John 4:1-26
1 Chronicles 15:1-16:6
Zechariah 4
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Thoughts and Commentary on Today's Reading
The setting for this vision gives us a rare glimpse into the Heavenly Sanctuary.
The key components of the vision are:
- Zechariah sees a menorah - a Seven-branched candlestick
- There are seven pipes carrying oil to the seven bowls on the candlesticks
- Also, there are two olive trees on the right and left side of the candlestick.
- Zechariah sees Zerubbabel doing many mysterious things, with deep spiritual meanings.
Zechariah didn’t understand the meaning of the vision.
Zechariah 4:4-5 “So I answered and spake to the angel that talked with me, saying, What are these, my lord? Then the angel that talked with me answered and said unto me, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.”
When Zechariah confessed that he didn't understand the meaning of the vision, Yahweh blessed him by giving him the meaning of the oil and the candlesticks. And one of the keys to understanding it was in the study of Zerubbabel, which we have already done in this blog on August 14.
Zechariah 4:6 “Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the Word of Yahweh unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith Yahweh of hosts.”
Zechariah 4:7-10 "Who art thou, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it. Moreover the Word of Yahweh came unto me, saying, The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this House; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that Yahweh of hosts hath sent me unto you. For who hath despised the day of small things? For they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the Eyes of Yahweh, which run to and fro through the whole earth."
Before we understand the prophetic key offered us in this Zerubbabel clue, we first need to be reminded about who Zerubbabel was. Each of the Scriptural roles and activities of Zerubbabel has a prophetic, End-time application, as follows:
- Zerubbabel led a group of captive Israelites back to Jerusalem after they were released from Babylonian captivity (Ezra 2).
- Nehemiah was part of Zerubbabel's band (Ezra 2:2).
- Zerubbabel was the remnant of the priesthood (Ezra 3:8).
- Zerubbabel re-established the priesthood (Ezra 3:8)
- He rebuilt the broken-down Temple of Yahweh (Ezra 4:2).
- Zerubbabel was such a leader unto righteousness, that his lifetime was called “the days of Zerubbabel” – a special period of sanctification for Yahweh's people (Nehemiah 12:47)
Not only is their prophetic significance in the roles and activities of Zerubbabel, there is also great significance in his name.
Zerubbabel is a prophetic type of God's End-time Elijah Team. He represents the faithful saints, who are all called out of Babylon and join the holy priesthood in the Last Days.Zerubbabel - is translated from Strong's Concordance #2216. It means: “descendant from Babylon – (or) one who was born there”. It is from the root word zarab which means, “to flow away because of heat”.
Significantly also, the motivation for coming out of Babylon is revealed in the meaning of Zerubbabel's name. The original root means "to flow away because of heat". Why does Zerubbabel leave Babylon behind? Heat causes him to leave. Heat represents whole-hearted love for and service to Yahweh!Revelation 18:4 – "Come out of her (Babylon) My people,"(Yahweh's people are in Babylon, but they will heed His Call to come out).
Revelation 3:15-17 "I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked."We are spiritually "cold", when we are lost out in the world and do not love Yahweh. We are spiritually "hot", when we love Yahweh with whole-hearted devotion. Yahweh actually prefers for us to be spiritually "cold" rather than lukewarm. At least when we're "cold"
But when we're lukewarm, we think we're doing pretty well. We aren't hot (having wholehearted devotion for Yahweh). But neither are we cold (completely out in the world). Because we're not completely cold, in a lukewarm spiritual state, we are less likely to recognize our need of God. Thus, of all spiritual temperatures to be, the lukewarm state is the most dangerous.
But getting back to Zerubbabel, he represents the followers of Yahweh who come to love God and leave Babylon behind because of their commitment to the Almighty! In other words, they are on fire for God and leave their old sinful pasts behind them.
In the Last Days, Yahweh will have a people who fulfill the spiritual role of Zerubbabel. This is the reason Zerubbabel is mentioned in Zechariah's fifth vision. We are all being called to do the work of Zerubbabel! And what are we being called to, as anti-typical Zerubbabelites? Here are the characteristics of Zerubbabel, which we are called to emulate:
1. Like Zerubbabel, although we start out as part of Babylon, we are called to come out - Revelation 18:1-4.
2. Like Zerubbabel, we are to be “on fire” for God - Deuteronomy 6:5.
3. Like Zerubbabel, we are to do the Heavenly Work of rebuilding the Temple (which is the Body of Messiah, not a literal building) - 1 Corinthians 3:16-17.
4. Like Zerubbabel, we are to serve Yahweh in the priesthood - Revelation 5:10
5. Just as Zerubbabel did, we are called to lead the people out of captivity in the kingdom of darkness (this is a ministry of spiritual warfare) - Isaiah 61:1-4.
6. Just as Zerubbabel did, we are to serve Yahweh so faithfully, and so fully are we to be imbued with His Spirit, that we are to be used of God to bring on a new era of sanctification and holiness to Yahweh - Isaiah 62:10-12.
The fifth vision of Zechariah is not just prophetic trivia - a collection of End-time scenes to help us foretell future events. Actually, the fifth vision of Zechariah is a calling. We are all called to join the Zerubbabel team. How may we do this? Here are the steps:
Step 1 - Joining Zerubabbel: Leave Babylon
2 Corinthians 6:17 “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith Yahweh, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.”
Step 2 - Joining Zerubabbel: Get "On Fire" for God
Revelation 3:15 “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.”
James 4:8 “Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.”
Step 3 - Joining Zerubabbel: Serve Him in Rebuilding His Temple (in your soul and for His Ecclesia - church, which is not a denomination)
2 Corinthians 6:16 “And what agreement hath the Temple of God with idols? For ye are the Temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.”
Step 4 - Joining Zerubabbel: Serve Yahweh as a priest of the Most High
Step 4 - Joining Zerubabbel: Serve Yahweh as a priest of the Most High
Psalm 4:3-5 “But know that Yahweh hath set apart him that is godly for Himself… Stand in awe, and sin not… Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in Yahweh.”
Step 5 - Joining Zerubabbel: Serve Yahweh by leading His people out of Captivity2 Chronicles 29:5 “And said unto them, Hear me, ye Levites, sanctify now yourselves, and sanctify the house of Yahweh God of your fathers, and carry forth the filthiness out of the holy place.”
Step 6 - Joining Zerubabbel: Seek Yahweh to use you to Help Bring on an Era of Sanctification (helping others to be set apart for holy use)Luke 4:18 “The Spirit of Yahweh is upon Me, because He hath anointed Me to preach the Gospel to the poor; He hath sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised.”
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ."
Having examined the calling to each of us to join Yahweh's Zerubbabel team, we are now ready to return to our study of Zechariah's fifth vision, decoding Zerubbabel's role in this End-time prophecy.
Zechariah 4:6 “Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the Word of Yahweh unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith Yahweh of hosts.”
Zechariah 4:7-10 "Who art thou, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it. Moreover the Word of Yahweh came unto me, saying, The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this House; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that Yahweh of hosts hath sent me unto you. For who hath despised the day of small things? For they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the Eyes of Yahweh, which run to and fro through the whole earth."
In Zechariah's vision, Zerubbabel's Work (God's Work through this group) causes a "great mountain" to "become a plain". What does this mean? To understand this part of the vision, we need to look up these key words in a Strong's Concordance. By gaining the full meaning from the original Hebrew words used in this passage, we will understand it more clearly. Let's examine the Work of Zerubbabel's team in what Zechariah sees them doing in this fifth vision of Zechariah:
1) In the Fifth Vision, Zechariah sees the Zerubbabelites Working to Take Down a Great Mountain – it Becomes a Plain as a result:
Great – is translated from Strong's #1419 – gadowl – which means “insolent, exceedingly great, proud thing, sore”.Mountain - is translated from Strong's #2022 – har – which means (literal) “mountain” or figurative of “something that is promoted”.Become - is translated from Strong's #1961 – hayah – which means to “break, come to pass, to become”.Plain - is translated from Strong's #4334 – miyshowr – which means to be “made straight”.
This is the Same as the Elijah Message! Clearly the Work of Zerubbabel is Zechariah's way of explaining the Elijah Message, which will be given in the last days (Malachi 4). Specifically the work of bringing down mountains (that which was exalted and promoted) and making the path "straight" are all mentioned in the work of Elijah, as recorded by the prophet Isaiah:
Isaiah 40:3-5 “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the Way of Yahweh, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: And the glory of Yahweh shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the Mouth of Yahweh hath spoken it.”
To fully demonstrate that Isaiah 40:3-5 is referring to the same thing as Zechariah 4:7-10, let's look up the keys words from Isaiah in a Strong's Concordance. What does Isaiah mean when he wrote that every valley will be exalted and the mountains will be made low?
Valley – means “a split – breach”. A Breach is a spiritual gap between sinful man and our holy God. While the breach remains, we cannot be saved. The Breach must be healed, which is accomplished through God's redemptive Work.
Psalm 106:23 “Therefore He said that He would destroy them, had not Moses his chosen stood before Him in the breach, to turn away His wrath, lest He should destroy them.”
Exalted – means “magnified, yielded, lifted away, forgiven, pardoned”
Mountain – means “promotion” (what was exalted)
Low – means “humiliated, abased, humbled”
Thus, we see that God's people - in this vision, the Zerubbabelites - will teach the people that what they had promoted (this mountain applies to any false thing, which had been exalted in the minds of the deceived people. Things like: false doctrines and ideologies, even self and all idolatry) was wrong. Teaching this truth will cause these mountains of deception to fall in the minds of the people. Also, the Zerubbabelites will proclaim the Redemption of God, calling the people to Heavenly Pardon, thereby healing the Breach.
Thus, we see that God's people - in this vision, the Zerubbabelites - will teach the people that what they had promoted (this mountain applies to any false thing, which had been exalted in the minds of the deceived people. Things like: false doctrines and ideologies, even self and all idolatry) was wrong. Teaching this truth will cause these mountains of deception to fall in the minds of the people. Also, the Zerubbabelites will proclaim the Redemption of God, calling the people to Heavenly Pardon, thereby healing the Breach.
2) In the Fifth Vision, Zechariah sees the Zerubbabelites Working to Bring Forth the Headstone, while crying "Grace":
Zechariah 4:7-10 "Who art thou, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it. Moreover the Word of Yahweh came unto me, saying, The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this House; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that Yahweh of hosts hath sent me unto you. For who hath despised the day of small things? For they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the Eyes of Yahweh, which run to and fro through the whole earth."To understand this portion of the vision, let's look up the key words:
God's people - in this part of the vision, are seen exalting Christ. He, Who has been maligned, replaced, and even turned into a false Christ in people's minds will be exalted in the lives and testimonies of the Zerubbabelites. As they put Him First, others behold His beauty and come to also find Him to be precious.Headstone – #7222 – roshah – “the head” (from the root – rosh), “beginning, captain, chief, first, head”Grace – #2580 – chen – “beauty, favor, precious, well-favored”
3) In the Fifth Vision, Zechariah sees the Zerubbabelites Working to Lay the Foundation and to Finish the House of Yahweh:
Zechariah 4:7-10 "Who art thou, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it. Moreover the Word of Yahweh came unto me, saying, The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this House; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that Yahweh of hosts hath sent me unto you. For who hath despised the day of small things? For they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the Eyes of Yahweh, which run to and fro through the whole earth."
Once again, we'll look up the key words, as follows:
Hands – #3027 – yad –(figurative meaning) “ministry, service”Foundation – #3248 – yecuwdah “foundation” –(from the root – yecuwd -) “beginning”
In other words, Zerubabbel started the work of reformation, and the remnant, doing his ministry and service, will complete it, rebuilding the Temple of the faithful Body of Christ in the Last Days!
4) In the Fifth Vision, Zechariah sees the Zerubbabelites Using a Plummet, with the Eyes of Yahweh:
Zechariah 4:7-10 "Who art thou, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it. Moreover the Word of Yahweh came unto me, saying, The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this House; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that Yahweh of hosts hath sent me unto you. For who hath despised the day of small things? For they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the Eyes of Yahweh, which run to and fro through the whole earth."
Looking up the keyword, "Plummet", reveals the following meaning:
Plummet – #68 – eben – “weight stones” #913 – bediyl – “cause to be removed by smelting” – “distinguish, separate, put difference”
Ezekiel 44:23 "And they shall teach My people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean."Putting all the details together which we have gained through studying Zerubbabel and his work, we find that the Zerubbabelites are the End-time Saints who will serve Yahweh as priests and kings. They will be His instruments calling the world to repentance and freedom in Christ. They will be teaching the Truth and exalting the Torah. It is only through the Torah that people may be taught the difference between what Yahweh calls holy and profane. Teaching Torah is also part of the work of godly priest.
Having fully examined the roles of Zerubbabel and the significance of this shadow-picture in Zechariah's fifth vision, let's study the two olive trees and determine what they represent in this prophecy.
Zechariah 4:11-14 "Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof? And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves? And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord. Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Sovereign of the whole earth."
In Bible prophecy, trees represent people. We see this in Judges 9. Each kind of tree represents a different character quality in people. Olive trees, being a type of wood used in the Sanctuary, represent holy people, who are filled with the Holy Spirit (symbolized by Olive Oil) and are patterned after the Example of Christ (by His indwelling Grace):
Judges 9:8-9 “The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them; and they said unto the olive tree, Reign thou over us. But the olive tree said unto them, Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honour God and man…?”
1 Kings 6:31-32 “And for the entering of the oracle he made doors of olive tree: the lintel and side posts were a fifth part of the wall. The two doors also were of olive tree…”
But the two olive trees in Zechariah's fifth vision aren't just any people, who happen to love Yahweh. The Bible specifically identifies which two people are represented by the two olive trees in this vision:
Revelation 11:3-4 “And I will give power unto My two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.”
Thus, we see that the two olive trees which are shown in the Heavenly Sanctuary are two holy people - which are the two witnesses of Revelation 11.
Naturally, the mention of the two witnesses brings up the question of their identity. For now, I will leave that subject as we've covered plenty enough for this study today. But, let's conclude with identifying the two candlesticks, which are represented as standing next to the two olive trees:
The reason there are only two candlesticks, instead of all seven, in Zechariah's fifth vision, is that only two groups remain in the End. Five of the seven churches have serious character flaws. They have lost their first love, tolerated the deceptive teachings of Balaam, have permitted the sun-worshiping ways of Jezebel to come in, have become spiritually lukewarm and are asleep to the times. Because of these unconfessed sins, these five churches are ultimately lost. Only two of the seven churches remain faithful to the end: Philadelphia (which represents the 144,000) and Smyrna (which represents the martyrs).Revelation 1:20 “The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.”
