July 25, 2021 Prophets – Zechariah

 

Zechariah 3

Before we read our first Bible reading from the prophet Zechariah its good to know a bit about its background.  Zechariah was a prophet who was active at the same time as the prophet Haggai, who we talked about last week.  Like Haggai, Zechariah’s message is to the Jews who have returned from exile in Babylon to rebuild Jerusalem.  Unfortunately that rebuilding was not going well.  Haggai and Zechariah don’t mention each other in their own writings, but other historical books of the time say they were acquaintances.

            Haggai’s message was that the temple needed to be rebuilt.  Haggai was critical because over a decade had passed since they were allowed to return to Jerusalem.  Little progress had been made.  Instead of building the temple people were focused on doing their own thing and building their own houses.  Zechariah’s message is about rebuilding too, but he’s more interested in building human the resources.  It turns out that was just as challenging as physical construction!

            In the years prior to the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians the nation had dwindled to almost nothing.  By the time the Babylonians finally destroy Jerusalem in 587 B.C.E. the population was only a few thousand.  Most of them were deported to Babylon.  But at the time of Zechariah’s prophesy -seventy years later- those returning numbered only a few hundred.  Yes, there were more Jews than that.  Many decided to stay in Babylon.  Many lived in Egypt.  But those who decided to return were few.  Remember these people are one or two generations removed from those who actually lived in Jerusalem. 

How were they to do anything?  The former prophets often talked about a remnant that would return, but this tiny a remnant!?!  Who would be the leaders?  Were there skilled laborers, like masons and carpenters?  Were there people interesting in farming or shepherding to grow food?  What about a legal/justice system?  How about soldiers & guards?  You can see that there’s barely enough people to form a society.

            It is into this almost impossible situation that Zechariah’s prophesy comes.  Unlike most of the previous prophets we’ve looked at Zechariah writes on a cosmic scale.  Zechariah reads like the book of Revelation.  In fact the book Revelation in the New Testament seems to have developed many of its characteristics from Zechariah.  There might be a tiny remnant but God is up to something big -something universal- with them!  Like Revelation, Zechariah uses a lot of symbols and strange images.  To make it worse the images are not consistent; which we’ll hear in a moment.

            In the chapter we’re about to read we are going to meet several beings.  There is Yahweh; also the angel of Yahweh, but they are used interchangeably and you may wonder who is who. 

There is also Joshua.  This is a different Joshua from the more famous one who took over after Moses died and conquered the Promised Land.  This is Joshua the High Priest.  He is a real historical flesh and blood person.  How he came to be designated as the High Priest we do not know.  From what we’re about to read in Zechariah though, we’re going to learn that he may not be a perfect person.  In fact, he might not be well suited for the job of high priest at all.  We’ll talk more about that later.

We’re going to meet a future person simply called the “Branch”.  This is the person who will become king and the true leader.  More about that person later too.

And finally we’re going to meet “The Satan.”  I say “The Satan” because there is no one consistent character in the Bible called Satan.  In the New Testament Satan is evil.  In the Old Testament The Satan is an accuser and an examiner.  Think of this being as like the prosecution in a trial.  With that background let’s read the text.

Read Zechariah 3

How would it feel if God were to somehow give us the clear message that wanted to use us, the couple hundred members of St. John’s Lutheran Church, to be the center, or the beginning, of a world-wide faith renewal?  It sounds flattering for a few seconds, but then you immediately start to wonder how?  How can so few do so much?  How can we handle the responsibility?  How can we lay claim to such credibility?  And how are we going to come up with the resources for marketing and advertising and ministries and programs? 

Yet that is largely the message of Zechariah to the few Jews who had returned to Jerusalem!  They were hopelessly unprepared and incapable of what was ahead.  In Zechariah it is as if the Satan character is pointing out this reality.  Not only are there few, they are not clean enough, or pure enough for the task.

The image of Joshua the High Priest taking off his old filthy clothes and putting on clean new ones is variously interpreted.  It could mean that Joshua himself is not worthy of the role.  Or it could mean the whole nation – few as they are – are not good enough for what needs to be done. 

But God says let it be done.  Notice the description of Joshua’s new clothes.  They are not described as regal or authoritative.  They are described as “festal apparel”.  In other words, these are party clothes.  God is creating a celebration with these few and broken people.

We need to always take God’s power and authority seriously.  But we have to remember that God does not want to be known as serious and dour.  God wants to celebrate life and the creation along with us.  Life is to be a joyful partnership with God.  That’s the way things were set up with Adam and Eve in the garden.  The high priest’s attire is to be festal clothing.

Verse 8 of the chapter we read has intrigued people for centuries.  God says, “I am going to bring my servant the Branch.”

Who is this unnamed future Branch?  The branch image is developed further in the chapters that follow.  Our verses are just the introduction to it.  Some have said the Branch refers to Zerubbabel.  He was a leader of those who had returned to Jerusalem.  Apparently he was a descendant of David and therefore potentially a new king.  Others say that if Zerubbabel was meant Zechariah would have just named him.  He named Joshua as high priest after all.  These say this must refer to some future king that God would bring about; and Joshua would be subject to that king.

We remember that according to the laws of the time the kings were anointed by God and supreme leaders of the nation.  Everyone was subject to the king.  That was believed to be God’s way.  The message here is that God would be restoring all things.  Very importantly for Zechariah’s message, God alone could bring about the restoration.  God alone could clean up the mess.  God alone could bring about the righteousness that is envisioned.

I don’t believe it was in Zechariah’s mind as he wrote the prophesy, but I’m sure you know well that this unnamed Branch – whoever that person would be – has been taken to mean Jesus in Christian thought.  Indeed Jesus does fit the bill – a new leader, an ultimate leader, who brings about a new sense of righteousness.  Jesus removes the guilt of all and cleans them.  He makes those whose lives are filthy rags fit to be with God.  Jesus reveals a new form of relationship with God.  This form of relationship is not only for the Jews but for everyone.  As Zechariah envisions God acting on a cosmic scale, we do have that in Jesus.

So lets tie all this together.  As Christians we say Jesus is the Branch predicted by Zechariah.  Jesus is the ultimate king.  He ushers in a new age for all the world.  We also have Joshua, a man called to a position of leadership but certainly not perfect for the job.  There had to have been something about him that the image describes him in dirty clothes – and then fresh clothes from God.  In Zechariah’s prophesy Joshua is subject to the authority of the Branch.

As Christians we realize that we are subject to the Brach, Jesus.  And like Joshua we are not perfect for the job.  In fact we may be downright filthy, unqualified, and completely ill-equipped for the work ahead.  Yet like Joshua God chooses us anyway.

Remember, God chooses Joshua.  The Satan points out that he is unfit.  Yet despite this obvious objection, God chooses him anyway.  Joshua will be the High Priest.  Joshua will represent God in religious matters.  Joshua will do the important holy work of running the temple.  And despite our unworthiness God chooses us anyway.  God makes us clean, fresh, and new.  God give us important holy work to do too.  That work may not be in a holy place like a temple, but remember that through Jesus God considers the whole world to be a holy place.  We do holy work in whatever we do.  We rejoice in that, and we take that with responsibility.

Zechariah is a fascinating prophet who realizes that God is up to something big in the world.  God will get it done.  And God will choose people to partner in the work.  This theme comes up over and over again in the Bible.  It is God’s way of doing things.  In that we can truly rejoice!