Today, we continue our Zechariah series by entering into Zechariah's fourth vision. Before we dive in, let me offer you a quick recap of the message of the three visions we've studied so far. These visions have been visions that gave hope to God's people at a very difficult time in history-- a time when some of God's people had returned from being scattered across the Babylonian empire, to cities that lay in ruins. It's to this people, and to these cities, that God gave Zechariah visions, to encourage him and his people. Up to this point, the message of the visions is this: God is very shortly going to have compassion on Jerusalem, and the towns of Judah. God will fill these cities with people, and animals, and prosperity. They will once again thrive. God will dwell in their midst, in the newly rebuilt temple. And He will be wall of fire all around it, protecting them.
God is also going to be at work among the nations, and Babylon, in particular. All the nations who harmed God's people-- and Babylon is at the top of that list-- will be plundered (Zechariah 2:9). They will have their horns of power cut off, so that they lose their ability to hurt God's people again (Zechariah 1:18-21). But what we also saw, surprisingly maybe, was that God has a positive plan for the nations as well. Part of the reason Jerusalem will be filled with people, is that many nations will be joined to Yahweh, and will become part of God's people (Zechariah 2:11). What God envisions, is a future where He lives among his people, and his people are made up of both ethnic Jews and ethnic Gentiles. In the end, that is the group of people called "Israel" (Galatians 6:16).
Our fourth vision-- the one we will encounter this morning-- might seem disconnected from all of this. But what we see today, is that, potentially, there is a giant fly in the ointment to God's plan.
Let's read verses 1:
(1) And he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of Yahweh,
while The Adversary [was] standing at his right hand to accuse ("to satan") him, [Psalm 109:6]
There's a lot going on here. Right? Verse 1 begins with someone showing Zechariah his friend, and coworker, Joshua. These are people who know each other, and who are committed to restoring Judah together.
Who shows him this? It's debated. Some say it's God in heaven, who shows Zechariah this vision. My vote, is that it's the interpreting angel. It's not something that's a big deal, either way, probably.
Now, we see in this verse that there's a new character in this movie clip-- The Adversary. In Hebrew, it's ha-satan. Some of your Bibles will simply translate this as "satan." But this is a title, not a name. It's "the satan." A "satan" in the OT is someone who opposes, or accuses, someone else of something. The angel of Yahweh is called a "satan" in Numbers (Numbers 22:22, 32). The Philistines called King David a potential "satan" in 1 Samuel 29:4-- they were worried that he and his men would turn against them in battle, and reveal themselves to actually be their "adversaries."
The "satan" we see in this verse might or might not be the "satan" of the NT (and George Klein, a conservative Baptist, points out that it's not necessarily an easy question here). But what we see about this satan, is something we see about every satan in the Bible. He's working as an adversary. In this case, he's an adversary who is pushing back against God's plan, and against the angel of Yahweh. The adversary points out an uncomfortable truth, that would be far easier to sweep under the rug (didn't quite fit this in, but when politicians like Ron Paul, Rand Paul, and Thomas Massie highlight flawed things that the ruling party is doing, they are acting as valuable "satans"-- they are pointing out uncomfortable truths, and asking probing difficult questions, that need to be asked. Rand Paul asking, "Is the U.S. going to do drone strikes on Americans, on American soil," and no one wanting to give a straightforward answer." Or Thomas Massie, pointing out that a naval blockade on Venezuela is unquestionably an act of war, and Congress is the only one who can declare war. Someone needs to ask the hard questions, and point out the hard truths.)
What's the hard truth? We haven't quite been told yet (not cheating!). But the adversary stands at Joshua's right hand to accuse Joshua. And this language, of "standing at the right hand of someone to accuse," is legal imagery (Psalm 109:6). This is a heavenly courtroom scene. Everyone else might be willing to ignore this flaw in Joshua, but the adversary is going to say what needs to be said.
Except, the adversary doesn't actually get a chance to bring his case against Joshua. He doesn't get any floor time. Instead, he's interrupted, and rebuked. Verse 2:
(2) and Yahweh said to The Adversary,
"May Yahweh rebuke you, O Adversary,
and may Yahweh rebuke you-- The One Choosing Jerusalem.
Is this one not a burning stick having been plucked from the fire?
Who is speaking in this verse? We are told that "Yahweh" rebukes the adversary in the name of "Yahweh." Weird, right? Last week, I argued that the angel of Yahweh is actually Jesus. There's a Yahweh in heaven, who is never seen, and there's (often?) a Yahweh on earth who reveals himself. At the same time, there's still one Yahweh. I think when Yahweh reveals himself on earth, it's Jesus. So the angel of Yahweh, who I think is Jesus, is simply called "Yahweh." He's God. And this angel, who I think is Jesus, expresses the desire that Yahweh in heaven will rebuke the adversary. What the adversary is doing, in this case, is not helpful, and it goes against God's plan.
What is God's plan?
God is planning to restore Jerusalem, and make the temple in Jerusalem his earthly home. For that to happen, God needs a high priest. He needs someone who will cleanse the newly built temple (Leviticus 16:16), and the newly built altar (Leviticus 16:18), and be clean himself (Leviticus 16:11), so that he can offer sacrifices on behalf of all the people to atone for their guilt (Leviticus 16:24).
This is God's plan. He has chosen Jerusalem. And God's plan here is not flexible. God is not open-minded to some other idea. God is going to make this work.
Jesus/the angel/Yahweh then goes on to ask a question: "Is this one not a burning stick having been plucked from the fire?"
If you were going to build a beautiful violin, you'd start by finding the perfect piece of wood, grown at high altitudes in Europe, aged for at least 10 years. You might be a gifted luthier, who can make incredible instruments, but if the wood you work with is cheap pine, or particle board, the end result is going to be underwhelming.
God's plan for Jerusalem is built around a stick that's been burning, and pulled out of the fire. That's the kind of stick, usually, that's only good for being put back in the fire. It's useful for nothing else, right?
What's the point Jesus/Yahweh/the angel is making here? I'm not sure, honestly. But the adversary, in his zeal for spiritual purity, has failed to account not only for God's plan, but he's also failed to show grace toward a man who has come through a very hard situation. His life has been hard. And when life is hard, God takes that into account. God knows your struggles at work, and at home. Those struggles soften how God views you. The adversary doesn't care, or think those things should matter. But God cares.
At this point, the adversary leaves our scene. And it's only at this point, that we get a better look at Joshua. In verse 1, we were shown Joshua, but he wasn't described at all, until now. Verse 3-5:
(3) Now, Joshua was clothed in filthy clothing,
and standing before the angel,
(4) and he responded, [=the angel]
and he spoke to the ones standing before him, saying,
"Remove the filthy clothing from upon him,"
and he said to him,
"Look! I have taken off from upon you (Jonah 3:6) your sin/guilt/punishment (avon),
and I have clothed you in fine robes (elsewhere only Isaiah 3:22),
(5) and I said,
"Place a clean/pure turban upon his head," [turban: Job 29:14; Isaiah 62:3 Qere]
and they placed the clean/pure turban upon his head,
and they clothed him in garments,
and the angel of Yahweh [was] standing,
In verse 3, when we see Joshua dressed in filthy clothing, we find ourselves understanding why the adversary felt the need to say something. In the NT, we understand that God calls leaders in the church to a higher standard. You can't be an elder, or a deacon, unless you are a particular kind of person. You can't be greedy, or an angry person, or sexually immoral. You have to be humble. You have to manage your own household well (1 Timothy 3:1-12). What's true in the NT for positions like elders or deacons, would be doubly true for priests in the OT (Jeremiah 5:31; Ezekiel 22:26; Hosea 6:1, 9; Micah 3:11; Zephaniah 3:4). Priests are the ones who would teach God's people about God's expectations. If people weren't sure what God wanted in some specific situation, priests would explain those rules. What does it mean to keep the Sabbath? What's allowed, and not allowed? A priest could tell you. Priests were also the ones who would draw near to God, and offer sacrifices on behalf of the people-- to help them get God's attention in prayer, to help them praise God, and to help them seek forgiveness.
Now, drawing near to God is a tricky thing. Anyone who is drawing close to God, needs to be a certain kind of person. In 1 Samuel 2, we read about a priest named Eli, who had two sons who also apparently served as priests. But the two sons stole from God, claiming more of the sacrifices than they were supposed to. They didn't treat God, or their priestly office, with respect (1 Samuel 2:27-29). And they slept with the women who served with them, at the tent of meeting. Eli's sons were filthy, wicked men. And God vowed that He would never forgive those sons. No animal sacrifice could atone for what they had done (1 Samuel 3:14). Instead, God made sure that the sons were killed in battle.
There's another scary story involving priests in Leviticus 10:1-2. Aaron's sons didn't follow God's rules about how sacrifices were to be offered, and God struck them down, killing them.
These two stories show that priests had to be the right kind of people, and they had to do things the right way. And they show that there's a level of guilt, and filthiness, that God can't, or won't, forgive (Psalm 78:60). Let's read Eli's words to his own wicked sons in 1 Samuel 2:22-25 (NIV no reason):
22 Now Eli, who was very old, heard about everything his sons were doing to all Israel and how they slept with the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 23 So he said to them, “Why do you do such things? I hear from all the people about these wicked deeds of yours. 24 No, my sons; the report I hear spreading among the LORD’s people is not good. 25 If one person sins against another, God[d] may mediate for the offender; but if anyone sins against the LORD, who will intercede for them?” His sons, however, did not listen to their father’s rebuke, for it was the LORD’s will to put them to death.
We don't know the specifics of what made Joshua's garments filthy. But Joshua's sin and guilt is of an incredible level, that's wildly inappropriate for a priest (and I think commentators who apply this passage in terms of, "we are all at this level of guilt" half-miss the point). You'd expect it to be disqualifying, in the same way that many pastors in the church have been disqualified, at least temporarily, from serving God in a particular way because of some moral failure.
So when we see this picture of Joshua, we quite possibly think to times in our own life when this is probably how we looked to spiritual beings in heaven. We can feel the weight of the guilt, and the ugliness of sin. But I think it's important that we not lose sight of two things: (1) priests are really not supposed to look like this, and (2), it's devastating for God's plan for Jerusalem, to have a priest who is filthy. It doesn't work to have this type of priest, because that's not the kind of priest who can draw near to God, and offer sacrifices to God for praise, or thanksgiving, or forgiveness. The entire spiritual life of the community falls apart, when the priests can't do the job God wants from them.
Once the gravity of this situation hits us, we can be astonished at what the angel of Yahweh does for Joshua. Joshua's guilt is symbolized by filthy clothing. The angel of Yahweh takes his guilt off of him, and gives him new, fine, clothing. This looks like the classic NT baptism imagery, actually. Guilt is something taken off, and there's a cleanness that the angel puts on. We might ask ourselves, "Who can forgive sins, except only God alone?" (Mark 2:7). But there is apparently another who can forgive sins-- the angel of Yahweh.
So at this point, because of the angel of Yahweh, Joshua has been transformed. He's not a dirty, wretched sinner. He's not forever a "sinner saved by grace." He's become a clean, pure, priest, who is now able to do the job that God wants him to do. He's able to be the kind of priest, who can cleanse the temple being built, and the people. Joshua is now enabled, and empowered, to create an environment for God to live with his people in Jerusalem.
A very different sort of Joshua stands before the angel of Yahweh, and the angel now gives Joshua a very serious declaration. Verse 6-7:
(6) and the angel of Yahweh declared/warned to Joshua, saying,
(7) "Thus has said Yahweh of Armies:
'If in my ways you walk,
and if my duties you keep,
then, what's more, you shall/will rule/govern my house,
and, what's more, you shall/will keep my flock,
and I will give you a passageway/access among these ones standing [here].
The angel of Yahweh here passes on a message from Yahweh. If he does two things, God will give him three things.
So what does God want from Joshua? The first, revolves around how Joshua walks. Throughout the Bible, our life with God is described using walking language. We either walk on the road God walks, living like God, doing what God wants, or we walk the road of the unrighteous. God expects Joshua to walk, from this point forward, on a path of commitment to what God wants.
The second thing God wants, is for Joshua to keep his "duties." The idea with this word is that God gives specific people a specific job to do (in Joshua 22:3, Joshua praises the half-tribes for keeping the duty God commanded of them, of sticking with their brothers in battle, through the entire conquest). The word is most commonly used in connection with Levites, and their duty to make sure that God is worshipped at a place of worship the way that God wants. It's the Levites' job to make sure people stick to the parts of the tabernacle they are allowed in, that they purify themselves before sacrificing, that they offer acceptable sacrifices, and that they offer those sacrifices the way God wants (Leviticus 8:1-26, especially Leviticus 8:26 sums it all up). Basically, the angel says, "You need to fulfill your priestly duties in the way God demands."
So if Joshua walks rightly with God, and if he's a faithful priest, then God will bless him in three ways.
The first, is that God will give him the responsibility of ruling over God's new temple being built. It's a tremendous honor, getting to serve God by being in charge of the place God makes his home on earth.
The second is related, but the focus is on the people. God will make him a shepherd over God's flock. Yahweh is the ultimate Shepherd (Psalm 23), but He entrusts his flock to under-shepherds. Is that a word? I'm not sure. But if Joshua is faithful, then God will entrust his own flock, the sheep He cares so much about, into Joshua's care. Another high honor. It's a tremendous privilege, being the shepherd of God's flock.
The third blessing God promises Joshua is in the very last line of verse 7:
"and I will give you a passageway/access among these ones standing [here]."
God has a divine council-- a heavenly family that meets together, works together, makes decisions together. God doesn't operate in a vacuum, by himself. He involves his angels in the process. They have a voice in what God does, and how God does it (2 Chronicles 18:18-19). If Joshua is faithful in life and in ministry, God will give Joshua access to all of this. Joshua will have a say in what goes on, on earth. In this very story, we saw a vision where Zechariah enters into the heavenly realm. He doesn't just see what happens. He joins in what happens. He looks at Joshua, and thinks that Joshua's turban should be replaced. His headgear isn't appropriate for a high priest. And the angels then swap out the turban. It's just a little picture. But the idea is that Joshua's prayers will be heard in a very different way. There will be a weight given to Joshua's voice, that otherwise isn't there (compare Ephesians 2:6).
Great promises? It's a privilege getting to serve God in any way, whether it's small or big. And we accept that God has given some people bigger ministries than others. But if you find yourself wanting to serve God in a big way in church, through being an elder or deacon, know that you're desiring something excellent (1 Timothy 3:1). It's good to desire that. But if you do seek a bigger role in God's kingdom, it's important to recognize that God holds people in leadership to a higher standard (James 3:1). Those positions require a certain sort of life-- faithful in their walk with God, faithful in how they carry out those duties. God doesn't want his flock to be cared for by just any shepherd.
With this, we come to verse 8-- a mysterious verse:
(8) Listen, please, Joshua, high priest:
You and your fellow priests-- the ones sitting before you-- surely, men of a sign, they [are];
[on "signs," as "a token/symbol of some future event" (DBL): Ezekiel 12:6, 11; 24:24; Isaiah 8:18]
Surely, I am about to bring my servant The Branch;
The angel looks at Joshua, and his fellow priests who are under him, and he calls this group a "sign" of some future event. Early on in our passage, Joshua is compared to a stick pulled out of the fire. One day, there will be another servant, like Joshua in some ways, who is The Branch. And the idea with this Branch, seems to be that there will be many priests under him, before him. This group, led by this Branch, will a group of priests who serve God in some way.
Is this Jesus? Jesus is the great high priest, who offered his life as a sacrifice for our sins. And Jesus created a kingdom of priests, who serve God, and who, hopefully, are faithful in how they walk in God's ways, and in fulfilling their duties toward God. We see Joshua, and this group of priests, and we see Jesus, and ourselves.
Verse 9 is another mysterious verse:
(9) Surely, LOOK! The stone that I hereby set before Joshua-- on one stone [there are] seven eyes/springs/facets (?).
LOOK! I am about to engrave its engraving-- utterance of Yahweh of Armies,
and I will remove the sin/guilt/punishment (avon) of this land in one day.
There's a lot of disagreement over this stone. Does the stone have seven eyes, or seven springs of water, or seven sides? It's a vision, so we should be open to the vision having weird things. I don't know. But two things are clear. First, this stone is some type of permanent thing. It's engraved. And second, it's also clear that this stone is connected to the removal of guilt from this land. One day, what the angel did for Joshua in removing his guilt, God/the angel will do for the entire land.
It's possible to read this in terms of Jesus. But I think the promise here is related to Joshua, and the remnant of Israel that has returned to Jerusalem. One day, the gift of forgiveness, cleanliness, and a new way of life that God gave to Joshua, God will also give to the land as a whole. Everyone will be clean, and forgiven.
With this, we come to verse 10, a surprising conclusion to our vision:
(10) On that day-- utterance of Yahweh of Armies-- you will invite-- each one to his friend [same word as vs. 8], to under the vine, and to under the fig tree.
What is God's end goal? God wants to live among a clean, forgiven people. And God wants those clean, forgiven people to embrace friendship, and hospitality. Life should be relaxed enough, and have enough margin in it, to slow down, and have people over. God promises, that one day, everyone will have a quiet, shaded backyard, where you can invite your friends over. Some of you don't have fruit trees, so the vine and fig tree part of this maybe doesn't grab you. But I think the picture here includes the idea of prosperity. When you only have a few figs, or a few grapes, you really don't want anyone to come over. People who come visit during harvest time, when the grapes are ready, are going to want to sample your grapes. It'd be rude not to offer that, actually. So you only want people over in your backyard, if you have a bumper crop. You want lots of pears, or apples, cherries, or peaches, if you're going to hang out in the shade of those trees/bushes. If your baby peach tree only has three peaches, you're going to want to steer your friends to some other part of your yard.
So that's our passage today. I'm not sure the last time, when I felt like there so many possible applications we can draw from. But let me just focus on Jesus, who is our great high priest.
What did Jesus do for us, as the Branch, as the great high priest?
(1) Jesus has defeated satan, and removed him from heaven. There is no adversary in heaven, pointing out our sin and guilt. In certain streams of Christianity, this isn't understood. Some Christians think that Satan is still in heaven, accusing us of our sins day and night. But Revelation 12:7-12 describes events that have already happened. There was a war in heaven, and Michael and his angels fought against satan and his angels. Satan lost, and he lost his access to heaven. We have access to heaven. Satan does not. When you are guilty because of your sin, don't picture satan accusing you. Ok? Jesus has freed us from that.
(2) Jesus has given us cleansing, and forgiveness, through his own blood-- through his death and resurrection. This cleansing is something that was given when we committed to Jesus as Lord and Savior. Our old self was taken off. We were clothed in new clothing-- in righteousness, in Jesus.
And what happens when we sin, and stain our new clothing? Jesus continues to offer us cleansing. So long as we are walking, as a way of life, in the way God wants ("in the light"), we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus purifies us from all of our sin (1 John 1:7)-- if we confess our sins (1 John 1:9). When we sin, we go our High Priest, who understands our weaknesses, and who is sympathetic. We come to Jesus with openness (not "boldness"), in a straightforward, frank, way, to receive mercy and grace in our times of need (Hebrews 4:14-15).
(3) Jesus has made us into a kingdom of priests, who can walk in God's ways, and do our duty to serve God in the way He wants (1 Peter 2:9).
(4) Jesus has created a group of people, a flock, who call each other friends, and who invite each other over to hang out. Depending on the time of year, it's definitely not under the branches of an apple tree. It might be more like, for games, or coffee, or to watch the Vikings. But we are a people who have enough margin in life, and are grateful enough for what God has done, where we can slow down, and spend time with each other, enjoying each other's company. Life is not so busy, or so hard, that we can't do that. The most obvious place that this happens, is on a Sunday morning. We are not a people who have stopped going to church meetings (Hebrews 10:25-27). Why would we do that? We are a people who enjoy drawing near to God in community, worshipping him. We enjoy seeking God's presence. We enjoy hanging out with each other on a Sunday, catching up. And hopefully, we enjoy all of this, in a way that always leaves room for new faces, and new friends. Newcomers are always welcome, and invited.
Translation:
(1) And he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of Yahweh,
while The Adversary [was] standing at his right hand to accuse ("to satan") him, [Psalm 109:6]
(2) and Yahweh said to The Adversary,
"May Yahweh rebuke you, O Adversary,
and may Yahweh rebuke you-- The One Choosing Jerusalem.
Is this one not a burning stick having been plucked from the fire?
(3) Now, Joshua was clothed in filthy clothing,
and standing before the angel,
(4) and he responded, [=the angel]
and he spoke to the ones standing before him, saying,
"Remove the filthy clothing from upon him,"
and he said to him,
"Look! I have taken off from upon you (Jonah 3:6) your sin/guilt/punishment (avon),
and I have clothed you in fine robes (elsewhere only Isaiah 3:22),
(5) and I said,
"Place a clean/pure turban upon his head," [turban: Job 29:14; Isaiah 62:3 Qere]
and they placed the clean/pure turban upon his head,
and they clothed him in garments,
and the angel of Yahweh [was] standing,
(6) and the angel of Yahweh declared/warned to Joshua, saying,
(7) "Thus has said Yahweh of Armies:
'If in my ways you walk,
and if my duties you keep,
then, what's more, you shall/will rule/govern my house,
and, what's more, you shall/will keep my flock,
and I will give you a passageway/access among these ones standing [here].
(8) Listen, please, Joshua, high priest:
You and your fellow priests/friends -- the ones sitting before you-- surely, men of a sign, they [are];
[on "signs," as a token/symbol of some future event (DBL): Ezekiel 12:6, 11; 24:24; Isaiah 8:18]
Surely, I am about to bring my servant The Branch;
(9) Surely, LOOK! The stone that I set before Joshua-- on one stone [there are] seven eyes/facets.
LOOK! I am about to engrave its engraving -- utterance of Yahweh of Armies,
and I will remove the sin/guilt/punishment (avon) of this land in one day.
(10) On that day-- utterance of Yahweh of Armies-- you will invite-- each one to his friend [same word as vs. 8], to under the vine, and to under the fig tree.
