Today we will begin examining Zechariah’s fourth vision recorded in chapter 3. The vision can be divided into two-parts: I. Verses 1-5 is a revelation of God’s way of qualifying his people for relationship with him and for service to him. II. Verses 7-10 contains an admonition to faithfulness followed by a revelation of Messiah as the one who will bring God’s plan to pass. We will only have time today for the first section.
The theme of the first three visions has been God’s promise to bless his people: the nation of Israel and by extension Christians. According to Romans 11 we Christians been grafted into the olive tree and have become partakers of the covenant promises.i While the promises in this book are to the nation of Israel, those promises are extended to you and me as well. That’s why this study is so important, especially in these last days.
As a reminder of the magnitude of blessing God has extended to his people, we will read Zechariah 2:10-12. In this vision Jerusalem is symbolic of God’s people. God has promised to be a wall of fire around us and the glory within.ii Then in verse 10 he says, “‘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 to you. 12 And the Lord will take possession of Judah as His inheritance in the Holy Land, and will again choose Jerusalem.’” iii The extent of these glorious blessings is staggering.
Pondering the goodness of God to believers, Peter declared, “. . . His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him [Christ] who called us by glory and virtue, 4 by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises . . .” (2 Pet. 1:3-4). Like Peter, we stand in awe of the height and depth of God’s promises to us. Likewise, Zechariah must have been in awe of the glorious future God is showing him.
But keep in mind that Zechariah was a priest as well as a prophet. He was very aware of the uncompromising holiness of God. He knew the demands of the law written by Moses. Coming out of the Babylonian captivity also realized the judgment that comes when God’s holiness is violated. As a mortal man, he knew his own propensity to sin. So conundrum that emerges is this: How can this holy God bless people who sin and come short of his glory?iv How can God remain uncompromising toward sin and at the same time fulfill these great promises that have been presented in the first three visions?
This fourth vision answers that concern. It addresses the sinfulness of man, then reveals God’s solution for the problem. Consider first:
I. The PROBLEM as presented in this vision:
Zechariah 3:1-5 says,
“Then he [God]v showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the Angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to oppose him. 2 And the Lord said to Satan, ‘The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?’ 3 Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and was standing before the Angel. 4 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.’ 5 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.”
This is the first time in this book that we encounter the high priest in Zechariah’s day named Joshua. He will appear again in the last vision in chapter 6. He is a key figure in the restoration of the temple. Don’t confuse him with the more familiar Joshua who led Israel into Canaan after Moses’s death hundreds of years earlier. The Joshua in our text worked with Ezra in the rebuilding of the temple after the seventy-year captivity in Babylon. Ezra 5:1-2 lists Ezra’s contemporaries who were the primary leaders at that time. The list includes a man named Zerubbabel whom we will encounter in the fifth vision in Zechariah 4. We will discuss him when we get to that vision. But notice this Joshua in the first two verses of Ezra 5. “Then the prophet Haggai and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophets, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem, in the name of the God of Israel, who was over them. 2 So Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua [this is a variant spelling of the Joshua in our Zech. 3 text]vi the son of Jozadak [this is the contracted form of Jehozadak used in Haggai and Zechariah]vii rose up and began to build the house of God which is in Jerusalem; and the prophets of God were with them, helping them.”
Joshua the high priest had come to Jerusalem in Cyrus’s first year (538 BC) along with Ezra, Zerubbabel, and Zechariah.viii He was instrumental in setting up the temporary altar and laying the foundation of the temple (Ezra 3:2, 8-11) during those first two years. Now in 519 BC he is serving as high priest and working to complete the temple. The completion of the temple occurs in 516 BC (Ezra 6:16). He was probably an old man at the time of this vision.ix
Joshua’s priestly linage can be traced back to Aaron through Zadok (1 Chron. 6:1-15). During David’s rule two families served as priests, Zadok and Abiathar. When Abiathar supported Adonijah’s rebellion against David, he was dismissed from serving, and Zadok was given the full responsibility (1 Kings 2:26, 27, 35).x In Ezekiel 44:10-16 God commended the Zadokite priests for their faithfulness to him “when the children of Israel went astray.” xi Now in this vision we see God confirming Joshua as the high priest.xii This vision affirms the restoration of the priesthood in Jerusalem.
In the vision Joshua is “standing before the Angel of the Lord.” As in previous visions, “the Angel of the Lord” is the preincarnate Christ. “The words ‘omed liphnei, ‘stand before,’ whether in relation to man or God, expresses attendance upon, and when used of the priests, and especially of the high priest, is almost a technical term for their priestly ministry and service” (emphasis Baron’s).xiii So Zechariah’s fourth vision opens with Joshua the high priest going about his priestly duties at the temple.
But his unworthiness to do that soon comes into focus. Zechariah 3:3 says, “Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and was standing before the Angel.” It is a precarious thing to stand before God “clothed with filthy garments.” There is an incongruity presented here that must be addressed
The Hebrew term describing his garments as filthy is the worst kind of filth I'maginable. It was not just a little dust on his priestly attire, although that alone would disqualify him from the service being rendered. The root word is used in Deuteronomy 23:13 and in other passages in reference to human excrement.xiv Joshua’s garments were not just dusty. They were covered with an exceedingly offensive kind of filth.
Twice in this vision Joshua is referred to as “the high priest.” The high priest stood before the Lord as the representative of the people. It’s not just the man, Joshua, who is clothed with filth and is unqualified, it is the whole nation of Israel. But it goes beyond that for Romans 3:10 says, “There is none righteous, no, not one.”xv All the children of Adam are dressed in filthy garments and unfit to stand before God. Even those who are moral and upright by human standards are unclean before the eyes of him who charged his angels with folly.xvi Isaiah addressed the inadequacy of self-righteousness when he wrote, “But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags” (Isa. 64:6).
This unfit condition is being pointed out by Satan himself in the vision. As Joshua stands before the Angel of the Lord to fulfill his priestly duties, Zechariah 3:1 comments, “and Satan standing at his right hand to oppose him.” The NIV says, “and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him.”
In this vision there seems to be a heavenly council going on much like the one we see in the first chapter of Job. Here the Lord is on his throne, and the angels are before him. One corrupted angel, Satan, is bringing accusation against Joshua much like he did previously against Job.
The book of Job opened with an earthly view of Job standing before the Lord in intercession for his family. Then the curtain of heaven is pulled back and we see a divine convening of the angels in heaven. In that heavenly scene Satan is accusing Job much like he is accusing Joshua in our text. Job serves God on earth and is not even aware the divine council is happening. In Job 1:9-12 Satan accuses Job of serving God out of purely selfish motives:
“So Satan answered the Lord and said, ‘Does Job fear God for nothing? 10 Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and around all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. 11 But now, stretch out Your hand and touch all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face!’ 12 And the Lord said to Satan, ‘Behold, all that he has is in your power; only do not lay a hand on his person.’ So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.”
The same thing probably happened in our text after the Angel of the Lord put down Satan’s accusation. “So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.”
Satan’s access to God in the heavenly council seems strange to us.xvii There is an element of reportability on Satan’s part. We don’t usually think of him in that context. There are simply some things that go on in the heavenly realm that we don’t completely comprehend.xviii This we know: God could utterly destroy Satan this second if he wanted to. He will ultimately cast him into hell.xix But in the meantime, he uses the opposition for his own eternal purposes.
Although we have in this vision (1) the accused, Joshua, (2) the accuser, Satan, and (3) the advocate, the Angel of the Lord, we should not press the image of a court case too far. Some commentators get side-tracked on that dynamic. The main point of this vision is God’s justification of his people by grace. The details of the proceedings are not nearly as important as that. Joshua is occupied with performing his duties as the high priest. We see in the vision the spiritual dynamics that are occurring as he does that. But Joshua is not on trial here. God has not brought him before his throne to be judged.xx He is being resisted by Satan. He is being accused of being unfit for service.
A dynamic similar to the one we see here with Joshua happens in our lives as well. Revelation 12:10 characterizes Satan as the accuser of the brethren. As we seek to serve the Lord, Satan launces his accusations against us. While accusing us before God, he tells us we have no business trying to serve God. He reminds us of our many failures. He disheartens us with his suggestions of utter defeat. The thing that makes his attack credible is that many of the accusations are true. We do come short of the glory of God. In ourselves we are not worthy of God.xxi Our defense is not to argue our case trying to offset the bad deeds with some good ones. Our defense is very simply stated in 1 John 1:7: “. . . the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.” We do not overcome the accuser by trying harder. We overcome him “by the blood of the Lamb” (Rev. 12:11).
So, there is the problem. Joshua is clothed with filthy garments and Satan accuses him of being unfit for relationship with God and unfit for service to God.
As a priest, Zechariah would have been painfully aware of this obstacle to God’s blessings.
II. But God’s SOLUTION in this vision resolves the matter entirely.
The Angel of the Lord (Joshua’s advocate and our advocate)xxii addresses Satan’s accusation with the forceful statement in verse 2: “And the Lord [the second person of the Trinity] said to Satan, ‘The Lord [the first person of the Trinity] rebuke you, Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?’” That verse is packed with revelation concerning God’s defense of you and me against the accusations of the devil.
First, we see the interdependence of the Trinitarian members. The Son does not act independent of the Father. The mutual submission of the godhead is manifest in the way Christ addresses the Accuser. ‘The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you!” The double use of the rebuke emphasizes the forcefulness of the confrontation.
Remember those comforting words spoken to God’s people in Zechariah 2:8: “. . . for he who touches you touches the apple of His eye.” When Satan attacks one of God’s own, God moves decisively in our behalf. Notice who is defending Joshua. Joshua offers no defense for himself. He is utterly inadequate for that. But the Angel of the Lord is more than capable of defending this accuser. Hee steps in immediately to do that. And his defense is in full agreement with the Father who will enact the rebuke.
The basis of this rebuke is two-fold.
First, the Angel of the Lord references God’s election of his people. “The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you!” That statement has an application to the literal city of Jerusalem. But Jerusalem is symbolic of God’s people.
Satan’s accusations will not stand because God has sovereignly chosen you and me. Paul declared this reality in Ephesians 1:3-6: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.” The divine right of the sovereign creator is something Satan cannot overcome. As a Christian, you belong to God by right of creation and by right of redemption.
Our understanding of the divine decrees of God is limited. The tension between divine election and freewill is something no theologian can fully explain. The Bible clearly declare the effectual workings of God’s election. You and I could never be saved without it. On the other hand, Scripture teaches the human responsibility of choice. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes [a faith response is require] in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” When dealing with this subject Paul declared, “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! 34’"For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has become His counselor?’” (Rom. 11:33-34). We may not be able to fully explain it, but we can rejoice that our names are written in heaven; we can trust God’s ability to bring his plan to pass in our lives.xxiii “Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6).
Satan is condemning Joshua. But his condemnation proves ineffectual because it is God himself who justifies. As a believer, take comfort in the argument put forth in Romans 8:31-34: “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 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? 33 Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.”
Satan may be accusing you. But a greater than Satan is defending you. “And the Lord said to Satan, ‘The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you!’”
That is then followed by the second rational for the rebuke: “Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?” The NLT says, “Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?” The imagery here is a just-in-time snatching of the stick out of the fire before it is utterly consumed. It “suggests a narrow escape from a dangerous situation.”xxiv God did it for Joshua and the priesthood. God did it for the nation of Israel. And he has done it for you and me.
The stick cannot retrieve itself from the fire. Left to itself, it would be utterly destroyed. But another has intervened. “And you He made alive (Paul wrote to Christians in Ephesians 2:2), who were dead in trespasses and sins, 2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” You have been plucked from the fire by the grace of God.xxv
Since God has taken this action in behalf of his elect, the accusations of Satan cannot prevail. God has overcome the guilt by his own action. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Eph .2:8-9). Are you glad this morning that in his mercy and grace God has plucked you from the fire?
The action taken in Zechariah 3:4 indicates forgiveness of sin for Joshua. “Then He [the Angel of the Lord] 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. . . .” The last statement explains the meaning of the action. By an act of free grace, the sin-stained garments are removed. The filthy garments represent the guilt and pollution of sin.
We are guilty, and there is no denying it. 1 John 1:10: “If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.”xxvi The fact is clearly stated in this vision: Joshua was clothed with filthy garments. Even his advocate, the Angel of the Lord, does not deny that. He simply offers the perfect remedy for the condition: “Take away the filthy garments from him.” That happens as an act of grace by the Lord.
But God’s provision of salvation does not end there. The Angel of the Lord does not leave Joshua unclothed. He follows up with this statement in verse 4: “and I will clothe you with rich robes.’” The context indicates clean, pure clothes for it stands in contrast to the “filthy garments” he was wearing, and the “clean” turban in the next verse completes the process, But the Hebrew word also indicates stately or luxurious attire.xxvii
The New Testament doctrine of imputed righteousness is suggested by this provision of a change of clothes. In Romans 4 Paul uses Abraham as an example to demonstrate how righteousness is given to us when we put our faith in Christ. Roman 4:20-25 says, “He [Abraham] staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; 21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. 22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. [More recent translations say credited to him or accounted to him. The righteousness is put to his account.] 23 Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; 24 But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; 25 Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification” (KJV). The necessity of this God-given robe of righteousness is conveyed in the parable of the wedding banquet in Matthew 22:1-14.xxviii
A great exchange occurred at the cross. That exchange provides a perfect salvation for sinners like you and me. On the one hand, Jesus took our sins on himself and bore the punishment for us. In the atonement he removed our sins as far as the east is from the west. Our filthy garments are removed. On the other hand, he provides a pure, luxurious robe of righteousness for all who put their faith in him. That twofold action of salvation by grace is what Zechariah is seeing in this vision. Second Corinthians 5:21 summarizes this: “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
Zechariah becomes so excited by what he sees that he steps into the action. Zechariah 3:5: “And I said, ‘Let them put a clean turban on his head.’” Zechariah couldn’t wait for the act to be completed. The turban “signified the complete reinstatement unto the high-priestly function in deed as well as in truth for the turban of fine linen bore upon the front of it a gold plate engraved, ‘Holiness to the Lord’ (Exod. 28:36).”xxix Zechariah’s request was in line with the will of God for the angels immediately acted on the request.
The section closes with this simple statement: “And the Angel of the Lord stood by.” He is there in stately grandeur overseeing the activity and lending his support for all that is happening.xxx
Conclusion:
In this vision is a revelation of justification by faith in the Old Testament. Uninformed people think the Old Testament is all law and the New Testament is all grace. There is a difference in Old Covenant system and the New Covenant system. But God was in the Old Testament revealing his grace and his eternal provision for salvation. The blood of bulls and goats did not cleanse the sinner from his sin. Those Old Testament sacrifices were simply acts of obedient faith that looked forward to the one eternal sacrifice of the cross. Just as we look back on the cross for our salvation, they looked forward to the cross for their salvation. Everyone in heaven including Adam and Abraham and all the Old Testament saints is ultimately saved by Jesus’s one righteous act of atonement. All of heaven will celebrate him forever and ever. “Salvation is of the Lord.”
We have seen in Zechariah 3 what God has done for us. He has put away our filthy garments of sin. He has cleansed us by his own blood. He has given to us as a free gift of grace his own righteousness. This is the solid ground on which we defeat Satan’s accusation. Point him to the cross. Point him to your advocates act of mercy that gives you right standing with God.
Our declaration now and for all eternity is: “Grace, Grace—God’s Grace—Grace that is Greater than All our sin.”xxxi That refrain drives Devil crazy. He can find plenty of flaws in our performance as a Christian. But can find nothing lacking in Christ’s perfect Robe of Righteousness.
Our confidence and strength rests on what Christ has done in our behalf. At the cross the serpent’s head was crushed. Our battle cry is: “At the cross, at the cross where I first saw the light. And the burden of my sins rolled away.”xxxii
Our theme of praise now and forever is: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain.” “He has redeemed us by his own blood.”xxxiii
ENDNOTES:
i Cf. Rom. 11:17-24; Gal. 3:7-14; Eph. 2:11-13; Col. 1:12; 2 Pet. 1:4; Rev. 5:8-10.
ii Zech. 2:5. See the previous two messages for an exposition of this vision.
iii All Scripture quotes are from the New King James Version unless indicated otherwise.
iv The problem is posed in Job 25:4-6: “How then can man be righteous before God? Or how can he be pure who is born of a woman? 5 If even the moon does not shine, And the stars are not pure in His sight, 6 How much less man, who is a maggot, And a son of man, who is a worm?"
v “It cannot be decided with certainty whether the subject of the verb ‘showed’ was Jehovah, or the interpreting angel, but most probably it was the Lord Himself, as the office of the interpreter was not to introduce but to explain visions.” David Baron, The Visions and Prophecies of Zechariah: The Prophet of Hope and of Glory, 3rd ed. (London: Morgan & Scott, 1919) 86. However, Meyers and Meyers, Boda, Leupold, and Merrill are certain that one who showed this vision to Zechariah is the Lord, not the interpreting angel. See Carol L. Meyers and Eric M. Meyers, Haggai, Zechariah 1-8: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary, The Anchor Bible, 9Garden city, NY: Doubleday & Company, 1987), 180; Mark J. Boda, Haggai, Zechariah, The NIV Application Commentary, Terry Muck, gen. ed. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2004), 250; H. C. Leupold, Exposition of Zechariah 1956 (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1978) 65; Eugene H. Merrill, An Exegetical Commentary: Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi (Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1994) 121.
vi “Jeshua” in Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary, PC Study Bible formatted electronic database Copyright © 2003, 2006 Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.
vii “Jozadak” in Smith's Bible Dictionary, PC Study Bible formatted electronic database Copyright © 2003, 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved. Jozadak was one of the priest’s who was sent into captivity by Nebuchadnezzar (1 Chron. 6:15). Jozadak’s father, Seraiah (Joshua’s grandfather), was the chief priest executed by Nebuchadnezzar in 2 Kings 25:18-21 (cf. 1 Chron. 6:14-15).
viii Ezra 1:1; 2:2. Cf. “Jeshua” in Fausset's Bible Dictionary, Electronic Database Copyright © 1998, 2003, 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.
ix Eugene H. Merrill, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi: An Exegetical Commentary (Dallas, TX: Biblical Studies Foundation, 2003) 122.
x Abiathar was a descendant of Eli. 1 Kings 2:27 emphasizes that connection: “So Solomon removed Abiathar from being priest to the Lord, that he might fulfill the word of the LORD which He spoke concerning the house of Eli at Shiloh [1 Sam. 2:27-36].” Boda points out, “Interestingly, a priestly descendant from Anathoth, Jeremiah (Jer. 1:1) would serve as a prophet in Jerusalem and would be sent by Yahweh to the gate of the temple in Jerusalem to deliver a message of judgment (Jeremiah 7). Jeremiah, whose ancestor had been banned from the temple and its services, is now sent to its very gates to deliver God’s protest against abuses and warn of God’s impending judgment.” Mark J. Boda, The Book of Zechariah, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament, eds., R. K. Harrison and R. L. Hubbard, Jr. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2016) 231.
xi Josiah’s grandson, Eliashib, (Neh. 12:10) was high priest in Nehemiah’s day (Neh. 3:1). In Nehemiah 13:1-9, Nehemiah rebuked Eliashib for compromising the sanctity the temple by housing Tobiah, an Ammonite, in its courts which was contrary t the law of Moses (Deut. 23:3). Some of Joshiah’s descendants were also guilty of taking pagan wives (Ezra 10:18).
xii The Zadokite priesthood continued in leadership until the Maccabean period. The Jewish Virtual Library says, “In the Second Temple period, the House of Zadok retained the high priesthood continuously until the Hasmonean revolt.” “Zadok,” Jewish Virtual Library: A Project of AICE. Accessed at Zadok (jewishvirtuallibrary.org).
xiii Baron, The Visions and Prophecies of Zechariah, 87. Cf. Deut. 10:8; Judges 20:28; 1 Kings 17:1; 2 Kings 3:14-16; Leupold, Exposition of Zechariah, 66. Deut.10:8: “At that time the Lord separated the tribe of Levi to bear the ark of the covenant of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to minister to Him and to bless in His name, to this day” (emphasis added). Phillips also acknowledges the phrase as indicating “the performance of priestly duties” but also says the phrase is “used to describe a judgicial proceeding where a man is on trial.” Richard D. Phillips, Zechariah, Reformed Expository Commentary, R. D. Phillips and P. G. Ryken, eds. (Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R Publishing Co., 2007), 63.
xiv Unger comments, “The word commonly rendered ‘filthy’ actually means ‘excrement-covered’ and hence not only vilely dirty but offensively smelly. Merrill F. Unger, Zechariah: Prophet of Messiah’s Glory, 1963 (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1979) 59. Cf. 2 Kings 18:27; Isa. 4:4; 36:12; Ezek. 4:12.
xv Cf. Ps. 53:1-3; Isa. 1:4-6.
xvi Cf. Job. 4:18; Hab. 1:13.
xvii Micaiah’s vision seems to depict a heavenly council as well. The fact that God allows a lying spirit to operate in the fulfillment of his will seems strange but should be accepted as written in Scripture (1 Kings 22:17-22; 2 Chron. 18:18-21). By departing from Saul as a judgement on the man’s rebellion, an evil spirit gained access and oppressed Saul (1 Sam. 16:14).
xviii Cf. Deut. 29:29; 1 Cor. 13:9.
xix Rev. 20:1-3, 10. Scholars are divided as to when Re. 12:7-12 takes place. I understand it as an end-time event during the Tribulation period, but there are others who disagree. One thing seems clear in that text: When that happens Satan’s access in heaven changes.
xx Cf. Leupold, Exposition of Zechariah, 66. Meyers’s grounding of this in pagan mythology is an unnecessary distraction. See Myers and Myers, 182-183.
xxi Cf. Rom. 3:23; 2 Cor. 3:5; James 2:10; 3:2.
xxii Cf. Heb. 7:21-28; 1 John 2:1.
xxiii Cf. Luke 10:20; Phil. 1:6.
xxiv Myers, 187.
xxv We are invited to participate in God’s rescue program. Cf. Jude 1:23.
xxvi Cf. Richard W. Tow, Authentic Christianity: Studies in 1 John (Bloomington, IN: WestBow Press, 2019) 24-38
xxvii Cf. Myers, 190; Boda, NICOT, 237-238; Baron, 98-99; Petersen, 196.
xxviii Isa. 61:10: “I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.”
xxix Unger, 62. Ex. 28:38: :So it [the gold plate on the turban] shall be on Aaron's forehead, that Aaron may bear the iniquity of the holy things which the children of Israel hallow in all their holy gifts; and it shall always be on his forehead, that they may be accepted before the Lord” (emphasis mine).
xxx Zechariah’s participation received the approval of the Angel of the Lord. Amazingly, God allows us to participate in what he is doing. The privilege of intercession is an example of that.
xxxi Julia H. Johnston, “Grace Greater Than Our Sin,” Hymns of Glorious Praise (Springfield, MO: Gospel Publishing House, 1969, 200.
xxxii Ralph E. Hudson, “At the Cross,” Hymns of Glorious Praise (Springfield, MO: Gospel Publishing House, 1969, 84.
xxxiii Rev. 5:6-14.
