Daily Thoughts from Zechariah: Holy to Yahweh (Zechariah 14:10-21)

The whole land shall be turned into a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem. But Jerusalem shall remain aloft on its site from the Gate of Benjamin to the place of the former gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the king’s winepresses. And it shall be inhabited, for there shall never again be a decree of utter destruction. Jerusalem shall dwell in security.

And this shall be the plague with which the LORD will strike all the peoples that wage war against Jerusalem: their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths.

And on that day a great panic from the LORD shall fall on them, so that each will seize the hand of another, and the hand of the one will be raised against the hand of the other. Even Judah will fight at Jerusalem. And the wealth of all the surrounding nations shall be collected, gold, silver, and garments in great abundance. And a plague like this plague shall fall on the horses, the mules, the camels, the donkeys, and whatever beasts may be in those camps.

Then everyone who survives of all the nations that have come against Jerusalem shall go up year after year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Booths. And if any of the families of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, there will be no rain on them. And if the family of Egypt does not go up and present themselves, then on them there shall be no rain; there shall be the plague with which the LORD afflicts the nations that do not go up to keep the Feast of Booths. This shall be the punishment to Egypt and the punishment to all the nations that do not go up to keep the Feast of Booths.

And on that day there shall be inscribed on the bells of the horses, “Holy to the LORD.” And the pots in the house of the LORD shall be as the bowls before the altar. And every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be holy to the LORD of hosts, so that all who sacrifice may come and take of them and boil the meat of the sacrifice in them. And there shall no longer be a trader in the house of the LORD of hosts on that day. (Zechariah 14:10-21, ESV)

After Jesus comes to Jerusalem with his army to defeat the nations (Revelation 19) he will institute a restructuring of the land, making all the land west of Jerusalem a plain so that that Jerusalem remains at a higher elevation than all the land around it.  It will never again be subject to God’s decree of destruction.

All Israel’s enemies will experience a plague from Yahweh and the spoils of war will come to the victors in Jerusalem.  But the nations will then have opportunity to come to Jerusalem to worship the King, Yahweh of hosts.  Failure to do so will result in punishment.  All the earth will recognize Jesus as King of Kings and Lord of Lords  Every knee will bow to him.

Jerusalem will be so holy that even the common pots in the Temple will be considered as sacred as the plaque on the turban of the high priest.  Indeed every pot in the whole city will be like one for holy use in the Temple.  The bells on unclean animals like the horses in the city will be Holy to Yahweh.  There won’t be a need for traders to sell sacrificial animals or other needs for worship at the festivals.  The Temple will truly be a house of prayer for all nations.

This is a picture, it seems, of the millennial kingdom described in Revelation 20.  Can you imagine it?  Jesus will rule in righteousness.  Every obedience will be rewarded, every sin punished.  Perfect justice!  And we will all be able to make pilgrimage to Jerusalem and see Jesus in person.  This time, the millennium, will precede the eternal kingdom, when the heavenly Jerusalem comes down to a reformed earth and we reign with God forever (Revelation 21,22).