Zechariah Quotes

Hey, so I told my hoe yesterday that..." Aww, he talks to his shovel. How cute.

Fangirl rage. It demands to be feared.

Home, he murmured. It’s always the hardest to leave. ...because it gives you the biggest punch in the gut as you’re on your way off. All the memories come flooding in… and you’re left with a feeling of emptiness. You’re homesick before you’re even gone.

Yes, of course Yahweh could defeat all of Judah’s enemies.” “Then why didn’t He, Grandpa?” Zechariah’s face looked sad as he shook his head. “Because our nation no longer believes in Him... and so no one bothered to ask Him to.

My prayer is that the Holy Spirit would sweep into our lives with holy disruption, upending our assumptions and privileges, our greed and selfishness, our pride and our stupor. To empower our work and our witness. Like Zechariah 4:6 tells us, not by might, not by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord.

Your right to swing your arms ends just where the other man’s nose begins.

Good-bye Holmes. It… hasn’t really been a pleasure. But thank you for the information. Be careful to keep out of prison. Unless you want an upgrade to your current living conditions, then I wish you the best.

...as the old saying goes: if you teach a man to fish, he will feed himself for a lifetime. But if you just give him a fishing pole, he’ll have to teach himself.

He had lived to please himself instead of God all those years, giving little more than lip service to His holy laws. And now when Zechariah cried out to God, his numberless sins swallowed up his prayers before they reached heaven. His guilt filled the yawning gulf between him and God.

A dream? With you, reality is always as a dream. There is no greater fantasy, no grander epic, than being with you.

Alliances with other nations lead to bondage," Zechariah explained. "Joseph started out as Pharaoh's trusted advisor in Egypt, but later generations ended up as slaves. And wasn't it Ahaz's so-called alliance with Assyria that led to our present slavery?

They pronounced my name wrong. There is a difference between Ruse and Rusé. I’m not a trick, I’m a crafty one. I perform the tricks.

Even serving God in his holy temple, Zechariah was unprepared for something holy to happen.

The loss of speech wasn't punishment; it was the proof Zechariah had asked for, the assurance of God's power.

Words flow from love, and speech is likewise confounded by love. It is the sweetest gesture to be without words, and with words, all the same. So too is it with the lighthearted sigh – an outward expression of an abundance of the heart.

Then rely on your judgment and forget all this.” Zechariah scooped up the scroll with a sweep of his hand. “But don’t try to do both. It won’t work. Either your faith in God is absolute, or it’s worthless. There’s no way to compromise.

No separation of distance; no separation of time; no separation of any kind need lessen compassion.

This world you think you know? It's hidden... in shards of reality.

You're like a gem shining ever brightly in an ever dimming world.

Good morning, baby. You know that the government has a responsibility for their own actions.

We dream. We aspire. We hope. Sure, we can get down too. But it's not about that. It's not those moments that define us. It's those times when we're looking forward, seeing that brighter future, and acting on it.

When you only believe in things you can see with your eyes and touch with your hands, it is idolatry.” Zechariah’s words stunned him. “Then I’m an idolater, too?” “To have faith in Yahweh is to know that there is a realm of the spirit beyond the comprehension of our minds,” Zechariah said. “Trusting in Molech, as Ahaz did, or trusting in your own wisdom and intellect—there’s no difference in God’s eyes. It’s all idolatry.

The contemplation of nature has two correlative aspects. First, it means appreciating the “thusness” or “thisness” of particular things, persons and moments. We are to see each stone, each leaf, each blade of grass, each frog, each human face, for what it truly is, in all the distinctness and intensity of its specific being. As the prophet Zechariah warns us, we are not to “despise the day of small things” (4:10). “True mysticism”, says Olivier Clément, “is to discover the extraordinary in the ordinary.

Day and night. Give and take. But never to die. Each have their time.

Then I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and beheld a flying roll.

Jesus is the messianic craftsman whom Zechariah spoke about.

Abi the daughter of Zechariah. 3 lAnd he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that David his father had

anointed ones [2] who stand by the Lord of the whole earth.” A Vision of a Flying Scroll ZECHARIAH 5 Again I lifted my eyes

Do not despise these small beginnings, for the LORD rejoices to see the work begin. ZECHARIAH 4:10, NLT

This season, there may be days when we are like Elizabeth in our awareness of God’s favor. Other times we may doubt as Zechariah did, too overwhelmed by our circumstances to believe God’s promises. Nonetheless, our gracious God ultimately delivered hoy to them both, and offers the same gift to us now: Jesus Christ, our Savior. In our silence and waiting, God is birthing eternal joy in us. That is the kind of God He is.

Puss hopped down from the couch and rummaged in Mark’s closet until he found a black leather belt. This he looped along his shoulder, around his waist, and then clasped together. “I’m off to make war, so that you may have love.

That would indicate that, one of these days, Israel is going to have a fresh visitation of the Holy Spirit, when a mighty revival sweeps the land. This agrees with many passages that predict a great spiritual awakening when the Jews call upon the Messiah they rejected in AD 30 (see Joel 2:18-32; Zechariah 12:10–13:2; Romans 11:26-27; Revelation 7:1-10). It is important to note that this revival is the only part of this prophecy that has not yet been fulfilled.

the song of Mary (the Magnificat; Luke 1:46–55) is about the unthinkable turn in human destinies when all seemed impossible: “For with God nothing will be impossible” (v. 37). The answering song of Zechariah (1:68–79) is a song of new possibilities given late, but not too late, possibilities of deliverance/forgiveness/mercy/light/peace. The old order had left nothing but enslavement/guilt/judgment/darkness and hostility, and no one could see how that could ever change. It will not be explained but only sung about, for the song penetrates royal reason. The song releases energy that the king can neither generate nor prevent. The transformation is unmistakable. Tongues long dumb in hopelessness could sing again.3 The newness wrought by Jesus will not be explained, for to explain is to force it into old royal categories. And in any case the energizing hope comes precisely to those ill-schooled in explanation and understandings. It comes to those who will settle for amazements they can neither explain nor understand.

Caitlyn (telling a story of her friend): So. [She] grew up and left Neverland for the distant planet called College... And made a bunch of new friends. So. There was the one guy who was there since the beginning basically... Zechariah: Since the beginning?

Through the angel’s pronouncement of Zechariah’s muteness, God showed His mighty power at work in both him and Elizabeth. God offered him this gift of awe to ponder within. Our doubt cannot stop God from being good to us and will not thwart His perfect plans. That is the kind of God He is.

The battle is always the most spiritually intense wherever the key issues of God’s kingdom are focused. Wherever God is at work, you will find Satan at work, also. The enemy’s name essentially means “the resistor.” How true! He resists God’s purposes and His people. (See, for example, Zechariah 3:1 kjv.) He can’t help it—he is a slave of his own nature. It is paramount that we carry out spiritual warfare so that God’s purposes for His people will be fulfilled. Daniel is a marvelous example of someone who, by prayer and fasting, affected the history and destiny of his people.

Even when the angel asks him specifically, “Do you not know what these are?” Zechariah answers with humility, “No, my lord.” Had Zechariah not responded with humility and openness, he probably would not have gained much from the whole experience. People who think they know it all already cut themselves off from learning anything new.

...and then she smacketh me across mine visage.

Don’t let your burgers, or your brother’s life, go to waste. –Ammon Jónsson

In learning from failure, there are stepping stones for success.

Assent, therefore, and pour no ridicule on the Son of God; obey not the Pharisaic teachers, and scoff not at the King of Israel, as the rulers of your synagogues teach you to do after your prayers: for if he that touches those who are not pleasing Zechariah 2:8 to God, is as one that touches the apple of God's eye, how much more so is he that touches His beloved!

Now chin up,” Puss said, moving Mark’s chin upwards. “Did you hear me? My plan? Your future wife?” “I’ll have a wife?” Mark said, still in a daze. “Details, details. You’ll have a girlfriend, I suppose,” Puss sighed. “Then she’ll become your wife. And out of your gratitude, you will find me a lifelong companion from the pet store…” Mark laid his head back and let out a stream of air. “I’m going to have a wife. And my cat can talk. My cat is a matchmaker.

You will shape up and get better... But you’ll always have others to rely on as well. It’s the fact that we’re not each a detective going solo. We’re together. The unique talents of our friends fill in where we lack. There’s nothing wrong with that.

...for me, being a detective isn’t just about solving a case. It’s about bringing a resolution to all the loose ends, and to do all I can to help those who were involved. My friend, Leor, understands this very well, and I’m sure he’d do the same. It’s beyond chivalry. -Jean Rusé

Therefore, if we restrict our studies of apocalyptic to the canon of Scripture (Daniel, Zechariah, the Gospels, 22 and Revelation), we can make a case for drawing a sharp distinction between apocalyptic (symbolic imagery for this-worldly events 23 ) and eschatology (theology of last things, the parousia , and heaven and hell 24 ). We run into difficulty when we conflate and literalize the two, which is precisely what happened as the apocalyptic-Talmudic-infernalist stream developed. Their authors progressively converted imagery of God’s furnace from a metaphor for historic destruction, which acts to judge and refine his people, into actual ovens of material flames into which damned souls are tossed in the afterlife or on Judgment Day.

So what is true religion? What does real spirituality look like? First, it is a desire for God himself, for his pleasure and his glory; second, it is concerned with the inner realities of sin and righteousness and only then with consequences and external blessings; third, true spirituality is that which draws from God's Word, hearing and believing and doing according to what God has spoken in the Bible.

Once outside, the detectives advanced up an escalator and to a floor with two elevators. One was labeled for the staff, and the other for guests. In the corner was a plain grey door which led up a staircase. “Monsieur Leor…” Jean began. “Are you up for a challenge?” “You want to run up the staircase.” Leor concluded, plainly. “Like schoolboys?” “Ouais, monsieur,” Jean replied, with a silly grin. “You can consider it your preliminary training, if that helps your dignity.

APRIL 10 BREAK THE CURSE OF WITCHCRAFT AND SORCERY MY CHILD, I have loved you with an everlasting love, and because I love you, I have turned the curses of witchcraft and sorcery from the enemy into a blessing for you. I will help you according to My mercy, that you may know that it was by My hand that I have blessed what the enemy has cursed in your life. I will stand at your right hand and save you from those who condemn you. You will be a blessing to those among whom you were cursed. I am determined to do good to you and your household. Do not fear. But speak the truth to your neighbor, and give truth, justice, and peace to all you meet. PSALM 109:28–31; ZECHARIAH 8:13–16 Prayer Declaration Father, in Your name, I break and release myself from all spoken curses and negative words spoken against me by others, and I bless them. No evil curses of witchcraft or sorcery will have any effect upon my life, for You have broken the curse and have turned it into a blessing for my life through Your precious Son, Jesus.

MARCH 6 YOU WILL DEFEAT THE ENEMIES OF YOUR FINANCES I HAVE PROMISED that I will defend My people and keep them from harm. I will strike your enemies with great panic, and they will seize each other by the hand and attack one another. The wealth of all your surrounding enemies will be collected—great quantities of silver and gold and material possessions—and will be given to My people. Blessed is the man who fears Me and finds great delight in My commands. Your children will be mighty in the land, and your generations will be blessed. Honor Me with the wealth that I give to you, and your barns will be filled to overflowing. My blessing upon you brings wealth, and I will add no trouble to it. ZECHARIAH 14:13–14; PSALM 112:2–3; JOHN 10:10 Prayer Declaration In the name of Jesus I bind and cast out every thief that would try to steal my finances. The Lord will rebuild the finances of His people and give the treasures of the nations to them. I will not put my hope in my wealth, but I will place my hope in God, who richly has provided me with everything for my enjoyment. I will lay up treasure for myself in heaven and take hold of life eternal.

APRIL 24 I WILL ABOLISH THE IDOLS IN AMERICA AND THE NATIONS IF MY PEOPLE who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. I will hasten the day when I alone shall be exalted in your land, and everything proud and lofty shall be brought low. The loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and I alone will be exalted in that day. I will utterly abolish any false idols, that the glory of My majesty may be seen. My anger will be kindled against the idols that speak delusion and the diviners who envision lies and tell false dreams. I will bring shame upon all idolatry and will strengthen My faithful servants. 2 CHRONICLES 7:14; ISAIAH 2:11–18; ZECHARIAH 10:5–6 Prayer Declaration Lord, cause our nation to humble itself and to pray and seek Your face and to turn from their wicked ways. Forgive our sins and heal our land. Sprinkle this land with clean water, and cleanse us from all filthiness and idols. Let all false gods and idols be removed from the land in the name of Jesus. Let America renounce her uncleanness and enter back into a covenant with You that she will put no other gods before You, O Lord.

Jesus confronted many of the important issues of His time. He went into the temple, taught the New Testament message, and took action against those who were buying and selling on holy ground. He healed the widow, forgave the adulterer, and by His example, the righteous walked away in shame. He had said, whoever is without sin, cast the first stone (John 8:7 - paraphrase)! Not one pebble, nor one rock was thrown. He who had that right to judge, Jesus Christ, did not cast judgement either. He looked upon the sinner lovingly, and embraced them. He guided them to change and opened blind eyes to see. By Christ alone, was and is salvation attained. Truth is in the New Testament, and a Holy Spirit-guided understanding of it. It must be read without regard for self. For when self enters in, that is when misinterpretations and heresies arise.

The intimate link existing between Yahweh and the Kenites is strengthened by the following observations: 1. The first mention of Yahweh (neither Elohim nor Yahweh-Elohim) in the book of Genesis is related to the birth of Cain: 'Now the man knew his wife Even, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, "I have produced a man with the help of the LORD"' (Gen. 4.1). This may be a symbolic way to claim that the 'discovery' of Yahweh is concomitant to the discovery of metallurgy. 2. Enosh is mentioned in Genesis as the first man who worshipped Yahweh: 'To Seth also a son was born, and he names him Enosh. At that time people began to invoke the name of the LORD' (Gen. 4.26). Interestingly, Enosh is the father of Keynan (= Cain). Again, the worship of Yahweh appears to have been linked to the discovery of metallurgy. 3. The Kenites had a sign (taw) on their forehead. From Gen. 4.15, it appears that this sign signalled that Yahweh protects Cain and his sons. From Ezek. 9.4-6, it seems that, at the end of the First Temple period, a similar sign remained the symbol of devotion to Yahweh. 4. The book of Jeremiah confirms the existence of a Kenite worship of Yahweh as follows:'Jonadab son of Rechab shall not lack a descendant to stand before me [Yahweh] for all time' (Jer. 35.19). This fidelity of smelters and smiths to the initial Yahwistic tradition may explain why the liberators of Judah, Israel and Jerusalem are depicted as smiths in the book of Zechariah (Zech. 2.3-4). When considered together, these data suggest that Yahweh was intimately related with the metallurgists from the very discovery of copper smelting. (pp. 393-394) from 'Yahweh, the Canaanite God of Metallurgy?', JSOT 33.4 (2009): 387-404

December 15 2 Chronicles 17 1Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his place and strengthened himself against Israel. 2He placed forces in all the fortified cities of Judah and set garrisons in the land of Judah, and in the cities of Ephraim that Asa his father had captured. 3The LORD was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the earlier ways of his father David. He did not seek the Baals, 4but sought the God of his father and walked in his commandments, and not according to the practices of Israel. 5Therefore the LORD established the kingdom in his hand. And all Judah brought tribute to Jehoshaphat, and he had great riches and honor. 6His heart was courageous in the ways of the LORD. And furthermore, he took the high places and the Asherim out of Judah. 7In the third year of his reign he sent his officials, Ben-hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel, and Micaiah, to teach in the cities of Judah; 8and with them the Levites, Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah, and Tobadonijah; and with these Levites, the priests Elishama and Jehoram. 9And they taught in Judah, having the Book of the Law of the LORD with them. They went about through all the cities of Judah and taught among the people. 10And the fear of the LORD fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands that were around Judah, and they made no war against Jehoshaphat. 11Some of the Philistines brought Jehoshaphat presents and silver for tribute, and the Arabians also brought him 7,700 rams and 7,700 goats. 12And Jehoshaphat grew steadily greater. He built in Judah fortresses and store cities, 13and he had large supplies in the cities of Judah. He had soldiers, mighty men of valor, in Jerusalem. 14This was the muster of them by fathers' houses: Of Judah, the commanders of thousands: Adnah the commander, with 300,000 mighty men of valor; 15and next to him Jehohanan the commander, with 280,000; 16and next to him Amasiah the son of Zichri, a volunteer for the service of the LORD, with 200,000 mighty men of valor. 17Of Benjamin: Eliada, a mighty man of valor, with 200,000 men armed with bow and shield; 18and next to him Jehozabad with 180,000 armed for war. 19These were in the service of the king, besides those whom the king had placed in the fortified cities throughout all Judah.

3.5 The Book of the Twelve Hosea identifies Israel’s idolatry as spiritual adultery. Joel connects a locust plague to the curses of the covenant Yahweh made with Israel. Amos calls Israel to seek Yahweh, the roaring lion, and live. Obadiah denounces Edom for violence to Jacob. Jonah sees Nineveh repent in response to the proclamation of coming judgment. Micah beholds the mountains melt when Yahweh treads on them to judge and save. Nahum prophesies the fall of Nineveh. Habakkuk questions Yahweh, and trusts him, regarding the judgment Babylon brings against Israel, then experiences. Zephaniah proclaims that those who seek Yahweh will be hidden on the day of his wrath and delivered, and that he will sing over them. Haggai calls the people to rebuild the temple. Zechariah declares it will be rebuilt not by might or by power but by the Spirit of Yahweh. Malachi assures Israel of Yahweh’s love and points to the day when Elijah will prepare the way for Yahweh to be glorified in a decisive act of salvation through judgment.

Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit… says the Lord of hosts. Zechariah 4:6

*The Dead Sea Scrolls. These were copies of the Old Testament books found in an area called Qumran. It’s located at the northern end of the Dead Sea. Since these were copies of the Old Testament from before Jesus was born, we know the prophecies about Him weren’t “written in” later: Isaiah 7:14—The Messiah will be born of a virgin. Isaiah 53—The Messiah will have the iniquity of us all laid on Him, and he will take the sin punishment for His people. Daniel 9:24–27—Daniel predicts, to the exact day, when Jesus will ride into Jerusalem (as Messiah the Prince) and then die. Daniel claims that this will happen exactly 483 years after the command to rebuild Jerusalem was given. Check it out for yourself. Micah 5:2—The Messiah will be born in Bethlehem. Genesis 49:10—The Messiah will be from the tribe of Judah. 2 Samuel 7:12—The Messiah will be related to King David. Psalm 22:16—The Messiah will be pierced in His hands and feet. Zechariah 9:9—The Messiah will come into Jerusalem while riding on a donkey.

In a review entitled ‘When Religion Makes It Worse,’ Yael Sela and colleagues (Sela et al., 2015) observed that various parts of both the Old Testament, to which Muslims in part adhere or which have influenced Islam, and the Islamic scriptures, therefore, unsurprisingly render it God’s will that you can rape the daughter of your enemy if you invade their land. It would surely elevate the damaged self-esteem of Muslim refugee males to believe that they are part of an invading force. It is indeed a common belief among fundamentalist Muslims that they must colonise the West under Islam (Armstrong, 2001). Leviticus 20: 13 tells believers that in a situation of war, you should kill every male in the opposing tribe and take all the females for yourself. Zechariah 14 is explicit that the enemies of Jerusalem are to be vanquished while their womenfolk are to be raped and enslaved. Judges 21 tells those who fear the Lord to invade the place of their enemies and kill every male as well as every female who is not a virgin. Virgins, however, are to be forcibly married to the soldiers who have slaughtered their families. The Koran 4:3 is quite clear that a man should take multiple wives: ‘Marry of the women, who seem good to you, two or three or four; and if you fear that you cannot do justice (to so many) then one (only) or (the captives) that your right hands possess.’ In other words, you can do what you like with female infidels, with the womenfolk in the country which you have invaded.

Jesus is from the seed of a woman and He will one day crush Satan. (Genesis 3:15) He is from the line of Seth (Genesis 4:25) A descendent of Shem (Genesis 9:26) Jesus appears in the Old Testament as the “Angel of the LORD” in Gen 16:7-13 The offspring of Abraham (Genesis 12:3) From the tribe of Judah (Genesis 49:10) The son of David (Jeremiah 23:5-6) Conceived of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14) He is born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2) Jesus appears in the Old Testament to Abraham and is called Lord in Gen 18: 1-14 He is Heralded as the Messiah (Isaiah 40:3) He is the coming King (Zechariah 9:9) The sacrificial offering for our sins (Isaiah 53) He was pierced in His side at the cross (Zechariah 12:10) And He was resurrected from the dead (Psalm 2; 16) Jesus is testified to by ‘the Law and the Prophets in Romans 3:21 Jesus, as the pre-incarnate LORD, calling fire from the LORD the eternal Father in heaven Gen 19:24

As Luke recounts events leading up to Jesus’s birth, he deliberately names luminaries of his day—Emperor Augustus, King Herod, Governor Quirinius. Yet he startlingly shifts focus to unimportant, unlikely folks—Zechariah, Elizabeth, Mary, Joseph—who are in fact the unexpected channels of God’s work, the real sphere of God’s transforming activity.

Zechariah also recorded this time of great lamenting for the Jewish people, in 12:10: “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son.

Zechariah 13:8–9 (HCSB): “In the whole land—this is the LORD’s declaration—two-thirds will be cut off and die, but a third will be left in it. I will put this third through the fire; I will refine them as silver is refined and test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, and I will answer them. I will say: They are My people, and they will say: Yahweh is our God.

Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin.

Blessed be any wind that blows us into the port of our Saviour's love! Happy wounds, which make us seek the beloved Physician. Ye tempted ones, come to your tempted Saviour, for he can be touched with a feeling of your infirmities, and will succour every tried and tempted one. Morning, October 4 "At evening time it shall be light." Zechariah 14:7 Oftentimes we look forward with forebodings to the time of old age, forgetful that at eventide it shall be light. To many saints, old age is the choicest season in their lives. A balmier air fans the mariner's cheek as he nears the shore of immortality, fewer waves ruffle his sea, quiet reigns, deep, still and solemn. From the altar of age the flashes of the fire of youth are gone, but the more real flame of earnest feeling remains. The pilgrims have reached the land Beulah, that happy country, whose days are as the days of heaven upon earth. Angels visit it, celestial gales blow over it, flowers of paradise grow in it, and the air is filled with seraphic music. Some dwell here for years, and others come to it but a few hours before their departure, but it is an Eden on earth. We may well long for the time when we shall recline in its shady groves and be satisfied with hope until the time of fruition comes. The setting sun seems larger than when aloft in the sky, and a splendour of glory tinges all the clouds which surround his going down. Pain breaks not the calm of the sweet twilight of age, for strength made perfect in weakness bears up with patience under it all. Ripe fruits of choice experience are gathered as the rare repast of life's evening, and the soul prepares itself for rest. The Lord's people shall also enjoy light in the hour of death. Unbelief laments; the shadows fall, the night is coming, existence is ending. Ah no, crieth faith, the night is far spent, the true day is at hand. Light is come, the light of immortality, the light of a Father's countenance. Gather up thy feet in the bed, see the waiting bands of spirits! Angels waft thee away. Farewell, beloved one, thou art gone, thou wavest thine hand. Ah, now it is light. The pearly gates are open, the golden streets shine in the jasper light. We cover our eyes, but thou beholdest the unseen; adieu, brother, thou hast light at even-tide, such as we have

God is looking for a release of the glory, but to have righteousness you need to carry a Crown of Righteousness. Righteousness can be destroyed by a willful choice to sin. Many of us struggle with the arena of sin in our lives and so often we do not have a Crown of Righteousness on our lives because of the sin nature we are struggling with. That is why we need to go into the courtroom, because that is where God puts a new garment on us and a new crown (or mitre) on our head (Zechariah 3:5). The moment you go back into the courtroom you get your Crown of Righteousness back again.

I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city”. Zechariah 14:2

Zechariah 12:6,” Larry Sangler read to the assembled group. “’On that day I will make the leaders of Judah like a firepot in a woodpile, like a flaming torch among sheaves. They will consume right and left all the surrounding peoples, but Jerusalem will remain intact in her place.

The Ethics professor, Zechariah Chafee, taught me about tolerance and the need to treat all human beings justly. This doesn’t only mean the people who look and sound like you, your countrymen and neighbors, nor does it mean only law-abiding citizens – this means everyone.

Many mystics and liberation theologians have further recognized that inviting us to drink wine as his blood is an invitation to live in bodily solidarity “with the blood of every person whose blood has been unjustly shed on this earth, from the blood of Abel the Holy to the blood of Zechariah” (Matthew 23:35). These are the first and last murders noted in the Hebrew Bible. In the act of drinking the blood of Christ at this Holy Meal, you are consciously uniting yourself with all unjust suffering in the world, from the beginning of time till its end.

The prophecy of Zechariah in Chapter Thirteen and verses eight and nine is being fulfilled before our eyes, David,” Jacob Klausman stated. “Zechariah wrote, ‘And it will come about in all the land, declares the Lord, that two parts in it will be cut off and perish; but the third will be left in it. And I will bring the third part through the fire, refine them as silver is refined and test them as gold is tested.

In Micah 5:2 God eliminated all the cities of the world and selected Bethlehem, with a population of less than one thousand people, as the Messiah’s birthplace. Then through a series of prophecies he even defined the time period that would set this man apart. For example, Malachi 3:1 and four other Old Testament verses require the Messiah to come while the Temple of Jerusalem is still standing (see Psalm 118:26; Daniel 9:26; Zechariah 11:13; Haggai 2:7-9). This is of great significance when we realize that the Temple was destroyed in AD 70 and has not since been rebuilt. Isaiah 7:14 adds that Christ will be born of a virgin. A natural birth of unnatural conception was a criterion beyond human planning and control. Several prophecies recorded in Isaiah and the Psalms describe the social climate and response that God’s man will encounter: His own people, the Jews, will reject him, and the Gentiles will believe in him (see Psalms 22:7-8; 118:22; Isaiah 8:14; 49:6; 50:6; 52:13-15). He will have a forerunner, a voice in the wilderness, one preparing the way before the Lord, a John the Baptist (see Isaiah 40:3-5; Malachi 3:1). Notice how one passage in the New Testament (Matthew 27:3-10) refers to certain Old Testament prophecies that narrow down Christ’s address even further. Matthew describes the events brought about by the actions of Judas after he betrayed Jesus. Matthew points out that these events were predicted in passages from the Old Testament (see Psalm 41:9; Zechariah 11:12-13). In these passages God indicates that the Messiah will (1) be betrayed, (2) by a friend, (3) for thirty pieces of silver, and that the money will be (4) cast on the floor of the Temple. Thus the address becomes even more specific. A prophecy dating from 1012 BC also predicts that this man’s hands and feet will be pierced and that he will be crucified (see Psalm 22:6-18; Zechariah 12:10; Galatians 3:13). This description of the manner of his death was written eight hundred years before the Romans used crucifixion as a method of execution. The precise lineage; the place, time, and manner of birth; people’s reactions; the betrayal; the manner of death—these are merely a fraction of the hundreds of details that make up the “address” to identify God’s Son, the Messiah, the Savior of the world.

More generally, the Gospel of Luke roots the coming of Jesus in the larger story of God’s reliability. When people in Luke 1–2 recognized the significance of John the Baptizer and Jesus, when the two were conceived and born, they extolled God as a promise keeper. Mary (Luke 1:46–55) and Zechariah (Luke 1:67–79) described God as remembering mercy and covenantal pledges. Simeon and Anna had similar responses (Luke 2:25–38). Jesus launched his ministry in Nazareth with a statement about scriptural promises finding their fulfillment in his work (Luke 4:16–21). Why should people be concerned with the question of whether God keeps promises? The point is not to box God into a strict set of definitions and expectations to make God utterly predictable. Nor is it about trying to prove Christianity is true. Rather, confidence in God’s dependability makes a key statement about who God is; it reaffirms God as a legitimate focus of our faith. Why should anyone put hope in a God who lacks the power or resolve to deliver on promises? Why trust a God who might terminate agreements or change the terms when the going gets rough? God’s reliability makes the good news about God’s disruptive activity good.

Zechariah 14:1–2 (HCSB): A day of the Lord is coming when your plunder will be divided in your presence. I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem for battle. The city will be captured, the houses looted, and the women raped. Half the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be removed from the city.

Zechariah eleven, verses twelve and thirteen, which prophesied about the thirty pieces of silver that was paid to the one who would betray Messiah.

Zechariah chapter 13, and read verses 8 and 9. “‘In the whole land,’ declares the Lord, ‘two-thirds will be struck down and perish; yet one-third will be left in it. This third I will put into the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call on my name and I will answer them; I will say, ‘They are my people,’ and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God.

Zechariah. They’re rather simple, mundane even, yet they both point to Yeshua, and only to Him. The first one is chapter nine, verse nine: ‘Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Zechariah twelve, verse ten. “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced,

The prophet Zechariah speaks of Satan as an angel whose office it is to accuse and to demand the punishment of the wicked. In the Book of Job, where the most poetical and grandest picture of the Evil One is found, Satan appears as a malicious servant of God, who enjoys performing the functions of a tempter, torturer, and avenger. He accuses unjustly, like a State’s attorney who prosecutes from a mere habit of prosecution, and delights in convicting even the innocent, while God’s justice and goodness are not called in question. It is noteworthy that Satan, in the canonical books of the Old Testament, is an adversary of man, but not of God; he is a subject of God and God’s faithful servant.

Then, as now, there is a temptation to use prosperity as a measuring stick of devotion, as if God is a cosmic scorekeeper, dispensing favors based on faith...In a broken world, very bad things often happen to very good people. Job was faithful. Zechariah and Elizabeth were faithful. And yet God allowed them to suffer for their good and His glory.

Zechariah paints a wonderful picture in this song, that of a visitation from on high. In verse 78, he describes it as being like a wonderful sunrise, bringing light into darkness, banishing the fearful shadows of death and bringing instead lasting peace. The depiction is of God turning his face and the light of his countenance upon this world in mercy. This is in the very nature of the God of the Bible.

A day of the Lord is coming, Jerusalem, when your possessions will be plundered and divided up within your very walls. I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city. Then the Lord will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights on a day of battle. On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south. You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will 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. On that day there will be neither sunlight nor cold, frosty darkness. It will be a unique day—a day known only to the Lord—with no distinction between day and night. When evening comes, there will be light.” – Zechariah 14:1-7

Then the Angel of the LORD admonished Joshua, saying, “Thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘If you will walk in My ways, and if you will keep My command, then you shall also judge My house, and likewise have charge of My courts; I will give you places to walk among these who stand here.’” —ZECHARIAH 3:1–7, NKJV

His angels as we are told in Revelation 19:11-14 and His saints, the raptured believers (Zechariah 14:4-5), as a victorious King riding on a white horse.

Zechariah 13:1, 8–9a–b (NLT): “On that day a fountain will be opened for the dynasty of David and for the people of Jerusalem, a fountain to cleanse them from all their sins and impurity. . . . Two-thirds of the people in the land will be cut off and die,” says the LORD. “But one-third will be left in the land. I will bring that group through the fire and make them pure. I will refine them like silver and purify them like gold.

Zechariah 12:10 (HCSB): “Then I will pour out a spirit of grace and prayer on the house of David and the residents of Jerusalem, and they will look at Me whom they pierced. They will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only child and weep bitterly for Him as one weeps for a firstborn.

Zechariah 14:3–7 (HCSB): Then the Lord will go out to fight against those nations as He fights on a day of battle. On that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east. The Mount of Olives will be split in half from east to west, forming a huge valley, so that half the mountain will move to the north and half to the south. You will flee by My mountain valley, for the valley of the mountains will extend to Azal. You will 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.

Zechariah 14:12 (HCSB): This will be the plague the Lord strikes all the peoples with, who have warred against Jerusalem: their flesh will rot while they stand on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths.

Zechariah gives one of the most concise summaries of the Jewish experience: “Not by might nor by power, but by My spirit, says the Lord Almighty” (Zechariah 4:6).

Zechariah 5:7-11

Zechariah, in Chapter 9 and verses 13 through 16 was talking about Strapollos, this ‘King’ from Greece, when he wrote: “I will bend Judah as I bend my bow and fill it with Ephraim. I will rouse your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and make you like a warrior’s sword. Then the LORD will appear over them; His arrow will flash like lightning. The Sovereign LORD will wound the trumpet; He will march in the storms of the south, and the LORD Almighty will shield them. They will destroy and overcome with sling stones. They will drink and roar as with wine; they will be full like a bowl used for sprinkling the corners of the altar. The LORD their God will save them on that day as the flock of His people. They will sparkle in His land like jewels in a crown.

judgment here—simultaneously!”414 He replied, “That’s what was difficult for Him!415 For when the blessed Holy One enacts judgment and miracle as one, it does not happen in one place or one house, manifesting entirely as one. And if it does, it proves difficult for Him—for above, everything is enacted completely, as one: either miracle or judgment, in one place, not in half.416 “Therefore the blessed Holy One does not execute judgment upon the wicked until their guilt is complete, as is written: for the guilt of the Amorites is not yet complete (Genesis 15:16), and similarly: By exact measure, by exiling her You strive with her (Isaiah 27:8).417 So he accused Joshua, demanding that he be burned along with them,418 until He said to him, YHVH rebuke you, Satan! (Zechariah, ibid., 2). Who said this to him? The angel of YHVH.419

Jean smirked and raised an eyebrow at Leor. “Would you like to fly through the Louvre?” Leor couldn’t perceive how that would even be possible. But Jean would inevitably find a way. “No, no!” Leor ardently replied. “Let’s just land there and take a walk. Look at some statues, get some air.” “Ah, but do we not have plenty of air, flowing around up here in the skies?” Jean asked, diving down towards the Seine, and then sharply pulling up along one of the slopes. “Would you like me to vomit again?” Leor asked, with a hand near his mouth.

Zechariah 14:12   Their people will become like walking corpses, their flesh rotting away. Their eyes will shrivel in their sockets, and their tongues will decay in their mouths

The word Levi runs its course throughout the Bible, and in the Old Testament, this word ends in the book of the prophet Zechariah where it says, many … shall join themselves unto the LORD in that day. The union that God is looking for is union with Him. If we are joined to Him in covenant with Him, with a full surrender to Him, and by the application of the blood at the altar (after being sealed and covered by the Spirit of God), He will automatically put us in harmony with everyone else who has the same purpose, the same covenant, the same covering, and the same head.

the final [Age-ending] provocation of divine wrath comes in response to an ultimate arrogance of the nations against the covenant, particularly as it touches the question of the Jew and the Land (cf. Joel 3:2; Ezekiel 38:16-19; Daniel 11:39; Zechariah 12:2; Matthew 24:15-16; Revelation 11:1-2). This is the Eschatological context in which the gospel was first preached ‘for a witness’ to all nations; it must be so again (Matthew 24:14 with Revelation 19:10b). The first disciples lived under the shadow of an imminent, age-ending judgment of Jerusalem.

But Satan comes to believers, just as he came to Joshua the high priest in the book of Zechariah (Zech. 3:1–5), calling attention to our dirty garments and accusing us of our sins. Why does he do that? Why would Satan invest so much time and energy in accusing people who have been forgiven of their sins? As the archenemy of God and His church, Satan wants to paralyze us, to rob us of our freedom, to take away from us our joy and our delight in the free grace of God.

Key Verses on the Second Coming Daniel 2:44-45; 7:9-14; 12:1-3 Zechariah 12:10; 14:1-15 Matthew 13:41; 24:15-31; 26:64 Mark 13:14-27; 14:62

Key Verses on the Second Coming Daniel 2:44-45; 7:9-14; 12:1-3 Zechariah 12:10; 14:1-15 Matthew 13:41; 24:15-31;

So do they have rentals here?” Leor asked. “Not cars.” Jean replied. “Then how do we get around?” “Helicopter,” Jean said, walking toward the booth. “Don’t tell me this is where you learned to fly?” Leor looked up as he heard a helicopter overhead. It performed a barrel roll as it came toward the complex, and the pilot waved at Jean. “They are all as mad as you,” Leor whispered, horrified.

Regardless of when Advent begins, every year the same Scripture readings are used for weekdays from December 17-24. The Gospels on those days describe events leading up to the birth of Christ: December 17: The genealogy of Jesus (Matthew) December 18: The annunciation to Joseph (Matthew) December 19: The annunciation to Zechariah (Luke) December 20: The annunciation to Mary (Luke) December 21: Mary’s visit to Elizabeth (Luke) December 22: Mary’s “Magnificat” (Luke) December 23: The birth of John the Baptist (Luke) December 24: The “Benedictus” of Zechariah (Luke)

FEBRUARY 2 I WILL PURIFY YOUR LIFE WITH MY FIRE ON THE DAY that I come, I will come like a furnace that purifies silver, and I will purify you like I purify gold and silver. I will redeem you from every lawless deed and purify you for Myself to be My own special people, zealous for good works. Draw near to Me, and I will draw near to you. Humble yourself in My sight, and when My purifying work is complete, I will lift you up and purge you with My holy fire so that you become an offering before Me of righteousness. I have tested you and refined you as silver is refined. I have allowed you to pass through fire and through water, but I brought you out to rich fulfillment. I have preserved your soul among the living, and I will not allow your feet to be moved. MALACHI 3:2–3; ZECHARIAH 13:9; PSALM 66:8–12 Prayer Declaration Lord, purify my life with Your fire. Refine me like silver. Purge my life from sin and imperfection as You purge gold and silver that I may become an offering before You of righteousness. I will live my life by denying ungodliness and world lusts, and I will live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present age.