Reflections on Zechariah 9

Zechariah 09 (Contemporary English Version)


1. This is a message from the LORD: His eyes are on everyone, especially the tribes of Israel. So he pronounces judgment against the cities of Hadrach and Damascus.
   
2. Judgment will also fall on the nearby city of Hamath, as well as on Tyre and Sidon, whose people are clever.
   
3. Tyre has built a fortress and piled up silver and gold, as though they were dust or mud from the streets.
   
4. Now the Lord will punish Tyre with poverty; he will sink its ships and send it up in flames.
   
5. Both Ashkelon and Gaza will tremble with fear; Ekron will lose all hope. Gaza's king will be killed, and Ashkelon emptied of its people.
   
6. A mob of half-breeds will settle in Ashdod, and the Lord himself will rob Philistia of pride.
   
7. No longer will the Philistines eat meat with blood in it or any unclean food. They will become part of the people of our God from the tribe of Judah. And God will accept the people of Ekron, as he did the Jebusites.
   
8. God says, "I will stand guard to protect my temple from those who come to attack. I know what's happening, and no one will mistreat my people ever again."
   
9. Everyone in Jerusalem, celebrate and shout! Your king has won a victory, and he is coming to you. He is humble and rides on a donkey; he comes on the colt of a donkey.
   
10. I, the LORD, will take away war chariots and horses from Israel and Jerusalem. Bows that were made for battle will be broken. I will bring peace to nations, and your king will rule from sea to sea. His kingdom will reach from the Euphrates River across the earth.
    
11. When I made a sacred agreement with you, my people, we sealed it with blood. Now some of you are captives in waterless pits, but I will come to your rescue
    
12. and offer you hope. Return to your fortress, because today I will reward you with twice what you had.
    
13. I will use Judah as my bow and Israel as my arrow. I will take the people of Zion as my sword and attack the Greeks.
    
14. Like a cloud, the LORD God will appear over his people, and his arrows will flash like lightning. God will sound his trumpet and attack in a whirlwind from the south.
    
15. The LORD All-Powerful will protect his people, and they will trample down the sharpshooters and their slingshots. They will drink and get rowdy; they will be as full as a bowl at the time of sacrifice.
    
16. The LORD God will save them on that day, because they are his people, and they will shine on his land like jewels in a crown.
    
17. How lovely they will be. Young people will grow there like grain in a field or grapes in a vineyard.
    

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The remaining chapters of Zechariah consist of two Oracles that look forward to the Messiah in both His First and Second Advent. Chapters 9-11 focus mostly on Christ's First Advent "stressing the theme of His rejection but also outlining Israel’s prophetic history to the end times." (The Bible Knowledge Commentary)

This chapter begins with a removal of Israel's enemies, a process that will happen over centuries up until Christ's Second Advent when He will reign in peace. Much of the destruction of the enemies mentioned in these verses is attributed by conservative commentators to Alexander the Great. In his marches to do battle with these nations, he marched back and forth past Israel but never attack her (verse 8), which is attributed to God's protection.

Verse 9 announces Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem on a donkey. His entry on a donkey denotes His coming in peace. Israel is to see Him as their King who will reign in righteousness and in victory. Under His reign "the bow of war will be removed." Verse 10 refers to Christ's millennial reign in which He will reign over the whole earth. "His dominion will extend from sea to sea."

Verse 11 drops back to Zechariah's time saying that Israel's exiles will be set free and return to the stronghold, Jerusalem. Then, in verse 13, the Lord says He "will bend Judah as My bow; I will fill that bow with Ephraim. I will rouse your sons, Zion, against your sons, Greece. I will make you like a warrior's sword." This is thought to be a reference to the conflict of the Maccabees with the various Antiochus who were Greek rulers of Syria. The Lord will give Israel victory over these Greek rulers and ultimately, "on that day," He will save them from all their enemies and they will be "like jewels in a crown." Verses 16 and 17 take us again to Christ's Second Advent.

This "day" when Christ will return and rule the earth is a day of victory not only for Israel, but for all who place their trust in Christ the Messiah.