Zechariah 12

Well, good morning, Saylorville. If you brought a copy of scripture with you this morning, you can find Zechariah chapter 12. Zechariah chapter 12. And yes, we’re going off script from our study of James.

But a lot of things have changed in recent days, have they not? I had plans in about two weeks of taking 45 others on a trip to Israel to relive some of the drama of men like David’s life and Elijah on Mount Carmel, and of course, walk where Jesus walked, was abused, crucified and risen. And all that changed last week with war in the Middle East.

If you have followed the events of the last week (and you should be to some degree, anyway) and considered the world geopolitical ramifications and implications, you would be sobered. What these terrorists did might have caused you a sense of rage and perhaps like me, teared up at least a couple of times in this last week. So why? And why Israel? And why the Jew? Why Jerusalem? There are reasons. They are biblical, they’re supernatural and they can be life altering. They’re going to be world shaking. I believe what we’re seeing is a prelude to Armageddon. Besides being mentioned over 800 times, 800 times, (no other city is mentioned more than Jerusalem in the Bible) Jerusalem is a place where promises from God were made and will be fulfilled. But why is the world so drawn to Jerusalem and not Damascus (that’s an older city) or Paris or New York or Moscow or London? The reasons go beyond the fact that the claims of Judaism, Christianity and Islam find their place at the literal ground of Israel and Jerusalem. Consider these truths. The Jews have been killed and or taken captive by Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Rome and Germany, and more recently, the Arab nations. Their survival, if you think about it over 2000 years, is a miracle in and of itself. As someone has said, the Jews’ very existence is reason enough to believe in God. They have been scattered without a home for over two millennium.

So why should the Jew lay claim to the literal land of Israel anyway? Well, the short answer is because God gave it to them. This is what God said to Abram in Genesis 15:18.

“On that day, the Lord made a covenant with Abram saying, to your offspring, I give this land from the river of Egypt to you. From the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates.”

There it is. God to Abraham. Now, the political answer is that the world also gave it to him.

In 1917, the world had a sympathy for the Jew and the British Empire issued the Balfour Declaration, which in essence said, we favor the idea of a homeland for the Jew. And there were several immigrations that took place before and after that time, but in the 1930s, Jewish immigrations, that is Jews coming from all over the world, mostly Russia, started coming in. They came in on boats, and they were not just Jewish people as we oftentimes profile Jewish people. They came from the Sudan, from Africa. Another picture here shows that. From everywhere. This, of course, became alarming to Arabs who shared that land with Jews during the 1930s. And in 1939, under pressure, during World War II, Britain, afraid that the Arabs might side with the Nazis, issued the infamous White Paper. That White Paper basically restricted the number of Jews coming into the country to 75,000 over the next five years, which was a drop in the bucket. Aid and abetting took place, and what we’ve discovered at the end of World War II in 1945, six million Jews slaughtered in the most horrific kind of ways by the Nazis. There was a time of sympathy then, at that time, around the world. Every time the world has sympathy for the Jew, it’s about this narrow, and it’s about this short. But it’s there, and the Jews taking advantage of it every time. In 1947, the UN partitioned Palestine. When I say Palestine, think the nation of Israel. It was called Palestine in those days, made up of both Jews and Arabs who called themselves Palestinians. (That’s another subject I don’t have the time for this morning.) But the UN partitioned Palestine and offered statehood to both the Jew and the Palestinian, and the Jews took them up on it. ‘A home after 2,000 years? Yeah, we’ll take it!’ The Palestinian Arabs said no. They rejected it. And in 1948, shortly thereafter, Ben Gurion, the very first prime minister of Israel, declared on May 14th, 1948, Israel was a state. And for the first time, the bones of Ezekiel were starting to rattle, so to speak. The very next day, six Arab countries attacked Israel. And they’ve been attacking Israel ever since.

And when you have sympathy for the Palestinian, (and I’m not saying you shouldn’t) you should not have sympathy for Hamas and other terrorist groups whose one design is to kill Jews. But you are looking at a map, all that is in green is Arab. And if you can barely make out the red in the middle, that’s Israel. They literally exist in a sea of their enemies who have sworn to push them into the sea. And nearly did.

In 1967, the famous Six-Day War. At that time, up to that time, they were just a little slit of land. They hardly had any land, but they were attacked. Actually, they preempted because their enemies were lining up on all sides. They did a preemptive attack, and in six days, quadrupled the size of their land, taking control of places like the Golan Heights, which they were getting bombed incessantly by the Syrians. They took control of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the site of many of the issues. (The Gaza is in red there.) Very shortly after the Six-Day War, the Arabs had their first all-Arab summit in Khartoum, Sudan. And it was there that they issued the famous three no’s in regards to Israel. They said there would be no recognition. They would never recognize the state of Israel. There would be no peace. They would never make peace with Israel, though some have. And there would be no negotiation. The victory in the Six-Day War was so monumental, so world-shaking, that Israel got smug. They got proud… And six years later, exactly 50 years ago last week [1973], on Yom Kippur, the highest holiday in Israel, when they had like skeleton crews at every border they had, all of their enemies came in like a hot knife through butter, killing incessantly people and making their way to Jerusalem. But in the end, they rallied. Amazing stories came out of this. They recaptured the Golan and everything else. And they could have been on their way to Damascus, except the world said stop. They didn’t say stop when their enemies were coming at them, but they said stop when they secured themselves and began to advance again. By the way, the capturing of the Golan Heights and the West Bank and Gaza and the control of those areas were for the purpose of maintaining order and their own self-preservation, to be honest. In 2006, they got tired of it in the Gaza and they gave it over to the Palestinians, who eventually were taken over by the Hamas, who did all the atrocities of early last week. But just to let you know how things don’t change, after the war of Yom Kippur, this is what the great Prime Minister, (I think there’s even a movie about her recently.) Here’s what she said. She said this:

“We can forgive the Arabs for killing our children. We cannot forgive them for forcing us to kill their children. We will only have peace with the Arabs when they love their children more than they hate us.” Golda Meir

Powerful, powerful words.

So why are we so drawn (by “we” I mean the world) to the happenings in Israel, in Jerusalem? I would say this, too, is of God. The world looks to Israel because, it looks to Israel because, one, God made it the center of the nations. That’s literally what Ezekiel 5:5 says, where it says this,

Ezekiel 5:5 “Thus says the Lord, this is Jerusalem I have set her in the center of the nations with countries all around her.”

Isn’t that true? Have you ever seen a map of a land bridge of Israel? It is literally the crossway to Africa, Europe and Asia. That’s why this place has literally been overrun over 30 times in its history. God made it the center of the nations. Secondly, the world looks to Israel because it’s the apple of God’s eye. Have you ever read that? Well, here’s what our own Zechariah says earlier in chapter two and verse eight. He says,

Zechariah 2:8, “For thus says the Lord of hosts, after his glory sent me to the nations who plundered you, for he who touches you touches the apple of his eye.”

That’s a beautiful statement.

Just the other day in our community group, we were all kind of milling about before we sat down and all of a sudden, one of our guys ran into the bathroom and I thought there was a problem. He came out a couple minutes later. I said, are you okay? He says, yeah, I just had something in my eye. And you know how that is, don’t you? When you get something in your eye, it’s Katie bar the door. That’s getting out of my eye, right? This is the idea here.

God loves this land. He loves its people who don’t know him as of yet, but they will. Thirdly, the world looks to Israel because God chose it for himself. Again, Zechariah, in the very next chapter, says this as he rebukes Satan. He says,

Zechariah 3:2, “And the Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, oh Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you. Is not this a brand plucked from the fire?””

Fourthly, it’s where the heart of God resides. You’ve got to love what the psalmist said. Here’s how the psalmist put it in Psalm 132.

Psalm 132:13-14, “For the LORD has chosen Zion; (That’s a reference to Jerusalem.) he has desired it for his dwelling place: “This is my resting place forever; here I will dwell, for I have desired it… “”

This is what the Bible says.

Fifthly, it’s the land where God made one of his greatest promises to Abraham and to the world. This is where God famously took Abraham and said these words in Genesis 12.

Genesis 12:3, “I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors (or curses) you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

And aren’t you glad, Mr. and Mrs. Gentile? Listen to this, listen to my words here. To the degree that any nation has blessed the nation of Israel, it has been blessed. And to the degree that any nation has cursed Israel, it has been cursed. And I can prove it to you. Remember that list of nations? (Do we have that again? Yeah, there it is.) Remember that list? Where are they? How are they doing? How’s Egypt doing? You know it’s a third world country. It was THE empire of the world. Assyria doesn’t even exist. Babylon, huh? Rome? Germany? “Those who bless you, I will bless. Those who curse you, I will curse.” That’s what the Bible says. And history has meted it out.

Sixthly, it’s where Jesus walked, performed his miracles, taught, was tried, crucified, and rose again, ascended into heaven. All of that around Jerusalem.

But here’s the question for the balance of our time. Why is the world so insanely drawn to Jerusalem? Why? Because it is. Would you agree? Why is the world, I say “insanely.” It might be a legitimate reason. I’m drawn there too, but I don’t think it’s insanity. So why is the world so insanely drawn to Jerusalem and the Jew with such hateful purposes and reasons? Let me give you four reasons from Zechariah. Because Jerusalem is intoxicating. That’s why.

Zechariah 12:1-2, “The oracle of the word of the LORD concerning Israel: Thus declares the LORD, who stretched out the heavens and founded the earth and formed the spirit of man within him: “Behold, I am about to make Jerusalem a cup of staggering (Drunkenness. That’s what the word “staggering” means) to all the surrounding peoples. The siege of Jerusalem will also be against Judah.”

“All the surrounding peoples” or all the nations there, that is referenced eight times in the last three chapters of Zechariah. He’s not just talking about Egypt or Syria or Lebanon or Gaza. These are all nations. This, Zechariah is talking about a global conflict. This is Armageddon. This is what Revelation 16 is talking about. In other words, the war today, listen to this, the war today is not that conflict, not yet anyway. I think it’s a prelude. Jerusalem, (do you see it?) is likened to a cup. See that? That’s usually symbolic of judgment, but in this case, it’s a cup that an alcoholic can’t resist. ‘Gotta have it!’ ‘Gotta have it!’ And when they drink of the cup, they go mad. That’s what it says, you see it there? They go mad. And we’ll see that here in a minute anyway. God says Jerusalem will intoxicate the nations. It already does. The Arabs’ lust for possessing the land and killing his people carries no human reasoning behind it. That’s why I’m telling you it is satanic is what it is.

Secondly, and speaking of which, because demonic madness drives them. Verse three, look at this.

Zechariah 12:3, “On that day (the day of the Lord) I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And all the nations of the earth will gather against it.”

He likens Jerusalem to a weight at the gym that you think you’re real macho, but then you see somebody who’s five times stronger than you and you can never even budge that thing. That’s the idea here. Nations coming against Israel and Jerusalem are going to discover, as they have repeatedly, that God’s land is like a stone too heavy to lift. The world hates Israel, but the cursers will be cursed. All of these satanically led nations will gather against it one day. Daniel 2 talks about this. Daniel 7 talks about this. Revelation 17 talks about this, about a kind of revived Roman empire coming from the west led by Antichrist himself. Ezekiel 38 talks about armies coming from the north. Daniel 11 talks about armies coming from the south. Revelation 9, Revelation 16 talks about the kings of the east coming from the east. All of these nations are going to come to the Valley of Megiddo, the very place Napoleon said, that’s the greatest battlefield I’ve ever laid eyes on, and the blood will be as high as the horse’s bridle. [Revelation 14:20] And over and over again in this passage, God is the one talking here. He says, ‘I will… I will… I will.’ I love how John MacArthur put it like this.

“The gathering of nations by Satan for the destruction of Israel is actually GOD gathering the nations against Israel for the destruction of the nations. “ John MacArthur

Sadly, darker days lie ahead for our friends in Israel. In the very next chapter in the eighth verse, this is what Zechariah says. (On that day I’ll make, on the whole land declares the Lord, go back one more. There we go. No, go again, I’m sorry, I apologize. Go back to chapter 13, verse eight, where you were just a moment ago. Go to the next one. Thank you.)

Zechariah 13:8, “In the whole land, declares the Lord, two thirds shall be cut off and perish, and one third shall be left alive. “

That is unimaginable! That’s the future percentage of Jewish people who will be slaughtered.

The scenes from Israel this last week have been unimaginable. They have been unimaginable. They have been diabolical. They have been heartbreaking, and I think, it’s a prelude. It’s a prelude. It’s God’s prelude to you and me who get smug in our own life, in our own country, in our own church. These are things to come. And this is madness. This is sheer madness. Look at verse, verse four, I’m just going to read it here. Verse four, (I should have put it up there for you.)

[Zechariah 12:4,] “On that day, declares the LORD, I will strike every horse with panic, and its rider with madness. But for the sake of the house of Judah I will keep my eyes open, when I strike every horse of the peoples with blindness.”

Madness. That word “madness,” by the way, it’s the same word. It’s a rarely used word. It’s a Hebrew word that’s used of Jehu. You remember General Jehu? You remember General Jehu? Who, in his zeal, he goes after the wicked king of Northern Israel and then goes after the wicked king of Southern Israel. They were together and then he kills them and he killed Jezebel. And when one of the kings was asking one of his observers, who is it that’s coming after? They said, it’s Jehu. He’s riding his horse furiously. That’s the word. And this might be the best explanation of what we have witnessed. This is madness. Sheer evil insanity that will drive these nations then and does drive these nations now.

Here’s a third reason. The world is so insanely driven because God is planning his masterpiece of justice there. He’s going to bring them together to put an end to the enemies. Verse five, where he says,

Zechariah 12:5-8, “Then the clans of Judah will say to themselves, “The inhabitants of Jerusalem have strength through the Lord of hosts, their God. On that day, we’ll make the clans of Judah like a blazing pot in the midst of wood, like a flaming torch among sheaves, and they shall devour to the right, to the left, and all the surrounding peoples, while Jerusalem shall again be inhabited in its place in Jerusalem. And the Lord will give salvation to the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem may not surpass that of Judah. On that day, the Lord will protect the inhabitants of Jerusalem so that the feeblest among them on that day shall be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, like the angel of the Lord going before them.”

This is reminiscent of what Daniel says in Daniel 11, where he says,

Daniel 11:32, “The people who know their God will stand firm and do great exploits.”

I shared with our staff just last week, one of those exploits during the war of Yom Kippur, when all those enemies were coming 50 years ago into Israel, and a young soldier, Israeli soldier, Zvika Greengold hitchhiked to the north of the Golan. They only had two tanks up there. There were 100 Syrian tanks on the other side. He jumps into one that just got maintenance, went after the Syrians, knocked out six tanks, got disabled himself, jumped into another tank, dodged in and out, making the Syrians think there were a whole bunch of Israeli tanks. He is recorded to have taken somewhere between 20 and 60 Syrian tanks out. When he got done, he just fell to the ground and says, I can’t do anymore. Miracles like this took place. This is the stuff that delivered Israel at the time.

Zechariah 12:9, “And on that day I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.”

And I’ll tell you why, because God is the protector of Jerusalem. Isaiah 31:5 says this,

Isaiah 31:5, “Like birds hovering, so the LORD of hosts will protect Jerusalem; he will protect and deliver it; he will spare and rescue it.”

Fourth and final reason we’re so drawn here, because there the Jews will look to Jesus and be saved. That’s pretty cool, isn’t it? How do you know? You haven’t even read it yet. We’re going to do it now. Look at verse 10. God says,

Zechariah 12:10-11, “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn. On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great as the mourning for Hadad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo.” (That is when they mourned over Josiah.)

Listen to this. In that day, the Holy Spirit will do what he does best. He will point the Jews to the cross of Christ. That’s what he’s going to do. That’s what he’s going to do. That’s what he’s doing to you. And this is why we preach the cross. Listen very carefully to these words.

Men don’t mourn over their sin, then look to Jesus. They look to Jesus, then they mourn over their sin.

Spurgeon said, “The eye which looks to the pierced one is the eye which weeps for him.”

Look at it again. Look at these words.

Zechariah 12:10, “…they will look on me whom they have pierced.”

Have you ever read that? Did you underline it? This is one of the greatest prophecies of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ found anywhere in the Bible, right there. Who is “me?” Who is “me?” Look at the first verse. This is Yahweh. This is LORD… capital L, capital O, capital R, capital D. This is Yahweh talking! Jesus is Yahweh. He is GOD! And this is what you need to be thinking of when you read

[Romans 10:9], “… if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead…” That’s when you’ll be saved!

And this is what Jesus was saying. You’re not going to see me again. He’s talking to the Jews. You won’t see me again until you say, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”

[Matthew 23:39, “For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’”]

And then the apostle Paul says,

[Romans 11:26], “And in this way all Israel will be saved…”

Why am I so passionate about these things? Because these things are true. I don’t know how it’s all going to unpack itself. I don’t, I’m not going to pretend that. But they’re coming. And the events of recent days are a prelude of things to come.

And there’s another reason I’m so passionate about this, because these are the very things the Spirit of God used to cause me to look to Jesus, to look at the one, look at the person that I pierced, that I crucified, that I was guilty of putting on the cross. These are the truths that the spirit of God caused me to mourn over my own sin and to be saved. And John the apostle put it like this. He said,

John 1:10-12, “He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, (the Jews) and his own people did not receive him. But (this is a great! Amen!) all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right (the “exousia,” the authority, the power) to become children of God…”

The world rejected him. The Jew has rejected him thus far. Will you continue to reject him? God has put blindness on the Jew until all the Gentiles, the fullness thereof, come in. And on that last day, when that last Gentile (and it might be one of you) places their faith in Jesus, then they’ll look on him whom they’ve pierced. They’ll mourn and they’ll receive the Messiah, Yeshua, the Lord Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior. And I say, come Lord Jesus! Amen!
Have you received him?

God, we love you and thank you so much for your word, for its truth, for its prophecies, for the hope that it gives to the nation of Israel. And we know, Lord, they don’t know you. We know it’s a secular government, a secular country. And we know that only you can open their eyes, and you will, your word tells us so, and we believe it. Lord, let these events of the last week be sobering to us, thoughtful to us, cause us to be humble and to realize these are preludes to Armageddon, because surely you are coming back, Lord Jesus. And we say with John, even so, come. We pray these things in Jesus’ name. Amen.