God’s Leadership in Zechariah

God always knows what type of leadership we need. In Zechariah, it’s like the Lord is taking a more forceful tone and saying enough is enough. There is less talk of if you turn from your ways and obey me like in some of the other Old Testament books, and more of a look, your forefathers disobeyed me and made me angry and now this is what is going to happen: I’m going to return to Jerusalem mercifully after 70 years of disobedience of God’s people, you are going to rebuild my temple and I’m going to prosper you. He explains that they will rebuild by the Spirits strength and not by their own might. He lays it out clearly in these verses what they are to do and how they are to behave with one another.

“Upon hearing this, the angel of the Lord prayed this prayer: “O Lord of Heaven’s Armies, for seventy years now you have been angry with Jerusalem and the towns of Judah. How long until you again show mercy to them?” And the Lord spoke kind and comforting words to the angel who talked with me.

“‘Therefore, this is what the Lord says: I have returned to show mercy to Jerusalem. My Temple will be rebuilt, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, and measurements will be taken for the reconstruction of Jerusalem. ‘“

“Say this also: ‘This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: The towns of Israel will again overflow with prosperity, and the Lord will again comfort Zion and choose Jerusalem as his own.’”” -Zechariah 1:12-13, 16 -17 NLT

“Then he said to me, “This is what the Lord says to Zerubbabel: It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.” -Zechariah 4:6 NLT

“This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Judge fairly, and show mercy and kindness to one another. Do not oppress widows, orphans, foreigners, and the poor. And do not scheme against each other. “Your ancestors refused to listen to this message. They stubbornly turned away and put their fingers in their ears to keep from hearing. They made their hearts as hard as stone, so they could not hear the instructions or the messages that the Lord of Heaven’s Armies had sent them by his Spirit through the earlier prophets. That is why the Lord of Heaven’s Armies was so angry with them. “Since they refused to listen when I called to them, I would not listen when they called to me, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.” -Zechariah 7:9-13 NLT

“But this is what you must do: Tell the truth to each other. Render verdicts in your courts that are just and that lead to peace. Don’t scheme against each other. Stop your love of telling lies that you swear are the truth. I hate all these things, says the Lord.”” -Zechariah 8:16-17 NLT

-LMM