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Zechariah 14

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The Day of the Lord and the Attack on Jerusalem 1–5

1
Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. ​
2
For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. ​
3
Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.
4
And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. ​
5
And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee. ​

Cosmic Change and the Lord's Universal Reign 6–11

6
And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark:
7
But it shall be one day which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light.
8
And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be. ​
9
And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one. ​
10
All the land shall be turned as a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem: and it shall be lifted up, and inhabited in her place, from Benjamin's gate unto the place of the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananeel unto the king's winepresses.
11
And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited.

The Destruction of the Attacking Nations 12–15

12
And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth. ​
13
And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.
14
And Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered together, gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance.
15
And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents, as this plague.

Global Worship and Accountability 16–19

16
And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. ​
17
And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain.
18
And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the LORD will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.
19
This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.

Holiness Pervades the Kingdom 20–21

20
In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses, HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD; and the pots in the LORD'S house shall be like the bowls before the altar. ​
21
Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the LORD of hosts: and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein: and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts. ​

Bible text: King James Version (1769 Blayney text) · Public domain

Study Notes for Zechariah 14

Verse 1

the day of the LORD cometh — The opening words match Isa 13:9, 'Behold, the day of the LORD cometh'. Here the day begins in defeat: the 'spoil' (shalal, plunder taken in war) of Jerusalem is divided 'in the midst of thee', inside the city itself, before the LORD goes forth in v.3.

Verse 2

I will gather all nations against Jerusalem — The LORD himself assembles them, as in Joel 3:2, 'I will also gather all nations'. The city is taken and half goes into captivity, yet 'the residue of the people shall not be cut off'. Christ speaks of Jerusalem 'compassed with armies' and a people 'led away captive into all nations' (Luke 21:20, 24).

Verse 4

his feet shall stand… upon the mount of Olives — 'His' is the LORD's, who 'go forth' in v.3. This is the mountain 'on the east side of the city' where 'the glory of the LORD' stood in Ezek 11:23, and from which Christ was taken up (Acts 1:11–12); the angels said he 'shall so come in like manner'. It splits into 'a very great valley' (gay).

Verse 5

the earthquake in the days of Uzziah — Amos dated his words by it, 'two years before the earthquake' (Amos 1:1), so it was the known marker of Uzziah's reign. The valley reaches 'Azal', a place named nowhere else in Scripture (the same letters spell Azel in 1 Chr 8:37). 'All the saints' (qedoshim, holy ones) come with the LORD (Jude 14; Matt 25:31, 'all the holy angels with him').

Verse 8

living waters — Mayim chayyim is running water. It flows both ways from Jerusalem, 'former' and 'hinder' being the words of 'the east sea' and 'the utmost sea' in Joel 2:20, and it does not fail 'in summer and in winter'. Joel 3:18 has 'a fountain… of the house of the LORD'; Ezek 47:1 has waters from the threshold of the house; Christ speaks of 'rivers of living water' (John 7:38).

Verse 9

one LORD, and his name one — Echad, 'one', is the word of Deut 6:4, 'The LORD our God is one LORD'. What Israel confessed becomes what the whole earth acknowledges: the LORD is 'king over all the earth' and his name stands alone. Rev 11:15 echoes the verse: 'The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ'.

Verse 12

Their flesh shall consume away — The 'plague' is maggephah, the word of 'all my plagues' sent on Egypt (Ex 9:14). The verb 'consume away' (maqaq) is used three times in this verse, of flesh, eyes and tongue; elsewhere it is 'pine away' (Lev 26:39). It falls on 'all the people that have fought against Jerusalem'.

Verse 16

every one that is left of all the nations — Yathar is the remnant that survives. They 'go up from year to year' to keep the feast of tabernacles, one of the three yearly feasts of Deut 16:16, when Israel dwelt in booths to recall the exodus (Lev 23:42–43). Vv.17–19 give the penalty for staying away: no rain, even upon Egypt.

Verse 20

HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD — These are the words engraved on the high priest's gold plate (Ex 28:36; 39:30). Now they are on the 'bells' (metsillah, found only here) of the horses, and the cooking 'pots' of the house stand level with the 'bowls' (mizraq) before the altar. What marked the priest alone is carried by common things.

Verse 21

no more the Canaanite — Kena'ani is the nation Israel was to drive out, lest those left be 'thorns in your sides' (Num 33:55). The same word is 'merchant' in Prov 31:24 and Job 41:6, and some read it so here, with no trader in the house. Every pot being 'holiness', any worshipper may 'take of them, and seethe therein'.