Zechariah 9:10-17

Zechariah 9:10

And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth.

 

Building upon verse 9 we read that the chariot will be cut off from Ephraim which means that there will be no need for physical weapons of war.  Ephraim was another name for the northern kingdom and Jerusalem represents the southern kingdom.  This means that when the Messiah comes to earth and begins to speak peace unto the heathen which is the true gospel, it will not be done with weapons of war such as Islam who conquers people and nations by military might and forces them to accept or be killed.  True Christianity will be worldwide and will garner the Elect of God by means of the Holy Spirit indwelling a person and convicting them so there will be no need for chariots and horses.  The kingdom of the Messiah will be worldwide in scope until the last one is saved on the last day.  He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth.  (Psalm 72:8)   Zechariah confirms the teaching of Psalm 72:8.

 

Zechariah 9:11

As for thee also, by the blood of thy covenant I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit wherein is no water.

 

Here Christ speaks to the Elect among national Israel.  In the previous verse the heathen or the Gentile nations were mentioned but Christ confirms the fact that there will be elect among the nation of Israel.  The prisoners that were in the pit that has no water is of a double meaning.  First, it speaks about Judah which was in captivity in Babylon which was a pagan nation and did not have any true light concerning the teachings of God.  Secondly, the meaning is that those who were chosen to be saved in Israel would be taken out of the pit of Satan’s house and given water which is the true gospel which would be the light unto them.  That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; that opened not the house of his prisoners?  (Isaiah 14:17)  Isaiah 14:17 speaks about Satan who is called the man of sin in Isaiah 14:12-17 who would not allow any out of his prison or house.  The kingdom of Satan is a kingdom of darkness and it has no water or true teachings and understandings until the Holy Spirit indwells.  And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.  (1 John 5:8) 

 

Zechariah 9:12

Turn you to the strong hold, ye prisoners of hope: even to day do I declare that I will render double unto thee;

 

The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him.  (Nahum 1:7)  The stronghold they will turn to will be the LORD himself and not some fortified city.  When they were still in Babylon they had hope that the captivity would soon end since Jeremiah prophesied that it would be fulfilled in seventy years.  The prisoners of hope would also be the Elect of God who would come out of the satanic prison of unbelief and come to truly believe on the LORD.  The double portion they will receive will be their physical freedom from Babylon and their spiritual freedom from Satan’s prison when they become saved on the day the LORD chooses.

 

Zechariah 9:13

When I have bent Judah for me, filled the bow with Ephraim, and raised up thy sons, O Zion, against thy sons, O Greece, and made thee as the sword of a mighty man.

 

Judah will recover its strength and will be like the bow of an archer which is bent and ready for attack.  Some of the ten tribes had returned with Judah to the land and had begun to repopulate the region of Galilee.  They would also become strong and be ready to fight against any enemy that comes against them.  Zion would also be another name for the body of believers which would be raised up after the Apostles would go off the scene and would spiritually attack the heathen nations such as Greece which was filled with the pantheon of the Olympian gods.  The true gospel would humble a person as a sword would do in the hands of a mighty man.  In the physical realm many of the Jews were sold into slavery in the nation of Greece but it was Alexander the Great who repatriated many of the Jews back to Judah. 

 

Zechariah 9:14

And the LORD shall be seen over them, and his arrow shall go forth as the lightning: and the Lord GOD shall blow the trumpet, and shall go with whirlwinds of the south.

 

The LORD himself will be seen as the one who will be shown with great power unto the enemies of Judah.  His judgment against the wicked nations will be swift like an arrow that finds its mark and swift like a bolt of lightning which goes from east to west.  The LORD himself shall blow the trumpet, that is, he will call them to war and then he will give them the victories over their enemies.  The whirlwinds of the south may be referring to the winds of Teman which would be like the Scirocco of North Africa which also had devastating results.

 

Zechariah 9:15

The LORD of hosts shall defend them; and they shall devour, and subdue with sling stones; and they shall drink, and make a noise as through wine; and they shall be filled like bowls, and as the corners of the altar.

 

When Judah faced the Grecians in war many of their attempts to subdue the enemy was nothing less than miraculous.  They devoured the enemy that had many troops with a small amount of warriors of their own.  To subdue them with sling stones meant the enemy would be conquered with minimal weaponry just as David killed Goliath with a stone because their victories would be assured by God.  They shall drink as if they drank the best wine where they would be thankful for the victories they experienced, both physical and spiritual.  They shall be filled like bowls which were filled with blood coming from the altar which means they would have full victory over their enemies as if they were all dead.  The sacrifice on the altar would have been completely dead from the shedding of its blood and for it to run down in the bowls.

 

Zechariah 9:16

And the LORD their God shall save them in that day as the flock of his people: for they shall be as the stones of a crown, lifted up as an ensign upon his land.

 

Here we have a great picture of salvation in that God shall save them in that day which would be the time of the Messiah.  The elect of God found within national Israel will be saved as the flock of God’s people.  Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;  (1 Peter 5:2)  In 1 Peter 5:2, the body of believers is referred to as the flock of God.  Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.  (1 Peter 2:5)  Here Peter refers to the body of believers as stones that are lively which are as a crown of life.  Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.  (Revelation 2:10)  The ensign which the true believer will have over them is the banner of the love of God.  He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love.  (Song of Solomon 2:4)  Then John tells us the outward sign that the world will see that the body of believers have love for each other.  By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.  (John 13:35)  Too bad more of that is not shown in the present day.

 

Zechariah 9:17

For how great is his goodness, and how great is his beauty! corn shall make the young men cheerful, and new wine the maids.

 

Zechariah now extols the virtue of the goodness of the LORD in dealing with his people by bringing them back to the land and giving them encouragement and promising them times of prosperity.  Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?  (Romans 2:4)  How beautiful is the effect of the true Israel’s deliverance and salvation. Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.  (Psalm 29:2)  The corn would refer to any of the agricultural crops which would be harvested in plenty and that would make the farmers very happy.  The new wine could be understood here as the gospel which would make the maids very happy.  Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved.  (Matthew 9:17)  The new wine here represents the gospel which cannot be placed in the law but grace is received without the keeping of the law and that is why grace and law cannot exist together.  Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.  (Galatians 5:4)  The maids here would also represent the body of Christ which is also referred to as the bride of Christ.  And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife.  (Revelation 21:9)

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