Zechariah 020 – Stumbling Over Christ, Pt. 2

Zechariah 020 – Stumbling Over Christ Pt. 2

By Dr Andy Woods – 03/02/2022

Zechariah 9:9-10

I feel like we should sing that song “When the saints come marching in”, do do do do, No! We won’t do that. Alright! I see all the saints but I don’t see my wife in here. I shouldn’t say that with the thing going, should I? Alright! Well, good evening everybody. Let’s open up to the book of Zechariah chapter 9 and as Pastor Jim was saying, if you show up next week, you’ll probably think you missed the rapture cause we’re not having class, Wednesday night class next week because of the Chafer Conference which we would encourage you to attend if you’re interested at nearby West Houston Bible Church. They also do a really good job with live streaming. So you can go to Dean Bible Ministries and find out about the live streaming option. But then we’ll be having our normal Wednesday night, the following Wednesday. So hopefully that makes sense. 2:15

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 here we are in the book of Zechariah and we finished the introductory call to repentance and then from there we moved into the eight-night visions which we worked our way through and then we moved into part three which is questions and answers. Actually, not questions, question and answers.

III. Questions & Answers Concerning Fasting (Zech, 7‒8)

1. 1. Question (Zech 7:1-3)
   2. Four divine answers (Zech 7:4‒8:23)
      1. Condemnation of empty ritualism (Zech 7:4-7)
      2. Condemnation of past covenant failure (Zech 7:8-14)
      3. Prediction of Jerusalem’s restoration (Zech 8:1-17)
      4. Prediction of future blessing (Zech 8:18-23)

The question being should we continue to fast now that the temple is being rebuilt? You know, should we continue to mourn and fast the destruction of the former temple? And what follows is a series of answers condemning Israel for empty ritualism. But then there’s some beautiful prophecies concerning the restoration of the nation in the last days and from there we moved into part four of the book which we started last week on the two burdens.

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 the first burden is in chapters 9 through 11, the second burden is in chapters 12 through 14.

1. Two Burdens (Zech, 9‒14)

1. 1. Israel’s postponed deliverance due to her rejection of her Messiah (Zech, 9‒11)
   2. Israel’s future deliverance due to her acceptance of her Messiah (Zech, 12‒14)

Chapters 9 through 11 is more focused on the first coming of Christ, chapter 12 through 14 is more focused on the second coming of Christ. But the first burden relates to Israel’s postponed deliverance due to her rejection of her Messiah. So Zechariah is seeing five hundred years in advance, the nation reject Jesus and what he’s saying here is here’s all of the blessings that would have come to the nation politically, militarily, had they embraced the king on the king’s terms and Zechariah sees in advance that they would not accept their king. So you can take that first burden chapters 9 to 11 and divided into three parts.

1. First Burden Outline (Zech, 9‒11)
2. 1. 1. Divine warrior hymn (Zech, 9)
      2. True shepherd (Zech, 10)
      3. False shepherd (Zech, 11)

There is the divine warrior hymn which we started last time chapter 9. Then, there’s the description of the true shepherd which they should have embraced chapter 10 but they didn’t embrace the true shepherd, they embraced a false shepherd chapter 11 and what’s interesting is Zechariah sees all of this centuries before it happens. So we just started working our way through the first part of the first burden,

Divine Warrior Hymn (Zech 9:1-17)

1. Judgment on the oppressing nations (Zech 9:1-8)
2. Messiah (Zech 9:9-10)
3. Covenant protection (Zech 9:11-17)

the divine warrior hymn and what you have in verses 1 through 8 is a whole bunch of judgments that would come to the nation through Alexander the Great. So keep in mind Zechariah is prophesying about 518 B C, roughly and he sees a man named Alexander the Great. He doesn’t mention his name but most people believe that that’s when verses 1 through 8 were fulfilled and Alexander the Great came upon the scene. You know, his prophecies are about 331, roughly, BC. So Zechariah’s is seeing this two hundred years before it happens and he sees God dealing with all of these nations because of their mistreatment of Israel and so Zechariah’s prophecies start at the north of the nation.

1. Judgment on the Oppressing Nations (9:1-8)

• Hadrach (Zech 9:1a)
• Damascus (1b)
• Hamath (Zech 9:2a)
• Tyre & Sidon (Zech 9:2b-4)
• Philistines (Zech 9:5-7)
• Jerusalem (Zech 9:8)

Actually, not of the nation, even further north of Israel up in Syria and he works his way all the way down south through the nation and he sees judgment coming to all these nations because of their mistreatment of Israel. So he starts in Syria and works his way all the way down to the Philistia

and even deals with Gaza

in what today is called the Gaza Strip and all of these nations are in trouble with God because they mistreated Israel and we know Genesis, 12, verse 3 (Gen 12:3): I’ll bless those who bless you and whoever curses you, I will curse… And so this judgment basically is meted out by Alexander the Great around, I don’t know, 333 to 331 BC, roughly. 7:15

So Kenneth Parker in his Zechariah commentary says:

Kenneth L. Barker – Barker, Kenneth L. “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. p. 657.

“As history shows, the agent of the Lord’s judgment was Alexander the Great. After defeating the Persians (333 B.C.), Alexander moved swiftly toward Egypt. On his march he toppled the cities in the Aramean (Syrian) interior, as well as those on the Mediterranean coast. Yet, on coming to Jerusalem, he refused to destroy it.”

As history shows, the agent of the Lord’s judgment was Alexander the Great. After defeating the Persians, Alexander moved swiftly toward Egypt. On his march he toppled the cities in the Aramean (Syrian) territory, as well as those on the Mediterranean coast. Yet, on coming to Jerusalem, he refused to destroy it… And you actually see Zechariah predicting that, right there in verse 8 (Zech 9:8) and so God brought a huge string of victories to the nation and God made good on His promise to punish those nations that abused Israel and this string of victories that Israel would experience would have not only kept going, but it would have materialized into the millennial kingdom had Israel done one thing and that one thing was to enthrone their Messiah when He showed up, which very sadly they didn’t do. So this whole string of victories now related to the kingdom is now postponed for a future generation. So we made it all the way through verse 9 but I want to revisit verse 9 because it’s very important in terms of the Bible as a whole and it’s probably the one verse in Zechariah, 9, that most Christians know. They may not know much about the rest of the chapter but they know verse 9 because it’s one of the strongest messianic prophecies written five hundred years in advance about the Messiah.

1. Messiah – (Zech 9:9-10)

• First advent (Zech 9:9)
• Second advent (Zech 9:10)

So the Messiah that they didn’t enthrone is described in verses 9 and 10. Verse 9, we believe is a description of the first advent of Jesus. Verse 10 is a description of the second advent of Jesus. So what happened? Look at verse 9 (Zech 9:9): Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, Humble, and mounted on a donkey, Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey. So this great string of victories would have materialized into the millennial kingdom had the nation enthroned their Messiah on the Messiah’s terms but they did not. Why did Israel not enthrone Jesus when He showed up? The answer is very simple, Jesus did not fit their box or their rubric or their definition of what a Messiah is supposed to be. Jesus came to them the first time to deal with the sin issue. They weren’t interested in that. They were interested in somebody like Alexander the Great showing up and overthrowing Rome and they don’t understand that spiritual peace with God has to happen first before He can bring political peace to the earth. So Jesus came in humility on a donkey and He didn’t come the way Alexander the Great came. 11:10

Now, we have a friend in California who follows our ministry and she sent me this poem, and this poem contrasts Alexander the Great with Jesus and let me read this to you, it’s by someone named Charles Ross Weede, it says: Jesus and Alexander died at thirty-three. One lived and died for self; one died for you and me; The Greek died on a throne; the Jew… That would be Jesus… died on a cross; One’s life a triumph seemed; the other but a loss. One led vast armies forth; the other walked alone. One shed a whole world’s blood; the other gave His own. One won the world in life and lost it all in death; The other lost His life to win the whole world’s faith. Jesus and Alexander died at thirty-three. One died in Babylon, and one on Calvary. One gained all for himself… Remember it was Alexander the Great that conquered the known world and wept cause there was nothing left to conquer… One gained all for himself and one Himself He gave, One conquered every throne; the other every grave. The one made himself God, but the true God made Himself less, The one lived but to blast, the other but to bless. When the Greek died, forever fell his throne of swords; But Jesus died to live forever, the Lord of lords. Jesus and Alexander died at age thirty-three. The Greek made all slaves; the Jew… That’s Jesus… made all free. One built a throne on blood; the other built his throne of love. The one was born of earth; the other from above. One won all this earth, to lose all earth and heaven. The other gave up all, that all to Him be given. The Greek forever died; the Jew forever lives. He loses all who gets… That would be Alexander… but Jesus wins all things who gives… So I don’t know, did you guys enjoy that despite my poor reading? Charles Ross Weede, I’m very happy this was sent to me because it really contrasts the two. I mean, both died at age 33. But they had two different obviously philosophies of life. One was a military conqueror and the other one came as a servant and so this is the whole problem with Israel in the 1st century is Jesus didn’t fit the rubric of what a Messiah was supposed to be, because he came in humility. He actually came riding on a donkey. Now the reason riding on a donkey is significant is because that would be fulfilled in Matthew, 21, verses 1 through 5 at the triumphal entry. It says in Matthew, 21, verses 1 through 5 (Matt 21:1-5): When they had approached Jerusalem and had come to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied there and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to Me and If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, The Lord has need of them, and immediately he will send them… Now, this is Matthew, 21, verse 4 (Matt 21:4): This took place so that what was spoken through the prophet will be fulfilled… Which prophet? Zechariah and then, verse 5 quotes our verse here, chapter 9, verse 9 (Matt 21:5): Say to the daughter of Zion, behold your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a donkey… So Jesus comes in riding on a donkey, He doesn’t come in like Alexander the Great and the Jews basically rejected Him. They were looking for a military conqueror. In fact, Jesus in John, 5, verse 43 (John 5:43) of 1st century Israel said this: I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, you will receive him… So if I had come just like Alexander the Great came you would have enthroned me, but I didn’t come like Alexander the Great and so you rejected me. 17:37

This explains what the apostle Paul is speaking of in Romans, 9, verse 32 when he talks about how Israel stumbled over Christ. Romans, 9, verse 32 (Rom 9:32) says: Why?… In other words, why did Israel reject their Messiah… Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone… So not seeing their need for spiritual Shalom, peace with God and viewing everything in terms of politics, they were looking for the wrong kind of Messiah; they were looking for an Alexander the Great and Jesus didn’t come that way because He wants to deal with the hearts of people first before He brings in his political kingdom and so, Jesus showed up, He was their Messiah. There’s absolutely no doubt Jesus was a long awaited Jewish Messiah. Just read through the gospel of Matthew and you’ll see it. Jesus fulfilled countless prophecies, He did countless miracles. You know, His genealogy, where He was born. I mean, His messianic credentials were absolutely impeccable and because He didn’t do what 1st century Israel thought a Messiah should do, they literally just tripped right over Him, they stumbled. You know, it reminds me of the time where, you know, we were moving into our house here in Sugar Land and I get up sometimes in the middle of the night to get something to drink and of course I didn’t have the light on and there was one of the moving boxes there that I couldn’t see that I forgot was there and I just went Wheesh! and I mean, I’m not the smallest guy in the world, but I just stumbled right over it, landed smack on my shoulder. I think I re-aggravated a basketball injury that I had a few years back and that’s what I think of about tripping over something. I mean, that is what Israel did. I mean, He was right there in their midst. All they had to do was enthrone the king on the king’s terms and the whole Messianic kingdom would have materialized, the string of victories that they were enjoying at the time would have given way to the millennial kingdom and they just tripped right over Jesus, because He didn’t come according to their box where their definition of what a Messiah should be and very, very sadly that’s true with many people today. Many people reject Jesus because He doesn’t fit what they think He ought to be doing for them. You know, He doesn’t make them rich enough, He doesn’t make them popular enough, He doesn’t make them powerful enough, He doesn’t answer prayers the way they want them answered. He talks about subjects that we are not interested in and so many people have the same problem, they just trip right over Jesus. Jesus offers salvation on the basis of grace alone through faith alone. The world system is far more interested in working for salvation because that gives them something to brag about and so it’s almost like every time Jesus opens His mouth and talks, people, you know, get more and more uninterested and they stumble over the cornerstone and that’s what happened to 1st century Israel and Zechariah, five hundred years before it happens is seeing this whole thing materialize. 21:40

So when the Messiah comes, He’s going to bring in justice. You’ll see the word there “justly”, He is just and endowed with salvation. Zechariah in verse 9 (Zech 9:9) says: when He comes, He’s going to bring in salvation… That’s why it says rejoice and what Zechariah means by salvation is spiritual peace with God, which is an issue that has to be dealt with before the millennial kingdom can materialize and that’s why people at the coming of Christ should have been rejoicing. I tell you one thing, Alexander the Great didn’t bring rejoicing, he brought fear. But Jesus would bring in rejoicing. You’ll also see in verse 9 the word “humble”: Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, Humble and mounted on a donkey… You know, who could have written a story like this where God in human flesh comes in humility. But He didn’t come with power. He didn’t come with political authority, the way they wanted like Alexander the Great had and so they ended up rejecting Him and then He came riding in on a donkey and when you get into some extra biblical writings on this, what you discover is the ancient rulers rode on donkeys when they wanted peace. Peace, we don’t want peace! We want a conqueror. Now, He will come back one day as a conqueror with a sharp sword protruding from His mouth on a white horse wearing many crowns but not the first coming. The first coming he came with humility and so 1st century Israel just stumbled right over their own Messiah and so you move away from verse 9 into verse 10 (Zech 9:10) where you start to get prophecies about the second coming. Because all of Israel’s kingdom blessings are now on hold. They’re in a state of postponement, they’re in a state of abeyance until they one day enthrone the king on the king’s terms and this is such a pride problem with Israel that God is going to have to put them through the tribulation period, the time of Jacob’s trouble, to bring them to a place of humiliation where they actually recognize that they need Jesus as Jesus, not Jesus as they basically want him to be. But they will fulfill that condition and the second coming will occur. They will actually call Jesus back to the earth to rescue them from the beast, yet future. Matthew, 23, versus 37 through 39 (Matt 23:37-39) and then the kingdom blessings will materialize and you see the kingdom blessings that they will have one day that are currently in a state of postponement right there in verse 10. Verse 9, first coming, verse 10, second coming. 25:21

1. Messiah – (Zech 9:9-10)

• First advent (Zech 9:9)
• Second advent (Zech 9:10)

So what does He say in verse 10? (Zech 9:10): I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim And the horse from Jerusalem; And the bow of war will be cut off. And He will speak peace to the nations; And His dominion will be from sea to sea, And from the River to the ends of the earth… So this is what Israel is going to receive when they finally get it right and accept Christ on His terms in His second coming. They’re going to get the conqueror because it mentions there the bow of war etc and when Jesus comes back, He’s going to speak peace to the nations. That’s when the lasting political peace will materialize. The book of Isaiah chapter 2, and verse 4 (Isa 2:4) says: He… That’s the future Messiah… will judge between the nations and will render decisions for many peoples. They will hammer their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not lift up sword against nation and never again will they learn of war… So He will speak peace to the nations. Very sadly, as you’re probably aware, these words from Isaiah chapter 2, verse 4 (Isa 2:4), are inscribed on to United Nations property and the United Nations by taking that verse and putting it on their wall is ascribing to itself a messianic role.

In other words, what they’re saying is We are going to fulfill Isaiah, 2 and verse 4 and I’m glad you’re laughing because it’s ridiculous. I mean, if you read the newspapers the last couple days? Does it look like they’re bringing peace to the world? In fact, as you probably know, there have been more wars subsequent to the formation of the United Nations than before the United Nations was ever formed. So if their standard is Isaiah chapter 2, and verse 4, you know, they’re complete and total abject failures and biblically we know that to be true because our Bible says, only Jesus Himself when He is enthroned by Israel on His terms will speak peace to the nations. Isaiah, 9, verse 7 (Isa 9:7) says: On that day, there will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace… And how big is His kingdom going to be? It says right there in verse 10 (Zech 9:10):  His dominion will be from sea to sea… And one of the games that’s played in academia is there’s a lot of people out there that don’t want to acknowledge a future earthly kingdom.

They want to move right from the second coming into the eternal state and they use kind of fuzzy language like, you know, here we would have a millennial kingdom preceeding the eternal state, they would use fuzzy language like eschaton. You know, I was reading a few of them this week and they were talking about, yeah! What the Lord is going to do in the eschaton and whenever I hear that word “eschaton” the way they are using it I just go thumbs down. I should be more professional about it. But that is a gross marginalization of what the Bible says and what they’re trying to do is they are trying to take all these passages and they’re trying to jam them into the eternal state. Well, this passage, like so many, doesn’t fit the eternal state because it says “from sea to sea”. What’s going on in the eternal state? John says, No longer was there any sea… So if there’s no longer any sea in the eternal state, how could He reign from sea to sea in verse 10 (Zech 9:10)? So there must be some sort of intermediate kingdom on the earth before the eternal state is ushered in. If you don’t have that, you have all of these passages with no place to be fulfilled and it goes on and it says: From the river to the ends of the earth… And make no mistake about it. Jesus is going to set up a kingdom on this earth and you’re part of it. You’ll be in the father’s house after the rapture for seven years. But the translation “in my Father’s house are many mansions,” As we’ve talked about in different times at this church is not an accurate translation. The Greek word for “in my Father’s house are many mansions,” it’s really not a mansion. It says a dwelling place. It’s the same word use for an inn which is a place you’re in temporarily and I don’t mean to marginalize it cause I don’t think it’s going to be a slum or anything like that, you know, you won’t be disappointed. But think about this for a minute, if the Lord were to rapture you and take you to a mansion. Okay! Where you’ve got your golf course, you’ve got your sauna, you’ve got your tennis court, you’ve got your fine dining. You know, you got everything you want and then at the end He says, okay! Seven years are over let’s go back and rule and reign on the earth. You probably aren’t going to want to go to back to the earth, right? So it can’t be too nice because the father’s house and the many rooms in it is a temporary dwelling place. Why? Because our ultimate home is not heaven and Augustine has messed all of this up, cause all we think about is heaven and clouds in the sky and all that kind of stuff and we’re really not reading our Bible. Augustine brought, you know, spiritualized all of these futuristic concepts. It says very clearly here: And from the river to the ends of the earth… Meaning His kingdom will exist on the earth and if you know Christ personally, then after you’re with the Lord briefly for seven years in the father’s house, you’re returning right back to the earth where you will rule and reign under His delegated authority and everything that’s happening in your life right now, in terms of trials etc, it’s preparatory for that kingdom role. So as we like to say, this life is simply training time for reigning time. 32:56

So where are we getting this theology from? Well, Revelation, 1, verse 6 (Rev 1:6) says: He’s made us… That’s the church… to be a kingdom of priests to His God and Father. To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever, Amen… And then in Revelation, 5, verse 10 (Rev 5:10), it says: You have made them… That’s us… to be a kingdom and priests to our God… and look at the rest of the verse… They… That’s us… will reign… Now notice that reigning is future. So we’re not reigning now, in training yes, reigning no. It’s so clear, it’s amazing that we miss this… They will reign… Where? What does it say?… Upon the earth… So that’s your future, your future is to be removed from this earth before God pours out His wrath on it, as Satan is being evicted from planet earth and you’re with the Lord in the Father’s house, which is not a mansion, contrary to Tyndale’s mistranslation of the Greek word “mone,” contrary to the King James, which is generally a pretty good translation, errantly following Tyndale. The Greek doesn’t say mansion. Why doesn’t it say mansion? Why does it use a word like an inn? Because heaven is not our ultimate home. It’s our temporary home for seven years but then when Israel is converted and calls Jesus back to the earth, here you come with Jesus because now you’re married, right? And that’s why Paul says, where we will forever be with the Lord. So wherever He goes, we go, right? Husband-wife. That’s why it’s, you know, improper etiquette to invite one spouse in the marriage somewhere and not the other, because they’re married, they’re a unit. Wherever one goes, the other goes. So we are now no longer the bride of Christ but the wife of the Lamb and we’re coming back to the earth. Why would we come back to the earth? Cause that’s where He’s coming and we’re married to Him so we’re forever with the Lord. So when He comes back to rule and reign, we’re ruling and reigning with Him under His delegated authority and the degree of authority that you wield in that time period, is connected to our faithfulness to the Lord now. I mean, we all rule but it’s pretty clear, as you go through the Bible, some are given greater spheres of influence than others. The Bible says, if you’re faithful with something tiny or small, God will put you in charge of a lot of things… Well, when exactly is that going to happen? That’s the millennial kingdom and so that’s why Zechariah’s prophecies here talk about… To the ends of the earth. The river… There’s kind of a debate on what the river is, He says: …from the river to the ends of the earth… I would guess the river would be the Euphrates. I mean, it’s going to start from the Euphrates and it’s going to go to the Nile. But ultimately it’s going to cover the whole earth from sea to sea. 36:31

Now Alexander the Great brought in a lot of conquest but nothing like this. I mean, Alexander the Great was a conqueror, he conquered the known world. He brought in the Greek language which was providential because the New Testament needed to be recorded in Greek because it’s one of the richest dialects that we have linguistically. So God used Alexander the Great even though it’s doubtful Alexander the great knew God. I mean, Alexander the Great is the one that wept cause he had nothing left to conquer and then about the age 33, he died of either venereal disease or alcoholism or some combination thereof and here was a man that could conquer the known world but he couldn’t conquer his own lusts and he couldn’t conquer his own passions and Alexander the Great brought in a lot of things but it’s nothing compared to what Jesus is going to bring in, once that earthly kingdom is set up. I mean, Alexander the Great is really small potatoes compared to this millennial, earthly one thousand year kingdom. So what you’ll notice in between verses 9 and 10 is a gap of time that’s undisclosed. It goes at least two thousand years and what would you put in between the end of verse 9 and the beginning of verse 10? That’s us, the church age. The inter- advent age. The time period between the two comings of Christ that the prophets could not see. So verse 9 (Zech 9:9) says: Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, Humble… And that’s the part of it that 1st century Israel didn’t like. You’re not enough like Alexander the Great… Humble, and mounted on a donkey, Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey… That’s the first coming. That’s what they rejected. The formal rejection of Jesus by 1st century Israel took place on Palm Sunday. That’s when they made the decision nationally, in terms of the leadership, that we will not bow the knee to this man and that’s why Jesus on Palm Sunday is quoting this verse and telling the disciples, go get a donkey and if the guy that owns the donkey, the innkeeper or whatever, gives you any push back on it just tell them that the Messiah needs it. So this whole thing is scripted in advance and Jesus rides in on a donkey and He’s rejected by 1st century Israel. So the prophecy stops there and then you move into verse 10 (Zech 9:10)  and it moves into the second coming. This is everything Israel will get once they enthrone the king on the king’s terms. I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim And the horse from Jerusalem; And the bow of war will be cut off. And He will speak peace to the nations; And His dominion will be from sea to sea, And from the River… probably I would think the Euphrates… to the ends of the earth… So you’ll notice that Zechariah could see the first coming, he could see prophetically the second coming but he couldn’t see what was happening in between. This is what we call the mountain peaks of prophecy.

This is the vision of the prophets. It’s like looking at two mountains in the distance with one raised slightly behind the other. The only thing you can see are the two mountain peaks. You cannot see the valley between the mountain peaks. So that’s why Zechariah’s prophecy just skips from verse 9 to verse 10. What’s happening in between verses 9 and verse 10 is an age of time called a mystery age; the inter- advent age, Jesus calls it a mystery age in Matthew, 13. It’s called a mystery because the prophets couldn’t see it and when He started to explain this mystery age to the apostles, He said, blessed are your eyes cause they see and blessed are your ears cause they hear for many of the greats of the past… couldn’t see what I’m about to tell you and He starts to disclose this mystery age, the church is part of that mystery age, Zechariah could not see that age, nor could Isaiah, nor could Ezekiel, nor could Daniel, nor could any other Old Testament figure any more than a person looking into the distance can see the valley between the mountain peaks and I love the statement here by Warren Wiersbe, he’s one of my favorite commentators and he says it this way and by the way, it doesn’t mean I agree with him on every little thing cause every time I say something nice about somebody, I get a bunch of emails saying, yeah! But he says this over here, that over there. Well, it’s not a blanket endorsement but I mean, if I had a chance to have him over for dinner, he’s with the Lord now, I would have him to my house for dinner. You know, he’s a pretty cool, thumbs up guy, alright. He says here:

Warren Wiersbe – Wiersbe, Warren W. “Zechariah.” In The Bible Exposition Commentary/Prophets, pp. 447-76. Colorado Springs, Colo.: Cook Communications Ministries; and Eastbourne, England: Kingsway Communications Ltd., 2002. p. 467.

“The entire age of the church fits between Zechariah 9:9 and 9:10, just as it does between Isaiah 9:6 and 7 and after the comma in Isaiah 61:2.”

The entire age of the church fits between Zechariah, 9, 9 and Zechariah, 9, 10, just as it does between Isaiah, 9, verse 6, and verse 7 and after the comma in Isaiah, 61, verse 2… Have you read Isaiah, 9, verses 6, and 7 (Isa 9:6-7) lately? I mean, I know you’ve read it because it’s on all your Christmas cards. I mean, many of you sent me a lot of wonderful Christmas cards and on all of them is Isaiah, 9, 6, and 7. But what does Isaiah, 9, 6, and 7 say? For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us… Now is that the first coming or the second coming? That’s got to be the first coming cause it’s talking about a child born to us, that’s why we have it on our Christmas cards, right? But what about the rest of the verse? The government will rest on his shoulders. I mean, is the government resting on the shoulders of Jesus right now? Doesn’t look like it. His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, eternal prince of peace, there will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace… The replacement theologians, they just allegorize it, and make it something spiritual but that’s not what this predicts. This is talking about political peace in the world which hasn’t transpired yet. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this on the throne of David and over his kingdom. Is anybody ruling right now on David’s throne from Jerusalem? There’s no king on David’s throne right now. But this says the day’s going to come when Jesus is going to take His seat on David’s throne in Jerusalem and orchestrate the millennial kingdom for a thousand years. It says: To establish it and uphold it with justice and righteousness… Are you seeing a lot of justice and righteousness in the world today? You ‘all read the same newspapers I read? To establish it and uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore… So what do we do with this? Well, 6a is the first coming and right after it says us, semicolon, he starts talking about the second coming and Isaiah, like Zechariah could not see the valley between the mountains, he couldn’t see it and yet he describes the two back to back. Verse 6 is the first coming. The second part of verse 6 and the rest of verse 7 is what will happen literally at the second coming once the nation of Israel enthrones the king on the king’s terms. 45:52

So you have to understand that this is a very confusing idea to the prophets. The prophets themselves did not know what to do with their own prophecies. Now they say hindsight is 20/20, right? We can look back through the corridors of time and we can see exactly what this means. We can see this part is first coming, this part is second coming. Zechariah, 9, 9 (Zech 9:9),  first coming, Zechariah, 9, 10 (Zech 9:10), second coming. But hindsight is 2020. The prophets didn’t have the advantage that we have of a completed canon and hindsight in history and so they were confused about their own prophecies. They don’t know what to make of them. I mean, put yourself in Isaiah’s shoes. At one point the Holy Spirit, Isaiah, 53, is speaking to him about a suffering Messiah and then the same Holy Spirit, Isaiah, 9, 7 (Isa 9:7), Isaiah, 2, 1 through 4 (Isa 2:1-4), Isaiah, 11, 6 through 9 (Isa 11:6-9), Isaiah, 65, verses 17, through 25 (Isa 2:17-25), the exact same Holy Spirit that just showed Isaiah about a suffering Messiah then, the same Holy Spirit shows him a glimpse of a reigning and ruling Messiah and Isaiah no doubt was saying, Lord which is it? Is He going to suffer or is He going to reign? In fact, I didn’t have this in my notes but if you just hold your place here in Zechariah first a quick second and look at 1st Peter chapter one, verses 10 and 11 (1 Peter 1:10-11), you see Peter making reference to the prophets’ own confusion about their own prophecies. He says, 1st Peter, 1, 10 and 11 (1 Pet 1:10-11): As to this salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you made searches and inquiries… Remember what Daniel was doing in Daniel, 12? He says, I heard but I didn’t understand. He wanted to know what it meant and the Lord through the angel that gave Daniel the vision said, Daniel go your way. You’re not meant to understand. Just do your job, write it down. So Daniel couldn’t even understand what he wrote as the Holy Spirit gave him glimpses of a suffering Messiah and a reigning Messiah and then in verse 11, I’m in 1st Peter, 1 concerning these prophets making careful searches and enquiries: seeking to know… So they were looking… seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow… Now Peter with hindsight says, some of those prophecies deal with His sufferings in His first coming, some deal with His glory is in His second coming, but Peter could make that statement, Zechariah couldn’t, Isaiah couldn’t,  Ezekiel couldn’t, Daniel couldn’t, because all they could see is the two mountains in the distance and they couldn’t see the valley between the two and so they were confused about their own prophecies. That’s why a lot of information found in Qumran, the Dead Sea scrolls, indicates that Judaism in the intertestamental time period thought there were going to be two Messiahs. I mean, they can’t be the same Messiah, they thought to themselves. I mean, you can’t suffer and die and rule and reign. So there must be two Messiahs. Not one Messiah, two comings but two Messiahs. 50:33

So Dr. Constable and his online notes says, quote concerning Zechariah, 9, verse 10 (Zech 9:10): This ambiguity resulted in some pre Christian sects of Judaism including the Qumran community. Qumran is where we found the dead sea scrolls. It was sort of a break away community from normative Judaism in the intertestamental period, that’s what he means by Qumran. This ambiguity resulted in some pre Christian sects of Judaism including the Qumran community expecting two Messiahs… Close quote. In fact, they actually had names for the two Messiahs. The first one they called Ben Joseph. Ben in Hebrew means son, son of Joseph and they were saying the first Messiah is going to suffer just like Joseph suffered and then they had a name for the second Messiah that they called Ben David. Son of David. So he’s going to rule and reign just like David. One is going to suffer like Joseph, one is going to rule and reign like David. Ben Joseph, Ben David. Two different Messiahs and here little old me in the year 2022 with a completed canon, which Isaiah, Zechariah, Daniel, Ezekiel didn’t have, little old  me can look back and see very clearly that there’s one Messiah but two comings. First coming, to suffer and die, that’s Zechariah, 9, verse 9 (Zechariah 9:9). Second coming, to rule and reign, that’s Zechariah, 9, verse 10 (Zech 9:10), Oh! What’s happening in between those two prophecies? That’s the inter advent age, that’s a mystery that Jesus explained in Matthew, 13 and Paul explained how the church is part of that mystery age in Ephesians, 2 and 3. Now, why couldn’t Isaiah and Zechariah understand that? Cause they didn’t have Christ’s lecture in Matthew, 13. They didn’t have Paul explaining where the church fits in all this cause they didn’t have the book of Ephesians, but I have Matthew, 13 and so do you and I have Ephesians 2 and 3 and so do you and so little old me can understand Daniel better than Daniel. Little old me can understand Isaiah better than Isaiah. Little old me can understand Zechariah better than Zechariah himself. So do you see how privileged we are? I mean, just based on the time period that we’re living in and the ability to reconstruct scripture cause hindsight is 20/20, we can see a picture that the Old Testament prophets couldn’t even fathom. In fact, if Isaiah, you know, let’s just say he was transported from the 8th century right into this room and he was to sit down next to you and you were to show him this, he would be like wow! You don’t say. That is amazing! I did not know that and you’d be lecturing Isaiah on theology, because you have pieces of the jigsaw puzzle, you know, that Isaiah, Zechariah, etc didn’t have. 54:40

So I don’t know, is this exciting to you? This stuff really excites me.

Divine Warrior Hymn (Zech 9:1-17)

1. Judgment on the oppressing nations (Zech 9:1-8)
2. Messiah (Zech 9:9-10)
3. Covenant protection (Zech 9:11-17)

So, judgment on the oppressing nations verses 1 through 8 (Zech 9:1-8), a string of victories brought in by Alexander the Great that would have just kept right on rolling into the kingdom, had Israel enthrone the king on the king’s terms but he didn’t come the way they wanted and expected, he was outside their box and so they just tripped right over Him and so all of Israel’s kingdom blessings are now on hold as God is at work through another body, a new man called the church, which by the way is provoking Israel to jealousy. Did you know that? Did you know that as God pours out His grace upon the church, Israel’s getting jealous? And eventually that jealousy is going to grow into wanting their own relationship with the Lord, which of course, they will receive in the tribulation period after the church is gone. But right now God is using the church, if you can imagine this, this is all in Romans, 11, not making any of this up. He’s using the church to provoke Israel to jealousy. He’s planting seeds of jealousy where she’s going to want her position with God back and once that happens then verse 10 will materialize and the earthly kingdom will come to the earth and it will be so much bigger than anything Alexander the Great could have pulled off and then you move into verses 11 through 17 (Zech 9:11-17) which we obviously can’t do now but it’s a description of the covenanted protection that God is going to keep Israel under until they reach that time in history where they’re going to want Jesus and he’s going to do that because of a blood covenant.

Covenant Protection – (Zech 9:11-17)

• Blood covenant (Zech 9:11a)
• Prisoners liberated (Zech 9:11b-12)
• Victories (Zech 9:13-17)

The blood covenant is a reference to the Abrahamic Covenant, which prevents God from cutting the cord on Israel. That’s described in verse 11 and part of the package is prisoners liberated and victories ultimately culminating one day in the kingdom.

So let’s take a picture of the clock. We’re going to get out two minutes early and actually we started late so it’s actually four minutes early and I just bring that up cause I keep you guy extra a lot of times, no! I’ll say it isn’t so? Alright. Let me pray, Father, we’re grateful for your word and the truth it gives us. I just ask you to help us to understand these things in a greater way so that we can walk with you. We will be careful to give you all the praise and the glory. We ask these things in Jesus’ name and God’s people said, Amen. If you got to take…