Major Messages from the Minor Prophets: An Introduction to the Prophet—Zechariah

Text: Zechariah 1:1 “In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah, the son of Iddo:” (Zechariah 1:1, NIV84)

Theme: An introduction to the Prophet Zechariah and his prophecy.

Date: 02/04/2017 File name: MinorProphets_16.wpd ID Number: 238

Tonight we arrive at the prophetic message of Zechariah. His is one of the longest prophecy of the minor prophets spanning 211 verses. His name means God Remembered, and it really is the theme of Zechariah’s prophecy: God remembered His people. It’s a popular name with 28 other “Zechariah’s” mentioned in the Old Testament, and one in the New Testament — John the Baptist’s father.

That theme is best revealed in the eighth chapter ... “As you have been an object of cursing among the nations, O Judah and Israel, so will I save you, and you will be a blessing. Do not be afraid, but let your hands be strong.” 14 This is what the LORD Almighty says: “Just as I had determined to bring disaster upon you and showed no pity when your fathers angered me,” says the LORD Almighty, 15 “so now I have determined to do good again to Jerusalem and Judah. Do not be afraid.” (Zechariah 8:13–15, NIV84).

The prophet, like Jeremiah and Ezekiel, he was of priestly descent. His father, Berekiah, probably died while Zechariah was small since he is also referred to as the son of Iddo, his grandfather who became responsible for him.

The book of Zechariah was written when the people of Israel were a small nation with no means of defense against powerful neighbors. His prophecy not only reveals a God who is able to protect His people, but a God who has given us all the information we need to know His Messiah and His plan for the future.

God takes Zechariah to heights of messianic revelation. His prophecies contains the clearest and the largest number of messianic passages among the Minor Prophets. As such, he is quoted more often in the New Testament than any other prophet save Isaiah. The New Testament quotes Zechariah fully or in part seventy-one times. Thirty-one of these are in Revelation.

I pray that the sermons I preach from this prophet’s message will grow and fortify your faith.

I. THE BACKGROUND OF ZECHARIAH

1. the historical situation underlying the book of Zechariah is identical in time and place to the Prophet Haggai

2. the return from exile had become a reality

a. a small remnant of the Jews whose parents and grandparents had been taken into captivity 70 years earlier by the Babylonians have decided to take up the offer to go home to Israel

1) the Prophet Daniel had referred to this as the desolation of Jerusalem

2) that was a good name for it, because desolation is exactly what the returnees find when they arrive home

3. the return of this remnant was an extremely important event in the history of Israel

a. it was through this chosen remnant that the promised Messiah would come

4. through Divine intervention Cyrus, King of the Medes and the Persians, issued a decree that gave permissions for the Jews to return to the land of their fathers

“In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah, the LORD moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and to put it in writing: 2 “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: “ ‘The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. 3 Anyone of his people among you—may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the LORD, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem. 4 And the people of any place where survivors may now be living are to provide him with silver and gold, with goods and livestock, and with freewill offerings for the temple of God in Jerusalem.’ ” (Ezra 1:1–4, NIV84)

a. 150 years before the event took place, the Prophet Isaiah said it would take place

“I will raise up Cyrus in my righteousness: I will make all his ways straight. He will rebuild my city and set my exiles free, but not for a price or reward, says the LORD Almighty.” (Isaiah 45:13, NIV84)

b. of the estimated one million Jews living in the Persian Empire at the time, less than 50,000 of the once mighty nation did return (Ezra 2, Neh. 7)

5. almost at once upon returning, the remnant began the erection of their temple as Cyrus had decreed

a. in 536 BC the rubble of Solomon’s temple is cleared and a foundation is laid

b. but then the troubles with their neighbors began

1) the Samaritans began harassing them

2) they sent false statements, deceiving the Persian officials and made them suspicious of Israel’s motives so that the generous assistance promised by Cyrus did not come

3) the wall of Jerusalem remained broken down subjecting the residents to raids by bandits and harassment by the — you guessed it — Samaritans

6. the remnant became discouraged because of the opposition and started looking out only for themselves

a. this is the picture of Jerusalem for 17 years until the prophet Haggai arrives and steps forward to call the people to resume the building of the temple

7. two months later, Zechariah would burst forth and joins in proclaiming God’s revelation to His people

a. Zechariah 2:4 indicates that he was a "young man" when he was called to prophetic office

1) thus, Zechariah would have grown up amidst a time of apathy, indifference and neglect of spiritual priorities which characterized the returnees at this time

b. his message is similar to so many of God’s other prophets

c. Zechariah calls for the people to repent of the sins of their fathers

“The LORD was very angry with your forefathers. 3 Therefore tell the people: This is what the LORD Almighty says: ‘Return to me,’ declares the LORD Almighty, ‘and I will return to you,’ says the LORD Almighty. 4 Do not be like your forefathers, to whom the earlier prophets proclaimed: This is what the LORD Almighty says: ‘Turn from your evil ways and your evil practices.’ But they would not listen or pay attention to me, declares the LORD. 5 Where are your forefathers now? And the prophets, do they live forever? 6 But did not my words and my decrees, which I commanded my servants the prophets, overtake your forefathers? ...” (Zechariah 1:2–6, NIV84)

II. THE BOOK OF ZECHARIAH

1. the book of Zechariah is broken into two major parts, with four major divisions

a. chapters 1-8 were delivered when the prophet was a young man (2:4), over about a two year period

b. chapters 9-14 were delivered some time later in his life

2. this book has been recognized as the most messianic, the most apocalyptic and eschatological of all the writings in the Old Testament

a. the book abounds with far reaching predictive prophecies to the person, work, and future glory of the Coming One

b. Messianic flashes occur everywhere with at least eight major predictions of the Messiah (3:8; 6:12, 13; 11:4-11; 13:7; 11:12, 13; 12:10; 14:4)

1) these Messianic references cluster around the Messiah’s rejection at His first coming and the Messiah’s acceptance at His second coming

3. just as Revelation is referred to as the Apocalypse of the New Testament, Zechariah is referred to as the Apocalypse of the Old Testament

a. the scope and profoundness of its visions are striking

4. Zechariah four major divisions:

a. 1:1-6 The Call to Repentance

b. 1:7-6:15 Eight Visions with Climax

c. 7:1-8:23 Fasting Becomes Feasting

d. 9:1-14:21 Messianic Messages

A. THEME AND PURPOSES OF ZECHARIAH

1. Haggai and Zechariah came to call a self-centered people back to the worship of God

a. Haggai’s purpose was to call for national repentance and for the Jews to return to the rebuilding of the temple

b. the theme of Haggai’s message is that the temple will be finished and that God will make it glorious and that Israel shall be glorious and Israel’s foes shall be cast down

c. Zechariah called for the establishment of spiritual priorities in the life of the returning community

1) the priests were lax in their attitude and duties and the people were indifferent to the claims of the covenant relationship upon their lives

2) Zechariah saw that submission, repentance, and cleansing from sin must precede the outpouring of Divine blessing

d. Zechariah’s theme was that spiritual renewal among the people would precede the Messianic restoration

2. the book teaches the sovereignty of God over men and nations — past, present and future

B. REASONS TO STUDY ZECHARIAH TODAY

1. 1st, because of the clear and striking manner in which it testifies of God’s Anointed One

2. 2nd, because of the light it shines on the events of the last times preceding the great and terrible "Day of the Lord" which is continually drawing closer

III. LESSONS FROM ZECHARIAH

A. GOD SPEAKS

1. the phrase the word of the Lord came appears six times in the book

a. Zechariah’s words were not just his own opinion on the social, economic, and religious issues of his day, but the words of the Lord God Himself

b. the prophet makes a strong claim for the divine inspiration of the book

2. there are two churches in America today ...

a. one that, long ago, abandoned the authority of the Bible, and the inspiration of the Scriptures

1) they teach that the bible “contains” the Words of God, and it’s the Christian’s responsibility to discern what are actually God’s words, and which are not

2) since most laymen are not trained bible scholars or theologians, you simply have to trust the experts to tell you when “God is speaking” and when “men are speaking”

3) when the church abandons the authority of the Bible, and the inspiration of the Scriptures, you find a reason to do pretty much anything you want to do ... such as did the historic Washington D.C. Calvary Baptist Church when it called two married Lesbian women to serve as co-pastors of the church

b. the other church in America believes in the authority of the Bible, and the inspiration of the Scriptures

1) that church believes that God’s word is binding on His Church, and binding on His people ... that it is authoritative for faith and practice

2) we don’t get to pick and choose what we believe are “God’s words” vs. “man’s words” because it’s ALL God’s words

3. as Christians, we can live in full confidence that God has spoken to us

“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.” (Hebrews 1:1–2, NIV84)

B. GOD REMEMBERS

1. God remembers the sins and rebellion of His people

a. vs. 2 is emphatic, “The Lord was very angry with your forefathers ... “ and in vs. 4 He says “Do no be like your forefathers ... “, and then sums up in vs. 5-6, “Where are your forefathers now ... did not my words and my decrees ... overtake your forefathers?”

b. Zechariah is saying to his countrymen, “Look around! Jerusalem is in ruins, and Solomon’s magnificent temple is destroyed. This is the result of rebellion and sin. We must not rebel against the Lord like our ancestors did. We must repent!”

c. and they did repent

1) God tells Zechariah to tell the people ...

“Therefore tell the people: This is what the LORD Almighty says: ‘Return to me,’ declares the LORD Almighty, ‘and I will return to you,’ says the LORD Almighty.” (Zechariah 1:3, NIV84)

2) at the end of vs. 6 we read, “Then they repented and said, ‘The LORD Almighty has done to us what our ways and practices deserve, just as he determined to do.’ ”

d. after the Babylonian captivity, Israel never again fell into idolatry

ILLUS. In fact, the Babylonian Captivity was Israel’s “V-8 moment” ... you know the commercial. It’s where a person slaps himself in the head because they suddenly realize the truth of the moment. It the destruction of their country, and the captivity of the people to realize that the Lord is God. One hundred years before, the ten tribes of the Northern Kingdom were taken into captivity by the Assyrians. We call them the “Lost Tribes” because in their captivity they abandoned they their exclusive faith in Yahweh, and assimilated into the culture and religious beliefs of their captors. In contrast, the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin kept their faith. In exile, these people began to see themselves in a new light, and developed and even more distinctive, and permanent identity. We know from history that they vast majority of Jews stayed in Babylon even after they were free to return home. Those who stayed, kept their faith, and Jewish culture continued to flourish in what is now modern-day Iraq.

2. it took a harsh captivity for the Jews to discover that God really, really means it when He says, “Thou shalt have no other gods beside me”

a. so God remembers His people, and His people remembered him, and repented and essentially confessed, “we got what we deserved”

3. as Christians, we can live in full confidence that God remembers us ... we’re not just a face in the crowd, by a child known and loved by the Father

C. GOD PROTECTS

1. in Zechariah 8:13 the Lord declares, Do not be afraid, but let your hands be strong

2. the Book of Zechariah teaches us that God is with His people, and sometimes in some very unexpected ways

a. after his call to repentance in vvs. 2-6, Zechariah follows with three visions, each conveying in some manner God’s care for His people

ILLUS. John and Margaret Paton, were nineteenth-century Scottish missionaries who felt called to go to the South Seas, and preach the Gospel to the Islanders of the New Hebrides — many of which were cannibals. John met opposition from family and friend alike. A well-meaning church member moaned to him, “The cannibals, the cannibals! You will be eaten by the cannibals!” Without hesitation, Paton replied, “I confess to you that if I can live and die serving my Lord Jesus Christ, it makes no difference to me whether I am eaten by cannibals [while I live] or by worms [after I die]; for in that Great Day of Resurrection, my body will rise as fair as yours in the likeness of our risen Redeemer!” John and his wife Margaret set up a mission station on the Island of Tanna. Gibson reported that the natives were superstitious, and cruel, and yes, cannibals. Margaret taught women and girls the bible and sewing. John learned the language and preached the gospel to them. They gave out medicine and ministered to the sick and dying. Still, they faced serious opposition. One evening, a large group of native men surrounded the Paton's mission headquarters. They were intent on burning them out and killing them. The Patons prayed all during that terror-filled night that God would deliver them. When daylight came, they were amazed to see the attackers suddenly pull back and leave. They thanked God for his protection and for delivering them. A year later, the chief of the tribe was converted to Jesus Christ, and Mr. Paton, remembering what had happened, asked the chief what had kept him and his men from burning down the house and killing them. The chief replied in surprise, "Who were all those men you had with you there?” The missionary answered in surprise, "What men? There were no men there; just my wife, the children, and I." The chief argued that they had seen many men standing guard — hundreds of big men in shining garments with drawn swords in their hands. They encircled the entire mission station so that the chief's men were afraid to attack. God had sent protecting angels to keep the Patons safe.

3. as Christians, we can live in full confidence that God protects us ... particularly from the Devil

“I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.” (John 17:14–15, NIV84)

“But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.” (2 Thessalonians 3:3, NIV84)

Conclusion

The prophecy of Zechariah is profoundly precious to the Christian because of its unique messianic emphasis and its panoramic unfolding of the events connected with the first and especially the second advent which it sees as the final redemption of this world resulting in the millennial reign of Christ in connection with the restoration of Israel, The God ruled ones.