At the beginning of Zechariah 7 a delegation of Jews from Bethel asked whether they should continue the fasts that they had been observing in memory of the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple almost 70 years ago. Since the 70-year captivity was ending and the temple was being rebuilt, perhaps it was time to discontinue those fasts.
We have been examining God’s answer to that question. The first half of the answer exposed their lack of deep repentance. The fasts were supposed to be an expression of repentance for the national sin that provoked God’s judgment. If the repentance is complete, then the fasts can be discontinued. But the first thing God does is to show them their need for repentance. While these Jews had turned from gross idolatry, their religion was shallow and superficial. The practice of injustice toward one another was still going on. They were failing to live according to the two great commandments. Rather than loving God with all their heart, they were following empty rituals. Rather than loving their neighbors as themselves, they were living selfish lives and oppressing the weak.
The stinging rebuke in Zechariah 7 could have left these people wondering if there was any hope for their future. When God shows you your sins, it can lay you low. It can leave you disappointed in yourself and wondering about your future.i In Psalm 39 David talks about such an experience. In verse 11 he said to God, “When with rebukes You correct man for iniquity, You make his beauty melt away like a moth; Surely every man is vapor [KJV says vanity]. Selah.ii” If God’s answer had ended in Zechariah 7, these Jews would have been left in a miserable state of despondency. But the answer takes a very positive turn in Zechariah 8:1.
In chapter 7 God showed Israel what they were doing, but in chapter 8 He shows them what He is doing. “Salvation is of the Lord.”iii Zechariah 8 is a lesson on grace. By the grace of God, Israel will be blessed. The passage in verses 1-8 paints a picture of what God has in mind for His people. It is a beautiful display of what He will accomplish for them. We know from chapter 7; they don’t deserve this. We know from chapter 8:2; it will come to pass because of God’s unfailing love toward those who are His.
Follow with me as we read our text in Zechariah 8:1-8. “ Again the word of the Lord of hosts came, saying.” That phrase introduces this third section of God’s answer. This section goes all the way through verse 17. Then the phrase appears again in verse 18 which introduces the fourth and final portion of God’s answer. “Again the word of the Lord of hosts came, saying.” Verse 2: “Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘I am zealous for Zion with great zeal; With great fervor I am zealous for her.' 3 Thus says the Lord:'I will return to Zion, And dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth, The Mountain of the Lord of hosts, The Holy Mountain.' 4 Thus says the Lord of hosts: 'Old men and old women shall again sit In the streets of Jerusalem, Each one with his staff in his hand Because of great age. 5 The streets of the city Shall be full of boys and girls Playing in its streets.' 6 "Thus says the Lord of hosts: 'If it is marvelous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, Will it also be marvelous in My eyes?' Says the Lord of hosts. 7 "Thus says the Lord of hosts: 'Behold, I will save My people from the land of the east And from the land of the west; 8 I will bring them back, And they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. They shall be My people And I will be their God, In truth and righteousness.'”
There are 5 brief oracles in that passage, each beginning with the phrase “Thus says the Lord.” The first is in verse 2, second in verse 3 [This is the only one that does not add “of hosts.”], third is verses 4-5, fourth is at verse 6, and the fifth oracle is verse 7-8. All of these give assurance to God’s people that His plans for them are good and not evil.iv He corrects those who are His. But He does that so that He can ultimately bless them.v
ORACLE # 1 in verse 2 gives the reason these blessings will come: “I am zealous for Zion with great zeal; With great fervor I am zealous for her.” There is no other explanation for the restoration of Israel other than His love for His people. Their shortcomings and imperfections have been exposed in the previous chapter. Why would God rescue them? Simply because He loves them.
The word zealous (or jealous as some translations have it) is emphatic by the fact that it is positioned first in the clause. But it is itself an intense word indicating emotional passion. God’s jealousy for His people demands exclusive worship, but it also cause Him to rise up in their defense and protection.vi This passion of God for His people was previously stated in 1:13-14. “Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘I am zealous for Jerusalem And for Zion with great zeal. 15 I am exceedingly angry with the nations at ease; For I was a little angry, And they helped — but with evil intent.’ 16 Therefore thus says the Lord: ‘I am returning to Jerusalem with mercy; My house shall be built in it,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘And a surveyor's line shall be stretched out over Jerusalem."' Why is the Lord returning to Jerusalem with mercy? It is motivated by His passionate love and zeal for those who are His.
God spoke of this unmerited love back in Deuteronomy 7:6-8. There He said to Israel, “For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth. 7 The Lord did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all peoples; 8 but because the Lord loves you, and because He would keep the oath which He swore to your fathers, the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you from the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.”
The future for Israel that is described in the rest of our text will happen because of God’s passionate, undying love for His people. The intensity of this passion is accentuated in Zechariah 8:1 by the word “great”: “great zeal” and “great fervor.” The repletion of the Hebrew verb qana’ further accentuates the intensity of God’s passion for His people.vii David Baron summarizes the message of Zechariah 8:1 by writing, “And the fervent inalienable love of Jehovah for His people will manifest itself, not only in His wrath and indignation against the nations who have oppressed and persecuted them, but in the full restoration of the long-interrupted communion.”viii
The next four oracles give a beautiful picture of that full restoration. The picture given is beyond anything that happened in Zechariah’s day. They got a taste of it. But the fullness will not come until Christ returns and establishes His millennial reign on earth. Since some commentators say these promises were fully realized in Zechariah’s day,ix I will give you a few reasons why that is not the case.
(1) The repopulation of Jerusalem as depicted in verses 5-6 did not happen in Zechariah’s day. Eugene Merrill points out that “even in Nehemiah’s day, 80 years later, he had to conscript enough residents from the countryside to give the capital an adequate population (Neh. 7:4: 11:1-2).”x The peace and tranquility depicted in those verses were not present in Nehemiah’s day either (Neh. 1:3; 2:17-19; 4:1-3, 16). Leupold says, “To understand the prophet’s statement [verses 4-5] it is helpful to recall that ‘for the most part people who were in the prime of life had returned from the Exile’ (Nowack).”xi
(2) The regathering from the east and west (world-wide) did not happen in Zechariah’s day. That regathering was only from the north (Babylon), and only a small remnant came.xii
(3) The spiritual conversion of Israel so that they are God’s people “in truth and in righteousness” as stated in verse 8 did not happen in Zechariah’s day. We can see that in the previous chapter. We can also see in Nehemiah’s day there continued to be violation of truth and righteousness (Neh. 13).xiii
What is pictured in the oracles that follow is the full restoration of national Israel. That is not fully realized until Christ returns and rules the world from Jerusalem during the Millennium. These promises will be literally fulfilled during that time. These oracles are addressed to the nation of Israel.
ORACLE # 2 promises a return of the Lord and conversion of the nation. Zechariah 8:3: “Thus says the Lord: [That’s the marker for a new oracle.] 'I will return to Zion, And dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth, The Mountain of the Lord of hosts, The Holy Mountain.'”xiv
In one sense, God has returned to His people in Zechariah’s day enabling them to rebuild the temple. But the fullness of this promise will occur at Christ’s Second Coming when He sets up His throne in Jerusalem. Then His dwelling in Jerusalem will bring such sanctification that Jerusalem will be called “the City of Truth.”xv The city will be characterized by truth because He who is “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6) will be ruling there. Zion will be referred to as “The Mountain of the Lord of hosts, The Holy Mountain'” because the Holy One of Israel will be governing the planet in holiness and righteousness from His throne in Jerusalem. This could not be said of the city today while the pagan mosque is sitting on Mount Moriah where the temple once stood.xvi
ORACLE #3 is introduced with the phrase “Thus says the Lord of hosts” in verse 4. It portrays the peace and prosperity that will prevail during the Millennium.
“Thus says the Lord of hosts: 'Old men and old women shall again sit In the streets of Jerusalem, Each one with his staff in his hand Because of great age. 5 The streets of the city Shall be full of boys and girls Playing in its streets.'”
This scene stands in stark contrast to the devastation Jerusalem experienced under the judgment of God in 586 BC. It contrasts with the oppression they had experienced in Babylon. And even in Zechariah’s day when a measure of peace was being enjoyed, this idyllic scene was not fully realized.xvii The fact that society’s most vulnerable, the very young and the very old, could safely congregate in the public square is indicative of the tranquility and prosperity of the times.
ORACLE # 4 is an assurance that God can and will bring all of this to pass. Zechariah 8:6: “Thus says the Lord of hosts: 'If it is marvelous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, Will it also be marvelous in My eyes?' Says the Lord of hosts.”xviii
The marvel of all this is that it is absolutely impossible on a human level. The word yippale’ (translated marvelous) means difficult or extraordinary. It is “beyond the reach of human ability, and so when accomplished, ‘extraordinary’ or ‘marvelous (II Sam. 13:2).”xix The Amplified Bible translates yippale’ with the word difficult. The NLT captures the idea in this verse: “This is what the LORD Almighty says: All this may seem impossible to you now, a small and discouraged remnant of God's people. But do you think this is impossible for me, the LORD Almighty?”
“Is anything too hard for the LORD?”xx God is able to bring His plan to pass, despite all our shortcomings, despite all the opposition, despite the small beginning that we may be seeing now. God is saying to His people: “This may look impossible from your perspective, but it certainly is not impossible for me.”
Notice how God surrounds these promises of two points of assurance:
(1) It is God who is making these promises. Zechariah is just the mouthpiece. Over and over in these 8 verses we read, “Thus says the Lord.”
(2) He is the Almighty One who can do all that He promises to do. Over and over, He is referred to as “the Lord of hosts.” The International Standard Version translates that as “the Lord of the Heavenly Armies.” It is an expression of God’s omnipotence. In fact, the NIV translates it “the Lord Almighty.” If He is the Almighty, then nothing is impossible for Him.xxi
The future that God is depicting for Israel is a marvelous future. It is not something they can make happen. But God is giving full assurance that He will bring it to pass. He wants them to be encouraged by the future that He has in mind for them.xxii
ORACLE # 5 begins with a promise to regather Israel back to their homeland.
The regathering that occurred in Zechariah’s day was only a harbinger of what God will do in the last days. The postexilic return to Jerusalem in the sixth century BC was only a small remnant of people being brought from Babylon to Judah. But the return in Zechariah 8:7 is worldwide. In this oracle God says, “Thus says the Lord of hosts: 'Behold, I will save [rescue] My people from the land of the east And from the land of the west; 8 I will bring them back, And they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem.” Jerusalem will be the capital, and thus representative of the whole nation.xxiii In our day, Washington, Peking, and London are used in a similar way.
The phrase “from the land of the east And from the land of the west” literally means “from the land of the rising and the land of the setting sun.” It is “an idiom for all the regions where the Hebrew people have been dispersed.”xxiv It means the whole earth.xxv The dispersion in 586 BC was not world-wide. The Jews were taken north to Babylon. It was only after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD that they dispersed world-wide “mainly in the countries west of Palestine.”xxvi
Zechariah is confirming the prophesy Jeremiah gave earlier. In Jeremiah 30:6-10 he wrote, “Ask now, and see, Whether a man is ever in labor with child? So why do I see every man with his hands on his loins Like a woman in labor, And all faces turned pale? 7 Alas! For that day is great, So that none is like it;xxvii And it is the time of Jacob's trouble [That is the Great Tribulation in the last days.], But he shall be saved out of it. 8 'For it shall come to pass in that day,' Says the Lord of hosts, 'That I will break his yoke from your neck, And will burst your bonds; Foreigners shall no more enslave them. 9 But they shall serve the Lord their God, And David their king, Whom I will raise up for them. 10 'Therefore do not fear, O My servant Jacob,' says the Lord, 'Nor be dismayed, O Israel; For behold, I will save you from afar, And your seed from the land of their captivity. Jacob shall return, have rest and be quiet, And no one shall make him afraid.”xxviii
Now look at the second promise here in Zechariah 8:8: “I will bring them back, And they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. They shall be My people And I will be their God, In truth and righteousness.'” The physical return of the Jews to their homeland is an amazing miracle. It has begun to happen in our lifetime. But the greater miracle is the spiritual transformation they will experience. Right now, the nation is gathered in unbelief. As a nation, they have not yet accepted Jesus as their Messiah.xxix But at His Second Coming the nation will receive Him as Savior, Messiah, and King. Then they will not belong to God in name only. They will function as God’s people “in truth and righteousness.”xxx
Remember how God rebuked the superficiality and insincerity of the remnant in Zechariah 7. All those problems will be resolved. “They shall be My people And I will be their God, In truth and righteousness.'” Remember the hypocrisy of the Jewish leaders in Jesus’s day. All that will be cleansed. “They shall be My people And I will be their God, In truth and righteousness.'” In Isaiah 48:1 God referred to Israel as those who swear by His name and “confess the God of Israel” (RSV), “But not in truth and righteousness.” Isaiah 48:1 says, “Hear this, O house of Jacob, Who are called by the name of Israel, And have come forth from the wellsprings of Judah; Who swear by the name of the Lord, And make mention of the God of Israel, But not in truth or in righteousness.” That gets completely reversed at the Second Coming so that God can say, “They shall be My people And I will be their God, In truth and righteousness.'”xxxi
Let me give you a little preview of the nation’s conversion from Zechariah 12:9-11: “It shall be in that day that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn. 11 In that day there shall be a great mourning in Jerusalem, like the mourning at Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo.” All Israel will be saved. They will serve the Lord “in truth and righteousness.”
So that is the future God has in store for the nation of Israel. David Baron says, “This is one of the greatest promises in reference to Israel’s restoration and conversion to be found in the prophetic Scriptures. . . .”xxxii God chose that nation in sovereign grace and love. He will fulfill these promises out of His passionate love for the chosen nation. These oracles are addressed to the nation of Israel. They will be literally fulfilled during the Millennium through Messiah. Some commentators deny the literal fulfillment for the nation and claim these promises are fulfilled in the church.xxxiii But they have to resort do a lot of spiritualizing and allegorizing to justify their position. For that reason, their arguments are not convincing.
However, there are timeless truths here that we should apply to our own lives.
In Oracle 1 we see God’s love for His people. He loves us with an everlasting love.xxxiv Out of that love He chose us just as He chose Israel simply because He loved her.xxxv And by His grace He will bring us into glory. “He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6).
In Oracle 2 God promises to dwell with His people and sanctify them. His presence is a powerful influence for holiness. So much so that we can be called a People of Truth. We can bear His name in holiness. His light can shine through us to the nations.
In Oracle 3 peace and prosperity are exemplified by the elderly sitting contently in the square and children enjoying themselves in playful activities. But the peace that is ours through a better covenant runs deeper and fuller than even the promises to Israel. For us the kingdom of God is “righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Rom. 14:17). Believing in Christ, we “rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory” (1 Pet. 1:8). Why? Because we are partakers of a better covenant with better promises” (Heb. 8:6).
Oracle 4 focuses on the incredible miracle God does for His people. The regathering and conversion of Israel is truly a marvel. But is not your own conversion just as miraculous? How can it be that God can transform a sinner like me into a favored saint of glory? I will forever rejoice in the fact that my name is written in heaven.xxxvi “This was the Lord's doing; It is marvelous in our eyes.”xxxvii
Oracle 5 is about covenant relationship with God. If you are one of God’s people “in truth and righteousness” you owe it all to the mercy and grace of God. What a privilege it is to belong to the Lord, to know Him in loving relationship, to worship Him in spirit and in truth, to be able to call Him Father. Through Christ we inherit all things.xxxviii The greatest of these is God Himself.
ENDNOTES:
i Cf. Job 42:5-6; Isiah 6:1-5; John 6:24-66.
ii All Scripture quotes are from the New King James Version unless indicated otherwise.
iii Jonah 2:9. Jonah failed and come short of the glory of God, but God corrected His course and brought His will to pass anyway.
iv Cf. Jer. 29:11. In Isaiah 55:9 God tells us His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. God’s plan for you is much higher than anything you could conceive of for yourself (Rom. 8:29).
v Heb. 12:5-11.
vi “In prophecies of the saving acts of God, the qin’â of God has evident positive meaning: as a consequence of his compassion (Ezek. 39:25) and pity (Joel 2:18) God devoted himself to his land and people (cf. Zech 1:14).” Willem A. VanGemeren, gen. ed., New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology & Exegesis, Vol. 3 (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1997), 939. Cf. Boda, Haggai, Zechariah, The NIV Application Commentary, 380.
vii Unger, Zechariah, 134. Quoting Brown, Driver, and Briggs, Unger says qinne’thi is ‘from color produced in the face by deep emotion . . . Arabic root ‘become intensely red’ . . . (p. 134). Meyers writes, “It would be inconceivable for the horrors of exile and desolation to be reversed were Yahweh not so utterly devoted to his people. Only in the light of that zeal does the prospect of full restoration gain credibility.” Myers and Myers, Haggai, Zechariah 1-8, 411.
viii Baron, Zechariah, 231.
ix One such commentary is C. H. H. Wright, Zechariah and His Prophesies (London: Hodder and Stoughhton, 1879).
x Merrill, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, 203.
xi Leupold, Exposition of Zechariah, 145-146.
xii See Baron, Zechariah, 238.
xiii Commenting on Zechariah 8:3, C. F. Keil wrote, “Jerusalem did not acquire this character in the period after captivity, in which, though not defiled by gross idolatry, as in the times before the captivity, it was polluted by other moral abominations, no less than it had been before.” Keil & Delitzch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition. Electronic Database. Copyright © 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.).
xiv Cf. Zech. 2:10.
xv The NIV translates “the City of Truth” as “the Faithful City” which emphasizes the spiritual transformation of the inhabitants.
xvi Commenting on this verse, Unger writes, “Although the verb shavti may, of course, be a past historical perfect and embrace the fact that the divine Shekinah presence had left the city when it was given up to its foes (Ezek. 11:23) but now in grace the Lord may be thought of as having returned in favor, yet the expression, by virtue of the context and scope of the prediction must be construed as a prophetic perfect. This is the case the more so since the Shekinah presence never returned at the restoration from Babylon, and Israel to this day has remained in the Ichabod period of her history. The verb, accordingly, declares the certainty of the second advent of Christ in glory.” Unger, Zechariah, 135. While the potential for entering into this was present at the First Advent, the reject of Christ left Jerusalem desolate as Jesus said in Matthew 23:38 and Paul confirmed in Romans 11:8. Duguid writes, “This prospect is so sure that the commitments, ‘I will return,’ and ‘I will dwell,’ are in the prefect tense, as though they had already happened.” Iain M. Duguid, A Study Commentary on Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi, 132.
xvii Cf. Unger, 136-137.
xviii Although the interrogative article ha is absent, Unger (p. 137) says the interrogative force is indicated by the context. Most translators seem to agree.
xix Unger, 137. Willem A. VanGemeren, gen. ed., New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology & Exegesis, Vol. 3, 615.
xx Gen. 18:14
xxi Cf. Luke 1:37; 18:27; Jer. 32:17, 27.
xxii Cf. Zech. 1:13-17.
xxiii Cf. Unger, 139. Cf. Meyers and Meyers, Haggai, Zechariah 1-8, 418.
xxiv Hill, Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi, 194.
xxv Cf. Ps. 50:1; 113:3; Mal. 1:11.
xxvi Unger, 138. Cf. Charles L. Feinberg, God Remembers: A Study of Zechariah, 104-105.
xxvii Cf. Matt. 24:21; Richard W. Tow, Rapture or Tribulation: Will Christians Go Through the Coming Tribulation? (Bloomington, IN: WestBow Press, 2022), 151-168.
xxviii Cf. Isa. 11:11-12; 43:5-6.
xxix Of course, there are many individual Jews who have received Jesus as their Messiah. But the nation as a whole has not yet recognized Jesus as the Christ.
xxx Cf. Matt. 23:39; Rom. 11:25-27.
xxxi Cf. Jer. 32:37-41; Hosea 2:19-20.
xxxii Baron, Zechariah, 237.
xxxiii For a defense of that position see Leupold, Exposition of Zechariah and Phillips, Zechariah.
xxxiv Cf. Jer. 31:3.
xxxv Cf. Deut. 7:6-8; Eph. 2:8-10; 1 Pet. 2:9-10.
xxxvi Cf. Luke 10:20.; C. H. Spurgeon, “Marvellous! Marvellous!” sermon preached October 28, 1888. Accessed at The C. H. Spurgeon Collection on CD-ROM (AGES Software, Inc., 1998).
xxxvii Cf. Ps. 118:23
xxxviii Cf. Rev. 21:7.
