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Song: Oh, The Things We May Do
Scripture: Zechariah 2:1-13
“Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem… then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak arose and began to rebuild the house of God which is in Jerusalem” (Ezra 5:1-2). Around 520 BC, Zechariah was appointed the weighty task of stirring the Jews who had become slack in their efforts to rebuild Jerusalem which had been in shambles for 70 years.
His was not an easy task. While the prophet Haggai motivated the people by rebuking their indifference and reminding them of God’s promises, Zechariah conveyed elaborate visions of the plans God had in mind for Israel.
Zechariah’s pictures inspired the people by showing them that their work, which seemed so fruitless, had far reaching results. In our reading, the man measuring Jerusalem in Zechariah’s day would not have been much impressed due to its state of disrepair. But none should be discouraged for the Lord would be both the walls about and the glory within the city. The city, now sparsely populated, would someday run over with citizens.
Such pictures must have puzzled the Jews. The visions would not be clear until the reign of Christ in His kingdom. But the visions gave the Jews confidence that God would be with them and take care of things, even if they didn’t understand how. We see the end they didn’t see though they laid the foundations for its accomplishment. Such ought to inspire us to perform the small deeds today which will redound to God’s glory in the future.
Jason Moore
