Keep Looking Up

“Then I raised my eyes and looked, and behold, a man with a measuring line in his hand. So I said, ‘Where are you going?’ And he said to me, ‘To measure Jerusalem, to see what is its width and what is its length.’ And there was the angel who talked with me, going out. And another angel was coming out to meet him, who said to him, ‘Run, speak to this young man, saying: Jerusalem shall be inhabited as towns without walls, because of the multitude of men and livestock in it.’ For I, says the Lord, will be a wall of fire all around her, and I will be the glory in her midst.” Zechariah 2:1-5

Zechariah is looking up. He said, “I raised my eyes and looked...” In Luke 21:28, Jesus said, “Now when these things [tribulations] begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.” The fact that one evil empire was rising up and falling after another was a sign that the time of the Lord’s return was near. Babylon had fallen to the Persians, and next, the Greeks would conquer them, and after that, the Romans.

What is the Man in Zechariah’s vision doing? He is measuring Jerusalem. The Man tells an angel to run an explanation to Zechariah. Jerusalem, which is not yet rebuilt, shall be repopulated with people and livestock (food). The Lord says that He will be a wall of fire around Jerusalem and the glory in her midst.

In Ezekiel 40:2-3, God took Ezekiel by way of a vision to the land of Israel. While on a mountain outside of Jerusalem, Ezekiel saw a Man whose appearance was like the appearance of bronze. He had a line of flax and a measuring rod in his hand, and he stood in the gateway. The Man proceeded to measure the dimensions of a new temple that was there. The description of this Man relates to the appearance of Christ as John sees Him in Revelation 1:13-15.

At the time of Ezekiel’s and Zechariah’s visions, Jerusalem was still lying in ruins. The temple was not yet rebuilt. Ezekiel was still a captive in Babylon at the time of his vision. Zechariah was back in the vicinity of where Jerusalem once stood but it needed rebuilt. God gave these prophets visions of what He was going to do. He was going to ensure that the temple and the city was rebuilt. He was doing the preparatory measurements and He would place His plans in the heads of the rebuilders to do His work.

In Revelation 11:1-13, the Apostle John was given a reed like a measuring rod and told by an angel to measure the temple of God, the altar, and those who worship there. He is told that the outer court is for the Gentiles. They, the Gentiles, will tread the holy city underfoot for three and a half years. At that time, Christ will empower His two witnesses to prophesy for three and a half years. They have power from God to shut heaven so that no rain falls in the days of their prophecy. They have power over waters to turn them to blood. They have power to strike the earth with all plagues as often as they desire. When they finish their testimony, the beast (the antichrist) kills them and leaves their bodies in the street. People from all over the earth see their dead bodies and rejoice, make merry, and send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented them. However, three-and-a-half days later, they resurrect from the dead. They ascend to heaven in a cloud as the world watches. A great earthquake occurs killing 7,000 people in that city. The survivors are terrified and give glory to the God of heaven.

This vision assured John and it assures us who read Bible prophecy and believe it that God will prevail over all the works of the evil one. Just as God did in the days of Ezekiel and Zechariah, so will He do in the last days before He returns. Thus, we keep our eyes looking up. As David asks his soul in Psalm 42:5, 11; 43:5, “Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him For the help of His countenance.”

In Revelation 21:15-17, the Lord reveals to John the New Jerusalem. He had an angel measure while John watched him. “He who talked with me had a gold reed to measure the city, its gates, and its wall. The city is laid out as a square.” “He measured the city with the reed: 12,000 furlongs (1,500 miles). Its length, breadth, and height are equal.” The wall around it is 144 cubits (216 feet) high. The Lord placed this revelation towards the end of the Bible to assure us that heaven does have a holy city where God has His throne. Earthly Jerusalem is nowhere near as beautiful and as glorious as the Heavenly One.

Hebrews 12:22 speaks of the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, where there are innumerable company of angels. In 2 Peter 3:13, Peter wrote of “a new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.” There will be a new heaven, new earth and new Jerusalem after the Lord returns. In Luke 23:43, Jesus told the thief next to Him on the cross, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.” Something better than the original garden of Eden will exist.

“Up, up! Flee from the land of the north, says the Lord. For I have spread you abroad like the four winds of heaven, says the Lord. Up, Zion! Escape, you who dwell with the daughter of Babylon. For thus says the Lord of hosts: he sent Me after glory, to the nations which plunder you. For he who touches you touches the apple of His eye. For surely I will shake My hand against them, and they shall become spoil for their servants. Then you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent Me.” Zechariah 2:6-9

Flee from Babylon. The time has come to return to the Promised Land. The people of God had been scattered to the four “ends” of the world but now it was time to come back to Israel. The Lord affirmed to His people that when pagan nations attacked them, they were touching the apple of His eye. Those who despoiled them would be despoiled by them. This prophecy was fulfilled in measure by the Jews who had already returned to the land of Isreal. More were yet to return. God assured Zechariah and His people that they were in the center of His will.

We may not be captives of some cruel empire that makes slaves out of the nations that they conquer, but perhaps, we have become captivated by some of the same ungodly tendencies of the paganistic leaders and followers around us. In 2 Corinthians 6:16-18, Paul wrote, “What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: ‘I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people. Therefore, come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you. I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.’”

In John 15:18-19, Jesus said to His disciples, “If the world hates you, know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” In John 17:15-16, Jesus prayed to the Father for His disciples saying, “My prayer is not that You take them out of the world but that You protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.” In Philippians 3:20, Paul wrote, “Our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ.” This world is passing away, but the Lord’s kingdom is forever. Thus, we should prioritize our allegiance to God’s kingdom first.

“Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion! For behold, I am coming and I will dwell in your midst, says the Lord. Many nations shall be joined to the Lord in that day, and they shall become My people. And I will dwell in your midst. Then you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent Me to you. And the Lord will take possession of Judah as His inheritance in the Holy Land and will again choose Jerusalem. Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord, for He is aroused from His holy habitation!” Zechariah 2:10-13

Throughout the Scriptures and especially in Psalms, the Lord urges us to sing unto Him, and to rejoice in Him. He is our Creator and Sustainer! Psalms 98:1 says, “O sing unto the Lord a new song; for He has done marvelous things. His right hand, and His holy arm, has gotten Him the victory.”

The best thing we can do for our spiritual, mental and physical health is to love God and sing His praises. Proverbs 16:24 says, “Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.” Proverbs 17:22 says, “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” 3 John 1:2 indicates that there is a connection between a prosperous soul and a healthy body, “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.”

In Acts 16:25-34, when Paul and Silas were unjustly beaten and imprisoned for testifying for Jesus, they did not let the devil steal their joy. No, they sang praise to God and God broke them out of the jail and the Lord saved some souls in the process. Nehemiah 8:10 says, “Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

During these troubling times, may the Lord grant each of us His grace to keep looking up, keep anticipating an eternity with Jesus Christ, and keep singing the high praises of God. Amen!