Intro
In our study of Zechariah, we now come to chapter 5. In this chapter Zechariah is given two visions: the sixth and seventh of his eight visions.i We will only deal with the sixth vision today. It is recorded in the first four verses. In this vision Zechariah sees a flying scroll.ii What does it represent? What is God showing Zechariah? How does that revelation apply to our lives today?
Follow with me as we read Zechariah 5:1-4. “Then I turned and raised my eyes, and saw there a flying scroll. 2 And he said to me, ‘What do you see?’ So I answered, ‘I see a flying scroll. Its length is twenty cubits and its width ten cubits.’ 3 Then he said to me, ‘This is the curse that goes out over the face of the whole earth: 'Every thief shall be expelled,' according to this side of the scroll; and, 'Every perjurer shall be expelled,' according to that side of it.’iii 4’"I will send out the curse," says the Lord of hosts; It shall enter the house of the thief And the house of the one who swears falsely by My name. It shall remain in the midst of his house And consume it, with its timber and stones.’”iv
I want us to first understand what this vision would have meant to Zechariah. Then we will apply the timeless truth embedded here to our own lives. I am approaching the passage this way as an example of how Scripture should be studied and understood. First, we determine what the message meant to the original audience in its historical context. Then we identify the timeless principles that are contained in the revelation. Then we apply those timeless truths to our own lives.
Preachers do not always demonstrate that methodology when preaching a sermon. Often, we have done the first two steps in our private study; then we preach the principles to the congregation. That can leave the impression that the first two steps are unnecessary. But it is necessary to understand a passage in its historical context so that we do not misinterpret the revelation. There is only one interpretation for a passage, but that can be many applications. First get the interpretation in its historical context; then apply the principles contained in the passage. As we proceed, notice that process.
I. The INTERPRETATION of this Vision in its Historical Context:v
In verse 3 the angel gives Zechariah the interpretation of the scroll: “Then he said to me, ‘This is the curse that goes out over the face of the whole earth.” The next verse makes it clear that this curse is associated with the commandments of God. It is the curse contained in the Law—in the Torah—in God’s covenant with Israel.vi Galatians 3:10 says, “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them.”
Violation of God’s commandments brings a curse on the transgressor. In Deuteronomy 28 Moses declared the blessings of obeying God’s commandments and the curses that follow disobedience.
The transition between the two occurs in Deuteronomy 28:15: “But it shall come to pass, if you do not obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe carefully all His commandments and His statutes which I command you today, that all these curses will come upon you and overtake you.” So, the curse of the law is going out toward every person who refuses to obey God.
The two commandments mentioned in verse 3 are representative of all God’s commandments. They represent both tablets of the Ten Commandments. The 8th commandment says, “You shall not steal.” The 9th commandment forbids perjury. But verse 4 of our text connects perjury with a violation of the 3rd commandment to not take the Lord’s name in vain. The first half of the Ten Commandments has to do with our relationship with God, and the second half guides our relationship with our neighbor. So, the greatest commandment to love God with all our heart, and the second great commandment to love our neighbor as ourselves are represented in the text. What happens when a person violates the commandments of God? A curse brings judgment on that person.
Look at the consequences of this curse as stated in verses 3-4: “'Every thief shall be expelled,' according to this side of the scroll; and, 'Every perjurer shall be expelled,' according to that side of it.’ [The scroll covers every transgression, and it finds “every” thief and every perjurer. No one escapes the consequences of their disobedience.]
The word translated “expelled” is naqah. In other contexts, it is often understood to be an expelling or cleansing of sin. For that reason, Luther translated this, “for all thieves shall according to this letter be pronounced pious [just].”vii Other commentators follow Luther’s lead.viii But that understanding runs counter to the whole thrust of this vision. Certainly, God does forgive and cleanse sinners if they are repentant. We saw that truth in the 4th vision when Joshua was given a clean change of garments. But this vision is not a revelation of justification by faith. This is a revelation of God’s judgment on thieves and other sinners who persist in their disobedience.ix The NIV says, “every thief will be banished.” The KJV translates it, “every one that stealeth shall be cut off.”x
The verse does not say the sin of the thief will be expelled. It says the thief will be expelled. This is about the cleansing of the land, cleansing the nation of Israel, by the removal of persistent sinners—as part of God’s restoration of Israel. God promises in Ezekiel 20:37-38: “I will make you pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant; 38 I will purge the rebels from among you, and those who transgress against Me; I will bring them out of the country where they dwell, but they shall not enter the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord.”
Verse 4: “‘I will send out the curse,’ says the Lord of hosts” How does that line up with your theology? Do you think God would send out a curse on somebody? Many people have embraced an indulgent, grandfatherly God who is soft on sin and would never send out a curse. Their one-sided understanding of God does not establish people in the fear of the Lord.xi They exclude the revelation in this vision from their sermons. They consider themselves too refined and delicate to speak of a God who would “send out the curse.” They do this even when many of their listeners are currently living under a curse—a curse that will only be removed through repentance and faith in Christ. Otherwise, it brings death as described in the next statement.
Look at the impact of this curse in the last part of verse 4. “It shall enter the house of the thief And the house of the one who swears falsely by My name. It shall remain in the midst of his house And consume it, with its timber and stones.” This is not just a temporary strike. It hits the home of the perpetrator and lodges there. Its effect is devastating. It will “consume it, with its timber and stones.” It will tear it down to its foundation—utterly consuming it.xii
Often in Scripture a man’s house is indicative of his family. When the Bible talks about “the house of David,” it is referring to David’s family line. The phrase is used that way four times in chapter 12 of this book (Zechariah). The result of this curse might include the destruction of the person’s physical house. But more consequential is the damage done to the family. The drunk brings a curse on his family. His alcoholism does not just affect him. It affects his family as well. No man is an island. Our choices can affect the ones we love most.xiii
Verse 3 says, “This is the curse that goes out over the face of the whole earth.” The Hebrew word translated “earth” can also be translated “land.” In fact, the NIV reads, “over the whole land.” That is a better translation because God is showing Zechariah something about his dealings with Israel. There is a universal application that we will talk about later in this message. But this curse is actively going out in the Holy Land to cleanse it and prepare it for blessing. The land must be purged of its rebels before the full blessing can come.
Previous visions have prophesied God’s blessing on the Holy Land under Messiah during the Millennium. But in this vision, God is showing Zechariah something that must happen before that blessing can be realized by the nation. God must purge the land of its rebels. This is addressed again in Zechariah 13:8-9. “‘And it shall come to pass in all the land [same word as in Zech. 5:3],’ Says the Lord, ‘That two-thirds in it shall be cut off and die, But one-third shall be left in it: 9 I will bring the one-third through the fire, Will refine them as silver is refined, And test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, And I will answer them. I will say, 'This is My people'; And each one will say, 'The Lord is my God.'” Israel will be refined during the Great Tribulation. Rebellious Jews will be cut off. The land will be purged in preparation for the coming of Messiah. Those remaining will receive their king. Jesus said to the nation in Matthew 23:39, “For I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'”xiv Israel will be purged of its rebels and will gladly receive Christ at his Second Coming. This flying scroll weeds out the riffraff so that God can pour out his promised blessing on the nation during the Millennium.
We are given DETAILS about this scroll that enhance our understanding of what God is revealing to Zechariah. First Zechariah said it was flying. Scrolls normally don’t fly. They normally don’t have this power of self-propulsion. The fact that this scroll is flying indicates it is something very active and alive. Its influence runs throughout the land. We see in verse 4 that it goes into people’s homes and dramatically executes judgment on sin.
It is apparently located in the sky above the earth because Zechariah looks up to see it. Normally we would see a scroll lying on a table, in a clay jar, or in someone’s hand. But this scroll is flying above the earth. Its elevated position enables it to see everything below it. Hiding the sin is not possible.xv The curse is sent to everyone who lives in violation of God’s commandments—everyone. This elevated position may also indicate its visibility. Something overhead in the sky is easily seen. The Israelites are without excuse. The have been given the Torah. God has declared his commandments to them. They are responsible to obey it.
The scroll is very large: 30’ long and 15’ wide.xvi It would not be unusual for an unrolled scroll to be 30’ long. But ancient scrolls were typically only about a foot wide so that the reader could conveniently handle it. The dimensions are abnormal, and that must have caught Zechariah’s attention.
Why are these exact dimensions given? What is that communicating? The dimensions surely had significance to Zechariah as a priest. We don’t know exactly what that significance is because it is not stated in the passage. We do know from Scripture it is the same dimensions as Solomon’s porch recorded in 1 Kings 6:3, and the same dimensions as the holy place in the tabernacle.xvii Because God dictated the size of the Holy Place with those dimensions and insisted that Moses follow his instructions, some scholars see a parallel principle communicated in the dimensions of the scroll.
The principle is this: God establishes the rules of right and wrong.xviii As the Creator, he legitimately sets the boundaries on human behavior. Morality is not culturally determined. Morality is not relative to the situation. The God who does not change establishes it based on his eternal character.xix Right and wrong are determined by the Creator, not the individual person, not the society as a whole. We either obey His commandments, or we disobey. This principle is certainly taught elsewhere in Scripture.xx Whether it is suggested in our text by the dimensions of the scroll is debatable. But it is a truth assumed in the Torah. And this vision certainly points to God’s Law and the consequences of violating God’s Law, regardless of what the culture has to say about it. Beyond that, the size of this scroll indicates its importance and visibility. This is not something that can be ignored. People had better pay attention to it. Its dimensions are much like a modern-day billboard. Its message is going out in all the land.
So, Zechariah sees this gigantic flying scroll. The angel tells him what it is: It is “the curse that goes out over the face of the whole earth” or as the NIV translates it: “land.” This curse actively goes forth to purge Israel of the rebels so that the blessings promised in the previous visions can come.
II. By way of APPLICATION: Consider with me three Timeless Truths contained in the passage.
1. God judges sin.
No one is exempt. Verse 3 says, “'Every thief shall be expelled,' according to this side of the scroll; and, 'Every perjurer shall be expelled,' according to that side of it.” When interpreting our text, we said that the first part of that verse should be translated, “This is the curse that is going out over the whole land (NIV),” instead of “earth” as the NKJV has it. In the historical
context, the message is about the nation of Israel and the Holy Land. But the timeless principle is universal and applies to the whole earth. Nobody is exempt from God’s moral boundaries.xxi Nobody is exempt from the consequences of violating them.
In the first five visions, God speaks communicates grace. He speaks “kind and comforting words” to his people. He assures them of his watchful care and provision. In the two visions prior to this one, we see the grace of God at work in qualifying for service and empowering for service. “Grace, Grace, Grace that is greater than all my sin. Grace, Grace, God’s Grace. Grace that will pardon and cleanse within.”xxii That is what we have seen in the previous visions.
With all that revelation about grace, one might conclude that God’s animosity against sin is not as harsh as we thought. But this vision brings all that into balance. All the revelation about grace that we have seen in this book is true. But that does not mean God has gone soft on sin. For the person who does not humble himself and turn from his sin, the curse will come, and it will utterly destroy him.xxiii
This theological balance is similar to what we see in Romans 4-6. Romans 4-5 reveal the way of salvation as justification by grace. Then Romans 6 addresses how we should respond. Does all that grace talk in Romans 4-5 mean God no longer judges sin? Romans 6:1 asks: “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?” The KJV captures the emotion of Paul’s response: “God Forbid!” The grace of God is not a license for unholy living. Experiencing God’s grace is preparation and equipping for holy living. Experiencing God’s grace inspires a gratitude in us that makes us want to please the Lord in everything we do.xxiv Titus 2:11-13 affirms that: “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ.” If the grace you have experienced is not teaching you that, it may be a false grace.xxv God’s grace does pardon sin in the repentant. But it also stirs us toward holiness and obedience to his commandments. Growing in that is a process.xxvi We have not yet fully attained as Paul said in Philippians 3. But by choice we are going in that direction.
Zechariah has seen visions of God’s grace and kindness toward Israel. Now he sees a flying scroll that brings a curse to those who would live in violation to God’s law. The curse is still there. It can be avoided through an obedient faith in the cross of Jesus Christ. But those in the land who persist in taking God’s name in vain and stealing from their neighbors will not escape God’s judgment. What is that judgment? They will be “cut off,” “banished,” “expelled” from the community. The rebels will be removed so God can bless the nation as a whole.
2. God prepares for blessing.
The necessary preparation for a group is the removal of the rotten apples—the rebels. The previous visions have prophesied blessing for the nation of Israel. This vision and the one that follows in this chapter reveal the purging that must precede that glory. God’s full blessing for Israel cannot come as long as rebels are in the camp. They must be purged. The goats must be separated from the sheep. The tares must be separated from the wheat. The Second Coming of Christ is both wonderful and dreadful: wonderful for those loyal and obedient; dreadful for those who go their own way and oppose him.xxvii The Second Coming of
Christ will be a day of great separation. The wicked will be destroyed. The godly will enter Christ’s glorious kingdom.
But this timeless principle is currently in effect as well. We see it articulated in 1 Corinthians 5:6 where Paul wrote, “Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? 7 Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened.” There Paul was telling that church to disfellowship people who choose to live in sin. Verse 11 continues, “But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner — not even to eat with such a person.” The blessing cannot be fully realized as long as that admonition is ignored. It rests on the timeless principle taught in this vision of the flying scroll.
Sin cannot be tolerated or ignored. It has to be dealt with. Ananias and Sapphira must be confronted by Peter (Acts 5). Achan must be confronted by Joshua. God did not give victory over city of Ai until it was done.xxviii This is not a popular truth, but it is there whether we like it our not. There is a bright side to this, however. Proverbs 26:2 promises, “Like a flitting sparrow, like a flying swallow, So a curse without cause shall not alight.” If we live in obedience to God, this flying scroll is not a problem for us.
3. God holds individuals accountable for their behavior.
Promised blessing on the nation as a whole does not exempt individuals from this accountability. At the Judgment Seat of Christ, each Christian will give account of himself to the Lord. At the Great White Throne Judgment, each person is judged according to his own works.xxix John the Baptist told the Israelites of his day, “Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 9 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees.xxx Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire” (Luke 3:8-9) Many of those people thought they were accepted by God simply by virtue of their ethnicity. There is a blessing for the nation of Israel, but whether you, as an individual, experience it, depends on your choices. John the Baptist was preaching the flying scroll message to those people.
It's a wonderful blessing to be born into a godly family. But ultimately each individual will give an account for himself. God put it this way in Ezekiel 18:20: “The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.”
God told Isaiah, “Say to the righteous that it shall be well w/ them, For they shall eat the fruit of their doings. 11 Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with him, For the reward of his hands shall be given him” (Isa 3:10-11). That is what I have sought to do today. Personal choices matter.
At the final judgment, you will not be judged as an American, or as a Jew or gentile, or as a member of this church. You will be judged as an individual. God’s light will shine on the choices you have personally made. If you have been making bad choices, you can turn that around today. Throw yourself on God’s mercy, and you will find him full of compassion and grace. He is not willing that any perish, but that all come to repentance.xxxi
If you are walking in the light, if you are following after the Lord, take heart. You are laying up treasure in heaven. It shall be well for those who live in the commandments of God. “For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name” (Heb. 6:10). “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.”xxxii
ENDNOTES:
i The sixth and seventh vision are so closely related that some scholars consider them to be one compound vision. It does not matter much whether we identify them as one compound vision or two visions closely related. What matters is that we understand the message God is conveying in these visions and apply the timeless truths too our own lives. Cf. Phillips, Zechariah, 121.
ii Books at that time were not bound like the ones we use today. Instead, the message was written on papyrus paper (made from a plant) or parchment (made from animal skins). The parchment was often rolled on a stick like the one you see in this picture. Zechariah would naturally expect a message to be contained in the scroll. For more information see Shania Kee, “The Historical Background of The Ancient Scroll.” Dartmouth. Accessed at The Historical Background of The Ancient Scroll – Dartmouth Ancient Books Lab.
iii The scroll was probably unrolled or at least partially unrolled so that Zechariah could see that it was written on both sides.
iv All Scripture quotes are from the New King James Version unless indicated otherwise.
v The historical context of these eight visions have been taught in previous messages in the series, especially in the first sermon.
vi “Presumably, the scroll is a Torah scroll, since it contains a reference to the curse and admonitions against theft and perjury (v. 3), all of which are itemized in the Mosaic covenant code (cf. Exod.20:7, 15, 16; Deut. 29:19-21).” Andrew F. Hill, Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi, 162-163. As a minimum, the scroll contains the curses associated with that covenant.
vii Martin Luther as quoted by David Baron, Zechariah, 148. Leupold (p. 102) also points out Luther’s error saying, “it sets out from the wrong assumption that the scroll is the embodiment of false doctrine.” Levy correctly writes, “In this context, God’s curse will fall on ‘every thief’ and ‘every perjurer’ (Zech. 5:3). I other words, those who break the eighth commandment (Ex. 20:150) by stealing and the third commandment by swearing falsely in God’s name (v. 7) will be ‘expelled’ (Zech 5:3), or rooted out and removed from Israel.” David M. Levy, Zechariah: Israel’s Prophetic Future and the Coming Apocalypse (Bellmawr, NJ: The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, Inc., 2011), 48.
viii Cf. Mark J. Boda, Haggai and Zacariah, The NIV Application Commentary, 294; Pederson, 246; Meyers and Meyers, Haggai, Zechariah 1-8, 286.
ix Cf. Rom. 6:23.
x The word naqah is used in this context the same way it is used in Isaiah 3:26. Unger writes, “Just as a nest of robbers or a gang of thieves must ‘be cleaned out’ before the inhabitants of any region can dwell in safety, so these sinners in the time preceding the kingdom age (the Tribulation) must be ‘cleaned out’ according to it (kamoha) in accordance with the requirements of the living scroll, as symbolizing the curse of God’s infracted law upon sinners, chiefly among Israelites but also among the Gentiles, as well as sinners within the covenant nation and the nations of the earth during the kingdom age” (emphasis Unger’s). Merrill F. Unger, Zechariah: Prophet of Messiah’s Glory, 1963 (Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock, 2014), 88.
xi Cf. Prov. 9:10; Mat. 10:28.
xii The structure is built with timber and stones. To tear that out of a house means it is torn down all the way to its foundation.
xiii Cf. 1 Cor. 12:26; Ex. 34:7. Petersen (p. 251) weakens the message of this vision when he writes, “The curse is effective against the domicile of the unknown perpetrator of evil and is not directed at the person of the perpetrator.” But the “domicile” did not violate the law, the person did. This vision is a warning to the person who steals and the person who takes the Lord’s name in vain. The whole weight of Scripture holds the perpetrator of the crime accountable, not the brick and mortar where he resides. The utter destruction of the house described in this test is a metaphor of the destruction the individual sinner will experience.
xiv Cf. Richard W. Tow, Rapture or Tribulation: Will Christians Go Through the Coming Tribulation? (Bloomington, IN: WestBow Press, 2022), 136-138.
xv Heb. 4:12-13.
xvi Cf. Zech. 5:2 NLT.
xvii Cf. Ex. 26:8. The Holy Place in Solomon’s temple was twice as large (1 Kings 6).
xviii Cf. Ex. 25:9; Heb. 8:5. “We are not the ones who create moral reality, try though we might. We cannot revise moral truth by deciding for ourselves what is right and what is wrong. This scroll goes forth with God’s law, not with man’s opinion; its dimensions are not those of the latest poll but of God’s holy character.” Phillips, Zechariah, 123-124.
xix Num. 23:19; Mal. 3:6; Heb. 13:8.
xx In 1 John 3:4 sin is defined as violation of God’s law: the rules and boundaries God has established. The consequence of violating those boundaries is death (Rom. 6:23; Deut. 28:1, 15). Cf. Richard W. Tow, Authentic Christianity: Studies in 1 John (Bloomington, IN: WestBow Press, 2019), 173-186. When God placed Adam and Eve in the garden, he did not ask them to develop their own boundaries of behavior, he gave them the boundaries. They were expected to stay within those boundaries. There were consequences for not obeying (Gen. 3). That has been the relationship between the Creator and the created ever since. The Ten Commandments were not ten suggestions subject to man’s approval. They were dictated by the Lord. As the Creator, he has the right to do that.
xxi Level of accountability increases with an increase in revelation. To whom much is given, much is required (Luke 12;47-48; Heb. 10:28-29). God’s covenant with Israel included significant revelation of himself and his will. Zechariah would have been mindful of this accountability built into the Mosaic covenant. But prior to that covenant people were held accountable for their behavior. We see that in the flood and in the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Pagans who were not in covenant with God are held accountable to God’s rules. The Canaanites were judged for their sin. Nebuchadnezzar was held accountable for his sin. No human is exempt. But in this vision, God is primarily addressing his relationship with Israel.
xxii Julia H. Johnston, “Grace Greater Than Our Sin,” in Hymns of Glorious Praise, The Church of God of Prophecy (Springfield, MO: Gospel Publishing House, 1969), 200.
xxiii Cf. Rom. 2:6-11.
xxiv Cf. 2 Cor. 5:9.
xxv See Richard W. Tow, Authentic Christianity: Studies in 1 John (Bloomington, IN: WestBow Press, 2019), 12-23, 433-437.
xxvi Cf. 2 Pet. 3:18.
xxvii See 2 Thess. 1.
xxviii Joshua 7-8.
xxix 2 Cor. 5:10; Rev. 20:11-15.
xxx Notice how closely this statement parallels the destruction warned about in Zech. 5:4.
xxxi 2 Pet. 3:9; Ezek. 33:11.
xxxii 1 Cor. 15:58. In the next message, we will expound the connection between this vision and the one that follows. The emphasis in this 6th vision in the first half of Zechariah 5 is on individual responsibility—the purging of individual sinners in preparation of national blessing. The emphasis in the 7th vision in the last half of Zechariah 5 is a promise to remove the underlying driving force of sin, personified as a woman in a basket. Both visions are a promise to cleanse Israel so that she can be fully blessed.
