On the one hand, in the physical realm, Joshua was the current high priest during the days of Zechariah. On the other hand, in the spiritual realm, Joshua is a type of the Heavenly Messiah. Satan was attacking Joshua the high priest because he was a sinner yet serving as a mediator for the people of God. Satan was also opposing Joshua because he represented the soon and coming Messiah.
Jesus is the Greek transliteration of the Hebrew name Joshua. Joshua means the Lord saves. Unlike Joshua the high priest in Zechariah’s day, Jesus never sinned but He did bear the sins of the world.
Thus, when Jesus resolved to be a sacrifice for the sins of the world, Satan’s servants opposed Him. In Mark 14:65, they spat on Jesus. In Luke 22:63, they blindfolded Him and hit Him, while saying, “Prophesy! Who hit You!” In Mark 15:15-19, they whipped Him, placed a crown of thorns about His head, and they smote Him on the head with a reed, and spit upon Him. In Mark 15:29–32, passersby hurled insults at Him. The chief priests and the teachers of the Law mocked Him, saying: "He saved others, but He can’t save Himself! Let this Messiah, this king of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Even those crucified with Jesus insulted Him. Satan and his servants truly opposed Christ for becoming a Mediator for us.
The fact that Jesus bore the sins of the world upon Himself means that whosoever believes and professes Jesus Christ as his or her Lord and Savior is forgiven all their sins by God. And apart from sin in our lives, Satan has no more claims against us. His claims are null and void.
In his vision, Zechariah heard the Lord say to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?” Satan ridiculed the high priest of Israel and his people because they assumed they could rebuild the temple and rebuild Jerusalem. But finally, the Lord had enough of Satan’s mocking and rebuked him. The Lord told Satan that He had chosen Jerusalem. He plucked Jerusalem out of the fires of Babylonian captivity.
The name Satan means adversary or opponent. In Luke 22:31-32, Satan wanted to destroy Simon Peter, to sift him like wheat, but Jesus prayed for Peter that Peter’s faith would not fail.
In Job 1:11, Satan said to God in regards to Job, “Stretch out Your hand and touch all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face!” In Job 1:12, the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power. Only do not lay a hand on his person.” The Lord did not hurt Job, the devil did. Job 1:22 says, “In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong.” The devil falsely accused Job. He said that Job would deny God if afflicted, but Job did not deny God. God’s grace was sufficient to keep Job’s faith in Him strong.
In Luke 22:32, Jesus told Peter, “When you have returned to Me, strengthen your brothers.” That’s what Job did. In Job 42:8-10, after Job’s trial ended, he strengthened his friends by praying for them.
Sometimes God allows His servants to embody the sufferings of Christ so that His love for sinners is made known. In Galatians 6:17, Paul wrote, “From now on let no one trouble me, for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.” In 2 Corinthians 4:10-11, Paul wrote that “we are always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.” Romans 5:8 says, “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
So what does Satan do to us while we are suffering for the sake of sinners who do not deserve our love? He opposes us. He mocks us. He seeks to hurt us in every way.
What does the Lord do with Satan when he attacks? He rebukes him.
In Mark 1:21-25, when a demon manifested itself through a man in a synagogue of Capernaum, what did Jesus do? “Jesus rebuked him, saying, ‘Be quiet, and come out of him!’” In Luke 4:39, when Peter’s mother-in-law was sick with fever, what did Jesus do? “He stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her. And immediately she arose and served them.” In Matthew 17:18, Jesus rebuked a demon from tormenting a boy. In Matthew 4:10, Jesus told Satan to get away from Him. Jesus Christ has the authority to command Satan to leave, and he must obey.
In Jude 1:9, “Michael the archangel said to Satan, ‘The Lord rebuke you.’” Michael’s action towards Satan is an example for us. The power to rebuke Satan must come from the Lord. We don’t rebuke the devil in our name or in our power. We don’t use the Name of Jesus like some kind of incantation or formula. Acts 19:13-16 tells the story of some itinerant Jewish exorcists. They took it upon themselves to call the Name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.” The evil spirit answered and said to them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?” Then the evil spirit in the man “prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.”
In Haggai 2:23, the Lord told Governor Zerubbabel that he was His chosen signet ring. Kings sign edicts, grants, and commissions, with signet-rings. God is the one who authorizes someone to use His Name. The power to rebuke Satan is from God. In Matthew 28:18-20, before Jesus ascended to heaven, He told His disciples, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore...” Jesus authorized them to do His work on earth. He promised to be with them always. Romans 8:11 says, “If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.” Unclean spirits are driven out by the Holy Spirit in Jesus’ Name.
“Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments and was standing before the Angel. Then He answered and spoke to those who stood before Him, saying, ‘Take away the filthy garments from him.’ And to him He said, ‘See, I have removed your iniquity from you, and I will clothe you with rich robes.’ And I said, ‘Let them put a clean turban on his head.’ So they put a clean turban on his head, and they put the clothes on him. And the Angel of the Lord stood by. Then the Angel of the Lord admonished Joshua, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: if you will walk in My ways, and if you will keep My command, then you shall also judge My house, and likewise have charge of My courts. I will give you places to walk among these who stand here.’” Zechariah 3:3-7
Satan was pointing to Joshua’s filthy clothes and declaring him unfit to serve the Lord. The filthy garments represent the sins of God’s people. The Lord took away Joshua’s filthy garments and his iniquities and replaced them with a rich robe and a clean turban. The robe symbolizes the merits of Christ placed upon him. The clean turban symbolizes his new role in Christ. He is not only forgiven of his sins he is now a priest of God. He has been transformed by the gracious work of Christ. His mind is now on heavenly things, such as praising and glorifying God.
Exodus 28:36-38 explains that the turban was part of the High Priest’s garments. The turban had a gold plate on the front of it inscribed with the words Holiness to the Lord. Those who place their sins under the blood of Christ, receive His Holy Spirit. Then, their body is a temple of the Holy Spirit according to 1 Corinthians 6:19.
“Hear, O Joshua, the high priest, you and your companions who sit before you, for they are a wondrous sign. For behold, I am bringing forth My Servant the Branch. For behold, the stone that I have laid before Joshua: upon the stone are seven eyes. Behold, I will engrave its inscription, says the Lord of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day. In that day, says the Lord of hosts, everyone will invite his neighbor under his vine and under his fig tree.” Zechariah 3:8-10
The Lord promised a wonderful sign to high priest Joshua and his fellow priests. He promised that He would send Messiah. Messiah is God’s Servant the Branch. God in flesh appearing! The seven eyes represent the seven spirits of God mentioned in Isaiah 11:1-2 and in Revelation 1:4. Jesus Christ is the One who removes the sin of God’s people in one day. He brings us into fellowship with God and with others in Christ. We sit with one another under the shade of Christ (the Vine) and under His fig tree. He refreshes us with rest for our souls.
Nazareth is the name of the town where Jesus grew up. Netzer ( נצר ) means a “sprout” or “branch.” When people called Jesus the Nazarene, the “ee” ending added to a word in Hebrew means “my.” So, it sounded as if they were calling Him, “Jesus My Branch.” Jesus is the Branch referred to in Zechariah’s prophecy. Isaiah 11:1 also refers to Messiah as the Branch.
The Lord speaks of a stone with an inscription. In Daniel 2:34, the prophet Daniel had a vision from God of “a stone cut out without hands.” This stone represents God’s eternal kingdom that will replace earthly empires and fill the whole world.
In Matthew 21:42, Jesus asked those who questioned His authority, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes.’” Jesus is the chief cornerstone. He is Messiah. In Acts 4:11, Peter preached of Jesus, saying, “This is the ‘stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.” In Ephesians 2:20, Paul calls Jesus Christ the chief cornerstone.”
Recently, I have been reflecting on one of the faulty foundations I built on during my teen years. In the late 70’s, I foolishly became a fan of the rock band Kiss. After I was born again, I destroyed those albums. The Lord helped me to discern how defiling it was. Gene and Paul, being Jews, embodied all that was wrong with Israel before the city of Jerusalem fell before Babylon. The Jews back then did exactly the opposite of what God expected of them. They were to be holy to the Lord, but they behaved like demons. They became perverse idols unto themselves.
“You don’t know what you don’t know.” Have you heard that statement before? The devil is a master hunter. Hunters know how to use lures that look delicious to the animals that they hunt. The devil knows that our flesh is weak. Like a drug trafficker, his goal is to get people addicted to a destructive coping mechanism which is rooted in gratifying the flesh. He fattens his prey for the kill. Over indulgence in any addictive substance is not a luxury, it’s a bondage that destroys.
In Galatians 5:23-24, self-control is a gift of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit helps us “to crucify the flesh with its passions and desires.” In 1 Corinthians 9:27, Paul speaks of beating his body into submission, meaning that he rigorously disciplines his physical desires and appetites, like a boxer training intensely, to ensure his own spiritual life remains fit for God’s service.
In Matthew 26:41, Jesus warned His disciples, saying, “The Spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.” In Hebrews 12:15-17, the writer wrote, “Look carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God... Lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. For you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears.”
Victory over sin, the flesh and the devil is the most consequential battle to win. In Matthew 13:44-45, Jesus compared the kingdom of heaven to a treasure and to a pearl of great price. Being with God in His Kingdom is more valuable than any earthly treasure. And what does the require Lord for it? He requires from us humility and profession that Christ alone is fit to be our Lord and Savior.
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