June 17 - Zechariah 6

June 17 - Zechariah 6 - 1:15

Four Chariots

Zechariah looked up again and saw four chariots coming from between two mountains of bronze. These bronze mountains are probably not anywhere specific, but represent God righteous judgment. Revelation 1:15; 2:18 tells us that Jesus' feet were like bronze. This was a symbol of his power to judge sin.

The four chariots pulled by horses of varying colors tell of the universality of God's judgment. The come from the presence of God and go throughout the whole world. We know of these four horses from Revelation 6:1-8. The white horse represents conquest and victory, the red horse represents the blood of warfare, the black horse represents death & famine and the dappled (or pale) horse represents plague & pestilence.

Zechariah tells us that they were straining to go out until the Lord released them. We know that this release comes when the Lamb opens the first of the seven seals. God's judgment has been released onto the earth.

In Zechariah 6:8, the reference to the north is that of Babylon. This would give great comfort to the people who have been returning from Exile. God will rest when Babylon is finally punished. the black horse will take death and famine to the country that ripped Israel from her home.

A Crown for Joshua

The last of the 8 visions are complete and the word of the Lord comes again to Zechariah. He is told to create a crown from silver and gold. It is to be placed on the head of the high priest, Joshua. Then, the Branch (we recognize Him as Jesus - the branch of Jesse, the continuation of David's kingdom and also the Angel of the Lord), is recognized as the One who will continue the building of the Temple.

Jesus is the King and the Priest (Hebrews 7:11-28) that will bring harmony to throne of Israel. The crowning of Joshua was a symbolic gesture that was prophetic in nature. The crown would then be given to a delegation of Jews that are returning from Babylon to place as a memorial in the temple. This temple will draw people home from all over the world. They will bring their wealth to ensure that the temple is built.

All of these things will happen if you diligently obey the Lord your God. (Zechariah 6:15)