Zechariah 13 (JPS Divine Name Restored)
(8) And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith YHWH, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. (9) And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried; they shall call on My name, and I will answer them; I will say: 'It is My people', and they shall say: 'YHWH is my God.'
I believe the fire is the cleansing/purification.
Zechariah 13 is another good verse to support the doctrine of Purgatory.
This quote is quite obviously speaking of the nation of Israel in the last days. Otherwise, you imply that only 1/3 of mankind in all of history will be saved and go to heaven.
The Lord Jesus Christ in Luke 16:19 - 31 clearly says there is no such thing or place as "purgatory" only paradise or hell and ONCE YOU ARE THERE(whichever place you find yourself)THERE IS NO GETTING OUT, NO ESCAPE and NO going from either place to the other, PERIOD and there is no in-between place called "purgatory".
Purgatory is nothing but false, heretical, fiction designed to fill the coffers of the Roman Catholic "church" by duping it's followers into giving it money to supposedly buy loved ones out of the fictional cleansing/suffering fires of purgatory.
God's Word is clear, everyone who has put their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and savior and called upon His name and Him alone to save them from ALL of their sin HAVE BEEN and ARE saved from the penalty of ALL of their sin. They are positionally IN CHRIST: (5 Corinthians 5:17); There is no need for a fictional purgatory because they HAVE BEEN JUSTIFIED and HAVE PEACE with God and are no longer condemned by God:
"Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1)
They are NO LONGER CONDEMNED by God:
"Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Romans 8:1
They POSESS ETERNAL LIFE: John 10:27-30; 1John 5:11 - 13; NO ONE CAN EVER BRING A CHARGE AGAINST THEM and NOTHING CAN EVER SEPERATE THEM FROM THE LOVE OF GOD: Romans 8:33 - 39.
God's Word is clear, there is no purgatory only heaven or hell and the only way to escape the pangs of hell is to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, to call upon the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and to receive/accept Him as one's savior, trusting in Him and in Him alone, totally apart from any personal merit or "good works" to save us: John 1:12; John 3:14 - 18; Acts 16:30 - 31; Romans 10:13; Ephesians 2:8 - 9.
Rashi 's commentary on this is:
shalom b'SHEM Yah'shua HaMashiach And I will bring the third in fire: And I will bring the third in straits in the smelting-pot
of fire (Jonathan), so that some of the proselytes should bear the birth pang of the
Messiah and the war of Gog and Magog with Israel. From there they shall be tested [as
to] whether [or not] they are true proselytes. Then, many of those who previously
converted to Judaism shall return to their pre-conversion customs and join Gog.
We find [this idea] in the Aggadah (Avodah Zarah 3b; Midrash Psalms 2:5, footnote 29).
and he shall say, “The Lord…”: When he prays, he will pray to the Lord and not to his
previous deity.