Zechariah 4:1-14
Introduction
Faced with rebuilding their temple and city, the chosen people felt small, powerless and overwhelmed. Opposition ranged from the Samaritans accusing them of treason Ezra 4:6-24
[6]At the beginning of the reign of Xerxes, they lodged an accusation against the people of Judah and Jerusalem.
[7]And in the days of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel and the rest of his associates wrote a letter to Artaxerxes. The letter was written in Aramaic script and in the Aramaic language.
[8]Rehum the commanding officer and Shimshai the secretary wrote a letter against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king as follows:
[9]Rehum the commanding officer and Shimshai the secretary, together with the rest of their associates—the judges, officials and administrators over the people from Persia, Uruk and Babylon, the Elamites of Susa,
[10]and the other people whom the great and honorable Ashurbanipal deported and settled in the city of Samaria and elsewhere in Trans-Euphrates.
[11](This is a copy of the letter they sent him.) To King Artaxerxes, From your servants in Trans-Euphrates:
[12]The king should know that the people who came up to us from you have gone to Jerusalem and are rebuilding that rebellious and wicked city. They are restoring the walls and repairing the foundations.
[13]Furthermore, the king should know that if this city is built and its walls are restored, no more taxes, tribute or duty will be paid, and eventually the royal revenues will suffer.
[14]Now since we are under obligation to the palace and it is not proper for us to see the king dishonored, we are sending this message to inform the king,
[15]so that a search may be made in the archives of your predecessors. In these records you will find that this city is a rebellious city, troublesome to kings and provinces, a place with a long history of sedition. That is why this city was destroyed.
[16]We inform the king that if this city is built and its walls are restored, you will be left with nothing in Trans-Euphrates.
[17]The king sent this reply: To Rehum the commanding officer, Shimshai the secretary and the rest of their associates living in Samaria and elsewhere in Trans-Euphrates: Greetings.
[18]The letter you sent us has been read and translated in my presence.
[19]I issued an order and a search was made, and it was found that this city has a long history of revolt against kings and has been a place of rebellion and sedition.
[20]Jerusalem has had powerful kings ruling over the whole of Trans-Euphrates, and taxes, tribute and duty were paid to them.
[21]Now issue an order to these men to stop work, so that this city will not be rebuilt until I so order.
[22]Be careful not to neglect this matter. Why let this threat grow, to the detriment of the royal interests?
[23]As soon as the copy of the letter of King Artaxerxes was read to Rehum and Shimshai the secretary and their associates, they went immediately to the Jews in Jerusalem and compelled them by force to stop.
[24]Thus the work on the house of God in Jerusalem came to a standstill until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
To some of their own people thinking the odds against the project were insurmountable
Ezra 3:12
[12]But many of the older priests and Levites and family heads, who had seen the former temple, wept aloud when they saw the foundation of this temple being laid, while many others shouted for joy.
Haggai 2:3
[3]‘Who of you is left who saw this house in its former glory? How does it look to you now? Does it not seem to you like nothing?
But Zechariah saw things differently. God would empower the people and their leader Zerubbabel. The vision was particularly evocative (bringing strong images, memories, or feelings to mind.) For who has despised the day of small things?”
Zechariah 4:10
[10]“Who dares despise the day of small things, since the seven eyes of the Lord that range throughout the earth will rejoice when they see the chosen capstone in the hand of Zerubbabel?”
[1]Then the angel who talked with me returned and woke me up, like someone awakened from sleep.
[2]He asked me, “What do you see?” I answered, “I see a solid gold lampstand with a bowl at the top and seven lamps on it, with seven channels to the lamps.
[3]Also there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left.”
Though the cumulative impact is evident, the vision is marked by complex imagery. Oil pressed from olives, with a wick to soak it up the oil , provided the primary source of oil in the ancient world. But the lampstand described here is surrealistic with an inexplicable arrangement of containers of oil-a bowl- seven lamps- seven pipes, and olive trees perhaps signifying a constant, abundant supply of oil on the lampstand in the tabernacle
Exodus 25:31-37
[31]“Make a lampstand of pure gold. Hammer out its base and shaft, and make its flowerlike cups, buds and blossoms of one piece with them.
[32]Six branches are to extend from the sides of the lampstand—three on one side and three on the other.
[33]Three cups shaped like almond flowers with buds and blossoms are to be on one branch, three on the next branch, and the same for all six branches extending from the lampstand.
[34]And on the lampstand there are to be four cups shaped like almond flowers with buds and blossoms.
[35]One bud shall be under the first pair of branches extending from the lampstand, a second bud under the second pair, and a third bud under the third pair—six branches in all.
[36]The buds and branches shall all be of one piece with the lampstand, hammered out of pure gold.
[37]“Then make its seven lamps and set them up on it so that they light the space in front of it.
[4]I asked the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?”
[5]He answered, “Do you not know what these are?” “No, my lord,” I replied.
[6]So he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.
[7]“What are you, mighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become level ground. Then he will bring out the capstone to shouts of ‘God bless it! God bless it!’ ”
The angel’s questions do you know what these are? Heightens the anticipation of what the answer will be and underscores the necessity of supernatural insight. What the angel said to Zerubbabel about the spirit provides insight into the interpretation of the lampstand. Oil was symbolic of God’s spirit
1 Samuel 16:13 (NLT) So as David stood there among his brothers, Samuel took the flask of olive oil he had brought and anointed David with the oil. And the Spirit of the LORD came powerfully upon David from that day on. Then Samuel returned to Ramah.
Thus while Zerubbabel would be instrumental in accomplishing God’s purpose it could only through the plentiful supply of God’s spirit. This understanding of the significance of the lampstand is supported by the angel explanation at the end of the vision Zechariah 4:14 (NLT) Then he said to me, “They represent the two anointed ones who stand in the court of the Lord of all the earth.”
Revelation 11:4-14
[4]They are “the two olive trees” and the two lampstands, and “they stand before the Lord of the earth.”
[5]If anyone tries to harm them, fire comes from their mouths and devours their enemies. This is how anyone who wants to harm them must die.
[6]They have power to shut up the heavens so that it will not rain during the time they are prophesying; and they have power to turn the waters into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they want.
[7]Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill them.
[8]Their bodies will lie in the public square of the great city—which is figuratively called Sodom and Egypt—where also their Lord was crucified.
[9]For three and a half days some from every people, tribe, language and nation will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial.
[10]The inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and will celebrate by sending each other gifts, because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth.
[11]But after the three and a half days the breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them.
[12]Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, while their enemies looked on.
[13]At that very hour there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.
[14]The second woe has passed; the third woe is coming soon.
While Zerubbabel was a legitimate heir to David’s throne, his role was apparently limited to governor, even though he is spoken of in elevated terms
Haggai 2:21-23
[21]“Tell Zerubbabel governor of Judah that I am going to shake the heavens and the earth.
[22]I will overturn royal thrones and shatter the power of the foreign kingdoms. I will overthrow chariots and their drivers; horses and their riders will fall, each by the sword of his brother.
[23]“ ‘On that day,’ declares the Lord Almighty, ‘I will take you, my servant Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will make you like my signet ring, for I have chosen you,’ declares the Lord Almighty.”
In hyperbolic language, he would be able to move mountains (human obstacles)Ezra 4:1-5,24
[1]When the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were building a temple for the Lord, the God of Israel,
[2]they came to Zerubbabel and to the heads of the families and said, “Let us help you build because, like you, we seek your God and have been sacrificing to him since the time of Esarhaddon king of Assyria, who brought us here.”
[3]But Zerubbabel, Joshua and the rest of the heads of the families of Israel answered, “You have no part with us in building a temple to our God. We alone will build it for the Lord, the God of Israel, as King Cyrus, the king of Persia, commanded us.”
[4]Then the peoples around them set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to go on building.
[5]They bribed officials to work against them and frustrate their plans during the entire reign of Cyrus king of Persia and down to the reign of Darius king of Persia.
[24]Thus the work on the house of God in Jerusalem came to a standstill until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.
Isaiah 40:4
[4]Every valley shall be raised up,
Every mountain and hill made low;
The rough ground shall become level,
The rugged places a plain.
. Since God deserved all the credit, shouts of Grace, grace to the temple were very appropriate. Though God empowers human instrument, His intent is to negate any human claim to might and power.