Hearts for One Another - Malachi 3-4

“Behold, I send My messenger, and he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight. Behold, He is coming, says the Lord of hosts.” Malachi 3:1

The word “Behold” calls special attention to the truth which follows. In Malachi 2:7, the people asked, “Where is the God of judgment?” God is sending His messenger to prepare the way for the Lord, that is the Messiah, to suddenly appear among them.

Elements of this prophecy are quoted in the following New Testament passages in reference to John the Baptist and Jesus: Matthew 3:3; 11:10; Mark 1:2-3; Luke 1:76; 3:4; 7:26-27; and John 1:23. These New Testament passages also contain elements of Isaiah’s 40:3-5 prophecy. Here’s a two quotes from that prophecy: “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord. Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.’”

“Hengstenberg thinks, ‘messenger’ includes the long line of prophets headed by Elijah. Elijah’s name is mentioned in Malachi 4:5 as a representative name of all prophets, and summed up in John, the greatest of the prophets according to Jesus in Matthew 11:9-11. John’s prophetic ministry focuses on heralding Messiah’s arrival. John preached repentance and faith. The wilderness in which he preached symbolized the barren state of the Jews at that time.” [JFBC]

The Lord comes to the temple as “HIS temple” establishing His divine lordship over it, as contrasted with others who are but “servants in” it. [JFBC]

“In whom you delight.” There were those who sang Messiah’s praises as He rode the foal of a donkey towards the temple. They placed articles of clothing and palm branches in His path. Many sang, including children, “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord.” Those who were up to no good were not delighted to see Him. In Matthew 21:11-12, Jesus expelled the money-changers from the temple. He called the temple His Father’s house. He said it was a house of prayer for all nations and not a den of thieves.

Jesus is the Messenger of the covenant that God made with Abraham, in which the Gentiles are ultimately included. See Galatians 4:16-17 for more details. Jesus is the messenger of the old covenant, as well as of the new. [JFBC]

“But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire and like launderers’ soap. He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver. He will purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer to the Lord an offering in righteousness.” Malachi 3:2-3

The Messiah came not to flatter but to fire up truth among them. His teaching helped them to discern the difference between what is holy in God’s sight and what is profane, between what is clean and what is defiled, between what is godly and what is ungodly. A refiner’s fire purges out that which is of no worth from that which is very valuable. A launderer’s soap removes that which is unwanted on a garment.

Jesus Christ came to purify the sons of Levi, that is the priesthood. He purged them so that they offered to the Lord a harvest of righteousness. In fact, of the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Levites mentioned in the Gospels, only Zechariah, Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus served Jesus. Jesus appointed new priests from those who believed in Him, learned from Him and followed Him. Some had been fishermen and one had been a tax collector. Earthly pedigree and approval by so-called managers of religion was no longer the criteria for usefulness to the Lord. A personal relationship with Messiah is what matters now.

“Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasant to the Lord, as in the days of old, as in former years. And I will come near you for judgment. I will be a swift witness against sorcerers, against adulterers, against perjurers, against those who exploit wage earners, widows, and orphans, and against those who turn away an alien—because they do not fear Me, says the Lord of hosts.” Malachi 3:4-5

The Messiah’s goal is to help the sons and daughters of Adam to glorify God... to offer pleasing offerings to the Lord as opposed to the detestable ones that the priests in Malachi’s day were offering to the Lord. In Malachi 1:13, the Lord addressed the issue of the priests offering stolen sheep, lame sheep and sick sheep to Him. And in Malachi 2:17, they challenged the Lord, saying, “Where is the God of judgment?” Here, the Lord promises them judgment and a “swift witness” against the long list of crimes that they have committed against Him. No one should ever gamble against the Lord’s promise to punish unforgiven sin. When a person does not repent of sin, God eventually deals with that person’s sin severely.

Sorcery includes consulting spirits of the dead, using magic charms, tarot cards, face-reading, Ouija Boards, incantations, curses, superstitious practices and horoscopes. It is looking to something other than God for guidance, affirmation and wealth. Adultery, lying, exploitation of wage earners, and exploitation of widows, orphans and foreigners are all outwards signs of an inward condition that is not right with God. If someone is abiding in Christ, Christ will lead them to produce better fruits than these... as Galatians 5:22-23 says, “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”

In Acts 8:20-23, Peter rebuked Simon the sorcerer for being poisoned with bitterness and bound by iniquity. In Acts 13:10, Paul rebuked Elymas the sorcerer for being full of deceit, fraud, being a son of the devil, an enemy of righteousness and for perverting the straight ways of the Lord. In the following passages, Jesus and His apostles warn us against following performers of signs and lying wonders: Matthew 24:24; 2 Thessalonians 2:9; Revelation 13:13-14; 16:13-14; 9:21; 18:23; 21:8; 22:15. The Lord is going to purge them. They will not inherit God’s kingdom.

“For I am the Lord, I do not change. Therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob. Yet from the days of your fathers you have gone away from My ordinances and have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts. But you said, ‘In what way shall we return?’” Malachi 3:6-7

The sons of Jacob were not consumed because God’s longsuffering and love for them. God was not turning a blind eye to the evil that they had done. He knows all the sins that were committed in secret. However, ridding them of sin is only to get them back to Himself. The real object of His affection is them. The Lord wants to be close with them.

“Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, ‘In what way have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, for you have robbed Me, even this whole nation. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now in this, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, so that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field, says the Lord of hosts. And all nations will call you blessed, for you will be a delightful land, says the Lord of hosts.” Malachi 3:8-12

God asked Israel for a tithe, that is 10% of all their increase. The tithe is an offering back to God for all the blessings that He has given to us. God created and sustains all things. We would all die if He cut off just a few of His services like oxygen, gravity, water and warmth. In Israel, the tithe supported the temple, the sacrifices, and those who served in it, namely the Levites.

God opens the windows of heaven and pours out more blessings than people can contain when they tithe. He rebukes the devourer. He protects the crops.

After God helped me to start tithing, I noticed blessings. First, after tithing 10% to the Church, I wasted less. I became content with less material things. Sinful flesh is never satisfied no matter how much you feed it. God’s Spirit replaced bad coping mechanisms with healthy ones, such as asking God for help and trust in His promises. Spiritual blessings like love, joy and peace replaced unwanted self-indulgences. I enjoyed God more. I had an investment in Him. God replaced an inward looking, self-focus, with an outward looking interest and love for others.

Tithing is something God calls us to do because it is good for us. He teaches us to love Him and love others by it. Love for God and love for neighbor are the two great commandments. God doesn’t need our money, but He wants our love, both for Him and for people.

“Your words have been harsh against Me, says the Lord, yet you say, ‘What have we spoken against You?’ You have said, ‘It is useless to serve God. What profit is it that we have kept His ordinance, and that we have walked as mourners before the Lord of hosts? So now we call the proud blessed, for those who do wickedness are raised up. They even tempt God and go free.’” Malachi 3:13-15

The people in Malachi’s day needed to repent. To repent is to change one’s mind. They needed to change their attitude toward God. Instead of considering God-service as a chore and an obligation, they needed to see how blessed they were to have God in their lives. A godless society tends to be arrogant and violent. People cheat, lie, betray, and murder one another. Without God, Satan rules, and the devil is evil and cruel.

“Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord listened and heard them. So, a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear the Lord and who meditate on His Name. ‘They shall be Mine, says the Lord of hosts, on the day that I make them My jewels. And I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him. Then you shall again discern between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve Him.” Malachi 3:16-18

When the ungodly uttered blasphemies against God, the godly defended Him. God heard the words of His lovers. They spoke with great respect for Him. They meditated on His Name. He wrote these acts of love toward Him in a book. Like a father or mother wanting to keep tangible memories of loving moments with their child. God said these people are His jewels. Love for God does matter. God will preserve these vessels of honor. Like a father loves a son who serves him faithfully. God’s approval and affirmation will make it obvious to the naysayers that God is a God of justice. It is worthwhile to do what is right in His sight and serve Him.

Revelation 21:27 says, “There shall by no means enter it [the holy city] anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.”

“For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, and all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be stubble. And the day which is coming shall burn them up, says the Lord of hosts, that will leave them neither root nor branch. But to you who fear My Name the Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings. And you shall go out and grow fat like stall-fed calves. You shall trample the wicked, for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day that I do this, says the Lord of hosts.” Malachi 4:1-3

The Lord does deal with proud and wicked people. They trashed God. God shall trash them. God will leave no root of them behind. Love for God is a sign of knowing Him. They did not love God.

The coming of the Lord is bad news for those who hate Him, but good news for those who love Him. The healing in His wings indicates speed and ability to navigate toward those who have reverenced God’s Name. They will be healed and well fed at the marriage of the bride (the Church) and the Lamb (Christ). The wicked will be below their feet. Very far below!

“Remember the Law of Moses, My servant, which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.” Malachi 4:4-6

Remember! It is so vital that we don’t allow the soul sustaining truth of God’s Word to slip away from our minds. If we do, the enemy of our soul is happy to fill our minds with lies and evil contemplations.

According to the angel Gabriel in Luke 1:16-17, John the Baptist is the fulfillment of the Lord’s prophecy about sending Elijah the prophet before the coming of the Lord. We can learn from this kind of fulfilment of prophecy that sometimes God’s Word is fulfilled in a spiritual sense and not in a literal one. John the Baptist was not a reincarnation of Elijah. The Lord anointed John with a similar zeal for God’s glory as He gave to Elijah. John’s commission was to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest God strike the earth with a curse.

In Malachi 2:14-16, we learned that the priests were not treating the wives of their youth well. And if a husband doesn’t treat the mother of his children well, he usually mistreats his children also. Elijah’s goal was to address these issues to help them realize their need for a Redeemer and a Savior as well as a Lord. Only God would ever be great enough to change their hearts of stone into hearts that could love their spouses and children as He, God, loved them. Only God could help them stay on this course day after day for all the days of their lives.

[JFBC] = Jamieson Fausset Brown Commentary

Marriages that Glorify the Lord - Malachi 2

“And now, O priests, this commandment is for you. If you will not hear, and if you will not take it to heart, to give glory to My Name, says the Lord of hosts, I will send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings. Yes, I have cursed them already because you do not take it to heart.” Malachi 2:1-2

Hear! Take it to heart! Give glory to My Name! The goal of everyone of us who knows the Lord is to glorify HIM, and to lead others to do the same. God created us for His glory! We do best for God, for neighbor and ourselves when we glorify the Lord.

In John 7:18, Jesus said, “He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him.” In John 12:28, Jesus prayed, “Father, glorify Your Name!” In John 17:1, Jesus looked toward heaven and prayed: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son may glorify YOU.”

The priests of Israel lacked love for God, for their people, and for their spouses. They were not teaching the people the Laws of God by which blessings would come to them. God tells them to take His warning to heart or else He would curse them. In fact, they already were under a curse in that they no longer had a heart for God and His Word.

In Leviticus 10:11, the Lord spoke to Aaron, saying, “You must teach the Israelites all the statutes that the Lord has given them through Moses.” In Haggai 2:11, the Lord said, “Ask the priests concerning the Law.”

Even parents were to teach God’s commandments to their children. In Deuteronomy 6:7-9, God told parents to diligently teach His commands to their children, talking about them constantly—when sitting, walking, lying down, and rising. In Psalm 78:4-8, parents tell their children the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord. They do not want their children to forget God as past generations did and suffered greatly because of it. In Ephesians 6:4, the Lord instructs fathers to bring their children up in the “training and admonition of the Lord.”

In Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28, the Lord told people which blessings and curses they could expect due to adherence or non-adherence to His guidance.

“Behold, I will rebuke your descendants and spread refuse on your faces, the refuse of your solemn feasts; and one will take you away with it. Then you shall know that I have sent this commandment to you, that My covenant with Levi may continue, says the Lord of hosts. My covenant was with him, one of life and peace, and I gave them to him that he might fear Me. So, he feared Me and was reverent before My Name. The law of truth was in his mouth, and injustice was not found on his lips. He walked with Me in peace and equity and turned many away from iniquity.” Malachi 2:3-6

The Lord called the priests in Malachi’s day to get back on track with the former Levite priests who did have the law of truth in their mouths. They spoke up for justice. They maintained a peaceful relationship with God rather than a turbulent one. They turned people from sin to right behavior.

“For the lips of a priest should keep knowledge, and people should seek the Law from his mouth; for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts. But you have departed from the way. You have caused many to stumble at the Law. You have corrupted the covenant of Levi, says the Lord of hosts. Therefore I also have made you contemptible and base before all the people, because you have not kept My ways but have shown partiality in the Law.” Malachi 2:7-9

The priests were to teach people the knowledge of God. Who else was going to do it? Babies are not born with the Bible in them. How will they know what God has said about them and about the world unless someone teaches them? The Law of God was not in the priests either, so how could they impart it to someone. They were messengers of God without His message.

Has someone ever given you wrong directions? As a result, you got lost and suffered loss? That’s what these priests were doing. They were blind guides trying to lead the blind. People were stumbling and getting hurt. Therefore, they no longer trusted their shepherds. In fact, they developed contempt for priests. Anyone could see that they were untrustworthy.

“Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us? Why do we deal treacherously with one another by profaning the covenant of the fathers? Judah has dealt treacherously, and an abomination has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem, for Judah has profaned the Lord’s holy institution which He loves: he has married the daughter of a foreign god. May the Lord cut off from the tents of Jacob the man who does this, being awake and aware, yet who brings an offering to the Lord of hosts!” Malachi 2:10-12

If the priests truly knew God as their father and Creator, He would have directed them to teach and serve their flock with integrity. In 1 Kings 14:8, the Lord said of His servant David, “He kept My commands and followed Me with all his heart, doing only what was right in My eyes.” What was the outcome of such zeal for the Lord? Psalm 78:72 says, “David shepherded them [Israel] with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them.” When we are right with the Lord, He helps us to do what is right for the people who look to us for leadership.

They profaned the covenant of the fathers, that is, marriage. Marriage is a holy institution before the Lord. In 1 Corinthians 7:36, the Lord says, “If anyone is worried that he might not be acting honorably toward the virgin he is engaged to, and if his passions are too strong and he feels he ought to marry, he should do as he wants. He is not sinning. They should get married.” A lifelong commitment to one another should happen before intimate relationships happen. The Lord says in Hebrews 13:4, “Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral.”

The priests in Malachi’s day, had married foreign wives who did not believe in their God. In Deuteronomy 7:3-4, God said that intermarriage with the inhabitants of the Promised Land was strictly forbidden. God did not want Israelite sons and daughters to worship other gods. He promised to destroy those who broke this commandment. This prohibition wasn’t about ethnicity but about faith. The New Testament affirms this law. In 2 Corinthians 6:14-15, the Lord said, “Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?”

I like the imagery of a married couple being yokefellows. Farmers carefully choose which oxen they put together under one yoke. Two yoked oxen need to be well-matched in size, strength, and temperament, moving at the same pace, in the same direction, and sharing a common commitment to the work for the yoke to function effectively and prevent injury or frustration, essentially requiring them to be aligned in purpose and effort. [G]

“And this is the second thing you do: you cover the altar of the Lord with tears, with weeping and crying; so He does not regard the offering anymore, nor receive it with goodwill from your hands. Yet you say, ‘For what reason?’ because the Lord has been witness between you and the wife of your youth, with whom you have dealt treacherously; yet she is your companion and your wife by covenant. But did He not make them one, having a remnant of the Spirit? And why one? He seeks godly offspring. Therefore take heed to your spirit and let none deal treacherously with the wife of his youth.” Malachi 2:13-15

The priests wondered why God was not paying attention to their tears, weeping and crying. God gave them no indication that He appreciated their offerings. It was because they betrayed the wives of their youth, that is, their first and true wives. They made covenants with their spouses but did not keep them. They broke trust with them. In 1 Peter 3:7, the Lord says to husbands, “Be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.”

In Genesis 2:24, God says a husband and wife become one flesh. In Matthew 19:5, Jesus taught, “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”

Why did God make the married couple one flesh? Malachi 2:14 says, “He seeks godly offspring.” God designed man and a woman to become one to produce children. He wants them to work together to help their children become reflections of God, that is, godly.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 says, “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor. If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.” So, husband and wife should tag team in raising their children. This is just as true for pastors as it is for non-pastors.

“For the Lord God of Israel says that He hates divorce, for it covers one’s garment with violence, says the Lord of hosts. Therefore take heed to your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously. You have wearied the Lord with your words; yet you say, ‘In what way have we wearied Him?’ In that you say, ‘Everyone who does evil is good in the sight of the Lord, and He delights in them,’ or ‘Where is the God of justice?’” Malachi 2:16-17

God hates divorce because a marriage between a man and woman is to glorify the relationship between Christ and His Church, that is, an everlasting relationship. In Ephesians 5:25, the Lord says to husbands, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the Church and gave Himself up for her.” In Ephesians 5:33, the Lord says to wives, “The wife must respect her husband.” The Lord wants married couples to love each other deeply. They are to model for their children how a husband and a wife love one another. They are to model for them how to be parents that both care for and work toward the well-being of their children.

The priests in Malachi’s day made the Lord angry. They were saying that everyone who does evil in God’s sight is good. “He delights in them.” They lost touch with the God of justice. Surely, if someone mistreated them as they mistreated their spouses and their sheep, they would change their minds. Bullies and abusive people tend to lack empathy. They don’t feel the pain that they cause others until someone abuses them in a similar fashion.

Let us pray as 1 Timothy 2:1-2 says to do: “Pray for all who are in authority that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.” People don’t know what they don’t know. Sometimes even when God and His messengers try to address unloving behaviors, the offenders still don’t see it or agree to it. They need God to reveal to them what is wrong. They need God to give them the strength to face up to the realities that hitherto they were unwilling to face.

Some have found Ezekiel 36:26 to be a good divine promise to pray when someone needs a new heart. The Lord says, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you. I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” Let us pray for pastors, for marriages and for all of us people to love the Lord with all our hearts. “In our lives Lord, be glorified!”

[G] Google sources

Elected By God’s Grace - Malachi 1

“The burden of the Word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi. I have loved you, says the Lord. Yet you say, ‘In what way have You loved us?’ Was not Esau Jacob’s brother? says the Lord. Yet Jacob I have loved; but Esau I have hated and laid waste his mountains and his heritage for the jackals of the wilderness.” Malachi 1:1-3

“I have loved you, says the Lord.” How many of us have hoped in times past that someone really wonderful would love us? Here, the Lord tells the people of Israel that He loves them. The Lord is beyond wonderful! Are they awestruck? Are they grateful? Do they respond in like fashion to the Lord? No, they question God. They say to God, “Wherein have You loved us?”

Perhaps, in their minds, they only considered the ways in which their ego had been bruised by events in their past, and did not realize how those very events were designed by God to keep them from a greater harm, namely hell. Were they victims or survivors? They were survivors. They still had breath in their lungs, ground below their feet, and daily provisions for survival. Plus, they had God in their lives in special ways like no other people on earth.

Instead of loving God for loving them, they challenged Him to produce signs of His love.

Did the Israelites want to know what it looks and feels like to be unfavored by God? They needed to look at what happened to their brethren the Edomites. Edom was not rebuilt after the Babylonian captivity period.

Do you know the origins of Israel and Edom? These two nations began as twin boys born to Isaac and Rebekah. The Lord spoke to Rebekah. In Genesis 25:23, He told her, “Two nations are in your womb, two peoples shall be separated from your body. One people shall be stronger than the other, and the older shall serve the younger.”

When God reveals to us what He is going to accomplish through us, we need not help Him to bring it to pass. God is well able to accomplish what He sets out to do. We do need to be patient. We need to believe His Word even when it seems impossible to come to pass.

For example, in Genesis 15:5 and reiterated in Genesis 22:17, God promised Abraham and Sarah descendants as numerous as the stars of heaven and as the sand of the seashore. They waited many years. Romans 4:19 says that Abraham considered his own body now as good as dead (he being about a 100 years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb (she being around 90). Then, Sarah decided to help make God’s promises come true faster by giving Abraham her servant Hagar with whom he could start a family. So what did Abraham do? He complied. Thus, Ishmael was born. Afterwards, Sarah did conceive and give birth to a son named Isaac.

Genesis 21:1-2 says, “Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised. Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him.” Isaac’s coming forth from a dead womb was a foreshadowing of Christ resurrecting from a tomb after being dead three days. Remember: all God’s promises and miracles are meant in the grand scheme of things to glorify Jesus Christ.

The Lord revealed to Rebekah that two nations were in her womb, and that the older would serve the younger. In Genesis 27, Rebekah decided to help God out. She urged Jacob to deceive his father Isaac to bring about God’s plan. The outcome was bad. Jacob had to flee from his brother who wanted to kill him. The Bible never mentions if Rebekah was alive when Jacob returned from Haran some 20 years later. Even so, God was faithful to bring about His promise to Rebekah, Israel grew stronger and eventually Edom ceased to exist.

The stories of Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob and Esau illustrate the truth that God reveals to us in Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God. Not of works, lest anyone should boast.” In regards to Messiah, God brought about His promise to Israel in spite of their insufficient faith in Him.

Malachi prophesied to Isreal after they had returned to the Promised Land from Babylon. Their capital Jerusalem was rebuilt. Their temple to the Lord was rebuilt. Life was better for them. But Edom had been utterly destroyed by Babylon and by the Egyptians, Ammonites, and Moabites. Esau’s cities were never rebuilt.

In Romans 9:10-13, Paul uses God’s election of Jacob rather than Esau to illustrate the point that election is a result of God’s choice and has nothing to do with the elected person’s effort or his or her intrinsic value being of greater worth than the other. Paul wrote, “For the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls.” God can and does elect whom He will use to bring Him glory. It is not up to us to make that decision for God.

In Romans 9:2, Paul laments over Israel’s treatment of God. He wrote, “I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart.” God chose Isreal to be His special treasure above all nations on earth. In Romans 9:4-5, Paul wrote, “To whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises; of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came.” What did Israel do with this election? They rejected it for gods and doctrines of their own making. They hated, beat and killed the prophets that God sent to them. They crucified His Son.

Thankfully, God lets us know in the Bible, especially in Romans 11 and Revelation 7, 14, 20-22, that He still has a wonderful plan for Israel. His elected people will win. Thanks to His grace, long-suffering and depths of His unfathomable love.

God executed justice on the Edomites. He laid their mountains to waste. Their country became a habitation for dragons.

“Even though Edom has said, ‘We have been impoverished, but we will return and build the desolate places,’ thus says the Lord of hosts: they may build, but I will throw down. They shall be called the Territory of Wickedness, and the people against whom the Lord will have indignation forever. Your eyes shall see, and you shall say, ‘The Lord is magnified beyond the border of Israel.’” Malachi 1:4-5

God allowed humble circumstances to come Edom’s way, but they did not humble themselves before Him. They believed that they could build back better by shear human volition and might. God declared, “They shall be called the Territory of Wickedness.” His anger was against them.

“Those that walk contrary to God will find that He will walk contrary to them. Who has hardened his heart against God and prospered? When the Jews had rejected Christ and His Gospel they became Edomites, and this word was fulfilled in them. In the time of the emperor Adrian, they attempted to rebuild Jerusalem, God by earthquakes and eruptions of fire threw down what they built, so that they were forced to quit the enterprise.” [JFBC]

Malachi 1:5 says, “The Lord is and will be magnified from the border of Israel.” In His own time and in His own way, God gave His people cause, and hearts, to praise Him. Ecclesiastes 3:11 says, “He [God] has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.” We must get past our desire to be God. He doesn’t let us know everything that He knows for a good reason. We just need to trust Him as a child trusts a faithful father.

“A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am the Father, where is My honor? And if I am a Master, where is My reverence? says the Lord of hosts to you priests who despise My Name. Yet you say, ‘In what way have we despised Your Name?’” Malachi 1:6

If the priests truly regarded God as their Father and Master, their respect for Him would have shown. They despised His Name. When someone loves somebody, that somebody’s name is like music to his or her ears. The priests were guilty of breaking God’s great commandment. They did not love the Lord their God with all their hearts, minds, strength and souls.

Isaac Watts in his book entitled, “Humility: Adopting Paul’s ‘Less Than the Least’ Mindset,” wrote, “The pleasures of sin are not subdued by denying ourselves all enjoyment, but by tasting higher and better joys that make sinful pleasures lose their power.” Instead of feeding selfish desires, we should feed selfless ones. Watts quoted Philippians 2:3-11 in which God urges us to be like Christ. Jesus did nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit. He maintained a lowly mind in terms of esteeming others better than Himself. He considered the interests of others. He became of no reputation. He took on the form of a servant. He was willing to die a cruel death so that others could enjoy paradise. He was willing to be stripped naked on a cross so others could be clothed in the righteousness of God. Watts declares that love for God and love for others is more fulfilling than ceaseless focus on gratifying one’s own ego.

“You offer defiled food on My altar, but say, ‘In what way have we defiled You?’ by saying, ‘The table of the Lord is contemptible.’ And when you offer the blind as a sacrifice, is it not evil? And when you offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? Offer it then to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you favorably? says the Lord of hosts.” Malachi 1:7-8

Darius, and probably his successors, had liberally supplied the Jews with animals for their sacrifices, yet they presented only the worst of these to the Lord. God is love. He wants His people to love deeply as He loves. “God despises not the widow’s mite, but He does despise the miser’s mite.” [JFBC]

They picked out the worst they had, which was fit neither for the market nor for their own tables and offered that at God’s altar. According to Malachi 1:7-8, 13, they brought the blind, and the lame, and the sick, that which was ready to die of itself. They brought polluted bread, servants’ bread, perhaps it was dry and moldy, or made of throwaway wheat. [JFBC]

This is like unto the imaginary story of the one dollar bill and the hundred dollar bill. The two bills were talking with one another. The hundred dollar bill boasted of all the exotic places he had been while the one dollar bill said that he spent most of his time in church offering plates.

“But now entreat God’s favor, that He may be gracious to us. While this is being done by your hands, will He accept you favorably? says the Lord of hosts. Who is there even among you who would shut the doors, so that you would not kindle fire on My altar in vain? I have no pleasure in you, says the Lord of hosts, nor will I accept an offering from your hands. For from the rising of the sun, even to its going down, My Name shall be great among the Gentiles. In every place incense shall be offered to My Name, and a pure offering. For My Name shall be great among the nations, says the Lord of hosts.” Malachi 1:9-11

The priests of Israel would not even do the least of priestly functions such as shutting the doors or kindling a fire on the altar. That’s like a spouse who does not even the simplest of task of kindness to demonstrate love to the other but expects the other to serve hand and foot.

To the Jewish priests and people who despised God’s Name, God told them that His Name shall be great among the Gentiles. This is like what Jesus said to the Jews in Matthew 8:10-12, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel! And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

We Christians in the west need to take heed to this warning. There are people in other nations who highly regard Jesus. They treat Him with the utmost respect and service. What kind of offerings are we bringing to Jesus? Are we loving the Lord? Are we trusting in Him?

“But you profane it, in that you say, ‘The table of the Lord is defiled; and its fruit, its food, is contemptible.’ You also say, ‘Oh, what a weariness!’ And you sneer at it, says the Lord of hosts. And you bring the stolen, the lame, and the sick; thus you bring an offering! Should I accept this from your hand? says the Lord. But cursed be the deceiver who has in his flock a male, and takes a vow, but sacrifices to the Lord what is blemished—for I am a great King, says the Lord of hosts, and My Name is to be feared among the nations.” Malachi 1:12-14

The people needed an attitude adjustment. It has been said that attitude determines altitude.

God did not bring up these charges against Israel with evil intentions. He wanted them to consider the choices they were making. They were choosing not to fear, love and trust God with all their hearts. What did that do for them? It was defiling each of them and their nation. They became like the undesirable offerings that they brought to God... lame, blind and sick.

God addressed their love problem because He wanted to help them out. All they needed to do was humble themselves, confess their sins, ask God to forgive them, and welcome Him to save and transform them by His grace.

It is by God’s grace that anyone of us is saved and transformed. May our praise, glory and adoration be unto Him.





[JFBC] = Jamieson Fausset Brown Commentary

The Glory of the Lord Revealed - Zechariah 14

“Behold, the day of the Lord is coming, and your spoil will be divided in your midst. For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem. The city shall be taken, the houses rifled, and the women ravished. Half of the city shall go into captivity, but the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city.” Zechariah 14:1-2

In Deuteronomy 28:1, 15, the Lord issued the Law of blessings and curses... blessings if people obeyed His voice, curses if they did not. In Jeremiah 18:7-10, the Lord said, “The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it, if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it. And the instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will relent concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it.” Thus, the history of Jerusalem and the history of the world illustrates this kind of high tide and low tide pattern.

There is no guarantee in this world of everlasting peace, prosperity, love and joy. Jesus said just the opposite. In John 16:33, He said, “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” Peace comes in knowing that God is going to create a new heaven and new earth that is everlasting, and it is full of love and joy. Creation was cursed due to sin that transpired in a garden. Creation was redeemed due to a resurrection that transpired in a garden. The empty tomb of Jesus is proof of His Messiahship and that all the rest of His promises will come true.

So, what about those curses of God on disobedience? How do we avoid them since we all have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory? Galatians 3:13-14 says, “Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree’), that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” So, Christ is the answer. He took the curse of sin upon Himself and gives the blessing of Abraham (His friend) to those who receive His Spirit by believing in Him. The battle for a right standing before God has been won by Jesus. All the blessings of God flow to us through Jesus.

For the most part, the people of Jerusalem had rejected the messages of God’s prophets, and so rejected the Lord. Thus, a day of spoilage was coming to them. A coalition of nations under the leadership of Rome would attack and take Jerusalem. Their homes would be robbed and women abused. Half of the people will become slaves. A remnant will be allowed to stay. [JFBC]

“Then the Lord will go forth and fight against those nations, as He fights in the day of battle. And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two, from east to west, making a very large valley. Half of the mountain shall move toward the north and half of it toward the south.” Zechariah 14:3-4

In Luke 19:29, 39, Jesus was standing on the mount of Olives just before His triumphant entry into Jerusalem. The disciples of Jesus were rejoicing and praising God with a loud voice and hailing Him as their king. The religious leaders were rude toward Jesus.

In Luke 19:41-44, Jesus wept over the city. He prophesied that enemies would surround the city and level it, because they [the leaders] did not recognize the time of God’s visitation to them.

In Luke 19:47-48, the chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people sought to destroy Him, while all the people were very attentive to hear Him. Thus, the city was split into two factions.

There was also a significant earthquake in this region when Jesus yielded up His Spirit while on the cross. Matthew 27:51 says that the earth quaked and rocks were split. It takes a significant shake to break rocks. Geologists studying Dead Sea sediments found evidence for a significant earthquake between 26-36 A.D., aligning with the timeframe of Jesus’ crucifixion.

“Then you shall flee through My mountain valley, for the mountain valley shall reach to Azal. Yes, you shall flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Thus the Lord my God will come, and all the saints with You. It shall come to pass in that day that there will be no light. The lights will diminish. It shall be one day which is known to the Lord —neither day nor night. But at evening time it shall happen that it will be light. And in that day it shall be that living waters shall flow from Jerusalem. Half of them toward the eastern sea and half of them toward the western sea. In both summer and winter it shall occur. And the Lord shall be King over all the earth. In that day it shall be—the Lord is one, and His Name one.” Zechariah 14:5-9

These events may refer to the people escaping from the crucifixion scene through the valley outside Jerusalem. The prophecy speaks of no light in that day. Matthew 27:45, Mark 15:33, Luke 23:44-45, all record that while Jesus was on the cross, there was darkness covering the earth from the sixth hour (noon) until the ninth hour (3 PM).

50 days later, on the day of Pentecost, living water was poured out from the Lord in the form of the Holy Spirit. Jesus compared the Holy Spirit to living water in John 4:10-14 and John 7:37-39. He spreads to the east and west. Now, people in most nations of the earth are aware that Jesus is proclaimed by His followers as the King of kings. He is indeed King over the earth.

“In that day it shall be—the Lord is one, and His Name one.” His Name is Jesus. In Ephesians 4:5-6, Paul wrote, “There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all, in all, and living through all.”

“All the land shall be turned into a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem. Jerusalem shall be raised up and inhabited in her place from Benjamin’s Gate to the place of the first Gate and the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the king’s winepresses. The people shall dwell in it, and no longer shall there be utter destruction, but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited.” Zechariah 14:10-11

Zechariah prophesied, “The land shall be turned into a plain.” The Lord levels the paths so the Gospel can flow to all nations. Isaiah 40:3, Matthew 3:3, Luke 3:4, and John 1:23, all speak of “the voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord. Make His paths straight.’” Isaiah 40:4-5 adds, “Every valley shall be exalted and every mountain and hill brought low. The crooked places shall be made straight and the rough places smooth. The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

There’s a lot of talk these days about peace through strength. In Zechariah 14:10, the people of Jerusalem dwell safely because of the Lord’s strength. The Lord has innumerable angels. He has protected cities before via His angelic armies. See 2 Kings 6 and 19. Psalm 34:7 says, “the angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him to deliver them.”

“And this shall be the plague with which the Lord will strike all the people who fought against Jerusalem: their flesh shall dissolve while they stand on their feet, their eyes shall dissolve in their sockets, and their tongues shall dissolve in their mouths. It shall come to pass in that day that a great panic from the Lord will be among them. Everyone will seize the hand of his neighbor and raise his hand against his neighbor’s hand. Judah also will fight at Jerusalem, and the wealth of all the surrounding nations shall be gathered together: gold, silver, and apparel in great abundance.” Zechariah 14:12-14

Commentaries and similar wording in other passages suggest that the above events refer to the destruction of the armies that Satan gathers to attack Jerusalem in the last days. Their flesh melts while they are still standing. Sounds like the impact of a nuclear bomb, but this is a divine judgment on enemies of God’s people. The coalition turns inward on itself and begins to self-destruct. The Jerusalemites collect the precious metals and apparel of their enemies. These items will not be destroyed in the fire that dissolved their foes.

2 Thessalonian 2:8 says that “the Lord will consume the Lawless One (the antichrist) with the breath of His mouth and with the brightness of His coming.”

Isaiah 66:15 says, “The Lord will come with fire and with His chariots, like a whirlwind, to render His anger with fury, and His rebuke with flames of fire.” In Isaiah 66:24, God says, “They shall go forth and look upon the corpses of the men who have transgressed against Me. For their worm does not die, and their fire is not quenched. They shall be an abhorrence to all flesh.”

In Ezekiel 38:18, 22, the Lord says, “And it will come to pass at the same time, when Gog comes against the land of Israel... that My fury will show in My face.” “I will rain down on him, on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him, flooding rain, great hailstones, fire, and brimstone.”

In Revelation 19:19-20 , “The beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him [Christ] who sat on the horse and against His army. Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone.”

God is going to judge the nations who delight in war, thievery and destructive indulgences.

“Such also shall be the plague on the horse and the mule, on the camel and the donkey, and on all the cattle that will be in those camps. So shall this plague be. And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. And it shall be that whichever of the families of the earth do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, on them there will be no rain. If the family of Egypt will not come up and enter in, they shall have no rain. They shall receive the plague with which the Lord strikes the nations who do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. This shall be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.” Zechariah 14:15-19

This passage parallels the description of the millennial era that is mentioned six times in Revelation 20. After the antichrist and his armies are defeated, there is 1,000 years of peace. Isaiah 2:2-4 and Micah 4:1-3, speak of many nations saying, “Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us His ways, and we shall walk in His paths.” “... They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.” Zechariah adds that the Lord will not give rain to the nations that refuse to worship Him at the Feast of Tabernacles. Rain symbolizes God’s favor. Plagues symbolize His wrath.

The Feast of Tabernacles (or Booths, Sukkot) is a harvest festival commemorating Israel’s 40 years of dwelling in temporary shelters after they left Egypt. God’s provisions of food and protection are celebrated and there is anticipation of the day when Messiah shall dwell among them. During this festival, people live in temporary booths made of branches.

There will be unconverted souls during the millennium, because at the end of the 1,000 years, Gog and Magog gather the nations to make war once again. See Revelation 20:7-9 for more details. [JFBC]

“In that day ‘HOLINESS TO THE LORD’ shall be engraved on the bells of the horses. The pots in the Lord’s house shall be like the bowls before the altar. Yes, every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be holiness to the Lord of hosts. Everyone who sacrifices shall come and take them and cook in them. In that day there shall no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the Lord of hosts.” Zechariah 14:20-21

The inscription, “Holiness to the Lord,” implies that even common things like horses and bowls shall be holy to the Lord. The “bells” were metal plates that hung from the necks of horses and camels. The metal objects tinkled by striking against each other. [JFBC]

“There shall no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the Lord.” The Canaanite symbolizes an idolator, unclean and/or ungodly person. God’s people will want to be holy as He is holy. In Revelation 21:7-8, the Lord describes new Jerusalem as a city undefiled by sin.

Praise God that the day of holiness is coming. People will adore the Lord and enjoy His presence among them. Instead of Wall Street or Hollywood being major influencers of people’s hearts and minds, people shall be loving one another and loving the Lord. Instead of indulging in harmful substances and practices to cope with life, they shall be filled with peace and joy from the Lord. The Lord shall reveal His glory to them.


[JFBC] = Jamieson Fausset Brown Commentary

The Fountain is Open - Zechariah 13

“In that day a fountain shall be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness.” Zechariah 13:1

Jesus Messiah is the fountain who washes sins away and pours forth His Spirit into the hearts of those who come to Him. Revelation 1:5 says that Jesus loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood. 1 John 1:7 says that the blood of Christ God’s Son cleanses us from all sin.

1 John 5:6 says that Christ came by water and blood. The Spirit bears witness to Him because the Spirit is truth. In John 7:38-39, Jesus said, “He that believes on Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. This spoke He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive...”

“It shall be in that day, says the Lord of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, and they shall no longer be remembered. I will also cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to depart from the land. It shall come to pass that if anyone still prophesies, then his father and mother who begot him will say to him, ‘You shall not live, because you have spoken lies in the Name of the Lord.’ And his father and mother who begot him shall thrust him through when he prophesies. And it shall be in that day that every prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies. They will not wear a robe of coarse hair to deceive. But he will say, ‘I am no prophet, I am a farmer. For a man taught me to keep cattle from my youth.’ And one will say to him, ‘What are these wounds between your arms?’ Then he will answer, ‘Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.’” Zechariah 13:2-6

The Holy Spirit makes a noticeable difference when He is at work in a community. Those who used to pose as prophets will acknowledge that they are not prophets. They will go back to productive work such as tending cattle. They will say to those who see that they have the wounds of a false prophet in their bodies that their friends wounded them. That was grace! For the penalty for prophesying falsely was death.

How are idols and uncleaned spirit dethroned from one’s life? They are dethroned when a greater King comes to reign in one’s life, namely, Jesus Christ. The key to victory over past guilt is to be washed in the blood of Christ. This cleansing happens when one believes in Christ and professes Him as their Lord and Savior. The key to victory over current and future temptations to sin is to be filled with and led by the Holy Spirit. Abide in Christ!

The Jamieson Fausset Brown Commentary explains the false prophet’s wounds this way, “If you have never pretended to be a prophet, how did you get those wounds?” The Hebrew is literally, “between your hands.” Hands were held up to protect against punches. Stoning was the usual punishment for false prophets, but “thrusting through” was also a fit retribution on one who tried to “thrust Israel away” from the Lord. Jesus Messiah was condemned as a false prophet and pierced with “wounds between His hands.” Thus, this becomes a prophecy about Him.

His friends, His own people, the Jews, wounded Him for His claims to be Messiah. John 1:11 says, “He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.”

“Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, against the Man who is My Companion, says the Lord of hosts. Strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered. Then I will turn My hand against the little ones.” Zechariah 13:7

Jesus quoted the above passage in Matthew 26:31-32 as being fulfilled in His betrayal by the Jews, also in the Jews being subsequently scattered by the Romans afterwards.

God calls the sword of justice to awake and strike His Shepherd, the Man who is His Companion, His Son. God so loved the world that He gave up His perfect Son to be slain as an atoning sacrifice for our sin. This is the wonderful exchange that Martin Luther wrote about. Christ received the worst of humanity’s sin placed on Him. Humanity received the perfect righteousness of Christ placed on us, that is, those of us who receive Him.

The scattering of Christ’s disciples when Jesus was arrested fulfilled the “Strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered” prophecy.

After the Shepherd is struck, the little ones, His flock, are struck. In Luke 24:14-24, two disciples are walking, and Jesus comes up alongside of them. They did not know it was Him. He asks them why they are sad. They said to Him, “Jesus of Nazareth was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people. The chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death and have crucified Him. We trusted that it had been He which should have redeemed Israel. Beside all this, today is the third day since these things were done. Certain women of our company made us astonished, which were early at the sepulchre, and found that His body was not there.” These ones of little faith were struck with unbelief. Jesus had told them that He would die and resurrect on the third day. Credible witnesses had testified that His body was no longer in the tomb. In Luke 24:25, Jesus said to them, “O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken.” Later, Jesus revealed to them that it was He.

“And it shall come to pass in all the land, says the Lord, that two thirds in it shall be cut off and die, but one third shall be left in it. I will bring the third through the fire, will refine them as silver is refined, and test them as gold is tested. They will call on My Name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘This is My people.’ And each one will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’” Zechariah 13:8-9

Two-thirds of the Jewish nation perished in the Roman wars, and a third survived. This happened in accordance with the Lord’s Word to Zechariah.

The Lord refined the survivors, the remnant, as a goldsmith refines gold. He removed the dross from within them that made them dull. Amidst the Refiner’s fire, this remnant people developed a prayer language. God gave them a voice with which they could speak to Him.

Pure gold is reflective. The refiner can see His reflection in it. The Lord looked at this remnant and said, “This is My people.” The remnant looked at God and said, “This is my God.” Both God and the people wanted to be with each other. No one had to coerce it. They enjoyed and loved one another.

In John 3:1-16, we learn of a Pharisee named Nicodemus. He was a ruler of the Jews. He came to Jesus by night. He listened to Jesus. Jesus told him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” He said to Nicodemus, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” Just as a person is born physically from below by a mother, a person must be born from above by God. The conversion must be done by God.

How does conversion happen? It happens when someone hears the Gospel and is convicted by the Holy Spirit that it is true, and they profess faith in Jesus Christ.

The most well-known and beloved passage in all of the Bible is John 3:16. Who was Jesus speaking with when He spoke John 3:16? He was speaking with a man who was steeped in the knowledge of the Scriptures. He was a religious leader in the capital of the Jewish faith... Jerusalem. He had the Word of God, but not the God of the Word, that is, until he met Jesus. Jesus told Nicodemus, “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

I believe Nicodemus was converted. In John 7:47-51, when the Pharisees were saying that Jesus was a deceiver, Nicodemus said to them, “Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing?” They asked him, “Are you also from Galilee? Search and look, for no prophet has arisen out of Galilee.” In John 19:39-42, Nicodemus brought 100 pounds of expensive myrrh and aloes and took the body of Jesus and bound it in strips of linen with the spices. He placed the body of Jesus in a new tomb that was surrounded by a garden. The word “repent” in Greek means to “change one’s mind.” Nicodemus had a change of mind about Jesus. He was no longer thinking as a Pharisee thinks.

2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new.” Such a one knows and professes that Jesus is Messiah. He or she has received the Holy Spirit. They have been born again. Each conversion is a miracle of God! A demonstration of God’s love! Glory to God!

Grace and Supplications - Zechariah 12

“The burden of the Word of the Lord against Israel. ‘Thus says the Lord, who stretches out the heavens, lays the foundation of the earth, and forms the spirit of man within him: behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples, when they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem. And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples. All who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.” Zechariah 12:1-3

A burden is something weighty. God created heaven and earth. He breathed life into the first man. God created helium to be light and iron to be heavy. In this passage, He announces that He will make Jerusalem into a very heavy stone for all peoples. So much so, that when all the nations gather together against her thinking they will drink her wealth as a drunkard drinks wine, they find her invincible. The Lord made her too heavy for them to move. Her weight shatters them into pieces.

“In that day, says the Lord, I will strike every horse with confusion, and its rider with madness. I will open My eyes on the house of Judah and will strike every horse of the peoples with blindness. And the governors of Judah shall say in their heart, ‘The inhabitants of Jerusalem are my strength in the Lord of hosts, their God.’ In that day I will make the governors of Judah like a firepan in the woodpile, and like a fiery torch in the sheaves. They shall devour all the surrounding peoples on the right hand and on the left, but Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place—Jerusalem.” Zechariah 12:4-6

In the previous chapter, the Lord spoke of Jerusalem being destroyed by her enemies. Now, He speaks of Jerusalem’s victory over her foes and of her growing population. What changed? The answer is her relationship with her Creator and Savior. She is with the Lord and He with her.

“The Lord will save the tents of Judah first, so that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem shall not become greater than that of Judah. In that day, the Lord will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem. The one who is feeble among them in that day shall be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, like the Angel of the Lord before them. It shall be in that day that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.” Zechariah 12:7-9

In Philippians 4:13, Paul testified, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” In 1 Corinthians 15:10, Paul acknowledged that God’s grace helped him to get so much done for God and people. He wrote, “By the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.” When the people of Jerusalem and her surrounding cities abide in God, their feeblest citizen becomes like David the giant slayer. The Angel of the Lord, an Old Testament reference to Messiah, clears her path to victory.

“And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication. Then, they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn. In that day there shall be a great mourning in Jerusalem, like the mourning at Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. And the land shall mourn, every family by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of Shimei by itself, and their wives by themselves; all the families that remain, every family by itself, and their wives by themselves.” Zechariah 12:10-14

God’s Holy Spirit of grace and of supplications empowered the people of Judah and He empowers us who believe in God to see JESUS! When we know for certain that God’s own beloved Son was pierced for our transgressions, we know that God loves us and wants us to be with Him forever. This message of God’s love for us empowers us.

In Romans 8:31-32, 37, Paul wrote, “If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” “We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.”

During 1997, my family of six lived in a fifth floor room of a school in Guangzhou City, China. We experienced many trials, from overwhelming heat and humidity to swarms of mosquitos. We burned smoking coils of repellent and slept under mosquito nets. Sometimes the meals provided for us had a good aroma but were inedible due to particles of sand in the rice. Then, there was the not-so-hidden clues that people with ill-will toward us were spying on us.

Amidst great trials, the Holy Spirit led us to divine moments of joy as we listened to songs of the Savior, such as: “There is a Fountain Filled with Blood” (William Cowper); “At the Cross” (Isaac Watts); “Jesus Paid it All” (Elvina M. Hall); “Whiter than Snow” (James Nicholson); “The Love of God” (Frederick M. Lehman); and “What a Friend we have in Jesus” (Joseph M. Scrivener).

I did not always know how to pray but the Holy Spirit did. As Romans 8:26 says, “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.”

The trials that were meant to defeat us drove us to Jesus and to reliance on His Holy Spirit’s guidance and comfort. Thus, our witness for Christ burned bright in that place.

“Then, they will look on Me whom they pierced.” Look at the only begotten Son of God! See His pierced hands and feet! Pierced for our sin. Look at Him with hymns! Look at Him with prayers! Look at Him with praise! Look at Him and tell others what you see!

“Yes, Heavenly Father, please continuously keep our lamps burning with the Spirit of Your grace and supplications. In Jesus’ Name, I pray. Amen.”

Favor and Union with the Lord - Zechariah 11

“Open your doors, O Lebanon, that fire may devour your cedars. Wail, O cypress, for the cedar has fallen because the mighty trees are ruined. Wail, O oaks of Bashan, for the thick forest has come down. There is the sound of wailing shepherds! For their glory is in ruins. There is the sound of roaring lions! For the pride of the Jordan is in ruins.” Zechariah 11:1-3

Jamieson Fausset Brown Commentary connects Zechariah 11:1 with Ezekiel 17:3 and Habakkuk 2:17, stating that “Open your doors, O Lebanon” is a reference to the temple in Jerusalem because it was constructed of cedars from Lebanon. The temple was also lofty like a mountain. 40 years prior to it being destroyed again, the doors of the temple opened of their own accord. This is according to the “Massecheth Joma.” At that time, Rabbi Johanan stated, “I know that your desolation is impending according to Zechariah’s prophecy.” It is also true that the Romans passed through Lebanon as they advanced towards Jerusalem.

Wailing shepherds, roaring lions and ruined pride symbolize the royalty, the priests and people. They shall grieve the loss of yet another temple in Jerusalem, but God is not done. He shall replace those ruins with a new temple that is everlasting, namely, the temple of all believers in Jesus Messiah. They shall become an eternal dwelling place for His presence by His Spirit.

“Thus says the Lord my God, feed the flock for slaughter, whose owners slaughter them and feel no guilt. Those who sell them say, ‘Blessed be the Lord, for I am rich.’ Their shepherds do not pity them. For I will no longer pity the inhabitants of the land, says the Lord. But indeed I will give everyone into his neighbor’s hand and into the hand of his king. They shall attack the land, and I will not deliver them from their hand.” Zechariah 11:4-6

Zechariah likely wrote this prophecy about 500 years prior to Christ being born in the manger. 500 years is more than twice the current age of the USA. There were numerous ups and down for the people of God during these 500 years. Greece would invade their land, and after them the Romans.

In Zechariah 11:4-6, the Lord speaks of a slaughter of flocks by their owners. The owners have no empathy for their victims. They only envision riches. The Lord allows these cruel people to wreak havoc and death on Jerusalem because of their abandonment of Him.

Between 66-135 AD, 1,500,000 Jews perished at the hands of the Romans. 1,100,000 perished during the fall of Jerusalem. Zechariah and the other prophets had by God’s appointment “fed” them the Word of God. In Matthew 3:7-10, John the Baptist asked the corrupt religious leaders in Jerusalem, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

The religious leaders did not repent during the days of John and Jesus. They crucified Christ. In Matthew 27:24-26, after Governor Pilate took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood. See to it yourselves.” They answered, “His blood be on us and on our children!” They preferred a murderer named Barabbas more than Jesus.

God gave them into the hand of their neighbor and into the hand of the king. In John 19:15, the religious leaders said to their Roman governor, “We have no king but Caesar.” Thus, God took them at their word and gave them into the hand of Titus Caesar who destroyed Jerusalem and Jerusalem’s people with a great slaughter.

“So I fed the flock for slaughter, in particular the poor of the flock. I took for myself two staffs. The one I called Favor, and the other I called Union. And I fed the flock. I dismissed the three shepherds in one month. My soul loathed them, and their soul also abhorred me. Then I said, ‘I will not feed you. Let what is dying die, and what is perishing perish. Let those that are left eat each other’s flesh.’ And I took my staff, Favor, and cut it in two, that I might break the covenant which I had made with all the peoples. So it was broken on that day. Thus the poor of the flock, who were watching me, knew that it was the Word of the Lord.” Zechariah 11:7-11

The shepherd of Israel cares for the “flock of slaughter” namely, those about to experience tribulation due to their abandonment of God. Favor and Union express the incarnation of Christ. Grace: the angels declared to shepherds, “Peace and good will because Christ the Savior is born.” Union: the Word [Messiah] was made flesh and dwelt among us. The Lord dismisses three shepherds in a month. Could these be references to the three religious groups who abhorred Jesus and He abhorred them, namely, the Pharisees, the Sadducees and the Herodians. Jesus spoke truth to them but they rejected Him. The breaking of the staffs signifies the removal of His favor and union with the anti-Messiah people of Jerusalem. In 70 AD, Rome’s Emperor Titus orders the leveling of Jerusalem and the temple.

“Then I said to them, ‘If it is agreeable to you, give me my wages; and if not, refrain.’ So they weighed out for my wages 30 pieces of silver. And the Lord said to me, ‘Throw it to the potter’—that princely price they set on me. So I took the 30 pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the Lord for the potter. Then I cut in two my other staff, Union, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.” Zechariah 11:12-14

Jesus, the Good Shepherd, demonstrated grace and love towards the people of Jerusalem, but they rejected Him. One of His disciples betrayed Him to those who hated Him for 30 pieces of silver. 30 pieces of silver was the common price of a slave. In Matthew 27:3-10, when Judas saw that Jesus was condemned, he changed his mind and returned the 30 pieces of silver. He admitted, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” He threw the money down, departed, and hung himself. The priests confiscated the silver and purchased a potter's field as a burial place for strangers. This action fulfilled prophecies spoken by Jeremiah and Zechariah.

“And the Lord said to me, ‘Next, take for yourself the implements of a foolish shepherd. For indeed I will raise up a shepherd in the land who will not care for those who are cut off, nor seek the young, nor heal those that are broken, nor feed those that still stand. But he will eat the flesh of the fat and tear their hooves in pieces. Woe to the worthless shepherd, who leaves the flock! A sword shall be against his arm and against his right eye. His arm shall completely wither, and his right eye shall be totally blinded.’” Zechariah 11:15-17

The people in Jerusalem rejected the Good Shepherd (Jesus) for a foolish shepherd (Barabbas). Barabbas was an insurrectionist. He didn’t care for those who chose him. He was like the bramble in the Book of Judges that was elected by default due to infighting. The insurrectionists among the Jews stirred up the wrath of Emperor Titus. He sent his army to Jerusalem to destroy it. They were reckless. Shepherds that took life from people rather than heal them. Hooves torn to pieces indicates trials involving excruciating and crippling pain.

May the Lord help us to take to heart the words of this prophecy. The Lord Jesus has expressed favor toward us and a desire for union with us. We don’t deserve to have such a wonderful Creator and Savior as Jesus Christ. He is Emmanuel – God with us. He became like us to bring us to God. Let us not respond in a foolish way to Jesus as the people of Jerusalem did.

The Word of God to us in Hebrews 2:1-4 is: “Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to His will.”

“Thank You Lord Jesus for being a Good Shepherd to us. Thank You for the great salvation that You accomplished for us when You became an atoning sacrifice for our sins, when You resurrected victorious over death, and when You gave us Your Holy Spirit and His gifts. May we ever praise You and serve You with actions that say to You, ‘We love You Lord.’”

Victory in the Name of Jesus - Zechariah 10

“Ask the Lord for rain in the time of the latter rain. The Lord will make flashing clouds. He will give them showers of rain, grass in the field for everyone.” Zechariah 10:1

In Matthew 7:7, Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened to you.” I have received so many wonderful and obvious answers from the Lord to my prayers. One of the greatest answers being that I would never lose my love for Him. “Thank You Lord!” “I love You Heavenly Father!”

The Lord says in His Word to ask Him for the latter rain and He will bring the showers and cause the fields to produce. At the end of chapter 9, the Lord had said there will be plenty of grain and wine, but in recent years, there had been great scarcity of both. They are to demonstrate faith in God by telling Him what they need and believing He will bring it.

How can we say we believe that God will take us to heaven when we die when we don’t believe He will supply our daily earthly needs. Eternity is forever. If I believe God is going to provide for all my needs for eternity in paradise, why not trust Him for rain and a harvest here on earth? The former rain was the autumn rain for the seedtime to fructify the seeds. The latter rain was the spring showers to help the crops to grow. These rains are critical to food and wine production.

There is also a spiritual application to Zechariah 10:1. The former rain is like salvation. At that point, we hear the Gospel, believe it and are converted in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. The latter rain is like the baptism of the Holy Spirit where Jesus baptizes us with Spirit and power to be His witnesses. It is by the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit that we bear Christlike fruit.

“For the idols speak delusion. The diviners envision lies and tell false dreams. They comfort in vain. Therefore, the people wend their way like sheep. They are in trouble because there is no shepherd. My anger is kindled against the shepherds, and I will punish the goatherds. For the Lord of hosts will visit His flock, the house of Judah, and will make them as His royal horse in the battle.” Zechariah 10:2-3

The Hebrew word for idols in this text is teraphim. Teraphim were household gods. Diviners supposedly received messages and dreams from these idols. Their goal was to comfort people, but they offered them was not comfortable. No matter how good their ideas seemed, they did not resolve the drought. The Jamieson Brown commentary says, “shepherds described what the leaders ought to have been. The he-goats describes what they were. He-goats are the emblems of headstrong wantonness and offensive lust.” What happens when the Lord visits this flock? This motley crew become kingly horses ready to fight battles for the Lord.

“From him comes the cornerstone, from him the tent peg, from him the battle bow, from him every ruler together. They shall be like mighty men, who tread down their enemies in the mire of the streets in the battle. They shall fight because the Lord is with them, and the riders on horses shall be put to shame.” Zechariah 10:4-5

In the big picture, Jesus Messiah is the cornerstone. A cornerstone represents a reliable leader. The tent peg keeps the house from falling. The battle bow speaks of skillful warfare. Jesus Christ defeated the spiritual powers of wickedness when He died for our sins on the cross and resurrected from the dead. Then, He poured out His Holy Spirit on those of us who receive Him. His Spirit is more powerful than any other spirit. In the Name of Jesus, we have the victory.

In the immediate picture for the people of God, the Maccabees are referred to in this prophecy. In the wake of Alexander the Great’s death, his generals split up the conquered territories. Eventually, Antiochus Epiphanes will come to power and persecute true believers in God. He will order the defilement of the temple. Judas Maccabeus was called the hammer. He defeated the larger Seleucid Greek armies at battles like Emmaus and Beth-Zur. How? God was with him.

“I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph. I will bring them back because I have mercy on them. They shall be as though I had not cast them aside. For I am the Lord their God, and I will hear them. Those of Ephraim shall be like a mighty man, and their heart shall rejoice as if with wine. Yes, their children shall see it and be glad. Their heart shall rejoice in the Lord. I will whistle for them and gather them, for I will redeem them; and they shall increase as they once increased.” Zechariah 10:6-8

This is an amazing prophecy considering the people are in the midst of rebuilding a ruined capital and a ruined temple. The Jews are trickling back into the Promised Land. They are not a mighty people at this point. They have been minority groups in other nations. They are still in the process of rebuilding their communities. God’s mercy is restoring power to them. They are going to be mighty. Their soldiers shall rejoice and their children shall be glad. The Lord speaks of whistling and gathering them together so they can increase. Strength, joy and unity help to make a nation great. God’s grace upon Judah and Ephraim is why they bounced back after 70 years of captivity in Babylon. Other nations ceased to exist, but God made them to thrive.

“I will sow them among the peoples, and they shall remember Me in far countries. They shall live together with their children and they shall return. I will also bring them back from the land of Egypt and gather them from Assyria. I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon, until no more room is found for them.” Zechariah 10:9-10

The Lord sowed his people among the nations as a sower of seed throws his seed about a field. In a sense, they became the Lord’s ambassadors to those nations at that time. Then, after a season, the Lord brought them back to the Promised Land to build it back better than before. Whereas the land was temporarily sparsely populated, it was going to be fully populated.

“He shall pass through the sea with affliction and strike the waves of the sea. All the depths of the River shall dry up. Then the pride of Assyria shall be brought down, and the scepter of Egypt shall depart. So I will strengthen them in the Lord, and they shall walk up and down in His Name, says the Lord.” Zechariah 10:11-12

The imagery here is similar to the time when the Lord opened up the Red Sea before Israel so that they could walk on dry land while walls of water were on either side of them. With such kinds of miracles the Lord humbles mighty nations like Assyria and Egypt. No nation on earth and no coalition of nations on earth can stand against the Lord, and His anointed.

The Lord promised to strengthen them.

The Lord told His people that they would walk up and down in His Name. In Matthew 28:19, Jesus said to the leaders of His Church, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” They went forth in His Name and baptized people in His Name.

In Acts 4:5-20, the apostles Peter and John were standing before the same men who orchestrated the crucifixion of Christ. They asked Peter and John, “By what power or by what Name have you done this?” In Acts 3, the Lord had healed a lame man through them. Now, in Acts 4, rulers, elders, scribes, Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the family of the high priest are looking at Peter and John. They tell Peter and John not to speak at all nor teach in the Name of Jesus. How do Peter and John respond? They say, “We cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.”

“Heavenly Father, please grant us the grace to walk and win battles in Your Name... in the Name of Jesus Christ Your Son, I pray. Amen.”


Some historic and word etymology knowledge gleaned from Jamieson Fausset Brown and Matthew Henry’s Commentaries

God Loves Us - Zechariah 9

“The burden of the Word of the Lord against the land of Hadrach, and Damascus its resting place (For the eyes of men and all the tribes of Israel are on the Lord); also against Hamath, which borders on it, and against Tyre and Sidon, though they are very wise. For Tyre built herself a tower, heaped up silver like the dust, and gold like the mire of the streets. Behold, the Lord will cast her out. He will destroy her power in the sea, and she will be devoured by fire.” Zechariah 9:1-4

The burden of the Word of the Lord in the above verses is against five Gentile cities. The burden is heavy and is about to crush them. These cities were located to the north of Israel. Hadrach, Hamath and Damascus are cities of ancient Assyria and modern day Syria. Damascus was the capital of Assyria and still is the capital of Syria today. Tyre and Sidon are located in Lebanon. The Greeks referred to the people of Tyre and Sidon as Phoenicians.

Tyre was surrounded by sea on all sides. It had a double wall 150 feet high all around it. The people of Tyre assumed that they were wise because they had large reserves of silver and gold and were well defended. However, when Alexander the Great marched his army toward Egypt, he crushed Tyre. His army slew 8,000 people, enslaved 13,000 and crucified 2,000 of them. He sank their ships. Then, he set Tyre ablaze. His army also crushed Hadrach, Hamath, Damascus, and Sidon. He plundered their wealth.

“Ashkelon shall see it and fear. Gaza also shall be very sorrowful; and Ekron, for He dried up her expectation. The king shall perish from Gaza, and Ashkelon shall not be inhabited. A mixed race shall settle in Ashdod, and I will cut off the pride of the Philistines. I will take away the blood from his mouth, and the abominations from between his teeth. But he who remains, even he shall be for our God, and shall be like a leader in Judah, and Ekron like a Jebusite.” Zechariah 9:5-7

Ashkelon, Gaza and Ekron and Ashdod were four of the five major cities in Philistia. Gath, the fifth major city, was out of the way for Alexander to conquer. After a two month long siege, Alexander conquered Gaza. He slew 10,000 of its inhabitants and enslaved the rest. He also conquered Ashkelon, Ekron and Ashdod. A mixed race of people (Arabs) moved into these lands, which is true today.

The Philistines bowed to the works of their hands but not to the God who created them. They ate non-kosher foods and meat mingled with blood. Thus, God took the blood from their mouths and the abominations from between their teeth. God dealt with their pride. Perhaps, they had previously mocked the Jews for their dietary disciplines. Some of the survivors in Ashdod became ”for God” and became like some of Judah’s leaders. The Jebusites were the original inhabitants of Jerusalem. David subjugated them and incorporated them among his people (See 2 Samuel 24:16). Some of the survivors of Ekron became like the Jebusites in Israel.

“I will camp around My house because of the army, because of him who passes by and him who returns. No more shall an oppressor pass through them, for now I have seen with My eyes.” Zechariah 9:8

The Lord promised to camp around His house. He reassured the Jews who were rebuilding the temple and Jerusalem that He would protect them. Alexander passed by Jerusalem. Historical sources say that a dream stopped Alexander from attacking the city. Instead, he conferred on them great privileges. They were not oppressed.

“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you. He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey. I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the horse from Jerusalem. The battle bow shall be cut off. He shall speak peace to the nations. His dominion shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth.” Zechariah 9:9-10

In contrast to Gentiles kings such as Sargon II (Assyria), Nebuchadnezzar (Babylon), Xerxes (Persia) and Alexander (Greece), the coming King of Jerusalem shall be humble and ride on a service animal rather than a conqueror’s horse. He would replace war chariots and the bows of archers with life producing tools. According to Isaiah 2:4, Israel’s coming Messiah shall, “judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.”

Jesus Christ is just and the justifier of those who believe in Him. He doesn’t justify our sins. No, He condemns sin. He became a living sacrifice for our sins. Thus, God can justly say that those who believe in Jesus have no sin. Did any other king do that for us? No. Jesus resurrected from the grave after He died for our sin to prove that He is the Savior of the world. He is the only founder of a religion that left behind an empty tomb. Thus, Jesus has salvation.

Hebrews 2:14 says, “Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil.” Jesus cancelled all the devil’s claims against us when He removed our sins from us. He also conquered death for us. We cannot do anything for ourselves when we die, but Jesus can. He resurrects the souls of us who believe in Him and gives us an eternal body. Glory!

Jesus Christ has already the converted the hearts of many people from being warlike to being charitable and kind. The servants of Christ are the salt of the earth because due to them God does not destroy entire populations as He did during the days of Noah. He gives evil nations like Ninevah the opportunity to hear His Word and repent. In some cases, He rescues His servants from a city before He destroys it as He did with Lot and his family.

In Proverbs 1:10-11, 15, 18-19, the Lord says, “My son, if sinners entice you... to lie in wait to shed blood... my son, do not walk in the way with them.” “They lie in wait for their own blood, they lurk secretly for their own lives. So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain. It takes away the life of its owners.” Galatians 6:7 says, “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” To be like Jesus, we need to love God and love people and live to glorify our loving Heavenly Father.

“As for you also, because of the blood of your covenant, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit. Return to the stronghold, you prisoners of hope. Even today I declare that I will restore double to you. For I have bent Judah, My bow, fitted the bow with Ephraim, and raised up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and made you like the sword of a mighty man.” Zechariah 9:11-13

The Lord connects the blood of the covenant with prisoners being set free from a waterless pit and fulfilling their hopes by setting them in a safe place. It is by the blood of Christ, not by the blood of bulls and goats (under Moses), that we are truly delivered from the waterless pit. To be in a pit without water is really an unpleasant place to be. The Lord shall pull them out of the pit and make them strong. In the days, Ephraim (another name for Israel) will have to fight the successor of Alexander. Antiochus Epiphanes shall arise after Alexander and try to force God’s people to forsake Him. God will raise up the bow and sword of Judas Maccabeus and his brothers to lead the Isreal to victory over Antiochus.

“Then the Lord will be seen over them, and His arrow will go forth like lightning. The Lord God will blow the trumpet and go with whirlwinds from the south. The Lord of hosts will defend them. They shall devour and subdue with slingstones. They shall drink and roar as if with wine. They shall be filled with blood like basins, like the corners of the altar. The Lord their God will save them in that day, as the flock of His people. For they shall be like the jewels of a crown, lifted like a banner over His land—for how great is its goodness and how great its beauty! Grain shall make the young men thrive, and new wine the young women.” Zechariah 9:14-17

It is not that we save ourselves from our foes. God works in perceivable and imperceivable ways to bring about our salvation. Romans 8:37 says, “In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” We are saved because of His love for us.

The Lord loves us and considers us His flock. He considers us jewels in His crown and banners over His land! God is love. He replaces ashes with beauty. He resolves hunger and thirst with bread and wine.

In Romans 8:38-39, Paul wrote, “For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Some historic and word etymology knowledge gleaned from Jamieson Fausset Brown Commentary

A New Jerusalem - Zechariah 8

“Again the Word of the Lord of hosts came, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: I am zealous for Zion with great zeal; with great fervor I am zealous for her. Thus says the Lord: I will return to Zion, and dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth, the Mountain of the Lord of hosts, the Holy Mountain.” Zechariah 8:1-3

Zealous with great fervor for Jerusalem... the Lord shall see it become a City of Truth.

In Micah 4:2, the Lord prophesied, “Many nations shall come, and say, ‘Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the Law shall go forth of Zion, and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem.’”

In Acts 1:8, Jesus told His disciples, “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

In Acts 2:5, “there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven.”

In Acts 2:41-42, “Then those who gladly received his word [Peter’s message] were baptized, and that day about 3,000 souls were added to them. And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.”

In Acts 8:1, “Great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria.” The Law went forth of Zion, and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”

In Revelation 21:2, “John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.”

In Revelation 21:24, “The nations of those who are saved shall walk in its [New Jerusalem’s] light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it.”

In Revelation 22:3, “There shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it [New Jerusalem], and His servants shall serve Him.”

The zeal of the Lord shall bring all this to pass, otherwise, it would not have happened.

“Thus says the Lord of hosts: old men and old women shall again sit in the streets of Jerusalem, each one with his staff in his hand because of great age. The streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in its streets. Thus says the Lord of hosts: if it is marvelous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, will it also be marvelous in My eyes? says the Lord of hosts.” Zechariah 8:4-6

People shall no longer need to place metal bars over their windows as people do in many cities. The elderly shall sit safely in Jerusalem’s streets and watch their boys and girls playing together in the streets. The Lord will bring about this age of peace, togetherness, love and joy. Eyes will be amazed what they see. Only the Lord could do this!

“Thus says the Lord of hosts: behold, I will save My people from the land of the east and from the land of the west. I will bring them back, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. They shall be My people and I will be their God, in truth and righteousness.” Zechariah 8:7-8

The Good Shepherd brings His sheep together. They will be glad to be identified with Him and He with them. There will be nothing fake or manipulated about this. It will be authentic and heartfelt love for one another.

“Thus says the Lord of hosts: let your hands be strong, you who have been hearing in these days these Words by the mouth of the prophets, who spoke in the day the foundation was laid for the house of the Lord of hosts, that the temple might be built. For before these days there were no wages for man nor any hire for beast. There was no peace from the enemy for whoever went out or came in; for I set all men, everyone, against his neighbor. But now I will not treat the remnant of this people as in the former days, says the Lord of hosts.” Zechariah 8:9-11

The above passage properly places all the glory at the feet of God. Their hands had been weak. Their ears had been deaf to God’s voice. They could not see or feel Him. They were working without the pay of His presence. They had no peace. They were far from God and unable to get along with each other, but then, the Lord, by His grace, initiated a new era. God Almighty, Creator of the universe, brought about a divine transformation in them and around them. Personal relationships with the Lord, that He initiated by His grace, made all the difference.

“For the seed shall be prosperous. The vine shall give its fruit. The ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew—I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these. And it shall come to pass that just as you were a curse among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so I will save you, and you shall be a blessing. Do not fear, let your hands be strong.” Zechariah 8:12-13

The seed that made them prosperous is Christ. He is the vine. When we abide in Him, the increase comes. Heaven rains! The curses of the Law dissipate because we are blessed in the Beloved.

Galatians 3:13-14 says, “Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree’), that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” Jesus took the curses to the grave that we lawbreakers deserved. He resurrected from the dead and breathed new life into us. We were just dust but then, He breathed into us the Holy Spirit so we can love, to be at peace and to jump with joy. The new disposition that Christ has given us makes us a blessing to the nations. Praise the Lord!

“For thus says the Lord of hosts: just as I determined to punish you when your fathers provoked Me to wrath, says the Lord of hosts, and I would not relent, so again in these days I am determined to do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. Do not fear. These are the things you shall do: speak each man the truth to his neighbor. Give judgment in your gates for truth, justice, and peace. Let none of you think evil in your heart against your neighbor. And do not love a false oath. For all these are things that I hate, says the Lord.” Zechariah 8:14-17

As God was determined to punish sin, He is now determined to empower His people to speak truth, to do what is right in the public square, and to cease harboring evil thoughts against one another.

“Then the Word of the Lord of hosts came to me, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: the fast of the fourth month, the fast of the fifth, the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall be joy and gladness and cheerful feasts for the house of Judah. Therefore, love truth and peace.” Zechariah 8:18-19

In Zechariah 7:3, the people wanted to know if they needed to weep when they fasted as they did in the past. The answer is no. Thanks to the difference God shall make in their lives, these former fasts shall become cheerful feasts where they experience joy and gladness. You want this? The Lord says, “Love truth and peace.” The Lord’s calling to them in Zechariah 7:8 was to execute true justice, show mercy and compassion everyone on his brother.

In Isaiah 58:6-9, the Lord had said, “Is this not the fast that I have chosen: to undo the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out. When you see the naked, that you cover him, and not hide yourself from your own flesh? Then your light shall break forth like the morning, your healing shall spring forth speedily, and your righteousness shall go before you. The glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer. You shall cry, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’”

“Thus says the Lord of hosts: peoples shall yet come, inhabitants of many cities. The inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, ‘Let us continue to go and pray before the Lord, and seek the Lord of hosts. I myself will go also.’ Yes, many peoples and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord.’ Thus says the Lord of hosts: in those days 10 men from every language of the nations shall grasp the sleeve of a Jewish man, saying, ‘Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.’” Zechariah 8:20-22

What a difference it makes when people are filled with love for God and love for people. People from many cities begin to pray before the Lord in Jerusalem. Men from every language grasp the sleeve of a Jewish man, saying, “Let us go with you.” This happened in measure on the Day of Pentecost as recorded in Acts 2, but what we learn from Revelation 7:4-8 and 14:1-5, is that one day there will be 12,000 Jews from each tribe of Israel who will serve Christ and proclaim it.

In Revelation 7:9-10, John sees “a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!’” In Revelation 7:14, an angel explains to John that these people came out of the great tribulation. In Revelation 14:14-16, the Son of Man gathers into heaven a great harvest. This affirms the Word that God gave the Apostle Paul in Romans 11:12. He wrote, “Now if their [Israel’s] fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness!”

Yes, there shall be a New Jerusalem where Jesus Messiah is loved, worshipped and proclaimed! As the Lord declared in Revelation 21:2, New Jerusalem shall come down out of heaven from God prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. God will be with her and she with God... one in heart, soul and mind! Glory! Hallelujah!