12/21 ZECHARIAH 7:1-8:23 7:1 And in the fourth year of Darius the king the word of Jehovah came to Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month, the month Chislev. 7:2 Now the people of Bethel had sent Sharezer and Regemmelech and their men to entreat the favor of Jehovah 7:3 By speaking to the priests who belong to the house of Jehovah of hosts and to the prophets, saying, Shall I weep in the fifth month and separate myself, as I have done these many years? 7:4 Then the word of Jehovah of hosts came to me, saying, 7:5 Speak to all the people of the land and to the priests, saying, When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months, even for these seventy years, was it at all for Me that you fasted? 7:6 And when you eat and when you drink, are you not the ones eating and are you not the ones drinking? 7:7 Are not these the words which Jehovah proclaimed by the former prophets when Jerusalem was inhabited and prosperous and had cities round about her, when the Negev and the lowlands were inhabited? 7:8 And the word of Jehovah came to Zechariah, saying, 7:9 Thus speaks Jehovah of hosts, saying, Judge with judgment of truth, and show lovingkindness and compassion each to his brother; 7:10 And do not oppress the widow and the orphan, the stranger and the poor; and let none of you think evil in your hearts about his brother. 7:11 But they refused to listen, and they turned a stubborn shoulder and closed their ears from hearing; 7:12 And they set their hearts like flint so as not to hear the instruction and the words which Jehovah of hosts sent by His Spirit through the former prophets; therefore great wrath came from Jehovah of hosts. 7:13 And as He called and they would not hear, so they called and I would not hear, says Jehovah of hosts; 7:14 But with a storm I scattered them away upon all the nations, whom they did not know. Thus the land is desolate behind them, so that no one passes through it and no one returns to it; for they have made the desirable land desolate. 8:1 And the word of Jehovah of hosts came, saying, 8:2 Thus says Jehovah of hosts, I am jealous for Zion with great jealousy; indeed, I am jealous for her with great wrath. 8:3 Thus says Jehovah, I return to Zion, and I will dwell within Jerusalem; and Jerusalem will be called the City of Truth, and the mountain of Jehovah of hosts, the Holy Mountain. 8:4 Thus says Jehovah of hosts, Yet again old men and old women will dwell in the streets of Jerusalem, each with his staff in his hand due to the multitude of his days. 8:5 And the streets of the city will be full of boys and girls playing in its streets. 8:6 Thus says Jehovah of hosts, If it seems too wonderful in the sight of the remnant of this people in those days, will it also be too wonderful in My sight? declares Jehovah of hosts. 8:7 Thus says Jehovah of hosts, I am about to save My people from the land of the east and from the land of the going down of the sun. 8:8 And I will bring them, and they will dwell within Jerusalem; and they will be My people and I will be their God in truth and in righteousness. 8:9 Thus says Jehovah of hosts, Let your hands be strong, you who in these days hear these words from the mouth of the prophets who were there in the day when the foundation of the house of Jehovah of hosts, that is, the temple, was laid so that it might be built. 8:10 For before those days a mans wages amounted to nothing, and an animals wages were nothing; and for him who went out or came in there was no peace, because of the adversary; for I set all men each against his neighbor. 8:11 But now I will not be to the remnant of this people as I was in the former days, declares Jehovah of hosts; 8:12 For there will be peace for the seed: The vine will give forth its fruit, and the land will give forth its produce, and the heavens will give their dew. And I will cause the remnant of this people to inherit all these things. 8:13 And just as you were a curse among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so will I save you, and you will be a blessing. Do not fear; let your hands be strong. 8:14 For thus says Jehovah of hosts, Just as I intended to do harm to you when your fathers provoked Me to anger, says Jehovah of hosts, and I did not repent, 8:15 So again I intend in these days to do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah; do not fear. 8:16 These are the things which you shall do: Each man speak truth to his neighbor; judge with truth and the judgment of peace in your gates; 8:17 And let none of you think evil in your hearts about his neighbor; and do not love a false oath; for all these are the things I hate, declares Jehovah. 8:18 Then the word of Jehovah of hosts came to me, saying, 8:19 Thus says Jehovah of hosts, The fast of the fourth month and the fast of the fifth month and the fast of the seventh month and the fast of the tenth month will become joy and rejoicing and cheerful feasts to the house of Judah; therefore love truth and peace. 8:20 Thus says Jehovah of hosts, Peoples will again come, even the inhabitants of many cities; 8:21 And the inhabitants of one will go to another, saying, Let us go at once to entreat the favor of Jehovah and to seek Jehovah of hosts; and the other: I will go too. 8:22 Indeed, many peoples and strong nations will come to seek Jehovah of hosts in Jerusalem and to entreat the favor of Jehovah. 8:23 Thus says Jehovah of hosts, In those days, from all the languages of the nations, ten men will take hold, indeed, they will take hold of the skirt of a Jewish man, saying, Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you. FOOTNOTES: Zechariah Chapter 7 Notes 3,1)weep According to vv. 3-6 and 8:19a, in their ritualistic religion the people of Israel wept, fasted, and separated themselves in the tenth month to express their grieving for the attacking and besieging of Jerusalem by the Babylonians (Jer. 52:4), in the fourth month to express their grieving for the breaking down of the city of Jerusalem (2 Kings 25:3-4), in the fifth month to express their grieving for the burning of the temple of God and the city of Jerusalem (Jer. 52:12-13), and in the seventh month to express their grieving for the murder of Gedaliah (2 Kings 25:22-26). In vv. 7-14 and in 8:16-17, 19b, Jehovah advised Israel to turn from the vanity of their ritualistic religion to Jehovah and to the reality of a godly life, a life full of righteousness, lovingkindness, compassion, truth, and peace. This would bring in the times of restoration mentioned in 8:2-23. 7,1)Negev I.e., the dry southern desert of Canaan. Zechariah Chapter 8 Notes 1,1)And This chapter reveals the desire of Jehovah to restore Israel. This restoration will take place in the millennium (Matt. 19:28; Acts 3:21). 6,1)wonderful The situation of Jerusalem in the restoration will be so pleasant that it will be wonderful both in the sight of the remnant of Israel and in the sight of Jehovah. 9,1)Let This is a word encouraging the children of Israel to be strong and bold and to finish the work of rebuilding God’s house. God wanted His people to see that His interest, desire, and burden were to finish the building of the temple as the center of His interests on earth. Likewise, God’s burden in this age is to gain a people to know His heart, to realize His desire, and to be one with Him to build up the Body of Christ. 20,1)Peoples In the restoration the Gentiles will come to Israel to entreat the favor, the grace, of Jehovah, and the children of Israel will be priests to them (vv. 20-23; Isa. 2:2-3; 61:6). After the Jews are saved at the Lord’s coming back (12:10; Rom. 11:26-27), they will become the priests to teach all the repentant nations. By that time the entire nation of Israel will be a priesthood, thus fulfilling God’s original intention expressed in Exo. 19:6. They will teach the Gentiles, the nations, to know God’s way and God’s person, and they will teach them to worship and serve God. As priests, they will bring the nations into the presence of God that they may be enlightened, corrected, and favored with all the riches of God. The prophecy in vv. 20-23 was an encouraging word spoken to the children of Israel. See note 3-2 in Isa.2. 23,1)languages In the millennium God will reverse the judgment on Babel (Gen. 11:7-9) and deal with the problem caused by the different languages among the nations. What happened at Pentecost (Acts 2:4-11) is a prefigure of what will take place during the age of the millennial kingdom. https://app.box/s/n8ctgy7xka12mcf6o150
Posted on: Sat, 20 Dec 2014 21:00:05 +0000
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