Zechariah 1-2

What’s Happening?

God’s temple in Jerusalem was a visible sign of God’s promise to be present with and protect his people. But in response to Israel’s past evil, God sent Babylon to destroy that temple (Zechariah 1:2, 4). Since then 70 years have passed, and the generation responsible for Israel’s fall has been buried (Zechariah 1:5). But God’s promise to be present with and protect his people still stands (Zechariah 1:6). If God’s people repent of their evil and sin, God will return to them (Zechariah 1:3). And as a visible demonstration of that repentance, God’s people must rebuild the temple. 

In hope, God gives the prophet Zechariah three visions to encourage his people to begin rebuilding. In the first vision, Zechariah, accompanied by an angel, approaches a group of horsemen who have just finished patrolling the whole earth (Zechariah 1:8-10). They report that there is worldwide peace (Zechariah 1:11). The angel asks God, if that’s the case, why have his people not had peace for the last 70 years (Zechariah 1:12)? But God says that time is over. Babylon will be judged for its cruelty and God will be present with his people soon. In preparation they should begin to rebuild his temple (Zechariah 1:14-17)

In the second vision Zechariah sees four looming horns (Zechariah 1:18-19). When he asks what they mean, Zechariah is told that the horns represent the threat posed by enemy nations. But then Zechariah sees four craftsmen approach the horns. They are temple craftsmen responsible for rebuilding the temple. The angel explains that it won't be swords that push back their enemies but the skill of metalworkers and artists repairing the temple (Zechariah 1:20-21). 

Then in the third vision, Zechariah sees a young man going to measure Jerusalem’s borders (Zechariah 2:1-2). But an angel interrupts his work and says that Jerusalem will be a city so large it will not need borders or walls. Instead, God himself will be like a wall of fire surrounding the city (Zechariah 2:3-5). Wherever God’s people currently live, they should seek asylum in this new Jerusalem. If they come, Zechariah promises that any enemy that attempts to harm them will be destroyed (Zechariah 2:6-9). If God’s people rebuild the temple, God promises that he will come and live with his people and protect them like a wall of fire (Zechariah 2:10-11). 

Where is the Gospel?

By Jesus’ day the temple had been rebuilt. But the promises made by Zechariah were not a reality. Even though God’s people rebuilt God’s temple, they did so without repenting of the evil that caused its destruction in the first place. Through Israel’s tragic history we learn that God’s presence and protection can’t be secured by fallible humans or by building a temple of stone. 

So God sends Jesus, his infallible protection and presence, in human form (Hebrews 1:3). At his birth (just like the horsemen) a group of angels announced that peace had finally come to earth (Luke 2:14). And as the son of a humble craftsman, Jesus would be the one to rebuild God’s temple and push back the enemies of God’s people (Colossians 2:15). 

But in order to rebuild God’s temple, he first had to tear it down. As a judgment against the evil of Israel’s past, the temple of Jesus’ body was destroyed (John 2:19-21). But then three days later Jesus rose from the dead. God’s temple would never be destroyed again. And God’s presence and protection for his own will never fail to be for us and with us (Matthew 28:20). Jesus even sent his Spirit as a fire, fulfilling Zechariah’s vision of an eternal wall of God’s fierce protecting power (Acts 2:3-4).

Wherever we live, God’s protective presence is with all those who trust that Jesus is their only temple. The apostle Peter says that we are actually living stones of an ongoing project to build a global and eternal temple (1 Peter 2:5). As we go out and teach others about Jesus, we are also extending the borders of God’s fiery protection against not just armies but against evil, sin, and death. So join God’s rebuilding project in hope that soon the whole world will be filled with God’s presence and protection.

See for Yourself

I pray that the Holy Spirit will open your eyes to see the God who returns to his people. And may you see Jesus as the one who has rebuilt God’s temple in himself.