December 5, 2011
KEEPING THE BIG PICTURE IN MIND
Zechariah 9
Lora Strese
Central Truth
The coming of the King produces hope.
Key Verse | Zechariah 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.
(Zechariah 9:9)
Zechariah 9
Judgment on Israel's Enemies
1
The oracle of the word of the LORD is against the land of Hadrach
and Damascus is its resting place.
For the LORD has an eye on mankind
and on all the tribes of Israel,
1
9:1
Or For the eye of mankind, especially of all the tribes of Israel, is toward the LORD
2
and on Hamath also, which borders on it,
Tyre and Sidon, though they are very wise.
3
Tyre has built herself a rampart
and heaped up silver like dust,
and fine gold like the mud of the streets.
4
But behold, the Lord will strip her of her possessions
and strike down her power on the sea,
and she shall be devoured by fire.
5
Ashkelon shall see it, and be afraid;
Gaza too, and shall writhe in anguish;
Ekron also, because its hopes are confounded.
The king shall perish from Gaza;
Ashkelon shall be uninhabited;
6
a mixed people
2
9:6
Or a foreign people; Hebrew a bastard
shall dwell in Ashdod,
and I will cut off the pride of Philistia.
7
I will take away its blood from its mouth,
and its abominations from between its teeth;
it too shall be a remnant for our God;
it shall be like a clan in Judah,
and Ekron shall be like the Jebusites.
8
Then I will encamp at my house as a guard,
so that none shall march to and fro;
no oppressor shall again march over them,
for now I see with my own eyes.
The Coming King of Zion
9
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your king is coming to you;
righteous and having salvation is he,
humble and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
10
I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
and the war horse from Jerusalem;
and the battle bow shall be cut off,
and he shall speak peace to the nations;
his rule shall be from sea to sea,
and from the River
3
9:10
That is, the Euphrates
to the ends of the earth.
11
As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you,
I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.
12
Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope;
today I declare that I will restore to you double.
13
For I have bent Judah as my bow;
I have made Ephraim its arrow.
I will stir up your sons, O Zion,
against your sons, O Greece,
and wield you like a warrior's sword.
The LORD Will Save His People
14
Then the LORD will appear over them,
and his arrow will go forth like lightning;
the Lord God will sound the trumpet
and will march forth in the whirlwinds of the south.
15
The LORD of hosts will protect them,
and they shall devour, and tread down the sling stones,
and they shall drink and roar as if drunk with wine,
and be full like a bowl,
drenched like the corners of the altar.
16
On that day the LORD their God will save them,
as the flock of his people;
for like the jewels of a crown
they shall shine on his land.
17
For how great is his goodness, and how great his beauty!
Grain shall make the young men flourish,
and new wine the young women.
Dive Deeper | Zechariah 9
Have you ever tried to give hope to, or cast a vision for, someone who is in a difficult place? Maybe a friend, a child, or a spouse? Or maybe, you're like me and struggle to keep God's big picture in mind and His vision at the forefront of your mind. I think it is easier for me to do this when things are going my way, and I know that the plan is secure. Keeping that hope presents a much different story.
In Zechariah 9, the young minor prophet speaks to the people of Jerusalem 500 years before the birth of Jesus. Zechariah is encouraging the Jewish people not to lose hope in the midst of foreign armies surrounding them. Even with the possibility of threats on every side, Zechariah gives hope by casting a vision of the coming King, Jesus Christ ("Behold, your king is coming to you . . . ." Zechariah 9:9). How hard it must have been to continue to trust in the midst of fear. How wonderful, though, that the people were being reminded of the hope that is coming. How wonderful to know that Jesus comes to us as righteous, saving, and gentle.
At times, it is a daily struggle for me to see God's "big picture." The result of that struggle can lead to anxiety ruling my day. That is why God's Word must be firmly planted in my heart. The enemies that surround me, like people-pleasing, busyness, and trying to find my hope in my family and friends' behavior, can still control me if I'm not spiritually on guard. I need other believers, like Zechariah did, reminding me of the big picture that Jesus Christ is coming back some day and that my hope needs to be in Him alone. Through His Word, prayer, and community, I am learning to rejoice daily and have hope no matter what tomorrow holds.
Discussion Questions
1. What fears are you facing currently that cause anxiety in your life?
2. Why is it hard to surrender those anxieties to the Lord?
3. Try memorizing Philippians 4:6-7 and apply those verses to the one of your anxieties for seven days. See what God does!
WEEKLY FAMILY ACTIVITY
ZECHARIAH 9-13 (DECEMBER 5-9)
ACTIVITY: All of the prophets were telling about things that would happen in the future. This week, let's read a couple verses in Zechariah and then find their fulfillment in the New Testament. Fold a piece of paper in half. On the left side at the top, write Prophecy, and on the right side, write Fulfillment. As you read the passages below, write down the verse and what it tells us, both the prophecy and the fulfillment.
Read Zechariah 9:9.
Who is the king that came riding in on a donkey? Read Matthew 21:1-9; Mark 11:1-10; Luke 19:28-38; John 12:12-15. What are the three words that describe Jesus in Zechariah 9:9?
Read Zechariah 10:4.
Let's look at the fulfillment of this verse. Read Acts 4:11 and Ephesians 2:20. Who is the cornerstone?
Read 1 Peter 2:4-9.
If you have trusted in Jesus as your cornerstone, then what does God say about you in verse 9? What does He want you to show others?
Read Zechariah 12:10 and then John 19:33-37.
Who was pierced?
God gave the prophets information about when Jesus would come, and He was very specific. Seeing these prophecies fulfilled helps build our trust that what God says is going to occur in the future will actually happen.