Zechariah Sermon Series: Sermon 14
11-10-2024 – Pastor Martin Saine
Zechariah 6
Summation Chapters 1-4
Chapter 1 opens with a Call to Repentance,
Then in the vision of the rider in the Myrtle trees we see Jesus ready, willing, and able to execute judgment on the enemies of His people. He is shown as anxiously waiting while seated on His war horse. In this vision He will not only avenge them at the designated time, but is eagerly awaiting the day He will return to Jerusalem and promises He will enlarge them and comfort them. In other words, bless and restore them!
In the vision of the Horns we see God using four Gentile world empires to scatter Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem. Simultaneously He also uses four Craftsmen to terrorize and subdue the horns who oppressed and scattered His people, with Jesus Himself being the Ultimate Craftsman who subdues and ends ALL oppression of His people in due time.
Next Zechariah is shown the measuring line with the promise that Jerusalem will be enlarged in blessing and will be inhabited as towns without walls because of the multitudes of people and livestock (reminds us of Eze 38 “unwalled villages”). In this vision the Lord calls upon the four winds of the heavens to bring His people into His land and rejoice because the Lord has again chosen Jerusalem and has judged the nations around them in His fury.
After this we are shown the vision of the High Priest, disgusting, dirty, unclean, and unworthy! Accused by Satan (Satanized, if you will) and without excuse, God’s rebuttal is “And the Lord said to Satan; The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?”
Then Joshua was cleaned up and dressed in the righteousness of the Lord while the Angel of the Lord stood by. The rest of this vision testifies that Jesus will walk in the ways of the Lord, obey the commandments of the Lord, and will be given charge over all the house and courts of the Lord. He is introduced here as The BRANCH that will grow up in righteousness to judge the world.
Next we are shown the vision of the Lampstand and Olive Trees in Chapter 4. This is a picture of Jesus as the Anointed One, standing in the midst of His house, perfectly fulfilling the role of High Priest in fullness of the Spirit without limitation, with complete knowledge, and with all power. This chapter also gives a temporal relevance to the hands of Zerubabbel completing the temple with his hands in order to authenticate the prophecy.
All of this speaks of repentance, restoration, rebuilding, blessing, expanding, and the conquest of their enemies. These are all hopeful testimonies that the Lord will again choose and bless them, so don’t give up!
In Chapter 5, things take a dark turn. This chapter speaks of judgment, which must take place before the ultimate fulfillment of the blessings that are promised the nation.
The flying scroll, the Law (blessings for those who do it, curse for those who do not) is seen flying, (rapidly going forth) from its place to cover the whole earth.
It’s a place…
“All the world will” see… SEE REV 11:1-12
144,000 Sealed Witnesses from the 12 Tribes in Rev 7. Fast forward to Rev 14 and see the Lamb STANDING ON MT ZION with the 144,000…
Elijah…
Simultaneously, The Woman in the Ephah symbolizes Wickedness (The system- The whore in Revelation riding the beast- i/e. Mystery Babylon) will be transported to its place – The Land of Shinar, i/e. Babylon the City and set it in its place at the appointed time for judgment.
This brings us to Chapter 6 which will complete the night visions that began in Chapter 1;
1) Four Horsemen
Four Horns
Four Craftsmen
2) Man with Measuring Line
3) Joshua and Satan
The Branch
4) Lampstand and two olive trees
5) Flying Scroll and Woman in the Ephah
Zec 6:1 Then I turned and raised my eyes and looked, and behold, four chariots were coming from between two mountains, and the mountains were mountains of bronze.
Chariots – implements of war! (2Chr 14)
Mts of Bronze – bronze is symbolic of judgment because it is not only heat resistant, but work hardening. The more it is heated and cooled, the harder it gets, thus it is the perfect material to burn offerings on (Brazen Altar- Ex 27:2 Later in Solomon’s temple the Brazen Altar weighed 30 tons).
Compare Brazen serpent in Num 21:9 and John 3:14
“The” two mountains- Hebrew definite article. Most identify these with Mt Zion and the Mount of Olives, between which lies the Kidron Valley. Some also identify this as the historically significant Valley of Jehosephat.
Some also see the Valley of Berachiah in 2 Chron 20 as being the literal Valley of Jehoshephat because this is where God went to war on His peoples behalf; they didn’t raise a finger except to gather the spoils of war when directed by God.
This Valley of Jehosephat is the “valley of judgment” referenced in Zechariah 14:4 and in Joel 3:2 as the place where God will gather the nations for judgment.
Jehosephat means Yaweh Judges!
Zec 6:2 With the first chariot were red horses, with the second chariot black horses,
Zec 6:3 with the third chariot white horses, and with the fourth chariot dappled (blotched, spotted, as if by hail) horses—strong steeds.
Rev 19:11 Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war.
See Revelation 6
Zec 6:4 Then I answered and said to the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?”
Zec 6:5 And the angel answered and said to me, “These are four spirits (Ruach – H, Pneuma – G) of heaven, who go out from their station before the Lord of all the earth.
Four spirits, four corners – See Revelation 7:1-3, (also Isa 11:12 )
“Lord of all the earth”-
This is a Messianic title. See:
Josh 3:11-13
Psalm 97:5
Micah 4:13
Zech 4:9, 14
Culminates in Rev 11:4, 14-18, and Rev 19:11-16
For clarity see Psalm 110:1 (read entire chapter)
Psa 110:1 A Psalm of David. The LORD said to my Lord,”Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.”
Psa 110:2 The LORD shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies!
Psa 110:3 Your people shall be volunteers In the day of Your power; In the beauties of holiness, from the womb of the morning, You have the dew of Your youth.
Psa 110:4 The LORD has sworn And will not relent, “You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek.”
Psa 110:5 The Lord is at Your right hand; He shall execute kings in the day of His wrath.
Psa 110:6 He shall judge among the nations, He shall fill the places with dead bodies, He shall execute the heads of many countries.
Psa 110:7 He shall drink of the brook by the wayside; Therefore He shall lift up the head.
Mar 14:61 But He kept silent and answered nothing. Again the high priest asked Him, saying to Him, “Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?”
Mar 14:62 Jesus said, “I am. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.”
Confirmed by Jesus in Matt 22:22, Mark 12:36, Luke 20:43
and in Hebrews 1:13 and 10:13.
Luke 1:31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS.
Luk 1:32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.
Luke 1:33 And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”
The “Lord of all the earth” is a Messianic title of Jesus when He rules and reigns as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, over ALL the Earth; no longer figuratively from His Father’s side, but literally from His own throne in Jerusalem.
Zec 6:6 The one with the black horses is going to the north country, the white are going after them, and the dappled are going toward the south country.”
Why no East or West?
Note which is going to the North….
Zec 6:7 Then the strong steeds went out, eager to go, that they might walk to and fro throughout the earth. And He said, “Go, walk to and fro throughout the earth.” So they walked to and fro throughout the earth.
Not just North and South, but complete dispersal….
Zec 6:8 And He called to me, and spoke to me, saying, “See, those who go toward the north country have given rest to My Spirit in the north country.” (See Micah 5)
Other than “to everything there is a season”, why so anxious to judge???
See ***Isaiah 61:1-5***
Acts ***15:16-16***
Amos 9:11-15
Before Jesus sets up His Throne to rule in the Millenium, judgment must take place!
Why “must”? Why is this critical???
See Daniel 9:24
This ends the night visions, all of which took place in one night, one right after another, but it doesn’t complete the prophetical section.
Zec 6:9 Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying:
Zec 6:10 “Receive the gift from the captives—from Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah, who have come from Babylon—and go the same day and enter the house of Josiah the son of Zephaniah.
These three “from the captives”, who are they?
A bit of history:
When God’s time for the release of the Israelites from Babylon came, He sent Persian Empire to overthrow the Babylonian kingdom which was under the rule of Nabonidus whose SON ruled in his place while he spent his time in Arabia playing war games and other intrigues while his son Belshazzar reigned in Babylon.
Remember in Daniel chapter 5 where Belshazzar had a dream and promised to make the interpreter the 3rd ruler in the kingdom? That’s what the “third ruler” is all about. Belshazzar couldn’t make Daniel the “second ruler” like Nebuchadnezzar did because he was the second ruler, his father, Nabonidus, Nebuchadnezzars son, was the first ruler, Belshazzar the second.
So that very night the Persians came and took over the city of Babylon. A few days later Cyrus the Persian came to see the city his generals had conquered, at which point history says Daniel met him with the scroll of Isaiah and showed him what we know as Isaiah 44 & 45 outlining his career and calling him by name 150 years earlier!
Cyrus was so impressed he not only set them free, but sent them with anything they would need to rebuild God’s house and their city. This took place in 539 BC.
Only about 50,000 went. The rest were content to stay in Babylon where they were.
Those who went back to Jerusalem encountered much resistance from the locals and didn’t make great progress. That’s what Ezra and Nehemiah were sent for, to equip and encourage the work rebuilding the Temple and later the Wall. This book of Zechariah was given as a local encouragement to contend for the building of the Temple and stay at it, but it’s sweep is much, much broader; from the release of The Captivity until the Coronation of the King!
Zechariah’s opening verse dates the book’s beginning in 520 BC, with the night visions coming 3 months later. This is 19-20 years after the release.
Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah were sent as emissaries from those who stayed in Babylon to bring assistance to those who were attempting to rebuild the House of God. They were staying in the house of Josiah, son of Zephaniah.
God told Zechariah to receive the gifts from them, in other words, don’t give them a hard time about not coming with them! He was to receive their gifts and then do something specific with them. God is capping off the night visions with a real life flesh and blood errand which is to take place immediately (the same day).
I would also make the case that the night visions have placed Zechariah in a unique position to understand what is to take place on this errand and the significance of it.
Zec 6:11 Take the silver (represents blood- sockets of silver in the Tabernacle, Judas was paid in what?) the Priesthood of Jesus rests upon, and was paid for by His own blood. and gold (represents royalty, kingship), make an elaborate crown (s- plural), and set it on the head of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest. (in the presence of the emissaries)
Where do we ever see the King and Priest being the same?
Kings came from the tribe of Judah while priests came from the tribe of Levi, without exception (King Uzziah presumptuously performed priestly duties without authority and was smitten with leprosy until his death).
The only Scriptural background for the union of King and Priest is in Genesis 18 where we see Melchizedek, King of Salem and the priest of the most high God.
See Genesis 18
He’s also seen in Psalm 110:4 and Hebrews Chapters 5-7, where God tells us what this interesting character represents.
The Night Visions culminate with the crowning of King of Kings, and Lord of Lords, and The Great High Priest, all in One Person: Jesus Christ of Nazareth, King of the Jews, God the Son!
