In
this chapter, after the introduction (ver. 1), we have, I. An awakening call
to a sinful people to repent of their sins and return to God, ver. 2-6. II.
Great encouragement given to hope for mercy. 1. By the vision of the horses,
ver. 7-11. 2. By the prayer of the angel for
Jerusalem, and the answer to that prayer, ver. 12-17.
3. By the vision of the four carpenters that were employed to cut off the
four horns with which Judah and Jerusalem were scattered, ver. 18-21.
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Repentance
Urged.
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B.
C. 520.
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1 In the eighth month, in the second year of
Darius, came the word of the LORD
unto Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet,
saying, 2 The LORD
hath been sore displeased with your fathers. 3 Therefore say
thou unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn ye unto me,
saith the LORD
of hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the LORD
of hosts. 4 Be ye not as your fathers, unto whom the former
prophets have cried, saying, Thus saith the LORD
of hosts; Turn ye now from your evil ways, and from your evil doings:
but they did not hear, nor hearken unto me, saith the LORD.
5 Your fathers, where are they? and the prophets, do they live for
ever? 6 But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my
servants the prophets, did they not take hold of your fathers? and they
returned and said, Like as the LORD
of hosts thought to do unto us, according to our ways, and according to our
doings, so hath he dealt with us.
Here is, I. The foundation of Zechariah's ministry; it is laid in a divine
authority: The word of the Lord came to him. He received a divine
commission to be God's mouth to the people and with it instructions what to
say. He received of the Lord that which also he delivered unto them. The
word of the Lord was to him; it came in the evidence and demonstration
of the Spirit, as a real thing, and not a fancy. For the ascertaining of
this, we have here, 1. The time when the word of the Lord came first to him,
or when the word that next follows came to him: it was in the second year
of Darius. Before the captivity the prophets dated their writings by the
reigns of the kings of Judah and Israel; but now by the reigns of the kings
of Persia, to whom they were subjects. Such a melancholy change had sin made
of their circumstances. Zerubbabel took not so much state upon him as to
have public acts dated by the years of his government, and in things of this
nature the prophets, as is fit, complied with the usage of the time, and
scrupled not to reckon by the years of the heathen kings, as Dan. vii. 1;
viii. 1. Zechariah preached his first sermon in the eighth month of
this second year of Darius; Haggai preached his in the sixth month of
the same year, Hag. i. 1. The people being readily obedient to the word of
the Lord in the mouth of Haggai, God blessed them with another prophet; for
to him that has, and uses well what he has, more shall be given. 2. The name
and family of the prophet to whom the word of the Lord came; He was Zechariah,
the son of Barachiah, the son of Iddo, and he was the prophet, as
Haggai is called the prophet, Hag. i. 1. For, though in former ages
there was one Iddo a prophet (2 Chron. xii. 15), yet we have no reason to
think that Zechariah was of his progeny, or should be denominated from him.
The learned Mr. Pemble is decidedly of opinion that this Zechariah, the son
of Barachiah, is the same that our Saviour says was slain between the
temple and the altar, perhaps many years after the rebuilding of the
temple (Matt. xxiii. 35), and that our Saviour does not mean (as is commonly
thought) Zechariah the son of Jehoiada, for why should Jehoiada be called
Barachiah? And he thinks the manner of Christ's account persuades us to
think so; for, reckoning up the innocent blood shed by the Jews, he begins
at Abel, and ends even in the last of the holy prophets. Whereas, after
Zechariah the son of Jehoiada, many prophets and righteous men were put to
death by them. It is true there is no mention made in any history of their
slaying this Zechariah, but Josephus might industriously conceal that shame
of his nation. Perhaps what Zechariah spoke in his prophesying concerning
Christ of his being sold, his being wounded in the house of his friends, and
the shepherd being smitten, was verified in the prophet himself, and so he
became a type of Christ. Probably, being assaulted by his persecutors, he
took sanctuary in the court of the priests (and some think he was himself a
priest), and so was slain between the porch and the altar.
II. The first-fruits of Zechariah's ministry. Before he came to visions and
revelations, and delivered his prophetic discourses, he preached that which
was plain and practical; for it is best to begin with that. Before he
published the promises of mercy, he published calls to repentance, for thus the
way of the Lord must be prepared. Law must be first preached, and
then gospel. Now,
1. The prophet here puts them in mind of the controversy God had had with
their fathers (v. 2): "The Lord has been sorely displeased
with your fathers, and has laid them under the tokens of his
displeasure. You have heard with your ears, and your fathers have told you
of it; you have seen with your eyes the woeful remains of it. God's quarrel
with you has been of long standing, and therefore it is time for you to
think of taking it up." Note, The judgments of God, which those that
went before us were under, should be taken as warnings to us not to tread in
their steps, and calls to repentance, that we may cut off the entail of the
curse and get it turned into a blessing.
2. He calls them, in God's name, to return to him, and make their peace with
him, v. 3. God by him says that to this backsliding people which he
had often said by his servants the prophets: "Turn you to me in
a way of faith and repentance, duty and obedience, and I will turn to you
in a way of favour and mercy, peace and reconciliation." Let the rebels
return to their allegiance, and they shall be taken under the protection of
the government and enjoy all the privileges of good subjects. Let them
change their way, and God will change his. See Mal. iii. 7. But that which
is most observable here is that God is called here the Lord of hosts
three times: "Thus saith the Lord of hosts. It is he that
speaks, and therefore you are bound to regard what he says." Turn
you to me, saith the Lord of hosts (this intimates the authority and
obligation of the command), and I will turn to you, saith the Lord of
hosts--this intimates the validity and value of the promise; so that it
is no vain repetition. Note, The consideration of God's almighty power and
sovereign dominion should both engage and encourage sinners to repent and
turn to him. It is very desirable to have the Lord of hosts our friend and
very dreadful to have him our enemy.
3. He warns them not to persist in their impenitence, as their fathers had
done (v. 4): Be you not as your fathers. Instead of being
hardened in their evil courses by the example of their fathers' sins, let
them rather be deterred from them by the example of their fathers'
punishment. We are apt to be governed very much by precedent, and we are
well or ill governed according to the use we make of the precedents before
us. The same examples to some are a savour of life unto life, to others a
savour of death unto death. Some argued, "Shall we be wiser than our
fathers? They never minded the prophets, and why then should we mind them?
They made laws against them, and why should we tolerate them?" But they
are here taught how they should argue: "Our fathers slighted the
prophets, and God was sorely displeased with them for it; therefore let us
the more carefully regard what God says to us by his prophets."
"Review what is past, and observe,"
(1.) "What was the message that God sent by his servants the prophets
to your fathers: The former prophets cried to your fathers. cried
aloud, and did not spare, not spare themselves, not spare your fathers; they
cried as men in earnest, as men that would be heard; they spoke not as from
themselves, but in the name of the Lord of hosts; and this was the
substance of what they said, the burden of every song, the application of
every sermon--Turn you now from your evil ways, and from your evil
doings; the very same that we now preach to you. Be persuaded to leave
your sins; resolve to have no more to do with them. A speedy reformation is
the only way to prevent an approaching ruin: Turn you now from sin to
God without delay."
(2.) "How little this message was regarded by your fathers: But they
did not hear, they did not heed. They turned a deaf ear to these calls: They
would not hearken unto me, saith the Lord. They would not be reclaimed,
would not be ruled, by the word I sent them; say not then that you will do
as your fathers did, for they did amiss;" see Jer. xliv. 17. Note, We
must not follow the examples of our dear fathers unless they were God's dear
children, nor any further than they were dutiful and obedient to him.
(3.) "What has become both of your fathers and of the prophets that
preached to them? They are all dead and gone," v. 5. [1.] Your
fathers, where are they? The whole generation of them is swept away, and
their place knows them no more. Note, When we think of our ancestors, that
have gone through the world and gone out of it before us, we should think, Where
are they? Here they were, in the towns and countries where we live,
passing and repassing in the same streets, dwelling in the same houses,
trading in the same shops and exchanges, worshipping God in the same
churches. But where are they? They are somewhere still; when they died there
was not an end of them. They are in eternity, in the world of spirits, the
unchangeable world, to which we are hastening apace. Where are they? Those
of them that lived and died in sin are in torment, and we are warned by
Moses and the prophets, Christ and his apostles, to look to it that we come
not to that place of torment, Luke xvi. 28, 29. Those of them that lived
and died in Christ are in paradise; and, if we live and die as they did, we
shall be with them shortly, with them eternally. [2.] The prophets
also, did they live for ever? No, they are gone too. The treasure is
put into earthen vessels, the water of life into earthen pitchers, often
cracked, and brought home broken at last. Christ is a prophet that lives for
ever, but all other prophets have a period put to their office. Note,
Ministers are dying men, and live not for ever in this world. They are to
look upon themselves as such, and to preach accordingly, as those that must
be silenced shortly, and know not which sermon may be the last. People are
to look upon them as such, and to hear accordingly, as those that yet a
little while have the light with them, that they may walk and work while
they have the light. Oh that this weighty consideration had its due
weight given it, that we are dying ministers dealing with dying people about
the concerns of immortal souls and an awful eternity, which both they and we
are standing upon the brink of! It concerns us to think of the prophets that
are gone, that were before us of old, Jer. xxviii. 8. Those that were
the glory of men withered and fell; but the word of the Lord endures for
ever, 1 Pet. i. 24, 25. The prophets that are now, do we live for
ever? (so some read it); no, Haggai and Zechariah will not be long with
you, and prophecy itself shall shortly cease. In another world both we and
our prophets shall live for ever; and to prepare for that world ought to be
our great care and business in this.
(4.) "What were the effects of the word which God spoke to them by his
prophets, v. 6. The preachers died, and the hearers died, but the
word of God died not; that took effect, and not one iota or tittle of it
fell to the ground." As the rain and snow from heaven, it
shall not return void, Isa. lv. 11. He appealed to themselves; they knew
very well, [1.] That the judgments God had threatened were executed upon
their fathers, and they were made to feel what they would not believe and
fear: "My statutes which I commanded my servants the prophets,
the precepts with the penalties annexed, which I charged them with the
delivery of, did they not take hold of your fathers?" Though
God's prophets could not fasten convictions upon them, the calamities
threatened overtook them, and they could not escape them, nor get out of the
reach of them. God's words took hold of them as the bailiff arrests the
debtor, and takes him in execution for contempt. Note, The unbelief of man
cannot make the threatenings of God's word of no effect, but, sooner or
later, they will take place, if the prescribed course be not taken to
prevent the execution of them. God's anger will certainly take hold of those
that will not be taken hold of by his authority; for when he judges he will
overcome. [2.] That they themselves could not but own the accomplishment of
the word of God in the judgments of God that were upon them, and that
therein he was righteous, and had done them no wrong: They returned, and
said (they changed their mind, and when it was too late to prevent the
ruin of their nation they acknowledged), Like as the Lord of hosts
thought to do unto us according to our ways and doings, to reckon with
us for them, so has he dealt with us, and we must acknowledge both
his truth and his justice, must blame ourselves only, and have no blame to
lay to him. Sero sapiunt Phryges--It is late before the Phrygians become
wise. This after-wit, as it is a proof of the truth of God, so it is a
proof of the folly of men, who will look no further than they can see. They
would never be persuaded to say in time, "God will be as good as his
word, for he is faithful; he will deal with us according to our deserts, for
he is righteous." But now they see both plainly enough when the
sentence is executed; now he that runs may read, and publish the exact
agreement that appears between the present providences and the former
predictions which then were slighted, between the present punishments and
the former sins which then were persisted in. Now they cannot but say, The
Lord is righteous, Dan. ix. 11-13.
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The
Vision of the Horse and Myrtles; Intercession for Jerusalem.
B. C. 520.
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7 Upon the four and twentieth day of the
eleventh month, which is the month Sebat, in the second year of
Darius, came the word of the LORD
unto Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet,
saying, 8 I saw by night, and behold a man riding upon a red
horse, and he stood among the myrtle trees that were in the bottom;
and behind him were there red horses, speckled, and white.
9 Then said I, O my lord, what are these? And the angel that talked
with me said unto me, I will shew thee what these be. 10
And the man that stood among the myrtle trees answered and said, These are
they whom the LORD
hath sent to walk to and fro through the earth. 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. 12 Then the angel of the LORD
answered and said, O LORD
of hosts, how long wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities
of Judah, against which thou hast had indignation these threescore and ten
years? 13 And the LORD
answered the angel that talked with me with good words and
comfortable words. 14 So the angel that communed with me said
unto me, Cry thou, saying, Thus saith the LORD
of hosts; I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great
jealousy. 15 And I am very sore displeased with the heathen that
are at ease: for I was but a little displeased, and they helped forward
the affliction. 16 Therefore thus saith the LORD;
I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies: my house shall be built in it,
saith the LORD
of hosts, and a line shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem. 17
Cry yet, saying, Thus saith the LORD
of hosts; My cities through prosperity shall yet be spread abroad; and the LORD
shall yet comfort Zion, and shall yet choose Jerusalem.
We not come to visions and revelations of the Lord; for in that way God
chose to speak by Zechariah, to awaken the people's attention, and to engage
their humble reverence of the word and their humble enquiries into it, and
to fix it the more in their minds and memories. Most of the following
visions seem designed for the comfort of the Jews, now newly returned out of
captivity, and their encouragement to go on with the building of the temple.
The scope of this vision (which is as an introduction to the rest) is to
assure the Jews of the care God took of them, and the eye of his providence
that was upon them for good, now in their present state, when they seem to
be deserted, and their case deplorable. The vision is dated (v. 7) the
twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, three months after he preached
that sermon (v. 1), in which he calls them to repentance from the
consideration of God's judgments. Finding that that sermon had a good
effect, and that they returned to God in a way of duty, the assurances he
had given them are confirmed, that God would return to them in a way of
mercy. Now observe here,
I. What the prophet saw, and the explication of that. 1. He saw a grove of myrtle-trees,
a dark shady grove, down in a bottom, hidden by the adjacent hills,
so that you were not aware of it till you were just upon it. This
represented the low, dark, solitary, melancholy condition of the Jewish
church at this time. They were over-topped by all their neighbours, buried
in obscurity; what friends they had were hidden, and there appeared no way
of relief and succour for them. Note, The church has not been always
visible, but sometimes hidden, as the woman in the wilderness, Rev.
xii. 6. 2. He saw a man mounted upon a red horse, standing in
the midst of this shady myrtle-grove. This man is no other than the man
Christ Jesus, the same that appeared to Joshua with his sword drawn
in his hand as captain of the host of the Lord (Josh. v. 13, 14)
and to John with his bow and his crown, Rev. vi. 2. Though the
church was in a low condition, yet Christ was present in the midst of it.
Was it hidden by the hills? He was much more hidden in the myrtle-grove, yet
hidden as in an ambush, ready to appear for the seasonable relief of his
people, to their happy surprise. Compare Isa. xlv. 15, Verily thou art a
God that hidest thyself, and yet Israel's God and Saviour at the
same time, their Holy One in the midst of them. He was riding,
as a man of war, as a man in haste, riding on the heavens for the help
of his people, Deut. xxxiii. 26. He rode on a red horse, either
naturally so or dyed red with the blood of war, as this same victorious
prince appeared red in his apparel, Isa. lxiii. 1, 2. Red is a fiery
colour, denoting that he is jealous for Jerusalem (v. 14) and
very angry at her enemies. Christ, under the law, appeared on a red horse,
denoting the terror of that dispensation, and that he had yet his conflict
before him, when he was to resist unto blood. But, under the gospel,
he appears on a white horse (Rev. vi. 2, and again ch. xix.
11), denoting that he has now gained the victory, and rides in triumph, and
hangs out the white, not the bloody flag. 3. He saw a troop of horse
attending him, ready to receive and obey his orders: Behind him there
were some red horses, and some speckled, and some white,
angels attending the Lord Jesus, ready to be employed by him for the service
of his church, some in acts of judgment, others of mercy, others in mixed
events. Note, The King of the church has angels at command, not only to do
him honour, but to minister for the good of those that are his. 4. He
enquired into the signification of this vision. He had an angel talking with
him, as his instructor, besides those he saw in the vision; so had Ezekiel (ch.
xl. 3), and Daniel, ch. viii. 16. Zechariah asked him (v. 9), O
my Lord! what are these? And, it should seem this angel that talked
with him was Christ himself, the man on the red horse, whom the
rest were attendants on; to him immediately Zechariah addresses himself.
Would we be acquainted with the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, we must
make our application, not to angels (they are themselves learners), but to
Christ himself, who is alone able to take the book, and open the seals,
Rev. v. 7. The prophet's question implies a humble acknowledgment of his own
ignorance and an earnest desire to be informed. O let me know what these
are! This he desired, not for the satisfying of his curiosity, but that he
might be furnished with something proper for the comfort and encouragement
of the people of God, in their present distress. 5. He received from the angel
that talked with him (v. 9), and from the man that stood among
the myrtle-trees (v. 10), the interpretation of this vision.
Note, Jesus Christ is ready to instruct those that are humbly desirous to be
taught the things of God. He immediately said, I will show thee what
these are. What knowledge we have, or may have, concerning the world of
spirits, we are indebted to Christ for. The account given him was, These
are those whom the Lord has sent: they are his messengers, his envoys,
appointed (as his eyes are said to do, 2 Chron. xvi. 9) to walk, to run,
to fly swiftly through the earth, to observe what is done in it and
to execute the divine commands. God needs them not, but he is pleased to
employ them, and we need the comfort arising from the doctrine of their
administration.
II. What the prophet heard, and what instructions were thereby given him.
Faith comes by hearing, and, generally, in visions there was something said.
1. He heard the report or representation which the angels made to Christ of
the present state of the world, v. 11. They had been out abroad, as
flying posts (being hastened by the King of kings' commandment, Esth.
iii. 15), and, having returned, they give this account to the Angel that
stood among the myrtle-trees (for to the Lord Jesus angels themselves
are accountable): We have walked to and fro through the earth, and,
behold all the earth sits still and is at rest. We are taught to pray
that the will of God may be done by men on earth as it is done by the angels
in heaven; and here we see what need we have to pray so, for it is far from
being so. For, (1.) We find the world of angels here very busy. Those that
are employed in the court above rest not day nor night from praising God,
which is their business there; and those that are employed in the camp below
are never idle, nor lose time; they are still ascending and descending
upon the Son of man (John i. 51, as on Jacob's ladder, Gen. xxviii.
12); they are still walking to and fro through the earth. Thus
active, thus industrious, Satan owns himself to be in doing mischief,
Job i. 7. It is well for us that good angels bestir themselves as much to do
good, and that here in this earth we have guardians going about continually
seeking to do us a kindness, as we have adversaries which, as roaring lions,
go about continually, seeking to devour us. Though holy angels in this earth
meet with a great deal that is disagreeable, yet, while they are going on
God's errands, they hesitate not to walk to and fro through it. Their
own habitation, which those that fell liked not, they will like the better
when they return. (2.) We find the world of mankind here very careless: All
the earth sits still, and is at rest, while all the church is made
uneasy, tossed with tempests and not comforted. Those that are
strangers to the church are secure; those that are enemies to it are
successful. The Chaldeans and Persians dwell at ease, while the poor Jews
are continually alarmed; as when the king and Haman sat down to drink,
but the city Shushan was perplexed. The children of men are merry and
jovial, but none grieve for the affliction of God's children. Note,
It is sad to think what a deep sleep the world is cast into, what a spirit
of slumber has seized the generality of mankind, that are under God's wrath
and Satan's power, and yet secure and unconcerned! They sit still and are at
rest, Luke xvii. 26, &c.
2. He heard Christ's intercession with the Father for his afflicted church, v.
12. The angels related the posture of affairs in this lower world, but we
read not of any prayers they made for the redress of the grievances they had
made a remonstrance of. No; it is the Angel among the myrtle-trees
that is the great intercessor. Upon the report of the angels he immediately
turned heavenward, and said, Lord, wilt thou not have mercy on thy
church? (1.) The thing he intercedes for is mercy; as Ps. lxxxv. 7, Show
us thy mercy, O Lord! Note, God's mercy is all in all to the church's
comfort; and all his mercy must be hoped for through Christ's mediation.
(2.) The thing he complains of is the delay of this mercy: How long wilt
thou not have mercy! He knows that mercies through him shall
be built up for ever (Ps. lxxxix. 2), but thinks it long that the
building is deferred. (3.) The objects of compassion recommended to the
divine mercies are, Jerusalem, the holy city, and the other cities of Judah
that were now in ruins; for God had had indignation against them now threescore
and ten years. He mentions seventy years because that was the time fixed
in the divine councils for the continuance of the captivity; so long the
indignation lasted, and though now for a little space grace had been shown
them from the Lord their God, to give them some reviving (Ezra
ix. 8), yet the scars of those seventy years' captivity still remained so
deep, so painful, that this is the melancholy string they still harp
upon--the divine indignation during those seventy years. Dr. Lightfoot
thinks that whereas the seventy years of the captivity were reckoned from
Jehoiakim's fourth year, and ended in the first of Cyrus, these seventy
years are to be computed from the eleventh of Zedekiah, when Jerusalem and
the temple were burnt, about nineteen years after the first captivity, and
which ended in this second year of Darius Hystaspes, about seventeen years
after Cyrus's proclamation, as that seventy years mentioned ch. vii.
5 was about nineteen years after; the captivity went off, as it came on,
gradually. "Lord, we are still under the burden of the seventy years'
wrath, and wilt thou be angry with us for ever?"
3. He heard a gracious reply given to this intercession of Christ's for his
church; for it is a prevailing intercession, always acceptable, and him
the Father heareth always (v. 13): The Lord answered the
angel, this angel of the covenant, with good words and comfortable
words, with promises of mercy and deliverance, and the perfecting of
what he had begun in favour to them. These were comfortable words to Christ,
who is grieved in the grievances of his church, and comfortable to all that
mourn with Zion. God often answers prayer with good words, when he does not
immediately appear in great works; and those good words are real answers to
prayer. Men's good words will not feed the body (Jam. ii. 16), but God's
good words will feed the faith, for saying and doing with him are not two
things, though they are with us.
4. He heard that reply which was given to the angel repeated to himself,
with a commission to publish it to the children of his people, for their
comfort. The revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave to him he signified
to his servant John, and by him to the churches, Rev. i. 1, 4.
Thus all the good words and comfortable words of the gospel we receive from
Jesus Christ, as he received them from the Father, in answer to the prayer
of his blood, and his ministers are appointed to preach them to all the
world. Now that God would speak comfortably to Jerusalem,
Zechariah is the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare you the
way of the Lord. The voice said, Cry. Cry then. The prophets must now
cry as loudly to show God's people their comforts as ever they did formerly
to show them their transgressions, Isa. xl. 2, 3, 6. And if he ask, What
shall I cry? he is here instructed. (1.) He must proclaim the wrath God
has in store for the enemies of Jerusalem. He is jealous for Zion with
great jealousy, v. 14. He takes himself to be highly affronted by
the injuries and indignities that are done to his church, as he had been
formerly by the iniquities found in his church. The earth sat still and
was at rest (v. 11), not relenting at all, nor showing the least
remorse, for all the mischief they had done to Jerusalem, as Joseph's
brethren, who, when they had sold him, sat down to eat bread; and this God
took very ill (v. 15): I am very sorely displeased with the
heathen, that are at ease, and have no concern for the afflicted church.
Much more will he be displeased with those that are at ease in Zion
(Amos vi. 1), with Zion's own sons, that sympathize not with her in her
sorrows. But this was not all; they were not only not concerned for her, but
they were concerned against her: I was but a little displeased with
my people, and designed to correct them moderately, but those that were
employed as instruments of the correction cast off all pity, and with the
greatest rage and malice helped forward the affliction and added to
it, persecuting those whom God had smitten (Ps. lxix. 26) and
insulting over those whom he had troubled. See Isa. xlvii. 6; x. 5; Ezek.
xxv. 12, 15. Note, God is displeased with those who help forward the
affliction even of such as suffer justly; for true humanity, in such a case,
is good divinity. (2.) He must proclaim the mercy God has in store for
Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, v. 16. He must cry, "Thus
saith the Lord, I have returned to Jerusalem with mercies. I was going
away in wrath, but I am now returning in love. Cry yet to the same
purport," v. 17. There must now be line upon line for
consolation, as formerly there had been for conviction. The Lord,
even the Lord of hosts, assures them, [1.] That the temple shall be built
that is now but in the building. This good work which they are now about,
though it meet with much discouragement, shall be perfected, and they shall
have the tokens of God's presence, and opportunities of conversing with him,
and worshipping him, as formerly. Note, It is good news indeed to any place
to hear that God will build his house in it. [2.] That Jerusalem shall again
be built as a city compact together, which had formerly been its
glory, Ps. cxxii. 3. A line shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem,
in order to the rebuilding of it with great exactness and uniformity. [3.]
That the nation shall again become populous and rich, though now diminished
and impoverished. Not only Jerusalem, but other cities that are reduced and
lie in a little compass, shall yet spread abroad, or be diffused;
their suburbs shall extend far, and colonies shall be transplanted from
them; and this through prosperity: they shall be so numerous, and so
wealthy, that there shall not be room for them; they shall complain that the
place is too strait, Isa. xlix. 20. As they had been scattered and
spread abroad, through their calamities, so they should now be through their
prosperity. Let thy fountains be dispersed, Prov. v. 16. The cities
that should thus increase God calls his cities; they are blessed by
him, and they are fruitful and multiply, and replenish the land. [4.]
That all their present sorrows should not only be balanced, but for ever
silenced, by divine consolations: The Lord shall yet comfort Zion.
Yet at length, though her griefs and grievances may continue long, God has
comforts in reserve for Zion and all her mourners. [5.] That all this will
be the fruit of God's preventing distinguishing favour: He shall yet choose
Jerusalem, shall renew his choice, renew his covenant, shall make it
appear that he has chosen Jerusalem. As he first built them up into a people
when he brought them out of Egypt, so he will now rebuild them, when he
brings them out of Babylon, not for any worthiness of theirs, but in
pursuance of his own choice, Deut. vii. 7, 8. Jerusalem is the city he has
chosen, and he will not cast it off.
|
Comfort
for Jerusalem.
|
B.
C. 520.
|
|
|
18 Then lifted I up mine eyes, and saw, and
behold four horns. 19 And I said unto the angel that talked with
me, What be these? And he answered me, These are the horns
which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem. 20 And the LORD
shewed me four carpenters. 21 Then said I, What come these to
do? And he spake, saying, These are the horns which have scattered
Judah, so that no man did lift up his head: but these are come to fray them,
to cast out the horns of the Gentiles, which lifted up their horn
over the land of Judah to scatter it.
It is the comfort and triumph of the church (Isa. lix. 19) that when the
enemy shall come in like a flood, with mighty force and fury, then the Spirit
of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him. Now, in this vision
(the second which this prophet had), we have an illustration of that, God's
Spirit making a stand, and making head, against the formidable power of the
church's adversaries.
I. We have here the enemies of the church bold and daring, and threatening
to be its death, to cut off the name of Israel; such the people of
God had lately been insulted by: I looked and behold four horns (v.
18), which are explained v. 19. They are the horns which have
scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem, that is, the Jews both in the
country and in the city, because they were the Israel of God. They have tossed
them (so some read it), as furious bulls with their horns toss that
which they are enraged at. They have scattered them, so that no man did
lift up his head, v. 21. No man durst show his face for fear of
them, much less give them any opposition, or make head against them. They
are horns, denoting their dignity and dominion--horns exalted,
denoting also their strength, and power, and violence. They are four
horns, for the Jews are surrounded with them on every side; when they
avoid one horn that pushes at them they run upon another. The men of Judah
and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and many of Israel that joined themselves
to them, set about the building of the temple; but the enemies of that work
from all sides pushed at them, and drove them from it. Rehum, and Shimshai,
and the other Samaritans that opposed the building of the temple, were these
horns, Ezra iv. 8. So were Sanballat and Tobiah, and the Ammonites and
Arabians, that opposed the building of the wall, Neh. iv. 7. Note, The
church's enemies have horns, and use them to the hindrance of every good
work. The great enemy of the New-Testament church has seven heads and ten
horns (Rev. xvii. 3), so that those who endeavour to do the church any
service must expect to be pushed at.
II. We have here the friends of the church active and prevailing. The
prophet did himself lift up his eyes and see the four horns, and saw them so
formidable that he began to despair of the safety of every good man, and the
success of every good work; but the Lord then showed him four
carpenters, or smiths, who were empowered to cut off these horns,
v. 20, 21. With an eye of sense we see the power of the enemies of
the church; look which way we will, the world shows us that. But it is with
an eye of faith that we see it safe, notwithstanding; it is the Lord that
shows us that, as he opened the eyes of the prophet's servant to see the
angelic guards round about his master, 2 Kings vi. 17. Observe, Those that
were to fray or break the horns of the Gentiles, and to cast them out, were,
1. Carpenters or smiths (for they are supposed by some to have
been horns of iron), men who had skill and ability to do it, whose proper
business it was, and who understood their business and had tools at hand to
do it with. Note, God calls those to serve the interests of his church whom
he either finds, or makes, fit for it. If there be horns (which denote the
force and fury of beasts) against the church, there are carpenters (which
denote the wisdom and forecast of men) for the church, by which they find
ways to master the strongest beasts, for every kind of beasts is tamed,
and has been tamed, of mankind, Jam. iii. 7. 2. They were four
carpenters, as many horns so many hands to saw them off. Note, Which way
soever the church is threatened with mischief, and opposition given to its
interests, God can find out ways and means to check the force, to restrain
the wrath, and make it turn to his praise. Some by these four carpenters
understand Zerubbabel and Joshua, Ezra and Nehemiah, who carried on the work
of God in spite of the opposition given to it. Those horned beasts broke
into God's vineyard to tread it down; but the good magistrates and the good
ministers whom God raised up, though they had not power to cut off the
horns of the wicked (as David did, Ps. lxxv. 5, 10), yet frightened them
and cast them out. Note, When God has work to do he will raise up some to do
it and others to defend it and protect those that are employed in the doing
of it.
