Introduction

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• Zechariah is another prophetic book from God. 

• It is addressed to the Jews of Judah during the time of the Medo-Persian rule over them (Zechariah 1:1). 

• God is trying to get the Jews of Judah to repent of their sins (Zechariah 1:2-6).

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God Declares The Restoration of Israel

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• God reveals to Zechariah and the people of Judah that He would restore them and judge the nations that oppressed them (Zechariah 1:7-17) (Arnold & Beyer, 1999). 

• Restoration in the physical sense means that the second Temple would be reconstructed and Jerusalem would be rebuilt (Zechariah 1:16-17). 

• Not only Jerusalem would be rebuilt, but other cities in Judah as well (Zechariah 1:17) (Henry, n.d.).

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God Will Destroy The Enemies Of The Children Of Israel

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• Zechariah 1:18-21 is another vision given to the prophet. 

• Within this vision, God is showing the Jews of Judah four horns. 

• These four horns represent four nations that oppressed the Jews, historically, being the Egyptians, Assyrians, Babylonians, and Persians (Dehoff, 1989). 

• The Persians seem to be the friends of the Jews in the times of Zechariah and Haggai, but they would also become oppressors of the Jews. 

• How do we know this? 

• Well, it was the Persianswho ordered that the Jews of the kingdom be killed in the time of Esther (Please see the notes on the book of Esther for more information) (Coffman, 1989a). 

• Returning to Zechariah 1:18-21, Zechariah also saw four carpenters, which represented God destroying the nations that oppressed the Jews (Arnold & Beyer, 1999). 

• As many of the Old Testament books of the Bible have taught us thus far, even though God used many nations to punish the Jews for their sinful behaviors, God was not going to leave these oppressor nations unpunished. 

• These oppressive nations were only tools for God’s use, but when their time of use by God was exhausted, then it was their time to be punished also. 

• So it was with Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, and Medo-Persia. 

• As God raised up these nations to extreme, empirical power, He also rose up other nations against them historically that destroyed these same empires.

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God Foretells The Coming Of The Church

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• Zechariah 2 is a chapter of great encouragement for the Jews of Zechariah’s day that were rebuilding their city of Jerusalem after the Babylonian destruction of the same. 

• God tells them that Jerusalem would be rebuilt and inhabited with people. 

• Zechariah 2:10-13 are great encouraging Words for Christians of all time, including today, because they say the following things to us, “10 Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion: for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the LORD. 11 And many nations shall be joined to the LORD in that day, and shall be my people: and I will dwell in the midst of thee, and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto thee. 12 And the LORD shall inherit Judah his portion in the holy land, and shall choose Jerusalem again. 13 Be silent, O all flesh, before the LORD: for he is raised up out of his holy habitation.” 

• Although God is promising to build secular Jerusalem again, He is actually foretelling the building of spiritual Jerusalem, which is again the church of Christ (Romans 16:16; 1 Peter 2:9).

• Again, God is foretelling, hundreds of years before it actually happened, the building of the church (Matthew 16:18). 

• This we know, because the church started off with all Jewish converts in Jerusalem (Acts 2) and brought in all Christians from every nation starting with the non-Jewish household of Cornelius (Acts 10-11; Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16; John 10:16). 

• Thus, God was saying ahead of time, that He was going to make one people out of all Christian Jews and Christian non-Jews of all nations (Galatians 3:28).

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Jesus’ Death For the Forgiveness Of The People Foretold

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• Zechariah 3 is very inspirational to the modern-day child of God. 

• This chapter is divided into two parts. 

• The first part is Zechariah 3:1-5, which details the vision. 

• The second part is Zechariah 3:6-10, which explains the vision (Dobson, Feinberg, Hindson, Kroll, & Wilmington, 1999). 

• Zechariah 3 is actually a symbolic vision of the atonement of Jesus Christ that would occur hundreds of years after the life of Zechariah. 

• Joshua, the high priest in Zechariah’s time, was clothed in filthy garments in the vision. 

• Joshua stands for all of the obedient Jewish people. 

• These garments are removed, which symbolizes the forgiveness of the Jews’ sins and acceptance by God.

• One point of major interest and that inspires Christians is that these sins of the Jewish people would be removed in one day (Zechariah 3:9). 

• The only one day that a people’s sins were forgiven was when Jesus died on the cross of Calvary as a substitute for mankind’s sins (John 3:16; Mark 16:15-16; 1 John 4:10; Acts 2:38) (Halley, 2003). 

• Remember, His death on the cross of Calvary was for the righteous Jewish people that lived in the Old Testament days even before Jesus Christ was born. 

• Jesus died not only for the sins of the people of our day and age, but for the sins also committed by the people that lived during the time of the Old Testament Law of Moses (Hebrews 9:15). 

• Keep in mind that the Branch is another name for Jesus Christ as we studied in other prophetic books. 

• Thus, God was foretelling the fact that Jesus Christ was coming, which would occur hundreds of years after Zechariah (Zechariah 3:8).

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God Will Supernaturally Intervene In The Rebuilding Of The Jewish Temple 

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• Regarding Zechariah 4, God gives encouragement also to Zerubbabel, the governor of Judah. 

• He shows Zerubbabel and encourages him by telling him that the Temple will be completed by the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit (Zechariah 4:6) (Dobson, Feinberg, Hindson, Kroll, & Wilmington, 1999). 

• In fact, God promises to remove any of the difficulties that the Jews of Judah would face during the rebuilding process (Zechariah 4:7). 

• This is inspiration for the modern-day Christians as well, because after we believe the Word of God regarding the salvation available through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, repent of our sins, confess Jesus as the Son of God (i.e. our Lord), and submit to God’s commandment of the watery grave of baptism, then we also receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Mark 16:15-16; Acts 11:18; Luke 13:3, 5; Romans 10:9, 10; Acts 8:37; Matthew 10:32; Acts 2:38). 

• The Holy Spirit that dwells inside of all Christians will empower them with strength to overcome the mountains of temptation that we face each day when it comes to sin, if we will believe that the Holy Spirit will provide this strength and we are determined to resist the temptation when it appears (Ephesians 3:16; Philippians 2:12-13; James 4:7). 

• Though we are not perfect, we do not have to sin as Christians, because we only sin when we follow our sinful desires and not when we follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit, which is the Word of God (James 1:14-15). 

• Remember, the Holy Spirit reveals to us the Word of God as we have it today in the Bible (Romans 8:1; Galatians 5:16; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; Ephesians 3:1-6; Revelation 2:7). 

• The Word of God is what leads us to do the right things in this life (Psalm 119:105).

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God’s Word Always Accomplishes Its Task

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• In Zechariah 4, God continues to encourage Zerubbabel by telling him that he was going to finish the work of rebuilding the Temple (Zechariah 4:8-9). 

• This is confirmation also for Christians today, because if God says that it will be done, then it will be done with no exceptions. 

• God’s Word always accomplishes its task (Isaiah 55:11).

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Don’t Swear; Just Tell The Truth!

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• Zechariah 5 speaks of God destroying those that sin according to theft and lying ways (Zechariah 5:1-4). 

• This is especially true when one swears by the name of God. 

• Never swear by anything as Jesus has said, because when we swear by God then we are calling God as our witness. 

• If we call God as our witness to whatever we are trying to tell someone, then we make God look like a liar when in fact, He had nothing to do with the lie told!

• Thus, Jesus tells us to just tell the truth and not swear by God or anything at all (Matthew 5:34-37).

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Zechariah Foretells The Coming Of Jesus Christ as Both High Priest and King!

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• Moving on to Zechariah 6, we see a prophecy of the coming of Jesus Christ as both High Priest and King (Zechariah 6:12-13). 

• Remember, Jesus is the BRANCH as we studied in other books of the Bible (Zechariah 6:12).

• Zechariah foretells that the Messiah (i.e. Christ) will be both Priest and King. 

• Jesus is our High Priest and specifically called this in New Testament Scripture (Hebrews 4:14-15). 

• He is our High Priest, because the High Priest in the Jewish days would offer the blood of animals for the atonement between man and God.

• However, Jesus offered His own blood to bring about the forgiveness of man’s sins and peace with God (Leviticus 16; Hebrews 10:1-18) (Nave, 1995). 

• Jesus, of course, is King of God’s kingdom church and ruling this very day (Ephesians 5:23; Colossians 1:13).

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God Shows The Jewish People Of Judah Not To Become Rebellious Like Their Ancestors Who Brought The Babylonian Captivity Upon Themselves!

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• Zechariah 7 is a chapter where God reminds the Jews of Judah of the stubborn disobedience of their ancestors before the Babylonian captivity.

• God warned these pre-Babylonian captivity ancestors with the following Words from Zechariah 7:9-10 according to the New International Version, “9 This is what the LORD Almighty says: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. 10 Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the alien or the poor. In your hearts do not think evil of each other . . .” 

• God was showing the Jews of Zechariah’s time that their ancestors were forewarned to love each other, to not take advantage of the powerless people of their society, and to administer justice to all people fairly in their courts, but they obviously did not listen. 

• This stubborn disobedience led to the punishment of the Babylonian captivity (Zechariah 7:11-14). 

• This is obviously being shown to these Jews who returned to their homeland after being released from Babylonian captivity because God did not want them to become disobedient like their ancestors.

• In other words, this reminder from God was being used as a deterrent from wicked behavior developing in this restored Jewish society of Zechariah’s time. 

• The prayers of the pre-Babylonian captivity Jews were cut off by God, because of their willful and stubborn disobedience just as God does for the modern-day Christian who wants to remain in a hypocritical lifestyle (1 Peter 3:12).

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God Reveals That Jerusalem Will Be Populated Again!

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• Zechariah 8 is a most encouraging and heart-warming chapter. 

• God addresses the small number of Jews that had returned from the Babylonian captivity to Judah with a message of hope that Jerusalem will again be populated. 

• Judah shall be a fertile place where God was going to give them material blessings to sustain their lives. 

• He was going to live among them as well (Zechariah 8:1-15). 

• The Jews of Judah would have to keep up their part of this covenant relationship with God by maintaining a society devoted to doing the Will of God through loving each other and treating each other right (Zechariah 8:16-17). 

• Many people out of many nations will come to Jerusalem to seek the Lord (Zechariah 8:18-23). 

• This news must have been great encouragement to the remnant of Jews in Jerusalem and Judah in the land to continue rebuilding after their  return from Babylonian conquest.

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Zechariah Foretells The Coming Of King Jesus!

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• Zechariah 9 contains one of the clearest, easily understood prophecies that foretell the coming King of the Jews, Jesus Christ. 

• Zechariah 9:9-11 reads, “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. 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. 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.” 

• Of course, Jesus literally fulfilled this prophecy when He rode into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey and it was no secret that the Jews of the day recognized Him as the King of Jews (Mark 11:7-10; John 5:12-19)!

• The Jews’ Savior rode into town on that glorious day (Matthew 1:21).

• Unfortunately, the Jews of Jesus’ time were looking for a different type of savior. 

• They were looking for the type of savior that was actually a military leader to throw off the oppressor, which in the time of Jesus walking in the flesh were the Romans. 

• The unbelieving Jews of Jesus’ day did not believe that they needed a savior from their sins (John 8:12-59; Matthew 3:1-17).

• Jesus did indeed speak peace to the heathen, which were non-Jews, because the type of peace, the Messiah Jesus was offering was peace with God the Father for Jews and non-Jews alike (Acts 2, 10-11; 2 Corinthians 5:19; 1 John 4:10). 

• He surely delivers all Christians from the pit of sin and eternal death (Zechariah 9:11). 

• Zechariah 9:11 foretells of a new covenant being put in force, which means this is referencing the new agreement between God and man being the New Testament of the Bible. 

• The New Testament of the Bible speaks of Jesus’ blood washing away our sins (Revelation 1:5).

• Jesus said Himself, the following Words from Matthew 26:28, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (New International Version) (Coffman, 1989a). 

• This is why the Jews of Jesus’ day rejected Him. 

• They had the wrong type of savior in mind. 

• They wanted a military savior instead of a spiritual Savior! 

• Fortunately, a remnant of the Jews did become Christians as the church of Christ is composed of both Jews and non-Jews to this very day (Galatians 3:28).

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God Tells The Children Of Israel To Seek Him And Not Idols And The Regathering Of The Children Of Israel!

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• Zechariah 10 is also directed to the Jews of Judah literally living during Zechariah’s time. 

• God tells them to look to Him in times of need, instead of idols, especially when rain was needed (Zechariah 10:1). 

• Keep in mind that we are talking about an agricultural society and droughts were devastating to these folks. 

• In fact, also keep in mind that droughts were punishments from God due to the sins of the Jews (Deuteronomy 28:23-24; 1 Kings 8:35) (Nave, 1995). 

• God makes an awesome promise to the Ten Tribes that made up the Northern Kingdom of Israel hundreds of years before the time of Zechariah. 

• Scholars believe that Zechariah lived around 520 B.C. and the Northern Kingdom was carried off into Assyrian captivity around 722 B.C. to never exist again (Zechariah 1:1; 2 Kings 17:1-6) (Easton, n.d.).

• In Zechariah 10, God is promising to re-gather the Ten Tribes, which we know is talking about making them a part of spiritual Jerusalem, which is the church of Christ (the holy nation of God) (Zechariah 10:5-11; Romans 16:16; 1 Peter 2:9). 

• To this day, no one knows exactly where the Ten Tribes are scattered and many theories exist as to them living on virtually every continent on earth (“Ten Lost Tribes,” 2008). 

• Thus, God is speaking of a miraculous re-gathering of Jewish people from across the globe.

• These are Jewish Christians that are a part of the church that spans all nations and not confined to any location on earth (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16; John 4:1-42). 

• Although the church of Christ meets in separate locations across the globe, it is still one church under the rule of Jesus Christ (Ephesians 4:4-5; 5:23).

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Zechariah Reveals The Betrayal Of Judas Hundreds Of Years Before Jesus Is Born!

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• Moving forward, Zechariah gives us a sad chapter in chapter 11.

• It is a prophetic chapter speaking of the future of the Jews leading up to the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D, which is hundreds of years after the life of Zechariah. 

• Remarkably, this chapter also foretells the betrayal of Jesus for thirty pieces of silver hundreds of years before Jesus was born (Zechariah 11:13-14; Matthew 27:3-10). 

• Why would God destroy the Jews’ land again? 

• It is because they are foretold to reject Jesus Christ hundreds of years before Jesus was even born. 

• The rejection of Jesus and the choice of the Roman Caesar as king instead rings clearly in the Words of John 19:15, which reads, “But they cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your King? The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar” (Coffman, 1989a). 

• God was foretelling that He would indeed put them into the hands of Caesar and Caesar would destroy them without any chance of God delivering the unbelieving Jews (Zechariah 11:6).

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God’s Eternal Protection For Spiritual Israel

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• Zechariah 12 speaks of God’s eternal protection of Jerusalem. 

• This is speaking of spiritual Israel-not earthly Israel. 

• God is speaking about the church of Christ as explained frequently in these lessons (Zechariah 12:1-9; Romans 16:16). 

• The church of Christ will be attacked from all sides throughout history until Jesus Christ comes back again, but the church shall never fall.

• This is because the kingdom of Jesus is foretold to stand forever (Luke 1:33) (Nave, 1995).

• Though this kingdom church of Jesus Christ will be attacked internally and externally, nothing or no one will be able to destroy it (Revelation 1-3). 

• Remember, the final homeland of all Christians is called “New Jerusalem” (Revelation 21:2) (Nave, 1995).

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Zechariah Foretells The Piercing Of Jesus’ Side

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• Zechariah 12:10 is an awesome discovery for the Bible student. 

• It reads, “And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.” 

• Zechariah 12:10 is an amazing discovery,  because it foretells what happened to Jesus Christ, Himself, after He died on the cruel cross of Calvary. 

• In fact, John 19:34-37 says the following Words confirming the fact that Zechariah was foretelling what the Roman soldier would do to Jesus’ dead body and reads, “But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water. 35 And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe. 36 For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken. 37 And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.” 

• Zechariah 12:10 must be a Word from God, Himself, because there is no way that Zechariah could have known this information hundreds of years before it happened unless God revealed it unto him! 

• Blessed be the name of the Lord!

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Zechariah Foretells The Forgiveness Of Sin Through The Shed Blood Of Jesus Christ

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• Moving on to Zechariah 13, we are told in that day, which means the day of the crucifixion of Jesus, that a fountain to cleanse the Jewish people would be opened. 

• That fountain is the blood of Jesus Christ spilled after the soldier pierced Him in the side (Revelation 1:5; Zechariah 13:1).

• Thus, God is foretelling to the world, hundreds of years before Jesus’ crucifixion, that His blood would be the sacrifice that washes away the sins of baptized believers (Acts 2:38; 22:16; Revelation 1:5). 

• God also foretells the elimination of idols and false prophets in the land. 

• Well, this will not happen in its entirety until the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, because no liars or idol worshippers will be able to enter the heavenly abode with all the saved Christians (Revelation 21:27).

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Zechariah Foretells The Judgement OF God Falling Upon Jesus Christ For Our Sins And The Abandonment Of His Disciples When He Was Arrested

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• Another great prophecy of the coming of Jesus Christ is made in Zechariah 13:7, which reads, “Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones.” 

• This foretells the sword of God judging Jesus Christ (Coffman, 1986a). 

• The sword is a symbol of judgment. 

• Thus, the sinless Jesus Christ took on the judgment of God for your and my sins (Hebrews 4:14-15; 1 John 2:1-2). 

• When that great Shepherd Jesus was going to be struck down (arrested and taken to be crucified), Jesus’ disciples ran for their lives (Matthew 26:31; Mark 14:27; John 16:32) (Henry, n.d.).

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Adam Clark’s Outline Of Zechariah 14 And The Coming Of The One King – Jesus Christ!

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• Moving on to the next chapter, Adam Clark (n.d.) has an excellent summary of Zechariah 14, which reads, “The commencement of this chapter relates to the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, and to the calamities consequent on that event. From this great Jewish tragedy the prophet immediately passes to the utter extermination of the enemies of Christianity in the latter days.” 

• This final chapter of Zechariah can be outlined as follows: 

  • The destruction of Jerusalem at the hands of the Romans in 70 A.D. (Zechariah 14:1-2).

  • A remnant of the Jews of Jerusalem would survive the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., because they obeyed Jesus’ Words to flee when the Romans destroyed Jerusalem (Henry, n.d.). These were the Jewish Christians that were in Jerusalem at the time of the Roman invasion. Jesus’ Words that the literal, earthly city of Jerusalem would be destroyed is in Matthew 24:1-2, 15-18, where He told His followers to flee when they saw the armies of Rome surrounding Jerusalem. This command of Jesus is even clearer in Luke 21:20-24 (Boles, 1989). Remember, the Roman armies were made of men of all different nations, because Rome was an empire that conquered innumerable amounts of people (Coffman, 1989a).  

• The preservation of the Christians, during God’s judgment upon earthly Jerusalem and the Second Coming of Jesus is foretold (Zechariah 14:3-5). 

  • It also foretells the destruction of the enemies of spiritual Jerusalem (i.e. the Christian church).   Keep in mind that God was revealing things that were still in the future as to Zechariah’s day. Thus, God was revealing events until the Second Coming of Jesus Christ centuries after the life of Zechariah. As a result, God often mixes fulfillments by allowing some things to happen hundreds if not thousands of years apart, but recording all events in the few Words of one prophetic chapter of the Bible, such as this one in Zechariah 14. Thus, the Jews of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 are foretold to escape God’s judgment on the city at the time of the Romans destroying it, as they fled to the mountains when the Romans destroyed Jerusalem (Zechariah 14:3-5). This is mixed in with a revelation of the final judgment upon mankind when Christians will be preserved by Jesus Christ and His angels (i.e. saints) when Jesus comes back the second time; while at the same time, the enemies of all Christians will be judged (Zechariah 14:3-5; Matthew 24:30-31) (Coffman, 1989a). Most of all, Christians at the Second Coming of Jesus have already found the way of escape from God’s wrath, because they have believed and obeyed the Lord Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 5:19; Romans 5:9-10; John 14:6). We should not, as Christians, be afraid of the Second Coming of Jesus, but instead, look forward to it! 

• The eternal security of spiritual Jerusalem is foretold (Zechariah 14:6-11). 

  • The Words of God from the New International Version read, “6 On that day there will be no light, no cold or frost. 7 It will be a unique day, without daytime or nighttime—a day known to the Lord. When evening comes, there will be light. 8 On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half to the eastern sea and half to the western sea, in summer and in winter. 9 The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only name. 10 The whole land, from Geba to Rimmon, south of Jerusalem, will become like the Arabah. But Jerusalem will be raised up and remain in its place, from the Benjamin Gate to the site of the First Gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the royal winepresses. 11 It will be inhabited; never again will it be destroyed. Jerusalem will be secure.” 

    • The Lord cannot be talking about earthly, national Jerusalem as we know it today on our world maps. This is because Zechariah foretells that Jerusalem would never be destroyed again. This must refer to spiritual Jerusalem then, because earthly, national Jerusalem was certainly destroyed again at the hands of the Romans in A.D. 70, which was many centuries after the life of Zechariah. As mentioned earlier, the Kingdom church of Jesus Christ will forever stand, because there will come a day when it will have no enemies any more. This is because the enemies of the Lord will suffer eternal judgment and be forever separated from the saved children of God (Revelation 21:27). Also keep in mind that God says, “living water will flow out from Jerusalem.” Jesus applies this concept of living water to Himself, because when He was walking on earth as Jesus of Nazareth, He said the following Words to the Samaritan woman at the well, “4 And he must needs go through Samaria. 5 Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 6 Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat  thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour. 7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. 8 (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) 9 Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? For the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. 10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. 11 The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? 12 Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? 13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: 14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. 15 The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw. 16 Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither. 17 The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said, I have no husband: 18 For thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly. 19 The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. 21 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. 22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. 23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. 25 The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. 26 Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he” (John 4:4-26). 

  • Jesus identified Himself as the Messias (i.e. Messiah or Christ) to the Samaritan woman. 

    • Thus, the living water in Zechariah 14:8 is speaking of eternal life as given to those that believe and obey the Lord Jesus Christ (John 3:16-17; 4:13-14; Matthew 7:21; Hebrews 1:1-3).\

    •  Also, keep in mind that Zechariah 14:9 shows us that there will be only one King and Lord of all of mankind. 

    • This was foretelling the coming of Jesus Christ to the earth and He is currently crowned King of Kings and Lord of Lords (1 Timothy 6:14-15). 

    • He will be the only King left, of course, when all of His enemies are judged at the Second Coming of the Lord.

    •  Jesus is sitting on His throne at this moment until all of His enemies become His footstool, which means conquered (Matthew 28:18-20; Hebrews 1:13; Acts 2:32-36). 

    • Zechariah 14:12-15 speaks of the judgment that God will carry out against all of spiritual Jerusalem’s enemies, which are His enemies as well. 

    • Remember, when anyone hurts one member of the church of Christ, then that person is actually harming Jesus Christ Himself (Acts 9:1-5; Romans 16:16). 

    • Jesus will judge these folks if they do not repent (i.e. stop) doing these things to God’s people.

• Zechariah 14:16-21 enlightens us with the fact that all nations shall come up and worship Jerusalem’s King! 

  • As extensively taught in these lessons, this King is Jesus Christ. 

  • The words, “all nations,” mean that the non-Jews (also known as Gentiles) will become worshippers of Jesus Christ. 

  • As a result, this is foretelling the coming of the Gentiles into the church of Christ to become a part of the body of Christ along with Jewish Christians! 

  • Also, all nations would observe the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem. Of course, this is symbolic language regarding the Christian church of our times, because the Feast of Tabernacles was a remembrance of the children of Israel’s wandering in the wilderness for 40 years on their way to the promised land of Canaan! 

  • God never had the church of Christ wander in the literal wilderness with the children of Israel so what God is saying is that our time here on earth, as Christians, is a wandering until we reach the heavenly Canaan land. 

  • All nations of Christians will realize that this earth is not their home, but they are awaiting their entrance into the glory of the Lord in heaven (Coffman, 1989a)!

• Lastly, Zechariah 14:21 tells us that no “Canaanite” shall be in the house of the Lord. 

  • Since, Zechariah 14 is speaking of the spiritual Jerusalem, which is the church of Christ, then we know that this does not mean that non-Jewish people could not be considered God’s children. 

  • This would contradict the rest of the Scriptures and we know that the Bible does not contradict itself, because it is the Word of God (2 Timothy 3:16-17). 

  • If God’s Word contradicted itself, then God would be a liar. 

  • We know this is not true, because God is not capable of any type of sin period (1 John 1:5). 

  • Instead, regarding Zechariah 14:21, as is very common in the Bible, God is speaking in symbols. 

  • The Canaanites are considered to be immoral, idolatrous people and this is why they were judged and eliminated from their homeland by the Jews by God’s order to Moses and the children of Israel hundreds of years before Zechariah (Leviticus 18:25) (Nave, 1995).

  • Thus, God is saying that in the final stage of the church, God is going to judge the church of Christ first (1 Peter 4:15-19). 

  • He is going to eliminate the hypocrites in the church at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ (Matthew 13:47-50). 

  • Only the sincere, believing and obedient Christians will be saved when Jesus Christ comes back the second time (Matthew 7:21-23). 

  • This puts the responsibility of living a life of obedience to God in the forefront, because more than belief in Jesus Christ is necessary for salvation. 

  • We must also obey His Word to be saved (James 1:22; 2:20; Philippians 2:12-13; Romans 8:1; Galatians 5:16-26).