This week, we shall finish the study
of the book of Zechariah and begin the study of the book of Nahum in the Old
Testament.
This chapter contains a symbolic act in in which the prophet assumes the office of a shepherd over the flock as commanded by the Lord. In essence, it is the prophecy of Jesus Christ as He is identified with God clearly in v. 10:
11:1-3—The Wrath of God against Israel/Judah
(1) To which part of Israel is judgment directed? (v. 1)
(2) Why does the Lord also call on the juniper/pine trees and the oaks of Bashan to wail? (v. 2)
(3) How will the ruin of the land affect the shepherds and the lions? (v. 3)
(4) Since “Lebanon (is) the frontier of the Holy Land, and Bashan, the northern part of the territory of the Israelites to the east of the Jordan” (K&D, 589), what kind of judgment do these verses depict? (This section appears to be an elaboration of the judgment pronounced in 10:3 against the shepherds of Judah.)
11:4-14—The Good Shepherd
(5) A reality check for Israel (vv. 5-6)
a. How does the Lord depict the house of Israel? (v. 4 )
b. Who are the ones who sell them to be slaughtered by the buyers (the nations)? (v. 5)
c. What kinds of shepherd-leaders would you say they are? (you may consult Jn. 10:12-13)
d. The Lord appears to have given up on the people (v. 6)
i. At the time of this prophecy, what have the people of Israel gone through?
ii. What can they expect in the future according to this oracle?
(6) The command to shepherd them (vv. 7-8a)
a. As much as the flock has been marked for slaughter, what does the Lord ask the prophet (who symbolizes the future Shepherd) to make?
b. What does the staff of a shepherd symbolize?
c. In calling one “Favor”, the other one “Union”, what does the appointment of this new Shepherd signify?
d. One month obviously signifies a very short period of time and based on what follows, this Shepherd can only refer to Christ Jesus. What might the three (kinds of bad) shepherd-leaders refer to at the appearance of Christ?
(7) The rejection by the flock (vv. 8b-14)
a. How does the flock treat this new Shepherd? (v. 8b)
b. How has this prophecy been fulfilled in Christ Jesus? (Acts 3:13ff)
c. The Shepherd will revoke the covenant with all the nations “on that day” (vv. 9-11)
i. At the rejection of the flock (the Jews), what favor will God withdraw from Israel?
ii. What has the history of Israel (revealed after the death and resurrection of Christ Jesus) reflected the fulfillment of the words in v. 9?
iii. What should Israel have learned from this? (v. 11)
d. The getting rid of their Shepherd (vv. 12-14)
i. As they detest their Shepherd, what will they do to get rid of Him? (v. 12)
ii. Why does the Lord call the price they pay to get rid of Him as “the handsome price”? (see Exod. 21:32)
iii. How has this prophesy been fulfilled concerning Christ Jesus? (see Matt. 26:14-16; 27:3-10)
iv. At this, the Union staff is also broken:
1. What does it mean? (v. 14)
2. While the Shepherd no longer just holds a staff that belongs only to Israel and Judah, what kind of a Shepherd has He become? (Jn. 10:16)
1:15-17—The Foolish Shepherd
(8) At the rejection of the Good Shepherd, what will happen to the land (and people) of Israel?
(9) Again, what does the history of Israel after Christ’s ascension reveal about the fulfillment of the prophecy in v. 16?
(10) Does it mean that the Lord has given up on the people of Israel and is oblivious to their plight? (v. 17)
(11) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
The last message of the rejection of the Good Shepherd and the consequences of their rejection is now followed by a message of hope for Israel.
12:1-9—The Physical Deliverance of Israel
(1) Who the Lord is (v. 1)
a. How does the Lord address Himself?
b. What is the importance of this reminder of who He is?
(2) A summary of the message (v. 2)
a. What is the bad news about Jerusalem?
b. What is the good news?
(3) The first “On that day”(v. 3)
a. How serious will the siege of Jerusalem be?
b. How will Jerusalem be a cup to send the nations reeling?
(4) The second “On that day” (vv. 4-5)
a. How will God watch and protect Judah? (v. 4)
b. How will the clan of Judah interpret God’s deliverance?
(5) The third “On that day” (vv. 6-7)
a. How will Jerusalem be a cup to send the nations reeling? (v. 6)
b. Why will God save the dwellings of Judah first? (v. 7)
c. Why shouldn’t the house of David and Jerusalem be greater than that of Judah?
(6) The fourth “On that day” (v. 8)
a. Against such formidable armies of the nations, how can the people in Jerusalem not be fearful and weak?
(7) The fifth “On that day” (v. 9)
a. What will be the fate of these attacking nations?
12:10-13—The Salvation of Israel
(8) What kind of a spirit will be poured upon them on that day? (v. 10)
(9) What is the result of the pouring of such a spirit?
(10) Who is the one that they have pierced? (Isa. 53:5; Jn 19:34, 37)
(11) How bitter will the mourning and grieving be? (vv. 10-11; see 2 Chr. 35:24-25)
(12) What does it signify?
(13) Who else will be mourning? (v. 12)
(14) What does clan by clan and “their wives” signify? (see Note below)
(15) Eventually, will only the whole house of Israel look upon Him and mourn? (see Rev. 1:7)
(16) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Note:
“This universality of the lamentation is individualized in vv. 12-14, and so depicted as to show that all the families and households of the nation mourn, and not the men only, but also the women…Of the several families named, two can be determined with certainty―namely, the families of the house of David…and the families of the house of Levi…But about the other two families, there is a difference in opinion.”
(K&D, 611-2)
Personally, I believe that the listing of clan by clan and the emphasis of wives as separate from husbands point to individual repentance rather than collective repentance.
The message of Israel’s salvation continues with the theme, “On that day”:
(1) A fountain will be opened (v. 1)—The house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem represent the whole house of Israel. (see K&D, 613, Rom. 11:26)
a. What will this fountain do to them?
b. Who is that fountain that can cleanse people from sins? (1 Jn. 1:7)
c. Is it only open to them?
d. Why then will it be open to them “on that day”? (12:10)
(2) Total spiritual transformation “On that day” (vv. 2-6)
a. What are the things that will be totally exterminated on that day? (v. 2; see Note below)
b. Utter rejection of false prophets by the people (v. 3)
i. According to the Law of Moses, how should false prophets be dealt with? (see Deut. 18:20)
ii. How does this hyperbole illustrate the people’s utter rejection of false prophets?
c. Utter repentance of false prophets (vv. 4-6)
i. In this hyperbole, how do false prophets show their repentance? (vv. 4-6)
ii. What lesson can we learn from them in disassociating ourselves from our former sinful lives?
(3) The striking of the Shepherd (v. 7)—in order to provide the fountain for cleansing, something has to happen first:
a. What is the relationship between this Shepherd and the Lord Almighty? (v. 7)
b. What will happen when the Lord Almighty strikes the Shepherd?
c. How is this fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ? (see Matt. 26:31, 56)
d. Why should the Lord Almighty strike His Shepherd in order to open the fountain of cleansing? (Matt. 26:28; 1 Jn. 5:6)
(4) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Note:
Idolatry and false prophecy “were the two principal forms in which ungodliness manifested itself in Israel” (K&D, 613). Revelation 16:13 testifies to the relationship between false prophets and unclean spirits.
As the whole book of prophecy by Zechariah is brought to a glorious close in chapter 14, the event that leads to the repentance of Israel, in which they will look upon the one whom they have pierced, is now made clear:
13:8-9—The Future Tribulation of Israel Foretold—the “whole land” apparently refers to the whole land of Israel as the rest of the prophecy makes clear:
(1) What will happen to two-thirds of its inhabitants? (v. 8)
(2) What will happen to the rest (i.e. remaining third)? (v. 9)
(3) What will be the result of this refining? (v. 9b)
14:1-2—More Details on the Refining
(4) What is this day of refining called? (v. 1)
(5) Who will be the oppressors of Israel? (v. 2)
(6) What “fire” will the remaining third go through? (v. 2)
14:3-5—The 2nd Coming of the Messiah/Christ
(7) Who will come and fight against the nations and how? (vv. 3-4; see Isa. 29:6; 66:15-16)
(8) Who in fact is the one being referred to? (Acts 1:9-12)
(9) What will happen to the Mount of Olives so that they may escape? (vv. 4-5; see Note below)
(10) Who will accompany the Lord at His return? (v. 5b; Matt. 25:31 )
14:6-9—The Consummation of Salvation
(11) How unique will that day be in terms of climate and natural order? (vv. 6-7)
(12) How does it resemble the eventual New heavens and new earth foretold in Revelation 21:22-26 and 22:5?
(13) It also affirms the vision of Ezekiel 47:1-12. What is the emphasis here about the Living Water? (See also how it resembles the Living Water in Rev. 22:1-2.)
(14) What has brought about these tremendous blessings? (v. 9)
(15) What is the message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Note:
While it is not clear where Azel is, one early church father, Cyril, thinks that it is a city east of Mount Olives. The earthquake in the days of Uzziah is only alluded to in Amos 1:1.
The consummation of God’s plan on earth also means the restoration of Jerusalem above all other nations:
14:10-11—Elevation of Jerusalem
(1) There will also be a geographical change concerning Jerusalem in that the whole land surrounding Jerusalem will be levelled into a plain, causing it to be elevated above its neighboring land. What does it signify? (see Note below)
(2) What will the city of Jerusalem become? (v. 11: Note, “never again will it be destroyed” is more literally translated as “there will be no more curse”.)
14:12-19—God’s Dealing with the Nations
(3) How will the Lord strike the nations that are mentioned in 14:1?
(4) Read the description of the plague carefully (vv. 12b-13, 15). What kind of modern-day warfare does it resemble with the same destructive power extended to animals?
(5) What will happen to those in the nations who survive such a plague? (v. 16)
(6) Why is the Festival of Tabernacles particularly mentioned here? (See Deut. 16:13-15. While commanded by the Lord during their wandering in the wilderness, it was obviously first celebrated upon their entrance into the Promised Land which marked the fulfillment of God’s promise.)
(7) Non-compliance of this future command would not happen during God’s complete reign on earth: What does such a warning, particularly against Egypt (the nation that symbolizes slavery to sin) serve to illustrate? (vv. 17-19)
14:20-21—All Things are Holy
(8) Where were the words “Holy to the Lord” originally commanded to be engraved on? (see Exod. 28:36-38)
(9) Where will these words be inscribed during God’s reign on earth? (v. 20)
(10) What does this signify?
(11) Within the house of the Lord (v. 20b)
a. Why should the sacred bowls in front of the altar be treated differently from the cooking pots?
b. What does it mean now that they will be treated equally?
(12) Outside of the house of the Lord (v. 21a)
a. Why would even common household pots be treated as holy as those used in the house of the Lord?
(13) There
will no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the Lord (v. 21b). Note:
The original Hebrew word "refers...sometimes to merchants" (TWOT,
446). Keil and Delitzsch opine that "The Canaanites are mentioned
here not as merchants...but as people laden with sin and under
cure" (see Gen. 9:25; Lev. 18:24-30; Deut. 7:2; 9:4).
a. Why were Canaanites prohibited in the house of the Lord in the first place? (see Gen. 9:25; Lev. 18:24-30; Deut. 7:2; 9:4)
b. What then does it mean by this statement?
(14) As we come to the end of the book of Zechariah, spend a bit of time going through your notes and take note of the following:
a. How important this book of prophecies concerning the first coming of the Lord is
b. How important this book of prophecies concerning the future of Israel and the world is
c. What is the most important message to you and how may you apply it to your life?
Note:
Land
surrounding Jerusalem:
With respect to the Benjamin gate,