Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets cried out, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, Return from your evil ways and from your evil deeds.’ But they did not hear or pay attention to me, declares the LORD. Your fathers, where are they? And the prophets, do they live forever? But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not overtake your fathers? So they repented and said, ‘As the LORD of hosts purposed to deal with us for our ways and deeds, so has he dealt with us.’” - Zechariah 1:4-6 (ESV)
Zechariah is a prophet during the end of the exile of the people in Babylon. Darius the Mede is now ruling and the temple is in the process of being rebuilt. The people are at the end of the 70 years of exile prophesied by Jeremiah and now looking forward to see what life will be like as some return to the Promised Land. Zechariah rebukes the people for their past sins and stubborn refusal to obey Yahweh, resulting in their exile. But through various visions, messages, and oracles, Yahweh promises to judge the nations and establish his presence in Jerusalem again. And all nations will come and worship at the temple.
Zechariah is concerned to show Yahweh's plans for the future and to confirm his people's identity and role before him. The text is also concerned to establish the people's sinfulness and God's righteousness in judging all people. Nevertheless, Zechariah is also concerned to give hope that Yahweh will finally fulfill Israel's hope himself. We mostly look back to see how Yahweh fulfilled these promises. At the same time, we read the messianic undertones and can clearly connect them to Christ and his work. At the same time, some of this prophecy is yet to be fulfilled at Jesus' second coming when he will establish his reign on the earth again and all nations will worship at Jerusalem.
The Big Idea of Zechariah
I have taught the big idea of Zechariah as the following: Yahweh will keep his covenant promises despite the people's unfaithfulness. This is a consistent theme throughout much of the Old Testament, but Zechariah hits on it in particular. God’s people were consistently unfaithful over the course of the Old Testament. We should not conclude that we would have done better than they did. We should rather see ourselves in these same rebukes, and thank God for his work since that time to send Christ and then the Holy Spirit to turn our hearts toward him just as He promised.
An Outline of Zechariah
Zechariah is composed of eight visions (1-6), two sermons (7-8), and two oracles (9-11; 12-14).
Chapters 1-6: Visions
Chapters 1-6 use visions to communicate the people’s need to repent and not to be like their fathers so that Yahweh can bless them. The first vision is of a man on a red horse, which leads to Yahweh expressing his anger at the people’s sin. The second vision is of four horns, which represent powers that have scattered the people. The third vision is of a man with a measuring line, which leads to Yahweh saying he will be the people’s wall of protection. The fourth vision is of the high priest, Joshua, being accused by Satan to God, which leads to Yahweh describing how he will remove the iniquity of the people. The fifth vision is of a lampstand and two olive trees, which represent Zerubbabel and the two anointed ones who stand by the Lord of the earth, leading to a message that Zerubbabel will complete the building of the temple. The sixth vision is of an enlarged, flying scroll, which represents the curse that is upon the people for their sin. The seventh vision is of a basket with a woman inside it under a heavy lid, representing the wickedness of the people. Two women with wings then carry the basket to Shinar, where an angel tells Zechariah they will place it. The seventh vision is of four chariots, which go fan out in four directions, which patrol the whole earth and appear to represent heavenly scouts sent to gather reports for Yahweh. This section ends with Yahweh instructing the people to make a crown for the high priest as a reminder of the king who shall sit on the throne in the temple.
Chapters 7-8: Messages
Chapters 7-8 are constituted by a series of messages received by Zechariah. It starts with Yahweh answering a question about fasting in which Yahweh questions the people’s motives for fasting, whether it was really for him. Yahweh reminds them that the reason they were expelled from the land was due to their hardness of heart and not so much the jots and tittles of their practices. Yahweh goes on in chapter eight to describe how he will restore his people to the streets of Jerusalem. The people should have confidence and not lose hope; although they have lost Jerusalem, Yahweh has not lost control. As he brought disaster on them, so he can bring restoration.
Chapters 9-14: Oracles
Chapters 9-14 consist of oracles, first against enemies of Israel such as the Philistines, Tyre, and Sidon, and then to Israel. In them, Yahweh speaks of his plans to bring wrath upon foreign nations who defy Yahweh and are proud in their hearts. Yahweh quickly moves on to describe how Yahweh will bring salvation, including via the king that will come riding on “a colt, the foal of a donkey” (Zech. 9:9). Yahweh will restore Israel and there will be a great day of judgement, the day of Yahweh. Yahweh will restore the prosperity of Israel and the people will flourish. In the middle of this, in chapter eleven, Zechariah pictures the false leadership of the people by a dramatic representation in which he has two symbolically named staffs, Favor and Union, which he breaks. This depicts how Yahweh has abandoned the people for breaking the covenant. Yahweh goes on to give Zechariah another oracle in which he predicts that Jerusalem and Judah will one day have power and victory over the nations. There is an oblique reference to the Messiah in the “one whom they pierced” that talks about the people being full of sorrow for their sin. Yahweh will cut off the idols from the land forever, false prophets will cease prophesying. Zechariah ends with a prophecy about a unique day in which Yahweh will come with the holy ones, Jerusalem will be attacked, the Mount of Olives will be split in two, the people shall flee, and life will flow from Jerusalem while her enemies die by the plague. The nations will flock to Judah to worship Yahweh, the feasts shall be kept, and there will be purity of worship in Jerusalem and the temple.
Benefits of Zechariah
One of the standout themes of Zechariah is the integrity of Yahweh, especially when contrasted with the fickleness and unfaithfulness of the people. This ought to remind us of ourselves. We can tend to question God, wondering why some things happen or even sensing in our hearts an accusation against Yahweh of wrongdoing. In Zechariah, Yahweh shows the people, and through them us, that he is never the problem.
The fact that things will work out in the end is not, very clearly, due to the righteousness of God’s people, but the righteousness of God. He Is the just and powerful one who can drive out their enemies and establish himself in the land. And he will, but this is not that time. That time is coming when the Messiah will have things placed under him, but there will be more war and trouble before then.
What then? It is up to us to focus on living for God. It is God who will control and direct the flow of history. It is ours to see that we honor God in all that we do, trusting in God and questioning ourselves rather than the other way around. God is good. He is good, right, and just, and so are his plans. Instead of being concerned about his faithfulness, we should focus on establishing our obedience before him as his people, honoring him and seeking to live as he has called us rather than doing as we please.