:290 40:2'>Isa 40:2</a>), and that her warfare (’appointed time’) has ended, or expired. The phrase"appointed time"is the same word translated"host", used concerning the Angels, thus indicating that the period of the captivity was under Angelic control. Thus <a href='B:340 10:1'>Dan 10:1</a> also points out that"the time appointed was long"- implying too long, seeing that"the thing was true"?. This helps us to explain Angels being in some ways in opposition to each other in Daniel, e. g. the Angel prince of Persia withstanding another Angel in His action because of the need to execute a certain time period first. Again, the simple takeaway comfort was and is that all experience of evil is under careful Divine control, mediated at that time through Angels; and it is used to propel forward God’s saving purpose.</p><h4>However, we can understand the word translated"saw::. off"as also meaning to prepare or even ’create’. Those horns / enemies of Israel were all prepared by God’s Angels, and those same Angels were powerfully at work now to restore Judah.</h4>


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<h4>I lifted up my eyes, and saw, and behold, a man with a measuring line in his hand- To measure is a double symbol, of measuring unto destruction (as in Revelation 11), and also measuring to build up. According to the response of God’s people, so His purpose with Jerusalem would be of either destruction or redemption. The"man with a measuring line"is the Angel of <a href='B:450 1:16'>Zec 1:16</a>; cp. <a href='B:330 40:3'>Eze 40:3</a>; <a href='B:330 47:3'>Eze 47:3</a>; <a href='B:730 21:15-17'>Rev 21:15-17</a>.</h4><h4>If the measuring is taken as judgment, as in <a href='B:730 11:1'>Rev 11:1</a>; <a href='B:470 7:12'>Mat 7:12</a>; <a href='B:530 4:21'>1Co 4:21</a>, then we have an Angel beginning to prepare judgements on Jerusalem, but in :3 being interrupted by another Angel who describes God’s plan to restore Jerusalem, and quickly correcting the impression made on Zechariah by the first Angel. There, the angel is told to run back and tell Zechariah that"Jerusalem shall yet be inhabited":&nbsp;&nbsp; We see here the conflict between God’s judgment and His grace, reflected in the situation amongst the Angels in the court of Heaven; and His mercy rejoices against judgment.</h4><h4>Ezekiel’s temple prophecies begin with a man / Angel with a measuring reed, measuring Jerusalem and the temple. This recurs here, where the Angel again measures the temple and then promises that Yahweh will be a protecting wall of fire around the city, meaning that the Jews should fearlessly return from Babylon (2:5-10). There follows a description of God’s Kingdom on earth, with God Himself dwelling in Zion and all nations converting to Him. Yet the Jews returned with fear from Babylon- or some of them did. And they fussed so much about building a wall to protect them, in studied disregard of God’s promise here. God helped them build the wall- He was still so keen to work with them. And He later encouraged them that “I will encamp about mine house because of the army, because of him that passeth by, and because of him that returneth [s:w. used about Judah’s return from captivity, <a href='B:150 2:1'>Ezr 2:1</a>; <a href='B:150 6:21'>Ezr 6:21</a>]: and no oppressor shall pass through them any more” (<a href='B:450 9:7-8'>Zec 9:7-8</a>).</h4>


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<p>Then I asked, Where are you going? He said to me, To measure Jerusalem, to see what is its breadth and what is its length- As noted on :1, measuring is a double symbol- measuring in judgment, and in upbuilding. Jerusalem was being measured as it was; the idea here may be that God was assessing the spiritual condition of Jerusalem, and if they were indeed repentant, then the city would be built up into the capital of the restored Kingdom of God in Israel. Ultimately, God’s desire to push through His Kingdom purpose with Israel at this time didn’t work out. But these prophecies shall come ultimately true, when the new Jerusalem is built and the Angel then finds the length, breadth and height to be"equal"(<a href='B:730 21:15-17'>Rev 21:15-17</a>).</p>


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<p>Behold, the angel who talked with me went forth, and another angel went out to meet him- See on <a href='B:290 37:36'>Isa 37:36</a>. As explained on :1, the Angel measuring Jerusalem for judgment is as it were interrupted by another, who is told to run back and tell Zechariah that in fact Jerusalem will be reinstated by God, even though Judah were lacking in their spiritual dimensions.</p>


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<h4>And said to him, Run, speak to this young man, saying, ‘Jerusalem will be inhabited as villages without walls, because of the multitude of men and livestock in it- As explained on :1, the ’running’ [back] was in jubilation at the good news; Jerusalem had been measured, and although spiritually wanting [as Haggai and Malachi make clear], yet by grace it would be built up and the promised conditions of the restored Kingdom would come about. This was by grace alone. The fact the exiles refused to respond was indeed tragic. We note that Zechariah was a"young man"; God so often uses youth in His service. The language of blessing here is that of <a href='B:330 36:4'>Eze 36:4</a>; these things could have come to pass if Judah had truly accepted the new deal offered them in the new covenant. But they didn’t, and so such prophecies are delayed in fulfilment until the last days. “Now the city was large and great: but the people were few therein, and the houses were not builded”. They were happier to settle outside of Jerusalem and concentrate on building up their own farms in the villages and small towns of Judah, rather than sense the importance of Zion. <a href='B:160 11:1-3'>Neh 11:1-3</a> suggests that so few wanted to live in Jerusalem because of the persecution there, that they had to draw lots to get at least a tenth of the total population to live there- in what should have been the capital. If more had returned from Babylon, if more had lived in Jerusalem, then Yahweh would have been a wall of fire to them, and then the Kingdom conditions described in the rest of Zechariah 2 would have come about. Although the restoration prophecies speak as if the increase of Zion’s population was to be unconditional, <a href='B:330 36:37'>Eze 36:37</a> implies that this would only happen if they prayed for it: “Thus saith the Lord God; I will yet for this be inquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them; I will increase them with men like a flock”. But they got on with building their own homes and farms outside Jerusalem, they blessed those who had the courage to live in Zion itself, but didn’t earnestly pray for the fulfilment of the prophecies. They figured that the time for their fulfilment hadn’t come, as Haggai laments; instead of praying for their fulfilment.</h4><p>The Jews were asked to leave Babylon so that Jerusalem would have an"abundance of peoples", in language evidently appropriate to the Messianic Kingdom. And yet they for the most part remained in Babylon, and thus showed they didn’t want to do their part in making that prophecy of the Kingdom come true in their experience.</p><p>Jerusalem could have been a city without walls, with God’s protection (2:4-6). But Israel lacked faith, and therefore God came down to their lower level and allowed them to build a wall, and worked with them in thIsa. The exercise of building that wall was a display of great faith and zeal on Nehemiah’s part; yet in fact the work he did was a result of Israel’s limiting God by their lack of faith, even though Nehemiah himself had faith. Indeed the whole failure of Israel became"riches for the world."(<a href='B:520 11:12'>Rom 11:12</a>)&nbsp; Nothing is ultimately wasted or lost. Nothing can be done against the Truth (<a href='B:540 13:8'>2Co 13:8</a>).</p><h4>So the Jews built a wall and appointed human guards over them (<a href='B:160 4:15'>Neh 4:15</a>; <a href='B:160 4:22'>Neh 4:22</a>), even though Yahweh Himself had promised to be their wall and their guard (<a href='B:450 2:4-5'>Zec 2:4-5</a>). And <a href='B:450 12:8'>Zec 12:8</a> had repeated it: “In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David”. But they didn’t want to believe it, as they cowered in fear from those who “came to fight against Jerusalem” (<a href='B:450 4:8'>Zec 4:8</a>), whom Zechariah prophesied would be destroyed by Yahweh. And yet He graciously worked with them in their plan to build a physical wall, just as He worked through their desire for human kingship and a physical temple in earlier days, even though it was not His ideal intention.</h4>


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<h4>For I’, says Yahweh, ‘will be to her a wall of fire around it, and I will be the glory in the midst of her- This is the situation foreseen in Ezekiel 48, where God’s presence and glory would be in Zion because the cherubim which had departed in Ezekiel 1 would return there. Ezra had recognised this promise, that God would be a wall to them (<a href='B:150 9:9'>Ezr 9:9</a>). Note how this prophecy is introduced by an Angel with a measuring reed measuring out the rebuilt Zion (<a href='B:450 2:1'>Zec 2:1</a>), just as we have in Ezekiel 40. But Judah disbelieved the promise of a Divine wall of fire, and insisted on building a physical wall to protect them; and the record in Nehemiah has plenty of reference to their setting up of bars and gates in their fear (<a href='B:160 3:3'>Neh 3:3</a>; <a href='B:160 3:6'>Neh 3:6</a>; Neh 313-15). By doing so they disallowed the fulfilment of <a href='B:330 38:11'>Eze 38:11</a>, and thereby precluded what was prophesied as subsequently following. If they had trusted Him and paid their tithes, their cattle would have multiplied, and the Scythian tribes would have come down to seek to take them, as <a href='B:330 38:12-13'>Eze 38:12-13</a> foretold. But as it happened, their cattle were diseased and their agriculture not blessed because of their dilatory attention to Yahweh’s house that lay waste (<a href='B:440 1:11'>Hag 1:11</a>). So therefore there was no invasion, and no victory against the nations, and no Kingdom established at that time.</h4><p>The reference to fire has reference to the Angels’ part in the restoration and protection of Zion. As the Angel had been a pillar of protecting fire to Israel previously, He would be to them instead of a physical wall as they started rebuilding Jerusalem amidst great opposition, with no physical wall to protect them. The Angelic language continues:"Thus saith the Lord of Hosts (Angels)::. I will come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee"(2:8,10 AV)- i:e. the Angel and the associated shekinah glory would physically return to Jerusalem. The primary fulfilment of this was in the return from Babylon- the Angel led them back across the deserts, physically moving with them, to enter Jerusalem; as foreseen in the cherubim visions of Ezekiel. This would explain the restoration from Babylon in terms of the wilderness journey and the Angel’s guidance of them then- because this very same Angel was involved in leading them through a different wilderness, back to Israel.</p><h4>Joshua didn’t live up to the conditional prophecies made about him in Zechariah. Ezra and Nehemiah seem to have taken over the priestly and kingly work of Joshua and Zerubbabel respectively. Nehemiah’s record concludes on the negative note that Judah had forsaken Zion (<a href='B:160 13:11'>Neh 13:11</a>)- even though God promised to come and dwell in the midst of Zion! Nobody wanted to live in Jerusalem because of the persecution there; the Levites even went and lived outside it where they had “fields”, because they weren’t given their tithes (<a href='B:160 13:10'>Neh 13:10</a>). Lots had to be drawn to get people to live there (<a href='B:160 11:1'>Neh 11:1</a>). It became a ghost town, when it should have been inhabited as a town without walls for the multitudes of returned exiles joyfully dwelling there (:5). It was God’s intention that ten men (a reference to Israelites of the ten tribes?) would take hold of the skirts of a Jew (i:e. one of Judah) and come with him to worship in the new temple (<a href='B:450 8:23'>Zec 8:23</a>). But in fact the opposite happened. So few wanted to live in Jerusalem, that the rulers had to cast lots to force one in ten Jews to go and live in Jerusalem (<a href='B:160 11:1'>Neh 11:1</a>). And the ten tribes didn’t really unite with Judah, but went off and got lost in the Gentile world.</h4>


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<h4>Come! Come! Flee from the land of the north’, says Yahweh- By Zechariah’s time there had already been ample opportunity for the people to return from captivity. But most remained there. A greater return was required for the restoration prophecies to come true, but that depended upon whether they wished to quit their idolatry and comfortable life which arose especially after the history of Esther. Fleeing is the word so often used of fleeing into a city of refuge(Numbers 35 etc:). The implication would be that indeed Judah had sinned in the land of the north, but they were to flee to Zion as the ultimate city of refuge, protected by a wall of Divine fire."Come!"translates the word usually used for"woe"or"alas". The idea was that if they remained in the land of the north, they were under threat for their lives. But when Babylon fell, the Jews prospered under Cyrus [consider how the Jews came to popularity at the end of Esther]; so much so that he eagerly encouraged them to return to their homeland:&nbsp; The threat was therefore of spiritual death; that was the danger, and it came true for them. Thus <a href='B:300 51:6'>Jer 51:6</a> urges flight from Babylon"and deliver every man his soul"(<a href='B:300 50:6'>Jer 50:6</a>).</h4><h4>‘For I have spread you abroad as the four winds of the sky’, says Yahweh- <a href='B:450 1:21'>Zec 1:21</a> made it clear that it was the Angelically controlled"horns"who had scattered Judah. Again God assures His people that it was He who had done this; all that had happened to them had been under His direct control, and was all part of His wider purpose in preparing them for the wonders of the restored Kingdom of God on earth. The"four winds"connect with the four horns; and God makes His Angels spirits or winds (<a href='B:230 104:4'>Psa 104:4</a>). The number four recalls the four living creatures of the cherubim Angels.</h4>


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<h4>‘Come, Zion! Escape, you who dwell with the daughter of Babylon’- As noted on :6, the need to"escape"was not from literal extermination, but from spiritual death there. “Come out from among them and be separate” (<a href='B:540 6:17'>2Co 6:17</a>) is picking up this language (also of <a href='B:290 48:20'>Isa 48:20</a>; <a href='B:290 52:11'>Isa 52:11</a>; <a href='B:300 50:8'>Jer 50:8</a>) concerning the return of the exiles from Babylon. The edict of Cyrus for the Jews to return to the land is in a sense pointing forward to God’s command to us to leave the spirit of Babylon, the Gentile world, and go up to do His work. The returned exiles are us. Those who left Babylon did so of their own freewill (<a href='B:150 7:13'>Ezr 7:13</a>), and yet providential events stirred up their spirits to do this (<a href='B:150 1:5'>Ezr 1:5</a>); and the way was prepared in miraculous way. And so it is for us, in our exodus from this world and from the flesh. In spiritual terms, Judah in Babylon were as captives in the prison cell, waiting to be released and return to their land, according to Isaiah’s images. And these pictures are picked up and applied to all who know the redemption and restoration of Christ.</h4><h4>"The daughter of Babylon"is contrasted with"the daughter of Zion". ’The daughter of’ means having the characteristics and spirit of the father or mother. The daughter of Zion, identifying with Zion, could not dwell with the daughters of Babylon- unless she had become a daughter of Babylon herself. The fact most of the exiles chose to remain in captivity speaks sadly so much of their sense of identity.</h4>


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<h4>For thus says Yahweh of Armies: ‘For honour He has sent me to the nations which plundered you; for he who touches you touches the apple of His eye- The GNB is closest to the correct sense here:"Anyone who strikes you strikes what is most precious to me. So the LORD Almighty sent me with this message for the nations that had plundered his people". Verse 9 then becomes Zechariah’s message to the Gentiles, which presumably he actually took to them. As explained on <a href='B:450 1:2'>Zec 1:2</a>, God’s great anger with Judah was less than His anger against those who had plundered them. Even in their suffering and punishment, God’s people were still the apple of His eye."The apple of His eye"speaks not only of God’s extreme sensitivity toward His people; this phrase was a Hebraism for a man’s wife. Who would a man be more angry with? His wife because she cheated on him repeatedly and is exposed; or a bunch of hoods who rape her after her infidelity has been exposed? The man who truly loved his wife would be more angry with the rapists, and so it was with God.</h4><h4>Isaiah had prophesied that God would not rest until Zion be restored. Watchmen would be set upon Zion’s walls who would give Him no rest until the walls be rebuilt (<a href='B:290 62:1'>Isa 62:1</a>; <a href='B:290 62:6-7'>Isa 62:6-7</a>). At this time, Zion was felt by God to be the “apple of his eye” (<a href='B:450 2:8'>Zec 2:8</a>). This prophesy started to be fulfilled straight after the Babylonian invasion when Jeremiah urged the desolated people to pray: “O wall of the daughter of Zion, let tears run down like a river day and night: give thyself no rest; let not the apple of thine eye cease” (<a href='B:310 2:18'>Lam 2:18</a>). The prayerful remnant were to give themselves no rest; and thus was fulfilled the prophecy that God would have no rest. Sincere prayer according to God’s will would have meant that there was a strange mutuality between the Father and those who prayed to Him. Both He and they would consider Zion to be the apple of their eye; and thus the prayers would ultimately be answered and Zion was restored. And yet despite this fervent prayer, God still attempted to restore Zion. Such was His grace and desire to bring about His saving purpose even with those who were indifferent to it.</h4>


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<h4>For, behold, I will shake My hand over them- An idiom for direct Divine action.</h4><p>And they will be a spoil to those who served them- This repeats the message of <a href='B:300 50:10'>Jer 50:10</a>, which uses the same word for"spoil":"Chaldea shall be a prey: all who prey on her shall be satisfied". When Babylon fell, the Jews were intended to spoil her and take that spoil to the promised land, just as they had done with Egypt on Passover night. The prophecies that the Gentile rulers of Judah will be their servants clearly show that Judah wasn’t intended to remain a mere subject kingdom of the Persian empire. So much was possible- but they chose to remain, to take the easier option- which is always to remain within the structures we are safe and familiar with.</p><h4>And you will know that Yahweh of Armies has sent me- See on :11.</h4>


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<h4>Sing and rejoice, daughter of Zion; for, behold, I come, and I will dwell in the middle of you’, says Yahweh- God had already returned to Zion by grace even though they had not returned to Him (<a href='B:450 1:3'>Zec 1:3</a>; see on <a href='B:450 1:16'>Zec 1:16</a>), and yet He promises a far greater’return’ if His people rejoice at that prospect and repent. He did the same in <a href='B:450 1:3'>Zec 1:3</a>:"‘Return to me’, says Yahweh of Armies, ‘and I will return to you’". God’s glory would have dwelt not only in the temple but in the whole city of Jerusalem, according to Isaiah’s prophecies. But there is no evidence that the shekinah glory ever actually returned to the rebuilt temple let alone was visibly present over the whole rebuilt city of Jerusalem.</h4><h4>Bar_1:12 records the exiles praying “that we may live long under the protective shadow of [the] king of Babylon”. This is in sad contrast to Daniel’s prophecies that the sheltering tree of Babylon was to be cut down! There ought to have been an urgency about the need to flee from Babylon. <a href='B:450 2:10'>Zec 2:10</a> speaks of the need to"flee"and"escape"- the language of crisIsa. And the call"Ho!"means quite literally"Hey!!". The urgency to flee was spiritual rather than physical- for there’s no evidence that when Babylon fell to the Persians, the Jews were punished. Indeed they appear [from Esther] to have prospered even more. Hence the urgent appeal was to flee from the spiritual crisis which they faced in Babylon. And yet they didn’t perceive the danger, just as so many today don’t. For the call to leave Babylon is applied in New Testament passages like 2 Corinthians 6 to our call to leave the world in which we live. The urgency of ’fleeing’ from Babylon was understood by Nehemiah, when he referred to those who had returned to the land as those who has"escaped"from Babylon (<a href='B:160 1:2'>Neh 1:2</a>)- even though they had returned with every blessing from the authorities. He perceived as few did the vital danger of remaining in the soft life of Babylon. Ezra likewise had referred to the Jews in Babylon as those"in bondage::. bondmen"(<a href='B:150 9:9'>Ezr 9:9</a>)- when historical records, as well as the book of Esther and the fact Nehemiah the Jew was the king’s cupbearer, show that the Jews were very far from being servants in Babylonian society. Yet Ezra perceived the spiritual poverty and servanthood of remaining in that affluent society.</h4>


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<h4>Many nations shall join themselves to Yahweh in that day, and shall be My people; and I will dwell in the middle of you- The Divine intention was that the Gentile nations in the land would be joined to Yahweh in repentance along with the repentant Jews. But instead, the Jews copied the pagan ways of those nations (as latter Isaiah, Ezra and Nehemiah demonstrate), and became arrogantly exclusive of them personally. And so the fulfilment of this prophecy was precluded by the behaviour of the exiles, and it has been rescheduled to the last days. That Yahweh Himself would dwell in the rebuilt temple is stressed here in Zechariah; it would be the fulfilment of <a href='B:330 48:35'>Eze 48:35</a>, that the name of the rebuilt Zion would be"Yahweh is there". But Judah didn’t build the temple according to the preceding specifications in Ezekiel 40-48; and so Yahweh’s intimate presence was not found there.</h4><p>The implication is that many nations as well as Judah would join themselves to Yahweh. <a href='B:300 50:4-5'>Jer 50:4-5</a> had described the possibility after the fall of Babylon:"In those days, and in that time, says Yahweh, the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together; they shall go on their way weeping, and shall seek Yahweh their God. They shall inquire concerning Zion with their faces turned towards it saying, Come, and join yourselves to Yahweh in an everlasting covenant that shall not be forgotten". But Israel and Judah did not then reunite, they did not accept the new covenant offered. The Gentiles’ envisaged ’joining themselves to Yahweh’ is that spoken of in <a href='B:290 56:6'>Isa 56:6</a>, where it is stated that this would involve their keeping the sabbath. Sabbath keeping is now not required for those in Christ; we are therefore reading of a situation envisaged as happening at the time of the restoration which never actually came about. It was a scenario also envisaged in <a href='B:290 14:1'>Isa 14:1</a>:"For Yahweh will have compassion on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land. The foreigner will join himself with them, and they will unite with the house of Jacob". But instead, Hezekiah joined himself with the spirit of Babylon, rather than the other way around.</p><h4>And you shall know that Yahweh of Armies has sent me to you- The implication would be that the Jews viewed this young man (:4) Zechariah sceptically, perhaps disliking his message of union with God on an equal footing to Gentiles. But he would be vindicated when the Kingdom prophecies were fulfilled, with the implication being that his generation would live to see this joining of the Gentiles to Yahweh and His presence in a restored Zion. All these things were rescheduled and reapplied to Jew and Gentile being joined together in Christ under the new covenant, to come to literal fulfilment at His second coming.</h4>


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<h4>Yahweh will nherit Judah as His portion- The allusion is to <a href='B:50 32:8-9'>Deu 32:8-9</a>, where Israel are God’s personal portion and inheritance:"When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when He separated the children of men, He set the bounds of the peoples according to the number of the children of Israel. For Yahweh’s portion is His people; Jacob is the lot of His inheritance". The metaphor reflects how intimate is His relationship with them, and how passionate His hope for them. Despite the other nations being joined to Him (:11), Judah would still be His special portion.</h4><p>In the holy land- The idea is that the land would be made holy, cleansed by God’s forgiveness; not that it is holy of itself.</p><h4>And will again choose Jerusalem- As explained on <a href='B:450 1:17'>Zec 1:17</a>, the choosing of Jerusalem meant the re-establishment of the Davidic throne in the person of Zerubbabel. But this possibility didn’t happen when it could have done. The latter chapters of Ezekiel stress how Israel were to “inherit” the land; yet the same word is used in other restoration prophecies, about Messiah causing Israel to “inherit” the land again after their return from “the north country” (<a href='B:450 2:12'>Zec 2:12</a>; <a href='B:450 8:12'>Zec 8:12</a>; <a href='B:290 49:8'>Isa 49:8</a>; <a href='B:300 3:18'>Jer 3:18</a>). When Judah returned from the “north country”, then Jerusalem would be the universally recognized “throne of the Lord” (<a href='B:300 3:17-18'>Jer 3:17-18</a>). The Kingdom could have come when Judah returned from Babylon. It was therefore potentially possible for the returning exiles to inherit all the land outlined in <a href='B:330 47:13-21'>Eze 47:13-21</a> and share it out between the 12 tribes. But they grabbed every man for himself, his own farmstead, his own mini-Kingdom. They had no interest in the wider vision, nor in subduing extra land; and the majority of the Jews didn’t even want to inherit it; they preferred the soft life of Babylon, the Kingdom of men rather than the Kingdom of God. And thus the Kingdom made possible was never actually fulfilled at that time.</h4>


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<h4>Be silent, all flesh, before Yahweh- The idea of silence before Yahweh is of repentance. This was an invitation to the Gentile nations to repent, and this bring about the joining of the nations to God spoken of in :11.</h4><h4>For He has roused Himself from His holy habitation!- This implies that God had been dwelling with His people throughout the exile, and was now as it were rousing from that and going out visibly into the world again. This didn’t happen at the restoration, although it could have done. But the point to note is that Yahweh was still within His temple, physically broken down as it was. He didn’t need a nicely built temple to inhabit His people; just as He had explained when David first wanted to build a temple. And that principle is true today. God dwells in people quite independent of any visible, religious structures.</h4>


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<h4>He showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of Yahweh- The altar was rebuilt before the temple in Ezra’s time. Perhaps we are to envisage Joshua standing before Yahweh in that he was present before His appointed place of worship. The prayers offered by Joshua the high priest were represented by an Angel presenting his case; whilst the satan Angel opposed Him, representing whatever groups in opposition to those prayers. <a href='B:450 3:8'>Zec 3:8</a> clearly tells us that the characters of verses 1 and 2 are “men of sign” (A:V. margin), i:e. we have to interpret them and see them as representative of others.</h4><p>A theme of Zechariah’s early prophecies is the opposition between groups of people, individuals or Angels who want to rebuild the temple and restore Israel, and adversaries to them. Thus in chapter 1 there are the carpenters opposed to the horns, and the Angel who wants to measure (judge) Jerusalem being countermanded by the Angel who decrees that Jerusalem is to be inhabited in chapter 2. This is continued in chapter 3:1 by the vision of Joshua and satan standing before the Angel. It is suggested that this ’satan’ is an Angel (we are familiar with satan Angels from <a href='B:130 21:1'>1Ch 21:1</a> and <a href='B:40 22:22'>Num 22:22</a> at least); this is because groups of people, even evil ones, have their viewpoint represented or brought to the notice of the court of Heaven by a satan Angel- a ’devil’s advocate’, as it were! Although as I have laboured at length in The Real Devil, Angels themselves don’t sin. The satan Angel"resists"the Angel representing Joshua. The resisting was during the 21 year period when the temple rebuilding was suspended(<a href='B:150 4:24'>Ezr 4:24</a>). This corresponds to the 21 days (years), during which the Angel prince of Persia resisted Gabriel’s work of rebuilding (<a href='B:340 10:13'>Dan 10:13</a>). Taking this further, this 21 day-year period is the same as the three weeks (21 days) which Daniel spent praying for the rebuilding to commence. Somehow the period Daniel spent praying was over-ruled; there is a sense of time in the court of Heaven, and probably will be in the Kingdom too (e:g. <a href='B:450 14:16'>Zec 14:16</a>), even if we are ourselves outside of that dimension. His prayer was answered from the first day he prayed (<a href='B:340 10:12'>Dan 10:12</a>), but despite one Angel being eager to answer it, another opposed it on account of representing those humans who opposed it. For God never treats people as puppets, never forces, but works along with human freewill and respects it, even if it is contrary to His will.</p><p>The returned exiles were very influenced by Persian and Babylonian thinking and language. It has been shown that the Babylonians believed that each person has a god who accuses them (Rivkah Scharf Kluger, Satan in the Old Testament (Evanston: Northwestern University Press, 1967), pp. 134,135). As elsewhere, Zechariah and the prophets allude to contemporary beliefs and deconstruct them, i:e. they show the truth about these matters as Yahweh wished His people to understand them, just as Moses alluded to creation myths in order to show what was false and to explain the truth about some of the matters they touched upon. So here Zechariah is making the point that the truth is that in the court of Heaven, Angels represent human beings and organizations and their positions and accusations against God’s people; and it is God who judges those accusations, and sends forth His Angels to implement His subsequent judgment of the cases upon earth. Paul may have this in mind when he exults that if God and Christ are on our side, we now have no accusers – for they are the only ones who can bring valid accusation against us. And even if we have accusers, the fact that they are our justifiers means that effectively, no such accusation is of any power (<a href='B:520 8:33-34'>Rom 8:33-34</a>).</p><p>And Satan standing at his right hand to be his adversary- Zechariah speaks of the Angels in the time of the exile and restoration from Persia “running to and fro in the earth” on God’s behalf (<a href='B:450 1:10-11'>Zec 1:10-11</a>; <a href='B:450 4:10'>Zec 4:10</a>). The ’satan’ in Job likewise does thIsa. The references to ‘wandering about on the face of the earth’ have great similarities with the language used to describe the Persian empire’s spies, called “The King’s Eye” – a kind of agent of the King who wandered around picking up information and reporting back to him. But of course, “The King’s Eye” was on the King’s side and not working against him! Satan’s walking / running “to and fro in the earth / land” and reporting back to God about an individual is thus very much taken from the Persian idea of the King’s “evil eye”, “the eye of the King”, a kind of agent provocateur, a secret police–type agent, travelling around the Kingdom and reporting back to the King about suspect individuals. The implication of course was that God and His Angels, and not the Persian King and his agents, were the ones really in control of the land. It’s maybe significant that the Septuagint translates “going to and fro” in <a href='B:220 1:7'>Job 1:7</a> with the word peripatei – and we find the same word in <a href='B:670 5:8'>1Pe 5:8</a> about the adversary of the early Christians ‘going about’ seeking them – a reference to the agents of the Roman and Jewish systems. I have elsewhere demonstrated that much of the Hebrew Bible was rewritten [under Divine inspiration] in Babylon, to bring out relevant issues for the Jewish exiles in Babylon (See my Bible Lives Chapter 11). This includes the book of Job. It can be understood as an allegory – Job, the suffering servant of the Lord, becomes a type of Israel, the suffering servant of Isaiah’s later prophecies. &nbsp;I have traced the similarities between Job and Israel, and Job and the “suffering servant”, in Bible Lives Sections 3-1-3, 3-1-5 and 3-3-7. There are many links between Isaiah’s prophecies and Job – a glance down the margin of most reference Bibles will indicate that. Just as the returning exiles faced‘satans’ in the form of local Arabic opposition, so did Job. The <a href='B:450 3:1-2'>Zec 3:1-2</a> passage uses the word ‘Satan’ to describe this opposition to the returned exiles. Note that both Zechariah 3 and Job 1 use the idea of a Heavenly court. As God put a fence around Job (<a href='B:220 1:10'>Job 1:10</a>), so He was a “wall of fire” to the returning exiles (<a href='B:450 2:5'>Zec 2:5</a>). And his final triumph and restoration, by God’s grace, was intended as a prototype for Judah in captivity. J:B. Russell mentions a Babylonian document consisting of a dialogue between a sufferer and his friend (J:B. Russell, The Devil (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1977) p. 87). Perhaps the re-writing of the book of Job during Judah’s captivity in Babylon was intended as a counter to this, explaining Yahweh’s perspective on suffering. More documentation of this in Rivkah Kluger, The Satan of the Old Testament (Evanston: Northwestern University Press, 1967). This view is confirmed in other research by Harry Torczyner, The Book of Job (Jerusalem: Kiryat–Sefer, 1981) pp. 38–45. Note that Torczyner also interprets the Satan as being in God’s service, and not in opposition to Him: “The figure and role of the Satan derives from the Persian secret service::. We now understand that there are in God’s service, as in that of any earthly king, secret roving officials, who go and come and report to him on the doings of his subjects”.</p><h4>The Angel in this vision of the court of Heaven was a satan / adversary by reason of representing the Samaritan opposition to the rebuilding of the temple. “The people of the land weakened the hands of the people of Judah, and troubled them in building” (<a href='B:150 4:4'>Ezr 4:4</a>), i:e. they acted as Satan – adversaries – to the Jews. They are actually called “the adversaries of Judah” in <a href='B:150 4:1'>Ezr 4:1</a>. They wrote “an accusation against the (new) inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem” to the king of Persia (<a href='B:150 4:6'>Ezr 4:6</a>). The Hebrew word for “accusation” is related to that translated “Satan”. The implication is that the inhabitants of the land, the Satan, were complaining to God, manifested in the angel, that the new Jewish high priest was not really valid, as he did not wear the proper clothes (they had probably been lost during the captivity). The angel tells Satan, “The Lord rebuke you”, and proceeds to clothe Joshua with a set of priestly clothes and a mitre (vs. 4,5), thus showing God’s acceptance of him. The inference behind the complaint was that God had not really chosen Jerusalem for the Jews to rebuild, and that therefore they were going ahead with their plans without God behind them. But the angel says that “the Lord::. has chosen Jerusalem”, in the same way as He had chosen Joshua to be high priest. Thus Joshua represented Jerusalem.</h4><p>But it is possible that the"Satan", the adversary to the rebuilding, was the Jewish false prophets and the resistance to the rebuilding program noted on Haggai 1. In our notes on <a href='B:300 24:1'>Jer 24:1</a> we suggested that the two baskets of figs placed before the Angel in the temple laid the basis for this vision. The baskets represented the faithful and apostate Jews. The Joshua Angel would&nbsp; have&nbsp; represented the faithful Jews eager to rebuild Jerusalem, whilst the satan Angel would represent the apostates whose very existence militated against God answering the prayers of the rest of Israel. Does the same principle apply to Israel after the spirit- that the apostasy and apathy of some hinders the answering of the common prayers of the others? And our common prayer is surely for the second coming and the greater restoration of the true temple.</p><h4>At the time of the restoration, the Jewish opposition to Yahweh’s prophets argued that Israel had been rejected by God and that there could be no High Priest any more. A convenient excuse to get on with building their own houses rather than God’s (<a href='B:440 1:3-4'>Hag 1:3-4</a>). It seems to me that it is the Jews who are the ’satan’ who is rebuked in the court scene of <a href='B:450 3:1-10'>Zec 3:1-10</a>. I have elsewhere traced the connections between the ’satan’ concept and apostate Jews (see"The Jewish Satan"in The Real Devil). This view was rebuked in the vision; but the point is that it was the Jews who were the satan / adversary to the prophets and the faithful minority. <a href='B:290 58:1-2'>Isa 58:1-2</a> is a criticism of Judah in exile and also of those who did return to the land- they sought God daily, and yet abused their brethren (<a href='B:290 58:6'>Isa 58:6</a>), just as recorded in <a href='B:160 5:15'>Neh 5:15</a>. If they had ceased from their sins,"Then shall your light break forth as the morning", if they had fed the hungry etc:, then would’ve been fulfilled the Messianic Kingdom prophecies of the light of Zion rising above the Gentiles etc. (<a href='B:290 58:10'>Isa 58:10</a>; <a href='B:290 58:12'>Isa 58:12</a> cp. <a href='B:290 60:1'>Isa 60:1</a>).</h4>


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<h4>Yahweh said to Satan, Yahweh rebuke you, Satan! Yes, Yahweh who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you!- This passage is alluded to in <a href='B:720 1:9'>Jud 1:9</a>."Michael the Archangel"there is the"Angel of the Lord"or"Yahweh"here.</h4><p>The Angel-Lord (<a href='B:720 1:9'>Jud 1:9</a>)&nbsp; says&nbsp; that despite the sins of the bad figs in Israel and the opposition of the Samaritans, His choice of rebuilding Jerusalem will stand. <a href='B:720 1:8-10'>Jud 1:8-10</a> lends support to this line of interpretation. Jude says that Michael the Archangel did not"bring a railing accusation"against the satan Angel, nor did He"despise dominion"(another Angel-ruler) or"speak evil of glories"(AV:"dignities"; the same word is in <a href='B:720 1:24'>Jud 1:24</a>"the presence of His glory"- the Angels). This marked lack of aggression which Jude emphasizes shows that there was no conflict between the Angels, as may be wrongly inferred from the severity of the English word"rebuke". Our demeanour generally, especially with each other when it is necessary to have divergent opinions, or to correct others’ ways of executing God’s purpose as they see it, should be done in the same mutually loving spirit. Notice how <a href='B:720 1:8'>Jud 1:8</a> links the satan of Zechariah 3 with a"dominion"- a ruler or ’prince’. The satan Angel who resisted the Joshua Angel for 21 days&nbsp; is"the prince of Persia"in <a href='B:340 10:13'>Dan 10:13</a>."The Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee; is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?". Another allusion in Jude (v. 23) interprets this:"Others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh". The implication is that God through the Angel just about decided in favour of saving Jerusalem out of the ’fire’ of eternal punishment (cp. <a href='B:300 17:27'>Jer 17:27</a>) for her sins- He had"compassion, making a difference"(v. 22). The"garment spotted by the flesh"must connect with the"filthy garments"worn by Joshua as he came into the Angel’s presence.</p><h4>Isn’t this a burning stick plucked out of the fire?- Jude continues his allusion to the passage when he writes of"Pulling them [weak believers] out of the fire"of condemnation for sin (<a href='B:720 1:23'>Jud 1:23</a>). The idea is that Jerusalem had been saved from condemnation for the sake of God’s grace in hearing a faithful minority; a condemnation Jerusalem rightly deserved.</h4>


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<p>Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and was standing before the angel- Joshua was without a mitre on his head (:5 implies). He was not qualified to be High Priest; and"filthy garments"Biblically speak of sin and lack of acceptance before God. Clearly :4 uses the symbol in this way. In His zeal to bring about the restoration of His Kingdom with a High Priest and Messianic King, i:e. Joshua and Zerubbabel (see on <a href='B:440 1:1'>Hag 1:1</a>), God wanted to demonstrate that He would make Joshua acceptable to Him; and the arguments against him by the adversaries, the ’satan’, whether they be Jewish or Gentile, would be overcome by His acceptance of Joshua. It would have jarred all religious sensibility to hear or read that a man in filthy garments could stand before God. But God permitted this, and changed Joshua. And in essence He is willing to do the same with sinners to this day.</p>


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<h4>He answered and spoke to those who stood before him, saying- These persons have not been mentioned specifically; but we are to understand that this is a vision of the throne room, the court of Heaven, and it is Angels who are addressed. Those who stood before Joshua are his"fellows"(:8); his priestly helpers were also represented by Angels in the court of Heaven; and the words of :8 are applied to the Lord Jesus in <a href='B:650 1:9'>Heb 1:9</a>, in demonstrating that He was greater than Angels, above His Heavenly"fellows".</h4><p>Take the filthy garments from him. To him he said, Behold, I have caused your iniquity to pass from you, and I will clothe you with rich clothing- See on <a href='B:490 19:24'>Luk 19:24</a>. Joshua was representative of the remnant; they too would be forgiven and cleansed by grace. The same Hebrew phrase is in <a href='B:400 7:14'>Mic 7:14</a>:"Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquity, and passes over the disobedience of the remnant of His heritage?".</p><h4>Although all was done by God to make Joshua a legitimate High Priest, he disappears from the scene. He didn’t live up to his potential. The prophecy was reapplied to another Joshua-Jesus, the Son of God, Mary’s Son. The clothing of Him in glory is the theme of Revelation 4, 5, which describe the important part that the Angels had to play in welcoming Christ into Heaven on His ascension, and in giving Him then His full reward and glory. Verse 8 about Joshua is quoted about the Lord Jesus in <a href='B:650 1:9'>Heb 1:9</a>.</h4>


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<h4>I said, Let them set a clean turban on his head. So they set a clean turban on his head, and clothed him- Zechariah apparently interjects in the course of what was revealed to him, as the prophets often do. For they were not mere machines of transmission, they were themselves passionately involved. He was concerned that Joshua lacked even the high priestly mitre. It was as if this was no barrier for God to accept Joshua as high priest, because the new covenant package He was offering the exiles was not exactly the same as the Law of Moses. Thus the legislation of Ezekiel 40-48 differs in many points from the Mosaic ordinances, although similar to it in outline terms. But God as it were takes on board Zechariah’s cultural and legalistic concerns, and so the vision is added to. A clean mitre is placed on his head.</h4><h4>And the angel of Yahweh was standing by- Does this mean that the Angel commanded other Angels to arrange Joshua’s forgiveness and to end his being"polluted from the priesthood"(due to lack of proven ancestry and the high priestly garments, cp. <a href='B:150 2:62'>Ezr 2:62</a>; <a href='B:160 7:64'>Neh 7:64</a>)?</h4>


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<p>The angel of Yahweh protested to Joshua, saying- As noted on <a href='B:440 1:1'>Hag 1:1</a>, the whole prophecy of Haggai was an appeal to Joshua and Zerubbabel to live up to their potential as the priest and king of the re-established Kingdom of God in Israel.</p>


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<h4>Thus says Yahweh of Armies: ‘If you will walk in My ways, and if you will follow My instructions, then you also shall judge My house-"My house"refers to the Angel dwelling again in the temple. For it is the Angel speaking here. I submit that the prophecies could have had their fulfilment in Joshua the High Priest and Zerubbabel, or some other Messianic figure at that time. Everything was made possible to enable this- Joshua, who couldn’t prove his Levitical genealogy, was given “a place of access” amongst the priesthood, those who “stood” before the Lord (<a href='B:450 3:7'>Zec 3:7</a> RV). Ezra thanked God that they had returned and that they had “a nail in his holy place” (<a href='B:150 9:8'>Ezr 9:8</a>), a reference surely to a Messiah figure whom he felt to be among them, the “nail in a sure place” of <a href='B:290 22:23'>Isa 22:23</a>. According to <a href='B:470 1:12'>Mat 1:12</a> and <a href='B:490 3:27'>Luk 3:27</a>, Zerubbabel was the Prince of Judah, and the rightful heir to David’s throne. But due to his weakness, the fulfilment was deferred to Jesus.</h4><h4>And shall also keep My courts- The"courts"are so often mentioned in Ezekiel 40-48. But Joshua didn’t. He didn’t keep the courts, but allowed Tobiah the Ammonite to set up his office for subversion in the temple chambers. Likewise Zerubbabel was to hold a measuring line in his hand and rebuild the temple (<a href='B:450 4:10'>Zec 4:10</a>), just as the Angels had held the same measuring line over the temple in Ezekiel 40 and <a href='B:450 2:1'>Zec 2:1</a>.</h4><h4>And I will give you a place of access among these who stand by- The"places to walk"is the same word in <a href='B:330 42:4'>Eze 42:4</a> about the walkways in the prophesied temple. Those who stood by were the Angels (:5); the offer of places to walk among the Angels is the same idea as being"made equal unto the Angels"in <a href='B:490 20:35-36'>Luk 20:35-36</a>.</h4>


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<h4>Hear now, Joshua the high priest, you and your fellows who sit before you; for they are men who are a sign- The priestly helpers of Joshua were represented or signified by Angels in the court of Heaven. These words are applied to the Lord Jesus in <a href='B:650 1:9'>Heb 1:9</a>, in demonstrating that He was greater than Angels, above His Heavenly"fellows". For Joshua didn’t live to his potential, or at best, Judah rejected him; and so the prophecy was to be fulfilled in another Joshua, the Lord Jesus.</h4><p>For, behold, I will bring forth My servant, the Branch- see on <a href='B:450 4:14'>Zec 4:14</a>. The reference is to Zerubbabel, ’branch of God’, who could have been the Messianic ruler at that time; see on <a href='B:440 2:23'>Hag 2:23</a>. According to Ezekiel, the prince-Messiah offers sacrifice for his own sin, and has children, to whom He will pass an inheritance. And he has to be warned not to oppress the people(<a href='B:330 46:18'>Eze 46:18</a>). It is a more comfortable interpretation, surely, to see him as primarily referring to Zerubbabel or Joshua the High Priest (<a href='B:330 44:3'>Eze 44:3</a>). But all this huge potential wasn’t realized. <a href='B:340 9:25'>Dan 9:25</a> appears to identify “the anointed one, a prince” with the restoration of Jerusalem after the return. The Masoretic punctuation of <a href='B:340 9:25'>Dan 9:25</a> actually suggests that ‘Messiah the prince’ appears after the first seven of the seventy weeks- perhaps there was the possibility 49 day-years after the command to rebuild Jerusalem for a Messiah to have appeared? This would’ve fitted Zerubbabel perfectly. <a href='B:490 3:27'>Luk 3:27</a> describes Zerubbabel as the head / chief / leader. The term ’Rhesa’ is incorrectly rendered in many versions as a name. Perhaps Luke’s point was that the Lord Jesus was the final Messiah, after the failure of so many potential ones beforehand. ‘Zerubbabel the chief’ would then be a similar rubric to “David the king” in Matthew’s genealogy (<a href='B:470 1:16'>Mat 1:16</a>). Zerubbabel was the ‘head’ of the house of David (<a href='B:150 4:3'>Ezr 4:3</a>; <a href='B:440 2:23'>Hag 2:23</a>; <a href='B:450 3:8'>Zec 3:8</a>; <a href='B:450 6:12-13'>Zec 6:12-13</a>), as was his descendant Hattush (<a href='B:150 8:1-3'>Ezr 8:1-3</a> cp. <a href='B:130 3:22'>1Ch 3:22</a>). As the grandson of Jehoiachin, Judah’s exiled king, Zerubbabel would’ve been the legitimate king of Judah. Potentially, <a href='B:350 1:11'>Hos 1:11</a> could have come true: “Judah and… Israel shall be gathered together, and they shall appoint for themselves one head [Zerubbabel?]; and they shall go up from the land, for great shall be the day of Jezreel” (RSV). And perhaps as head of the house of David, Zerubbabel was intended to be the “David my servant” who would be the one king and one shepherd who would lead Israel back to the land from exile (<a href='B:330 37:22'>Eze 37:22</a>; <a href='B:330 37:24'>Eze 37:24</a>). Significantly, <a href='B:160 7:7'>Neh 7:7</a> describes Zerubbabel as being at the head of twelve leaders of the returning exiles, who are called “the people of Israel” (cp. <a href='B:150 2:2'>Ezr 2:2</a>). See on <a href='B:450 6:12'>Zec 6:12</a>.</p><h4>And perhaps there were other possibilities apart from Zerubbabel. It could have been Eliashib- but despite his apparent enthusiasm, he didn’t even build the wall outside his own house (<a href='B:160 3:20-22'>Neh 3:20-22</a>), and arranged for his grandson to marry Sanballat’s daughter (<a href='B:160 12:10-11'>Neh 12:10-11</a>). Or it could be that"the Branch"here refers to Joshua himself. It is evident from <a href='B:330 44:3'>Eze 44:3</a>; <a href='B:330 46:3'>Eze 46:3</a> that the promised Messiah figure was to be both a king and a priest- which would fit Joshua. Here he is described as a crowned High Priest, called “the branch”, who would build the temple and reign as “a priest upon his throne”. But this didn’t happen. Because Zechariah concluded this prophecy with the comment: “And this shall come to pass, if ye will diligently obey the voice of the Lord” (<a href='B:450 6:10-15'>Zec 6:10-15</a>). Joshua-Jesus didn’t live up to it. And Zerubbabel never ruled in Jerusalem- he returned to the soft life in Babylon after the temple was rebuilt. But the prophecies only suffered a deferral. They will be fulfilled in Jesus Christ, the branch</h4>


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<h4>For, behold, the stone that I have set before Joshua; on one stone are seven eyes: behold, I will engrave its engraving’, says Yahweh of Armies- See on <a href='B:20 25:19'>Exo 25:19</a>. The removal of Joshua’s filthy garments, his sin (:4), was therefore to be seen as representative of the removal of the iniquity of all dwelling in the land. This alone ought to have encouraged the spiritually minded exiles to return to that land!</h4><p>The stone could be a symbol of Messiah, for the Messianic lamb had seven eyes in <a href='B:730 5:6'>Rev 5:6</a>. In this case, we are being told that Joshua could have become the Messiah figure for his time. He failed, and so the prophecy was applied to the Lord Jesus. The language is a criticism and deconstruction of the ideas which Judah had encountered in Babylon which later became the Zoroastrian faith. The allusion would be to the Persian belief in the seven Amshaspands who surround the throne of the Supreme, which is why the Persians referred to the senior servants of their ruler as his eyes and his ears. These ideas are being deconstructed; the One who was all these things would be the Jewish Messiah.</p><p>But the stone which flashed with eyes may allude to the urim and thummim, which were two stones which flashed. <a href='B:330 42:13'>Eze 42:13</a> commanded that in the restored temple"The priests that approach unto the Lord shall eat the most holy things”. The same words are found in <a href='B:150 2:63'>Ezr 2:63</a> and <a href='B:160 7:65'>Neh 7:65</a> - it wasn’t possible for the priests to eat of the holy things [signifying God’s acceptance of His people], because there was no record of their genealogy. Their names were not written in the “register” in fulfilment of <a href='B:330 13:9'>Eze 13:9</a>: “Neither shall they be written in the writing [s:w. ‘register’, <a href='B:150 2:62'>Ezr 2:62</a>] of the house of Israel”. Only if a priest stood up with urim and thummim could they eat of the holy things. These were two engraven stones carried in a pouch in the breastplate which flashed out Divine decisions (see H:A. Whittaker, Samuel, Saul And David for an excellent study of this). <a href='B:450 3:9'>Zec 3:9</a> prophesies that Joshua the High Priest would have the engraven stone with seven eyes- the urim and thummim. It would thereby have been possible for a priesthood who had lost their genealogy record during the sacking of the first temple to eat the holy things, and thus fulfil <a href='B:330 42:13'>Eze 42:13</a>. In a restoration context, <a href='B:290 66:21'>Isa 66:21</a> had prophesied that Yahweh would regather Judah, “And I will also take of them for priests and for Levites, saith the LORD”. This implies, surely, that He would accept some as Levites who could not otherwise prove they were. <a href='B:450 6:11'>Zec 6:11</a>; <a href='B:450 6:13'>Zec 6:13</a> speaks of Joshua being crowned with the High Priestly mitre and ‘bearing the glory’, i:e. carrying the urim and thummim in the breastplate. But all this was conditional on Joshua’s obedience: “This shall come to pass, if you will diligently obey” (<a href='B:450 6:15'>Zec 6:15</a>). Because Joshua failed, he wasn’t given the urim and thummim, or there was no response from them; therefore no decision could be given about who was an acceptable priest, and therefore the ‘Kingdom’ prophecy of <a href='B:330 42:13'>Eze 42:13</a> was left unfulfilled. So much depended upon that man. And likewise, the eternal destiny of many others depends on us. Isaiah’s prophecies of the restoration feature “the servant”- who was a symbol of both the people and a Messianic individual. His success was bound up with theirs. Thus <a href='B:290 65:9'>Isa 65:9</a>: “And I will bring forth a seed [singular] out of Jacob, and out of Judah an inheritor [singular] of my mountains: and mine elect [plural] shall inherit it, and my servants [plural] shall dwell there”. His obedience would enable the peoples’ establishment as the Kingdom. And so all these prophecies had to be fulfilled in the Lord Jesus, seeing the earlier possibilities had all failed.</p><p>The seven eyes are interpreted in <a href='B:450 4:10'>Zec 4:10</a> as the Angels who would rejoice with Zerubbabel if he lived up to his potential.</p><h4>And I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day- Joshua’s rehabilitation and forgiveness (:4,5) could have been that of the whole land. But this didn’t happen; but it was reapplied to the work of Joshua-Jesus, whose death removed sin for all time in the day of is death.</h4>


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<p>In that day’, says Yahweh of Armies, ‘every man will invite his neighbour to come under his vine and under his fig tree’- Under Joshua, the iniquity of the land could have been removed, and the Kingdom conditions realized, re-establishing the situation that was in the early days of the Kingdom (<a href='B:110 4:25'>1Ki 4:25</a>)- instead of the drought and lack of harvest which Haggai and Malachi lament:&nbsp; The Messianic Kingdom could have been brought in, the new covenant accepted by Israel.</p>


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<p>The angel who talked with me came again, and awoke me, as a man who is awaken out of his sleep- The context of Zechariah is God’s desire through him to make the returned exiles realize that God was intensely active for them. They had the impression that He was somehow distant and otherwise occupied. He wishes them to see that He is extremely present. The waking of Zechariah from sleep perhaps hints at the need to spiritually awake and perceive the critical importance of responding immediately and zealously to God’s passionate activities for His people.</p>


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<h4>He said to me, What do you see? I said, I have seen, and behold, a lampstand all of gold, with its bowl on the top of it, and its seven lamps thereon- The "seven lamps are the seven eyes of the Lord, which run to and fro through the whole earth" (<a href='B:450 4:2'>Zec 4:2</a>; <a href='B:450 4:10'>Zec 4:10</a>)- i:e. they represent the Angels active in the land of Israel to enable the restoration. They are energized by the spirit in the bowl; for God makes His Angels spirits (<a href='B:230 104:4'>Psa 104:4</a>). God’s Spirit is just as much at work today, mediated by His Son rather than through the Angels as it was in Old Testament times. The candlestick being part of the tabernacle was therefore also a "pattern of things in the Heavens"; it represented how the Heavenly organization of Angels works. See on <a href='B:300 1:11-12'>Jer 1:11-12</a>. The candlestick in the tabernacle had seven bowls (<a href='B:20 25:31'>Exo 25:31</a>), but this has only one. As noted often, the restored temple of Ezekiel 40-48 was significantly different, although broadly similar to, the Mosaic arrangements. The seven lamps "are the seven spirits of God" in the vision of the temple in <a href='B:730 4:5'>Rev 4:5</a>. The whole vision speaks of the activity of God through His Spirit and through the operation of the Angels in order to enable His work to go ahead. It was to encourage the returned exiles that so much was now possible, so much strength was behind them. The sons of Zion were as fine gold (<a href='B:310 4:2'>Lam 4:2</a>); the candlestick system was to be the restored Israel. They were to be the light of the earth / land promised to Abraham, manifesting and empowered by God’s Spirit. This whole system was God’s vision for the returned exiles. It didn’t come about, and so the system has been reapplied to the new Israel, who are to shine as lights in the world, enlivened by the Spirit.</h4><h4>There are seven pipes to each of the lamps, which are on the top of it- "Seven pipes" is literally "seven and seven pipes to the lamps"; it could mean 14, or 49. In this case the vision was of a lampstand far larger and brighter than that in the Mosaic tabernacle. It didn’t come about then, and so was fulfilled in terms of the Christian church, presented in Revelation 1 as seven candlesticks with seven lamps on each, i:e. 49 lamps. <a href='B:300 25:11-12'>Jer 25:11-12</a> and <a href='B:300 29:10'>Jer 29:10</a> speak of a 70 year period of Babylonian rule over Judah, beginning with the invasion of BC597. But Babylon only ruled over Judah for 49 years, before Babylon fell to the Persians. This would connect with the way that <a href='B:450 4:3'>Zec 4:3</a> speaks of 7 menorah candlesticks each with 7 lamps, making 49 lamps. 49 is the cycle of 7 sabbath years that culminated in the jubilee year, and the jubilee year, the proclamation of liberty to the land (<a href='B:30 25:8-12'>Lev 25:8-12</a>; <a href='B:30 27:7-24'>Lev 27:7-24</a>) is a figure used so often in Isaiah to describe the freedom of Judah once released from Babylon. <a href='B:30 26:34'>Lev 26:34</a>; <a href='B:30 26:43'>Lev 26:43</a> speak of the land enjoying her Sabbaths whilst Israel were in exile for their sins- i:e. for 49 years. So it seems that there could have been some restoration after 49 years- but it didn’t happen.</h4>


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<p>And two olive trees by it, one on the right side of the bowl, and the other on the left side of it- The bowl is presented visually as the central point of the system. The two olive trees are said to stand on both sides of "The Lord of all the earth / land" (:14). The candlestick system was envisaged as central to the earth; and this was to be the restored Judah, as noted on :2, ruling over the earth / land as the spiritual light of those peoples. The candlestick system differed from the Mosaic one in that it didn’t require maintenance or feeding by man; and this is the enduring message, that it is the work of the Spirit and not of flesh.</p>


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<p>I answered and spoke to the angel who talked with me, saying, What are these my lord?- See on :14. The response in :5 suggests that Zechariah was supposed to have perceived himself what this was all about. But even he as a spiritual person didn’t grasp the degree to which God was at work through the Spirit. We likewise need our eyes regularly opening to the extent and force of God’s working, and all that is potentially possible for those who wish to walk in step with the Spirit. The response in :6 was not initially an explanation of the symbolism, but rather the overall conclusion- that the restoration would not be achieved by human strength, but by God’s Spirit. It’s as if Zechariah is being sidetracked by struggling with decoding the symbolism to miss the bigger picture; and that remains an abiding problem for us as we read and reflect upon such visions.</p>


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<p>Then the angel who talked with me answered me, Don’t you know what these are? I said, No, my lord- This could be read as a rebuke, as if Zechariah is now recording his own slowness to understand. It is that admission of weakness which would have made so much more credible his appeal to his audience to understand. Likewise the Gospels were written by the disciples, and they admit so often their failure to understand, thereby strengthening their credibility in appealing for others to understand quicker than they did. In the work of preaching and teaching, the more real the more credible.</p>


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<h4>Then he answered and spoke to me, saying, This is the word of Yahweh to Zerubbabel, saying, ‘Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit’, says Yahweh of Armies- See on <a href='B:70 14:6'>Jdg 14:6</a>. The returned exiles were "feeble" (<a href='B:160 4:2'>Neh 4:2</a>), and they were considered like this by the surrounding peoples to the point that this was how they too saw themselves. They were indeed feeble. But this is the trademark of God’s work; the feeble are used, that the work of His Kingdom may be of His Spirit and to His glory. "Might" translates a word which can mean "wealth" or "army". He is told that it will not be due to “an army” but due to God’s Spirit / Angel, the "Lord of hosts" of Angel armies ("Lord of hosts" s a common title for God in Zechariah). The “army” may refer to the army which the King of Babylon was willing to send with the returning exiles in order to support the returning exiles. But Israel’s attention is focused instead on how the Spirit / Angel would enable all things.</h4><p>And yet this statement could be taken as an implied criticism of Zerubbabel. He was warned that the restored Kingdom would be brought about not by "might" (military force) but by God’s Spirit, operating through the Angels. This had been the message of Ezekiel as well as Zechariah’s visions- that through the Angelic cherubim, God was ready to work out the promised and miraculous restoration of His Kingdom, so that Yehud would no longer be merely a province of Persia. Perhaps Zerubbabel thought that a Persian army would help them establish their autonomous kingdom by force. Hence <a href='B:450 4:14'>Zec 4:14</a> pleads with them to understand that Yahweh is Lord of all the earth, and His Angels are everywhere active; He as well as Judah were to be lords and not servants of all those in the earth / land. The cherubim chariots are seen roaming the "land of the north" just as much as Israel (<a href='B:450 6:5-7'>Zec 6:5-7</a>). But Zerubbabel and the Jews believed in what they could see, rather than in God’s unseen armies. They presumably thought that such independence could only be achieved by armed rebellion against their Persian benefactors, or by getting the Persian military onside with them. The history of the Maccabees soon afterwards showed this mentality. The Jews saw what was going on around them as a "day of small things" and despised it (<a href='B:450 4:10'>Zec 4:10</a>). And yet great things were potentially possible. It’s all so bitingly relevant to us- for we too see a day of small things, but the eye of faith sees great things prepared.</p><h4>The returned exiles could have entered a new covenant with God, as offered to them in Ezekiel and Jeremiah. That new covenant involved the specific promise of the work of the Spirit in their hearts and lives. But their resistance to the Spirit and trust in human strength meant that they rejected that new covenant. <a href='B:330 37:10'>Eze 37:10</a> had spoken of the exiles as receiving the Spirit so that they might become a great army (s:w. "might" here). There was no other way to become mighty.</h4>


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<h4>Who are you, great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you are a plain- The “great mountain” of Babylon was to become a plain before Zerubbabel (<a href='B:450 4:7'>Zec 4:7</a>)- a clear allusion to <a href='B:340 2:44'>Dan 2:44</a>, in which the little stone of Messiah destroys the Kingdoms of men and becomes a great mountain to replace the statue headed by Babylon. But Zerubbabel didn’t destroy Babylon- according to Jewish tradition he returned there after ‘giving up’ in Jerusalem. Perhaps <a href='B:450 11:16'>Zec 11:16</a> refers to him as “the worthlessshepherd” who didn’t gather “those that be scattered”, who didn’t encourage the Jews scattered in Babylon to return to the fold of Zion, and who didn’t care for their spiritual wellbeing. And so the prophecy that Babylon would be destroyed before Zerubbabel has to be reapplied, and will be fulfilled at the return of the Lord Jesus. It has also been reapplied in a more spiritual sense. For the same words for "mountain" and "plain" are used in <a href='B:290 40:4'>Isa 40:4</a>; the mountains were to become plains when Judah returned from exile, and over that levelled ground was to be made the proclamation of a Messianic king by his herald, and then his appearance. This didn’t happen as was potentially possible; and so the prophecy was reapplied to the coming of the Lord Jesus.</h4><p>The words may be intended literally if we consider that the great mountain might refer to mount Zion and not only Babylon. If Zerubbabel lived up to his potential, then a flat tableland would be prepared as a "platform" [Heb:] on which the new temple could be built; an we see this in the vision of the restored temple which the captives were intended to build in Ezekiel 40. But this didn’t happen- and so this language was reapplied to the work of John the Baptist in making the rough places of men’s hearts smooth, in order for them to accept Jesus, the true temple. Zechariah concludes with a vision of Jerusalem falling to the Gentiles, and the Lord Jesus returning to break Mount Zion in two- not into a plain.</p><p>And he will bring out the capstone with shouts of ‘Grace, grace, to it!’- When the foundation stone of the temple was laid, there should have been excited acclamation: “Grace, grace unto it” (<a href='B:450 4:7'>Zec 4:7</a>). But instead the old men wept when the foundation was laid, knowing that the temple was nothing compared to what it ought to be (<a href='B:150 3:12'>Ezr 3:12</a>). The glory of the restored temple was prophesied as being far greater than that of the former (<a href='B:440 2:9'>Hag 2:9</a>); <a href='B:290 60:17'>Isa 60:17</a> alluded to this in prophesying that “ For brass [in Solomon’s temple] I will bring gold, and for iron [that was in Solomon’s fixtures] I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron”. But it simply didn’t happen, because God’s people were satisfied with a small, inglorious temple so that they could get on with building their own “cieled houses” (the same word is used in describing how the temple of Solomon was “covered”, or cieled, with cedar). And the old men wept at the fact that the glory of the new house was less than that of the earlier one.</p><h4>The capstone however may not have to mean the foundation stone, which had already been laid some years before. It could mean that Zerubbabel would lay the final stone in the temple, and everyone would shout out in realization of how this was all of grace. And that was the point of the vision of the candlestick; it was all of God’s Spirit, and therefore of grace. Paul in Romans speaks of the work of the Spirit in this same context- as the exemplification of how we are saved by grace and not works. Indeed charis, "grace", is often used about the gift of the Spirit. But it seems Zerubbabel didn’t complete the temple but returned to Babylon; and there was not the deep appreciation of grace which was intended.</h4>


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<p>Moreover the word of Yahweh came to me, saying- The "moreover" is to emphasize how Zerubbabel was indeed to lay the "capstone" of :7; his hands were to do thIsa. And yet for all this repeated emphasis, it seems Zerubbabel returned to Babylon and didn’t complete the work.</p>


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<h4>The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house. His hands shall also finish it- God through the Angel would work with Zerubbabel- but he would not. The original for "finish" more correctly means to fulfil; Bible prophecy has potential fulfilments which may never come about. But in essence, the prophetic word will be fulfilled in other ways. It was all potentially possible for Zerubbabel. But he beat it back to Babylon instead. Before him, all nations of the earth could have fallen, the whole ‘mountain’ of Babylon could have crumbled as before a mighty stone; in him <a href='B:340 2:44'>Dan 2:44</a> could have had its fulfilment (<a href='B:450 4:7'>Zec 4:7</a>). And so much is potentially possible for us, too. The Lord may have many people in a city, all is prepared for their conversion- but we may not do our part, and so the potential harvest is never reaped. Isaiah 41 describes the Messianic saviour as coming to the land from Babylon, from the north and from the east. Babylon was east of Judah, and yet the approach road came down from the north. This was the way Zerubbabel and Joshua would have come; but the prophecies suffered a massive deferment to the coming of the Lord Jesus in a more figurative sense from the north and east.</h4><h4>And you will know that Yahweh of Armies has sent me to you- This repeats <a href='B:450 2:9'>Zec 2:9</a>; <a href='B:450 2:11'>Zec 2:11</a>. The implication would be that the Jews viewed this young man (<a href='B:450 2:4'>Zec 2:4</a>) Zechariah sceptically, perhaps disliking his message of union with God on an equal footing to Gentiles. But he would be vindicated when the Kingdom prophecies were fulfilled, with the implication being that his generation would live to see this joining of the Gentiles to Yahweh and His presence in a restored Zion. That didn’t quite happen; all these things were rescheduled and reapplied to Jew and Gentile being joined together in Christ under the new covenant, to come to literal fulfilment at His second coming.</h4>


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<h4>Indeed, who despises the day of small things?- Both the faithless Jews and the mocking local peoples considered the temple so far rebuilt to be "as nothing" (<a href='B:440 2:3'>Hag 2:3</a>). Zerubbabel was being urged to rebuild it according to the grand plans given in Ezekiel 40-48, obeying the precepts laid out there, and then Yahweh would come and dwell in it. But those small beginnings were not to be despised; they were a beginning, and instead of condemning the Jews for not having built it according to the plan of Ezekiel 40-48, instead God sees the cup half full rather than half empty, and urges them to go on from those small beginnings to greater fulfilment. The question as to who has despised those small things may beg the answer: ’Not God. Even though you didn’t do as I asked you, go on from that start to do greater things’. Really His gentle approach is similar to how we may talk to children as they initially fail to fulfil a task.</h4><h4>For these seven shall rejoice, and shall see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. These are the eyes of Yahweh, which run back and forth through the whole earth- See on :6; <a href='B:300 1:11-12'>Jer 1:11-12</a>; <a href='B:450 1:10-11'>Zec 1:10-11</a>. The entire strength [seven as completeness] of the Angelic eyes of God would rejoice with Zerubbabel when the temple was built as commanded, using a plumb line to measure and build the edifice according to the regulations in Ezekiel 40-48. No wonder the whole of Haggai is an encouragement to Zerubbabel and Joshua to live up to their potential. The builders need fear no opposition; the Angel eyes of God were running throughout the eretz promised to Abraham, through all of it, the whole of it, including the areas governed by far superior powers, and as explained in earlier visions, they had prepared the whole area for the Kingdom to be restored in Judah. To run is an idiom for response to God’s word (e:g. <a href='B:340 12:4'>Dan 12:4</a>; <a href='B:420 2:2'>Hab 2:2</a>). The Angels were going out to fulfil the word of restoration; but it still required the freewill response of Zerubbabel and the Jews. The people did "rejoice" at the rebuilding of the temple (s:w. <a href='B:150 6:22'>Ezr 6:22</a>; <a href='B:160 12:43'>Neh 12:43</a>). But this was but an incipient fulfilment of the far greater joy envisaged here.</h4>


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<p>Then I asked him, What are these two olive trees on the right side of the lampstand and on the left side of it?- These were the obvious, major difference with the Mosaic candlestick. Typically a candlestick required human care to fill it with oil. But this system had a source of oil in two olive trees. There was apparently a silence, because Zechariah has to ask again in :12, and is told in :13 that he ought to have figured it for himself. And we see here a principle; sometimes there is a Divine silence in response to our prayers and situations, or to our requests to understand and see the meaning attached to even. And that silence is intended to elicit from us the answer from our own reflections. Knowledge of God isn’t just dished up on a plate in the Bible. We need to work things out for ourselves, as God knows that this is the way to really learn anything.</p>


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<p>I asked him the second time, What are these two olive branches, which are beside the two golden spouts, that pour the golden oil out of themselves?- As noted on :11, there was an initial lack of response which was designed so that Zechariah would work it out himself. He is therefore somewhat rebuked for not getting it himself. His slowness to perceive is perhaps the more rebuked because one interpretation of the two sources of oil is that they referred to himself and Haggai, who were providing the prophetic word and the articulation of God’s Spirit to enable God’s people to function as the candlestick to the world around them. Zechariah’s focus in the second question was upon the tubes which took the oil from the trees, appearing as branches leading from spouts. The oil appeared golden because it was going into the golden candlestick; the gold of God’s people Judah was to be a function of the golden oil going into them.</p>


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<p>He answered me, Don’t you know what these are? I said, No, my lord- As noted on :11,12, this rebuke was because the Divine silence after the first enquiry was intended to elicit in Zechariah an understanding. This in broader terms is one reason for the Divine silences in our lives. The rebuke was the more necessary if the pipes, the conduit of the Spirit, were representative of Haggai and Zechariah, the prophets at the time.</p>


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<h4>Then he said, These are the two anointed ones- I have suggested on :12,13 that they refer to Haggai an Zechariah, who as prophets were the vehicle of the Spirit’s articulation to Judah the candlestick. But perhaps they were specifically represented by the pipes or spouts, and the actual trees were Joshua and Zerubbabel. Or perhaps the other way around; the trees were Haggai and Zechariah, the source of the Spirit, and Joshua and Zerubbabel were to be the conduit of the Spirit to Israel. Hence Haggai’s prophecy is specifically and solely addressed to those two men; see on Hag 11.</h4><p>Joshua and Zerubbabel were both anointed or commissioned to be the king and priest of the restored Kingdom. Joshua anointed is the same idea in Greek as ’Jesus Christ’. He failed in this calling, and so the prophecies were reapplied and fulfilled in the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. The reference is to Joshua and Zerubbabel. The whole ‘lightstand’ depended upon these two anointed ones, these providers of oil, and the fact they both in various ways failed to deliver true faith and spirituality meant that the victory over the world which the vision also prophesied could not come about; the final fulfilment had to come through the Lord Jesus, who was the ultimate Priest (cp. Joshua-Jesus) and Prince of Judah (cp. Zerubbabel). This prophecy could have been fulfilled at the restoration; but when we read in <a href='B:730 11:4'>Rev 11:4</a> that “These are the two olive trees and the two candlesticks”,&nbsp; the Lord is saying that now He has redefined and rescheduled the fulfilment of that vision in a latter day context.</p><p>Who stand by the Lord of the whole earth- The olive trees stood either side of the candlestick. And yet the candlestick is presented as a person. I suggest that the gold candlestick was the purified, return exiles (<a href='B:310 4:2'>Lam 4:2</a>), who were intended to bear lordship over the entire eretz promised to Abraham. The leadership were therefore incidental to the centre of the vision and candlestick system, which was the people of Judah themselves who were to be the light and lords of the whole earth, the entire eretz promised to Abraham, including Babylon and Persia.</p><p>But the symbology is mixed. The various elements here all also represent Angels. By responding to the word of restoration, Zerubbabel, Joshua, Haggai, Zechariah and the obedient masses were all represented by things which otherwise refer to the Angels. They would be identified together with those who had practically enabled all this to happen. Hence the seven Angelic eyes of :10 were to rejoice together with Zerubbabel when he completed the temple as specified.</p><p>The olive trees "are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth". The "Lord of the whole earth" is the Angel of <a href='B:450 3:1'>Zec 3:1</a> (making "the God of the earth" in <a href='B:730 11:4'>Rev 11:4</a> also an Angel?). The olive trees actually stand by the candlestick, thus making the whole arrangement of bowl, branches, pipes and lamps represent the workings of the one Angel- in the same way as the Angel of Jesus in Revelation 1 can somehow stand in the midst of a candlestick.</p><h4>The olive being a symbol of leadership (in <a href='B:70 9:8'>Jdg 9:8</a>&nbsp; the olive tree was the first tree to be thought of as a national leader), it would be fitting&nbsp; that&nbsp; they&nbsp; represented Joshua and Zerubbabel. However, there is a definite allusion to the Angel cherubim here. "Within the oracle he made two cherubims of olive tree" (<a href='B:110 6:23'>1Ki 6:23</a>); "and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two (olive tree) cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony" (<a href='B:20 25:22'>Exo 25:22</a>). If the olive trees are like the Cherubim, then "the Lord of the whole earth" of <a href='B:450 4:4'>Zec 4:4</a> which was between them connects with the ark- the Angel that dwelt over the ark, between the Cherubim:&nbsp; <a href='B:60 3:11-13'>Jos 3:11-13</a> also makes the connection between the ark and the "Lord of all the earth". The candlestick therefore represents the Angel co-ordinating the restoration, as well as the other "seven" Angels in His control. This shows the close association between the Angel-cherubim and Joshua and Zerubbabel. Thus from the Angelic inspiration of these two men, the spirit was supplied to the candlestick through the gold pipes- the faith they showed and their prayers supplied the spirit which enabled the seven lamp Angels to act. However, the close link between the two olive trees and the Cherubim Angels once again shows that the ultimate impetus to our faith, prayers and spirituality comes from God’s spirit in the Angels rather than from any personal inspiration we may feel. This idea of the flow of the spirit, enabling God’s action through the Angels as a result of&nbsp; our prayers, is found elsewhere: "This shall turn to my salvation, through your prayer, and the supply of the spirit of Jesus Christ" (Php_1:19); "::. how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit ("good things", <a href='B:470 7:11'>Mat 7:11</a>) to them that ask Him?" (<a href='B:490 11:13'>Luk 11:13</a>). Thus in the vision of the seven lamps, the prayers and faith of Joshua and Zerubbabel were the oil, the spirit that was supplied to activate the seven lamp Angels that went to and fro in the land of Israel preparing the way for the restoration. However, the olive trees were "sons of oil" (AVmg)- they were anointed with the&nbsp; oil initially. Is this a dim foreshadowing of the birth of the spirit ("sons of oil")? The men of the olive trees were sons of the spirit word through their belief in the word of God concerning the restoration. The olive branches emptied the golden oil out of themselves- if we are to have the same victory of&nbsp; faith as Joshua and Zerubbabel, we have to in the same way pour ourselves out in prayer and golden faith. The amount of oil flowing into the bowl determined the amount flowing out of it to the lamp Angels, seeing that there was a constant flow of the oil in the vision. Thus the amount and intensity of our prayers and spirituality affect how brightly the Angels burn in their zeal to fulfil our requests. Notice too the power of the prayers of a small minority of God’s people. But the envisaged situation didn’t come about. The two olive branches which feed the bowl were replaced by Christ, the one branch (<a href='B:450 3:8'>Zec 3:8</a>; <a href='B:450 6:12'>Zec 6:12</a>), who would provide the Spirit in abundance so that the true spiritual temple could be built- "the branch::. shall grow up out of His place, and He shall build the temple of the Lord" (<a href='B:450 6:12'>Zec 6:12</a>).</h4>


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<p>Then again I lifted up my eyes, and saw, and behold, a flying scroll- The previous visions have spoken of how the rebuilding work faced opposition from the adversaries ["satan"] of both apostate Jews amongst the exiles, and from the local Gentiles. We know that in practice, those ’satans’ derailed the envisaged and possible restoration of the Kingdomat that time. This vision now deals with this in more detail.</p>


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<p>He said to me, What do you see? I answered, I see a flying scroll; its length is twenty cubits, and its breadth ten cubits- Zechariah’s vision of the flying scroll indicates the extent of Judah’s weakness. The size and proportion of it was unreal for a scroll- "twenty cubits long and ten cubits wide" is about 10 meters by 5 meters. This disproportion was obviously to draw attention to something- and we find that the size of the temple porch / entrance in Solomon’s temple was exactly of this size (<a href='B:110 6:3'>1Ki 6:3</a>). This was where God’s word was read from. And yet the scroll is described as entering into "the house of the thief" (<a href='B:450 5:4'>Zec 5:4</a>). Nehemiah records how the poor returnees were abused and effectively thieved from by the wealthy. And the Lord Jesus lamented how God’s house had become "a den of thieves". But there’s another reference to this 20 x 10 cubits size. The cherubim over the ark were ten cubits high and their wings were 5 cubits long, and one wing pointed back, whilst the other pointed forward, to touch the wing of the other cherub. Thus each cherub occupied a space 10 cubits high and 10 cubits across; and the two cherubim over the ark thus occupied a space 20 cubits long and 10 cubits wide- exactly the size of the flying scroll. The fact the scroll ’flies’ invites us to make another connection with the cherubim, flying / hovering as it were over the ark. Yet this shekinah glory is changed in the vision into a curse. This is how very displeased God was with what was being done by those who returned- His presence and glory were no longer there, only a curse upon them. Effectively, the returnees had turned God’s temple into a parody of the Babylonian temples; see on :6,8,9.</p>


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<h4>Then he said to me, This is the curse that goes out over the surface of the whole land- The Angelic eyes of God had been going over the "whole land" preparing it for the great potential, of God’s Kingdom being reestablished in Judah. But over the whole land there was sin. What had been declared a holy land through the imputation of righteousness by God’s grace (see on <a href='B:450 2:12'>Zec 2:12</a>) was in fact very sinful.</h4><h4>For everyone who steals shall be cut off according to it on the one side; and everyone who swears falsely shall be cut off according to it on the other side- The scroll was written on both sides, just as the tables of the covenant were (<a href='B:20 32:15'>Exo 32:15</a>). The two of the ten commandments mentioned here as being broken were the third and eighth; which according to Jewish tradition were written on different sides of the tables. The idea would be that Judah had broken covenant relationship with Yahweh by disobeying the most basic of the ten commandments. They were stealing and searing falsely just as they had done before the captivity (s:w. <a href='B:300 7:9'>Jer 7:9</a>; <a href='B:350 4:2'>Hos 4:2</a>). There were ’false swearers’ amongst the returned exiles (s:w. <a href='B:460 3:5'>Mal 3:5</a>). False swearing may not simply refer to perjury; it is defined in <a href='B:300 5:2'>Jer 5:2</a> and often as meaning to swear both by Yahweh and by other gods, thereby making their oath by Yahweh a false oath.</h4>


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<h4>I will cause it to go out, says Yahweh of Armies, and it will enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him who swears falsely by My name; and it will remain in the midst of his house- Nehemiah records how the poor returnees were abused and effectively thieved from by the wealthy; and <a href='B:450 8:17'>Zec 8:17</a> later alludes to thIsa. And the Lord Jesus lamented how God’s house had become "a den of thieves". The houses of the Jews were as corrupt as the house of God they had rebuilt, although it was not according to the principles and pattern commanded them in Ezekiel 40-48; those prophecies often command that the previous temple abuses were not to be repeated in the new house of God. But they were.</h4><h4>And will destroy it with its timber and its stones- This is the fate of a house which had been dwelt in by lepers (<a href='B:30 14:45'>Lev 14:45</a>). The house of Judah had previously been condemned as a leprous house, and now they had returned to the land they were no better. For all God’s enthusiastic grace to forgive them, as described previously in Zechariah.</h4>


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<p>Then the angel who talked with me came forward, and said to me, Lift up now your eyes, and see what is this that is appearing- The command to lift up the prophetic eyes and see is a repeat of what Ezekiel was told, when he was invited to lift up his eyes and see the apostacy of Judah within the temple (<a href='B:330 8:5'>Eze 8:5</a>; <a href='B:330 8:16'>Eze 8:16</a>). Zechariah would have perceived the similarity. He was being given an insight into how sinful were the returned exiles.</p>


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<h4>I said, What is it? He said, This is the ephah basket that is appearing- See on :2. The ephah measure was representative of the measure of their sin. And they had changed the weights of the ephah to deceive their brethren:&nbsp; The winged pseudo-cherubim of :9 carry this "ephah" back to Babylon. The Sumerian word for one of the Babylonian ziggurats, a shrine to a goddess, was e’pa, the same Hebrew word as translated "epha" (C:L. & E:M. Meyers, Haggai, Zechariah 1-8, The Anchor Bible (New York: Doubleday, 2004) p. 296). The foreign woman in the vision wishes to return to Babylon and build a house / temple there. The terrible picture that will appear is that the apostate Jews who had returned ostensibly to rebuild Yahweh’s temple in Zion were really the spiritual "daughter of Babylon" and would return to Babylon to build an idol temple there.</h4><h4>He said moreover, This is their appearance in all the land- "Appearance" translates the word for "eye". The Angelic eyes of God ran to and fro in the land (<a href='B:450 4:10'>Zec 4:10</a>). And this is what they saw all over- sinful Jews.</h4>


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<p>(And behold, a talent of lead was lifted up); and this is a woman sitting in the midst of the ephah basket- They had changed the weights of the ephah to deceive their brethren (<a href='B:370 8:5'>Amo 8:5</a>). This apparently minor sin was seen by God as being as heavy as lead. Judah, the woman, had been weighed by God in judgment and found wanting. This was why all the great potential prophecies of earlier visions would not in fact come true at that time.</p>


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<h4>He said, This is Wickedness!- The woman is simply called "wickedness". Judah had previously been characterized as a wicked woman who was punished with captivity in Babylon, and now she is still unreformed (<a href='B:290 1:21'>Isa 1:21</a>; <a href='B:300 2:20'>Jer 2:20</a>; <a href='B:330 23:1-49'>Eze 23:1-49</a> and throughout Hosea 1-3). Is there not here a hint that the essence of Judah’s failure was in their marriage to foreign women, perhaps even their own wives were from Babylon and wanted to return there. Marriage to Gentiles is stressed in Ezra 10 and <a href='B:160 13:23-27'>Neh 13:23-27</a> as the epitome of Judah’s sin. Even the four sons of Joshua the High Priest had married Gentiles (<a href='B:150 10:18'>Ezr 10:18</a>). The Hebrew word translated "wickedness" is harisha- an anagram of ’Asherah’. She is presented as a goddess- in that the foreign women are always associated with the idols they served. We know that the first temple was destroyed because of the Asherah entering the temple (<a href='B:120 23:4-7'>2Ki 23:4-7</a>; <a href='B:110 15:13'>1Ki 15:13</a>). And it seems Judah never learnt that lesson. <a href='B:450 13:2'>Zec 13:2</a> is clear that there was idol worship throughout the land amongst the returned exiles.</h4><h4>And he threw her down into the midst of the ephah basket; and he put the weight of lead on its mouth- It was as if the due weight had been reached, and now it was closed and being sent back to Babylon. Judah, the woman, was entrapped in her own sins. This is the same idea as the previous inhabitants of Canaan reaching a certain level of sin after which they were to be thrown out of the land (<a href='B:10 15:16'>Gen 15:16</a>).</h4>


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<p>Then lifted I up my eyes, and saw, and behold, there were two women, and the wind was in their wings. Now they had wings like the wings of a stork, and they lifted up the ephah basket between earth and the sky- The two female winged creatures who remove the ephah to Babylon are surely parodies of the Angel cherubim; see on :2. Note how the Angel ’comes forth’ (<a href='B:450 5:5'>Zec 5:5</a>), and then the winged women are here described as ’going forth’ with the same Hebrew word. The glory of God was simply not there, whereas <a href='B:330 48:20'>Eze 48:20</a> and often in Zechariah it was predicted that it would be, if they built and operated the temple according to the commands of Ezekiel 40-48. Who was it who caused the apostate Jews to be thrown out of their land and removed to Babylon? Perhaps the two women propelled by the wind / spirit were the prophets Haggai and Zechariah who were now denouncing them and pronouncing this judgment upon them. Perhaps we are to understand the ’chasing away’ of the apostate Jews by Nehemiah as&nbsp; meaning they were chased off back to Babylon (<a href='B:160 13:28'>Neh 13:28</a>).</p>


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<p>Then I said to the angel who talked with me, Where are these carrying the ephah basket to?- If it were not for Zechariah’s questions, his desire to understand, we would not have the explanations. The prophets, like the Angels, desired to look into the words they spoke, there was implied an intellectual process of struggle to understand (<a href='B:670 1:12'>1Pe 1:12</a>). We are seekers of God; we will never understand all, and the desire to understand is itself built into our spiritual experience</p>


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<h4>He said to me, To build her a house in the land of Shinar. When it is prepared, she will be set there in her own place- "Shinar" is the title used for Babylon here because of the connections with building Babel, a building condemned by God. It could be that this prophecy concerning the wickedness in the land of Judah somehow returning to Babylon and there building a temple is a reference to how Zerubbabel was to re-direct his energies into building a corrupted house for himself on his return to Babylon, a pseudo-temple. He was personally criticized for building a ceiled house for himself in Judah rather than focusing upon rebuilding God’s house (<a href='B:440 1:3-4'>Hag 1:3-4</a>). So it seems the apostate Jews returned to Babylon and built a temple there to their gods. It was built in Babylon upon her own “base”, the same word used in <a href='B:150 3:3'>Ezr 3:3</a> about the altar being established upon its own “base” in Zion.</h4><h4>Nelson’s Bible Dictionary comments: “For some mysterious reason, Zerubbabel is not mentioned in connection with the Temple dedication. Neither is he mentioned after this time”. The reason seems to be that he returned to Babylon. R:K. Harrison in the Zondervan Encyclopedia mentions that “a 6th century AD Jewish chronicle preserved the tradition that Zerubbabel returned to Babylonia after 515 BC and succeeded his father Shealtiel as the prince of the exiled remnant there”. He chose to be a prince in Babylon’s Kingdom, the kingdoms of men, rather than in the Kingdom of God. And so many have followed his decision in the centuries since, thus frustrating what could have been for them and many others within their influence. Josephus (Antiquities of the Jews, 11:3) records that “Zorobabel, who had been made governor of the Jews that had been in captivity, came to Darius from Jerusalem, for there had been an old friendship between him and the king”. He was friendly with the King of Babylon, and chose to follow where this lead rather than friendship with the Almighty. Compare this with how the ‘friendliness’ of a boss or worldly friend has lead so many into promotions or situations where they walk away from doing the work which God intended for them. And such huge potential was and is thereby wasted.</h4>


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<h4>Again I lifted up my eyes, and saw- The Hebrew has: "I turned [the word used also for repentance] and lifted up my eyes". After the exposure of Judah’s sin in the preceding vision, Zechariah repents, as it were, for the situation. Just as Daniel and Ezra sought to, identifying themselves with God’s sinful people. From now on in Zechariah, the visions appeal for repentance, interspersed with visions of the restored Kingdom that was even then possible. There is mention of the judgment to come upon the surrounding nations, whose idolatry clearly influenced the returning exiles. And the prophecy concludes with the picture of final judgment upon Judah in the last days, leading up to the return of the Lord Jesus to reestablish God’s Kingdom in Judah for ever. The amazing potential for Zechariah’s generation had been explained in chapters 1-3, but it wasn’t realized by them. But the prophetic word was to come finally true in the work and coming of the Lord Jesus.</h4><p>And behold, four chariots- Zechariah 1 opens the prophecy with a vision of three kinds of horses- red, white and speckled. These represented the powers which had subdued the land of Judah and left it in the desolate state it was at the time of Zechariah (<a href='B:450 1:12'>Zec 1:12</a>). It’s tempting to interpret them as Assyria, Babylon and Medo-Persia; or perhaps Babylon, Media and Persia. Straight away, we read of four horns, representing the powers who had desolated God’s people; and how they would be destroyed by the carpenters, surely looking forward to the carpenter Messiah. And the vision of Zechariah 6 has four and not three kinds of horses- red, black, white and speckled, although only three of them were used at the time (see on :6). This may be Zechariah’s way of saying that because of Israel’s inability to fulfil the required spiritual preconditions, as stated clearly in chapter 5, the longer version of the prophetic program was going to come into play. Although as always, there is the distinct message of hope, that finally God’s triumphant purpose with Israel shall come to realization. The chariots are Angels (:5); the world empires were directly under their control, as taught in the vision of Daniel 2.</p><p>This vision follows on from the judgment of chapter 5 against the sinners amongst the returned exiles. They were to be sent back to Babylon. This vision of the chariots may be saying that the Angels who had controlled the previous judges of Judah were now again called into action; they would pursue the sinful Jews to wherever they went to, be it to Egypt or Babylon, and judge them. That is the immediate sense of the vision, although it also means that the longer term judgments were to also come into operation before the reestablishment of God’s Kingdom as the mountain of <a href='B:340 2:44'>Dan 2:44</a>.</p><p>Came out from between two mountains; and the mountains were mountains of brass- It has been said that Judah rejected idolatry on their return from Babylon. I submit that the Biblical evidence is different, as expounded throughout chapter 5; see on <a href='B:450 13:2'>Zec 13:2</a>. They mixed pagan thinking with their form of Judaism, and although physical idols were later rejected by them, the results of this idolatry by the early returnees influenced Judaism permanently. Thus <a href='B:450 6:1'>Zec 6:1</a> pictures Yahweh’s cherubim, Angelic chariots coming out from between two bronze mountains. In the ancient Near East there was the common idea that the sun god appeared each morning in his chariot from between two mountains (See C:L. & E:M. Meyers, Haggai, Zechariah 1-8, The Anchor Bible (New York: Doubleday, 2004) p. 319 for documentation). Zechariah’s point [as is the point of Psalms 19, which uses the same images] is that it is the God of Israel who is the God of the sun, and not Shamash or some such similar deity of men’s imagination. But the exiles clearly needed this reminder; we remember how only a generation or so before, Ezekiel found them worshipping the sun god in Yahweh’s temple (<a href='B:330 8:5'>Eze 8:5</a>). And earlier, Josiah had removed the "chariots of the sun" from the temple mount (<a href='B:120 23:11'>2Ki 23:11</a>). Yet it seems that the Jews’ desire to mix Yahweh’s temple with the sun god was still just as strong even after the exiles returned.</p><h4>The two brass mountains of Zechariah 6 are from where the horses / judgments issue forth- towards the north and south of Israel. The mountains must therefore be in central Israel; the reference could be to the valley of Jehoshaphat. I suggest the mountains in view are both in Jerusalem- the Mount of Olives and Mount Zion, in between which is what was called the valley of Jehoshaphat. These mountains and that valley are from where God’s latter day judgments proceed (<a href='B:360 3:2'>Joe 3:2</a>; <a href='B:360 3:16'>Joe 3:16</a>; <a href='B:450 14:14'>Zec 14:14</a>). The envisaged judgments upon the apostate Jews and Gentiles at Zechariah’s time didn’t fully happen because so many preconditions weren’t met; but they will come in the last days. Or it may be that they are the two mountains formed by the cleavage of the Mount of Olives predicted in <a href='B:450 14:4'>Zec 14:4</a>, at which time “half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half toward the south”. This would connect with the horses / chariots going out towards the north and south here in Zechariah 6. Any difficulties with exact chronology may be accounted for by the suggestion that the meaning and nature of time will change in the time around the Lord’s coming, as I have outlined at length in The Last Days.</h4>


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<p>In the first chariot were red horses; in the second chariot black horses- The vision in Revelation 6 of horses going forth to bring judgment is clearly alluding to the similar vision in <a href='B:450 1:8-12'>Zec 1:8-12</a>; <a href='B:450 6:1-8'>Zec 6:1-8</a>. Chariots of horses recall the cherubim visions of Ezekiel, and suggest Angelic activity controlling the entities on earth which they represented in the court of heaven. The horses of Zechariah 1 are those nations who have trampled up and down the earth / land of Israel, subduing it until it is quiet. The chariots / horses of Zechariah 6 are the Angel cherubim representatives of those nations, who are sent out against them in judgment. Such judgment is portended in Zechariah 1 also, where straight after the vision of the horses we read of the four horns who have abused Israel being cut off by the carpenter Messiah of Israel. Significantly, there is an Angel stationed with the horses in the valley from which they emerge, as if to show that the judgments upon the land were Angelically controlled; Israel was not at the hands of chance human evil, indeed the horses report back to the Angel. This sets the scene for the horses / chariots of chapter 6 going out in judgment against those nations and the apostate Jews influenced by them of the preceding vision in chapter 5.</p>


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<p>In the third chariot white horses; and in the fourth chariot dappled horses, all of them powerful- The particular significance of the colours may not be that important; they could represent death, famine, disease etc. ; or they could simply be references to the various world powers represented. Zechariah, like us, wanted a detailed explanation of the colour scheme, but the answer was that they represent the Angels (:4,5).</p>


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<p>Then I asked the angel who talked with me, What are these, my lord?- Zechariah, like us, wanted a detailed explanation of the colour scheme, but the answer was that they represent the Angels (:4,5). No specific interpretation is given. The colours may simply have been to visually differentiate them.</p>


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<h4>The angel answered me, These are the four spirits of the sky- see on :4; <a href='B:450 1:8-11'>Zec 1:8-11</a>. The four horses / chariots are understood by most commentators to have connection with the four metals and beasts of Daniel’s prophecies. Their connection with the four winds / spirits of the Heavens recalls the way that the four beasts of Daniel 7 arise as a result of the same four winds / spirits / Angels being active. That is the simple takeaway lesson- that our world is not out of control, but all is carefully orchestrated towards the final consummation in the establishment of God’s Kingdom in Judah.</h4><p>These things didn’t come to term in Zechariah’s days as they could have done, but they will in the last days. I have explained elsewhere that the four metals and beasts of Daniel’s prophecies refer to powers that will dominate the land and people of Israel in the last days, whatever historical application they may have had. The metals and beasts all exist together in the last days, because they are all judged together at the coming of Christ to earth.</p><p>Which go forth from standing before the Lord of all theearth-</p><p>The horse riders of Revelation 6 are clearly based on this vision in Zechariah 6, and they would therefore be Angels. <a href='B:450 6:5'>Zec 6:5</a> describes the horses as "standing before the lord of the whole earth"- the mighty Angel of the Cherubim that stands for the land (earth) of Israel, perhaps Michael. In <a href='B:450 1:8'>Zec 1:8</a> they are behind Him, although He then sends them out to survey the state of the land of Israel. They return to Him, reporting that "we have walked to and fro throughout the earth (land), and behold, all the earth sitteth still and is at rest". Is there any reason to doubt that these Angels literally walked about in the land, albeit unseen, perhaps at a similar speed to which we walk? They walked "to and fro" because it is not in their ability to know the exact situation of a country just from a cursory glance. The comment of the Angel on this was: "I am very sore displeased with the heathen that are at ease" (<a href='B:450 1:15'>Zec 1:15</a>)- that were sitting at rest in God’s land. This scenario is similar to that in 1 Kings 22, where Angels come and go from God, reporting back information and receiving commands, showing how much the Angel in the myrtle trees, "the Lord of all the earth" (land), was a representation of God Himself.</p><h4>’Chariots’ and the ’cherubim’ are linguistically connected, and thus also connected in Biblical usage- e. g. "He rode upon a cherub (chariot)" (<a href='B:230 18:10'>Psa 18:10</a>). The number four has links with the Angel cherubim; John Thomas interprets these "four (chariot) spirits of the Heavens" (6:5) as the same as the four faces of the cherubim. The whole vision is full of Angelic language. "The chariots of God are::. thousands of Angels" (<a href='B:230 68:17'>Psa 68:17</a>); God makes His Angels spirits (<a href='B:230 104:4'>Psa 104:4</a>). The horses within the chariots also represent Angels, under the control of the four mighty cherubim Angels. This is similar to <a href='B:230 68:17'>Psa 68:17</a> describing God’s chariots as being full of Angels.</h4>


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<h4>The one with the black horses goes out toward the north country; and the white went out after them; and the dappled went forth toward the south country- See on :4:&nbsp; "The north country" must be Babylon (<a href='B:450 2:6'>Zec 2:6</a>; <a href='B:300 1:13-14'>Jer 1:13-14</a> etc. )- those Angels went to minister to the Jews there and to enable the hearts of the Persian rulers to continue to support the work of rebuilding (or is this looking back to the judgements on Babylon in preparation for Cyrus’ decree concerning the restoration?). Another group of Angels went toward the South- Egypt or the land of Judah (<a href='B:330 20:46-47'>Eze 20:46-47</a>). If the eretz of the South is in fact the area of Judah south of Jerusalem, as it is in <a href='B:450 7:7'>Zec 7:7</a>, then we would have confirmed the idea that the Angels of judgment went forth because of Judah’s sins, but didn’t actually judge them. But they did judge Babylon, the north.</h4><h4>We note there were four coloured horses in :2,3, but we don’t read of the red horses doing anything. Perhaps red represents blood and judgment. This was prepared against Judah for their sins, but the red horses weren’t used. The restored Judah wasn’t then destroyed. See on :2. In the longer term application, the four horses and chariots represented the nations of Daniel 2 who would dominate Judah. The red horse would then not be mentioned because it had already achieved its purpose upon Babylon, which had by then fallen to the Medes. Bible prophecy has multiple applications, in accordance with human prayer, repentance or lack thereof. And so these two suggested interpretations can both be legitimate.</h4>


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<p>The strong went out, and sought to go that they might walk back and forth through the earth: and he said, Go around and through the earth! So they walked back and forth through the earth- These Angels, the same as those who originally surveyed the whole area by walking "to and fro through the earth" in <a href='B:450 1:10-11'>Zec 1:10-11</a>, "sought" permission from the co-ordinating Angel to continue their work. The Angels wished to do something but needed the permission of Michael the Angelic "lord of all the earth" to do so. We shall take over the roles of Angels in the future Kingdom. There will be scope therefore to serve God upon our own initiative; and what we earnestly desire to do for Him will be empowered. In this life we are to develop that desire to serve, and then all the limitations will be taken away. The "earth" here is probably ’the land’ of Israel-&nbsp; which&nbsp; would&nbsp; have&nbsp; included Babylon, at its proper extent from ’sea to sea’</p>


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<p>Then he called to me, and spoke to me, saying, Behold, those who go toward the north country have quieted My spirit in the north country- The "spirit" must be understood in the light of :5, where the reference is to Angels. Maybe the reference is to an Angel crying out for judgment upon Babylon. Or the Spirit-Angel that needed quietening in Babylon was perhaps the satan-Angel that was resisting the Angel seeking to further the rebuilding work; . He would have gone (literally?) to Babylon to give the "prince of Persia" the idea of banning the rebuilding. The two Angels that quietened Him were those of <a href='B:340 10:12-13'>Dan 10:12-13</a> - the Joshua-Angel of <a href='B:450 3:1'>Zec 3:1</a>, and Michael who "came to help Me" (Gabriel) in <a href='B:340 10:13'>Dan 10:13</a>. Alternatively, note that <a href='B:340 9:21'>Dan 9:21</a> describes Gabriel being "caused to fly with weariness"- thus it may have been Gabriel who was ’quieted’ or ’given rest’ (AVmg:) in <a href='B:450 6:8'>Zec 6:8</a>, implying He was in Babylon trying to enable the rebuilding but needed the support of the other two Angels.</p>


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<p>The word of Yahweh came to me, saying- Despite the awful sins and weaknesses of Judah revealed in the previous chapter, God wanted still to try to force through His plan for reestablishing His Kingdom, even if some details had to be changed.</p>


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<h4>Take of them of the captivity- Note how this still calls the returned community "the exiles"- as if to suggest that they still had the mentality with which they went into captivity. The temptation to mix flesh and spirit is simply very powerful, and recurs daily in our lives in various forms. In those temptations we face what the exiles faced- a desire to appear faithful to God externally whilst doing exactly what they wanted, influenced by the world around them.</h4><p>Even of Heldai, of Tobijah, and of Jedaiah; and come the same day, and go into the house of Josiah the son of Zephaniah, where they have come from Babylon- They had apparently only recently arrived and were staying in the home of Josiah. It could be that they had brought with them some of the gold and silver artifacts of temple worship which had been taken into Babylon earlier, but were now released. Their names are significant. "Heldai" [’worldliness’], "Tobijah" [’Yah’s goodness / grace’], "Jedaiah" [’Yah knows’], living in the house of Josiah, "Yah has founded"]. The impression is that despite the worldliness of the exiles, known by God, God’s grace had led to the foundation of the new temple being founded, and they were to continue building upon it. See on <a href='B:450 11:8'>Zec 11:8</a>.</p><h4>The grace of God to the exiles is of course a foretaste of His grace to us. Time and again God speaks of the exiles in such positive language. For all that they had willingly adopted the gods of the captors, God still fondly describes them as ’Zion who dwells in Babylon’ (<a href='B:450 2:7'>Zec 2:7</a>). They were the Kingdom in embryo, waiting to just be transplanted from Babylon to Judah, just as we are the temple of God prepared symbolically in Heaven and waiting to be revealed on earth. Putting that grace another way, God proclaimed that despite all their idolatry and weakness in Babylon, Judah had ’paid off’ their guilt for former sins by their service there (<a href='B:290 40:2'>Isa 40:2</a>). We can only marvel at God’s grace, and the tragedy was that it was wasted and unperceived by them. May we do somewhat better.</h4>


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<p>Yes, take silver and gold, and make crowns, and set them on the head of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest- <a href='B:450 6:11-15'>Zec 6:11-15</a> is clear enough that Joshua-Jesus could have become a king-priest, and the Kingdom of God been reestablished in his time. Perhaps the crowning of Joshua was because God realized that Zerubbabel was not going to make it as the king He had intended. But there is no record that Judah ever got near having a king again. Joshua the high priest never became king Joshua. Or perhaps the allusion is to High Priestly mitre, the lack of which in <a href='B:450 3:5'>Zec 3:5</a> was a cause for concern to Zechariah. "Crowns" plural would suggest that the priestly mitre was to be complemented by a crown of rulership.</p>


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<h4>And speak to him, saying, ‘Thus says Yahweh of Armies, Behold, the man whose name is the Branch: and he shall grow up out of his place; and he shall build Yahweh’s temple- see on <a href='B:450 4:14'>Zec 4:14</a>; <a href='B:300 23:5'>Jer 23:5</a>. "The Branch" was a title for Messiah, who was to appear at the restoration (<a href='B:300 23:5'>Jer 23:5</a>; <a href='B:300 33:15'>Jer 33:15</a>). The Hebrew here reads rather strangely: "Behold there is a man- Shoot is his name". Seeing Zerubbabel’s name means ’Shoot from Babylon’, it’s odd that Zerubbabel isn’t named specifically. Perhaps the implication is that Zerubbabel had failed, but another person with the same basic name still could fulfil the prophecies. But with the failure of Zerubbabel, there was no other king-priest to fulfil the prophecies. The Maccabees attempted to force a fulfilment, with opportunists like Simon and John Hyrcanus claiming to be king-priests- but with no actual dynastic evidence. And they hardly fulfilled the prediction that the King-Priest Messiah would sit on David’s throne (<a href='B:450 6:10'>Zec 6:10</a>). It could be that "Behold the man" is an invitation to look at the priest Joshua as "the man"; he was to replace Zerubbabel by becoming a king-priest.</h4><p>It seems that Haggai and Zechariah returned to Jerusalem from Babylon in order to prepare the way for Zerubbabel- they were therefore the primary fulfillment of the prophecies of an Elijah-type prophet heralding the coming of the Messiah king. Zerubbabel’s failure therefore meant that their ministry was re-scheduled and fulfilled in the work of John the Baptist. Zerubbabel is called “the branch” (<a href='B:450 3:8'>Zec 3:8</a>; <a href='B:450 6:12'>Zec 6:12</a>; <a href='B:300 23:5-6'>Jer 23:5-6</a>), and this obviously invites connection with the prophecy of a branch / Messiah who would grow out of the cut down stump of Jesse (<a href='B:290 11:1'>Isa 11:1</a>). Again, Zerubbabel fits the picture perfectly. The house of David had been cut down in judgment, but the prophesied branch would not be from the royal line of Kings- but rather simply from the ‘stump’ that had been left, i:e. a descendant of Jesse who was not in the direct line of kings. <a href='B:400 5:2'>Mic 5:2</a> speaks of a similar person- a Messiah-king who would be from Bethlehem, i:e. the family of Jesse, rather than from Jerusalem where the royal line of kings were born. His origins would be “from old”- i:e. a person who is still a descendant of Jesse, but not in the direct line of kings. See on <a href='B:450 3:8'>Zec 3:8</a>.</p><h4>But finally, all the immediate candidates to fulfil these words failed to do so. And yet the prophetic word was to come true in the person of the Lord Jesus. The Kingdom He restored was a spiritual one, and will only be physically manifested at His second coming. And thus the mocking “behold the man::."would have been seen by the Lord as a reference to <a href='B:450 6:12'>Zec 6:12</a>, where He is foreseen as a Priest crowned with silver and gold, introduced to Israel with the same phrase: “Behold the man::.". The Lord would have taken encouragement that in the Father’s eyes, He was crowned there and then in glory, as He magnified His priestly office. But it would have seemed so, so different in the eyes of those mocking men. He was an intellectual genius without compare, and He applied His genius to the Father’s word. He would have been conscious of all these links, and so much more. This way of His didn’t seem to leave Him in His time of dying. And His awareness would doubtless have been a tremendous encouragement to Him. God likewise can control our trials so that we take strength from them in accordance with our appreciation of His word.</h4>


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<h4>Even he shall build Yahweh’s temple; and he shall bear the glory- In :11 we saw Joshua crowned with a priestly mitre; this ’bearing the glory’ might mean that he was also to have the urim and thummim. <a href='B:150 2:63'>Ezr 2:63</a> and <a href='B:160 7:65'>Neh 7:65</a> had perhaps prophesied that a priest would stand up with the urim and thummim in the envisaged restoration of the Kingdom. I explained on <a href='B:450 3:9'>Zec 3:9</a> that possession of the urim and thummim was also envisaged at this time.</h4><h4>And shall sit and rule on His throne; and he shall be a priest on His throne; and the counsel of peace shall be between them both- Being a priest upon a throne implies a king-priest, after the order of Melchizedek and not according to the Mosaic system. There would be peace or a merging into unity between the concepts of priesthood and kingship which had previously been kept separate. Joshua-Jesus could have become the king-priest. But he like Zerubbabel failed and dropped the baton.</h4>


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<p>The crowns shall be to Helem, and to Tobijah, and to Jedaiah, and to Hen the son of Zephaniah, for a memorial in Yahweh’s temple- The idea is that the crowns were to be left in the temple for a sign of the potential that was possible; for Joshua and the three new arrivals from Babylon were never in fact crowned kings and rulers. "Heldai", ’worldliness’] of :10 is now renamed "Helem", ’vision’ or ’vision of God’. If they quit their worldliness, then God’s envisioned purpose of reestablishing the Kingdom immediately would come about. All the time, the message is of potentials. Another person, "Hen", is mentioned in addition to those of :10. This is the word for "grace", which Yahweh had kept secret [’Zephaniah’]. By grace, these men could still participate in the reestablished Kingdom.</p>


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<h4>Those who are far off shall come and build in Yahweh’s temple- The implication of "come" is that Gentiles would enter the sacred space of the temple in order to rebuild it. The acceptance of Gentiles within God’s house is clearly implied. But Gentiles didn’t come and help the Jews in building as the restoration prophecies required. It could be that their refusal of Gentile help to build the temple, insisting that only Jews work in it (<a href='B:150 4:3'>Ezr 4:3</a> cp. <a href='B:160 2:20'>Neh 2:20</a>), was actually going too far; by being so exclusive, they were disallowing the fulfilment of the prophecies both in Zechariah 6 and in Isaiah, that Gentiles would help in the final rebuilding of Zion. As with some of us, their quite correct refusal to allow “the adversaries of Judah” (<a href='B:150 4:1'>Ezr 4:1</a>) to fellowship with us in the work can lead us to an exclusive approach to fellowship, that actually disallows the essentially outgoing and inclusive spirit of the God we serve. The Jews returned from Babylonian having swung to the opposite extreme from their earlier worldliness; they returned proud and refusing contact with the Gentile world, considering themselves saved by their own strength. And this is perhaps reflected in the way they refused on principle to allow any Gentiles to help them in the building work. <a href='B:290 60:10-11'>Isa 60:10-11</a> had foretold: “And the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee [as in the decree of Cyrus]::. Therefore thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night”; and them as Ezekiel 43 had also described, “I will glorify the house of my glory” (<a href='B:290 60:7'>Isa 60:7</a>). But due to the Jews’ abuse of the Sabbath and their refusal to believe Yahweh would be the promised wall of protecting fire to them, the gates could not be open continually, and had to be shut at night (<a href='B:160 7:3'>Neh 7:3</a>; <a href='B:160 13:19'>Neh 13:19</a>). And Antiochus quite soon after Nehemiah’s time destroyed them [which shows how the spirituality involved in what we do, e:g. the building of the wall, is the essential thing, rather than the achievement of anything in itself]. The implication of the prophecies about Zion’s open gates was that whosoever would could then come at any time to seek Yahweh. But men were potentially turned away from Him, and His Kingdom not realized:::just because greedy, materialistic Jews wanted to have a few more coins in their pocket as a result of their trading on the Sabbath. And so with us, our meanness, our disabling of adverts to be placed, preaching to be done:::by our selfishness, our desire to have more than we need to cover us in the case of an y eventuality, all this effectively shuts up the Kingdom against men. If the Pharisees could do just this, it is possible for us to do it. The salvation of others has been delegated into our hands.</h4><p>And you shall know that Yahweh of Armies has sent me to you- As noted on <a href='B:450 2:9'>Zec 2:9</a>; <a href='B:450 4:9'>Zec 4:9</a>, there was distinct scepticism about Zechariah. But he recognizes in the next sentence that the fulfilment of his words and his personal justification would only happen if his audience were obedient. The implication is that his visions of the restored Kingdom could have come about in that generation.</p><h4>This will happen, if you will diligently obey the voice of Yahweh your God’- One of God’s greatest tragedies must be all the potential He has set up, which we don’t use- the plans He’s made possible, which are left unfulfilled because we don’t rise up to it. Ezekiel 40-48 describe a great temple which the returning exiles could have built; but they didn’t. Most didn’t even bother returning from Babylon; those who did traded with the Gentiles, married their women, and built their own houses rather than God’s. <a href='B:450 6:15'>Zec 6:15</a> says the same in the context of this temple being built:&nbsp; “And this shall come to pass, if you will diligently obey the voice of the Lord”.</h4>


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<p>It happened in the fourth year of king Darius that the word of Yahweh came o Zechariah in the fourth day of the ninth month, the month of Chislev- We note the usage of Babylonian forms for the months, reflecting how deep was the assimilation of the Jews into Babylonian language and culture. The temple work would be completed two years later (<a href='B:150 6:15'>Ezr 6:15</a>). But it was not at all on track to complete a temple according to the specifications required in Ezekiel 40-48, hence this prophecy of encouragement.</p>


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<p>The people of Bethel sent Sharezer and Regem Melech, and their men, to entreat Yahweh’s favour- The people of Bethel were amongst the first to return to the land and rebuild their own houses, whilst leaving God’s house unfinished, as <a href='B:440 1:3-4'>Hag 1:3-4</a> laments. 223 of them returned in <a href='B:150 2:28'>Ezr 2:28</a>, and another 123 at the time of <a href='B:160 7:32'>Neh 7:32</a>. "Regem Melech" is a mixture of an Assyrian and Hebrew word, implying ’friend of the king’. Again we see how deeply assimilated the Jews had become. "Sharezer" likewise reflects this, equivalent to the Assyrian Sar-usur or Asur-sar-usur, "Asur protect the King"; and it was the name of one of Sennacherib’s sons (<a href='B:120 19:37'>2Ki 19:37</a>).</p>


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<p>And to speak to the priests of the house of Yahweh of Armies, and to the prophets, saying, Should I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done these so many years?- Weeping implied fasting (<a href='B:160 1:4'>Neh 1:4</a>; <a href='B:360 2:12'>Joe 2:12</a>). This fast had been established to remember the&nbsp; destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar and the burning of the temple in that month (<a href='B:120 25:8-9'>2Ki 25:8-9</a>; <a href='B:300 52:12-13'>Jer 52:12-13</a>). They had instituted several other such fasts and feasts (see on <a href='B:450 8:19'>Zec 8:19</a>). The only fast required by God was that on the day of atonement on the tenth day of the seventh month. That fasting was intended to elicit repentance; and it was exactly that which was lacking in Judah. Instead they had fasted basically out of self pity, lamenting their national judgment as a tragedy, but without personal repentance.</p>


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<p>Then the word of Yahweh of Armies came to me, saying- The question was used as an opportunity to call Judah to deeper repentance, and there are several answers given to the question as to whether they should continue their self-imposed fasts of <a href='B:450 7:3'>Zec 7:3</a>, each introduced by this same rubric "Then the word of Yahweh of Armies came to me, saying".</p>


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<h4>Speak to all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying, ‘When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and in the seventh month for these seventy years- As explained on <a href='B:450 8:19'>Zec 8:19</a>, the Jews had instituted a fast in the seventh month, to mourn the murder of Gedaliah (<a href='B:300 41:1-2'>Jer 41:1-2</a>). But this had eclipsed the fast of the seventh month which God required- on the day of atonement, to mourn their personal sins and seek His atonement.</h4><p>Did you actually fast to Me, really to Me?- God’s answer is that they hadn’t really fasted for Him. They’d fasted, publically appearing to love the temple and the idea of a restored Kingdom::. but in reality they had not done it for God, but somehow for themselves. And the challenge echoes to us today; we can go through all manner of religious ritual when it is effectively to ourselves and not to God.</p><h4>The returned exiles were intended to keep feasts as commanded in Ezekiel 40-48, but it seems they didn’t. The pertinent command about the seventh month was in <a href='B:330 45:25'>Eze 45:25</a>: “In the seventh month, in the fifteenth day of the month, shall he [the prince] do the like in the feast of the seven days, according to the sin offering, according to the burnt offering, and according to the meat offering, and according to the oil”. But here God through Zechariah criticized the Jews for keeping this feast only externally, but not “unto me”. <a href='B:440 2:1'>Hag 2:1</a> records how on the 21st day of the 7th month- i:e. once the seven day feast that began on the 15th had finished- Haggai was sent to rebuke “the prince”, Zerubbabel, for being so slack in fulfilling Ezekiel’s vision. Even by the time of <a href='B:160 8:14-17'>Neh 8:14-17</a>, it was so that the feast of the 7th month had not been kept by Judah since the time of Joshua. They subconsciously switched off to Ezekiel’s words; just as we can all do.</h4>


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<p>When you eat, and when you drink, don’t you eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves?- The challenge echoes to us today; we can go through all manner of religious ritual when it is effectively to ourselves and not toGod. We can sing hymns- but to ourselves; pray, but to ourselves, as portrayed in the Lord’s story of the Pharisee praying ostensibly to God, but actually to himself (<a href='B:490 18:11'>Luk 18:11</a>). And so it was with the Jews’ fasting.</p>


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<p>Aren’t these the words which Yahweh proclaimed by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, and its cities around her, and the South and the lowland were inhabited?’- The point was that it was whilst the Jews were in prosperity formerly that they were so far from God and needed the radical call to repentance made by the former prophets. The returned exiles had been motivated by a desire for personal gain, and were bitterly disappointed by the drought and poor harvests (see on Haggai 1 and Malachi). The idea was that even if they attained prosperity, they would still be in sin. Bethel was one of the "cities" in view, and the answer was being given to the delegation from there (:2).</p>


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<p>Thus has Yahweh of Armies spoken, saying, ‘Execute true judgment, and show kindness and compassion every man to his brother- The Levites were to judge justly in the restored temple (<a href='B:330 44:24'>Eze 44:24</a>). But here and in <a href='B:450 8:16'>Zec 8:16</a>, the same word is used to exhort them to stop judging unjustly. They were not therefore restoring the temple system and kingdom as commanded in Ezekiel 40-48. The records of Ezra and Nehemiah lament the lack of justice, kindness and compassion shown to their own brethren at the time of the restoration. These were the very attributes of the Yahweh Name (<a href='B:20 34:4-6'>Exo 34:4-6</a>). Who God is must be an imperative for us to be likewise; and that is an abiding principle for all time. And it was the lack of these things which had been the basis for their exile (<a href='B:300 7:5-7'>Jer 7:5-7</a>; <a href='B:300 22:3'>Jer 22:3</a>). And the returned exiles were now behaving in just the same way.</p>


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<h4>Don’t oppress the widow, nor the fatherless, the foreigner, nor the poor- The implication is that the returned exiles were committing the same sins as Judah had done before the exile. They were no better than their fathers, and the earlier prophetic criticisms of them still applied to this later generation. This is demonstration enough of how God’s word is a living word and speaks to subsequent generations rather than solely to the initial audience; and that is surely why the relevant prophetic words have been preserved for us in the Bible. Thus prophetic appeals to Old Testament Israel are quoted in the New Testament as being directly to us.</h4><h4>And let none of you devise evil against his brother in your heart’- LXX "Let none of you remember in your hearts the malice of your brother". This balances the first half of the verse, which criticizes those in power. If it were only the sins of a minority which were in view, then the judgment of the entire community would have been inappropriate. But remembering the malice of our more powerful brothers is just as much a sin as the oppression of the weak by the strong. Here again we see a major message in a minor prophet.</h4>


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<p>But they refused to listen, and turned their backs, and stopped their ears, that they might not hear- This quotes Nehemiah’s words of warning to the returned exiles in <a href='B:160 9:29'>Neh 9:29</a>. There are three progressive positions described here. They refused to listen, then turned their backs upon the warnings of the prophets, and then psychologically turned off their hearing. This same downward spiral is observable in human beings of all ages.</p>


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<h4>Yes, they made their hearts as hard as flint- Like a diamond. The same figure is used in <a href='B:330 3:9'>Eze 3:9</a>, meaning to be psychologically unimpressable by anything other than what we already believe in our hearts. Hence LXX "They set their heart disobedient".</h4><p>In case they might hear the law, and the words which Yahweh of Armies had sent by His Spirit in the previous prophets- The human mind can resist the Holy Spirit, powerful as that Spirit Isa. Otherwise, we would not have freewill. We wonder why people are apparently deaf to God’s word. It’s not merely busyness with life, or inability to intellectually grasp what it says. There is a psychological basis for all apparent intellectual failure; and that basis is that they do not want to hear and face God’s demands.</p><h4>Therefore great wrath came from Yahweh of Armies- The invading, desolating armies had been those of Yahweh, controlled by His Angelic armies, as previous visions in Zechariah have made clear.</h4>


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<p>It has come to pass that, as He called, and they refused to listen, so they will call, and I will not listen, said Yahweh of Armies- "They" as in the former generation were already dead. But as noted on :10, God’s word is a living word. Just as the former generation had refused to listen to God’s call, so the present generation would call to God and God would not listen. Our attitude to God’s call to us in His word is reflected in how He responds to our calls to Him in the words of our prayers. Prayer and our attitude to God’s word are therefore related. As He calls to us and we respond, so we call to Him and He responds; or doesn’t respond, according to our lack of response to Him. And yet Zechariah’s generation were calling out for increased prosperity; and were having no response. Because they were not hearing His word about restoring the Kingdom. The delegation from Bethel (:2) had come calling to God for an answer. And there was no yes / no answer as they sought.</p>


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<p>But I will scatter them with a whirlwind among all the nations which they have not known. Thus the land was desolate after them, so that no man passed through nor returned: for they made the pleasant land desolate- We note the mixing of tenses; "I will scatter::. the land was desolate". This is explicable once we grasp the principle explained on :10 and :13 (see too on <a href='B:450 8:9'>Zec 8:9</a>); God had called to a previous generation of Judah through the prophetic word, and they had refused to respond. And so the land had been desolated. But that same call came to the current generation; and they too would be scattered. But God was so gracious with the returned exiles; that scattering took centuries to happen, until the temple was again destroyed and the Jews scattered in AD70. We note that the desolation of the land was because they had made the land "desolate". The judgments were a reflection of what they themselves had done. And it was a "pleasant land", Heb. a land of desire- God’s desire was to reestablish His Kingdom there, but they made no use of that huge potential.</p>


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<p>The word of Yahweh of Armies came to me- After the heavy condemnation of the returned exiles in the previous verses, we can but marvel at God’s grace in now assuring them that He would still bring about His Kingdom purpose with Judah.</p>


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<p>Thus says Yahweh of Armies: I am jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I am jealous for her with great wrath- <a href='B:450 7:12'>Zec 7:12</a> has just stated God’s great wrath with Judah. But His wrath against the Gentile desolators of His people was even greater. See on <a href='B:450 1:2'>Zec 1:2</a>; <a href='B:450 1:15'>Zec 1:15</a>. The even greater wrath He had over Zion’s treatment, deserved as it was, is a reflection of the profound depth of His passionate love for Zion. It’s as if a husband who has an unfaithful wife is more angry with those who punish her than he is with her. Because, quite simply, he loves her so deeply. Again we note the title "Yahweh of Armies". The Angels’ tremendous zeal for the restoration comes bubbling through. No wonder the Kingdom prophecies of Isaiah, Ezekiel and Zechariah could have been fulfilled if only the people had worked together&nbsp; with the Angels to their full potential!</p>


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<h4>Thus says Yahweh: I have returned to Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem- Many times God says that He will return to Zion if they returned to Him. They had physically returned, but not spiritually. And yet He still returned to Zion. Such was and is His grace, His desire to bring about His promise of the Kingdom and restoration. The physical movement of the Angel back to Jerusalem is suggested here. The cherubic glory of God, representing His presence, had departed from Zion in Ezekiel 1, but <a href='B:330 43:4'>Eze 43:4</a> envisaged it returning: "The glory of Yahweh came into the house by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward the east". But there followed a stern warning to repent: "Now let them put away their prostitution, and the dead bodies of their kings, far from Me; and I will dwell in their midst forever. You, son of man, show the house to the people of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities; and let them measure the pattern. If they be ashamed of all that they have done, make known to them the form of the house" (<a href='B:330 43:9-11'>Eze 43:9-11</a>). The glory returned by grace, but that grace was to elicit repentance, and a building of the temple according to the specifications in Ezekiel 40-48. But Judah didn’t respond to the tremendous initiative of God’s grace.</h4>&nbsp;<p>The language of Israel’s return from captivity as found in Isaiah and Ezekiel all has evident reference to the second coming and the final establishment of the Kingdom. It isn’t just that Israel’s return under Ezra and Zerubbabel was a type of that final homecoming. It could have been the Kingdom- had they obeyed the prophecies. It was all about a potential Kingdom of God. But they were too caught up with their own self-interest, with building their own houses rather than God’s; and so it was all deferred. Using the prophetic perfect, God had prophesied that at the time of the restoration, He would come and dwell in rebuilt Zion- just as Ezekiel’s prophecy had concluded: “The name of the city from that day shall be, The LORD is there” (<a href='B:330 48:35'>Eze 48:35</a>). Clearly, Ezekiel’s prophecies could have been fulfilled at the restoration; God was willing that they should be. But human apathyand self-interest stopped it from happening as it could have done.</p><p>Joshua didn’t live up to the conditional prophecies made about him in Zechariah. Ezra and Nehemiah seem to have taken over the priestly and kingly work of Joshua and Zerubbabel respectively. Nehemiah’s record concludes on the negative note that Judah had forsaken Zion (<a href='B:160 13:11'>Neh 13:11</a>). Nobody wanted to live in Jerusalem because of the persecution there; the Levites even went and lived outside it where they had “fields”, because they weren’t given their tithes (<a href='B:160 13:1'>Neh 13:1</a>). Lots had to be drawn to get people to live there (<a href='B:160 11:1'>Neh 11:1</a>). It became a ghost town, when it should have been inhabited as a town without walls for the multitudes of returned exiles joyfully dwelling there (<a href='B:450 2:5'>Zec 2:5</a>).</p><h4>Jerusalem shall be called ‘The City of Truth;’ and the mountain of Yahweh of Armies, ‘The Holy Mountain’- "Truth" is a word associated with covenant relationship. The Mount Zion would be "holy" as opposed to all the abominations being practiced there, both before and after the restoration. But that depended upon whether Judah would be faithful and holy, and they ultimately chose not to be. It is in the Messianic Kingdom that Jerusalem will be called the "city of truth" (<a href='B:290 1:26'>Isa 1:26</a>); at the time when Messiah would be enthroned upon "my holy mountain of Zion" (<a href='B:230 2:6'>Psa 2:6</a>; <a href='B:290 11:9'>Isa 11:9</a>). This could have happened at the restoration; but Joshua and Zerubbabel failed to be the required Messianic figures, and so the prophecy is delayed in fulfilment until the return of the Lord Jesus to earth.</h4>


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<p>Thus says Yahweh of Armies: Old men and old women will again dwell in the streets of Jerusalem, every man with his staff in his hand for very age- The prolonged lifespans envisaged are those of the Messianic Kingdom in Isaiah 65. As noted on :3, this could have happened at the restoration, but it was delayed until the coming of the Lord Jesus in glory. The dwelling of Yahweh in the midst of Jerusalem would be the time when aged men and women would likewise dwell there. The significance of very old people in the immediate context was that these were those who would have seen Zion before the Babylonian invasion. But this never came about.</p>


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<p>The streets of the city will be full of boys and girls playing in its streets- Jeremiah in his Lamentations had lamented the murder of the children in its streets. This was now to all be reversed. But instead, Nehemiah records how hard it was to get the returned exiles to dwell in Jerusalem. They preferred to build their own homes and farmsteads outside of Jerusalem. They thereby precluded the fulfilment of such prophecies.</p>


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<p>Thus says Yahweh of Armies: If it is too hard in the eyes of the remnant of this people in those days, should it also be too hard in My eyes? says Yahweh of Armies- Here again is a timeless challenge; we can assume that what is hard for us must therefore be hard for God. This is the root psychological problem we have which is the basis for our lack of faith in His abilities. They reasoned that “the time” of which he spoke hadn’t come (<a href='B:440 1:2'>Hag 1:2</a>)- even though the temple had miraculously been enabled to be rebuilt, for no human benefit at all to Cyrus (<a href='B:290 45:13'>Isa 45:13</a> “not for price nor reward”). They felt that all the prophecies were “marvellous” (AV) or "too hard" in the sense of something incapable of concrete fulfilment in their experience. This is why <a href='B:440 1:2'>Hag 1:2</a> rebuked them for saying “the time is not come… that the Lord’s house should be built”. They didn’t want the prophecy to be fulfilled, because it would mean ‘going up’ from their ceiled houses- both in Babylon and in the farmsteads they had built in Judah- to build the temple. They thereby brought God down to their level of capability and potential; and this is what we do likewise through our lack of faith in His ability. And note that it was "the remnant", those who by grace God was prepared to accept, who suffered this lack of faith. "Too hard" is surely an allusion to how Abraham and Sarah felt that God’s covenant promises were "too hard" to be fulfilled, earning the rebuke of <a href='B:10 18:14'>Gen 18:14</a> (s:w:). The exiles likewise were precluding the fulfilment of the covenant by the same attitude. Note the connection between the "covenant" and God’s "marvels" [s:w. "too hard", <a href='B:20 34:10'>Exo 34:10</a>]. Nehemiah had lamented that the exiles were not mindful of God’s previous "marvels" (s:w:), His historical doing of that which was "too hard" for man, time and again (<a href='B:160 9:17'>Neh 9:17</a>). This is why we have Biblical history; to remind us that God repeatedly achieves that which is "too hard" for men.</p>


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<p>Thus says Yahweh of Armies: Behold, I will save My people from the east country and from the west country- At that time, the Jews were in the south (Egypt) and what was called "the north". Hardly any of them were in the West. This could have come true in Zechariah’s time in the sense of their regathering from the sun’s rising [east] to it’s setting [west]. But they didn’t want to be regathered, for the most part, and remained in captivity. The allusion is to how God both saved and brought (:8) His people out of Egypt and to the promised land. But in their hearts they returned to Egypt. And so the prophecy will have a latter day fulfilment, when as today, the majority of Jews are located to the west of Palestine.</p>


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<p>And I will bring them, and they will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem; and they will be My people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness- The connection is with :3; when God dwelt in the midst of Jerusalem, so would His people. Zion would be "the city of truth" (:3) in that truth and righteousness would characterize God’s people and His relationship with them. God did indeed "bring them" from exile through stirring up the spirit of Cyrus by His Spirit to enable them to return. But the majority resisted that call, that ’bringing’; likewise it was His intention that they would return not just physically but also spiritually, in repentance. And those who did return likewise resisted that potential bringing back to Him. Just as so many of all ages have resisted the series of Divine nudges throughout their lives, designed to bring them to Him.</p>


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<h4>Thus says Yahweh of Armies: Let your hands be strong- The idea is ’let your hands be strengthened’. There had to be some conscious volition on the part of the temple rebuilders; but God would strengthen their hands. We recall God strengthening the hands of Lot to leave Sodom whilst he himself delayed (same phrase in <a href='B:10 19:16'>Gen 19:16</a>); the call was to those still in Babylon to likewise flee lest they be spiritually consumed there. The very phrase "let your hands be strong" is used repeatedly in the record of the rebuilding in Nehemiah 3, rendered in the AV "Next [s:w."hands"::. repaired [s:w."strong"]", literally ’their hands strengthened’. Nehemiah had prayed "let their hands be strengthened" (<a href='B:160 6:9'>Neh 6:9</a>), just as initially they had "strengthened their hands to this good work" (<a href='B:160 2:18'>Neh 2:18</a>), just as Ezra had been strengthened by God’s hand (<a href='B:150 7:28'>Ezr 7:28</a>). God has turned the heart of the king to strengthen their hands (<a href='B:150 6:22'>Ezr 6:22</a>), and yet by this point in time they needed the encouragement to again be strengthened. And that strengthening was mediated through the words of the prophets.</h4><h4>You who hear in these days these words from the mouth of the prophets who were in the day that the foundation of the house of Yahweh of Armies was laid, even the temple, that it might be built- As noted on <a href='B:450 7:10'>Zec 7:10</a>; <a href='B:450 7:13-14'>Zec 7:13-14</a>, God’s word is a living word and speaks to subsequent generations rather than solely to the initial audience; and that is surely why the relevant prophetic words have been preserved for us in the Bible. The prophets who had predicted the laying of the foundation stone of the restored temple should still be listened to. That prophetic word of purpose was still capable of fulfilment in later years. The prophets in view therefore may not necessarily be Haggai and Zechariah.</h4>


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<h4>For before those days there were no wages for man, nor any wages for an animal- The economic situation was so bad that men worked for nothing, and there wasn’t enough to even feed the beasts of burden. God could give and take prosperity so easily.</h4><h4>Neither was there any peace to him who went out or came in, because of the adversary. For I set all men everyone against his neighbour- This was the state of affairs in the land before the rebuilding started. But through Angelic work, God had made the land peaceful and at rest so that the rebuilding work could start and prosper (<a href='B:450 1:11'>Zec 1:11</a>). We note that God can set men against each other, and also bring about peace between persons. This is all the work of His Spirit upon the spirit of people. There really should be no excuse for disunity and ’every man against his neighbour’ when God is willing and eager to create unity amongst His people. This is the unity of or caused by the Spirit, which Paul exults in later. Lack of unity would therefore be due to a resistance to the work of His Spirit.</h4>


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<p>But now I will not be to the remnant of this people as in the former days, says Yahweh of Armies- The terrible situation in Judah at the time of the founding of the temple (:10) would not continue. The people had returned motivated by a desire for material betterment, and God had given them drought and bad harvests (Haggai 1) to try to direct them to Him in repentance. They hadn’t responded, and now God all the same wants to pour out the covenant blessings of good harvests (:12).</p>


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<h4>For they will sow their seed in peace and the vine will yield its fruit, and the ground will give its increase, and the skies will give their dew- God was willing to send the Kingdom conditions at that time, the blessings of keeping the covenant (<a href='B:50 33:28'>Deu 33:28</a>):&nbsp; But we know that in reality, Judah were not obedient to the heavenly vision of Ezekiel, and therefore Judah’s agriculture was not blessed in this way; the vines cast their fruit, and the fruit of the ground was destroyed (<a href='B:440 1:6'>Hag 1:6</a>; <a href='B:440 1:11'>Hag 1:11</a>; <a href='B:460 3:10-11'>Mal 3:10-11</a>). The reason was that <a href='B:450 8:12'>Zec 8:12</a> was conditional- upon <a href='B:450 8:16-17'>Zec 8:16-17</a>: “These are the things that ye shall do [i:e. to bring these prophecies about]; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates: And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the LORD”. But Judah abused each other, and didn’t fulfil the conditions for the prophecy.</h4><h4>And I will cause the remnant of this people to inherit all these things- The remnant referred to those who had returned at Zechariah’s time. They could have experienced thIsa. The latter chapters of Ezekiel stress how Israel were to “inherit” the land; yet the same word is used in other restoration prophecies, about Messiah causing Israel to “inherit” the land again after their return from “the north country” (<a href='B:450 2:12'>Zec 2:12</a>; <a href='B:290 49:8'>Isa 49:8</a>; <a href='B:300 3:18'>Jer 3:18</a>). When Judah returned from the “north country”, then Jerusalem would be the universally recognized “throne of the Lord” (<a href='B:300 3:17-18'>Jer 3:17-18</a>). The Kingdom could have come when Judah returned from Babylon. It was therefore potentially possible for the returning exiles to inherit all the land outlined in <a href='B:330 47:13-21'>Eze 47:13-21</a> and share it out between the 12 tribes. But they grabbed every man for himself, his own farmstead, his own mini-Kingdom. They had no interest in the wider vision, nor in subduing extra land; and the majority of the Jews didn’t even want to inherit it; they preferred the soft life of Babylon, the Kingdom of men rather than the Kingdom of God. And thus the Kingdom made possible was never actually fulfilled at that time.</h4>


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<h4>It shall come to pass that, as you were a curse among the nations, house of Judah and house of Israel, so will I save you, and you shall be a blessing. Don’t be afraid- The Divine intention was that the ten tribes along with Judah would be a blessing to the nations living in the eretz promised to Abraham. It was "fear" which held them back from realizing this, just as it was fear which stopped God’s people possessing that same land at the time of Moses and Joshua. But all this was conditional upon their wanting to leave the lands of their captivity, and to live according to the spirit of :16.</h4><h4>Let your hands be strong- See on :9. Jerusalem being told not to fear and to have strong hands is a direct fulfilment of the kingdom prophecy of <a href='B:430 3:16'>Zep 3:16</a>: "In that day it will be said to Jerusalem, Don’t be afraid, Zion. Don’t let your hands be weak". The people of Judah who had returned were on the very cusp of the Kingdom of God being reestablished. It so nearly happened, such was God’s enthusiasm for the salvation of that generation. But it didn’t happen because they were focused on the immediate and material rather than the spiritual.</h4>


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<p>For thus says Yahweh of Armies: As I thought to do evil to you, when your fathers provoked Me to wrath, says Yahweh of Armies, and I didn’t repent- God pronounces "evil", but in the gap between the pronunciation of judgment and carrying it out, there is the possibility of human repentance and God’s repentance / change of mind. So this statement that God did not repent is effectively saying that Judah had not then repented.</p>


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<p>So again have I thought in these days to do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. Don’t be afraid- There is no equivalent to "And I didn’t repent" in :14. God was not promising that He would not change His mind, because He cannot force through salvation upon people. The conditions of :16 were still required:&nbsp; The gap between Divine statement and its fulfilment still existed, as it did in :14. And there needed to be freewill response from the people, in the terms of :16.</p>


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<p>These are the things that you shall do: speak every man the truth with his neighbour. Execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates- These were the conditions for God’s insistent desire to reestablish the Kingdom to come about immediately. They seem petty demands compared to the magnitude of what was on offer. But this is the major message of the minor prophets- that things like truth, justice and peace are of utterly paramount importance. And upon them stands or falls the part of men in God’s Kingdom. And Judah at this time failed. The Levites were to judge justly in the restored temple (<a href='B:330 44:24'>Eze 44:24</a>). But here and in <a href='B:450 7:9'>Zec 7:9</a>, the same word is used to effectively exhort them to stop judging unjustly.</p>


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<p>And let none of you devise evil in your hearts against his neighbour, and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, says Yahweh- As explained on :15,16, in return for apparently petty changes, God was prepared to reestablish the Kingdom in glory there and then. But to God, these things were not petty. They were requests for attitudes of mind, not loving falsity, not scheming in their hearts against their neighour. It is mental attitudes that God hates. This itself sets up the colossal importance of being spiritually minded, and the primary importance of the heart over any external religious rituals. God was looking for them to love truth and peace (:19); rather than loving falsity. The same phrase for ’devising evil’ is used of how the opponents of the exiles ’devised evil’ against them (<a href='B:160 6:2'>Neh 6:2</a>; <a href='B:190 8:3'>Est 8:3</a>). Yet the exiles were doing to their brethren what had been done to them. This is the classic cycle of abuse; to do to others as was done to us. Only repentance and a response to Divine grace will break it. God had ’devised evil’ against His people (:14; <a href='B:400 2:3'>Mic 2:3</a>). But they were devising evil against that same people, their brethren. They were unconsciously playing God, responding to their own rightful receipt of God’s judgment by judging others; instead of accepting guilt and the rightness of God’s judgment.</p>


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<p>The word of Yahweh of Armies came to me- See on <a href='B:450 7:4'>Zec 7:4</a>. This appears to still be in answer to the question posed by the delegation from Bethel about fasting in <a href='B:450 7:2'>Zec 7:2</a>.</p>


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<h4>Thus says Yahweh of Armies: The fasts of the fourth, fifth, seventh and tenth months shall be for the house of Judah joy and gladness, and cheerful feasts- The Jews had instituted their own fasts: the ninth day of the fourth month, in memory of the capture of Jerusalem by the Chaldeans; in the fifth month, in remembrance of the burning of the temple and city (see on <a href='B:450 7:3'>Zec 7:3</a>); in the seventh month, to mourn the murder of Gedaliah (<a href='B:300 41:1-2'>Jer 41:1-2</a>); and in the tenth month, in memory of the commencement of the siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar. But the only fast required by God was that on the day of atonement on the tenth day of the seventh month. That fasting was intended to elicit repentance; and it was exactly that which was lacking in Judah. Instead they had fasted basically out of self pity, lamenting their national judgment as a tragedy, but without personal repentance. We see here the human tendency towards religion; and even when ostensibly based upon spiritual things, it can end up a totally separate religion to the one God desires. In their case, fasting to lament Gedaliah’s death took precedence over fasting in repentance for personal sins, which was what God wanted.</h4><h4>Therefore love truth and peace- Without loving truth, these feasts would not be joyful to the Jews who had returned. The prophecy was conditional. As noted on :17, they had loved falsity; God was and is intensely concerned with the state of the human heart. What do we really love and aspire to? Hene all who truly love the Lord’s appearing, with all that entails, shall be saved (<a href='B:620 4:8'>2Ti 4:8</a>).</h4>


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<p>Thus says Yahweh of Armies: Many peoples, and the inhabitants of many cities will yet come- Consistently, the restoration prophecies envisaged God’s restored people as being a blessing to the nations around them; they would recognize that Yahweh had done great things for His people (<a href='B:230 126:1-3'>Psa 126:1-3</a>) and would wish to therefore become part of that people. The reality was that Judah and Israel continued worshipping the idols of those nations, and later evolved into an exclusivist, superior attitude toward them.</p>


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<h4>And the inhabitants of one shall go to another, saying- "The inhabitants of one" is LXX "five cities", perhaps alluding to the five cities which were the capitals of Persia and which therefore became a figure of speech for Persia. Likewise the five cities (the Pentapolis) of the Philistines may also be in view. The peoples of their captivity could have turned to the wonderful God of the Jews; but thisdidn’t happen.</h4><h4>‘Let us go speedily to entreat the favour of Yahweh, and to seek Yahweh of Armies. I will go also’- "Speedily" is also rendered ’continually’. This is the picture of the closing vision in Zechariah 14; Gentiles coming up at regular intervals to keep the feasts. But we see here how the word of the Gospel spreads; it is by the invitation of those seeking God artlessly passed on to others.</h4>


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<p>Yes, many peoples and strong nations will come to seek Yahweh of Armies in Jerusalem, and to entreat the favour of Yahweh- Perhaps Nehemiah was some kind of potential Messiah- for the surrounding Gentiles ‘came up’ to him and shared in the luxurious temple meals (a common Kingdom prophecy- the same Hebrew words are used for the Gentiles ‘coming up’ to the temple in <a href='B:290 60:5'>Isa 60:5</a>; <a href='B:290 60:11'>Isa 60:11</a>; <a href='B:300 16:19'>Jer 16:19</a>; <a href='B:440 2:7'>Hag 2:7</a>; <a href='B:450 8:22'>Zec 8:22</a>). Those meals could have been the Messianic banquets. See on <a href='B:460 1:10'>Mal 1:10</a>.</p>


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<h4>Thus says Yahweh of Armies: In those days, ten men will take hold- It has been estimated that about 20,000 Jews were taken to Babylon. But the population of Babylon was 200,000, indeed it is noted as the first city to pass 200,000 population. This would mean that the population of Babylon was ten percent Jewish. The ideal was that Babylon would turn to Judah’s God, ’taking hold of the skirt’ in covenant relationship.</h4><p>Out of all the languages of the nations- Initially the reference would have been to the 127 languages of the Persian empire. They would beg for acceptance by the&nbsp; minority nation amongst them, the Jews.</p><p>They will take hold of the skirt of him who is a Jew, saying, ‘We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you’-See on <a href='B:330 16:63'>Eze 16:63</a>. It was God’s intention that ten men (a reference to Israelites of the ten tribes?) would take hold of the skirts of a Jew (i:e. one of Judah) and come with him to worship in the new temple. The idea was that those Jews still in Babylon and Persia would return, and there would be many Gentiles who would come with them. But in fact the opposite happened. So few wanted to live in Jerusalem, that the rulers had to cast lots to force one in ten Jews to go and live in Jerusalem (<a href='B:160 11:1'>Neh 11:1</a>). Most of the captives chose to stay where they were, in captivity, assimilated into the culture and ways of the world around them. And the ten tribes didn’t really unite with Judah, but went off and got lost in the Gentile world.</p><h4>"A Jew" is literally ’a Yehudite’- a specific term for a resident of the Persian province of Judah. They could have had the peoples of all the nations in the Persian empire grabbing hold of their skirt. Yehud could have risen up to be the head of all the nations in the land promised to Abraham, i:e. the Persian empire. These were the very real possibilities.</h4>


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<h4>An oracle. The word of Yahweh is against the land of Hadrach- Hadrach is another name&nbsp; for the area around Damascus. It may be mentioned because here Alexander the Great of Greece won his victory which opened the way for him to then pursue his campaign against Syria and the areas around Israel, which the next verses describe. Or the reference could be to the Syrian god Chadrak; the oracle was specifically against the god of Damascus.</h4><h4>And will rest upon Damascus; for the eye of man and of all the tribes of Israel is toward Yahweh- This continues the theme of Zechariah 8, that in the Messianic Kingdom there would be a joining together of the Gentiles with the Jews in turning to God. This time would also be of unity between the ten tribes and the two tribes- all &nbsp;the tribes of Israel would together turn toward Yahweh. Our common repentance and&nbsp; relationship with God is what is in practice the basis of fellowship between God’s people; it is based upon spiritual experience rather than common theology. But this time of turning to Yahweh would only come about after terrible judgments upon the nations around Judah. These would elicit repentance of a remnant, as the following prophecy makes clear. In the first instance, the reference is to the campaign of Alexander the Great against the neighbours of Judah; this could have led to the coming of a Messiah figure and the reestablishment of the Kingdom. But this possibility also didn’t work out, and so these events will have their major fulfilment in the last days and the time of theLord’s return.</h4>


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<h4>And Hamath, also, which borders on it- The idea is that Hamath would share the same judgment as Damascus, perhaps at the same time or at the same hands. This happened during the campaign of Alexander the Great.</h4><h4>Tyre and Sidon, because they are very wise- This continues the great prophetic theme; that all human strength and wisdom is as nothing before God’s judgment.</h4>


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<p>Tyre built herself a stronghold, and heaped up silver like the dust, and fine gold like the mire of the streets- All human strength was and is to crumble before God’s judgment. Isaiah and Ezekiel had prophesied against mainland Tyre, and their words had been fulfilled by the Babylonians. But they then built their island stronghold, as if to ensure future Divine prophecies against them would not be fulfilled.</p>


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<p>Behold, the Lord will dispossess her, and He will strike her power in the sea; and she will be devoured with fire- Initially seen in the destruction of Tyre’s island citadel by Alexander the Great building a mole into the sea to reach it. "Dispossess" is literally ’to send into exile’, and there are records of 13,000 people from the conquered Tyre being sent away into slavery.</p>


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<h4>Ashkelon will see it, and fear; Gaza also, and will writhe in agony; as will Ekron, for her expectation will be disappointed- LXX "for she is ashamed at her trespass". The idea is that the Divine judgments would elicit repentance in a minority, just as was intended to happen with Judah. Or if we read as the Masoretic text, the idea would be that Ekron as the most northerly city in the route of Alexander’s advance had hoped that Tyre or Egypt would come to the support of the Philistines; but they were disappointed. All trust in human strength can lead only to disappointment.</h4><h4>And the king will perish from Gaza, and Ashkelon will not be inhabited- The order of mention of the cities in this section follows the route of Alexander’s campaign. I suggested on Daniel 2 that there were various potential fulfilments of the sequence of metals in the image, culminating in the reestablishment of the Kingdom of God in Israel. The perishing of the king of Gaza at the hands of Alexander is recorded by Herodotus: "Betis the satrap, or petty"king,"was bound to a chariot by thongs thrust through the soles of his feet, and dragged round the city".</h4>


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<p>Foreigners will dwell in Ashdod, and I will cut off the pride of the Philistines- <a href='B:160 4:7'>Neh 4:7</a>; <a href='B:160 13:24'>Neh 13:24</a> stress that Ashdod was a particular opponent of the restoration. But they too would be cut off. Perhaps the "foreigners" in view were those whom the people of Ashdod considered foreigners, i:e. the Jews. And again we note the continued, repeated prophetic criticism of pride. This was and is the fundamental reason for Divine judgment. In :10 we read of the ’cutting off’ (s:w:) of the military strength of Zion’s enemies; perhaps the pride of the Philistines refers specifically to that about which they prided themselves, namely their military technology. And we can see clear similarities in the latter day fulfilment of these verses, in the judgments to come upon the latter day Philistines- the Palestinians.</p>


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<h4>I will take away his blood out of his mouth, and his abominations from between his teeth- This implies that the previously mentioned nations are as a beast with Judah in their mouth, whom they are treating abominably:&nbsp; This is the same figure as <a href='B:370 3:12'>Amo 3:12</a> describing a shepherd taking out the remnants of Judah from the mouth of the beast which had devoured them. Such an arrest of their behaviour never happened, let alone resulting in a remnant of them repenting and joining with Israel as spoken of in the rest of this verse. Yet it will come true, in the last days. It is this which means that Zechariah 9 is clearly a prophecy of the return of Christ to earth and the establishment of His Kingdom (see <a href='B:450 9:1'>Zec 9:1</a>; <a href='B:450 9:9-11'>Zec 9:9-11</a> especially). But this worldwide Kingdom will be established after judgments are executed upon Damascus, Hamath, Tyre, Sidon, Ashkelon, Ekron, Ashdod and Gaza- a collection of peoples likened to a beast with a mouth and teeth which have enclosed Israel. These areas are geographically exactly where the jihadists envisage the ’greater Syria’ as being. They surround present day Israel, from the Gaza Strip to Lebanon. And they are likened to some latter day beast descending upon Israel, which must be destroyed before God’s Kingdom can be established. This encourages us to see the beast of Daniel and Revelation as referring in its final form to Israel’s Islamist neighbours who now surround her. <a href='B:290 9:12'>Isa 9:12</a> uses ‘beast’ imagery when it speaks of the Syrians andPhilistines [same word as ‘Palestinians’] as being the mouth of a huge beast, closing around Israel:&nbsp; "The Syrians before, and the Philistines behind;&nbsp; and they shall devour Israel with open mouth". This image of an Arab beast devouring Israel is repeated in <a href='B:360 1:6'>Joe 1:6</a> concerning the later Assyrian invader.</h4><h4>And he also will be a remnant for our God; and he will be as a chieftain in Judah, and Ekron as a Jebusite- Just as remnant of Judah will be for "our God", so a remnant of the aggressive nations around Judah would likewise serve the same God ["our God"]. They would become equal to the Jews, even becoming chiefs in Judah, and the remnant of Ekron’s inhabitants would be as the Jews who lived in Jerusalem itself. It is called "Jebus" here, its Palestinian name, to demonstrate the degree of unity between the Jewish remnant and the repentant remnant of the surrounding nations. This could have happened at the time of the restoration, but neither remnant repented. This is therefore yet to come, and will bring about the situation of <a href='B:290 19:24'>Isa 19:24</a>, when in the Kingdom, natural Israel and the surrounding nations will have equal share. This message was unattractive to the returned exiles, who wanted an exclusively Jewish kingdom.</h4>


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<h4>I will encamp around My house against the army, so that none pass through or return; and no oppressor will pass through them any more- The potential fulfilment was that Alexander could have come to Jerusalem, encamp against it, and be destroyed by the appearance of a Messianic figure in Zion (:9). But this also didn’t happen, and so the prophecy will have a rescheduled fulfilment in the last days. "I will encamp about mine house because of the army of him that passeth by [the latter-day Sennacherib], and because of him that returneth::. the Lord of Hosts (Angels) shall defend them" (<a href='B:450 9:8'>Zec 9:8</a>; <a href='B:450 9:15'>Zec 9:15</a>) is all the language of Jacob under threat from Esau, being Angelically camped around. This is the basis for the latter day situation in Jerusalem. It has been noted that Alexander averted his plans to attack Jerusalem and instead bypassed Judah in his enthusiasm to get to Egypt and conquer it. This was of God, but reflected how the scenario envisaged here was not then to happen, although in essence it will do so in the last day. "Oppressor" is the word used about the Egyptians oppressing Israel in Egypt (<a href='B:20 3:7'>Exo 3:7</a>; <a href='B:20 5:6'>Exo 5:6</a>; <a href='B:20 5:10'>Exo 5:10</a>). Alexander didn’t do this to Judah. The idea is that an oppressor would come into Judah and oppress them, but Yahweh would defend Jerusalem- exactly as happened when the Assyrians invaded Judah at the time of Hezekiah. This didn’t really happen under Alexander, although it was potentially possible. But it will happen in the last days.</h4><h4>For now I have seen with My eyes- The allusion may be to how God also ’saw’ His people in Egypt, and saved them (<a href='B:20 2:25'>Exo 2:25</a>; <a href='B:20 3:7'>Exo 3:7</a>). The problem was that they did not lift their eyes to their maker, and His gaze and theirs didn’t meet.</h4>


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<h4>Rejoice greatly, daughter of Zion! Shout, daughter of Jerusalem!- This is the potential "shout" of <a href='B:290 44:23-28'>Isa 44:23-28</a>: “Sing, O ye heavens; for the LORD hath done it: shout [s:w:], ye lower parts of the earth: break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein: for the LORD hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself in Israel:::. that frustrateth the tokens of the liars [s:w. <a href='B:160 4:15'>Neh 4:15</a> re. God frustrating the Samaritan opposition]::. That confirmeth the word of his servant [Cyrus], and performeth the counsel of his messengers; that saith to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited; and to the cities of Judah, Ye shall be built".</h4><p>Behold, your King comes to you! He is righteous, and having salvation; humble, and riding on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a donkey- This is another prophecy of Zerubbabel or Joshua which had to have its real fulfilment deferred until the coming of Jesus. This King could have brought salvation- the salvation prophesied as coming at the restoration (<a href='B:450 8:7'>Zec 8:7</a>) when Yahweh [as represented by His appointed king] came to Zion (<a href='B:450 8:3'>Zec 8:3</a>). See on <a href='B:300 23:5'>Jer 23:5</a>. Did Zerubbabel / Joshua like Nehemiah enter Jerusalem on a donkey? Or were they intended to but didn’t?"His dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth” (:10) means that full inheritance of the territory promised to Abraham could have been possible at the restoration, had Joshua or Zerubbabel become their king. The phrase contrasts with the repeated reminder that the Persians had dominion “on this side the river” (<a href='B:150 4:10-11'>Ezr 4:10-11</a>; <a href='B:150 4:16'>Ezr 4:16</a>; <a href='B:150 5:3'>Ezr 5:3</a>; <a href='B:150 5:6'>Ezr 5:6</a>; <a href='B:150 6:13'>Ezr 6:13</a>; <a href='B:150 8:36'>Ezr 8:36</a>; <a href='B:160 3:7'>Neh 3:7</a>). The coming King (and Joshua was prophesied as a king) was to free Judah from Persia’s dominion, and establish God’s Kingdom on its territory, with boys and girls playing in the streets of Jerusalem (<a href='B:450 8:5'>Zec 8:5</a>). “From sea even to sea” is a conscious quote of the famous Messianic prophecy of <a href='B:230 72:8'>Psa 72:8</a>. This was David’s prayer for Solomon; that he should have been the Messiah, and his Kingdom should have been Messiah’s. <a href='B:130 28:6-7'>1Ch 28:6-7</a> definitely seems to imply that Solomon could have lived for ever had he been obedient: “I will establish his kingdom for ever, if he be constant to do my commandments”. But as everyone knew, Solomon had failed, what was potentially possible hadn’t come true, due to his apostasy. Now, again, it could come true through the work of Joshua and Zerubbabel, and the priesthood and people being obedient to the temple prophecies of Ezekiel. If they wanted the Kingdom to come, then they had to live the Kingdom life.</p><h4>There is an intended juxtaposition here: “Your King comes::. lowly, and riding on a donkey”. Kings were supposed to enter upon a charger, not upon a donkey, let alone upon a foal who had not been broken in, bucking and starting in every direction rather than sedately bearing the glorious king. This was and is the great paradox- a humble king. Likewise in the New Testament, the Spirit chose ‘shepherd’ as an image of ecclesial leadership, when the surrounding Rabbis despised shepherds as&nbsp; dishonest. It’s just the same as the Lord Jesus describing Himself as the humble King- a very contradiction in the terms of the contemporary culture.</h4>


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<p>I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow will be cut off; and he will speak peace to the nations: and his dominion will be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth- The Greek invasion is seen as focusing upon the territory of Israel and Jerusalem particularly. A united Ephraim [the ten tribes] and Judah, freshly returned from captivity and to God, would&nbsp; overcome these invaders with God’s help, and take over the entire eretz promised to Abraham for the new Messianic King; with a message of peace with God to those nations.</p>


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<p>As for you also, because of the blood of your covenant, I have set free your prisoners from the pit in which is no water- The prisoners in the pit in the first instance were Judah in captivity, represented by Jeremiah who was cast into such a pit (<a href='B:290 51:14'>Isa 51:14</a>; <a href='B:290 61:1'>Isa 61:1</a>; <a href='B:300 37:16'>Jer 37:16</a>). Jeremiah had foreseen that a new covenant would be made with the returning exiles when they were freed from the pit of Babylonian captivity. It is this covenant which is in view here, and it is associated with blood, just as the Abrahamic covenant had been [through the blood of circumcision] and the old, Mosaic covenant, which was inaugurated through the sprinkling of blood. Quite how this would have worked out at the time of the restoration is unclear; perhaps the "blood" referred to that shed in the Babylonian invasion of Judah. But the wording is as it is because most of the exiles preferred to remain in the pit of Babylon, and those who did return repeatedly broke the covenant by their behaviour. The final fulfilment would be in the blood of the Lord Jesus, mediator of the new covenant, releasing God’s people from the pit of sin and death.</p>


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<h4>Turn to the stronghold, you prisoners of hope!- The exiles are presented as prisoners, whereas in fact they enjoyed a degree of freedom, as the book of Esther reveals. So the imprisonment was spiritual, just as the exiles were urged to flee spiritual death in Babylon. They were imprisoned in the hope of deliverance at the restoration, and yet this "hope of Israel" was rejected by them, in preference for life in Babylon. They were asked to turn or return to the stronghold of Zion. They had been released from prison (:11); but they needed to actually leave. And they for the most part chose to remain in their cells.</h4><h4>&nbsp;Even today I declare that I will restore double to you- "Even today", when the exiles were still so weak and sinful. "Restore" is the same original word as "Turn" at the start of the verse. Their returning literally and spiritually to God and the things of the Kingdom would result in God’s returning "double" to them. And so it is today; any move we make toward God is compensated double by His movement toward us.</h4>


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<h4>For indeed I bend Judah as a bow for Myself. I have filled the bow with Ephraim; and I will stir up your sons, Zion- "Stir up" is s:w. <a href='B:150 1:5'>Ezr 1:5</a> about Judah’s spirit being ‘stirred up’ to return. But most of them preferred to remain in exile. And so this prophecy of Judah and Ephraim being reunited at the restoration and used by God to achieve military victory against their enemies::. simply never happened.</h4><h4>Against your sons, Greece, and will make you like the sword of a mighty man- The envisaged scenario was that the Greek invasion of the Middle East would come against Jerusalem, and be defeated by a united Judah and Israel; who would then dominate the entire eretz promised to Abraham. This had also been envisaged in Daniel. The little horn of Daniel 7 grows out of the fourth kingdom, represented by the fourth beast. But in Daniel 8, a very similar horn grows out of Greece, the third kingdom. We can therefore conclude that the antichrist figure of Daniel 8 would have appeared as an outgrowth of the Greek kingdom, and been destroyed by Messiah’s coming. But this didn’t happen, and Antiochus Epiphanes became but an incipient fulfilment of the antichrist of the last days. Zechariah, like Daniel, contains many conditional prophecies- “And this shall come to pass, if you will diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God” (<a href='B:450 6:15'>Zec 6:15</a>). <a href='B:450 9:13'>Zec 9:13</a> appears to be another such conditional prophecy, similar in reference to that of Daniel 8 about the possibility of Messiah’s coming at the time of the Greek empire. God says He will place Ephraim within the bow of Judah, to be fired at her enemies; and He would “raise up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece” (<a href='B:450 9:13'>Zec 9:13</a>), leading to the final salvation of God’s people, the establishment of Messiah’s Kingdom, and her Messianic king coming unto her (<a href='B:450 9:9'>Zec 9:9</a>). But this didn’t come true; the resistance of the Maccabees was not based on true spirituality, and the Romans took over control of the land from the Greeks. No Messianic Kingdom was established. This would explain the purposeful ambiguity of interpretation which there is in the image of Daniel 2; a good case can be made for the sequence Babylon-Media-Persia-Greece, and yet also for the sequence Babylon-Medo Persia- Greece-Rome. Daniel 8 predicts the breakup of the Greek empire after Alexander’s death into four horns, out of which a little horn arises (<a href='B:340 8:8'>Dan 8:8</a>). The only other prophetic reference to four horns is again in Zechariah, when we read of how the four horns who had scattered God’s people were to be cut off by the carpenters (<a href='B:450 1:18-19'>Zec 1:18-19</a>):&nbsp; The carpenters surely look forward to the carpenter Messiah. He could have appeared and cut off those four horns; but He did not, and so another prophetic sequence was allowed, in which another [fourth] beast arose, this time with ten horns, not just four. And in Revelation we find this developed further, in that seven heads also appear on the beast, and a whore rides the best, sitting upon [another?] seven hills / kingdoms. The number and ferocity of the enemies of God’s people seems to increase over time. If Israel had repented earlier, then all this would have been unnecessary. The three horses of Zechariah 1 thus become four horses in Zechariah 6. The fact the four cherubim chariots are sent out in judgment of those same coloured horses speaks of how all earthly entities have their representative Angels in Heaven. &nbsp;See on <a href='B:450 1:12'>Zec 1:12</a>.</h4>


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<p>Yahweh will be seen over them; and His arrow will go flashing like lightning; and the Lord Yahweh will blow the trumpet, and will go with whirlwinds of the south- "The Lord shall be over them"- as the Angels went over David beyond the mulberry trees (<a href='B:100 5:24'>2Sa 5:24</a>) and as the Angel in the cloud was over Israel in the wilderness. "His arrow shall go forth as lightning"- Angel cherubim language. He "shall go with whirlwinds of the South"- the group of Angels sent into "the south" (i:e. Judah) in <a href='B:450 6:6'>Zec 6:6</a>. If Judah returned, both physically and spiritually, then they would be walking in step with the Spirit in that they would be in harmony with the Angel cherubim who were also returning to Zion, having left in Ezekiel 1 and returning when the glory would have returned to the rebuilt Zion in Ezekiel 40-48. Thus in the next verse Zechariah attributes Israel’s final success as thanks to “the Lord of hosts”- the hosts of Angels working with them and for them. See on <a href='B:450 10:1'>Zec 10:1</a>. But they didn’t rebuild according to those specifications, many didn’t return physically, and only a very few returned to God in repentance. And so it didn’t happen; and the trumpet blowing, perhaps alluding to the announcing of the year of release and day of atonement, never happened.</p>


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<h4>Yahweh of Armies will defend them- In the restoration context, this would be a reference to the Angel cherubim working with the returned exiles, defending them from the Greek invasion; see on :14.</h4><p>And they will destroy and overcome with sling stones- The reference is clearly to David’s victory over Goliath and the Philistines, who have been mentioned earlier in this chapter. The idea is that there would be a revival of how things were in David’s time when Israel were God’s kingdom in the past. See on <a href='B:450 10:5'>Zec 10:5</a>. But instead of subduing the nations around them with the victory of Israel’s God, they brought their own brethren into subjection unto them, that they might gain out of them (<a href='B:450 9:15'>Zec 9:15</a> s:w. <a href='B:160 5:5'>Neh 5:5</a>). It could’ve been the Kingdom, Israel could have become the joy of the whole earth and her people a joy. But instead, they were obsessed with their petty, miserable little kingdoms, and the next few centuries had nothing of the joy which Isaiah had repeatedly prophesied as being possible for them.</p><h4>And they will drink, and roar as through wine; and they will be filled like bowls, like the corners of the altar- The drinking of wine in the context of the altar bowls suggests the drink offering. But they would be as bowls, filled by God- a reference to the filling with His Spirit which was promised at the restoration and entering of the new covenant. But the GNB and LXX offer to the effect that: "They will shout in battle like drunk men and will shed the blood of their enemies; it will flow like the blood of a sacrifice poured on the altar from a bowl". This mass military victory over their enemies never really happened at the restoration, but it will at the Lord’s return:&nbsp;This will be the sacrifice in Bozrah of <a href='B:290 34:6'>Isa 34:6</a>; <a href='B:290 63:1'>Isa 63:1</a>.</h4>


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<h4>Yahweh their God will save them in that day as the flock of His people- This salvation could have happened at the time of the restoration; but the flock were not obedient to the call to return to Zion and spiritually to their shepherd. And they were misled by false shepherds from amongst themselves (<a href='B:450 10:2'>Zec 10:2</a>). We noted on :14 that the Angels were potentially a big part of the restoration. The Angel leading the exiles is elsewhere&nbsp; styled a shepherd (<a href='B:290 63:9-11'>Isa 63:9-11</a>; <a href='B:230 80:1'>Psa 80:1</a>). "The lord of Hosts (Angels) has visited His flock the house of Judah" (<a href='B:450 10:3'>Zec 10:3</a>). Similarly, Israel "went their way as a flock, they were troubled because there was no shepherd" (<a href='B:450 10:2'>Zec 10:2</a>)- i:e. the Angel was not with them because they refused to follow Him.</h4><h4>For they are like the jewels of a crown, lifted on high over His land- As explained on <a href='B:450 6:11'>Zec 6:11</a>, Joshua could have been crowned as priest and Messianic king, but the jewels of the crown were God’s people. Malachi speaks of them likewise, but accepts that the day was yet future when they would be made up together into a crown (<a href='B:460 3:17'>Mal 3:17</a>).</h4>


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<h4>For how great is His goodness, and how great is His beauty!- The beauty may refer to the potential beauty of Israel as jewels (:16), made so by the grace / goodness of their God.</h4><h4>Grain will make the young men flourish, and new wine the virgins- Grain and new wine were the blessings for an Israel who remained in covenant relationship with their God. This could have happened at the restoration, for <a href='B:330 36:29'>Eze 36:29</a> had spoken of how at that time "I will also save you from all your uncleanness: and I will call for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you". But instead, as Haggai 1 notes, they were beset by famine and crops ruined by plague.</h4>


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<p>Ask of Yahweh rain in the time of the spring rains; Yahweh will make storm clouds, He will give rain showers to everyone for the plants in the field- I explained on <a href='B:450 9:14'>Zec 9:14</a> that the Angels had potentially prepared a way for Judah to return and prosper into a restored kingdom of God, just as the Spirit now fulfils that function for those who wish to be God’s people today. Had Judah moved in step with this, they would have become part of the cherubim system. The cherubim reference is continued here. Yahweh would again “make bright clouds” (AV) for Israel, reminiscent of Ezekiel’s cherubim. Finally, the Lord shall go before them, as He had wanted to in Ezekiel’s time, and even the feeble amongst Israel “shall be as the angel of the Lord [who goes] before them” (<a href='B:450 12:8'>Zec 12:8</a>). They would become as the Angel in the same way as Ezekiel became part of the cherubim system, following eagerly where the Angel-cherubim lead. All this huge potential, to move forward with the Angel cherubim above them, was theirs for the asking- "Ask [this] of Yahweh::.". The drought which was crippling the exiles at this time (see on Haggai 1), would be replaced by showers.</p>


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<h4>For the teraphim have spoken vanity, and the diviners have seen a lie; and they have told false dreams. They comfort in vain- Here is evidence enough that the Jews returned from exile with teraphim and false prophets; perhaps the term "teraphim" is used to recall how the historical Jacob had also returned from his exile with teraphim (<a href='B:10 31:32'>Gen 31:32</a>).</h4><h4>Therefore they go their way like sheep. They are oppressed, because there is no shepherd- As noted on <a href='B:450 9:16'>Zec 9:16</a>, God was eager to shepherd His people; but they preferred false shepherds (:3), and chose not to walk in step with the Angel cherubim who were to shepherd the people (see on <a href='B:450 9:16'>Zec 9:16</a>). This was exactly why they had gone into captivity (<a href='B:330 34:8'>Eze 34:8</a>), and they were behaving the same at their return. The situation would only finally be resolved by a new shepherd arising in the Lord Jesus, and the final homecoming will be at His return.</h4>


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<p>My anger is kindled against the shepherds, and I will punish the male goats; because Yahweh of Armies has visited His flock, the house of Judah, and will make them as His majestichorse in the battle- God was angry with the false shepherds who claimed that now was not the time to rebuild the temple (see on <a href='B:440 1:2'>Hag 1:2</a>); because it was the time, and the Angel hosts / armies of Yahweh had potentially enabled the way for them to return, and to be ridden by Him as a horse in victory against all their enemies. Those false shepherds acted as male goats, who were used to direct the sheep in the absence of a human shepherd. Zechariah and Malachi repeatedly criticize the shepherd-priests of Judah for not leading the people as they should have done, and thereby enabled the restoration as potentially envisaged. Because Yahweh had visited His people and (potentially) made them capable of establishing His Kingdom, therefore the priests were at fault for not enabling Judah’s spiritual revival. See on <a href='B:450 13:7-9'>Zec 13:7-9</a>.</p>


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<p>From Him will come forth the cornerstone, from Him the nail, from Him the battle bow, from Him every ruler together- The cornerstone of the new temple had been laid, but a far more glorious structure was possible, in line with that in Ezekiel 40-48. God would have raised up a new leadership, as explained on <a href='B:450 6:14'>Zec 6:14</a>. "The nail", like the cornerstone, was the language of Messiah (<a href='B:290 22:23'>Isa 22:23</a>; <a href='B:470 21:42'>Mat 21:42</a>). Under this leadership, a repentant Israel and Judah would have vanquished all opposition and established a restored Kingdom of God in the territory of the eretz. But they didn’t, and yet the prophecies will come true when they do repent in the last days.</p>


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<p>They shall be as mighty men, treading down muddy streets in the battle; and they shall fight, because Yahweh is with them; and the riders on horses will be confounded- The reference to trampling as mud is the language of <a href='B:100 22:43'>2Sa 22:43</a> about David, who has already been alluded to in <a href='B:450 9:15'>Zec 9:15</a>; this would be a restoration of the Davidic kingdom. See on <a href='B:10 49:17'>Gen 49:17</a>. As noted on :1 and <a href='B:450 9:14'>Zec 9:14</a>, repentant Judah could have merged into the Angel-cherubim system; they could have been ’mighty ones’, elohim, just as the Angels. Horse riders would be confounded because the restored Judah were as a horse ridden by Angels, and Yahweh Himself (:3). "Yahweh is with them" may be a hint that "God with us" in the person of Messiah was with them; and all this has its major fulfilment at the Lord’s second coming. There is the implication that the returned exiles could have won great military victories; but instead they feared to challenge the local powers.</p>


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<h4>I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will bring them back- Again we see the Divine intention to reunite both Judah and the ten tribe kingdom in their restoration; but this didn’t happen because the majority preferred to remain in the lands of their exile. <a href='B:330 37:16'>Eze 37:16</a> had clearly spoken of such unity at the restoration: "Judah::. the children of&nbsp; Israel::. Joseph, the stick of&nbsp; Ephraim::. all the house of&nbsp; Israel". They didn’t return despite God’s desire to strengthen them and bring them back. And Judah was not strengthened or ’made to prevail’ above their brethren (same Hebrew in <a href='B:130 5:2'>1Ch 5:2</a>), even though this was the Divine intention. See on :12.</h4><p>For I have mercy on them; and they will be as though I had not cast them off- This mercy was dependent upon their asking for it in repentance; but they didn’t. And so it must have its fulfilment in a latter day scenario. Paul’s positive approach to Israel’s conversion is reflected in his whole reasoning in Romans 11, his classic statement about preaching to Israel. He begins by saying that God has not cast off His people Israel totally, because some, e:g. himself, have turned to Christ. So, seeing that God will not cast off His people Israel in the ultimate sense, it perhaps follows that in every generation some of them will come to Christ as Paul did (<a href='B:520 11:1-2'>Rom 11:1-2</a>). In some sense, God has cast off His people (<a href='B:120 21:14'>2Ki 21:14</a> RV; <a href='B:450 10:6'>Zec 10:6</a>); and yet, because a minority of them will always accept Christ, it is not true that God has cast off His people in a total sense (<a href='B:520 11:1'>Rom 11:1</a> RV). It was only because of this remnant that Israel have not become like Sodom (<a href='B:520 9:29'>Rom 9:29</a>)- even though Old Testament passages such as Ezekiel 16 clearly liken Jerusalem to Sodom. Yet they are not as Sodom ultimately, for the sake of the remnant who will believe.</p><h4>For I am Yahweh their God, and I will hear them- As noted on :1, if they had asked for the restoration to come about and done their part, it would’ve done.</h4>


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<p>Ephraim will be like a mighty man, and their heart will rejoice as through wine; yes, their children will see it, and rejoice. Their heart will be glad in Yahweh- Ephraim, the ten tribes, werenot regathered because they didn’t want to be. I noted on :5 that it would’ve been possible for the exiles to be the earthly function of the Angel cherubim of the heavens. Ephraim would be "mighty ones", elohim. They would receive the blessing of wine, the sign of covenant blessing, and the next generation, "their children", would experience the restored Kingdom of God in Israel. All this was possible but tragically was precluded by a lack of repentance and short term outlook which wanted to remain in the old and familiar. "Mighty man" is literally gibbor, the term used of Messiah in <a href='B:290 9:6'>Isa 9:6</a>. Finally these prophecies will come true when a repentant Israel identify with ["be like"] the Lord Jesus Christ at His second coming.</p>


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<h4>I will signal for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed them- “I will hiss for them"(AV) is the same phrase used in <a href='B:290 5:26'>Isa 5:26</a> of the latter day regathering of Judah. But even at the time of the restoration it could have been fulfilled; God had hissed for them, urging them to return, because He had already potentially redeemed them. They were to quit Babylon to accept that redemption. And like many today, most of them just didn’t want to do that. The short term attractions were too great for them. The regathering of Israel is therefore related to their redemption. The fact so many have now been regathered to the land is surely an indication that their redemption draws nigh; and should we not therefore tell them of the Gospel which they must accept as part of that redemption?</h4><h4>And they will increase as they have increased- The promise to Abraham of the seed multiplying would come true; for those promises are the basis of the new covenant, the new deal offered to repentant Israel and Judah.</h4>


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<p>I will sow them among the peoples; and they will remember Me in far countries; and they will live with their children, and will return- The context is of the return from captivity, so perhaps the reading of the GNB is correct:"Though I have scattered them among the nations, yet in far-off places they will remember me. They and their children will survive and return home together". We note the repeated mention of the children (:7 too). Likely the reason given for remaining in captivity was that it was better for the children to remain, rather than drag them on a long, uncertain journey to a strange land and live amongst the ruins. But their children would be blessed if they did return in penitence, with the experience of growing up in God’s restored Kingdom. The exile was a ’sowing’; the fruit intended to rise up was a generation of penitent young people who would seek to return to their ancestral homeland. But instead, that generation bitterly blamed God for punishing them for their fathers’ sins (Ezekiel 18)."Remember me"is better ’make mention of me’. The idea was that they would openly witness to the surrounding nations about the Hope of Israel, and even bring those Gentiles with them to Zion.</p>


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<p>I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon; and there won’t be room enough for them- In the first instance, the Jews in Egypt were those who had gone there in Jeremiah’s time, disbelieving the promise that they would be safer remaining in the ruins of Judah. Those once spiritually weak ones, along with the ten tribes in Assyria, would return in great numbers, and live in the now fertile land of Gilead and Lebanon, back in the northern Kingdom. But they didn’t- at that time. Such a restoration will be realized, but in the last days. That generation resisted God’s ’bringing them again’ and ’gathering’ of them, just as the invitation to participate in the Hope of Israel and the restored Kingdom of God is resisted by those who hear it today."Bring them again"translates the usual Hebrew word for"return". God would return them; but they had to return. If they took that step in faith, just as today, then God would make it happen. They would be"gathered::. with a mighty hand and [God’s] stretched out arm"(<a href='B:330 20:34'>Eze 20:34</a> s:w:). But they refused that might hand which would have brought them safely through their physical and spiritual journey.</p>


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<p>He will pass through the sea of affliction, and will strike the waves in the sea, and all the depths of the Nile will dry up; and the pride of Assyria will be brought down, and the scepter of Egypt will depart- If the Jewish exiles in Egypt and the ten tribes in Assyria had wanted to return, then as noted on :10, God’s mighty hand would have even dried up the Nile, taken away the power of the Egyptians and brought down Assyria- just so that they could return. God will work powerfully in the geopolitics of the world for the sake of just a minority with whom He has a purpose. In my days I saw God open up then Communist Eastern Europe, allow the internet to be developed- for the sake of getting the Gospel to millions He sought to call out and save.</p>


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<p>I will strengthen them in Yahweh; and they will walk up and down in His name, says Yahweh- see on <a href='B:450 12:5'>Zec 12:5</a>; <a href='B:450 12:8'>Zec 12:8</a>; <a href='B:330 16:63'>Eze 16:63</a>. As in :6, the strengthening in view is not simply prevailing above others in military terms; they would be spiritually strengthened. The new covenant offered to the exiles involved being given a new heart (<a href='B:330 36:26'>Eze 36:26</a>), and that strengthening of the Spirit is still a part of the same new covenant we accept today in baptism. To some degree a repentant natural Israel will take over the role of the Angels as God’s eyes walking up and down and to and fro in the earth (land?). This follows from Zechariah earlier describing the Angels as walking to and fro in the earth (<a href='B:450 1:10'>Zec 1:10</a>; <a href='B:450 6:7'>Zec 6:7</a>). As noted on :1 and <a href='B:450 9:14'>Zec 9:14</a>, repentant Judah on earth could have become part of the glorious system of the Angel cherubim above them. But this is to be fulfilled in their latter day repentance, when in visible, literal terms the glory returns to Zion eternally.</p>


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<p>Open your doors, Lebanon, that the fire may devour your cedars- The tone of Zechariah changes as the prophecy progresses. All the wonderful potentials were not being used by the exiles, and so judgment and rejection was to come. The returned exiles from Assyria could have lived in Lebanon, as stated just a few verses earlier in <a href='B:450 10:10'>Zec 10:10</a>. But God in this chapter is now as it were breaking up all those potentials. The cedars of Lebanon were to be devoured by fire. Finally this came true in the sense that the cedars which characterized the temple were destroyed by fire in AD70.</p>


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<p>Wail, fir tree, for the cedar has fallen, because the stately ones are destroyed. Wail, you oaks of Bashan, for the strong forest has come down- As noted on :1, the potential just stated in <a href='B:450 10:10'>Zec 10:10</a> was not now going to come about. The exiles didn’t want to return, and so they would not live in Bashan; rather, the oaks and forests there would be burnt. This initially applies to the breaking of all the potentials in Zechariah’s time, but the prophecy came to a fulfilment in the destruction of the northern areas of Palestine in the Roman advance of AD70, and will likely have another fulfilment in the last days. The relevance to the first century becomes more apparent later in the chapter. The"stately ones"uses the same word for the"nobles"in Judah at the time of the restoration (<a href='B:160 3:5'>Neh 3:5</a>; <a href='B:160 10:29'>Neh 10:29</a>). They could have become the leaders of the restored kingdom of God in Israel at Zechariah’s time; but that potential was rejected by them, and now broken by God.</p>


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<p>A voice of the wailing of the shepherds! For their glory is destroyed: a voice of the roaring of young lions! For the pride of the Jordan is ruined- The wailing of shepherds and the roaring of lions create the idea that the invaders [lions] came as a result of the failure of the shepherds. This was why Judah had gone into captivity (Ezekiel 34), and sadly they didn’t reform and so their final destruction in AD70 was a result of their bad shepherds."The wailing of the shepherds"occurred when Babylon took Jerusalem (same phrase in <a href='B:300 25:36'>Jer 25:36</a>). The Jordan was the famed habitat of young lions; the idea is that the destruction of their habitat made them roam.</p>


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<p>Thus says Yahweh my God: Feed the flock of slaughter- Zechariah was asked to act out a parable of a shepherd. God had decided to slaughter the flock, and they were to be prepared for that by their own shepherds. The slaughter of the post-exilic community didn’t come until AD70; this again was a reflection of God’s huge patience.</p>


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<p>Their buyers slaughter them, and go unpunished. Those who sell them say, ‘Blessed be Yahweh, for I am rich;’ and their own shepherds don’t pity them- The buyers and sellers of the flock are presented as worshippers of Yahweh. The slaughter of the flock was to be in the first century when the covenant was finally broken; but the abuses of the Jews against each other was effectively a slaughtering of the flock for their own enrichment. Nehemiah records how the rich enslaved the poor during the famine. And they"repent not"(LXX; NEV"Go unpunished"). There was not the required repentance of the exiles, but rather a simplistic desire for personal wealth out of the situation in Judah (see on Haggai 1).</p>


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<h4>For I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land, says Yahweh- God had often stated in Ezekiel that He would not pity Judah. But at the restoration, He did pity them, by absolute grace (<a href='B:330 36:21'>Eze 36:21</a> s:w:). But this pity is now as it were withdrawn; they were to be destroyed, and only God’s true remnant would find His pity (<a href='B:460 3:17'>Mal 3:17</a> s:w:).</h4><h4>But, behold, I will deliver the men, every one of them, into his neighbour’s hand, and into the hand of his king. They will strike the land, and out of their hand I will not deliver them- Earlier in Zechariah, God had enthusiastically explained that Zerubbabel and then Joshua could have been the Messianic king of the restored kingdom. But both those men and their people didn’t want that, and returned to remain under the kingship of the Gentiles. And so Judah was to be destroyed by each other, and also by the one they had chosen king. When they crucified the Lord, they stated that Caesar was their only king (<a href='B:500 19:15'>Joh 19:15</a>), and he wasthe one who was to destroy them in AD70.</h4>


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<h4>So I fed the flock of slaughter, especially the oppressed of the flock- LXX"And I will tend the flock of slaughter in the land of Chanaan". The returned exiles would grow into the ’Judea’ of the first century. But they were to be led by their shepherds, whose role Zechariah played, towards their final slaughter in AD70. Or consider the GNB:"Those who bought and sold the sheep hired me, and I became the shepherd of the sheep that were going to be butchered".</h4><h4>I took for myself two staves. The one I called Grace, and the other I called Union, and I fed the flock- Grace is to be the basis for unity between God’s people. The covenant relationship experienced with God naturally binds us in union with others in that same covenant. Unity with God and with our brother is therefore connected. It could be deduced that division between brethren is therefore a reflection of how some have not grasped the wonder of personal, covenant relationship with God through His grace. All interpersonal issues take on a completely different colour in the face of God’s grace. And is this which is the stave or rod which will guide the flock rightly. But those staves were to be broken; without an awareness of Divine grace and unity between brethren, God’s people are really without any shepherding. It had been God’s intention to reunite Israel and Judah at the restoration, on the basis of the fact that both would accept His grace as offered in the new covenant.</h4>


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<h4>I cut off the three shepherds in one month; for my soul was weary of them, and their soul also loathed me- GNB"I lost patience with three other shepherds, who hated me". God had patiently waited for Judah to respond, there had been several potential Messianic shepherd figures (Zerubbabel, Joshua, Nehemiah), and yet His patience had limits.</h4><h4>Heldai, Tobijah and Jedaiah returned from Babylon and were intended to be leaders who would crown Joshua / Jesus as the Messiah-Priest-Branch who would rebuild Jerusalem. See on <a href='B:450 6:10'>Zec 6:10</a>; <a href='B:450 6:14'>Zec 6:14</a>. But nothing is heard of them further. Perhaps it is to them that this refers. They had gone into captivity because of poor shepherds, and now at their return they again lacked men willing to be their Saviours; and God is saying that He would not do the shepherding job which He had delegated to others. It could be that Heldai, Tobijah and Jedaiah all died in one month as a result of Zechariah’s prophecy at the time of <a href='B:150 5:1'>Ezr 5:1</a>.</h4>


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<h4>Then I said, I will not feed you- GNB"I will not be your shepherd any longer". In this acted parable, Zechariah is reflecting God’s feelings. The shepherds were unwilling to manifest God to the people, and the flock / people didn’t want His shepherding. They would not ’return’ to Him.</h4><h4>That which dies, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let those who are left eat each other’s flesh- This was finally fulfilled in the horrors of the siege of Jerusalem in AD70. It is the spirit of <a href='B:730 22:11'>Rev 22:11</a>:"He that is unrighteous, let him continue to do unrighteousness, and he that is filthy, let him remain filthy, and he that is righteous, let him continue to do righteousness, and he that is holy, let him remain holy". We get the impression that this calamity was intended for Zechariah’s time, but by grace and God’s continual efforts and longsuffering it didn’t come about until AD70; and it yet will come true in the last days.</h4>


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<h4>I took my staff Grace, and cut it apart, ‘That I might break My covenant that I had made with all the people’- The breaking of"grace"meant breaking the"bands"of unity between Israel and Judah. The basis for interpersonal unity is response to God’s grace, rather than an academic, technical agreement on theology. The basis of the new covenant offered to Israel at the restoration was grace. By that grace, God was willing to accept the unspiritual exiles if they came to Him. But they didn’t, they refused covenant relationship with Him. And so having spurned and broken the covenant, He broke it from His side too. God will not break His covenants; but He is here confirming that His people had broken the covenant.</h4><h4>Throughout Zechariah we have seen multiple allusions to the work of the Angels. This was in that time how God revealed Himself to men, and invited them to conceive of Him. We recall the words of the Angel in <a href='B:70 2:1'>Jdg 2:1</a>"And an Angel of the Lord came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said, I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I sware unto your fathers: and I said, I will never break My covenant with you". The subsequent rebuke of srael by the Angel makes this passage imply that although the Angel had promised never to break the Covenant, He could and would do so- reflecting the God of Hosea, who has emotion and can change His mind in accordance with the mind of His people. Now, the Angel speaking to Zechariah does break the covenant. There is another Angelic reference in :6:"I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land, says the Lord"(cp. <a href='B:290 63:9'>Isa 63:9</a> regarding the wilderness Angel:"in His love and in His pity"He redeemed Israel from Egypt). Although the Angelic covenant was broken, it is to be re-established:"I will even deal with thee as thou hast done, which hast despised the oath in breaking the covenant (i:e. you’ve broken the covenant, I’ll do the same). Nevertheless I will remember My covenant with thee::. and I will establish unto thee an everlasting covenant::. thou shalt receive thy sisters::. and I will give them unto thee for daughters, but not by thy (former) covenant. And I will establish My covenant with thee"(<a href='B:330 16:59-62'>Eze 16:59-62</a>). This covenant was a marriage covenant."For the Lord hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and&nbsp;a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God"(Michael the Angel?), <a href='B:290 54:6'>Isa 54:6</a>. This is all referring back to the Angel calling Hagar, showing that God’s Angel was figuratively ’married’ to Israel; thus Judah were invited to understand that it was the Angel representing God who divorced and will take back&nbsp;Israel.</h4>


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<p>It was broken in that day; and thus the poor of the flock that listened to me knew that it was the word of Yahweh- LXX"The Chananites, the sheep that are kept for me, shall know that it is the word of the Lord". There was a minority amongst the returned exiles who did respond to Zechariah’s teaching; perhaps the Lord alludes here when commenting that"to the poor the Gospel is preached"(<a href='B:490 7:22'>Luk 7:22</a>). There’s no doubt that"the poor"in whatever sense, be it poverty of spirit or finances, are those more likely to respond to God’s word of the Kingdom."The poor"perceived that Zechariah’s breaking of the staff meant that the covenant was broken; what had been possible for returned Judah now wasn’t.</p>


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<p>I said to them, If you think it best, give me my value; and if not, keep it. So they weighed for my wages thirty pieces of silver- In the acted parable, Zechariah asks the sheep merchants what wages they will give him for having kept their flock for slaughter. The implication is that they had now arrived at the time for slaughter, and he was handing the flock back to them which he had prepared for slaughter. The time of slaughter was in the first century. The Lord Jesus was the shepherd who had tried to save the flock but His very efforts with them, and their rejection of them, made them the generation that had to be slaughtered. In this sense He shepherded the flock to slaughter. Zechariah at this point therefore becomes a type of the Lord Jesus Christ. The way he asks them if they wish to pay him, leaving the choice with them, perhaps again hints at the huge freewill Judah were allowed; they need not have gone ahead with the path that led to the betrayal and murder of their own Messiah.</p>


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<h4>Yahweh said to me, Throw it to the potter, the handsome price that I was valued at by them!- This appears to be sarcasm, as if it was a very low price for his work. It was the price of a slave; and all Judas could buy with it was a field of muddy clay soil, not much use for anything. It is incredible that Judas did what he did for so little; but this is the power of avarice, greed, insisting blindly upon our own agenda and jealousy.</h4><h4>I took the thirty pieces of silver, and threw them to the potter, in the house of Yahweh- This clearly looks forward to Judas throwing down the thirty pieces of silver in the temple, and the money being used to purchase the potter’s field. It has been suggested that there were earthen, potter’s vessels in the temple, and Zechariah threw the coins to a potter who was in the temple at the time, perhaps in connection with the earthen vessels there. Zechariah has been speaking in this chapter of how because the exiles had refused God’s offer of a new covenant, the community would be judged and rejected. This came to its full term in the first century, and so his acting out the rejection and betrayal of the Lord Jesus is appropriate and in context.</h4>


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<p>Then I cut apart my other staff, even Union, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel- At the time of Zechariah, that brotherhood was already broken. Repeatedly in Zechariah, there has been the message that Judah and Israel would be reunited at the restoration. This didn’t happen, as the majority of both groups preferred to remain in the lands of their exile. But that unity was potentially prepared. But it seems now God breaks that, He takes away that potential because it is clear that in Zechariah’s time, that was just not the wish of God’s people to make use of it. And we have surely all seen potentially unity between groups and persons being broken by God in response to the way that the humans involved just didn’t want it. We note again that union between individuals is related to our acceptance of grace, the first ’staff’ which was to guide the flock.</p>


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<p>Yahweh saidto me, Take for yourself yet again the equipment of a foolish shepherd- This final acted parable appears to speak specifically of the failure of Zerubbabel, the one who could have been the shepherd. Just as the shepherd leaders of Judah had been foolish and this had led Judah into captivity (s:w. <a href='B:350 9:7'>Hos 9:7</a>), so now the restored community likewise were foolish and had foolish shepherds.</p>


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<h4>For, behold, I will raise up a shepherd in the land-"Raise up"is the language of restoration (s:w. <a href='B:370 9:11'>Amo 9:11</a> and often). God had raised up a shepherd in the land, indeed it seems when Zerubbabel failed, Joshua was raised up, and even Nehemiah. But despite this initiative of God, the shepherds were like those before the captivity.</h4><h4>Who will not visit those who are cut off, neither will seek those who are scattered, nor heal that which is broken, nor feed that which is sound; but he will eat the flesh of the fat sheep, and will tear their hoofs in pieces- This is the language of Ezekiel 34 concerning the shepherds of Judah before the exile. Now those who had been restored were behaving the same way. The leadership of Judah were not interested in the spiritual welfare of people, but rather just their own material benefit from them. This came to full term in the generation which led Judah to crucify their King, the Lord Jesus the Messiah:&nbsp; The “great mountain” of Babylon was to become a plain before Zerubbabel (<a href='B:450 4:7'>Zec 4:7</a>)- a clear allusion to <a href='B:340 2:44'>Dan 2:44</a>, in which the little stone of Messiah destroys the Kingdoms of men and becomes a great mountain to replace the statue headed by Babylon. But Zerubbabel didn’t destroy Babylon- according to Jewish tradition he returned there after ‘giving up’ in Jerusalem. He was “the worthless shepherd” who didn’t gather “those that be scattered”, who didn’t encourage the Jews scattered in Babylon to return to the fold of Zion, and who didn’t care for their spiritual wellbeing. And so the prophecy that Babylon would be destroyed before Zerubbabel has to be reapplied, and will be fulfilled at the return of the Lord Jesus."That which is broken"would then refer to the walls and buildings of Jerusalem and the temple. These were not rebuilt as potentially possible.</h4>


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<h4>Woe to the worthless shepherd who leaves the flock!- I suggested on :16 that this refers to Zerubbabel leaving the flock of Judah in the land and returning to Babylon.</h4><h4>The sword will be on his arm, and on his right eye. His arm will be completely withered, and his right eye will be totally blinded!- This could also speak of leprosy. Was this how he ended his days, we wonder? Yet he, the ‘shoot out of Babylon’ as his name means, could have been the promised Messianic shoot out of the withered stem of Jesse. He could have been the Messianic shoot out of the dry ground of Babylon (<a href='B:290 53:2'>Isa 53:2</a>) who would accompany the return of the temple vessels from Babylon (<a href='B:290 52:11'>Isa 52:11</a>). But he disappears strangely out of the record. Thus the events of Nehemiah 8, where the Feasts of Trumpets, Atonement and Tabernacles as well as the dedication of the wall are all recorded, make no mention of the High Priest or Zerubbabel officiating. He, Joshua and indeed anyone who could have taken their place somehow didn’t rise to the occasion. And so <a href='B:290 51:17-18'>Isa 51:17-18</a> lamented, prophetically: “Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the LORD the cup of his fury [at the end of the 70 years captivity]::. [but] There is none to guide her among all the sons whom she hath brought forth; neither is there any that taketh her by the hand of all the sons that she hath brought up”:&nbsp;Perhaps Zerubbabel, or whoever could have been the Messianic prince, was smitten with a stroke which left his arm withered and his right eye blinded. That language certainly sounds like a stroke. And those who had heard Zechariah’s words would immediately have perceived their fulfilment.</h4>


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<h4>An oracle. The word of Yahweh concerning Israel- The previous chapter has stated that the potential unity between Israel and Judah at the restoration had now been broken; that was not to happen at Zechariah’s time. But Judah’s judgments in the last days would in fact bring about the final fulfilment of God’s plans, which He had potentially enabled for fulfilment at Zechariah’s time. And so"Israel"is addressed as Jerusalem, capital of Judah (:2), and used as a parallel with"Judah".</h4><h4>Yahweh, who stretches out the heavens, and lays the foundation of the earth, and forms the spirit of man within him says- God’s ability to stretch out the eretz and the sky above it was a figure understood to refer to His ability to rebuild and restore that land and its people, just as He had stretched out and founded the literal heavens and earth (<a href='B:290 40:22'>Isa 40:22</a>; <a href='B:290 42:5'>Isa 42:5</a>; Isa 4424; <a href='B:290 45:12'>Isa 45:12</a> and often). He had promised to place His Spirit in the restored Judah at their return from captivity (Ezekiel 37). All these Divine capabilities, and therefore human potentials, had been refused by the Judah of Zechariah’s day. But they would again become possible in the last days.</h4>


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<p>Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of reeling to all the surrounding peoples, and on Judah also will it be in the siege against Jerusalem- As explained on :1, the focus now is specifically upon the latter day, final fulfilment of God’s prophetic purpose for Judah and Jerusalem. Babylon is depicted as a latter day entity which gives a cup to others to drink; and that cup is here defined as Jerusalem. There will be a requirement that all within latter day Babylon are somehow associated with Jerusalem, and this will cause their condemnation; for the cup is also a symbol of condemnation. It is their ’taking’ of Jerusalem which is the taking of the cup of condemnation. The"surrounding peoples"are the constituents, therefore, of the latter day Babylon which Revelation constructs upon the basis of prophecies such as thIsa. And this is the arena of focus of Bible prophecy- the land promised to Abraham and its immediate neighbours. These"surrounding peoples"are"all the nations of the earth / eretz promised to Abraham"of :3. We notice the increased focus upon Jerusalem in radical Islamist theology. The"siege against Jerusalem"seems to refer to that of the last days and not AD70, for the"surrounding peoples"were not destroyed then as required by :3,4.</p>


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<h4>It will happen in that day- <a href='B:450 12:3-11'>Zec 12:3-11</a> is a passage which contains seven occurrences of the phrase"In that day::.". The passage does not have to be interpreted chronologically; this is a list of events which will occur around the same time,"in that day". They are snapshots of the same scene from different angles. The seals of Revelation 6 and the repeated references to a three and a half year tribulation period can be understood likewise; they do not necessarily refer to chronologically different events, but are giving different aspects of information about the same basic scene. The lack of strict chronological sequence in prophecy is a major feature of the Old Testament; thus a consideration of the phrase “in that day::." in Isaiah reveals that the context ’jumps around’ all over the place, from the first coming of Christ to the Babylonian invasion to the Kingdom. There is no reason to think that Revelation is any different.</h4><p>That I will make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all the peoples- Babylon’s judgment will be to have a stone placed around them and then to be thrown into the sea (<a href='B:730 18:21'>Rev 18:21</a>). But they will themselves have prepared this judgment, by lading themselves with the stone of Jerusalem. "All the peoples" therefore refer to all those within the Babylon confederacy of the last days.</p><h4>All who trample upon it will be severely wounded, and all the nations of the earth will be gathered together against it- The nations of the eretz promised to Abraham are the "surrounding peoples" of :2. They will be gathered together against it through accepting a radical jihadist theology which focuses upon Jerusalem; and&nbsp; that theology is clearly now in development. This trampling upon Jerusalem is clear evidence that Jerusalem will fall. Israel and the IDF are not invincible, as some Protestants like to imply. This is the time when Jerusalem is trodden underfoot of the Gentiles during the "times of the Gentiles" [domination of Jerusalem]; see on <a href='B:490 21:24'>Luk 21:24</a>. Those "times" appear to be the 1260 days / 42 months / three and a half years of other prophecies. "Severely wounded" is literally "cut to pieces", and this is the picture of <a href='B:340 2:44'>Dan 2:44</a>; the stone of God’s Kingdom shall dash to pieces those who trample upon the stone of Zion.</h4>


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<h4>In that day, says Yahweh, I will strike every horse with terror, and his rider with madness- All the apparently invincible military technology of the latter day invasion will be brought to nothing and revealed as foolishness. To be struck with terror and madness from Yahweh is the very term used of God’s judgments upon Israel for their disobedience (<a href='B:50 28:28'>Deu 28:28</a>). All that was done to Israel will be done to their abusers. The confounding of the horse riders is that spoken of in <a href='B:450 10:5'>Zec 10:5</a>, and it is to be achieved by God working through a repentant Jewish remnant.</h4><h4>And I will open My eyes on the house of Judah, and will strike every horse of the peoples with blindness- God’s eyes are a metaphor for His Angels. The Angel Michael is described as "standing up" for Israel in the last days (<a href='B:340 12:1'>Dan 12:1</a>); as if Angelic activity on Israel’s behalf&nbsp; revives in the last days. Striking with blindness recalls what the Angels did to the men of Sodom, in order to preserve a tiny remnant of God’s people within it. And those events typify the latter day salvation of the remnant from the city called Sodom, which is Jerusalem. The image of blind horses may mean in modern terms that some sensory technology which is used in weaponry will be disabled. We note that horse riders are used to represent the latter day invaders of Israel in Revelation, and also in the prophecy of Gog’s invasion (<a href='B:330 38:15'>Eze 38:15</a>).</h4>


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<p>The chieftains of Judah will say in their heart, ‘The inhabitantsof Jerusalem are my strength in Yahweh of Armies their God’- The chieftains or governors of Judah are referred to in <a href='B:450 9:7'>Zec 9:7</a>, where they refer to repentant Jews and Gentiles. These repentant ones who will become the rulers in the restored Kingdom of God will be strengthened by those then dwelling in Jerusalem. And those are "Yahweh of Armies", the Angels with which the Lord Jesus will return to earth, the saviours who appear on mount Zion to deliver her from her latter day abusers (see on <a href='B:380 1:21'>Oba 1:21</a>). This shows how Angels will be very much in evidence on earth at the time of Jerusalem’s surrounding by armies and Armageddon. : "The inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be my strength in the Lord of Hosts (Angels) their God". Who this ’God’ refers to is defined in :8: "He that is feeble amongst them (the"inhabitants of Jerusalem") at that day shall be as David, and the house of David shall be as God, as the Angel of the Lord (which will go) before them". This implies that the inhabitants of Jerusalem will have the same power as the hosts of Angels which will have been seen fighting "before them". Thus the Jews will "walk up and down in His Name" (<a href='B:450 10:12'>Zec 10:12</a>) as the Angels are now said to do (<a href='B:450 1:11'>Zec 1:11</a>; <a href='B:220 1:7'>Job 1:7</a>).</p>


text:
<h4>In that day I will make the chieftains of Judah like a pan of fire among wood, and like a flaming torch among sheaves; and they will devour all the surrounding peoples, on the right hand and on the left- As explained on <a href='B:680 3:7'>2Pe 3:7</a>; <a href='B:680 3:12'>2Pe 3:12</a>, literal fire will be used to destroy the latter day abusers of God’s land and people. And that fire will be directed by the chieftains of Judah, who as explained on :5 refer to the repentant Jewish remnant now directly empowered by the Angels who have returned with Jesus to Zion; and those Angels are made as a flaming fire (<a href='B:230 104:4'>Psa 104:4</a>). We see again how the faithful Jews on earth will be in step with the Angel cherubim above them. The invaders will be as "sheaves" awaiting judgment- the idea of ’Armageddon’, cp. <a href='B:400 4:12'>Mic 4:12</a>.</h4><h4>And Jerusalem will yet again dwell in their own place, even in Jerusalem- "Jerusalem" is here put for its people, the daughter of Zion.</h4>


