10. Future conversion of the Jews is to flow from an extraordinary
outpouring of the Holy Spirit
(Jer 31:9, 31-34;
Eze 39:29).
spirit of grace . . . supplications--"spirit" is here not the spirit
produced, but
THE
HOLY
SPIRIT
producing a "gracious" disposition,
and inclination for "supplications."
CALVIN explains "spirit of
grace" as the grace of God itself (whereby He "pours" out His bowels
of mercy), "conjoined with the sense of it in man's heart." The "spirit
of supplications" is the mercury whose rise or fall is an unerring test
of the state of the Church [MOORE]. In Hebrew, "grace" and
"supplications" are kindred terms; translate, therefore, "gracious supplications." The plural implies suppliant prayers "without
ceasing." Herein not merely external help against the foe, as before,
but internal grace is promised subsequently.
look upon me--with profoundly earnest regard, as the Messiah whom
they so long denied.
pierced--implying Messiah's humanity: as "I will pour . . . spirit"
implies His divinity.
look . . . mourn--True repentance arises from the sight by faith of
the crucified Saviour. It is the tear that drops from the eye of faith
looking on Him. Terror only produces remorse. The true penitent weeps
over his sins in love to Him who in love has suffered for them.
me . . . him--The change of person is due to
Jehovah-Messiah speaking in His own person first, then the
prophet speaking of Him. The Jews, to avoid the conclusion that
He whom they have "pierced" is Jehovah-Messiah, who says, "I will pour
out . . . spirit," altered "me" into "him," and represent the
"pierced" one to be Messiah Ben (son of) Joseph, who was to suffer in
the battle with Cog, before Messiah Ben David should come to reign. But
Hebrew, Chaldee, Syriac, and Arabic oppose this; and the
ancient Jews interpreted it of Messiah.
Ps 22:16
also refers to His being "pierced." So
Joh 19:37;
Re 1:7.
The actual piercing of His side was the culminating point of all their
insulting treatment of Him. The act of the Roman soldier who pierced
Him was their act
(Mt 27:25),
and is so accounted here in Zechariah. The Hebrew word is always
used of a literal piercing (so
Zec 13:3);
not of a metaphorical piercing, "insulted," as
MAURER and
other Rationalists (from the Septuagint) represent.
as one mourneth for . . . son--
(Jer 6:26;
Am 8:10).
A proverbial phrase peculiarly forcible among the Jews, who felt
childlessness as a curse and dishonor. Applied with peculiar propriety
to mourning for Messiah, "the first-born among many brethren"
(Ro 8:29).
JFB.
Zechariah Images and
Notes The Book of Zechariah Zechariah 12:9-10 - And it shall come to pass in that day, [that] I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for [his] only [son], and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for [his] firstborn. Zechariah 13:6-7 - And [one] shall say unto him, What [are] these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, [Those] with which I was wounded [in] the house of my friends. Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man [that is] my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones. The Old Testament - A Brief Overview Bible Survey - Zechariah Zechariah, like Haggai and Malachi, was a prophet of the Persian period. He prophesied to the Jews who had returned from exile around 520 BC when the Persian Empire was ruling the world. Each of these prophets encouraged the Jews to continue the work of God and rebuild the Temple of Jerusalem. The prophet Zechariah begins his message reminding the Jews that the captivity had been a result of their own disobedience, and God rebuked their fathers as well. Zechariah received a series of visions in which God revealed his plan for the history and future of the world, showing that he is ultimately in control and he will fulfill the promises that were made to their fathers and to Abraham. The city of Jerusalem is seen as a city so wonderful and prosperous that it needed to be enlarged in order to contain all the people (Zechariah 2). In the vision of Joshua the high priest Zechariah saw him in filthy rags, which was no doubt the nation of Israel repenting and receiving their Messiah and being cleansed of their sins (Zechariah 3). Other visions reveal the coming judgment of God, and his victory over sin, and everything is about the Messiah and his coming. Zechariah prophesied about the nations that oppressed Israel, there be a time of destruction and later they would come to worship the Lord in Jerusalem. The prophet Zechariah spoke more about the Messiah than any of the prophets, except the prophet Isaiah. There is one fabulous prophecies of Zechariah reveals about the Messiah's death: - The above text is © Rusty Russell - Bible History Online and must be sourced for use on a website. "And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they have pierced; they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn." Zechariah 12:10Zechariah was the son of Berechiah and the grandson of Iddo (Zechariah 1:1, 7). He was born in Babylon and had returned to Jerusalem in the group led by Zerubbabel sixteen years previous to the time of his ministry (Nehemiah 12:4, 16). He was a contemporary of Haggai and began to prophesy two months after Haggai in 520 BC. The work of rebuilding the temple was already in progress. Zechariah preached at least two years longer than Haggai (Zechariah 7:1) and possibly even longer. The situation was the same as described in the introduction to Haggai. The purpose of Zechariah's preaching was to strengthen the people in the reality of their calling, their history, and their future, as well as that of the nations. Zechariah also joined Haggai in the task of encouraging the construction of the temple and to see it through to its completion. Zechariah reproved the people, he gave them encouragement and exhortation, as well as the promises of God's blessing and spoke much about the Messiah and what would happen to the Jews and the nations when He comes. The contents of the book may be analyzed further as follows : Outline of the Book of Zechariah The book is divided into two parts: Zechariah 1-8, concerned mainly with the rebuilding of the temple, and Zechariah 9-14, dealing with future events, notably the coming of Messiah and the glory of His reign. Zechariah begins his book (Zechariah 1) with a reminder that the captivity had been a result of disobedience. He continues by relating a series of visions designed to show that God is in control of history and will bring a glorious blessing to the faithful remnant of His people. Jerusalem is pictured as so prosperous it is having to be enlarged to hold the people (Zechariah 2). The vision of Joshua the high priest, clothed in filthy rags (Zechariah 3) seems to be a definite prevision of the atonement of Christ. Other visions in the book point to the certainty of God's judgment and ultimate victory over sin, culminating in the coming of the Messiah. Zechariah Resources
The Divided Kingdom The Book of Zechariah
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