Daily Thoughts from Zechariah: Avoiding the Broom (Zechariah 5:1-4)

Again I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, a flying scroll! And he said to me, “What do you see?” I answered, “I see a flying scroll. Its length is twenty cubits, and its width ten cubits.” Then he said to me, “This is the curse that goes out over the face of the whole land. For everyone who steals shall be cleaned out according to what is on one side, and everyone who swears falsely shall be cleaned out according to what is on the other side. I will send it out, declares the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter the house of the thief, and the house of him who swears falsely by my name. And it shall remain in his house and consume it, both timber and stones.” (Zechariah 5:1-4, ESV)

Have you ever wished for God’s judgment to come on the world to cleanse it of those evildoers who have created such problems for mankind?  Have you ever wondered, however, if the sweeping broom of justice might whisk you up in the process?  Would we stand in this judgment?  How bad do you have to be to get “cursed”?

As Yahweh is preparing His people to return to the land after the 70 years captivity promised by the prophet Jeremiah (29:1-14), He is encouraging them that it will work, the Temple will be rebuilt by His strength, and His leaders will be effective in bringing about restoration (Zechariah 3&4).  But there must also be a cleansing taking place.  In essence He is requiring that every Israelite re-enter into covenant with Him and covenant breakers must be dealt with.  Those who refuse to abide by His covenant must be punished.

The size of the scroll Zechariah sees is 30 feet long and 15 feet tall.  As one person has described it, it is like a large billboard sign on the highway, big enough for everyone to read.  It is written on both sides, like the 10 Commandments were on the engraved stones.  The one sin of stealing represents all the sins God forbids against one another.  The sin of swearing falsely in Yahweh’s name represents all the sins against Yahweh.  This is just like the 10 Commandments, the first four being violations against God, the next six being violations against one another.

The exact nature of this punishment is not specified, but is described as a “curse that goes out” and “enters” the houses of those in violation, consuming their house like a demolition crew would a standing structure.  God is making sure that those who come back to the land are in compliance with His Law.  It was failure to comply that brought their captivity in the first place.  As you read the accounts in Ezra and Nehemiah about those who returned you see that this did not mean that they did not mess up once they got back.  The prophet Malachi deals with their blaming God for things that went wrong, divorcing their wives, and not bringing the tithes due for support of the Temple.  The prophet Haggai deals with their initial unwillingness to give in support of building the Temple when they were fine with building luxurious homes.  Ezra and Nehemiah dealt with some who were marrying foreign wives and in danger of going again into idolatry as a result.

If we would not be in the judgment we ought to pray as David did, “Search me, O God, and know my heart!  Try me and know my thoughts!  And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!” (Psalm 139:23-24, ESV).  It is much less painful to seek His cleansing work in our hearts than to incur His judgment.