June 25 - Zechariah 14

June 25 - Zechariah 14:1-21

One of the things I find most interesting about apocalyptic literature and even contemporary interpretation of passages in our scripture is the interpretation of the visions that God gives to His prophets.

We interpret these symbolic passages based on our knowledge of the world. When Zechariah, Joel, Malachi, Zephaniah, Daniel, Ezekiel, Isaiah received prophetic visions regarding the return of the Messiah and The Day of the Lord, they interpreted the information based on the world-knowledge that they had at the time.

Zechariah limited his worldview to the cities that he was aware of in the immediate vicinity of Israel. He recognized the power of the covenant that God had made with Israel and he finishes this prophecy with the words that "on that day there will no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the Lord Almighty."

As we read the book of Revelation, we see that John interpreted the vision and prophecy he received based on the fact that Babylon was the worst evil Israel had ever experienced. Interpretation says that he actually meant Rome, but needed to be careful, so he called her Babylon.

Others have interpreted these apocalyptic visions based on technology and knowledge we have today. Locusts are warplanes and horses are actually tanks. (etc., etc.) We aren't limited in who the Gentile nations might be, they extend far beyond Tyre and Sidon, Canaan and Egypt during Zechariah's time. We aren't limited by the worldview that John had, where Rome was the greatest evil Gentile nation. But, we are limited by what we know today. How different might the world look if in 500 years, God chooses that the Messiah should return. Will we have reached the stars? Will there be planets that have rulers and Gentile leaders that are worse than Egypt or Rome ever was?

The truth of all of this prophecy is that the Messiah will return. There will be devastation caused by His wrath. No one knows when the day or time will be. The Lord will return as King over everything. There will be Armageddon (Zechariah 14:2, Isaiah 34:2, Obadiah 15, Revelation 16:14, 16) but the Lord will empower His children for victory. The Messiah will be the warrior on the battlefield, fighting for His people.

In Zechariah 14:4-5, we see that the Messiah will stand on the Mount of Olives. This is where He ascended into heaven in Acts 1:11-12.

The spring of living water will erupt in Jerusalem and will promote fertility throughout the land (Isaiah 35:1-7, Amos 9:13-14, Revelation 22:1-2).

Zechariah 14:16-19 is very plain that the Gentiles will be there to worship. Before Jesus came, before Paul brought the Good News to the Gentiles, God promised that we would be part of the glory of the Day of the Lord.

The cooking pots in Zechariah 14:20-21 actually describe the blending of the sacred and the secular. Once the Lord reigns, there will be no need to separate the holy from the common. Everything will be made ceremonially clean because He will reside among His people.

The Day of the Lord is coming. We don't know when, but we do know that the Lord God Almighty will fulfill His promise.