Zechariah's Visions: Transition To The Branch

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“Then take silver and gold, and make crowns, and set them upon the head of Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest; And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD.” (Zechariah 6:11-12)

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[Covenanter]

An interesting aspect of this prophecy is the crowning of the high priest:

¹¹ Then take silver and gold, and make crowns, and set them upon the head of Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest;

¹² And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The Branch; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord:

¹³ Even he shall build the temple of the Lord; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both.

Zerubbabel was in the line of kings, in the genealogy of Christ yet Joshua the High Priest is crowned as a priest on his throne. 

 

The only other priest-kings in Scripture are Melchizedek & Christ. 

 

Joshua's crowning was prophetic, as The Branch. It's no coincident that Joshua in Hebrew is Jesus (Iesous) in Greek. 

[Alan]

Covenanter,

 

The Book of Zechariah deserves more attention from all of us. There are some finer points of prophecy that need to be brought out.

 

Thank you for your exposition.

 

AlanTaiwan

Edited February 6, 2015 by AlanTaiwan

[Covenanter]

Covenanter,

 

The Book of Zechariah deserves more attention from all of us. There are some finer points of prophecy that need to be brought out.

 

Thank you for your exposition.

 

AlanTaiwan

 

I have preached through Zechariah. There are many cross references to Zechariah in the NT, particularly relating to the last few days of Jesus' life & death, but also Revelation. We need to look at the NT fulfilment of the prophecies & its relevance to our Gospel days before interpreting it in terms of yet future "end times." 

 

For instance, his visions of the horsemen on coloured horses & chariots relate to God's angelic servants, not the activity of Antichrist (as Rev. 6 is commonly interpreted.) 

[Covenanter]

Zechariah & Haggai were given a ministry of encouragement to those who returned from Babylon. Encouragement to get on with rebuilding the temple, which had been neglected for about 20 years due to opposition from those who had occupied the land during the captivity. 

 

In Zec. 1:6 he reminds them that their trouble had been prophesied by earlier prophets, & though those prophets had been rejected, & had died, their prophecies had come about. That's a reminder to us, that we are called to serve our generation. Acts 13:36 

 

The first vision of horsemen Zec. 1:8-11 shows them as God's agents walking through the earth. Is there a difference between "earth" & "land" - the same word is used in both Hebrew & Greek, & both words do have multiple meanings. The context should be helpful, as here "earth" refers to both land & people:

11 And they answered the angel of the LORD that stood among the myrtle trees, and said, We have walked to and fro through the earth, and, behold, all the earth sitteth still, and is at rest.

 

The first "earth" is the land, while the second "earth" is people. In view of the context, the LORD is referring to the land of Israel which is his concern, not the planet. Jerusalem & the Jews are still in difficulties, while the occupiers are in peaceful possession. 

 

How can those occupiers who took advantage of the LORD's judgement of Israel Zec. 1:15  to add to the people's affliction be overcome? Get on with rebuilding the temple - don't be afraid, I am with you. Hag. 1:13 The carpenters will triumph over the destroyers. Zec. 1:20-21 

 

There's a message for us there. Get on with the LORD's work - he is with us.

Edited February 8, 2015 by Covenanter

[Covenanter]

As Zechariah & his visions progress, there are challenges we must face. How far ahead do his prophecies speak?

 

Clearly he & Haggai are addressing the Jews who have returned & are rebuilding the temple & Jerusalem, but clearly the visions look beyond the immediate situation.

 

The OP looks to Jesus & goes beyond to the millennium & eternity but gives present encouragement. 

 

 

 

The little band of remnants needed assurance from their Lord. They, like us, need to shift their eyes beyond the moment to the end-game. “For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea” (Habakkuk 2:14).

 

What does he see concerning the rebuilding of Jerusalem? A city without walls. Zec. 2:4-5 Is that earthly Jerusalem, that was destroyed with the temple in AD 70, & is now protected by walls? Or is it the heavenly Jerusalem, inhabited by believers in Jesus?  Gal. 4:22-31 Should we look for spiritual fulfilment by the Gospel, or a physical fulfilment.

 

Whatever our understanding of prophecy we can see our place in the ever-increasing Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ. Zec. 2:10-13  

[Alan]

Covenanter

 

1. The common accepted intrepretation of  the four Horseman in Revelation 6 among independent Baptists is correct. They are the person and work of the Antichrist during the 7 year Tribulation period.

 

As there is not enough space on this site for a complete review of the correct scriptual of the commonly accepted, and scriptually correct, interpretation of evelation 6 and the four Horsemen among independent Baptist. In fact, among the independent Baptist that I asociate with I do not know one of them them believes differently.

 

The interpretation of the four hoursemen being God's angelic servants has no basis in either Old Testament or New Testament prophecies.

 

2. The reference of Zechariah 1:8-11, 'red horse ... more red horses , speckled and white,' is not related to the four horsemen in Revelation 6 and is a miss-application of scripture.

[Ukulelemike]

Covenanter

 

1. The common accepted intrepretation of  the four Horseman in Revelation 6 among independent Baptists is correct. They are the person and work of the Antichrist during the 7 year Tribulation period.

 

As there is not enough space on this site for a complete review of the correct scriptual of the commonly accepted, and scriptually correct, interpretation of evelation 6 and the four Horsemen among independent Baptist. In fact, among the independent Baptist that I asociate with I do not know one of them them believes differently.

 

The interpretation of the four hoursemen being God's angelic servants has no basis in either Old Testament or New Testament prophecies.

 

2. The reference of Zechariah 1:8-11, 'red horse ... more red horses , speckled and white,' is not related to the four horsemen in Revelation 6 and is a miss-application of scripture.

I think he is agreeing with you, that the four horsemen of Rev 6 are not the same or associated with those of Zechariah. Or I may be wrong, but I agree they are not the same.  Though many believe that the first horseman is Christ, not the Antichrist, though I am not of that opinion.

[Covenanter]

I think he is agreeing with you, that the four horsemen of Rev 6 are not the same or associated with those of Zechariah. Or I may be wrong, but I agree they are not the same.  Though many believe that the first horseman is Christ, not the Antichrist, though I am not of that opinion.

While I am happy to include cross references to the NT, my comments so far concern Zechariah, not Revelation. 

[Covenanter]

Zec. 3 shows the transformation of the degraded high priest without a temple to the glorious great High Priest, our Lord Jesus Christ. And Jesus will offer one final & perfect sacrifice to remove the iniquity of that land in one day. Zec. 3:9-10 

 

That prophecy has one glorious fulfilment. 

[Alan]

Dr. Morris was correct in his conclusion, "The promise of ultimate rule is clear in Scripture (Isaiah 9:7 and Jeremiah 23:5-6; 33:15-16). The impact of this prophecy in Zechariah extends to the Millennium and even into eternity. “And they that are far off shall come and build in the temple of the LORD, and ye shall know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto you” (Zechariah 6:15).

The little band of remnants needed assurance from their Lord. They, like us, need to shift their eyes beyond the moment to the end-game. “For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea” (Habakkuk 2:14). HMM III. "

As Dr. Morris concludes, the ultimate conclusion of the prophecy of Zechariah 6:15 extends to the Millennium and into eternity.