In Zechariah 9:1-8 the prophet gives us more messages about the Greeks who were coming in a couple of hundred years to conquer the world. Daniel filled us in on this event in greater detail when we read his book. So next, Zechariah takes us way into the future, to tell us about the coming Messiah, followed by the end of the world and the New Jerusalem.

A Different Kind of King

Zechariah 9:9-10 provides an unexpected picture of the Messiah. People would have been glad to hear that their future king had the authority to rule the world and proclaim peace to the nations, but a king that rides into Jerusalem on a donkey was a strange idea.

In the ancient world, the ruler who wielded the most power subdued the nations and brought “peace” through oppression. Zechariah described a lowly king on a little donkey who would simply proclaim peace and rule the nations with his words. What kind of king was this?

He is the same king who spoke the universe into existence and who sustains it by the power of his word now. Zechariah did not know his name, but we do: He’s Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.” Hebrews 1:1-3

Jesus’ Only Weapon

When Jesus goes to war to win the nations, the only weapon he wields is the Word of God. Here is John’s description in Revelation of Jesus leading Heaven’s armies into the final battle against the enemies of God.

“I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. He will rule them with an iron scepter. He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: king of kings and lord of lords.” Revelation 19:11-16

When Jesus strikes down his enemies it will be with the sword of the Spirit, the Word. The people of the earth will be judged according to how they have responded to the Word of God in Christ.

Zechariah Becomes a Shepherd

The Lord saw that his people were scattered because their leaders led them astray. Kings and priests forsook the Lord and introduced idolatry to Israel and the result devastated God’s people.

“My anger burns against the shepherds, and I will punish the leaders; for the Lord Almighty will care for his flock, the people of Judah, and make them like a proud horse in battle.” Zechariah 10:3

God asked to Zechariah to illustrate his message. The prophet got a job shepherding an unhappy flock of sheep. The three shepherds that had them first had oppressed them so Zechariah fired those shepherds.

He got two staffs and named them “Favor” and “Union,” and then he shepherded his belligerent flock until it became clear they had rejected him.

“The flock detested me, and I grew weary of them and said, ‘I will not be your shepherd. Let the dying die, and the perishing perish. Let those who are left eat one another’s flesh. Then I took my staff called Favor and broke it, revoking the covenant I had made with all the nations. It was revoked on that day, and so the oppressed of the flock who were watching me knew it was the word of the Lord.” Zechariah 11:8-10

God’s Flock

Zechariah’s experience was a picture of God’s experiences with Israel. He tried to shepherd them, but their earthly leaders led them astray and they wouldn’t come back to the Lord. He gave them favor, but they rejected it, which Zechariah illustrated by breaking the staff called Favor.

Zechariah also broke the staff named Union to show how God had divided his flock when some of them went astray. He separated Israel from Judah to contain the idolatry of Israel, but Judah eventually fell into idolatry too, so God punished them by sending them into exile.

When Zechariah collected his pay for shepherding the unruly flock, he received a pittance of thirty pieces of silver that God told him to throw to the local potter. This part of the story foreshadows the thirty pieces of silver that Judas received later for betraying Jesus.

Judas tried to return the silver, but it was refused and he threw it on the floor of the temple. The priests picked it up and used it to purchase the Potter’s Field as a cemetery for foreigners.

How to Recognize a Bad Shepherd

In Zechariah 11:15-16 the Lord described a bad shepherd and the information is useful for us as sheep. There will always be bad shepherds among us, but we can stay away from them when we see them . . .

• Fail to care for the lost
• Neglect the young
• Fail to heal the injured
• Starve the healthy

The shepherd who feeds off the flock and leaves them hurting is a worthless shepherd. Wise sheep return to the Good Shepherd for their care. They should never feel obligated to remain with a bad shepherd.

The Future of Jerusalem

Jerusalem has a very long history.

The first priest mentioned in the Bible, Melchizedek king of Salem, probably came from the earliest site of Jerusalem. Israel’s greatest king, David, made Jerusalem his royal city and his son Solomon built the temple there.

God said his eyes and his heart would always be in Jerusalem.

Jesus was dedicated as a newborn at the temple in Jerusalem and he died just outside the city thirty-three years later.

God says he will build a New Jerusalem after this sinful world is destroyed. Jerusalem is truly the everlasting city.

The world always seems to have its eyes on Jerusalem. Through the ages it has been invaded and controlled by one religious group after another and to this day there is ongoing debate about who it belongs to.

After Israel became a state in 1947 the United Nations tried to create an independent state for both Israel and the Palestinian people, but the Palestinians rejected that effort and went to war with Israel. Jerusalem was designated an international district that didn’t belong to either Israel or Palestine. The Palestinians still don’t have an independent state.

But the Israelis claim Jerusalem as their capitol. It’s the only capitol city they have ever had and no other nation has ever established that claim. It has been occupied by several foreign entities, but only Israel made it the capitol of their nation.

Someday God will clear all of this confusion up. Jerusalem will be entirely his city. Its name will be “The Lord is There,” and Jesus will be the King. The nations will mourn when they see how wrong they were to attack Jerusalem and claim it as their own. Instead they will travel there to honor the Son of God.

“The Lord will save the dwellings of Judah first, so that the honor of the house of David and of Jerusalem’s inhabitants may not be greater than that of Judah. On that day the Lord will shield those who live in Jerusalem, so that the feeblest among them will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of the Lord going before them. On that day I will set out to destroy all the nations that attack Jerusalem. And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son.” Zechariah 12:7-10

“Then the survivors from all the nations hat have attacked Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship the King, the Lord Almighty, and to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles.” Zechariah 12:16

In the end it will be the Lord Almighty who possesses Jerusalem, and in the New Earth, everyone will go there to worship him.