Messiah Accepted.

And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.

Zechariah 12:10

My observation from chapter 11 of this study in Zechariah was that the prophecy made it clear that the Messiah would experience rejection in Jerusalem. And of course, that is exactly what Jesus foretold and experienced. But chapter 12 shows us that even though He is struck down, He is eventually accepted by the inhabitants of Jerusalem. It is God’s doing. God pours out His Spirit of grace and the nation cries out for mercy. And when they see “him whom they have pierced” (identified in the first person as God in this context), they will respond with heartfelt mourning and repentance.

The acceptance of Jesus is gradual in this day and age. It comes by exposure to the gospel, one life at a time. It comes by God’s gracious calling and the convicting work of the Spirit in those hearts that come to Him. God knows what He is doing. And Jews and Gentiles alike are finding a Messiah and a Savior in Jesus.

I believe this passage describes a future day when the nation of Israel will suffer its most difficult times. The response at the end of those times will be to turn to Messiah Jesus at His return. He is the one “whom they have pierced” (see John 19:31-37 where those who pierced Jesus’ side were Roman soldiers acting at the request of the Jewish authorities. Really we all are complicit). And the nation will come to Him as one nation, accepting the Messiah Who is the Savior of the world.

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malignant ministry as the call of God.

Thus said the LORD my God: "Become shepherd of the flock doomed to slaughter.”

Zechariah 11:4

This chapter is a difficult one to understand. There are metaphors and symbols within a large extended parable. Zechariah is asked to shepherd some stubborn sheep in the midst of some careless, foolish fellow-shepherds. There is no literal event being talked about. It is very hard to draw lines of interpretation from this complicated parable. Interpreters are all over the board on what is going on in this passage. But one thing is clear: God may call good people to work in difficult, dangerous, even unfruitful fields of ministry. Zechariah experiences no “success” in this endeavor, at least in terms of the response of the “sheep” and the “shepherds”. Both go bad and leave him with nothing but anger and anguish at his involvement with them (Zechariah 11:8-9). About fifteen years ago, I know I was there brutally for about six months. I was not a good guy at that time. It ain’t any fun!

I think that in terms of staying within the broader context of the book of Zechariah, it is good to see the prophet “acting out” the role of the Messiah and his eventual rejection. This is the interpretation that John MacArthur proposes for this chapter, and as I look at it further, it fits. The Messiah’s rejection is part of Old Testament prophecy (Daniel 9:26-27). And this does fit the way in which Jesus Himself predicted His rejection and the subsequent destruction that would befall Jerusalem at the destruction of the temple (Matthew 24:1-2). The final puzzle piece that fits this is the whole thirty pieces of silver description here (Zechariah 11:12). The New Testament gospel writers pick up on this as the blood price for Jesus with the prophetic details emphasized (Matthew 26:14-16).

Jesus would be called to difficult ministry. And he would ultimately be rejected by those to whom He came. The Roman authorities that carried out His execution at the desire of those shepherds in Israel that had rejected Him would later complete their oppressive rule by destroying Jerusalem and the temple worship a generation after Jesus’ death and resurrection. And Zechariah acted out the key points in this drama as the exiles returned from Babylon centuries before these events.

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The Humble King

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Zechariah 9:9

Jesus fulfilled this prophecy (Matthew 21:1-5) when He entered Jerusalem on the week of His passion. Zechariah is one of the most Messianic of the Old Testament prophets, containing prophecies that are relevant to the first advent and to the future coming of Christ. It is a fascinating book for this reason alone.

What is remarkable in this passage is the humility of the deliverer who rides into Jerusalem. The city of Jerusalem has been conquered numerous times. It is an ancient city filled with a history of war and subjugation. But Jesus is pictured differently. He is not pictured as a war general on a tall stallion parading His troops in a spectacle of captured prisoners. Instead, He is the humble, righteous king who brings salvation with him as He is carried alone through the streets of Jerusalem on a donkey’s colt. The focus is on the salvation He brings in His person.

Other war generals have always focused on military deeds, but Jesus is seen as salvific in person, not just in command of an army or human power. There is no need for a show of power and troops. He is the power. He brings salvation in Himself. This humble king was different than any other king who ever lived. And He came into Jerusalem to give His life for the world. I can rejoice in my salvation today because Jesus rode triumphantly into the Holy City so long ago knowing that Calvary was His objective. And there, He would bring about the greatest victory against the worst foe of mankind. For in defeating sin and death, He made His believers more than conquerors through Him Who loved us!

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A Deliverer is coming.

Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, you and your friends who sit before you, for they are men who are a sign: behold, I will bring my servant the Branch.

Zechariah 3:8

The reality of this verse is that God is promising the exiles who are returning to Jerusalem that a great Deliverer is coming. This is a Messianic promise. It calls the Messiah “the Branch”, hearkening back to Jeremiah’s pre-exilic words of prophecy. And the Deliverer comes as a servant to the nation.

The scene in which this promise is made reads like the kind of thing recorded in the epic poetry of Job. Joshua (or Yeshua – Greek: Jesus) is the high priest who has returned to Jerusalem to re-institute temple worship. (Zechariah 3:1-3) We also read about him in Ezra and Nehemiah. In this vision, Zechariah sees the priest standing before the angel of the Lord, with Satan standing to the right of him, accusing him before the Lord. And God rebukes the devil. It seems that Satan is wanting to accuse Joshua of being unfit to be a priest. He is clothed in filthy garments. And God just takes care of that. (Zechariah 3:4-5)

The rest of chapter three is an address to the high priest in which God assures him and comforts him.(Zechariah 3:6-7) He promises that if Joshua will walk in His ways, God will bless the work of his priesthood. And then God re-affirms the promise to bring His servant, the Branch to the nation. The faithful nation, restored to its land, worshipping the Lord, would eventually see the Messiah come. This is still hundreds of years away, but to Joshua the high priest is given the promise of Jesus, the Great High Priest. And after that promise, God paints a beautiful picture of peace under the rule of Branch (Zechariah 3:9-10)

To the first post-exilic high priest that also bore Jesus’ own name, God gave the promise of the Messiah. He affirmed this priest with a promise. He removed the iniquity of that priest to show that God could use someone for His purposes. He assured the nation of His unfailing love and power to forgive. And He promised a future… one that I know today, yet still anticipate in its completion.

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Acceptance & Denial

But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying out in the temple, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" they were indignant, and they said to him, "Do you hear what these are saying?" And Jesus said to them, "Yes; have you never read,
        " 'Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies
you have prepared praise'?"
Matthew 21:15-16

Jesus' enemies were not acting out of ignorance when they challenged him. They saw the miraculous things that He did. They simply denied them... and Him. This passage shows them to be particularly bold in their confrontation. The crowds in Jerusalem that were gathered for the coming Passover celebration were enthusiastic in their reception of Jesus. The triumphal entry could only be seen as wild Messianic celebration. And people knew this. The title "Son of David" was reserved for the Messiah, and the crowd’s cry of "Hosanna to the the Son of David" indicates their desire to see Jesus act as Messiah.

The chief priests and scribes on the other hand saw the same miraculous results of Jesus' ministry and the adulation that came even from the words of children and were upset by it. They could not see Jesus for what He was. It upset them. And when they confronted Him, He quietly pointed out that even the chanting of children in the temple was a fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy about Him.

There is no doubt in my mind that Jesus confidently knew His mission. And I believe that the city of Jerusalem was characterized by people who were hoping to see Him deliver Israel as Messiah. They did not know He came as the suffering Servant. They did not know that as they began the celebration of saving blood at Passover, a greater saving blood was going to be shed for them and not only for the nation of Israel, but for the entire world. Their praise precedes the atonement. In less than a week they would be crying out for His execution. And a week from that day, they would be stirred with the news that the crucified Jesus was no longer to be found in a tomb.

Jesus surprises us. He surprises us with a love that is beyond our own. He surprises us with answers that we never saw coming. He surprises us by confronting our legalistic self-ruled religion. He surprises us with full atonement for our sin. He surprises us with new life and victory over death.

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