In our study of Zechariah, we have as our text today Zechariah 2:10-13. On February 15, 519 BC Zechariah was given eight visions which are recorded in chapters 1-6.
Chapter 2 is his third vision. Within this vision are four messages:
1) Verses 3-5 contains a message addressed to the man with a measuring line in his hand.
2) Verses 6-9 relays a message directed toward the Jews remaining in Babylon.
3) Verses 10-12 is a message promising blessing to all God’s people.
4) Verse 13 is a message to all of humanity.
Last week we examined the first two messages in this third vision. This week we will expound on the last two messages. Follow with me as we read Zechariah 2 and make a few comments to put today’s passage in context.:
Verse 1: “Then I raised my eyes and looked, and behold, a man with a measuring line in his hand. 2 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.’”i
> This man represents the thinking of Zechariah and his companions in Jerusalem at the time. How large will Jerusalem be under God’s restoration? Where will the walls be established?
Verse 3: “And there was the angel who talked with me [interpreting angel encounter in Zech. 1:9], going out; and another angel [Angel of the Lord encountered in Zech. 1:ll] was coming out to meet him, 4 who said to him, ‘Run, speak to this young man [man with the measuring line], saying: 'Jerusalem shall be inhabited as towns without walls, because of the multitude of men and livestock in it. 5 For I,' says the Lord, 'will be a wall of fire all around her, and I will be the glory in her midst.'”
> By that statement we know the young man was about to measure out where the future walls would be built under God’s restoration plan.
> The correction given to him was that there will come a day when Jerusalem will need no walls because God himself would be “a wall of fire around it.”
> This was not fulfilled in ancient times because about seventy-four years later (445 BC) God directed Nehemiah to build walls for Jerusalem. This prophecy will be fulfilled during the millennial reign of Christ.
> The correction for the young man with the measuring line is that there is no need to stake out the walls for Jerusalem because there will be no man-made walls when God’s messianic plan of restoration is fulfilled.
> That is the first message in this vision. The second one is in verses 6-8.
Verse 6: “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. 7 ‘Up, Zion! Escape, you who dwell with the daughter of Babylon.’”
> This message is to the Jews who stayed in Babylon after the seventy years of captivity were fulfilled.
> They must get out because God is about to pour out judgment on Babylon.
> There is a timeless application of this principle of separation from the world and an end-time application of the judgement in Revelation 18.
Verse 8 “For thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘He sent Me [Messiah] after glory [in pursuit of glory for the Father], to the nations which plunder you; for he who touches you touches the apple of His eye. 9 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 [Messiah].
> That is the second message, a promise of judgment on the wicked and a warning to God’s people who remained in Babylon.
> The third message begins in the next verse. This begins our text for today.
Verse 10: “‘Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion! For behold, I am coming and I will dwell in your midst,’ says the Lord. 11 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 [Messiah] to you. 12 And the Lord will take possession of Judah as His inheritance in the Holy Land, and will again choose Jerusalem.
> That is the third message, a promise of blessing on God’s people. The fourth message is expressed to all of humanity.
Verse 13: “Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord, for He is aroused from His holy habitation!”
I. The message PROMISING BLESSING TO ALL OF GOD’S PEOPLE in verses 10-12:
It begins with an INVITATION to rejoice and a REASON for that rejoicing.
“Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion!”ii
“Daughter of Zion” is a reference to God’s people, first the Jews, then by extension of grace to us as Christians.iii In Scripture, Zion is a reference to Jerusalem with emphasis on the worship of God which found its center at the temple there. It is the place of God’s choosing. It is where his eternal throne will be located in the earth. It is the city of Messiah, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Psalm 48:1-2 is just one example of how Zion is regarded by God’s people: “Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised In the city of our God, In His holy mountain. 2 Beautiful in elevation, The joy of the whole earth, Is Mount Zion on the sides of the north, The city of the great King.”
Zechariah and those with him would certainly identify themselves as addressees of this message. Israel is being affectionately addressed. The fulfillment of what follows includes us who have received Christ as our king. Hebrews 12:22 places us within the expression “Daughter of Zion.” “But you [speaking to Christians] have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, 23 to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, 24 to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel.” When God says, “Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion!”, he is talking to us! Yes, there is a promise here to the nation of Israel, but one does not exclude the other. We need to understand the application in both contexts.
The reason for this jubilation is God’s PRESENCE: “For behold, I am coming and I will dwell in your midst,’ says the Lord.” The judgment Israel experienced as a consequence of their sin was the departure of the glory. When God departed from the temple, Ezekiel saw it as the glory departing. That’s recorded in Ezekiel 10-11. Now the reversal of that judgment is coming. It was partially fulfilled in Zechariah’s day. But the glory was only manifested in a limited way then.iv
The complete fulfillment for the nation of Israel happens during the Millennium. One way we know that God’s promises to the nation of Israel were not fully realized in Zechariah’s day is the magnificent descriptions of what God will do. Nothing that glorious has ever happened to any nation in history. But all the promises God made to Israel will be literally fulfilled when Christ returns, puts down all rebellion, and sits on his throne in Jerusalem.
History also teaches us that those promises to Israel are not fully realized in the church. God’s judgments on the nation have been literal and physical. Of course, there were spiritual dynamics along with that. But the Jews literally and physically went into the Babylonian captivity. As prophesied by Jeremiah, they were there for seventy literal years.v The blessings promised to the nation will be fulfilled just as literally, physically, and completely.vi
The promise is: “I am coming and I will dwell in your midst.”
Through the incarnation, God literally and physically came to Jerusalem in the first century. The Old Testament saints did not realize exactly how that would happen. In fact, when he came, Israel as a nation did not recognize him for who he is (Isa. 53:3). The incarnation was in fulfillment of this promise. Had Israel received their Messiah at that time, the full millennial prophecy would have happened. But their rejection of Messiah put a pause on that for the nation. The mystery of the church age followed.vii But in the last days, Messiah will return. His feet will touch down on the mount of Olives, and the nation of Israel will receive Jesus as their king.viii That will usher in the complete fulfillment of our text for the Jewish people. The whole nation will receive Christ at his second coming, and that will usher in the Millennium.
But in this current age, there is a partial fulfillment progressing toward the end-time consummation. On the day of Pentecost, the glory of God came down on 120 followers of Christ. That began a world-wide gathering of multitudes being joined to the Lord from every nation on the earth. The prophecy of our text is in the process of being fulfilled, but the climatic culmination occurs at Christ’s second coming.
There is a timeless principle here. The presence of God is the catalyst for every blessing we receive. Never conceive of God’s blessings independent of him. We want all our needs met. That is perfectly natural. But those needs are met in him. He is the source for everything. “In Him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). When Israel distanced themselves from God, they consequently distanced themselves from blessing. When Adam broke fellowship with God in pursuit of independent knowledge and status, he lost the peace and prosperity he was enjoying in God. The closer we get to God, the more blessing we experience. The further we distance ourselves from God the further we are removed from the happiness and provision we all crave.
God is omnipresent. But the presence our text is referring to is relational. Zechariah 2:10: “I am coming and I will dwell in your midst.” God’s promise to Moses in Exodus 33:14 was, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” That presence was manifested in the pillar of fire by night and the pillar of cloud by day. “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
What the church needs most in this day and hour is his presence. Of course, he is present in a sense. He was present with the Jews in Zechariah’s days. But the promise is that he would come and dwell with his people in a relational interaction that produces overflow of blessing. That presence is manifested at different levels in the church today. During times of revival his presence is manifested increased peace and assurance in believers. It is manifested in conviction of sinners. It is manifested in signs and wonders. In his presence is fullness of joy and at his right hand are pleasures evermore (Ps. 16:11). While we enjoy the glory of God to a degree. Our desire is a greater manifestation of his presence and glory in the days ahead.
We were created to live in his presence.ix The more we distance ourselves from his presence, the more vulnerable we are to temptation. The more our needs are being met in our relationship with him, the less we seek out alternative, counterfeit sources of comfort and pleasure. Everything rests on our relational intimacy with God.x That is why Jesus said in John 15:3-4, “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.” The pathway to a fruitful, meaningful, productive life is abiding—living in Christ’s presence—basking in his love—adoring him and receiving his affirmation and direction.xi
The foundation for everything God promises in our text today is his presence. “For behold, I am coming and I will dwell in your midst,’ says the Lord.”
EVANGELISM follows that in the next verse: Zechariah 2:11: “Many nations shall be joined to the Lord in that day, and they shall become My people. And I will dwell in your midst.” We can’t reach the lost through gimmicks and nifty techniques. We might get them to join our organization with clever methods. But the goal is to get them joined to the Lord. Only the Holy Spirit can make that happen. And he does it through us as we carry his presence—as we operate as vessels that he can express himself through. This promise in Zechariah has immediate implications for reaching the lost here and now.
But there is a prophetic promise to the nation of Israel as well. During the Millennium nations will join themselves to Israel as they observe the favor and prosperity Israel is experiencing. In recent decades, many nations of the world have joined themselves to America because of God’s favor on this country. Sadly, that is currently in decline. As we have moved away from God, we have moved away from the source of our strength and prosperity. But to a greater extent than we have ever seen, when Jesus sits on his throne in Jerusalem, nations we join themselves with Messiah “in that day.” Notice that designation of time in verse 11. This was not fulfilled in Zechariah’s day although they did experience a degree of blessing as they returned to their homeland and restored worship in Jerusalem. But this messianic prophecy points primary to the last days.xii
Zechariah 8:20-23 expounds on this promise: “Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Peoples shall yet come, Inhabitants of many cities; 21 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.’ 22 Yes, many peoples and strong nations Shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, And to pray before the Lord.' 23 Thus says the Lord of hosts: 'In those days ten 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.’”
That promise stood in strong contrast to the humiliation Israel experienced during their captivity in Babylon. Imagine how such lofty possibilities must have sounded to Zechariah and those he preached to. The success of getting the temple rebuilt and later in Nehemiah’s day building walls for the city surely was amazing compared to what they had known as slaves in Babylon. But God has bigger plans than they can imagine. There is coming a day when Jerusalem will need no walls because God’s presence serves as a wall of fire protecting it. In that day God’s presence will produce such abundance and prosperity that walls cannot contain it.
That is followed in verse 11 with this familiar sentence: “Then you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent Me to you.” You will notice in the NKJV, “Me” is capitalized since it refers to Christ. The position of this statement following the lofty promise in the first half of verse 11 confirms the “Me” as a reference to Messiah, not Zechariah, in this verse and in verse 9. Jesus was not esteemed as God’s representative in his first advent (Isa. 53:3). But when these prophecies are fulfilled, everyone will know that he is the Sent One from God, and every knee will bow to him (Phil. 2:9-11).
Added to the promise is an exclamation of God’s commitment to Israel as his inheritance. Zechariah 2:12: “And the LORD will take possession of Judah as His inheritance in the Holy Land, and will again choose Jerusalem.”xiii “This is the only reference in the OT to the land of Israel as the holy land” (emphasis Hill’s).xiv Of course, it is God’s presence that makes it holy. God’s presence has a way of sanctifying or setting apart a place or a people to himself.xv Zechariah 2:10-12 is a message of hope and encouragement to God’s people.
II. The final message in this vision is expressed TO ALL MANKIND.xvi
Verse 13: “Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord, for He is aroused from His holy habitation!” Such a fitting statement after the magnificent prophesies just given! The awesome presence of God has a way of silencing man. Have you ever been in a meeting where a dignitary or person of recognized authority was present? That person can just stand up and everyone is silenced. But compare that to the creator of the universe. His presence, his action, commands respectful response. When “He is aroused,” it is time watch and listen in silence. In Revelation 8 all heaven is anticipating the coming judgment from God. Revelation 8:1 says, “When He opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.” A holy hush of awe fell over all heaven in anticipation of what God would do. When God is “aroused” all the chatter ceases. Every mouth is stopped. This is a call to holy awe.
That is a striking contrast to the command in verse 10 to “Sing and rejoice.” Of course, the addressees are different. Verse 10 is addressed to the “daughter of Zion” or God’s people. Verse 13 is addressed to all of humanity. But that would include the people of God. There is a time to sing and rejoice and there is a time to simply be silent before God in awe of his presence. Ecclesiastes 3:7 says there is, “A time to keep silence, And a time to speak.” Wisdom is often found in knowing the difference.
Balanced worship should include both. Some Christian camps are very restricted in their expression of joy and praise. They understand reverential silence but think noise is inherently disrespectful toward God.xvii Others don’t know how to wait before God in silence. I hope we would be developed in both expressions of worship. The key is to discern the mood of the Holy Spirit at the time. What was appropriate in the last song service might not be what the Spirit wants in the current situation. That’s why we always need his guidance.
In conclusion, this vision in Zechariah 2 is a revelation of encouragement to God’s people. God will have his way in the end. He will bless his people beyond anything we could imagine. Israel may have lived through some dark days during those seventy years of captivity. But God was working in their behalf. And he is working in your behalf as well. When we go through difficult times, we must know that God is working all things together for our good (Rom. 8:28). He has an end in mind that is very, very good. The end of the matter will be better than the beginning.xviii It is better than we can even imagine. For he has destined us for an eternity of glory with him.
i All Scripture quotes are from the New King James Version unless indicated otherwise.
ENDNOTES:
ii Cf. Isa. 12:6; Zeph. 3:14-15.
iii Cf. Acts 11:18; Rom. 11:17; Eph. 2:12-13; 3:6; Rev. 5:9.
iv History teaches us that the Old Testament promises have not yet been fully realized by that nation. It is not helpful to exaggerate the blessings they have received in the past to justify a position that God has already fulfilled those promises. Partial fulfillments were only a foreshadowing the glorious future God has in mind.
v Cf. Jer. 25:11-12; 29:10; Dan. 9:2.
vi “What baseless and unfounded hermeneutical alchemy is this which will take all the prophecies of judgment upon Israel at their face value, to be understood literally, but will transmute into indistinctness any blessing or promise of future glory for the same people?” Charles L. Feinberg, God Remembers, (Eugene, OR: WIPF and STOCK Publishers, 2003), 45.
vii Cf. Matt. 23:37-39; Rom. 11:25; 16:25-26; Eph. 2:2-6.
viii Cf. Zech. 12:10-14; 14:4; Rom. 11:26.
ix Cf. 1 John 1:3-4; Richard W. Tow, Authentic Christianity: Studies in 1 John (Bloomington, IN: WestBow Press, 2019), 1-11.
x Cf. Isa. 63:9
xi Cf. Jude 1:21; Col. 3:16; Heb. 10:22.
xii God had promised to bless all the nations of the earth through Abraham’s seed (Christ) Gen. 12-2-3; 18:18; 22:18; 26:4; 28:14; Gal. 3:16-29.
xiii Cf. Isa. 14:1.
xiv Andrew E. Hill, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi, TOTC vol. 28 (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2012), 146.
xv It is God’s influencing presence that produces sanctification in people (Gal. 5:22-23). Efforts to produce morality apart from his presence results in legalism. Many think the way to avoid legalism is to lower the standards below that which is stated in God’s word. But the way to avoid legalism is to draw near to God and let him transform our desires and thoughts through the influence of his presence (Rom. 5:5).
xvi Richard Phillips recognizes three commands to the people of God in this vision: (1) Flee Babylon to Zion (vs 6-9 (2) “Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion!” (vs 10-12) (3) “Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord” (vs 13). Richard D.
Phillips, Zechariah, Reformed Expository Commentary, R. D. Phillips and P. G. Ryken, eds. (Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R Publishing Co., 2007), 59-61.
xvii “Oh come, let us sing to the Lord! Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation. 2 Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving” (Ps. 95:1-2). Cf. Ps. 66:1; 81:1 98:2-6; 100:1; Rev. 11:15; 19:6.
xviii Cf. Eccl. 7:8; Hab. 2:3; James 5:11.
