King James Bible Study – [And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. – Mark 8:34]
Date: Saturday, September 21, 2024
Chapters: Zechariah Chapters 5-9
Message: Revealed By The Spirit
Hello My Friend,
As I was reading the chapters for today I kept thinking of how many times I start thinking about something else as I am reading the Bible. The reason this even came to mind is that I discovered that many of the prophetic books are written in the same manner in that they would be describing their circumstances only to start describing a vision or recollection of years gone by. Since God does speak to us through His Word as we are reading it, I come to realize that sometimes what I would call going down a rabbit hole is often God having a conversation with us, [1 Corinthians 2:9-10 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. 10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.]
It is the Holy Spirit inside every believer of Christ who speaks to us, not only as we are reading the Bible, but in our prayers as well as every day activities and in life in general. That voice in the back of your head telling you to check on someone, to change the channel, to not go there is most likely the Holy Spirit, [Romans 8:27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.]
Yesterday we learned that God sent Zechariah to encourage to the Jews in Jerusalem to get back to rebuilding the temple, then all of a sudden we learn that Zechariah has a dream that turned out to be a vision from God. As we continue in the reading of Zechariah, it continues after Zechariah learned of what the vision of the candlestick and olive branches meant, thanks to the angel, and is given another vision.
[Zechariah 5:1-4 Then I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a flying roll. 2 And he said unto me, What seest thou? And I answered, I see a flying roll; the length thereof is twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof ten cubits. 3 Then said he unto me, This is the curse that goeth forth over the face of the whole earth: for every one that stealeth shall be cut off as on this side according to it; and every one that sweareth shall be cut off as on that side according to it. 4 I will bring it forth, saith the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him that sweareth falsely by my name: and it shall remain in the midst of his house, and shall consume it with the timber thereof and the stones thereof.]
[every one that stealeth shall be cut off…and every one that sweareth shall be cut off] This is the same thing as what Jesus said, [John 10:8 All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.] You see, the way to God has always been through ones faith in Christ, whom they knew as the Messiah. Every believer of God has always been one who had hope in God’s promise from the very beginning that He was going to send someone to save them from their sins. It was their works that proved their faith, and counted it as the same faith that we have today.
[Hebrews 11:13,37,39-40 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. 37 They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; 39 And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: 40 God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.]
There are so many people trying to get to heaven some other way, but there is only one way, and that is Jesus Christ. These fools honestly think that God is not taking notice to how they are trying to get into heaven, but all have a huge shock when they die and are in hell. Now, if the flying scroll was not strange enough, this next vision was even stranger. There is a woman in the middle of an ephah, which is a dry measure of grain, but in this case it was lead.
[Zechariah 5:6-11 And I said, What is it? And he said, This is an ephah that goeth forth. He said moreover, This is their resemblance through all the earth. 7 And, behold, there was lifted up a talent of lead: and this is a woman that sitteth in the midst of the ephah. 8 And he said, This is wickedness. And he cast it into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof. 9 Then lifted I up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came out two women, and the wind was in their wings; for they had wings like the wings of a stork: and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heaven. 10 Then said I to the angel that talked with me, Whither do these bear the ephah? 11 And he said unto me, To build it an house in the land of Shinar: and it shall be established, and set there upon her own base.]
[this is a woman that sitteth in the midst of the ephah.] [Ephah; A measure for grain; hence a measure in general.] The ephah represents the wickedness of the false prophets and those who follow and teach their false doctrines and the lead represents the bondage in which the wicked will be held down to. The two women represent the justice and judgment that God would place on the unbelieving Jews who had His Son crucified, they shall be confined there in all their suffering without any hope of release due to their own unbelief, []
[To build it an house in the land of Shinar:] This is not a house of worship, rather a house of judgment in Babylon, which is Shinar. This is a prophetic message of the judgment of the great whore, [Revelation 17:4-5 And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: 5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.]
Now, the day will come when all the Jews will finally recognize Jesus as the Messiah and they too will be saved, but that will not happen until Jesus returns. Right now, it is those of us who do believe that are sent out to administer the Gospel to the world. Believe it or not, we actually have angels watching over us and guarding us so that we can be faithful and true witnesses. Through another vision that God had given Zechariah, He shows Him these chariots of horses that are sent to the four corners of the earth, which sounds quite familiar.
[Zechariah 6:1-5 And I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came four chariots out from between two mountains; and the mountains were mountains of brass. 2 In the first chariot were red horses; and in the second chariot black horses; 3 And in the third chariot white horses; and in the fourth chariot grisled and bay horses. 4 Then I answered and said unto the angel that talked with me, What are these, my lord? 5 And the angel answered and said unto me, These are the four spirits of the heavens, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth.]
[the four spirits of the heavens,] The four spirits are the four angels of the heavens sent by God to administer to the saints of God and give a striking resemblance to something we read in Revelation, [Revelation 6:1-8]. The saints are the saved, born again believers of Christ, each and every one of them who serve Christ will receive crowns for their faithfulness to Christ, which God goes on to explain.
[Zechariah 6:10-13,15 Take of them of the captivity, even of Heldai, of Tobijah, and of Jedaiah, which are come from Babylon, and come thou the same day, and go into the house of Josiah the son of Zephaniah; 11 Then take silver and gold, and make crowns, and set them upon the head of Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest; 12 And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD: 13 Even he shall build the temple of the LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both. 15 And they that are far off shall come and build in the temple of the LORD, and ye shall know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto you. And this shall come to pass, if ye will diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God.]
[take silver and gold, and make crowns,] This would be a double crown, which represented the combined priesthood and kingdom which would be led by the Messiah. The glory of both of those crowns shall by upon Christ, as King as He delivers them from their spiritual enemies. And as Priest, He reconciles man with God through His own sacrifice. The crowns that we will receive are righteousness [2 Timothy 4:8], life [James 1:12], and glory [1 Peter 5:4]. This peace is both in Christ’s ruling as King and High Priest over His people, [Romans 5:8-10 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. 10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.]
[The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place…he shall build the temple of the LORD:] This is actually in reference to what took place when Jesus overthrew the tables of the money changers, [John 2:18-21 Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things? 19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. 20 Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? 21 But he spake of the temple of his body.]
Jesus built God’s temple the second He resurrected from the grave, he is the true Sanctuary of God. Even though God had sent the Jews to Babylon for seventy years that did not mean they were to forsake the Law, in fact, they were instructed to live their lives, under His Law, [Jeremiah 13]. Even though several had returned to Jerusalem, they were not living by he Law, and now it has two years after the foundation of the temple had been laid, and they are crying out to God and wondering where He is.
[Zechariah 7:1-6 And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Darius, that the word of the LORD came unto Zechariah in the fourth day of the ninth month, even in Chisleu; 2 When they had sent unto the house of God Sherezer and Regemmelech, and their men, to pray before the LORD, 3 And to speak unto the priests which were in the house of the LORD of hosts, and to the prophets, saying, Should I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done these so many years? 4-6 Then came the word of the LORD of hosts unto me, saying, 5 Speak unto all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying, When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh month, even those seventy years, did ye at all fast unto me, even to me? 6 And when ye did eat, and when ye did drink, did not ye eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves?]
[When they had sent unto the house of God Sherezer and Regemmelech,] Apparently Sherezer and Regemmelech were Jews born in Babylon, they were unaware of the Scriptures nor of what it was like to go to the temple to honor, worship, and reconcile with God. They were praying and fasting, but the truth was that God was not hearing or answering their prayers because they were not sincere in their praying. God, goes on to tell them what gets His attention, and why He stops His ears from hearing them.
[Zechariah 7:9-11,13 Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Execute true judgment, and shew mercy and compassions every man to his brother: 10 And oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor; and let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart. 11 But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear. 13 Therefore it is come to pass, that as he cried, and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear, saith the LORD of hosts:]
[as he cried, and they would not hear…I would not hear,] In other words, if they were not going to listen to what He is saying to them then He is not going to listen to what they are asking Him for. Jesus, said it this way, [Matthew 6:16-18 Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 17 But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; 18 That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.]
We do not live a life in obedience to God for the sake of our salvation, it is so that others can see our faith. We are to be different! We are not to be like the world and give in to every temptation known to man, and here is the thing, if we walking in the Spirit. Even if we are faithful to God, the truth is that the temptation to sin only comes when we not in the right state of mind in our own spirit. God is jealous and He will not share us with anyone or anything else, even our own spirit. Through Zechariah, God, tells us of His jealousy and of the day when He returns to Jerusalem and all will be walking in His Spirit.
[Zechariah 8:2-6 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; I was jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I was jealous for her with great fury. 3 Thus saith the LORD; I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called a city of truth; and the mountain of the LORD of hosts the holy mountain. 4 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; There shall yet old men and old women dwell in the streets of Jerusalem, and every man with his staff in his hand for very age. 5 And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof. 6 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, should it also be marvellous in mine eyes? saith the LORD of hosts.]
[If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant…should it also be marvellous in mine] While we will truly never understand what Christ has done for us, we will come to appreciate and respect Him for what He has done that we no longer what to live to please our own flesh, but to please Him, [Galatians 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.]
These prophecies were partly fulfilled in the Jewish church and had fuller accomplishment in the Gospel church, but everything has not been fulfilled yet, most of it will take place when Christ returns. In fact, God, goes on to tell of the day when He will not only return to Jerusalem, but draw many others to Him there.
[Zechariah 8:8-11 And I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness. 9 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Let your hands be strong, ye that hear in these days these words by the mouth of the prophets, which were in the day that the foundation of the house of the LORD of hosts was laid, that the temple might be built. 10 For before these days there was no hire for man, nor any hire for beast; neither was there any peace to him that went out or came in because of the affliction: for I set all men every one against his neighbour. 11 But now I will not be unto the residue of this people as in the former days, saith the LORD of hosts.]
[the foundation of the house of the LORD of hosts was laid,] Even though this is referring to the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, who were the ones who got them back to rebuilding the temple, I believe that Jesus is talking about building His Church here, [Matthew 16:18-19 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.]
I tell you what, if there is any foundation to be on, even if I fell a hundred times a day, at least I am still on His foundation and cannot be taken off of it. God, will never leave nor forsake any of us for He has promised to never leave nor forsake one soul who receives His Son. God, goes on to tell us why He saves us.
[Zechariah 8:13-17 And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel; so will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing: fear not, but let your hands be strong. 14 For thus saith the LORD of hosts; As I thought to punish you, when your fathers provoked me to wrath, saith the LORD of hosts, and I repented not: 15 So again have I thought in these days to do well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah: fear ye not. 16 These are the things that ye shall do; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates: 17 And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the LORD.]
[These are the things that ye shall do;] In other words, “Get your act together!” Our sole desire in life after we are saved ought to be what we can do to thank God, not out of obligation, but out of honor and respect for saving not only our souls, but lives from a living hell had we remained lost in the world. There will come a day when the world will tire of living what is actually a dead works life and seek Christ. In fact, God, goes on to tells of the day when every nation will come together, Jew and Gentile uniting as one nation and one Church.
[Zechariah 8:20-23 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities: 21 And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the LORD, and to seek the LORD of hosts: I will go also. 22 Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the LORD. 23 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.]
[ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations,] This is similar to what happen on the day of Pentecost when after Christ had resurrected and ascended to heaven, they came from all over to worship God, [Acts 2:1-4,6 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. 3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. 6 Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language.]
Let me tell you, there is no greater feeling than to have someone tell you that they see Christ in you. That does not happen if we are living a worldly life, and let me tell you, it brings conviction to them as well. There is nothing more convicting for a worldly Christian to see Christ in you as you go about your every day life, and many of them will avoid you because they refuse to turn from them sin. Now, we all sin, but when Christ truly lives inside of us, we want to change, and God definitely knows if we are true in our faith. God, actually goes on to say that anyone who falsely believes will be cast out of Jerusalem, beginning with the surrounding nations.
[Zechariah 9:1,4,8-9 The burden of the word of the LORD in the land of Hadrach, and Damascus shall be the rest thereof: when the eyes of man, as of all the tribes of Israel, shall be toward the LORD. 4 Behold, the Lord will cast her out, and he will smite her power in the sea; and she shall be devoured with fire. 8 And I will encamp about mine house because of the army, because of him that passeth by, and because of him that returneth: and no oppressor shall pass through them any more: for now have I seen with mine eyes. 9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.]
[when the eyes of man…shall be toward the LORD.] While many nations will seek God, this is actually where a lot of people turn away from their faith in Christ. And to be honest, I do not believe they were ever saved to begin with because Jesus said that no one can pluck them from His hand who are truly saved, [John 10:28-30 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. 29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand. 30 I and my Father are one.]
[and upon a colt the foal of an ass.] This prophecy was fulfilled the week that Jesus would be crucified, [Matthew 21:7-9 And brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon. 8 And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way. 9 And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.]
Jesus Christ Revealed/Magnified: [Zechariah 6:12-13 And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD: 13 Even he shall build the temple of the LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both. Zechariah 9:9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.]
Today’s Prayer: God, Thank You for making me a part of Your family, not by works or obedience to Your Word but solely by my faith and trust what Your Son has done for me. Each day that passes brings us closer to the day Christ returns and judgment begins upon the whole earth. Lord, You know the intentions of our hearts, as You allow circumstances and affliction to keep us faithful and true, lead us and guide us, keep us in Your Word so we are not only hears of it, but doers also. Give us Your power to be a witness that teaches Your truths and righteousness, and what will really happen when He returns to claim Your people. Fill us with Your mercy and grace to endure all things and walking in the Spirit so that the temptation to sin does not even phase us. I ask this in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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