05/24/2025 – Day 328 – Zechariah – Chapters 8 – 14 / A summary excerpt of the book, concluding our two week Saturday study of Zechariah. Last sentence: “… In this regard, Zechariah stands alongside Isaiah and the Psalms as books with a wealth of messianic teaching.”
“Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout in triumph, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your King is coming to you; He is righteous and victorious, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the horse from Jerusalem. The bow of war will be removed, and He will proclaim peace to the nations. His dominion will extend from sea to sea, from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth.” (Zechariah 9: 9-10)
Here is a short two verse illlustration of the challenge of Zechariah, particularly in just a two Saturday read. The attached verse commentary is from “The Apologetics Study Bible”:
“9: 9-10. Matthew quoted Zechariah’s prophecy of a coming king when describing Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem (Matthew 21: 4-5; cp. John 12: 14-15). Verse 9 applied to Jesus’ actions at that time, but verse 10 referred to the end of warfare against Ephraim (i.e. Israel) and Jerusalem, and peace among nations. These things did not occur before Jesus’ crucifixion, and in fact warfare against Jerusalem took place when the Jews revolted against Rom in A.D. 66-70. Obviously, such warfare has not ended in our time. Like many messianic prophecies in the OT, verses 9-10 appear to combine more than one appearance of the Messiah. That is, it did not distinguish between Christ’s first coming and triumphal entry into Jerusalem and His second coming when He will establish his kingdom on earth. Other places in Zechariah predict things that would happen to Jesus Christ either in His first coming (11:4-14) or in His second coming (14:4)”
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And, I would like to close these two posts on Zechariah with excerpts from the Introduction of the Book, pgs. 1379 – 1380 – “The Apologetics Study Bible”:
“…
While chapters 1 – 8 deal with the rebuilding of the temple, the priesthood and the future of Jerusalem, chapters 9 – 14 deal mostly with the distant future and the coming messianic kingdom. Because of this division some have thought that these later chapters were written by another author. However, it is just as likely that the social and political climate had changed in the country, and Zechariah’s prophecies changed as a result. In this case it may be that these messianic prophecies were delivered sometime around 500 B.C.”
THE MEANING OF ZECHARIAH’s MESSAGE
“…
Zechariah, like Haggai, addresses not only the present condition of the land but also its future. Some aspects of the visions relate to the future messianic kingdom, especially in the promise of the coming Messiah (3: 8-10). Zechariah taught that the Messiah would combine the offices of priest and king in one person (3:8; 6: 12-13) and that He would be the Lord Himself (12:10; 13:7). Zechariah clearly stated that Yahweh will be ‘king over all the earth’ (14″0′ c[/ 2″10-12; 8:20-23) but also said that the Lord’s messianic representative will be ‘King’ (9:9-10; cp. 3:8; 6: 12-13; 11:4; 13:7). Zechariah also foreshadows the work of Jesus Christ on the cross by emphasizing the rejection of God’s representative (11:4-13) and the subsequent need for cleansing in the land (12:10-13:1).
The Lord abides among His people and desires to bless them, but they continue to disobey Him and go their own way. That is the tension that Zechariah (in common with many of the other prophets) raised. And that is a tension that is still with us in the church. Zechariah’s book is needed to direct our thought to the Lord’s plan for blessing and also for cleansing.
It is also an encouragement for the believer, as well as a sign to the unbeliever, to realize how much about the ministry and life of Jesus Christ was seen ahead of time in the Old Testament prophets. In this regard Zechariah stands alongside Isaiah and the Psalms as books with a wealth of messianic teaching.”
Soli Deo Gloria!
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Jimmy comment:
For those of you interested in a “deeper dive” into the Book of Zechariah, I highly expect that John MacArthur’s work: “Zechariah: God Remembers” would be a very low risk choice. I say that because I haven’t read it, but I just put it on my “wish list” on Amazon. (ISBN 978-1883973018)
I had a young “baby” christian confide to me that his father-in-law recommended that he read the Book of Revelation first. That floored me. As noted in this post, I don’t know why you wouldn’t instead start with say Isaiah; Psalms; and Zechariah beforehand.
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Questions for fellowship generation, the lifelong sanctification process:
- What does the text reveal about God’s character?
- How has this reading generated prayer for you and/or us?
- What themes stand out to you in this bible study?
- How does our reading fit into the bigger picture (creation, the fall, restoration, etc.)?
- What verse(s) jumped out at you like never before? Is it explainable at this point?
- Do you have any questions you would like to put before the group as to how to interpret any particular verse(s) in our reading. Let scripture testify to scripture: Share with us where you sense contradiction between passages elsewhere.
- What did you find convicting and inspiring at the same time? Share with us how the Spirit of God is working within you as a messenger, both within and outside of our fellowship group.
- Share with the group how our study is calling or confirming to you a new mission to glorify God in our times.