Zechariah 10:6 – “I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph. I will bring them back because I have compassion on them, and they shall be as though I had not rejected them, for I am the Lord their God and I will answer them.
Welcome back to our study of Zechariah chapter 10. In our last post, we looked at the meaning of the former and latter rains which God desires to pour out upon all of his people for both their spiritual and temporal good. 
We also noted that God vowed to make his people mighty in battle. God compared his people to war horses, who run to battle with great courage and fierceness because they expect to trample their enemies and experience victory. Again, we should expect to see these victories manifested in both the spiritual and temporal realms.
The remainder of this chapter focuses on promises of restoration, particularly for Israel. These promises are clearly directed to both the ‘house of Judah’ and the ‘house of Joseph’, which means the promises include all twelve tribes.
So here is what we know about the promises of restoration that are being made:
- They include the ‘former and later rains’ which are God’s blessings on his people, both temporal and spiritual.
- They will involve elements of battle, both temporal and spiritual.
- The restoration is promised to all 12 tribes/the entire nation of Israel.
The question is, which age or generation of Jews do these promises refer to? Let’s see what we can discover.
As you recall, the nation of Israel was split into two separate kingdoms under the reign of Rehoboam, son of Solomon (II Chronicles 10). Due to her grievous sin, the kingdom of Israel (10 tribes) was eventually conquered by Assyria and ceased to exist around 721 BC.
Unfortunately, the kingdom of Judah (two tribes) did not learn from Israel’s mistakes. She too fell further and further into idolatry until God sent the nation of Babylon to take her into captivity (597 BC). Obviously, at the time this prophesy was given through Zechariah, the 70-year captivity was over. God had already brought a large number of Jews back to Jerusalem. They were working on rebuilding the walls of the city and the temple.
Clearly, this could be referred to as both a physical and spiritual restoration, because God brought the Jews back to the land and restored temple worship. However, no battle had taken place; the Jews were in the land because God moved upon the heart of Cyrus and he willingly allowed them to return to Jerusalem.
Also, this phase of restoration consisted almost exclusively of Jews from the kingdom of Judah. For these reasons, this cannot be the final fulfillment of God’s promises.
Another significant restoration occurred in the second century BC. At that time the Maccabees (a priestly family of Jews) organized a successful rebellion against the Seleucid ruler Antiochus IV, who had ransacked Jerusalem and sacrificed a pig on the altar at Jerusalem (167 BC). 
Despite suffering very heavy casualties, the Maccabees were able to cleanse the temple and establish an independent Jewish kingdom (the Hasmonean kingdom). Therefore, this too would qualify as a physical and spiritual restoration.
However, most scholars also reject this event as the final fulfillment of Zechariah’s prophesy. They have two main reasons for this. One, the Hasmonean kingdom eventually failed, ending after Herod the Great came to power.
Second, there can be no doubt that true/lasting spiritual restoration could only take place after the coming of the Messiah. In other words, to have full spiritual reconciliation with God and to be forgiven in such a way that God had never rejected them, the sins of the Jews must be completely paid in full by the blood of Christ; no mere animal sacrifice could satisfy this debt.
But once Israel turns to Christ and acknowledges him as the Messiah, the Lord will pour out his mercy upon them, and they will receive the gifts of pardon, salvation, eternal life and all the other amazing blessings that God gives to the church.
For these reasons, most biblical scholars believe the final or ultimate fulfillment of this prophesy is yet to come. This view is supported by Paul in the book of Romans.
In Romans chapter 11, Paul tells us that the Jews are like a branch that has been temporarily broken off or removed from the ‘tree’ of God, so that the Gentiles could be grafted in. In other words, Paul is saying that for a time, Israel will be spiritually blind and during that season, God will invite/graft the Gentiles into his kingdom/tree:
Romans 11:25 –Lest you be wise in your own sight, I want you to understand this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.
But at the appointed time (as prophesied here in Zechariah), God will ‘bring them back’ or open their spiritual eyes. They will recognize Jesus as the Messiah, and he will forgive their sins, making it ‘as though I had not rejected them’ (Romans 11:25-36. See also Hosea 1:9-10).
You and I can also rejoice in this promise. Our sins are just as abhorrent/putrid in the sight of our perfectly holy God as those of the Jews. Our sin caused us to be separated or cast off from the Lord, just as theirs did. But thankfully, God has made it possible for Gentiles to enter his kingdom! When we approach him in true penitence, he willingly forgives us and restores us as if we had never sinned (Hebrews 8:12).
Zechariah 10:7 – Then Ephraim shall become like a mighty warrior, and their hearts shall be glad as with wine. Their children shall see it and be glad; their hearts shall rejoice in the Lord.
‘Ephraim’ and the ‘house of Joseph’ both refer to the 10 tribes of Israel. In this verse, God gives an additional word of comfort and encouragement to this group of Jews, perhaps because the exiles who returned to Jerusalem were mostly from the tribe of Judah.
God assures them that they have not been forgotten. Like Judah, they too will become mighty warriors, strong in body and bold in spirit. They will fearlessly enter battle against their physical and spiritual enemies, and they will be victorious!
This brings up a very important point: God did not command Ephraim to simply stand still and watch him achieve victory on their behalf. Rather, God empowered them to fight against their foes. This is one of the over-arching truths in this chapter, and it applies to us as well.
We might put it this way: God did his part by sending Jesus to atone for our sin, and by giving us the gift of Holy Spirit to empower us. These are things that only He could do.
Now it’s time for us to do our part. By faith and through the power of the Spirit (Zechariah 4:6), we must subdue this world for Christ. 
We are the ones who must form churches, build buildings and preach the gospel through every available means. We must financially support the work. We must baptize and disciple believers into the faith.
We must also take up the mantle of public office, occupy positions of authority in the courts and become business owners, using these platforms for Christ! God wants us to invade every single aspect of this life and use our place in that realm to exemplify and proclaim the name of the Lord, making sure that we subdue our sphere of influence for his glory. God needs Christian politicians just as much as he needs preachers!
We must resist the devil if we want to see him flee (James 4:7). We must bind and loose things on earth, just as they are in heaven (Matthew 16:19). God is not going to do everything for us. He expects us to use the power and authority that Christ gave to us to establish his kingdom in this world.
Here is something to consider: When Jesus prayed the high priestly prayer for us (John 17), he did NOT pray for us to be taken from the world; he prayed for us to be victorious over the evil one:
John 17:15 – I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.
God has promised victory to us as individuals and as the church. But these victories come through a partnership between us and Holy Spirit. We must do our part.
Let’s get back to our text. Verse seven also tells us that when Ephraim takes a stand, victory in battle will not be the only blessing.
Ephraim can also expect to be ‘glad as with wine’. This means that God promises to fill his people with an inward joy. Because God has placed this joy within our hearts, the world cannot take it away; no matter what circumstances we face, the love and favor of the Lord will rest upon us, constantly giving us reasons to praise and glorify his name!
Furthermore, God promises that Ephraim’s children will see this and be glad. In other words, our children will witness the strength, victory and salvation which we experience, and it will cause them to rejoice in the Lord.
The implication is that they will join us in the service of the King and experience the same salvation and joy that we have. What blessing could be greater than seeing your children/family serving the Lord?
Keep this in mind: Whether you know it or not, you are a witness or a testimony to your children and grandchildren. What kind of testimony are you?
Zechariah 10:8 – “I will whistle for them and gather them in, for I have redeemed them and they shall be as many as they were before.”
We are told that God will ‘whistle’ (your translation may say ‘hiss’) for Israel and the Jews will then be gathered in. 
The word for ‘whistle’ signifies the motion of lips combined with the voice and it always signifies a calling, much like you would call or whistle for your dog.
This means that at some point in history, God will call the Jews out of the world and to himself with the gospel message (Isaiah 43:1). Again, this is consistent with what we found in Romans chapter 11 – at the appointed time, God will ‘call’ the Jews by removing the spiritual blinders from their eyes. They will recognize Jesus as the Messiah, and God will gather them into his kingdom.
It is right that he should do so, because Jesus has already paid the price to redeem every man, woman and child in the world, Jews as well as Gentiles. Furthermore, it is God’s great desire to bestow love, grace, peace, mercy, abundant life and salvation to all of mankind.
Once the Jews have accepted the gospel and found Jesus as Lord and Savior, they will continue to hear his voice just as all of children/sheep hear the voice of the good shepherd:
John 10:3-4 – To him [the shepherd] the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.
The final portion of this verse declares that ‘they shall be as many as they were before’. This part of the promise speaks of increased numbers. It refers to the time of bondage in Egypt. Before Israel ever went down to Egypt, God promised to increase their numbers while they were there (See Genesis 46:3). And sure enough, he did exactly as he promised:
Exodus 1:7 – But the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.
In the same way, God will exponentially increase the number of Jews who become a part of his kingdom under the New Testament covenant of salvation. The sense of the passage is that as God calls his people, they shall bring others along with them, making the increase astonishing in both size and rapidity.
We can grasp this concept by thinking of a snowball – if we take even a small snowball and roll it through the snow, it will very quickly increase to a size that we are unable to lift. The increase happens because each flake of snow latches onto another flake and brings it along.
Thus, the church of Jesus Christ is a constantly growing body/kingdom which will eventually spread to the uttermost parts of the world.
Let me offer you some encouragement and relief:
Satan wants us to think that God is perpetually angry or that he is sitting up on his throne hoping that we fail so he can judge and punish us. This is a lie! God loves us and wants us to prosper. Scripture tells us that mercy triumphs over judgment (James 2:13).
We saw evidence of God’s great mercy and compassion in today’s post - God promises that he will bring the Jews back to himself, because he has compassion or mercy on them. He does this in spite of all the mistakes and wrong choices that his people made in their lives.
The bible also tells us that no matter how many times we fail or give up or make a wrong choice, God does not give up on us.
Lamentations 3:21-23 – But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
God never gave up on his people Israel and he won’t give up on your or your loved ones either! So, if you are enduring a trial right now, or you have recently failed in your Christian walk, don’t despair.
Instead of dwelling on your mistake, dwell on the fact that God’s mercy and compassion are new every day; Jesus has already paid the price for your failure. If you keep this in the forefront of your mind and thoughts, hope will once again well up in your heart and mind, giving you strength and peace.
Let me offer you some strength:
In the tenth chapter of Zechariah, God makes some amazing promises. For instance: 
- He promises the former and latter rains.
- He promises to show compassion to the Jews and draw them back to himself.
- He promises to make his people mighty in battle.
- He promises that our children will witness our relationship with God and desire to have the same thing.
At the time of this prophesy, these promises seemed so unlikely and so far out of reach, the Jews couldn’t fathom them coming to pass. They seemed impossible! But thankfully, we serve a God who is always faithful to his promises. There is nothing too hard for him!
Jeremiah 32:17 – Ah, Lord God! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.
Are you holding onto a promise that seems like it will never come to pass? If so, let me offer you some strength: God is ALWAYS faithful to his promises.
If he has spoken to you through Holy Spirit, through a dream/vision or through his word, don’t doubt what he has spoken! Stand on that promise in faith and you will not be disappointed.
Like the Jews of Zechariah’s day, you may think it’s an impossible situation, but God watches over his word making sure that none of his promises go unfulfilled – including the one he made to you (Jeremiah 1:12).