Journal Through the Bible: Week 99 Thursday

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Zechariah 6:1-7:14

This section begins with Zechariah's eighth and last vision. This one was of four chariots coming between two mountains of brass. The chariots were led by red, black, white, and grisled horses.

Does God issue any commands?

• Following the last vision the LORD commanded Zechariah to take three men who were previously Babylonian captives to make crowns of silver and gold to crown Joshua, the high priest.
• Two years after Zechariah's visions the LORD told him to speak to the people reminding them that they were hypocritical when they fasted and prayed in the fifth and seventh months while in captivity.
• Through Zechariah God told the people to execute true judgment, shew mercy and compassion to their brother, not oppress the widow, orphans, poor, or strangers among them, and not to plot wickedness against others as signs of true repentance. He reminded them that this was exactly why they were taken into captivity in the first place.

Does God make any promises?

• God promised that they who are far off would come and build in the temple of the LORD. (6:15)

Does this passage teach anything about Jesus?

• Again, the "angel" with whom Zechariah is speaking is the Lord Jesus Christ.
• The BRANCH is Jesus Christ.
• Joshua, the high priest, is a type of Jesus. Both names "Joshua" and "Jesus" mean "savior" and Joshua is symbolically crowned as an object lesson denoting that the coming King would one day definitely come. It also says that the BRANCH (Jesus) will build the temple of the LORD, a task that Joshua was charged with helping Zerubbabel complete. Remember though that Joshua was the high priest of the line of Levi and not of the ruling tribe of Judah. Jesus was of the family of Judah, not of the priestly tribe of Levi, but the Bible tells us that He is our High Priest. The symbolic crowns placed upon the head of Joshua were to be placed in the new temple that Joshua and Zerubbabel were building as object lessons reminding the people that their King was coming!
• Ephesians 2:13 says that now in Christ Jesus ye who were sometimes far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. Since the temple was a picture of the atonement of Jesus the promise of God is fulfilled in Jesus Christ. 

Does this passage teach anything about yet-future events?

• Zechariah's last vision appears to be about the future judgment of the earth. Chariots denote war.