Zechariah 2
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6–9 Here the Lord exhorts the exiles still remaining in Babylon—the land of the north—to return to Judah; the Lord wants to gather all of His people together from the places He has scattered them (verses 6–7).
Then, in verses 8–9, the LORD Almighty speaks, and says: “After he has honored me and has sent me against the nations . . . I will surely raise my hand against them.” Here the Lord Almighty is identifying Himself with the Messiah: it is the Messiah who will be sent against the nations to punish them for plundering Judah. The Messiah will enable their slaves (the Jewish exiles) to take part in plundering these nations (verse 9); when that happens, the people will know that the Messiah has been sent by God.5
10–13 A glad day is coming for the Daughter of Zion (the people of Jerusalem), because the Messiah is coming (verse 10); God is going to live among His people (see Leviticus 26:11–12; John 1:14). Many nations will also be joined with the Lord and become His people (verse 11); these are the Gentile nations, which even in our day are turning to Christ. But when Christ comes again there will be a complete ingathering of GENTILES in fulfillment of God’s promise to ABRAHAM (Genesis 12:3) and His word spoken through the prophets (see Isaiah 2:1–4 and comment).
Judah will have a special place in that day; it will be the center of the Messianic kingdom. It will be the Lord’s special “inheritance,” His special possession, and Jerusalem will be His chosen dwelling place. Judah will be a holy land because of God’s presence within it (verse 12). Let all mankind be still before the Lord in awe and reverence, because He has roused Himself from His holy dwelling (heaven) on behalf of His people (see Habakkuk 2:20).
We may ask: What do these visions have to do with Christians today? They have much to do with us—as do all the Old Testament PROPHECIES. Believers today—who are mostly Gentiles—have been given the same promises we find in these visions. We too are inheritors of the blessings promised to Abraham’s descendants. We too have become God’s chosen people through faith in Christ. For us also, God is a wall of fire (verse 5) protecting us (Matthew 16:18). For us also, He is a sustainer and guide. And most wonderful of all, He lives among us (verse 10), and He has promised to be with us forever (Matthew 28:20). No wonder Zechariah has been called the “prophet of hope.”