Bible in a Year Series - Day #264 - This post is part of a year-long series where we are reading chronologically through the Bible. Click here to learn more. You are most welcome to join along at any time.
Today's text from the ESV Study Bible: Zechariah 1-7.
From the ESV Study Bible:
"Nearly 20 years after their return from the Babylonian exile in the time of Cyrus (538 b.c.), discouragement dogged God's people, replacing their earlier enthusiasm. The foundation of the temple had been laid shortly after the initial return, in 536 b.c., but powerful opposition had prevented any further progress on rebuilding the temple. Though Persian foreign policy accorded a significant role to local traditions—unlike the previous overlords, the Babylonians (prior to 538 b.c.)—life was still hard in the province of Judah (often referred to as “Yehud” in this period). Taxes were high, especially as the Persian king, Darius Hystaspes, prepared for a campaign against Egypt. There was little evidence of the kind of transformation of the state of things that the earlier prophets had anticipated, whether externally in a restoration of Jewish sovereignty, or internally in a moral reformation of the people. In particular, the city of Jerusalem was still only partially rebuilt and was on the sidelines of world significance. Under the circumstances, it was easy for the people to conclude that theirs was a “day of small things” (4:10) in which God was absent from his people. In such a context, faithful obedience was viewed by many as useless: pragmatically, it made more sense to pursue the best life possible in spite of the present difficulties.
Zechariah addressed such discouragement by reminding his hearers that, though hidden, God's envoys were watching everything, and that when the time was right, he would act to reorder the universe (1:8–11). Their forefathers had discovered God's faithfulness to judge his people if they failed to heed the words of the prophets (1:4–6). If the people would heed the words of the prophets and turn to the Lord, they would discover him turning to them. He would trouble the nations who were enjoying rest and grant rest to his troubled people, making Jerusalem once again the center of the world, a place of universal pilgrimage (1:14–17). The temple that was being rebuilt and the priesthood that would serve in it were signs of the Lord's commitment to his people, a commitment that would be demonstrated by the ultimate removal of all their sin from the land (3:8–10). This would happen when the promised Davidic king, the Branch, arrived (3:8). The result would be peace, harmony, and prosperity for all the inhabitants of the land, as the Lord once more dwelt in their midst."
Although things in the physical world seem very frustrating to Israel, and they sense that they are now relagated to "small things" as Jerusalem is nothing like her former glory, we are beginning to see interspersed in the various prophets a lot of "not yet" types of things.
In Zechariah's eight visions we see a great deal of activity occuring in the spritual world. We see four horsemen scouring the earth, we see Satan again making accusations in the court of God, we see the symbolic cleansing of Israel, but most of all we again hear of a coming Branch.
Tomorrow this Branch will come front and center.
See you then!
