Zechariah 14:10-21 and the Nature of the Coming Kingdom

Zechariah 14:1–9 revealed the timing of the kingdom of God. God’s kingdom comes in the context of a multi-national siege of Jerusalem that is foiled by the Lord’s intervention on behalf of Jerusalem and the people of Israel. At that time, “The Lord will be king over all the earth” (v. 9).

Verse 10–21 reveal important details about the nature of the kingdom. The kingdom involves even more changes to Jerusalem as verse 10 indicates: “All the land will be changed into a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem; but Jerusalem will rise and remain on its site from Benjamin’s Gate as far as the place of the First Gate to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the king’s wine presses.” Verse 11 also shows that “Jerusalem will dwell in security.”

Verses 12–15 describe what will happen to those who previously waged war against Jerusalem. Destruction, panic, and plague befall the enemies of Israel.

Now this will be the plague with which the LORD will strike all the peoples who have gone to war against Jerusalem; their flesh will rot while they stand on their feet, and their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongue will rot in their mouth. 13 It will come about in that day that a great panic from the LORD will fall on them; and they will seize one another’s hand, and the hand of one will be lifted against the hand of another. 14 Judah also will fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the surrounding nations will be gathered, gold and silver and garments in great abundance. 15 So also like this plague will be the plague on the horse, the mule, the camel, the donkey and all the cattle that will be in those camps.

16 Then it will come about that any who are left of all the nations that went against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to celebrate the Feast of Booths. 17 And it will be that whichever of the families of the earth does not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, there will be no rain on them. 18 If the family of Egypt does not go up or enter, then no rain will fall on them; it will be the plague with which the LORD smites the nations who do not go up to celebrate the Feast of Booths. 19 This will be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all the nations who do not go up to celebrate the Feast of Booths.

First, there are some people from the nations that survive the judgments of the Lord (v. 16).

Second, those who survive the judgments of the Lord from among the nations will go to Jerusalem to worship the King. The nations must now come to worship the King in person as He rules from Jerusalem, His capital city. This shows that Jerusalem as a city and Israel as a nation have future significance.

Third, survivors from the nations will celebrate the Feast of Booths. This feast was one of three times on Israel’s calendar when God’s people were to present themselves at the sanctuary (see Lev. 23:34–44). The purpose of the feast was to celebrate the Lord’s provision for Israel during their wilderness journey.

So how will an Israelite feast relate to the nations when the Lord rules upon the earth? Eugene Merrill points out that “there is evidence that this was an occasion for some kind of recognition of the king as YHWH’s son and representative.” Thus, “For the nations to observe the Feast of Tabernacles was for them to come in submission before the King of all the earth and render to Him their expressions of subservience.”[1] In short, the Feast of Booths will be an opportunity for the nations of the earth, as national entities, to express their allegiance to the Lord.

Fourth, nations that do not observe the Feast of Booths will experience negative consequences. The Lord will smite the nations that disobey. Egypt for example, who appears as a representative of the nations at this time, will not experience rainfall. This shows that during this phase of the Lord’s reign over the earth, disobedience is still possible for some and that the Lord’s righteous reign involves punishment on occasion.

Verses 20–21 indicate that everything during this period will be holy to the Lord, even those things usually considered mundane:

In that day there will be inscribed on the bells of the horses, “HOLY TO THE LORD.” And the cooking pots in the LORD’S house will be like the bowls before the altar. Every cooking pot in Jerusalem and in Judah will be holy to the LORD of hosts; and all who sacrifice will come and take of them and boil in them. And there will no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts in that day.

In sum, this section reveals that the Lord will reign from Jerusalem over the nations. The nations must show their allegiance by observing the Feast of Booths. Those nations that do not obey the Lord will experience negative consequences, including the withholding of blessings.

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[1] Eugene H. Merrill, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi: An Exegetical Commentary (Chicago” Moody Press, 1994), 362–63.

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This shows that God is dealing with mankind in yet another way demonstrating His mercy and grace. In this millennium dispensation, we have the holy and righteous Creator God ruling among men with a “rod of iron” but also in perfect justice and yet people will STILL rebel! I've heard one explanation for why God - who knows the beginning from the end - would continue to allow mankind to disobey Him throughout all the various ways He deals with man as not only tests for man but as an object lesson to Satan. As Scofield noted, “These periods are marked off in Scripture by some change in God's method of dealing with mankind, in respect to two questions: of sin, and of man's responsibility. Each of the dispensations may be regarded as a new test of the natural man, and each ends in judgment—marking his utter failure in every dispensation.”

The object lesson to Satan and his fallen angels is that, in spite of man being made "a little lower than the angels", some are STILL capable of turning to God in faith. And that God has ALWAYS had grace as His overriding attribute. Dispensations then, are periods in history whereby God dealt with man in a specific way:

Conscience - After man sinned, up to the flood

Government - After the flood, man allowed to eat meat, death penalty instituted

Promise - Abraham up to Moses and the giving of the Law

Law - Moses to the cross

Grace - The cross to the Millennial Kingdom

Millennial Kingdom - A 1000 year reign of Christ on earth centered in Jerusalem (http://www.endtimes.org/dispens.html)

And through all these ways God deals with His creation, He never stops loving us and showing us His mercy and His grace. The method of salvation, justification by faith alone, never changes through the dispensations - all to HIS glory!

This shows that God is dealing with mankind in yet another way demonstrating His mercy and grace.

Amen!

Great post BB. I think this chapter in Zechariah is a clear example that the Millennial Reign of Jesus Christ is an actual physical reign on Earth, not a figurative reign. I believe a lot of Christians don't understand how the amillennial view has to twist passages in Scripture.

And through all these ways God deals with His creation, He never stops loving us and showing us His mercy and His grace.

What often gets misrepresented is regardless of the economy/dispensation salvation is always by grace through faith. However, I think that in different periods we see God draw people to Him in different ways. For example during the Church Age we are predestined. However, during the Millennial Reign mankind is given free will and mankind then shows why we are so undeserving of God's mercy and how merciful God is in saving any of us.

It's also the Feast that marks the birth of the Messiah. Google Jesus three and a half years and you'll find a plethora of articles detailing the length of the Messiah's ministry. (Crucifixion at 33.5 years old) So, the crucifixion took place on Pesach/Passover, now look at your Hebrew calendar (throw out the three years and just back up six months) and you'll land right in Succot/Tabernacles/Booths. Back up nine more and you will land in Chanukah, minus 10 days.

Back to Succot. After all, shepherds do not watch over their flocks by night, in winter. Winter is the rainy season in Israel. But they do in late summer which is when Succot takes place. The shepherds could watch the flocks, their wives could bunk up in one house and the rest could rent out their homes to travelers who were making the pilgrimage to Jerusalem. That's why there was no room at the inn(s).

And it fits perfectly right here... Daniel 9:27
27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven (week).’ In the middle of the ‘seven, he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on a wing of the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.

This (middle of the week) refers to the crucifixion. End to sacrifice = 'It is finished'. John 19:30. And for proof that there is no seven year tribulation look to Revelation. You will find, time, times and half a time, 42 months and three and a half 'days' Rev. 11 which can all be translated as three and a half years. You'll find 3.5 but you will not find a seven year time period in the book of Revelation. NEXT!

Now for some real fun! The crucifixion took place on Pesach 3790 (30 CE) and 3790 is? You guessed it, the middle of a week (shemita). All of the patterns are laid down in the TORAH. How to determine a shemita year? Divide by 7, that simple. Hebrew year 3787 divided by 7 = 541. It's 3.5 years from Rosh HaShanah 3787 to Pesach 3790, ergo the middle of the seven/week.

Want more fun?

Check out this site and get acquainted with it, Your Sky can generate a map of the heavens any time any where on earth.

http://www.fourmilab.ch/yoursky/

Now put April 5, 30 into the universal time column or just paste this 30-04-05 20:00:00 and hit update. I hope I don't have to tell you to choose Jerusalem as the nearby city. You will find the full moon (Pesach of Nisan) in the womb of Virgo/Beulah in Hebrew English means maiden. Have fun and cycle through the evening and you'll see the New Covenant being born (Ouch I might add). And in August there is a conjuction of Saturn and Mars in, oops Virgo. Check it out 2012-08-15 15:00:00

Twins in the womb and Mars is born first, oy gevalt!

So how do the nations relate to the Feasts of The LORD?

Shemita http://www.yashanet.com/studies/revstudy/rev3a.htm

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