September 29, 2015

BASED ON A TRUE STORY . . . TO COME

Zechariah 12–14

Jeff Reed
Tuesday's Devo

September 29, 2015

Tuesday's Devo

September 29, 2015

Central Truth

We all must respond to Jesus Christ's claim to be Lord and Savior. We can acknowledge our sin and accept Him, or we can reject Him. Both choices will have eternal consequences and result in mourning (though completely different types), so choose wisely.

Key Verse | Zechariah 12:10

"Then I will pour out a spirit of grace and prayer on the family of David and on the people of Jerusalem. They will look on me whom they have pierced and mourn for him as for an only son. They will grieve bitterly for him as for a firstborn son who has died." (Zechariah 12:10)

 

 

 

 

Zechariah 12–14

The LORD Will Give Salvation

The oracle of the word of the LORD concerning Israel: Thus declares the LORD, who stretched out the heavens and founded the earth and formed the spirit of man within him: “Behold, I am about to make Jerusalem a cup of staggering to all the surrounding peoples. The siege of Jerusalem will also be against Judah. On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And all the nations of the earth will gather against it. On that day, declares the LORD, I will strike every horse with panic, and its rider with madness. But for the sake of the house of Judah I will keep my eyes open, when I strike every horse of the peoples with blindness. Then the clans of Judah shall say to themselves, ‘The inhabitants of Jerusalem have strength through the LORD of hosts, their God.’

On that day I will make the clans of Judah like a blazing pot in the midst of wood, like a flaming torch among sheaves. And they shall devour to the right and to the left all the surrounding peoples, while Jerusalem shall again be inhabited in its place, in Jerusalem.

And the LORD will give salvation to the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem may not surpass that of Judah. On that day the LORD will protect the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the feeblest among them on that day shall be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, like the angel of the LORD, going before them. And on that day I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.

Him Whom They Have Pierced

10 And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn. 11 On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great as the mourning for Hadad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. 12 The land shall mourn, each family 1 12:12 Or clan; throughout verses 1214 by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves; 13 the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the Shimeites by itself, and their wives by themselves; 14 and all the families that are left, each by itself, and their wives by themselves.

On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness.

Idolatry Cut Off

And on that day, declares the LORD of hosts, I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, so that they shall be remembered no more. And also I will remove from the land the prophets and the spirit of uncleanness. And if anyone again prophesies, his father and mother who bore him will say to him, ‘You shall not live, for you speak lies in the name of the LORD.’ And his father and mother who bore him shall pierce him through when he prophesies.

On that day every prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies. He will not put on a hairy cloak in order to deceive, but he will say, ‘I am no prophet, I am a worker of the soil, for a man sold me in my youth.’ 2 13:5 Or for the land has been my possession since my youth And if one asks him, ‘What are these wounds on your back?’ 3 13:6 Or on your chest; Hebrew wounds between your hands he will say, ‘The wounds I received in the house of my friends.’

The Shepherd Struck

Awake, O sword, against my shepherd,
    against the man who stands next to me,”
    declares the LORD of hosts.

“Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered;
    I will turn my hand against the little ones.
In the whole land, declares the LORD,
    two thirds shall be cut off and perish,
    and one third shall be left alive.
And I will put this third into the fire,
    and refine them as one refines silver,
    and test them as gold is tested.
They will call upon my name,
    and I will answer them.
I will say, ‘They are my people’;
    and they will say, ‘The LORD is my God.’”

The Coming Day of the LORD

Behold, a day is coming for the LORD, when the spoil taken from you will be divided in your midst. For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city shall be taken and the houses plundered and the women raped. Half of the city shall go out into exile, but the rest of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then the LORD will go out and fight against those nations as when he fights on a day of battle. On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a very wide valley, so that one half of the Mount shall move northward, and the other half southward. And you shall flee to the valley of my mountains, for the valley of the mountains shall reach to Azal. And you shall flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD my God will come, and all the holy ones with him. 4 14:5 Other Hebrew manuscripts you

On that day there shall be no light, cold, or frost. 5 14:6 Compare Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate, Targum; the meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain And there shall be a unique 6 14:7 Hebrew one day, which is known to the LORD, neither day nor night, but at evening time there shall be light.

On that day living waters shall flow out from Jerusalem, half of them to the eastern sea 7 14:8 That is, the Dead Sea and half of them to the western sea. 8 14:8 That is, the Mediterranean Sea It shall continue in summer as in winter.

And the LORD will be king over all the earth. On that day the LORD will be one and his name one.

10 The whole land shall be turned into a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem. But Jerusalem shall remain aloft on its site from the Gate of Benjamin to the place of the former gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the king's winepresses. 11 And it shall be inhabited, for there shall never again be a decree of utter destruction. 9 14:11 The Hebrew term rendered decree of utter destruction refers to things devoted (or set apart) to the Lord (or by the Lord) for destruction Jerusalem shall dwell in security.

12 And this shall be the plague with which the LORD will strike all the peoples that wage war against Jerusalem: their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths.

13 And on that day a great panic from the LORD shall fall on them, so that each will seize the hand of another, and the hand of the one will be raised against the hand of the other. 14 Even Judah will fight at Jerusalem. 10 14:14 Or against Jerusalem And the wealth of all the surrounding nations shall be collected, gold, silver, and garments in great abundance. 15 And a plague like this plague shall fall on the horses, the mules, the camels, the donkeys, and whatever beasts may be in those camps.

16 Then everyone who survives of all the nations that have come against Jerusalem shall go up year after year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Booths. 17 And if any of the families of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, there will be no rain on them. 18 And if the family of Egypt does not go up and present themselves, then on them there shall be no rain; 11 14:18 Hebrew lacks rain there shall be the plague with which the LORD afflicts the nations that do not go up to keep the Feast of Booths. 19 This shall be the punishment to Egypt and the punishment to all the nations that do not go up to keep the Feast of Booths.

20 And on that day there shall be inscribed on the bells of the horses, “Holy to the LORD.” And the pots in the house of the LORD shall be as the bowls before the altar. 21 And every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be holy to the LORD of hosts, so that all who sacrifice may come and take of them and boil the meat of the sacrifice in them. And there shall no longer be a trader 12 14:21 Or Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts on that day.

Footnotes

[1] 12:12 Or clan; throughout verses 12–14
[2] 13:5 Or for the land has been my possession since my youth
[3] 13:6 Or on your chest; Hebrew wounds between your hands
[4] 14:5 Other Hebrew manuscripts you
[5] 14:6 Compare Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate, Targum; the meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
[6] 14:7 Hebrew one
[7] 14:8 That is, the Dead Sea
[8] 14:8 That is, the Mediterranean Sea
[9] 14:11 The Hebrew term rendered decree of utter destruction refers to things devoted (or set apart) to the Lord (or by the Lord) for destruction
[10] 14:14 Or against Jerusalem
[11] 14:18 Hebrew lacks rain
[12] 14:21 Or Canaanite

Dive Deeper | Zechariah 12–14

In this section of Zechariah, we are looking into the future during the "great tribulation" (Matthew 24:21). This time period is marked by God's execution of judgment on the unbelieving world and Jesus' return to physically reign as King. As it has been throughout their history, Satan is seeking the destruction of the nation of Israel to try to prevent the fulfillment of God’s Word. Jerusalem is on the verge of complete destruction and defeat appears imminent (Zechariah 14:1-2) when the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Jesus Christ, returns (Revelation 19:11-16) with His holy ones to fight Satan and his armies. He even empowers His people to be not only like King David, but also like God (Zechariah 12:8)! Even though defeat seems certain, God steps in to lead His people to victory. 

Then the people of Israel mourn . . . wait what? Hold up. They mourn? I was expecting something more like . . . celebrated for their unbelievable victory! The realization and mourning of their sin—previously rejecting Jesus Christ as the Messiah—completely overwhelms the elation of victory.

Though I was initially surprised by their response, I shouldn’t have been. Regardless of what is going on around us, whether it is chaos or jubilation, God’s ultimate desire is that each of us come to a place where we mourn and repent of our sin in rejecting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. This is the only unforgivable sin (Matthew 21:31-32), but it can be repented of by trusting in Jesus Christ to receive eternal salvation and forgiveness from God.

Answering Jesus' question, “But who do you say I am?” (Matthew 16:15), is the most important question each of us will ever answer. And there are only two options. One, you can reject Him and remain under the wrath of God, facing eternal punishment. Two, you can choose to acknowledge your sin, accept Him as your Savior, receive forgiveness and eternal salvation, and then daily rejoice in this gift by taking up your cross and following Him (Matthew 16:24).

Discussion Questions

1. Have you come to a conclusion on the question, “But who do you say I am?” If not, please seek insight and make a wholehearted decision before it is too late, for you don’t know when your life or opportunity to choose will end.

2. If you have accepted Him as Savior, how do you respond when you are convicted of sin in your life? Mourning and repentance?

3. What is your role on Team Christ? How are you doing in light of what He has entrusted to you?