Zechariah 8

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Dave Burnette's Commentary

Zechariah Chapter 8

Written By: God through Inspiration

Penned By: Zechariah

Date Penned: (1-8 520-518BC)(9-14 480BC)

Overview: Messages while Rebuilding the Temple (c 1-8)

Theme: Zechariah's Words of Encouragement (c 7-14)

Message: Judah will be Blessed (v 1-23)

Zechariah: Chapter 8 Commentary

(8:1-3) One day Christ will reign in his Kingdom on earth. There all his people will live with him. This truth encourages us to look forward to the Messiah's reign.

(8:4,5) In troubled times, the very old and very young are the first to suffer and die. But both groups are plentiful in this vision., filling the streets with their normal everyday activities. This is a sign of the complete peace and prosperity of the Lord's new earth.

(8:6) The remnant was the small group of exiles who had returned from Babylon to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple. Struggling to survive in the land, they became discouraged over the opposition they often faced from hostile neighbors. It was hard to believe that one day God himself would reign from this city and that their land would enjoy great peace and plenty.

(8:8) The covenant relationship will be renewed and the whole community will be filled with the presence of God. This promise of forgiveness and restoration refers to all God's people wherever they may be found.

(8:9) The Lord had to give the Temple workers a little push to get them moving. They had heard the prophets' words of encouragement and now they needed to stop just listening and get to work. We need to listen to what the Lord says, we need to "Be strong" and do what he wants us to do.

(8:13-15) For more than 15 years God and his Prophets had been urging the people to finish building the Temple. Once more, The Lord encouraged them with visions of the future. We may be tempted to slow down for many reasons but we need to follow the instructions of the Lord and live in obedience to Him.

(8:14-17) God promised to give his people rich rewards. He reassured them that despite the punishments they had endured, he would not change his mind to now bless them. BUt he also said they had a job to do - "These are the things that ye shall do" God will be faithful, but we also have responsibilities to tell the truth, be fair, and live peacefully to experience the love of God in our lives.

(8:19-22) There will come a time when fasting for sins will be replaced by feasting and joy. People from all nations will "come to seek the Lord...and pray

(8:23) In the past, Jerusalem had often borne the brunt of cruel jokes from other nations. The city was not respected: it citizens had sinned so much that God let them be "kicked around" by their enemies. But eventually, says Zechariah. Jerusalem will be a holy place - respected highly throughout the world because its people will have a change of heart toward the Lord. People from other nations will see how the Lord has rewarded his people for their faithfulness and will want to be included in their great blessings.

Dave Burnette's Life Application
A Reward

Each day we walk through the Bible chapter by chapter making an application of our text to help us grow in the Lord. Many applications can be made from each day's text. Today we continue in the book ofZechariah with Chapter 8. In our text today we see that Judah will be blessed as they complete the task at hand. In making application we see that even though we may suffer prosecution now we will receive a reward when we get to Glory. How about you? Do you see your promised future? Let us learn from our text today and the promises from the Bible to remember that even though we may struggle or even face persecution we will be rewarded when we get to Glory.

Zechariah 8

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Zechariah 8

¹Again the word of the LORD of hosts came to me, saying,

²Thus saith the LORD of hosts; I was jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I was jealous for her with great fury.

³Thus 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.

⁴Thus 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.

⁵And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof.

⁶Thus 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.

⁷Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will save my people from the east country, and from the west country;

⁸And 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.

⁹Thus 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.

¹⁰For 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.

¹¹But now I will not be unto the residue of this people as in the former days, saith the LORD of hosts.

¹²For the seed shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things.

¹³And 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.

¹⁴For 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:

¹⁵So again have I thought in these days to do well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah: fear ye not.

¹⁶These 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:

¹⁷And 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.

¹⁸And the word of the LORD of hosts came unto me, saying,

¹⁹Thus saith the LORD of hosts; The fast of the fourth month, and the fast of the fifth, and the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall be to the house of Judah joy and gladness, and cheerful feasts; therefore love the truth and peace.

²⁰Thus saith the LORD of hosts; It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities:

²¹And 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.

²²Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the LORD.

²³Thus 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.

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