Zechariah 014 – The Priest-King

Zechariah 014 – The Priest-King

By Dr. Andy Woods 01/19/2022

Zechariah 6:9-15

Alright! Well, good evening everybody. If you could take your Bibles and turn to Zechariah chapter 6 and verse 11. No, not verse 11, verse 9. Actually, we’re one minute early (laughs).

Alright! Well, Zechariah chapter 6 and verse 9 (Zech 6:9). We’re continuing our verse by verse teaching through the prophet Zechariah and tonight, Lord willing, we’re going to finish Roman numeral two (II) there, which is a huge section of the book, but it’s Zechariah’s eight night visions. So those are visions, eight of them, that he received in one night and of course the theme of all these visions is get busy rebuilding the temple, which Israel has slacked off on. So, here are the eight night visions we’ve actually covered.

We’ve actually finished the eight night visions: The red-horse among the myrtle trees, the four horns and four craftsmen, the surveyor with the measuring line, the cleansing and crowning of Joshua the high priest, the golden lampstand and the two olive trees, the flying scroll, the woman in the Ephah and then, last week, the four chariots; and you’ll notice on the right hand side of the screen we have a quick meaning for each of those visions, but the bottom line is it’s encouragement to get Israel, coming back from the captivity, you know, to rebuild the second temple.

Structure

1. Introductory call to repentance (Zech 1:1-6)
2. Eight night visions (Zech 1:7–6:15)
3. Question and answers about fasting (Zech 7–8)
4. Two burdens (Zech 9–14)

So, before we, next week, move into section three, which is questions and answers, chapters 7 and 8, this section on the eight night visions concludes with the crowning of a priest, the crowning of the high priest Joshua.

1. Eight Night Visions (Zech 1:7‒6:15)
2. Riders & horses among the myrtle trees (Zech 1:7-17)
3. Four horns & four craftsmen (Zech 1:18-21)
4. Man with the measuring line (Zech 2)
5. Cleansing of the High Priest Joshua (Zech 3)
6. Lampstand & olive tree (Zech 4)
7. Flying scroll (Zech 5:1-4)
8. Woman in the basket (Zech 5:5-11)
9. Four chariots (Zech 6:1-8)
10. Conclusion: crowning of Joshua (Zech 6:9-15)

So this is not so much a vision, but this is actually something that happened, that Zechariah talks about and the crowning of the high priest Joshua typifies the coming reign of Jesus Christ on the earth where He will reign as king and priest and bring in world peace. 3:23

So this crowning here, chapter 6 verses 9 through 15 (Zech 6:9-15) typifying the millennial Christ, is strategically placed at the end of his eight night visions, because it’s picturing what everything is about. So the cleansing of Israel and the restoration of Israel and all the things we’ve studied in these eight night visions, what does the whole thing point to? Well, it points to the reign of Jesus, the king priest and the crowning of Joshua the high priest, typifies that or represents it. So that’s why that is placed at the end of these eight visions. So, Charles Feinberg writes concerning the crowning of the high priest Joshua, that we’re going to study tonight,

Charles L. Feinberg – God Remembers: A Study of Zechariah (Wheaton: Van Kampen, 1950, p. 100.

“Here we have the end and consummation of all the prophetic Scriptures: the crowning of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is only after the dark night of world judgment and punishment is passed, that the glorious light of Christ’s coronation day will follow. This is one of the sublimest passages in the Scriptures on the Person and work of the Messiah.”

He says: Here we have the end and consummation of all the prophetic Scriptures: the crowning of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is only after the dark night of world judgment and punishment is passed, that the glorious light of Christ’s coronation day will follow. This is one of the sublimest passages in the Scriptures on the Person and work of the Messiah… So that’s why this crowning of the high priest Joshua appears at this point in the book. So, we can take this crowning and we can break it up into six parts.

The Crowning of Joshua (Zech 6:9-15)

1. The Offering (Zech 6:9-10)
2. The Coronation (Zech 6:11)
3. The Branch (Zech 6:12)
4. The King‒Priest (Zech 6:13)
5. The Reminder (Zech 6:14)
6. The Testimony (Zech 6:15)

So we have an offering, a coronation, the Branch, the king priest, the reminder and the testimony. 5:16

So, let’s start off here with the offering. Notice if you will chapter 6 and notice verse 9 (Zech 6:9), it says: The word of the LORD also came to me, saying… So, obviously when you see that expression, it’s a brand new oracle that’s being described here and as I’ve tried to explain, this is not so much one of his visions, but it’s something that actually took place in Zechariah’s day that he was supposed to participate in that points to the person of Jesus Christ. If you look at verse 10, you see Zechariah’s instructions from God: The word of the LORD also came to me, saying… verse 10 (Zech 6:10): Take an offering from the exiles, from Heldai, Tobijah and Jedaiah; and you go the same day and enter the house of Josiah the son of Zephaniah, where they have arrived from Babylon… So, here Zechariah basically is told to take part in an offering that the exiles had brought back from Babylon. So they came back from Babylon, these exiles and they’re involved in an offering. Why were they involved in an offering? Because they were taking up finances to build temple number two, which is the whole point of Zechariah’s ministry, to get the exiles to rebuild temple two.

ISRAEL’S FOUR TEMPLES

1. Solomon’s pre-exilic temple (Kings and Chronicles)
2. Zerubbabel’s post exilic temple (Ezra 1-6; John 2:20)
3. Antichrist’s temple (Dan. 9:27; Matt. 24:15; 2 Thess. 2:4; Rev. 11:1-2)
4.  Millennial temple (Ezek. 40-48)

Temple one, as you know, was destroyed seventy years earlier by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and so the whole name into game here is to get them busy rebuilding temple number two, to encourage them, to exhort them to do that; and so, some of the exiles came back from Babylon and they were basically taking up an offering for this purpose to restore the temple. 7:33

So, I’m reading through the Bible with my daughter, a chapter at night, and we happen to come across Ezra, which is the same time period and I noticed that it talks about this offering. Ezra chapter 1, verse 4 (Ezra 1:4) says: And every survivor, at whatever place he may live, the people of that place are to support him with silver and gold, with equipment and cattle, together with a voluntary offering for the house of God which is in Jerusalem… So the house of God is the temple. Ezra chapter 1, verse 6 (Ezra 1:6) says: And all of those around them encouraged them with articles of silver, with gold, with equipment, cattle, with valuables, aside from everything that was given as a voluntary offering… So there are three names given here, Heldai, Tobijah and Jedaiah, and they were involved in this offering project. So God tells Zechariah to meet these men at the house of Josiah, son of Zephaniah and participate in this offering. So, they’re giving, Zechariah go participate; and then he’s given more instructions in the coronation there in verse 11. Notice if you will Zechariah chapter 6, verse 11 (Zech 6:11), God then tells Zechariah what to do with this metal that’s being offered for the temple. He says: Take silver and gold, and make an ornate crown and set it on the head of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest… So here comes a coronation.

The Crowning of Joshua (Zech 6:9-15)

1. The Offering (Zech 6:9-10)
2. The Coronation (Zech 6:11)
3. The Branch (Zech 6:12)
4. The King‒Priest (Zech 6:13)
5. The Reminder (Zech 6:14)
6. The Testimony (Zech 6:15)

God tells Zechariah to take the silver and gold from this offering and make crowns. I think in Hebrew it’s better rendered “crowns”, most of your commentaries will tell you that and of course that picture is ultimately Jesus Christ, who’s coming back crowned with many crowns. In fact, don’t we have a song about that? Crown Him with many crowns. Revelation, 19 verse 12 (Rev 19:12) says of Jesus: His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems… as Jesus is coming back, diadems is sometimes translated as a crown. So this whole thing that’s happening here is pointing towards the millennial Jesus Christ. So take the metal from the silver and gold, make crowns out of them and place them on the high priest Joshua. Now, if you know much about the Bible, that immediately strikes you as strange because you’re not supposed to ever crown a priest. A priest was not a king and a king was not a priest. The throne and the crown went with the king, the temple and the functions in the temple went with the priesthood and God always kept those two offices separate. The priests came from which tribe? Anybody know? Levi and the kings came from which tribe? Anybody know? Judah, the fact that the kings would come from Judah, you’ll find mentioned in Genesis, 49, verse 10 (Gen 49:10) and never, never, never, never, never, never, never, never, under any circumstances were those offices to be mixed and people in the Old Testament that mixed those offices together got into big trouble and when I say big, I’m saying capital B, capital I, capital G with ten exclamation points following. You never mixed the office of priest and the office of king because those two offices coming together was reserved for one person only, Jesus Christ the Messiah. 12:12

So, when you study 1st Samuel, 13, you’ll find Saul getting impatient and essentially exercising priestly prerogatives. 1st Samuel, 13, I think in that case he was offering a sacrifice and he was told not to do that. Samuel said, what are you doing, what have you done? and God said to Saul through Samuel, because you’ve done this, you’ve lost your whole kingdom, which is a very big penalty. So Saul is the first guy that I know of in the Bible that tries to mix the two offices together. The other guy that I think of that tried to mix those two offices was a guy named Uzziah and his story is mentioned in 2nd Chronicles, 26, he went into the temple and he got involved in the incense and the things that priests were supposed to do and he was warned… First of all, he came off a string of victories, so he was lifted up with pride and when you’re lifted up with pride, you don’t think the rules apply to you, which is always a dangerous place to be in and he was told not, as a king, not to do what the priest do and he went ahead and did it anyway and when he did it, he was smote with leprosy by God from head to toe and 2nd Chronicles, 26, talks about how he spent his whole life as a leper. I mean, they had to put him in like a separate house and he was never cured from that and he ultimately died as a leper. So, when you’re reading this verse 11, you’re reading about a priest being crowned, you’re reading about the two offices being mixed and you know that something obviously is going on here that typifies the Messiah because anybody that mixed those two offices together got in big trouble with God. So this is a clue that something more is happening here than just the crowning of a priest, this typifies the Messiah. So, what we believe and I’ve taught a whole class here on “The Coming Kingdom”, I think it went about 82 lessons, I have a book out on the subject, if you’re here today in the building and want that, I’ll be happy to give that to you as a gift, but it’s basically tracing the doctrine of the kingdom and Scofield in his notes says:

Scofield Bible The New Scofield Bible. p. 968

“Christ is now a Priest but is still in the holiest within the veil (Heb. 9:11-14, 24; cp. Lev. 16:15) and seated on the Father’s throne (Rev. 3:21). He has not yet come out to take His own throne (Heb. 9:28).”

Christ is now a Priest but is still in the holiest within the veil and seated on the Father’s throne. He has not yet come out to take His own throne… So where is Jesus now? He is not reigning as king, He is functioning as high priest at the Fathers right hand after the order of Melchizedek, but the day in history will come at the end of the tribulation period, after the nation of Israel is converted, that He will return to earth and He will assume his regal authority, He will be crowned as king and He will function as king and priest over the entire world and that is what the crowning of the high priest Joshua is representing on here. 16:00

The Crowning of Joshua (Zech 6:9-15)

1. The Offering (Zech 6:9-10)
2. The Coronation (Zech 6:11)
3. The Branch (Zech 6:12)
4. The King‒Priest (Zech 6:13)
5. The Reminder (Zech 6:14)
6. The Testimony (Zech 6:15)

So we get more information on this crowning of the high priest Joshua typifying the coming Messiah as he’s called the Branch and you see his title as the Branch there in verse 12 (Zech 6:12): Then say to him, Thus says the LORD of hosts, Behold, a man whose name is Branch… and that’s another clue that this is typifying Messiah because the Messiah over and over again is called a Branch in the pages of prophetic scripture. Zechariah, 3, verse 8 (Zech 3:8): …for behold, I am going to bring in My servant the Branch… Isaiah, 11, verse 1 (Isa 11:1): Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a Branch from his roots will bear fruit…. Jeremiah, 23, verse 5 (Jer 23:5): Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; And He will reign as king and act wisely And do justice and righteousness in the land… Jeremiah, 33, verse 15 (Jer 33:15): In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch of David to spring forth; He shall execute justice and righteousness on the earth… So this Branch terminology, you know, it’s used pretty frequently in the prophets to point to the reign of the coming Messiah. So it’s interesting the guy that’s crown, the priest that’s crown, that typifies Jesus, his name is Joshua the high priest and that’s what Jesus’ name means. Jesus’ name actually is Joshua, Yeshua, speaking of salvation, you know, the Lord saves and when it’s translated from that into Greek, you get the name Jesus but the Hebrew name is Yeshua and it’s derived from Joshua. So, one commentator says (quote):

Kenneth L. Barker – Kenneth L. Barker “Zechariah.” In Daniel-Minor Prophets. Vol. 7 of The Expositor’s Bible Commentary. 12 vols. Edited by Frank E. Gaebelein and Richard P. Polcyn. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1985. Page 639

“How appropriate therefore that both the type (Joshua) and the antitype (Jesus) have a name meaning ‘the Lord saves’ (cf. NIV mg. at Matt 1:21).”

How appropriate therefore that both the type (Joshua) and the antitype (Jesus) have a name meaning “the Lord saves”… So you have the crowning of a priest, Hey! That points to the millennial Jesus Christ. You have the Branch, Hey! That points to the millennial Jesus Christ. You have the name Joshua itself, the man crowned, Hey! That’s where we get the name Jesus. So this whole thing is messianic and what is happening here is the end game as far as God is concerned. This is what God is going to do when all of these night visions are fulfilled. This is the big picture. This is where all of the pieces of the puzzle contribute towards in terms of the big idea. 19:16

It’s very interesting that this Branch, verse 12 (Zech 6:12) is called: …for He will Branch out from where He is… In other words, He’s going to have a very humble beginning when He comes and so this Branch out from where He is describes His humiliation in His first coming. You’ll see that same imagery in Isaiah, 53, verse 2 (Isa 53:2): For He… a prophecy about Jesus, written seven hundred years in advance… For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot,  And like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him… So contrary to what you see in a lot of pictures where Jesus is kind of like a Hollywood celebrity, the Jesus that came two thousand years ago was just a pretty average looking person. Not someone you put on a magazine, not someone you’d want featured in a film of some kind. You know, I think if Jesus went to an audition for a Hollywood job, let’s say He was alive today, I don’t think He’d get very far, He wouldn’t spend a lot of time in the green room, I don’t think He’d spent a lot of time with people shoving microphones in His face, you know, wanting to splash Him media wise all over the world, because He was just an average looking average person and that’s what this Branch imagery communicates out from where He is. In fact, the crown that He wore in His first coming was not the many crowns He will be adorned with when He comes back but it was a crown of what? Thorns, humiliation. John, 19, verse 5 (John 19:5) says: Jesus then came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, Behold, the Man!… In other words, here’s your king, this is the king of the Jews. This run of the mill guy that doesn’t even have a real crown on but a crown of humiliation. So this is the kind of thing I think Zechariah is seeing five hundred years in advance; But verse 12 goes on and it says: He… now, this flashforwards I think to His millennial reign, thousand year reign on the earth… He… that’s this Branch… will build the temple of the LORD… So He will function as king cause He’s coronated in that day and He will function as priest cause He cares about the temple, He actually builds the temple. 22:36

So, what temple are we talking about here? Well, we’re not talking about temple two anymore, that Zechariah’s audience was supposed to get busy building.

ISRAEL’S FOUR TEMPLES

1. Solomon’s pre-exilic temple (Kings and Chronicles)
2. Zerubbabel’s post exilic temple (Ezra 1-6; John 2:20)
3. Antichrist’s temple (Dan. 9:27; Matt. 24:15; 2 Thess. 2:4; Rev. 11:1-2)
4.  Millennial temple (Ezek. 40-48)

We’re talking about temple four, which is the millennial temple. Oh, come on Pastor, you don’t take the millennial temple literally, do you? Well, was temple one literal? Yeah. Was temple two literal? Yeah. Temple three that the antichrist will desecrate in the tribulation is literal so why would I say well, temple number four is not literal? I mean, it’s just as literal as the prior temples. In the book of Ezekiel, temple two… excuse me… temple one is juxtaposed with temple four. Ezekiel, 8 through 11 (Ezek 8-11) describes the shekinah glory of God leaving temple one. Ezekiel, chapters 40 through 46, describes the shekinah glory of God coming back into the fourth temple.

Everybody takes the first temple literally, no problem. That was the temple that the shekinah glory of God left, that was the temple that Nebuchadnezzar destroyed and if that’s so, and the shekinah glory of God left that temple and reenters the millennial temple, how in the word can you switch the method of interpretation in midstream and say, Ezekiel chapters 8 through 11 are literal but Ezekiel, 40 through 46 is non literal when they are both described the exact same way; and there’s a lot of people out there that will tell you, the fourth temple is allegorical and I’ve heard almost none of them, in fact, I never heard anybody interact with this argument that I’m giving, that the two were symmetrical, the two were juxtaposed in Ezekiel’s book. So whatever you’re doing with temple four, you’ve got to do with temple one, whatever you’re doing with temple one, you’ve got to do it with temple four and therefore, consistent interpretation means that when the Messiah builds the fourth temple, what it means is, He’s going to build the fourth temple. It could be just as real as all the other temples, or else you’ve got an inconsistent method of interpretation. Everybody takes the Bible literally somewhere or they wouldn’t even be an orthodox Christian, okay? What makes our interpretation unique here is we take the Bible literally, consistently. I can’t emphasize how important the word consistent is, cause most people to stay orthodox and not become liberals, they take parts of the Bible literally. I mean, they take the resurrection of Jesus literally. So why not take that same method of interpretation and apply it to the whole Bible, meaning that in the millennial kingdom, there’s going to be a functioning fourth millennial temple. I mean, it’s right there in verse 12 (Zech 6:12): He will build the temple of the Lord… So the Messiah is going to build the fourth temple and it’s going to be huge. That’s what the fourth temple looks like when you look at Ezekiel’s dimensions compared to the tabernacle, look how small the tabernacle is.

Solomon’s temple, which was wonderful, is quite small compared to the fourth millennial temple. The second temple that Herod renovated there is in green, look how small it is compared to the millennial temple and there’s at the very bottom in red, a football field, look how small a football field is compared to the dimensions laid out by Ezekiel concerning temple number four. 27:05

So if you’re going to say, Ezekiel is to be understood allegorically, then you have to do that in Isaiah, 2, 2 and 3 (Isaiah 2:2-3) which talks about the house of God in Jerusalem. You’ve got to do it right here, you’ve got to allegorize Zechariah, 6, verse 12 (Zech 6:12), you’ve got to allegorize Isaiah, 56, verses 6 and 7 (Isa 56:6-7), where God says: …for my house… same imagery is here… same wording is here, it’s going to be called a house of prayer. You have to allegorize Micah, 4, verse 2 (Micah 4:2) which says: Come and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD And to the house of the God of Jacob… and you have to allegorize Haggai chapter 2, verses 6 through 9 (Hag 2:6-9) where God says: …I will fill this house with glory… Verse 9… The latter glory of this house will be greater than the former… See, it’s no, it’s no small thing to play this game that there’s not going to be a millennial temple based on what Ezekiel says, cause people when they say that think they’re just attacking the book of Ezekiel. No, you’re not. You’re attacking the book of Zechariah, you’re attacking the book of Isaiah, you’re attacking the book of Micah, you’re attacking… let’s see.. Isaiah, Micah, Haggai, I think I got them all there, because all of them mention this fourth temple. Ezekiel gives you the most details but it’s mentioned all over the place and we’re seeing a mention over right here in verse 12 (Zech 6:12). This temple is going to be built during the thousand year kingdom.

So Jesus comes back, second advent and then there’s the kingdom, Revelation, 20. This temple will not be built in the eternal state at the far right hand side on the screen, Revelation, 21 and 22, for the simple reason that when John describes the eternal state, he saw no temple in it, Revelation 21:22 (Rev 21:22): I saw no temple in it, for the Lord the God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple… So you got to do something with this temple. Most people say, well, it’s just us and the church today, because, you know, our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. You have to rewrite the passages to make it mean that, it’s not what it says. It’s a wonderful thing that our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit but that’s got nothing to do with this passage. Other people just want to take it and they want to yank it into the eternal state and you can’t do that because John says in the eternal state there’s no temple. So what do you do with it? It’s not happening today, it’s not happening in the eternal state. The only place it fits is in the intermediate time period of the thousand year kingdom. It’s the only place you can put it. 30:24

So this is what Zechariah is seeing here. This is what the crowning of the high priest Joshua represents. So this is clearly messianic and it’s interesting that the Jewish people all understood this is the Messiah when Zechariah wrote this. Thomas Constable says:

Thomas L. Constable – Constable’s online notes on Zechariah, p. 69.

“The Aramaic Targum, the Jerusalem Talmud, and a Midrash all regarded verse 12 as messianic.”

The Aramaic Targum, the Jerusalem Talmud, and a Midrash all regarded verse 12 as messianic… Something very interesting happened in the interpretations of Judaism with a man named Rashi. Rashi came along post the time of Christ and all of these Jewish Christians were pointing to passages like this and saying this is talking about Jesus and it’s Rashi that came up with all of these interpretations that these are non-messianic. Prior to Rashi they all, prior to Jesus they all took them as messianic but then they had a sudden change of heart because they didn’t want the Hebrew Bible to point to Jesus and so Rashi gave them a new… another way out interpretively. Michael Rydelnik in his book “Messianic Hope” is probably the best author of Moody Institute, I believe, director of Jewish studies, Moody Bible Institute is probably the best author to study that issue because he is a Jewish Christian and he came to Christ understanding that these Old Testament passages pointed towards Jesus and he got saved and all of his Jewish friends told him that these passages had nothing to do with Jesus and what Rydelnik explains is they were using a Rashi post Christ interpretation, but prior to the time of Christ, everybody believed these passages were messianic.

So why is Zechariah talking about all of this? He is basically saying, look at God’s plans for the temple. So therefore, you guys coming back from the exile get busy building the temple. I mean, God’s going to do some really big with your small efforts and don’t you want to be on the winning side of history? 32:59

The Crowning of Joshua (Zech 6:9-15)

1. The Offering (Zech 6:9-10)
2. The Coronation (Zech 6:11)
3. The Branch (Zech 6:12)
4. The King‒Priest (Zech 6:13)
5. The Reminder (Zech 6:14)
6. The Testimony (Zech 6:15)

So we move away from the Branch and we get a description of the Messiah as the king priest and it’s right there in verse 13 (Zech 6:13): Yes, it is He who will build the temple of the LORD… So that’s a continuation of what we just saw at the end of verse 12 (Zech 6:12) and then it goes on and it says: …and He… That’s the Messiah… will bear the honor and sit and rule on His throne… So this is typifying the king priest Jesus who will have a royal king function. In fact, what does it say here later on in Zechariah?: Then it will come about that any who are left of all the nations that went against Jerusalem will go up year to year to worship the King… See? He’s not just high priest anymore in the millennial kingdom, he’s just a high priest now functioning as high priest. He has not yet entered His office as king but once you have the inauguration of the millennial kingdom and the coronation of Jesus Christ, now He’s functioning as king, that’s why He’s ruling the nations with a rod of iron during that thousand year time period. He’s not ruling the nations with a rod of iron right now. If He was ruling the nations with a rod of iron right now, the nations wouldn’t be getting away with what they’re getting away with (laughs) but when He comes and imposes His righteous standards, which is what the kingdom is all about, no one’s going to step out of line. In fact, here are some folks here that won’t want to go to Jerusalem to worship the king and boom! They don’t receive moisture or rain for their crops, just like that justice comes. There’s a rebellion against Jesus in the city of Jerusalem at the end of the millennial kingdom. Revelation, 20, verses 7 through 9 (Rev 20:7-9) and boom! Just like that, fire comes down from heaven and consumes the adversaries. I mean, there’s no messing around in the millennial kingdom. The age of grace is over. God is not dealing anymore on the basis of grace in the millennial kingdom. He is dealing with mankind on the basis of righteousness and when we pray “Thy kingdom come”, that’s what we’re praying for, for that standard to be reimposed, but I’m sure glad he didn’t impose this standard prior to 1983 because I got saved in 1983. So he doesn’t impose the standard too quick cause there’s people that are coming to Christ now in the age of grace. But one of these days, the age of grace will be over and the righteous standards of God would come forth. This is what’s being typified through the crowning of the high priest Joshua. 36:22

So when Jesus functions in His royal king function, He will bear the honor of being royal majesty and then if you look at verse 13 (Zech 6:13) it says: …He who will bear the honor and sit and rule on His throne… Watch this… Thus, He will be a priest on His throne… He will rule as priest. It talks about the priest ruling upon his throne, it talks about the priest sitting on his throne. Now, priests when they received the tabernacle at Mount Sinai… You can read about this in the book of Exodus and Leviticus, as you look at the furniture in the tabernacle, there’s no chair.

I mean, there’s all kinds of furniture described in the tabernacle but there’s no chair. Why not? Because the priest’s job was never done, because the animal sacrifices never permanently dealt with the sin question. That’s why when Jesus said, it is finished, His last words on the cross, He died, later He rose from the dead and then He ascended back to the Father’s right hand, He sat on the Father’s throne. Why would Jesus, the high priest, after the order of Melchizedek sit? Because He permanently solved the sin problem, that’s why He is in a higher priesthood, other than the priesthood of Aaron, He is in the priesthood of Melchizedek because none of those Aaronic priests sat down because their job was never done because they just deal with animal sacrifices which kick the can down the road a piece but never permanently resolve the sin question. So, that’s what is meant here in this imagery, He is sitting on his throne. No Aaronic Levitical priest ever did that, because Jesus said, it is finished, the work of the Levitical priest was never finished. So what throne are we talking about here? We’re talking about the Davidic throne. 38:46

If you’re following us in Genesis, you know that Abraham was promised land, seed and blessing in the Abrahamic Covenant.

The seed is amplified in the Davidic Covenant, where 2nd Samuel, 7, 12 through 16 (2 Sam 7:12-16) predicts a forever throne coming from David’s lineage a thousand years in advance. This is fulfilled, of course, in the person of Jesus Christ. So when it says throne here… Thus, He will be a priest on His throne… That’s a throne it’s talking about, David’s throne. This is not the Father’s throne in heaven, the throne that Jesus is on now in His present session as high priest. Once that session is over and He returns to the earth, He’s not sitting on His Father’s throne anymore. He is sitting on His own throne, which is the Davidic Throne, which is a fulfillment of 2nd Samuel, 7, verses 12 through 16 (2 Sam 7:12-16). So this whole coronation of Joshua the high priest is pointing towards that moment and it says there at the end of verse 13 (Zech 6:13): Thus, He will be a priest on His throne, and the counsel of peace will be between the two offices… What two offices? King and priest. Two offices that never got, as I’ve tried to explain earlier, mingled together. If you mingled them together, you were in big trouble. When the coronation of Christ starts the two offices are merged together in one person, Jesus. He is the only person qualified to mediate both offices. Not Uzziah, not Saul, but only Jesus Christ and once those two offices merge in the person of Jesus Christ, He will usher in a counsel of peace, the Hebrew word for peace here is Shalom, which is talking about not just peace with God in your heart but peace on planet earth. Isaiah, 9, verse 7 (Isa 9:7) says: There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace… or of Shalom. 41:28

So the whole, you know, that’s why the prophets talk about they’re going to beat their swords into ploughshares. The nations won’t even study how to do war anymore. Why? Because the two offices have merged in one person and He’s ushered in worldwide Shalom. You know, when we call Jesus the prince of peace, you have to understand something. It’s a multifaceted idea. He brings peace with God, between the sinner and God, because before we got saved we were God’s enemies Romans, 5, verse 10 (Rom 5:10). Philippians, 4, verses 6 and 7 (Phil 4:6-7): He will bring peace into your heart in the midst of anxiety… if you let Him, that’s why He’s asleep in the midst  a storm in a boat on the sea of Galilee while the disciples are panicking, cause He’s the prince of peace. He’s the one that also brings in physical peace, He’s the one that spoke to the wind and the waves on the sea of Galilee and they just stopped… The whole thing went calm and placid just with one word and then the disciples were really afraid. I mean, first they were afraid of the wind and the waves, then Jesus wakes up from His nap. He’s sleeping on a cushion by the way. Mark says that, I don’t know why we have to know that but that’s what Mark said, He’s on a cushion, He’s sound asleep. The disciples are terrified by the wind and the waves on the sea of Galilee. By the way, on the sea of Galilee, based on where you were situated geographically, beneath the mountains and so forth, storms come through there and can, you know, pick up just like that. So the geography of it is exactly the way the Bible narrates it. You know, they are out on a boat and the storm comes and the wind and the waves come and the disciples are scared and they say Jesus don’t you care and He wakes up from His nap as He was napping on a cushion and He gives a word and the storm stops and it’s sort of interesting the disciples who were afraid of the wind and the waves, now are really afraid. They are afraid of the one that just stops the storm cause they know they are not dealing with a normal person here. I mean, this is God in human flesh. So that is what Shalom means, peace with God, peace in the heart and then physical peace. The millennial kingdom says, when this physical peace comes, it’s going to come over the whole world. When the two offices are merged together in the person of Jesus Christ. That’s what Isaiah, 9, verse 7 (Isa 9:7) is speaking of. So we’re dealing here with the king priest Jesus Christ. The counsel of peace will be between the two offices, the office of king and the office of priest. Never were those offices intermingled just ask Saul about it or Uzziah and that’s why the kings always came from Judah and the priests always came from Levi. 45:03

Then, we move away from the king priest imagery to a reminder and you see that there in verse 14 (Zech 6:14).

The Crowning of Joshua (Zech 6:9-15)

1. The Offering (Zech 6:9-10)
2. The Coronation (Zech 6:11)
3. The Branch (Zech 6:12)
4. The King‒Priest (Zech 6:13)
5. The Reminder (Zech 6:14)
6. The Testimony (Zech 6:15)

It says: Now the crown will become a reminder in the temple of the LORD to Helem, Tobijah, Jedaiah and Hen the son of Zephaniah… So remember, Zechariah is told to participate in this offering, to take the metal from the offering and to form crowns and crown the high priest Joshua who typifies Jesus in His messianic reign because that’s what all of these night visions are pointing to ultimately; and this is to be, this crown, set up in such a way that it’s to be a perpetual reminder to Helem, Tobijah, Jedaiah. Those were the generous returnees who were involved in the offering. Those were the people described in Ezra, 1, verse 4 and verse 6 (Ezra 1:4,6) taking what was most valuable to them and wanting to use it to rebuild the temple. So these three people were generous. They were generous with their money. Not everybody in this time period was generous with their money. Zechariah’s contemporary Haggai will condemn those people. Haggai will say, is this really a time for you to be building paneled houses? While the Lord’s house lies in ruin? I mean, you’re putting in a jacuzzi, you’re putting in a sauna, you’ve got a nice balcony, you’re building the, you know, servant quarters, you’ve got a color television in every room of your house, wide screen. Boy, your house looks really nice, but look at the temple, It’s falling apart. So Haggai says, you’d better think about what you’re doing because your pocket has a hole in it. The more money you make, the more you blow through it and the less money you actually have than what you thought. The more you make, the more you lose because you’re under a curse. Consider your ways, you need to get busy with the Lord’s house. Now, I realize that we’re not in the dispensation of the law right now but most of evangelical Christianity today, to be completely honest with you, is exactly like that. They are busy with their own cruises, they’re busy with their own trips, they are busy with their own family fund, pouring all kinds of resources into that, busy with the annual trips to Disney World, which is… Maybe I’ll just come out and say it… which is basically a satanic company that promotes satanic stuff, sorry, oops, shouldn’t have said that. Busy with any number of things and then you look at their commitment to the local church, either financially or with their gifting, preferably both, and you can hardly get them to show up to a church service. 48:50

So that’s where Haggai says, think about what you’re doing, think about your priorities. The Bible says: Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and… what?… All these things will be added to you… Instead of worrying about your own wealth and storing it all up, you know, which you’re going to die in a few years anyway, I mean, who’re you going to leave it to? Or the rapture will happen and you’re leaving all of your wealth to the antichrist really. Why not take that wealth and pour it into missions? Why not take that wealth and pour it into the work of the Lord and have yourself an eternal reward? So, not everybody in this time period was as generous as these three were, but look-ee here, their names are perpetually inscribed in this verse throughout the ages because of their generosity. So the three are Helem, Tobijah and Jedaiah and Hen. Now, Hen is a synonym for Josiah son of Zephaniah mentioned in verse 10 (Zech 6:10). Hen actually means in Hebrew, gracious one. Only a person that is gracious can be generous. So all of these people were gracious, they were generous, they didn’t follow the crowd of their day, they poured the resources into the things of God and look at how God rewarded them? I mean, throughout the ages now their names are recorded in verse 14 (Zech 6:14) as an example of generosity. God blesses generosity. Jesus Himself said, it’s better to give than to receive; and you’ll notice that this crown is to be in the temple as a reminder to the generosity of these four individuals mentioned there in verse 14 (Zech 6:14). 50:56

One of the things that’s interesting is God is into remembrance. In fact, isn’t that what the Lord’s table is about? Do this in what? Remembrance of me. Isn’t that what the rainbow is supposed to be reminiscent of? It’s a reminder that God will remember the covenant that He made with Noah, Genesis, 9, verses 13 through 15  (Gen 9:13-15). In fact, there in… let’s see, this would be… the Jordan… God told the children of Israel to set up twelve stones which they had taken from the Jordan and set them up at Gilgal. Why do that? When your children ask their fathers. Gee, that means fathers spending time with their children, look at that. When your children ask their fathers in time to come saying, what are these stones? You shall inform your children saying Israel crossed this Jordan onto dry ground. In other words, when your kids ask what these stones are doing here, you can tell them the miracle the Lord did at Jordan and then you could back up a generation and tell them what the Lord did at the Red Sea and as the knowledge of God passes from father to child, it says in Joshua 4:24: that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the LORD is almighty, so that you may fear the LORD your God forever… So God has designed it so the knowledge of Him spreads throughout the earth as fathers are teaching their sons or their children based on memorials such as these twelve stones. So, the rainbow, remembrance, the Lord’s table, remembrance, twelve stones at Gilgal, remembrance, God is into remembrance; and so these individuals because of their generosity are perpetually remembered. That’s why the crowns that Zechariah created are to be set up as a reminder in the temple. 53:27

Even Ezekiel’s temple is a reminder, because in that temple are going to be animal sacrifices, Ezekiel, 43, verse 18 through 27 (Ezek 43: 18-27) Why would we need animal sacrifices again in the millennial kingdom? Because the millennial kingdom is a time period where death is almost a bygone reality. There’s death but to a very limited extent. So, if you’re living in a world with almost no death in it, with the curse curtailed, isn’t it kind of hard to remember what Jesus did to get you into the millennial kingdom? I mean, you forget Christ’s death because death is sort of something that used to happen but doesn’t happen anymore. So to remind the human race living in this time period of the reality of death, particularly the reality of the death of Jesus Christ, God says, in the millennial temple, animal sacrifices are to be offered. Not to add to the atoning work of Christ but as a token of remembrance.

The Crowning of Joshua (Zech 6:9-15)

1. The Offering (Zech 6:9-10)
2. The Coronation (Zech 6:11)
3. The Branch (Zech 6:12)
4. The King‒Priest (Zech 6:13)
5. The Reminder (Zech 6:14)
6. The Testimony (Zech 6:15)

We wrap it up here with the testimony, verse 15 (Zech 6:15): Then those who are far off will come and build the temple of the LORD… This is a prophecy of the Gentiles coming to the temple from afar to help rebuild it in the millennial kingdom. Isaiah, 60 and verse 4 (Isa 60:4) says: Lift up your eyes round about and see; They all gather together, they come to you. Your sons will come from afar, And your daughters will be carried in the arms… Isaiah, 60, verse 6 (Isa 60:6): …They will bring gold and frankincense… Isaiah, 60, verse 9 (Isa 60:9):  Their silver and their gold with them… Maybe that’s why the Magi coming from Babylon were bringing frankincense, etc… to visit the Christ child. So in the millennial kingdom, Gentiles are going to come everywhere bringing their money, their most prized possessions to contribute to temple number four. So, they’re going to be just as generous as the guys spoken of in verse 14 (Zech 6:14) So why… What’s Zechariah’s point? If this is how God values things, why are you allowing the Lord’s house to lie in ruin. Get busy with temple two. This is how eschatology, the study of the end, motivates present behavior, cause there’s a lot of people out there that will say eschatology, it doesn’t relate to daily life. Well, 2nd Peter, 3, verse 10 (2 Pet 3:10) describes the destruction of this world by fire and then verse 11 (2 Pet 3:11): Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness… In other words, Gosh, if this world is going to be destroyed by fire, why am I holding so tightly on to it? The knowledge of the future shapes your behavior in the present. That’s exactly what Zechariah is doing here. Don’t you see what’s going to happen in the millennial kingdom with temple four? Don’t you understand that Gentiles are going to come from all over the world to financially contribute to temple number four? And if that’s true, and if that’s how God values things, why would you allow the temple to lie in ruin today? This is his point. 57:50

Verse 15 (Zech 6:15) Those who are far off will come and build the temple of the Lord… Then look at this, second part of verse 15… Then you… that’s the readers… will know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you… How in the world would anybody know that Zechariah’s prophecies are true? Because he makes predictions and those predictions will come to pass and when every single one of these predictions come to pass, everybody is going to sit around in the millennial kingdom and say, that guy Zechariah, he was a prophet of God. Jesus in the upper room says: From now on I am telling you before it comes to pass, so that when it does occur, you may believe that I am He… John 13:19. John 14:29: Now I have told you before it happens, so that when it happens, you may believe… That’s what Zechariah is saying here and then at the very end of verse 15 (Zech 6:15) it says: …And it will take place if you completely obey the LORD your God… This is talking about a time period when Israel is not just the owner of her blessings but the possessor. The Abrahamic Covenant gives her ownership but she can’t enjoy what she owns until she believes.

She can’t enjoy what she owns until she’s in obedience, in other words. Ownership, Abrahamic Covenant, Mosaic Covenant, the conditions not for ownership but the conditions for enjoying what you own. So you can own a house in the Hamptons but you’re too busy working to go and enjoy it. So you’re an owner and not an enjoyer. That’s what Israel is right now, because of her condition of unbelief. He owns all of these kingdom’s promises but she does not possess them or enjoy them until she trusts in her Messiah. So, that’s why Zechariah chapter 6 verse 15 ends when it says: …And it will take place if you completely obey the LORD your God… These prophecies are not going to come into existence until Israel is in faith. That’s why he ends that way. 1:00:25

So, it really becomes a phenomenal prophecy… It’s a typification with the crowning of the high priest Joshua but it’s a phenomenal prophecy about the millennial Jesus and it’s during that time period the New Covenant will be in effect when Israel will have any internal motivation to obey God because God will be living on the inside of him… them. That’s what Jeremiah, 31 through 34 is talking about. So what is this whole thing about? Charles Feinberg says:

Charles L. Feinberg – God Remembers: A Study of Zechariah (Wheaton: Van Kampen, 1950, p. 100.

“The fulness [sic] of this Messianic prophecy can better be seen if we but marshal the distinctive features in order: 1. The humanity of the Branch. 2. The place of His birth. 3. The building of the millennial temple by Him. 4. His fitness to bear the glory of God. 5. His reign on the throne of David. 6. His priestly ministry. 7. The issue of His blessed ministry—peace.”

The fullness of this Messianic prophecy can better be seen if we but marshal the distinctive features in order: (1) The humanity of the Branch. (2) The place of His birth… Which is interesting because when Jesus was born into this world, He was born in, not Jerusalem but Bethlehem. There was another Bethlehem in Galilee but He was born in a little city two miles roughly to the south, I guess it is, I guess more southwest of Jerusalem, this little place called Bethlehem. So who would have thought that a Messiah would be born there? That’s why I know man did not write this book. If I was writing this book, I’d have him born in the nicest town, the most powerful place in the world, the most prominent place in the world, but not the Bible. It says, when He’s born, He’s going to come up as a little tender shoot. So… The fullness of this Messianic prophecy can better be seen if we but marshal the distinctive features in order: (1) The humanity of the Branch. (2) The place of His birth   (3) The building of the millennial temple by Him… Which He will do, He will build temple number four when He reigns as king priest… (4) His fitness to bear the glory of God. (5) His reign on the throne of David. (6) His priestly ministry… In addition to His regal ministry… (7) The issue of His blessed ministry is peace… not just peace with God in the heart, but peace or Shalom reigning throughout the whole earth when those two offices are combined in one man, the king priest Jesus Christ. 1:03:13

So every little thing that’s happening in these night visions is just a little piece of the story pointing to the big picture. The big picture is the millennial reign of Christ and that’s why this section ends with that being typified through the coronation of the priest Joshua. So we’ve seen the offering, the coronation, the Branch, the king priest, the reminder, the testimony and so the next time I’m with you, which would be next week, we have some questions that are asked at the beginning of chapter 7 and then God gives four oracles by way of answers. So we’re leaving Roman numeral two, we’re going to be starting Roman numeral three next week. So you might want to read in advance, chapter 7 and 8.

Structure

1. Introductory call to repentance (Zech 1:1-6)
2. Eight night visions (Zech 1:7–6:15)
3. Question and answers about fasting (Zech 7–8)
4. Two burdens (Zech 9–14)

So, 8:03, I stopped almost on time so if you got to take off, collect your young ones, now would be a good time to do that. If anybody wants to do Q&A we can do that also.