This
article is the second in a series of articles designed to give a brief
commentary on the prophetic portion of the Old Testament known as the book
of Zechariah. In particular, this article will deal with the introductory
verses to the entire book given in Zechariah 1:1-6. These verses highlight
the call for national repentance on the part of the people of Judah during
the early years following the Babylonian exile. The introduction to the
book of Zechariah given in these verses can be divided into two parts: (1)
the general opening statement (v. 1), and (2) the command to learn from
the past (v. 2-6). These combined elements summarize God’s desire and
call to the nation through Zechariah in light of His full intentions to
keep His covenant promises from the nation’s past. These intentions in
their ultimate fulfillment are especially emphasized in Zechariah chapters
9-14. Consequently, the view that the introduction of 1:1-6 only serves to
set up the first vision of the book (the vision of the horses, 1:7-17)
should be rejected. For the same reason, one should not see these
introductory verses as only framing the start of the eight night visions
(1:7-6:15).
General Opening Statement (v. 1)
Three areas can be discussed concerning the opening
statement given in 1:1. First, the time of this particular word from God
through Zechariah is stated (it also marks the start of all of the
prophecies that Zechariah gave). It is significant that the prophecy of
1:1-6 is given during the reign of Darius. Darius, the Persian king, is
also mentioned in 1:7 and 7:1. This emphasizes the fact that even in the
return from the exile, the nation of Israel is living in the time of
domination by the Gentiles as shown by Daniel’s exilic prophecies (Dan.
2, 7). There is no rule of an Israelite or Davidic king whereby the
prophecy can be placed chronologically. In the last article, we saw that
the time of Zechariah’s first message was about two months after Haggai
had begun his own ministry. Thus, the two prophets are contemporary and
possess essentially the same audience of post-exilic Jews.
Second, one must not gloss over the statement that the
message of Zechariah was one delivered from the LORD, that is, Yahweh or
Jehovah. Yahweh is the only Hebrew name for God used in the book of
Zechariah (roughly 140 times in 110 verses) although the name does occur
in the expression "LORD of hosts" over one-third of the time.
This emphatic focus on the name Yahweh in the book of Zechariah
underscores the ultimate message that the covenant God of the nation of
Israel will one day keep all of His promises in exhaustive detail and
bring deliverance and victory to the nation. The "word" is
God’s message, His talking, not just the prophets words or ideas. In
this way, the book of Zechariah gives self-attestation to its divine
origin and inspiration.
Third, the divine messenger is identified as the man
Zechariah. In the last article, his heritage and position as a priest was
discussed as well as the meaning of his name (God remembers). He is
referred to in verse one as the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo.
Apparently, the focus is on his relationship to his grandfather Iddo
rather than his father Berechiah since Iddo is called a prophet. This is
in harmony with other passages that state that Zechariah was a son
(descendant of) Iddo without mentioning Berechiah (Ezra 5:1, 6:14). Iddo
is also listed as one of the prominent priests who returned from exile
with Zerubabbel (Neh. 12:4). The priestly occupation of Zechariah may
serve to show that Zechariah’s overall ministry was to represent the
people to God as well as represent God to the people, the latter being the
content of the book of Zechariah.
Command to learn from the past (vs. 2-6)
The second part of the introductory verses to Zechariah
consists of God’s command to learn from the past (1:2-6). The keeping of
this command should yield a people who repent and return to the LORD and
His ways. Thus, the command to learn from the past is actually a call to
national repentance and obedience. These verses can be divided into the
following three sections:
1. General statement of God’s anger toward previous
generations (v. 2),
2. Summary of God’s command to repent and His promise
if they repent (v. 3),
3. Example of past generations (v. 4-6).
The general statement of God’s anger given in verse
two begins in the Hebrew text with the verb "was angry" and ends
with the noun "anger." This emphatic arrangement underscores the
intensity of God’s wrath. However, His anger does not target
Zechariah’s current audience, i.e., Zechariah’s generation. Instead,
the statement is a reminder that God had been angry with the
"fathers." This opens up the possibility that Zechariah’s
generation still had time to avoid the consequences of God’s anger. The
discussion in verses four through six helps to identify whom the
"fathers" actually are in this context. However, the language of
verse two does show that the prevailing and pagan twentieth-century view
of a "mush God," who cannot do anything but love, is foreign to
biblical teaching. It even goes further and shows that God can even become
angry with His own children, i.e., believers (cp. Amos 3:1-3).
This general statement about God’s wrath to certain
prior generations serves as a simple warning to Zechariah’s post-exilic
Jewish nation. The people should respond in light of God’s anger to past
generations by repenting of their sins in the present (v. 3). In that way,
they can avoid the pouring out of God’s anger upon them, that is, evade
what others in the past were forced to endure. Some commentators have
suggested that the main point of the call is for the people to convert
spiritually to the true God, i.e., become genuine believers and followers
of God. Certainly an application in this area might be made especially
when comparing Zechariah’s post-exilic generation to the pre-exilic
generation that had abandoned true faith in the living God. However, in
the context of Zechariah’s day, when the people had previously committed
to God in the very act of returning to the land after the exile and when
Haggai was urging upon them a restoration of the temple life, it is best
to see Zechariah’s call to repentance here as an issue of sanctification
of an already believing people. God’s love is demonstrated, thereby
balancing His previously mentioned anger, when He promises to respond to
their repentance by turning to them (v. 3), presumably in a new and
deepened fellowship as their covenant God.
Zechariah 1:4-6 gives more details as it discusses the
example of past generations, which should motivate Zechariah’s audience.
Verse four reminds them that those who had gone before had not listened to
the "former prophets." The language of the verse reflects the
language of several pre-exilic prophets such as Hosea (14:1) and exilic
prophets like Ezekiel (33:11). However, the language more strictly
resembles that of Jeremiah (see Jer. 17:23, 18:11, 25:5, 29:19, 35:15,
36:31). This may place the focus of the term "fathers" squarely
on the generation directly preceding the Babylonian exile. This generation
culminated the moral declension which had started centuries before in
Judah and demonstrated the nation’s total abandonment of its walk with
Yahweh in spite of what He had done for them.
Verse five bluntly teaches via two terse questions that
both the former prophets who had warned the fathers and the fathers
themselves were now dead. This sets up the final introductory comment of
verse six. In spite of the fact that the former prophets are not around to
repeat the needed message of repentance to Zechariah’s generation, that
message still stands. Furthermore, it stands through the example of
history. The disobedience by the fathers to the message of the prophets
led to the judging act of God in history. That is, the nation was taken
captive into Babylon. This experience as an object lesson, still fresh in
the minds of Zechariah’s generation, should be a warning as strong as
any verbal message by any present day prophet. As a result, the people of
Zechariah’s day should repent of their sins and turn wholly to serving
the LORD.
