What is the main message of the book of zechariah

Who wrote the book?

Grandson of the priest Iddo, Zechariah prophesied to the people of Judah after they returned from their seventy years of exile in Babylon (Zechariah 1:1; Nehemiah 12:1, 4, 16). Zechariah’s grandfather returned from Babylon, his young grandson in tow, with the first group of Israelites allowed back, in 538 BC under the decree of Cyrus, king of Persia. Because of his family lineage, Zechariah was a priest in addition to a prophet. He, therefore, would have had an intimate familiarity with the worship practices of the Jews, even if he had never served in a completed temple. As a “young man” at the time of his first prophecies (Zechariah 2:4), his life more than likely extended into the reign of Xerxes I (485–465 BC), the king best known in the Bible for making Esther the queen of Persia (Esther 1:1).1

Where are we?

Zechariah, a young man, especially when compared to his contemporary Haggai, came alongside the older prophet to deliver messages from the Lord to the Jewish remnant recently returned from Babylon. While Haggai’s overall message had more of a cautionary tone to it (pointing out the Jews’ sin and self-focus), Zechariah emphasized a tone of encouragement to the struggling Israelites trying to rebuild their temple.

Zechariah’s dated visions and messages in chapters 1–8 all take place in the same general time period as Haggai’s, beginning in October–November 520 BC with a call for the people of Judah to repent (Zechariah 1:1). He then received eight visions on the restless night of February 15, 519 BC (1:7), followed by four messages that he preached on December 7, 518 BC (7:1). Though his final messages in chapters 9–14 go undated, the mention of Greece in 9:13 suggests the prophecies came much later in his life, presumably sometime in the 480s BC, before Ezra (458 BC) and Nehemiah (444 BC) arrived to again revitalize the Jewish people.

Why is Zechariah so important?

The book of Zechariah contains the clearest and the largest number of messianic (about the Messiah) passages among the Minor Prophets. In that respect, it’s possible to think of the book of Zechariah as a kind of miniature book of Isaiah. Zechariah pictures Christ in both His first coming (Zechariah 9:9) and His second coming (9:10–10:12). Jesus will come, according to Zechariah, as Savior, Judge, and ultimately, as the righteous King ruling His people from Jerusalem (14:8–9).

What's the big idea?

Meaning “Yahweh remembers,” Zechariah’s name was appropriate to the purpose of his prophecies.2 His book brims over with the hope that God would remember His promises to His people, even after all the time they spent outside the land. The prophet used a simple structure of eight visions (Zechariah 1:1–6:15), four messages (7:1–8:23), and two oracles (9:1–14:21) to anticipate the completion of the temple and, ultimately, the future reign of the Messiah from Jerusalem. Like many of the prophets, Zechariah saw isolated snapshots of the future; therefore, certain events that seem to occur one right after the other in Zechariah’s prophecy actually often have generations or even millennia between them.

For a people newly returned from exile, Zechariah provided specific prophecy about their immediate and distant future—no doubt a great encouragement. Their nation would still be judged for sin (5:1–11), but they would also be cleansed and restored (3:1–10), and God would rebuild His people (1:7–17). Zechariah concluded his book by looking into the distant future, first at the rejection of the Messiah by Israel (9:1–11:17), and then at His eventual reign when Israel will finally be delivered (12:1–14:21).

How do I apply this?

Have you struggled with discouragement? Read Zechariah. While the book contains its share of judgments on the people of Judah and beyond, it overflows with hope in the future reign of the Lord over His people. It’s easy to get caught up in the oftentimes depressing events of day-to-day life, to lose our perspective and live as people without hope. The book of Zechariah serves as a correction for that tendency in our lives. We have a hope that is sure. How refreshing!

“Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion, for behold, I come and I will dwell in your midst, declares the Lord. And many nations shall join themselves to the Lord in that day, and shall be my people” (Zech. 2:10–11). The global message of Zechariah is that through the judgment that is justly coming upon God’s enemies, God is nevertheless gathering a people for himself from all the nations of the world—all made possible through the work of a righteous priest-king, Jesus Christ.

Zechariah in Redemptive History

Israel’s calling squandered. Although Israel had been called out to be a light to the nations of the earth, the people had failed miserably in that calling. Yet this failure was not the last word over their destiny. “As you have been a byword of cursing among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so will I save you, and you shall be a blessing” (Zech. 8:13). Indeed, not only was God going to fulfill his promise that Israel would be a blessing to the world, but God was also going to restore the flourishing abundance of Eden (8:11–12). Yet this restoration would be extended not only to Israel but to all the nations of the world, as originally intended in the mandate given to Abraham (Gen. 12:1–3). As Zechariah’s prophecy puts it, “the Lord has an eye on mankind and on all the tribes of Israel” (Zech. 9:1).

Israel’s calling fulfilled. How would this redemption of the world be achieved? Only through the work of Christ. In Christ, the temple, the place where God dwelt with his people, is rebuilt as promised (Zech. 1:16). Zechariah’s prophecy is filled with strange and wonderful hints of the coming global king who will achieve salvation for his own. We read of Joshua being clothed with clean garments amid Satan’s accusations (3:1–5). We hear a prophetic word of a “Branch,” a priest-king who will build the temple of the Lord (6:12–13; compare Jer. 23:5–6; 33:14–16; John 2:19–22). We read of a righteous and humble king, riding on a donkey (Zech. 9:9; compare Matt. 21:5; John 12:15), as well as of the piercing of one who is like an only child (Zech. 12:10; compare John 19:37) and of the scattering of the sheep when the shepherd is struck (Zech. 13:7; compare Matt. 26:31). We read of “living waters” flowing out from Jerusalem (Zech. 14:8; compare John 7:37–39).

The result of the work of this coming king is that humanity will be restored to its Creator, coming to him from every corner of the earth:

Thus says the Lord of hosts: Peoples shall yet come, even the inhabitants of many cities. The inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, “Let us go at once to entreat the favor of the Lord and to seek the Lord of hosts; I myself am going.” Many peoples and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem and to entreat the favor of the Lord. Thus says the Lord of hosts: In those days ten men from the nations of every tongue shall take hold of the robe of a Jew, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.” (Zech. 8:20–23)

Universal Themes in Zechariah

Worldwide salvation. “Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. . . . And he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth” (Zech. 9:9–10). Zechariah’s prophecy presents a vision of a globally minded God on a mission to restore the world to the way it was originally created to be. This includes welcoming in people from all the tribes and nations and people groups of the world. Such worldwide salvation is also the note on which the prophecy ends (14:16–19).

Joy in God’s redemption. Time and again throughout Zechariah we see the joy that comes with God’s merciful redemption of his people. The fasts that will be celebrated at the time of Zion’s coming restoration will be “seasons of joy and gladness and cheerful feasts” (Zech. 8:19). Amid judgments on Israel’s enemies, to Israel herself God says, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!” (9:9). When God visits his people to restore them to himself, “their hearts shall be glad as with wine. Their children shall see it and be glad; their hearts shall rejoice in the Lord” (10:7). A crucial common denominator to the salvation God grants in Christ, regardless of geographical location, is joy. Of all people, the redeemed supremely have reason to rejoice.

The importance of godly leadership. Throughout Zechariah we see the metaphor of “shepherd” applied to those who lead God’s people—more often than in any other prophet (Zech. 10:2; 11:4, 7, 9, 15, 16, 17; 13:7). “The people wander like sheep; they are afflicted for lack of a shepherd” (10:2). God’s people throughout the world require strong, godly leadership from those who are called to lead them—the testimony of biblical history is that, as go the leaders, so go the people. Ultimately, Jesus himself is the global church’s Shepherd, laying down his life on behalf of the sheep (John 10:11; 1 Pet. 2:25; 5:4).

The Global Message of Zechariah for Today

The supremacy of Christ. As is true of every part of Scripture, Zechariah’s prophecy tells us of Christ and the great redemption God has won for us through him. And Zechariah is filled with an unusually high number of striking promises that are ultimately fulfilled in Jesus. As believers around the world read Zechariah, we commune with God and are given glimpses of the mighty friend we have in his Son, Jesus Christ. Amid the many diverse kinds of adversity facing Christians today, Jesus himself, whose very heart is “gentle and lowly” (Matt. 11:29), walks with his brothers and sisters. Our fellowship with him cannot be broken, and it transcends the many cultural differences that distinguish believers around the world.

Compassion for the needy. In the meantime, as we await Christ’s second coming in great power and glory, Zechariah reminds us to extend compassion to the needy and oppressed around the world even as Christ has extended compassion to us. God’s heart for the socially disadvantaged shines through in Zechariah, as in so many of the prophets. It is a message strongly relevant to twenty-first century global Christianity. “And the word of the Lord came to Zechariah, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another, do not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, or the poor’” (Zech. 7:8–10; compare 8:16–17).

What is the main theme in the book of Zechariah?

What is the context of the book of Zechariah?

What was Zechariah known for?

What is the meaning of Zechariah?