Zechariah 7:8-14

Zechariah 7:8

And the word of the LORD came unto Zechariah, saying,

 

Then the word of the LORD came again unto Zechariah concerning the question of the legalistic fashion of fasting which was not commanded under the law.

 

Zechariah 7:9

Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Execute true judgment, and shew mercy and compassions every man to his brother:

 

In contrast to the general conduct of the people before the Babylonian captivity, the leaders were to execute true judgment and not judgment based on bribery or self-promotion.  They were to make judgments properly and in accordance with the law of God.  Then the people were to show mercy on each other.  Before the Babylonian captivity many people would resort to theft and murder and even sell people into slavery for the price of a shoe.  They were to show compassion on the people especially to those who were of the poorer class.  Instead of landlords selling their homes for cash, they were to work with them to help make payment.  There was to be true compassion on each other no matter what the situation was.

 

Zechariah 7:10

And oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor; and let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart.

 

To oppress carries with it the meaning of deceitful or defraud.  They were not to defraud the widows which is what the Pharisees were accused of.  Which devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation.  (Mark 12:40)  They were not to oppress the fatherless.  Ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child.  (Exodus 22:22)  They were also not to oppress a stranger which would have been someone of a different nationality.  Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.  (Exodus 22:21)  They were also not to oppress the poor which was easy prey for the wealthy landowners and the corrupt leaders.  Thou shalt not wrest the judgment of thy poor in his cause.  (Exodus 23:6)  Then they were not to create evil in their hearts toward their own brethren.  Before the Babylonian captivity they would contrive evil dealings toward their own brethren in the night and then put their evil plans into action the next day.

 

Zechariah 7:11

But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear.

 

Instead of listening attentively to the proclamations of the prophets, they pulled away their shoulder which is an idiom for an unwillingness to submit to authority and stopping their ears meant they refused to listen and only opened their ears for what would profit them.  It was an act of obstinate rebellion.

 

Zechariah 7:12

Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the LORD of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the LORD of hosts.

 

The word “adamant” carries with it the meaning of being hard as a diamond.  It is the hardest stone known to man.  They made their hearts as hard as they could possibly be so they would not pay any attention to the law which would have interfered with their evil lifestyle which was making them huge profits.  They not only turned an adamant heart to the written law of God but they also turned an adamant spirit to the words of the prophets which the LORD sent among them to try and turn them back from their pernicious ways to bring them back into line.  They rejected both forms of correction and the LORD then judged them and removed them from the land for seventy years and he is reminding them that it could happen again if they are not obedient to his law.

 

Zechariah 7:13

Therefore it is come to pass, that as he cried, and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear, saith the LORD of hosts:

 

Now the LORD is telling them plainly that as he cried to them through the prophets and through some of the minor judgments to try and get them to return, they refused to listen so they are the ones who are crying out to the LORD and as they rejected the pleas of the LORD, he is now rejecting them by refusing to hear their pleadings.  {1} Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:  {2} But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.  (Isaiah 59:1-2) 

 

Zechariah 7:14

But I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations whom they knew not. Thus the land was desolate after them, that no man passed through nor returned: for they laid the pleasant land desolate.

 

The LORD then states that because of their rebellious attitudes, he scattered them like a tornado scatters debris into other nations which they would not have known because to go to them would mean defilement.  The northern kingdom went to Assyria and the southern kingdom to Babylon and while they were there they were placed in the uttermost parts of those kingdoms to separate them so there would be no chance of an uprising.  Then while they were in these empires, the northern kingdom became an inhabitable, desolate place where no one lived because the conquerors made sure of that.  {7} And I said after she had done all these things, Turn thou unto me. But she returned not. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it.  {8} And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also.  (Jeremiah 3:7-8)  The southern kingdom suffered the same fate but was returned to the land to build the temple because the Messiah was to come to the temple.  Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.  (Malachi 3:1)

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