CHAPTER 12

1 The burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him. 2 Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. 3 And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it. 4 In that day, saith the LORD, I will smite every horse with astonishment, and his rider with madness: and I will open mine eyes upon the house of Judah, and will smite every horse of the people with blindness.

These last 3 chapters of Zechariah have the same theme - "in that day!" The day spoken of is the day of the visible return of our Lord Jesus Christ.

At the end of the 7-year tribulation, all nations will be "gathered" against Jerusalem. But Jesus Himself shall come and save them. Not only will He save, but also exalt, because Christ Himself shall take control and bring a crushing defeat to all those who come against Jerusalem.

In verse one, He is the Creator of all things, and the One Who gave man life. In verse two, He will cause all nations to "tremble" who come against Jerusalem. In verse three, He will cause all people who fight against Jerusalem to be defeated. In verse four, He gives Judah defense and takes away the power of all enemies.

5 And the governors of Judah shall say in their heart, The inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be my strength in the LORD of hosts their God. 6 In that day will I make the governors of Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; and they shall devour all the people round about, on the right hand and on the left: and Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place, even in Jerusalem. 7 The LORD also shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem do not magnify themselves against Judah. 8 In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them. 9 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.

When Christ comes, the leaders of Judah will know "in their heart" that their strength comes from Him. (verse 5)

Those leaders will be endowed with the power to defeat all enemies (verse 6)

Our Lord Himself shall be their defense. Even the "feeble" will be as David - unconquerable. And the "house of David" (lineage) will have as their head "the Angel of the LORD" - Jesus.

10 And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. 11 In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon. 12 And the land shall mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart; 13 The family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart; the family of Shimei apart, and their wives apart; 14 All the families that remain, every family apart, and their wives apart.

"Grace" and "supplications" both come in the form of recognition of Jesus as LORD. He Whom they have "pierced" is the One Who brought salvation. They will recognize this fully. And they shall mourn for their sin of rejecting Him.

This is the same manner by which people are saved today. When God pours "grace" upon our souls, we recgonize that our sin crucified Christ. And grief for our sin causes us to call upon Him for salvation. The "bitterness" of that grief is akin to losing one's "only son (verse 10).

The "mourning" will be similar to the mourning the nation had when the "good king" Josiah was killed in battle at Meggido (verse 11 -- 2 Kings 23:29-30; 2 Chron 35:22-27).

Each person will face his/her sorrow alone. The sorrow for sin against God is a personal matter, and can only be forgiven through personal confession and pleading (see Romans 10:9-10).

CHAPTER 13

1 In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness.

This verse brings to mind the gospel song: THERE IS A FOUNTAIN. Some of the words go like this: "There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Immanuel's veins.
And sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains."

Upon recognition for sin, and pleading with God through mourning of that sin, the "Fountain" of eternal cleansing shall be opened to them then as it is now. (See Ps. 36:9, Rom. 11:26-27)

2 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land.

When Christ comes physically "in that day," He will destroy the two things which so devastatingly corrupted Israel: The false idols, and their prophets.

Keep in mind that an "idol" is simply a man-made god. It is something invented from the mind of man and limited to what man wants his god to be. Those who preach of a false god are false prophets.

3 And it shall come to pass, that when any shall yet prophesy, then his father and his mother that begat him shall say unto him, Thou shalt not live; for thou speakest lies in the name of the LORD: and his father and his mother that begat him shall thrust him through when he prophesieth. 4 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the prophets shall be ashamed every one of his vision, when he hath prophesied; neither shall they wear a rough garment to deceive: 5 But he shall say, I am no prophet, I am an husbandman; for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth. 6 And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.

The danger of false gods invented by false prophets is the similarity to real truth! Many have claimed to have "visions" and proclaimed false idols. But "in that day" REAL TRUTH will be shown in the Person of Jesus Christ. All those who have proclaimed falsehoods will be "ashamed."

Jesus was indeed "pierced through" by His "friends" - those of His own human lineage. It was humanity, under the leadership of the best form of religion, that crucified Christ! Each and every one of us is responsible for His death because it was "for our sin He died!" (See Gal. 1:4, 1John 2:2)

Under the law, the one who spoke "lies in the name of the Lord," should have been stoned. (See Deut. 13:1-5) And when Christ comes the 2nd time, ALL false prophets shall be exposed in the Light of His Truth.

7 Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones.

Christ Himself quoted this verse in Matthew 26:31. There are several things of noteworthy importance in this verse.

First, the "sword" represents the authority to take life.
Secondly, "My Shepherd" symbolizes the Savior of the defenseless sheep.
Thirdly, "My Fellow" invokes the diety of this Savior. He is "My FELLOW" - equal with God.
Fourth, when Christ was crucified, the disciples were first "scattered."
But, fifth, when Jesus arose, He again placed His "hand upon the little ones," and gathered them in strength to Himself.

This "sword" was awakened by God Himself. Though it was the ACT of man, it was the PLAN of God!

Through His death, burial and resurrection, Christ is proven to BE God. And by His power He is gathering the defenseless sheep to Himself with the authority to cleanse, heal and provide eternal life.

8 And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. 9 And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.

This is a brief commentary on the Bible; but here, I must speak a little MORE than briefly! The integrity of the Scripture cannot be denied. God plainly says this cleansing shall include "all the land" (verse 8).

Some have maintained that this cleansing occured, and the prophecy is fulfilled. They look at the crucifixion, burial and resurrection of Christ as having spiritually destroyed heathenism (idolatry) and Judaism - leaving only Christianity. The Christian church did survive tremendous persecution under the Roman empire. And, yes, God gave them power to overcome, and even to turn the Roman empire to profess Christianity. Their faith was tested, purified, and "refined" in the fires of adversity. However, even today, self-professing Christians comprise LESS than 1/3 of the population! There are STILL more than 2/3 to be yet cleansed!

We must see that this indeed is a spiritual cleansing. Only God has power to scatter the "chaff" and preserve the "seed." And only God has the authority to "refine" people as "silver."

Keeping these things in mind, we must remember the context of our Scripture text. The theme is STILL: "in that day."

Yes, when Christ comes the 2nd time, there will be a spiritual cleansing that will include a physical destruction! And the manner of that coming is described next.

CHAPTER 14

1 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. 2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. 3 Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.

When the final day comes, it will be much as it has been before in the history of Jerusalem. She will be surrounded, overtaken, defeated, violated, and taken captive.

But THEN, our Lord will come and destroy her enemies. When mankind has done his worst, and the outcome looks most bleak, then Jesus will usher in victory for believers and defeat to others!

It seems that all the world has desired to overtake and destroy Jerusalem. Sentiment throughout history has been anti-semitic and against Israel/Jews in particular. The sentiment was rerouted somewhat toward Christianity after the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. However, the underlying anti-semitism still lurks today, and is growing.

WHY? Why is this so. It cannot be explained outside the spiritual "drawing" of all men by God to a final day when He shall expose and prove Himself as THE MESSIAH, just as He promised through Israel and her prophets. He shall fight for them "as when He fought in the day of battle." That's probably a referene to when "The Captain of the hosts" joined Joshua in battle against Jericho. By the power of God, the walls fell down and God gave extraordinary strength to His people.

4 And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.

This verse explicitly states the literal, visible, personal, bodily return of Christ! When He comes, He will "stand....upon the mount of Olives." When He stands there, the mountain itself will be divided in half. Then a "very great valley" will be formed, and a way of escape will be made for the people.

5 And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.

Zechariah sees "all the saints" coming with Christ. Later, John the Revelator saw it this way:
11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
12 His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.
13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.
14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
(Rev 19:11-15)

All the saints who had died before are coming with Christ at that time. Further proof is in Revelation 20:5, "But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.

6 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark: 7 But it shall be one day which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light.

Nothing makes a land UNclear during the day like the awful smoke of a tremendous battle! It is not totally dark, but neither is it clear.

And at the END of that day, when evening should bring darkness, there will be "Light!" It will be the Holy Righteous Glow of Christ Himself!!

8 And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be.

When Christ sets up His throne, there will be a "river" issuing from it to cleanse and heal the land. John the Revelator describes it this way:
1 And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.
2 In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river , was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
(Rev 22:1-2)

9 And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one. 10 All the land shall be turned as a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem: and it shall be lifted up, and inhabited in her place, from Benjamin's gate unto the place of the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananeel unto the king's winepresses. 11 And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited.

When Christ sets up the millenial kingdom, inhabitants of Jerusalem will never again have to fear beseiging or destruction! He will dwell there Himself and will be their protection.

The surrounding land will be renovated and beautiful. And people will live there in the glory and beauty of it.
Christ will be manifested in glory and all will worship Him.

12 And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth. 13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.

Verse 3 told us that the Lord Himself would initiate the battle. Here, Zechariah explains how.

First, Christ will send a flesh-consuming fire upon those who have surrounded the city.
Second, a tremendous "tumult" will cause strife and contention upon the remainder, and they will destroy one another.

14 And Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered together, gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance. 15 And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents, as this plague.

Then God's people will fight and gather all the "spoils" of war -- wealth in "great abundance."

Unfortunately, the "plague" will also consume the lower beasts of earth.

16 And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. 17 And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain. 18 And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the LORD will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles. 19 This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles

The people who remain will worship the Lord. That worship will be as "the feast of tabernacles," which reflects the ingathering of God's people to Himself.

If they do not come to worship, they will receive no rain. Some nations, like Egypt, would not need rain. However, upon them God will send "the plague" if they do not worship.

20 In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses, HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD; and the pots in the LORD's house shall be like the bowl's before the altar. 21 Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the LORD of hosts: and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein: and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts.

What a GLORIOUS day!! Everything and people will be "HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD!"
The REASON? Because Christ Himself will be there!

The physical presence of God will wipe away the awful effects of sin, and all things will be HOLY!

The "Canaanite" symbolized false worship and heathenistic practices. There will be NONE Of that in the millennial kingdom!

The True Messiah, will rule for 1,000 years.
The Lamb of God, Who "takes away the sin" of His people shall become King of Kings, Lord of Lords.
The "Good Shepherd" who gave His life for the flock will again gather His people to Himself.
And the Creator God will receive the worship due His glory!

Will YOU be there?

PLEASE CONTINUE WITH US IN BIBLE STUDY TOMORROW.