Zechariah 3:1-10
When we read the Bible that was written 2,000 to 4,000 years ago, we can miss the importance of what we read because we are reading with 21st century eyes and the filter of modern culture. This is why it is important to read commentaries and learn from scholars what they have discovered about the historical context of what we read. We need help to understand the culture of those who first heard the words we read.
One of the things we can easily miss is something called a chiasm. Cory referenced this a couple weeks ago. A chiasm is a literary device in which a sequence of ideas is presented and then repeated in reverse order.
An example would be Jesus saying in Mark 2:27 “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” Here there is an ABBA format.
A The Sabbath
B was made for man
B not man for
A the Sabbath
The first half, “The Sabbath was made for man,” is repeated in reverse order, “not man for the Sabbath.”
Many times there is a center in the chiasm such as in Matthew 6:24
“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” Here there is an ABCCBA format.
A No one can serve two masters.
B Either you will hate the one
C and love the other,
C or you will be devoted to the one
B and despise the other.
A You cannot serve both God and money.
The first and last themes concern serving God and money. The second and next to last themes concern hating or despising. The middle sections concern loving one or the other.
How does understanding this make a difference? In a chiasm, when there is a middle section, this middle section is given emphasis. Those who listened to Jesus teach understood this and immediately heard the emphasis of the middle statements. In Western cultures we are trained to look for the emphasis at the beginning and/or the end of the text. So, we conclude that this verse is about serving either God or money.
But when we read this as a chiasm, it becomes clear that the focus is on loving the right master. It is possible to serve without loving. Love, in these words of Jesus, is the main point. The question is not whether we will serve God or money. The central focus is on the question of which we will love because we will serve whatever we love.
In the vision of Zechariah there are eight scenes and they are organized into a chiasm.
1. Myrtle Trees – Peace among the Nations in the Earth (1:7-17).
2. Four Horns – Judgment of the Nations for their Evil (1:8-21).
3. Measuring Line – The Habitation of Jerusalem (2:1-13).
4. Joshua – Restoration of the Priestly Line (3:1-10).
5. Zerubbabel – Restoration of the Royal Line (4:1-14).
6. Flying Scroll – Removal of Sin from Israel (5:1-4).
7. Woman in a Basket – Removal of Sin from the Nations (5:5-11).
8. Four Chariots – Peace among the Nations in the Earth (6:1-8).
The visions begin and end with peace among the nations. The first peace, however, is a false peace. In contrast the final peace is the result of God’s renewal of his grace toward Israel and Jerusalem.
The second and seventh visions focus on the nations as well. While the first vision judges them for their malicious treatment of God’s people, the seventh vision sees the removal of the wickedness of the nations that prepares for peace on the earth among the nations.
The third and sixth visions focus on Israel in their land. The resettlement and prosperity of Jerusalem in the third vision is connected to the removal of sin from the land by the return of God to the temple.
The fourth and fifth visions are the restoration of the royal and priestly lines to Israel. These two central visions point to Jesus as we will see this morning and next week. And when we understand this, then we know what is being said through this chiasm. Because of the work of Jesus the false peace of vision one becomes a true peace in the nations in vision eight. Because of the work of Jesus the nations that were judged in vision two now have their sin removed from them in vision seven. Because of the work of Jesus the Jews and all those from the nations who come into Zion in vision three have their sin removed from them in vision six.
So we come this morning to the fourth scene and next week to the fifth scene, the heart of Zechariah’s vision. The other scenes in the vision speak powerfully to us and give hope and encouragement. But now we come to the heart of this vision that is foundational to the hope that comes from the other scenes in the vision.
Unlike the first three scenes in the vision, in this fourth scene there are no mysterious images to be figured out. There are no myrtle trees or horses, horns or blacksmiths, no man with a measuring line. In this scene what Zechariah sees is someone he knows, Joshua, the high priest in Jerusalem.
There is a trial taking place and Satan is standing by the side of Joshua, making accusations against him. In this scene, God is the judge; Joshua, representing the Jews, stands as the prisoner appearing before the judge. The prosecuting attorney is Satan.
Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him. 2 The Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?”
You may have heard sermons using a courtroom scene to describe the work of Jesus in our lives. It is here in Zechariah that this image comes from. Satan is the accuser. He stands before God and tells God why a man or woman does not deserve and cannot be permitted to enter into the presence of God. Satan uses his knowledge of the law of God and the character of God to make his case why the man or woman is a sinner and cannot be permitted to come into heaven.
There are some important truths revealed in this image from Zechariah. Satan is our accuser and reminds us of our sin and tells us we are fools if we think God will forgive us. He tells us God is tired of our ongoing failure to live a good life. He reminds us of our thoughts, the things we do in secret. The voice we hear so loudly that is condemning us, telling us we do not have value, we do not have worth, we are not loveable, is the voice of Satan in our ear.
We need to recognize his voice so when we hear it we can counter what we are hearing with the voice of God who is telling us we do have worth. We are loved. We are deeply loved. We have great value. It is because we are loved so deeply and valued so highly that God became flesh and Jesus died for us. We have been forgiven. God has promised us he will never leave us or forsake us. Jesus promised that he would bring us safely into his kingdom where he is preparing a place for us.
We desperately need to hear the voice of God that stands up for us in the face of the accusations of Satan.
Satan is a powerful enemy. Satan is our accuser, but Satan is only a created being. Satan does not have the power of God. Satan is not present everywhere. Satan is not all-powerful. Satan is limited and God, who created Satan, has power over him.
When Satan stands by my side and accuses me, he has a good case. I am a sinner and I do not deserve to enter into God’s kingdom. But Jesus is my defense attorney and speaks up for me. He declares that the price for my sin has been paid and I am set free to enter into the kingdom of God.
Satan is a powerful enemy but as John wrote in his letter (I John 4:4)
the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.
In Zechariah’s vision Satan is rebuked.
“The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?”
John Wesley who began the movement that became the Methodist Church was rescued from a burning building when he was six years old. Someone drew a picture of him being rescued and he kept that picture with him all his life. Under the picture he wrote this verse from Zechariah 3. Wesley understood that he was a burning stick snatched from the fire. He knew that Jesus had rescued him and lived his life in devotion to his rescuer.
The Lord rebuked Satan and then Zechariah continued with the scene in his vision.
3 Now Joshua was dressed in filthy clothes as he stood before the angel. 4 The angel said to those who were standing before him, “Take off his filthy clothes.”
Then he said to Joshua, “See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put fine garments on you.”
The image of dirty clothes representing sin was well known to Zechariah who knew very well the writings of Isaiah.
Isaiah 64:6
All of us have become like one who is unclean,
and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags;
we all shrivel up like a leaf,
and like the wind our sins sweep us away.
Joshua was dressed in filthy clothes. His filthy clothes were proof of his sin and not being fit to enter into the kingdom of God. He stands there without a defense. His clothes speak for themselves. His sin is evident. He is absolutely helpless.
In this vision, Joshua, the high priest, represents the Jews. Joshua stood with dirty clothes and was high priest of a people who wore dirty clothes. Joshua and the Jews were helpless and needed to be rescued.
Zechariah was also familiar with what Isaiah said about being clothed with garments of salvation and righteousness. (Isaiah 61:10)
I delight greatly in the Lord;
my soul rejoices in my God.
For he has clothed me with garments of salvation
and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness,
as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
“He arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness.” His righteousness, not mine, his. This is what Paul wrote in Romans 3:21–22.
But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22 This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.
It was this truth that excited Martin Luther. He understood that he did not have to nor could he become the righteous person he needed to be. Like Joshua the high priest, he stood helpless before Satan his accuser. And then Jesus took off Luther’s filthy clothing and put on him his own clean robe.
Martin Luther said, “You mean the righteousness by which I will be saved, is not mine? It is not something I have to achieve through hard work?” It’s what he called an alien righteousness; a righteousness that belongs properly to somebody else. It’s a righteousness that is outside of us. Namely, the righteousness of Christ. And Luther said, “When I discovered that, I was born again of the Holy Ghost. And the doors of paradise swung open, and I walked through.”
This was great news for Isaiah, great news for Zechariah, great news for Paul, great news for Martin Luther, and it is great news for us.
We sang this morning
When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh, may I then in Him be found,
Clothed in His righteousness alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne!
In John’s revelation, in a victorious celebration John heard (Revelation 19:6–8)
… what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting:
“Hallelujah!
For our Lord God Almighty reigns.
7 Let us rejoice and be glad
and give him glory!
For the wedding of the Lamb has come,
and his bride has made herself ready.
8 Fine linen, bright and clean,
was given her to wear.”
We celebrate in song and prayer the magnificent truth that God has given us what we could never achieve for ourselves. We have been given the righteousness of Jesus and been set free to be in a living relationship with our pre-existing creator God who loves us and wants us to be with him for eternity in his heavenly kingdom.
Then the angel of the Lord gave two conditions to Joshua.
6 The angel of the Lord gave this charge to Joshua: 7 “This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘If you will walk in obedience to me and keep my requirements, then you will govern my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you a place among these standing here.
These conditions are good news and bad news. The good news is that you get out of jail and are set free. The bad news is that if you ever think any bad thoughts, you are going back to jail. The good news is that you have received a great treasure and will never again have to worry about having enough money. The bad news is you have to swim across the Atlantic Ocean to get it. The good news is that you get another chance. Once again, as God promised to Abraham and to Isaac, and to Jacob, and to Moses, and to Joshua, and to Israel through the prophets, “I will bless you if you obey.”The bad news is that no matter how many second chances we get, we will never be able to perfectly obey.
It is the “if” that is a problem.
And if this is where the vision ended, what hope would there be? When had Israel, from the time of Abraham up to the present, ever been able to live lives in obedience to God? Over and over again they turned to the worship of idols. Over and over again they disobeyed God in the way they treated their fellow citizens.
Four or five hundred years later a woman was given a similar promise. In John 8 a woman was caught in adultery. In the age old hypocrisy of male and female relationships the man with her was released and she was brought to Jesus by the religious leaders to test him, to challenge him. They asked him to uphold the law and condemn this woman to death by being stoned. You know the story. Jesus told them, “He who is without sin cast the first stone,” and one by one they dropped their stones and left. When they were all gone Jesus talked with the woman.
Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”
11 “No one, sir,” she said.
“Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”
The woman stood in front of her accusers with her guilt. She had been caught having sex with a married man. Her dirty clothes accused her. She stood there completely helpless. She expected to be killed. And then Jesus spoke life to her. “Neither do I condemn you.” She was set free.
She was set free but there was a condition. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”
What hope is there for us if the condition for our freedom is to no longer sin? I think things I should not think. I make judgments about people I should not make. I fail to trust God for what I need and fantasize about having more money. Paul struggled with this and cried out, (Romans 7:18–19)
For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19 For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.
Fortunately for Zechariah, for Joshua, for the woman caught in adultery, for Paul, and for us, the vision continued.
8 “ ‘Listen, High Priest Joshua, you and your associates seated before you, who are men symbolic of things to come: I am going to bring my servant, the Branch. 9 See, the stone I have set in front of Joshua! There are seven eyes on that one stone, and I will engrave an inscription on it,’ says the Lord Almighty, ‘and I will remove the sin of this land in a single day.
10 “ ‘In that day each of you will invite your neighbor to sit under your vine and fig tree,’ declares the Lord Almighty.”
The angel of the Lord told Zechariah, Joshua, and all who heard this message that Joshua, the high priest, and the others who worked in the Temple with him were symbolic of what was to come. A servant was coming, the Branch. We know who that is.
Jesus is the servant who washed the feet of his disciples and then told them (John 13:14–17)
Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. 15 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16 Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17 Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.
Jesus is the branch Jeremiah prophesied would come from David’s line. (Jeremiah 33:15)
In those days and at that time
I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David’s line;
he will do what is just and right in the land.
Jesus is the rock of our salvation and Zechariah saw in his vision that in a single day God will remove the sin of Israel. We live on this side of that day and know it was a Friday before the Sabbath when Jesus was crucified and all sin removed.
We celebrate this day each year on the Friday before Easter and we call it Good Friday. Each Good Friday I post the BC cartoon in which one caveman says, “I hate the term ‘Good Friday’.” The second caveman asks, “Why?” The first replies, “My Lord was hanged on a tree that day.” The second asks, “If you were going to be hanged on that day and he volunteered to take your place, how would you feel?” The first replies, “Good.” The second says, “Have a nice day,” and walks away.
Good Friday is a good day because the crucifixion of Jesus is the turning point for all of history.
Death has always been the enemy that could not be defeated. The writer of Ecclesiastes concluded all is meaningless because death is the end for every person whether rich or poor, wise or foolish. (Ecclesiastes 2:14–16)
“The fate of the fool will overtake me also.
What then do I gain by being wise?”
I said to myself,
“This too is meaningless.”
16 For the wise, like the fool, will not be long remembered;
the days have already come when both have been forgotten.
Like the fool, the wise too must die!
The devil thought he had won. Death had been challenged and death had once again been triumphant. But then came Easter and death was once for all time defeated. So Paul burst out in praise: (1 Corinthians 15:56–57)
“Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?”
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
This is amazing and yet, for us, the death and resurrection of Jesus can be like the air we breathe. It has always been there and we take it for granted. If we went to church as children we heard it in Sunday School and we have heard it ever since.
But for the Jews who heard this message from Zechariah it was unbelievable news. The Temple was continually busy with people making sacrifices for sin. The priests were busy butchering animals and burning them on the altar. During the Feast of Passover hundreds of thousands of sheep were sacrificed year after year after year.
The book of Hebrews can be viewed as a commentary of Zechariah and the writer of Hebrews talks about what makes the sacrifice of Jesus different.
The writer of Hebrews talks about Jesus as our high priest. (Hebrews 7:26–27)
Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. 27 Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself.
We do not kill a sheep each year to atone for our sin; Jesus is our once-for-all-time sacrifice for sin. We do not die without confidence of what will happen to us after we die. We have assurance that because of the death and resurrection of Jesus, when we put our trust in him, he will raise us to new life and bring us safely into his eternal kingdom.
How do we take the message we have heard over and over again and make it come alive in our heart and mind?
This is a gift from God. It came to me when I was twenty years old. The significance of this gift has grown over the years since then but it came to me and continues to come to me as a gift from God. I am drawn deeper and deeper into the marvelous mystery of being loved and rescued by Jesus.
We take the air we breathe for granted until it disappears and then people who are suffocating are desperate for air.
There will come a time for every person on this planet when they will become desperate for the life Jesus offers. When you are young, life is full of dreams, ambitions, and possibilities. As we age we become more humble as we see how little we are in control of what happens in our lives. I am grateful that Jesus made himself known to me when I was young. I tremble to think what my life would have been like if I had not been found by Jesus when I was twenty years old. I regret I did not reach out for the hand Jesus extended to me six or seven years earlier.
Life is not easy for any of us but moving through the joys and sorrows of life with Jesus makes all the difference.
I pray for each of you this morning that you will receive the great gift of discovering how desperately you need Jesus. I pray that you will be able to understand how incredibly fortunate you are to have been found by Jesus who has always been seeking you, will never stop seeking deeper intimacy with you, who will never leave you or forsake you, who will welcome you into his kingdom when your life on earth comes to an end.
