Intro
Our text today begins in Zechariah 8:14. There are ten oracles in this chapter.
Last week we examined oracle #6 in verses 9-13. There God encouraged His people to take heart. During their 16 years of disobedience, times were hard for them. But under Haggai’s and Zechariah’s preaching, they had repented and resumed the construction of the temple. With that repentance comes a radical change of circumstances for them. Instead of scarcity, there will be prosperity. Instead of conflict, there will be peace. Instead of God’s curse, there will be God’s blessing.
Now in ORACLE #7-----God provides additional assurance of His determination to bless them. Follow with me as we read Zechariah 8:14-15.
“For thus says the Lord of hosts: [That phrase introduces this as a new oracle.] 'Just as I determined to punish you When your fathers provoked Me to wrath,' Says the Lord of hosts, 'And I would not relent, 15 So again in these days I am determined to do good To Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. Do not fear.”i
They knew what it was like to be under God’s correction. They had experienced it in Babylon, and they had experienced in during the previous 16 years when they discontinued the assignment God had given them to do. Would the future be truly different? Would God’s blessing be short-lived, and all the trouble return? To those questions, God says at the end of verse 15, “Do not fear.”
If we stay under the canopy of God’s grace, we have nothing to fear. “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31). Nothing can “separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”ii David put it this way: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me” (Ps. 23:4).
These people were not perfect,iii but they were sincere in their repentance. Therefore, God assures them of His blessing. We are all work in process. We all come short of the glory of God.iv God provides daily cleansing for that. If we follow Christ with a sincere heart, He will lead us in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. He will bless us. First John 1:6-7 says, “If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.”v Under that ongoing cleansing and enablement, we have nothing to fear.
To assure these Jews of His unwavering commitment to bless them, God reminds them of His consistency in the past when He was correcting them. In Zechariah 8:14 He says, “'Just as I determined to punish you When your fathers provoked Me to wrath,' Says the Lord of hosts, 'I would not relent, 15 So again in these days I am determined to do good To Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.”
Here is something about God that we need to understand. He is slow to wrath. He is longsuffering and patient. But once a judgment is decreed, God does not relent unless we sincerely repent. And even then, there may be consequences to our bad choices. When we were kids about to get a spanking for bad behavior, we would sometimes try to avoid the correction by crying out, “I’ll be good; I’ll be good.” It didn’t reflect a genuine change of heart. We were just trying to avoid the correction. For Israel, God decreed 70 years of correction (Jer. 25:11; 29:10). Although those people wept and mourned and fasted, God did not relent. He was steadfast in His determination to correct them.
By reminding them of that, God is assuring them of His steadfast determination to bless them. He is not fickle in His decisions. Just as He would not relent in His decision to punish them, He is unwavering in His decision to bless them. That should bring comfort to them and encourage them to put their hearts in the work He has given them to do.
We are not to presume upon God’s goodness. His blessing should lead us into obedience. Grace is never an excuse for sin. Grace is an empowerment not to sin. Grace is an encouragement to live pleasing to God. After expounding on the grace of God, Paul asked the question in Roman 6:1: “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?” He answers the question in the next verse: “Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?”
Likewise, after declaring God’s blessings in today’s text, Zechariah 8:16-17 states God’s expected response: “These are the things you shall do: Speak each man the truth to his neighbor; Give judgment in your gates for truth, justice, and peace; 17 Let none of you think evil in your heart against your neighbor; And do not love a false oath. For all these are things that I hate,' Says the Lord."vi
This statement is very similar to what God said in verses 9-10 of the previous chapter. It could be summed up with the second great commandment: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'” After addressing injustice, lying, and evil thoughts against one’s neighbor in Zechariah 8:16-17 God punctuates His displease toward these things by saying, “all these are things that I hate.” When God’s grace comes into our lives, He expects us to hate the things He hates, and love the things He loves. Of course, only the Holy Spirit can work this in our hearts, but that transformation should be taking place in every Christian. Quoting Psalm 45:7, Hebrews 1:9 says of Jesus, “Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity” (KJV). To love righteousness is to hate iniquity. The world thinks it’s unchristian to hate sinful behavior. They think we should be tolerant toward abortion, tolerant toward homosexuality, tolerant toward adultery, tolerant toward blasphemy. But to be Christlike is to hate the things God hates.
So, in this seventh oracle, God promises faithfulness on His part, but He expects a response of faithfulness on our part. He expects us to hate the things He hates. He expects us to speak the truth in love. He expects us to be just in our daily relationships and in our courts. He expects us to seek peace and pursue it. There is an abundance of grace in all that God promises His people in these oracles. But receiving that grace should transform the way we live and the way we treat others.
Verse 18 introduces the final section in God’s answer to the question that was asked in Zechariah 7:3: “Should I weep in the fifth month and fast as I have done for so many years?" You might say they opened a bag of worms with that question because God had a lot to say in His response. God’s answer is divided into four sections, each beginning with a statement like: “The word of the Lord of hosts came to me, saying.” That phrase let’s us know a new section is beginning. We find it in 7:4; 7:8; 8:1;8;18.
In this section beginning at Zechariah 8:18, God reveals His ultimate purpose for the nation of Israel. These promises will not be completely fulfilled until the Millennium. Zechariah’s generation will experience some of the blessing. We are experiencing some of the blessing. But the ultimate fulfillment of verses 18-23 will not happen until Christ returns and Israel receives her Messiah.
Three promises are given to Israel in the final three oracles of this chapter.vii In oracle #8 (vs 19) God promises to turn their fasting into feasting. In oracle #9 (vs 20-22) God promises that multitudes of people from all the nations shall come to Jerusalem seeking the Lord. In verse 23, oracle # 10, God promises that the gentiles will recognize God’s favor on the Jews and will submit to their leadership. Like the first 8 verses of this chapter, we have in this section a beautiful picture of what God will do for Israel during the Millennium.
In ORACLE # 8 (vs 19) ------God promises to turn their fasts into feasts: “Thus says the Lord of hosts: 'The fast of the fourth month, The fast of the fifth, The fast of the seventh, And the fast of the tenth, Shall be joy and gladness and cheerful feasts For the house of Judah. Therefore love truth and peace.'”
The Bethel delegation had asked about the fast of the fifth month. But this verse extends the answer to all the fasts that mourned the 586 BC fall of Jerusalem. Earlier we explained the specific events that each of these fasts memorialized.viii The Babylonian siege of Jerusalem began in 588 BC and ended in 586 BC. The ordeal lasted about two and a half years. These four commemorations were spread out through the year: the fourth month in early summer, the fifth month in midsummer, the seventh month in autumn, and the tenth month in winter.ix
This is the most direct answer to the question that was asked. The answer is that when God fully restores Israel, all these fasts will be transformed into feasts.x Conditions will be so glorious that all the weeping and mourning over the past will become a celebration. In the last days, Israel will see the correction God brought on the nation in a new light. They will be experiencing the end result of that correction. They will see the corrective events as necessary action on God’s part to bring them into their glorious destiny. They will celebrate the whole journey. They will rejoice in the way God led them and prepared them for this glorious future. Their song will be, “Praise the LORD of hosts, For the LORD is good, For His mercy endures forever.”xi
Can you look back on God’s correction in your life and say as David did, “It is good for me that I have been afflicted, That I may learn Your statutes” (Ps. 119:71). Where would I be today if God had not corrected my course along the way. “Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; [Heb. 12:11] nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” How can these fasts become cheerful feasts? The joy they will experience when the correction is completed will overflow in rejoicing. The realization that it was all ultimately for their benefit will compel them to give thanks to the Lord.
Has the prophecy in this oracle been fulfilled? Zechariah and his companions experienced the joy and gladness in a limited way. As they resumed the construction of the temple God blessed them. But the fasts did not turn into feasts as described here. In fact, “all these days are still observed as fasts by the Jewish nation in all parts of the earth.”xii But when Israel is converted and receives her Messiah, this radical change will be realized during the Millennium. By the grace of God, it will happen.
But as we have already seen, God expects a moral response to His goodness. The oracle concludes with this admonition: “Therefore love truth and peace.” Have you experienced the grace of God in your life? There is a “therefore” that should follow in your behavior. “Therefore love truth and peace.” The admonition comes often in the New Testament. For example, Paul said to the believers at Corinth, “Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God” (2 Cor. 7:1). After a lengthy teaching on the grace of God in Ephesians, he admonishes believers with a “therefore” in Ephesians 4:1, “I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called.” God has planned a glorious future for you and me. “Therefore love truth and peace.”
In ORACLE #9 (vs 20-22)------God’s promise is that multitudes from all the nations shall come to Jerusalem seeking the Lord. They will realize Yahweh is the one true God.
Zechariah 8:20-22: “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.'”
Isaiah prophesied this turning of the nations to the Lord in Isaiah 2:1-4:
“The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. 2 Now it shall come to pass in the latter days. [Notice the timeframe Isaiah gives. This comes to pass ‘in the latter days.’] That the mountain of the Lord's house Shall be established on the top of the mountains [During the Millennium, after receiving Messiah, Israel will be the most exalted nation in the world, and that will last for 1,000 years. To get that in perspective, compare it to America’s exaltation. Since World War II, America has been “on the top of the mountains” to use Isaiah’s terminology. China is rapidly catching up and is expected to surpass America during the next decade. That means America was on top for less than 100 years. But for 1,000 years Israel will be ‘on top of the mountains.’]
And shall be exalted above the hills; And all nations shall flow to it. 3 Many people shall come and say, ‘Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, To the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, And we shall walk in His paths.’ For out of Zion shall go forth the law, And the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. 4 He shall judge between the nations, And rebuke many people; They shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war anymore.” xiii
That great time of peace is clearly talking about the Millennium. In our time, have the nations “beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning hooks”? Do nations no longer “lift up sword against nation”? Has war been eradicated? No, those conditions will only exist after Christ’s Second Coming.
It’s interesting that Zechariah 7:1 begins with one delegation from a small city twelve miles away at Bethel. But this answer enlarges the scope so that delegations are coming from all over the world to seek the Lord and His guidance. There is a vast difference between the tiny remnant in Jerusalem and the single delegation from Bethel versus the prosperity of Jerusalem and the multitudes of people coming in this text.
Oracle #10 (vs 23) is closely linked with oracle #9. But in oracle #10 the prominence of the Jewish people is emphasized. In oracle #10 God promises that the gentiles will recognize God’s favor on the Jews and will submit to their leadership.
Zechariah 8:23: “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.’” The word translated sleeve is kanaph. It refers to an extremity or border or corner.xiv The NIV translates it “hem of his robe” which I prefer because it keeps it very Jewish. Grabbing the hem of the robe would indicate humility and submission which fits the context better. The woman with the issue of blood in Matthew 9:20 touched “the hem of His garment.” The primary idea in our text is that the gentiles will, with a sense of urgency, petition the Jew for permission to go with him. In contrast, to the centuries of shame and reproach the Jews have borne under the judgment of God, in the end they will be the head and not the tail. All the nations will recognize God’s elective favor on them.
The number ten is used to indicate “a round and complete number.”xv The ratio of ten to one in this passage indicates something about the honor Jews will experience during this time of complete restoration and favor. The gentiles will seek out the Jewish leadership.
The reason these gentiles want to go with the Jew is that they have heard that God is with him.xvi It’s not just the peace and prosperity the Jew is enjoying. It’s God Himself that they are seeking. The previous oracle tells us they are coming to seek the Lord. They are coming to petition His favor. They are coming to pray. Verse 21 says, “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.” The good news is so exciting that individuals are compelling others to go with them. The phrase “I myself will go also” is emphatic. Eugene Merrill interprets it, “I will go, indeed, I (will).”xvii One of the feasts that will be celebrated during this time is the Feast of Tabernacles. Zechariah 14:16 predicts, “And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.”
During the Millennium, the nation of Israel will fulfill its calling as priests to the nations. Early in their history God communicated His desire that they would be agents for Him to reach the whole world.xviii In Exodus 19:5-6 God said to them: “Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. 6 And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.'” Due to their failure to obey God’s voice, they did not fulfill this calling. But under Messiah during the Millennium, they will be that kingdom of priests leading the nations to God.
Through Isaiah, God promised that this millennial blessing will happen. Isaiah 61:5-7: “Strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, And the sons of the foreigner Shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers. 6 But you shall be named the priests of the Lord, They shall call you the servants of our God. You shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, And in their glory you shall boast. 7 Instead of your shame you shall have double honor, And instead of confusion they shall rejoice in their portion. Therefore in their land they shall possess double; Everlasting joy shall be theirs.”
In Zechariah 8:23 the timing of all this is designated by the phrase “In those days.” It would be a time when the whole world is seeking the Lord as described in verse 22. It would be days when ten gentiles urgently petition one Jew to let them go with him to worship God in Jerusalem. It is a day that has not yet been fully realized.
After Christ’s First Advent, conversion of the gentiles began. The word of the Lord went forth from Jerusalem beginning on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2. Had the nation of Israel as a whole received Messiah, this glorious millennial age would have been ushered in at that time.xix But even with the nation’s rejection of Christ, God selected a small remnant of Jews to take the good news to the ends of the earth (Rom. 11:5). Never forget, all the apostles were Jews. There is a partial fulfillment of Zechariah 8:20-23 going on as we speak.xx We who have been grafted into the olive tree are calling on people to join us in worshipping Yahweh. Zechariah 8:21 says, “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.” Missionaries all over the world are doing that. You and I do that as we take the gospel to the ends of the earth. The fulfillment of these promises was advanced at the First Advent and will be fully realized and the Second. So the passage has application now.
There are principles of evangelism in our text that we do not want to miss.
(1) The attraction in verse 23 is the presence of God. Why are the Jews in that verse sought out? Because people had heard that God is with them. “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.’”
The presence of God is the most attractive thing we can offer the world. Our efforts to attract them by being like them is foolish. Yes, we want to remove any unnecessary barriers. But people will not want to join us because we are like them. They are sick and tired of that. They are looking for people who truly know God. They are looking for people who can pray with results. They are looking for community where God’s presence is evident.
The key to biblical evangelism is the presence and operation of the Holy Spirit. It happened that way in Acts 2. It happened that way under Jesus’s ministry. It happened that way in Acts 10 when Cornelius sought out Peter. And it can happen that way in our lives. We have experienced it to a degree. But there is so much more—so much more.
(2) The zeal of the Lord is contagious. When people get excited about seeking the Lord, they are compelled to invite others to go with them. “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.” Once you have tasted and realized how good the Lord is, you want others to have the same experience.xxi You want your loved ones to know Christ. You tell your friends about the Lord.xxii You spread the good news of Jesus Christ.
May the zeal of the Lord eat us up. May we be so filled with the Holy Spirit that it overflows in testimony to others. The promise in Acts 1:8 is that “you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” That was what caused the early church to be so evangelistic.
(3) The verbal invitation must be made. In Zechariah 8:21 people are inviting other people to join them in seeking the Lord. They are inviting them to pray. It’s not an invitation to entertainment. It’s an invitation to encounter God. Down deep people know they need something more than superficial entertainment. Friends are good, but friends who carry the presence of God are even better. It’s the devil’s lie to convince you and me that nobody will respond.xxiii Some will reject the message. But some will embrace it. Our job is to proclaim the good news and give them opportunity to join us. Rom 10:14: “How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?”
You and I are called to be that preacher. “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:15-16).
Have you put your faith in Christ? He invites you to come and discover His love and power. Come and pray. Come and seek Him. If you seek Him with all your heart, you will find Him.xxiv He is calling you to Himself right now.
ENDNOTES:
i All Scripture quotes are from the New King James Version unless indicated otherwise.
ii Rom. 8:39.
iii We saw that in Zechariah 7.
iv Rom. 3:23. Hustereo (come short) is in the present tense.
v For further explanation, see Richard W. Tow, Authentic Christianity: Studies in 1 John (Bloomington, IN: WestBow Press, 2019), 24-38.
vi “There is a change from indicative to imperative discourse; from language about what Yahweh will do to language about what Israel must do.” Petersen, Haggai and Zechariah 1-8, 310. Oracles 6 and 7 are closely linked, and this imperative is related to both oracles.
vii In the study of these oracles, I have tried to follow the divinely inspired structure so clearly presented chapters seven and eight.
viii See Part 16 of this series, entitled “Superficial Religion.”
ix Cf. Andrew E. Hill, Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi, 199-200. Prior to the exile Amos 8:10 warned their feasts would be turned into mourning and their songs into lamentation.
x Cf. Isa. 61:2-3; 65.19.
xi Cf. Jer. 33:11.
xii Baron, Zechariah, 249.
xiii Cf. Micah 4:1-5.
xiv Strong’s OT 3671. Leupold writes (p. 159), “Taking hold of the skirt of a man is a gesture of suppliant entreaty. . . .” Cf. Meyers and Meyers, 441, 443; Petersen, 318-319; Hill, 201.
xv Meyers and Meyers, 440.
xvi Cf. Jer. 33:6-9; 1 Pet. 3:15.
xvii Merrill, 215.
xviii God’s election of Israel was not just for the benefit of Israel. It was designed to benefit the whole world. Likewise, God’s calling on our lives is not just for our benefit, but for the benefit of those we minister to as well.
xix Of course, God foreknew the rejection of Christ, but it was a bonified offer nonetheless (Matt. 23:37-39).
xx New Testament theology carries a now/not yet factor that needs to be recognized here. The full realization of these promises come at Christ’s Second Coming. However, the process began at Christ’s First Coming that advances the kingdom of God in this direction. While we look for Christ’s return when righteousness fills the earth, in the now we proclaim the good news to all who will hear it.
xxi Cf. Ps. 34:8.
xxii Cf. John 4:29.
xxiii Cf. John 4:35.
xxiv Cf. Jer. 29:13.
