AS THE FLOCK OF HIS PEOPLE … AS THE STONES OF A CROWN

The primary application of the verses before us today relates to Israel’s opposition to the Greek power under its ruler, Antiochus Epiphanes, and further detail of this is unfolded in Daniel’s vision in chapter 8 of his prophecy. The partial fulfilment of this account of victory was seen in the Maccabean revolt in the sec­ond century BC. Apart from the remarkable nature of prophecy which tells us of a world power which, at the time of Zechariah’s writing, was largely unknown, these verses offer encourage­ment and instruction.

There may be those who suggest that Israel has no future but in this portion there is a testimony to the place that they occupy in the heart as well as in the purpose of God. Their preciousness is indicated by one of our metaphors, ‘as the stones of a crown’. They are costly stones rather than the sling stones which the world judged them to be. They have been lifted out of the deep pit of the tribulation as the gemstones in the divine crown.

Zechariah reminds us of three facts in relation to God’s deal­ings with Israel: ‘the Lord shall be seen over them’, v. 14; ‘The Lord of hosts shall defend them’, v. 15; and ‘the Lord their God shall save them’, v. 16. Their Messiah will lead His people, not as the commander who directs his troops from a position of safety. His weapons are the arrow, the trumpet, and the whirlwind. As well as Messiah’s leadership, He will also provide defence. No weapons of mass destruction can penetrate the shield of the Most High. In verse 16 we learn of the safety and lasting peace that Messiah will bring to His people. He will shepherd them ‘as the flock of his people’. What a marked change will be enacted when the Lord returns to the earth to establish His kingdom! What a prospect for Israel when the Lord shall, indeed, be ‘their God’, v. 16!

For those saints experiencing times of persecution and hard­ship today there is at the start of the section of verses that form our reading an exhortation, ‘Turn you to the strong hold’, v. 12. Although despised by the world, may this encourage all of us to look up - ‘the Lord … shall save’.