Zechariah 8:9 – Thus says the Lord of hosts: "Let your hands be strong, you who in these days have been hearing these words from the mouth of the prophets who were present on the day that the foundation of the house of the Lord of hosts was laid, that the temple might be built."
The content of chapter 8 is a continuation of chapter 7, in which the men of Bethel came to the temple to ask the Lord if they should continue certain fasts which they were observing on a yearly basis.
God responds to their inquiry as the Lord of Hosts, the God who is ultimate in power, wisdom, authority and ability.
His response begins with some sharp words of reproof (see chapter 7). God points out that he is much more interested in obedience than sacrifice; he was deeply concerned about their disregard for the task he had set before them (completion of the temple and rebuilding of Jerusalem) as well as the sinful way they were treating each other.
Let's briefly review these two sinful errors.
First of all, for the most part, the Jews of that generation were operating in unbelief. They were convinced that their current enemies were going to destroy them as well as the temple they were supposed to be building. Why, they wondered, should they exert time, money and strenuous effort only to have it all destroyed (Nehemiah 4:7-11)? What was the point?
This lack of faith in the promises of God caused them to stop construction on the temple. (The foundation of the temple had been laid two years prior). Instead, they turned to building their own houses/estates and seeking their own pleasures.
Haggai 1:4 - Is it time for you, yourselves, to dwell in your paneled houses, and this house [the temple] lie in ruins?
Secondly, although the Jews were faithful to complete their yearly fasts, they were merely going through vain motions. God declared through the prophet Isaiah (chapter 58) that the fast which pleased him was to love him with all their hearts and to deal with their neighbors in righteousness and justice:
Isaiah 58:6 - Is not this the fast that I have chosen? To loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?
In chapter 8, after addressing these two main areas of concern, God goes on to give his people some glorious promises for the future of their nation and the world.
Specifically, in verses 9-17, we find that the Lord reasoning with his people. Essentially he is telling the Jews that the fulfillment of his former promises is proof (or earnest) that he will keep his future promises, including the ones he was giving the current generation through the prophets Haggai and Zechariah.
The Jews of that generation needed this kind of assurance, because the promises being made were so astonishing and so mind-numbing, they had difficulty believing the promises would come to pass (which was not a good thing for people who already exhibited a distinct lack of faith).
Using examples from the recent history of the Jews, God reminds his people that he has good things in store for those who obey and curses in store for those who disobey or disregard his commands. Since God never changes, the Israelites can expect one or the other (blessing or cursing), based on their own choices, actions and decisions.
To begin with, the Lord instructs the people of Zechariah's day to 'let their hands be strong' with regard to finishing their work.
The first step in 'strengthening their hands' was actually to get their thinking straight. God had promised that the temple would be rebuilt and that he would once again dwell among his people. They would be his children and he would be their God – the one who protected them, watched over them, provided for them and had joyous fellowship with them. Victory was in their future.
It was time for the Jews to stop believing the threats of their enemies and stand in faith upon the promises of God. Whenever doubt or fear or unbelief came to their minds (as it no doubt would), they had to chase those thoughts away by filling their minds with truth.
- When fear came, they could remind themselves of the promises of victory given to them by the Lord of hosts.
- When doubt came, they could fill their minds with the glorious visions of intercession and blessing found in the visions of Zechariah.
- When unbelief came, it could be chased away by dwelling on God's past faithfulness.
It would take time and effort for the Jews to change their thinking, but it was certainly possible to do so. In fact, it was absolutely necessary in order for them to complete their task.
The second step in 'strengthening their hands' was to make the work of the Lord a priority. It was time to set their personal agendas/goals aside and complete the work of the Lord with zeal, joy and faithfulness. By faith they had to commit their time, effort and limited resources into this project.
This was both a sacrifice and a test of faith, because the generation of Jews who rebuilt the temple was not going to personally experience the ultimate fulfillment of many of the promises.
For example, none of the men building the temple were going to be alive in the day when Jerusalem was known as the City of Truth. They were not going to be the aged people walking down the streets of Jerusalem while small children played safely in the streets. Nevertheless, knowing what God was going to do for future generations through their foundational work should have been motivation enough (and joy enough) for them to complete the task.
The final step in 'strengthening their hands' was to shake off sloth and simply get to work! This required them to develop new routines in their lives. It takes a while to develop good habits (such as daily prayer and bible study), but once you do, they will serve you well.
I believe there is a lesson here for the church as well. God has made promises to this generation of believers just as he did to the men of Zechariah's day. For example, God has promised to save America from destruction. He has also promised an unbelievable harvest of souls in this country (and throughout the world).
It's time for the church to get these promises down into our hearts and minds with faith. Once we do, we must listen to Holy Spirit for his exact instructions. We must put our personal agendas aside and commit our time, effort and resources into this work.
Then, we need to follow through with prayer, speaking/declaring the scriptures, and acting on whatever other instructions Holy Spirit gives us. All the time, we need to be praising and worshiping the Lord of Hosts, who will bring his promises to fruition and ensure our victory.
We may or may not live to see the final results/fulfillment of what God has promised, but we can still rejoice knowing that future generations of the church will benefit from our foundational work. When God is in charge, the battle is won. It's time for us to put on the whole armor of God, pick up the keys to the kingdom of heaven and get to work!
Zechariah 8:10 – "For before those days there was no wage for man or any wage for beast, neither was there any safety from the foe for him who went out or came in for I set every man against his neighbor."
Let's establish a quick frame of reference. There was an approximately 16 year period in which the Jews took no action to rebuild the temple. After that, in the second year of Cyrus, the Jews got busy and at least laid the foundation for the temple. But again, work slowed and now it was the fourth year of the reign of Cyrus and nothing more had been done.
So 'those days' refers to the time when the foundation of the temple was laid. 'Before those days' refers to the 16 year period when the Jews failed to do the work God had assigned to them.
Because of their rebellion and failure to keep God's command, Israel suffered under the curse for disobedience which automatically came under the law. Since obedience brings prosperity (Deuteronomy 28:1-14), it naturally follows that disobedience would bring lack (Deuteronomy 28:15-68) – and that is exactly what the Jews experienced.
The effects of that curse are being discussed in this verse. First, we note that there was 'no wage' for man or beast. In other words, there was no profit from their work. They got up in the morning, yoked up the oxen and spent all day plowing, weeding and otherwise tending to their crops. But when harvest time came, there was little if any profit from their labor:
Haggai 1:6 - You have sown much, and bring in little; you eat, but you have not enough; you drink, but you are not filled with drink; you clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; and he that earns wages earns wages to put it into a bag with holes.
Can you imagine how frustrating and depressing that would be? They were working all day, but never getting ahead. They were expending all their time and energy but barely reaping enough to stay alive. As things got worse, they began to oppress their fellow Jews by charging outrageous interest rates, taking other people's children as slaves, and failing to pay their workers.
As if that were not enough, God reminds the people that 'neither was the any safety from the foe' for the person who 'went out or came in'. In other words, there was no safety or enjoyment of what they did manage to obtain, because the Jews experienced affliction and oppression by enemies on every side, and from every quarter.
The Persian Empire had many small nations under its domain. These smaller nations were required to pay tribute to the empire. As long as they paid tribute and did not revolt, they had the freedom to pretty much do as they pleased. One thing they frequently did was to attack or raid each other. In Nehemiah 4:7-11 we find that Israel had many such enemies.
There is also evidence that when Persia sent troops to fight against Egypt, the marched through the territory which included Jerusalem. These troops would have commandeered any supplies that the Jews managed to acquire.
So, because of their own disobedience, the Jews had no safety, no joy, no peace, no satisfaction and no rest. They experienced internal dissensions as well as outward opposition. Nothing they did in the field, in their personal lives or in their businesses resulted in prosperity; everything they did was essentially barren.
This state of lack was not due to bad luck or fortune. It was a direct result of the curse of the law for disobedience to the command of God to rebuild the temple. Granted, this situation had begun to significantly improve two years earlier, as the Jews began to lay the foundation of the temple. God is now strongly encouraging them to continue/finish the work, because he wanted to further bless his people.
Zechariah 8:11 – "But now I will not deal with the remnant of this people as in the former days, declares the Lord of hosts."
We have already seen that the visions of Zechariah strengthened and encouraged the remnant of the Jews to continue the work of rebuilding the temple, restoring worship and repairing the walls of Jerusalem.
Because they listened to the voice of the Lord and renewed their work on these projects, God was now able to bless them according to the covenant. Instead of being cursed, their labor would be blessed.
Zechariah 8:12 – "For there shall be a sowing of peace. The vine shall give its fruit and the ground shall give its produce, and the heavens shall give their dew. And I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things."
Here we find a description of the reversal of the former condition of the Jews.
Before the rebuilding began, the Jews experienced lack of every kind – their crops failed to germinate or they withered due to lack of rain, or they were blighted with disease, or they just didn't produce much harvest. There was internal strife among the Jews (because of their ill treatment of each other) as well as threats from outside enemies. No one had any peace or tranquility.
Things had been improving since the Jews commenced work on the temple, but now God openly confirms that he has reversed their condition. He declared that he was sending the rain (former and latter) which would be needed for a bountiful harvest. We can also assume he would guard against locusts, blight, mildew and any other pest that would kill their harvest.
God guarantees that their labor will produce fruit whether that be from trees (such as olives, nuts, figs, etc), vines (such as grapes) or any crop planted in the ground (such as barley, corn and wheat – Leviticus 26:4).
While this was an immediate and welcome promise to the Jews of Zechariah's day, it also has a significant spiritual parallel in our day - it speaks of the abundance of spiritual blessings that are available to the church.
God showers us with the gifts and blessings of Holy Spirit, his word, his presence, his power and his peace. All of these will be instrumental in helping us to turn the nation of America back to the Lord and to plant/harvest a worldwide crop of souls for the kingdom of heaven.
There is no doubt that the need is great. Jesus told his followers to look around them for there was already a spiritual harvest of souls ready to be gathered into the kingdom of heaven:
John 4:35 - Say not, There are yet four months, and then comes harvest? Behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.
These promises should motivate you and me to participate in spiritual sowing/reaping, just as it motivated the people of God in Zechariah's day to sow/reap a physical harvest.
Because we know our labor will not be in vain, we should liberally sow the word of God. There are many ways to do so:
- By speaking to people on an individual basis.
- By supporting our local church.
- By supporting the Christian music industry.
- By financially supporting Christian radio, television, podcasts and other electronic media.
- By using our social media to proclaim the truth.
- By using our influence (professional, political, cultural or within the family) to proclaim the gospel.
Furthermore, we can be confident that once we sow the word, Holy Spirit will water it and cause it to sprout in the hearts/minds of the hearers, so it will grow in their lives and produce a spiritual harvest, which we can then gather for the kingdom.
Not only that, we can be sure that God will protect us from attacks of the enemy so that the spiritual harvest will not be destroyed. Although we will be engaged in spiritual warfare, we can expect to have the upper hand over our enemies and enjoy peace as we go about our work.
Zechariah 8:13 – "And as you have been a byword of cursing among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so will I save you, and you shall be a blessing. Fear not, but let your hands be strong."
As we know, there was a split in the kingdom of Israel under the reign of Solomon's son, Rehoboam. At that time, 10 tribes came under the kingship of Jeroboam, son of Nebat. These ten tribes retained the name of Israel. The remaining two tribes stayed under the kingship of the house of David. From that time forward, they were known as the nation of Judah.
Both kingdoms went into captivity as the result of their sin. The kingdom of Israel went into captivity first (722 BC), followed by the kingdom of Judah (586 BC). They lost their land, their temple, their freedom, their wealth, and their autonomy as a nation. In short, they lost everything.
As a result the Jews became a public example of what it meant to be cursed under the law:
Jeremiah 44:22 - because of the evil of your doings, and because of the abominations which you have committed; therefore is your land a desolation, and an astonishment, and a curse, without an inhabitant, as it is this day.
But it was never God's will for them to be an example of cursing. God intended them to be a blessing for the whole world:
Genesis 28:14 - And your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in you and in your descendants shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
God makes it very plain that the Jews change of circumstances is not due to a whim of fate or anything they have done. He alone has undertaken to deliver/save them from destruction. His favor now rests upon them, and he has restored their destiny to be a blessing to the nations of the world.
How were the Jews a blessing to the world? It was through their line that Jesus was born into the world to be our Savior. He perfectly fulfilled the law, then ushered in the new covenant of grace, whereby we can be saved through his atoning sacrifice.
Opposition against the Jews still existed, but their enemies were already defeated, because the Lord of Hosts was on their side. Therefore, they should shake off fear, sloth, indifference and anything else that was preventing them from finishing their work.
Romans 8:31 - What shall we then say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
The promises of God provided ample motivation for the Jews to roll up their sleeves and get to work. They should be doing the same thing for the church of today as well!
Zechariah 8:14-15 – For thus says the Lord of hosts: "As I purposed to bring disaster to you when your fathers provoked me to wrath, and I did not relent, says the Lord of hosts, so again have I purposed in these days to bring good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah; fear not."
As we discussed earlier in this study, God is always faithful to his promises. He promised to curse Israel if she continued unabated in sin, and that is exactly what he did when he decreed that she would go into captivity (he did not relent).
Likewise, Israel's restoration was brought about solely by the power and decree of the Lord, because that was what he had promised to do for them if they repented:
Jeremiah 31:28 - And it shall come to pass, that as I have watched over them, to pluck up, and to break down, and to throw down, and to destroy, and to afflict; so will I watch over them, to build, and to plant, says the LORD.
God fully intends to bless and 'do good' to his people; he will not relent from blessing them as long as his people do that which is righteous in his sight.
And again we note that because God kept his promises in the past, Israel can rest assured that he will also keep his future promises of restoration and blessing, even if they don't live to experience them.
The lesson applies to us as well. Armed with the promises and assurances of God, let us (the church) courageously follow Christ wherever he leads.
Zechariah 8:16-17 – "These are the things that you shall do: Speak the truth to one another, render in your gates judgments that are true and make for peace; do not devise evil in your hearts against one another, and love no false oath, for all these things I hate, declares the Lord."
As we mentioned earlier, Israel was guilty of two sins.
One was failure to rebuild the temple and the walls of Jerusalem. God had pretty much dealt with that issue, while giving his people wonderful assurances and promises of the manifold blessing he had in store for them.
The second sin was going through the vain motions of fasting, while their hearts were engaged in all kinds wickedness such as anger, injustice, cheating, oppression, lying, etc. Although it was fasting that was specifically mentioned in this case, God does not approve or accept any vain religious exercise.
For instance, if we go to church with a poor attitude, judging everyone we see, griping about the worship songs and criticizing the message, then out trip to church was nothing more than a vain religious exercise.
God once again declares that he hates this kind of wicked behavior. He expects his followers to love their neighbors as themselves (Exodus 20:12-17). They are to speak the truth to each other, make impartial judgments and practice integrity in every aspect of their lives, while showing mercy and compassion to their fellow man. These are the exact same duties he had given to the generations who lived before the exile (Zechariah 7:9-10). Too bad they didn't listen!
God will not (cannot) let these kinds of sins go unpunished. If his people want to fellowship with him and experience his blessing, they must remove these sins from their lives.
In a society where people deal fairly with one another and the court system renders true justice, peace will be a byproduct. It is the duty of God's people to strive for this kind of righteous living, because it honors the name of the Lord.
Let me offer you some encouragement:
One thing we cannot help but notice in our study of Zechariah is that the Jews of that generation were working for the temporal and spiritual good of the next generation.
For example, they were busy building the second temple, which was going to be in use until after Jesus died and rose again.
They were also (to the best of their ability) committed to practicing personal holiness and faithfulness to God's commands. This resulted in a multitude of blessings and it was an excellent example for their children and grandchildren, who came to know that their best life was only possible in fellowship with God.
What are you and I doing to invest in the next generation? What kind of foundation are we laying for our children, our grandchildren and/or the kids in our local church? I encourage you to consider this question seriously, and become involved.
Let me offer you some relief:
Over and over again God makes it plain that he is concerned not only with our outward actions, but with the thoughts and desires of our hearts/minds (Hebrews 4:12).
Obviously, this is an issue that affects all of us. So let me give you some relief - correct thinking is not just something we can just turn on or off like a light switch. It is more of a process that we develop over time.
For example, if you have an issue with complaining or thinking negative thoughts you can't just decide you're not going to do that anymore. (How many times have we sworn that we would never do something again, only to be doing it five minutes later?!)
Instead, you need to consistently chase those thoughts away whenever you find they are in your mind.
You can do that by praise and worship, by prayer, by declaring the truth of God's word and by quoting scripture. Eventually, over time, those thoughts will come to your mind less and less frequently.
In other words, right thinking is a process, not an event. The key is to continue renewing your mind until your thoughts line up with the word of God. So don't give up – keep at it!
Let me offer you some strength:
Another thing we noticed in our study was that the people of Zechariah's day did not see the final fulfillment of all the promises God gave them. Indeed, some of those promises are still in the future, possibly coming to pass during the millennial reign of Christ. Nevertheless, former generations of Jews placed their faith in these promises and worked for their fulfillment.
Abraham did the same thing. He sojourned through the land that would later belong to his descendants (the Promised Land). He was long dead before Israel had possession of that land, but his wandering was the result of his faith in the promise of God (Hebrews 11:6-10).
If you are working towards a promise that has not yet come to pass, don't give up! Stay strong in your faith. At the exact right moment, God will bring that promise to pass.