REMEMBER WHAT HE’S DONE
- Heritage Church
- 2 days ago
- 10 min read
DAY 13 - January 17
The final six chapters of Zechariah are grouped into two sections, which are quite different from the first eight chapters we studied this week. These 5 chapters are a word collage of poems and images about the Lord’s future kingdom. Today, we will be diving into the first three of the six chapters (Zechariah 9-11), which focus on the promise of a coming King - Jesus.
Obviously, for us today, we know well the story of Jesus coming to earth as a baby, dying on a cross, and rising to life again, overcoming death itself! But for them, this was still a promise yet fulfilled. They didn’t know the whats, whys, and hows of it all. They just knew God had given a promise, a promise Zechariah is reminding them of here in these three chapters.
Clearly, reading three full chapters in one sitting would be a lot to digest. So, for today’s study, the passages we will be discussing together from chapters 9 and 10 will be included right here in our text - the rest I will summarize. Chapter 11, you will read on your own later on in our study time today. Obviously, there is a lot to cover, so let’s dive right in!
The first eight verses of Zechariah 9 describe several cities that had been conquered by none other than Alexander the Great. Verses 1-4 tell of how he conquered two major cities north of Israel, Tyre and Sidon, in the land of Lebanon. And verses 5-8 tell of Alexander the Great’s conquest of the Philistine Cities, Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and Ashdod, which were south of Tyre and Sidon.
I don’t know how much you know about Alexander the Great, but he has gone down in history as “the Great” for a reason - he was a fierce warrior and bold leader who knew what he wanted, went after it, and did whatever it took to acquire it! However, when Alexander the Great “marched through Lebanon and the Promised Land towards Egypt, he did not conquer or even attack Jerusalem.” Why? Because when God makes a promise, He keeps it, and Israel’s protection was made secure here through “a remarkable chain of events” that took place between Alexander the Great and the high priest of Israel, which are documented in “The Antiquities of the Jews” (a written history of the Jewish people).
So what exactly was this “remarkable chain of events”? In short, after capturing Gaza, Alexander the Great started marching towards Jerusalem, which sparked some low-key panic among the Jews, for Alexander’s reputation most definitely preceded him! So, Jaddua, the high priest, prayed and offered sacrifices, and in response, God reassured him that he should go ahead and meet Alexander peacefully and without fear.
When Alexander saw the high priest dressed in sacred garments, he unexpectedly honored him and explained that he had previously had a dream in which he saw a figure just like Jaddua, who foretold his successful conquest of Persia. Convinced that this meeting was divinely guided, Alexander entered Jerusalem peacefully, offered a sacrifice at the Temple, and treated the priests with great respect. After being shown the Book of Daniel, which he believed predicted his own victories, Alexander granted the Jews religious freedom, tax exemption during the sabbatical year, and promised the same rights to Jews elsewhere in his empire. He also allowed the Jews to join his army while keeping their ancestral laws, and many chose to do so.
Talk about divine favor!! What at first felt like impending doom for the Israelites turned into an incredible blessing from the Lord. What a mighty God we serve. One who faithfully keeps His promises, always making a way where there seems to be no way (Isaiah 43:19).
But the good news doesn’t stop there, because right on the heels of the Lord reminding them of His faithfulness as their protector in the past and in the present, He begins to tell them what is still to come! Zechariah 9:9 says,
“Rejoice, O people of Zion! Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem! Look, your King is coming to you. He is righteous and victorious, yet He is humble, riding on a donkey - riding on a donkey’s colt.” (NLT)
Here, the Lord is speaking of incredible hope: that one day He will be with them and walk among them! And Zechariah 9:10-15 even goes on to celebrate the strength and authority of the coming Messiah’s reign, both in His first coming (Jesus born in a manger) and His second coming (Jesus returning once and for all for His people), which we will look at more closely in tomorrow’s discussion.
This power-packed chapter comes to a close with a beautiful poetic image of the Lord’s return in verses 16 and 17. Let’s read those together.
“On that day, the Lord their God will rescue His people, just as a shepherd rescues His sheep. They will sparkle in His land like jewels in a crown. How wonderful and beautiful they will be! The young men will thrive on abundant grain, and the young women will flourish on new wine.” Zechariah 9:16-17 (NLT)
This celebration of who God is and all the hope, protection, and blessing we have in Him continues into chapter 10 as we are reminded of God as our source and as a faithful shepherd and father who calls His scattered sheep to return, promising to gather and bless them. There is truly so much scriptural gold celebrating the promises of God that we are breezing over today, so PLEASE make a point to come back and study chapters 9-10 more deeply. But for the remainder of our time today, we will focus on Zechariah 11. So go ahead, grab your Bible, and read Zechariah 11 in its entirety. Once you are done, come back here as we wrap up today’s discussion and reflection time together!
Let’s quickly break down what you just read. Verses 1-3 depict a judgment coming to God’s people, a judgment that does not sound pleasant to say the least. I mean, all of the references to wailing alone paint a dismal picture. But the specifics of these verses can be difficult to decipher, as Zechariah fully embraces his poetic imagery once again. So let’s break things down and make this image a little clearer for all of us by detailing a few key statements used.
“Open your doors, O Lebanon, that fire may devour your cedars.” This statement “describes the coming of destructive armies of judgment from the north, through Lebanon. The 'doors' of Lebanon are the mountain passes between Lebanon and Israel.”
“Wail, O cypress, for the cedar has fallen.” The cedar trees “illustrate Lebanon’s strength,” and once this strength (this “first line of defense”) has fallen, the lesser forest (the cypress and oak) will also be destroyed. Basically, destruction is coming for everyone, and so they, understandably, wail!
“Wailing shepherds…roaring lions.” In addition to reading of the trees wailing, we also read of shepherds and lions doing the same. But their wails have a slightly different motivation. Where the trees wail over the judgment coming on themselves, the shepherds and lions mourn because of the judgment on the land and Israel’s rejection of their “good shepherd.”
In short, these first three verses describe the destruction of the land that comes when God’s judgment is unleashed. But why all the doom and gloom after two chapters of celebration? The answer to that is a simple one: to remind His people of the alternative reality, should they decide to reject Christ and, in turn, come under God’s awful judgment. Remember, this chapter is written to God’s covenant people to warn them about the “ultimate tragedy of rejecting the Good Shepherd**”, who was yet to come!
Having set the proverbial stage, for the remainder of the chapter, Zechariah launches into a play of sorts, acting out for the people a prophecy of the judgment to come. First, in verses 4-14, Zechariah’s acting role is to portray the Good Shepherd (Jesus Christ), and then, in verses 15-17, he takes on a different role, portraying a worthless shepherd.
Early on, in verse 4, the Lord says to “Shepherd the flock marked for slaughter” (NIV). Those “marked for slaughter” likely refer to the sheep being kept for temple sacrifice. After all, the shepherds didn’t care about the welfare of this flock as they viewed these sheep as nothing more than an easy payday (verse 5). Why were such seemingly worthless sheep going to bring them such prosperity? Because the religious leaders of Jesus’ day had become greedy - having grown comfortable living off religion (yes…again) and having no concern for the people - showing clearly that God’s people had rejected Him (if not in word, then in deed) once again.
So what did God have to say about all of this? Let’s look at the Lord’s response to this rejection (verse 6) in The Message translation.
“God’s Decree: ‘I’m washing my hands of the people of this land. From now on, they’re all on their own. It’s dog-eat-dog, survival of the fittest, and every person for themselves. Don’t look for help for me.” Zechariah 11:6
God makes it clear - I will not have pity on you any longer. If this is the life you want, a life without Me as your Shepherd, then that is the life you will have! And, after such a bold pronouncement, in obedience to God’s command, Zechariah takes on the role as shepherd for these sheep marked for slaughter and takes two staffs, which are called Favor - depicting God’s favor over Israel - and Union - depicting the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.
As the newly appointed lead shepherd, we read in verse 8 that he gets right to work, firing three members of his shepherding crew within the first month. Who were these “shepherds” who were relieved of their duties? This is widely speculated, but it is most often believed they represent the three main offices in Israel: prophet, priest, and king- a foreshadowing of the appearance of Jesus the Messiah, for upon His arrival, He would fulfill each of those roles, abolishing the need for them.
But for all of the eager progress made, things seem to take a turn once again at the end of verse 8 when we read that the shepherd has grown impatient with the flock and they have grown weary of him, so he “gives up his role as shepherd and leaves the flock to its fate.**” A fate which we read about in verse 9, which says:
“…If you die, you die. If you are killed, you are killed. And let those who remain devour each other!” (NLT)
And that is exactly what happened. Some died. Some were annihilated. And the remainder ate one another’s flesh, which, disturbingly enough, did actually happen during Titus’ siege of Jerusalem, as is described in Josephus’ written history of the Jews.
In verse 10, we read of the shepherd breaking the staff called Favor, signifying the breaking of his covenant with the nations that had restrained other nations from destroying Israel. The restraint was then lifted, making way for Titus to “destroy the city and the nation.**” However, the Lord did make a way of escape for those who still believed, as we see in verse 11.
Verses 12-13 tell us of the shepherd, after having been rejected by his sheep, asking for his wages, at which time he was given a measly 30 pieces of silver (the value of a lowly slave), foreshadowing Judas’ betrayal of Jesus. Let’s read that account together from the book of Matthew.
“Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve disciples, went to the leading priests and asked, 'How much will you pay me to betray Jesus to you?’ And they gave him thirty pieces of silver. From that time on, Judas began looking for an opportunity to betray Jesus.” Matthew 26:14-16 (NLT)
Again, for us who have the advantage of hindsight, the warning call in Zechariah 11 is very easy to see! We can clearly see the connections between the prophecy and its fulfillment. However, for those hearing these words at the time, there was definitely an element of obscurity. Much in the same way that we have lots of knowledge of the second coming available to us, but none of us will know the full details of that second coming until the day comes that we are living it for ourselves.
So what were God’s people to do then with all of the unknowns of the first coming of Jesus, and what are we supposed to do with all of the unknowns of His second coming? (Here’s your opportunity for some reflection!!)
First, we need to remember. We need to remember what He’s done. Reminding ourselves that, through scripture and our own personal journey with Him, we can see that He always has a plan, He always has our best interests at heart, and He is always, without fail, right on time! From creation, to the cross, and into eternity - that has never and will never change.
“Your faithfulness extends to every generation, as enduring as the earth you created.”
Psalm 119:90 (NLT)
Second, having taken a moment to remember what He’s done before, we need to set our hearts and minds to trust that He will do it again!
“And let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful.”
Hebrews 10:23 (NIV)
And third, we must obey all that He has commanded.
“If you keep My commandments, you will remain in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and remain in His love.” John 15:10 (NASB)
When you think about it, many of the accounts of the Israelites falling away from the Lord began with one of these three things falling out of focus. When they stopped remembering what He had done in the past, they began to worry about the future. When they stopped setting their hearts and minds on trusting Him, they began to fear the future. And when they stopped obeying their commands, they began to muddy the waters of their lives in the present, making a mess of their future.
Pastor Steven Cole puts it so precisely in saying, “We’re all prone to develop a ho-hum attitude toward the things of God and even toward the Savior who shed His blood for us….Though we profess to have accepted Christ as Savior, it’s easy to fall into a way of life where, practically, we reject Him.**” And to combat that propensity to take for granted all He has done, all He is doing, and all He will do in the future, we must be diligent to Remember What He’s Done - setting our hearts and minds to trust in Him, and living lives of obedience to Him.
"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23 (ESV)