(REFLECTIONS ON Zechariah 9:1-17)

Today’s Scripture is a good reminder that we shouldn’t read the Old Testament and the words of the prophets in isolation, or within a vacuum, but from the perspective of Christ who has already come, was crucified and risen, ascended and now sits at the right hand of God, and whom we are waiting for to come again to establish the kingdom of God on earth.

In today’s Scripture, the burden of the word of the Lord is against the foreign lands, those who are not His people. Yet in the end, even among the Philistines, who were historical enemies of Israel, there will be a remnant for “Our God,” and they will be like a clan in Judah, just as the Jebusites lived in the midst of God’s people in Jerusalem.

9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your king is coming to you;
He is just and endowed with salvation,
Humble, and mounted on a donkey,
Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

There is a movement here of people being brought into the Lord, not only Israel, but other nations as well. There will be a day when “Our God” will not be defined simply by race, ethnicity, language, or culture, but by the blood of Christ poured out for the world.

And we know this when we look through the eyes of the crucified Christ. He was the One who came into Jerusalem, marching toward the cross, our King, humble and mounted on a donkey. Christ did not come on a war horse, with a vast army to unleash His fury against the Roman Empire. He came to sacrifice Himself for the sins of the world on the cross.

As Zion rejoiced and Jerusalem shouted, expecting a King, Christ came as a servant, not only to call the historical people of God, but people from all the world. And it is through Christ, by the work of the Holy Spirit, that we can now call the Lord, “Our God!”

16 And the Lord their God will save them in that day
As the flock of His people;
For they are as the stones of a crown,
Sparkling in His land.

This was a promise of hope for the Jews living in Jerusalem post-exile. They had come back to their land, but there were still many obstacles to overcome. This is also a promise of hope for all that place their faith in the faithfulness of Jesus Christ. For through Christ, by the Holy Spirit, their God is now “Our God,” and He will save us in that day!

Pastor Michael Lu
Enduring Word Bible Commentary: Zechariah 9