Zechariah 7:11

In the next few verses of Zechariah 7:11 we are told exactly why the children of Israel suffered the destruction of their nation by the Babylonians. The Bible says in Zechariah 7:11-12, “But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear. 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.” Any human being, whether a believer or a non-believer, is in real trouble if they come to the point where they refuse to listen to the Word of God. In six different ways we are told how much the Israelites refused to hear the Word of God. They “refused to hearken.” To hearken means “to give attention to” or “to show an interest in,” and therefore to listen. They also turned away the shoulder. And they “stopped their ears, that they should not hear.” God said that their hearts were “as an adamant stone.” The phrase “adamant stone” is used to describe something that is very hard: harder than a normal stone even. For example, it says in Ezekiel 3:9, “As an adamant harder than flint have I made thy forehead.” Be careful of what your attitude is towards the Word of God because the same attitude that you have to the Word of God is actually the attitude that you have towards Jesus Himself. If you have a hard heart towards the Word, that means that you have a hard heart towards the Lord.

Of course, if you have a hard heart towards the Word of God, the result is not going to be good. It certainly was not good for the Israelites. The temple, the city of Jerusalem, and the entire nation were destroyed by the Babylonians; and God said that this destruction took place because of their hard hearts towards the Word of God. Because their hearts were “as an adamant stone”, it says in Zechariah 7:12, “therefore came a great wrath from the LORD of hosts.” To show more clearly how God reacted to the hard hearts of these people, we are told in Zechariah 7:13-14, “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: 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.” This is a very important spiritual principle to be aware of the fact that God initiates any and all contact with Him. We do not initiate it. And when God does come to us and speak to us, we must respond in the right way, or we are in real danger of missing out on this contact with the Lord that He wanted to reveal to us. We cannot dictate to God when He will touch our hearts. We must be attentive to His call and to His coming to us. That is why Jesus said in Matthew 22:14, “For many are called, but few are chosen.”

This same spiritual principle is taught very clearly in Proverbs chapter one. It says in Proverbs 1:23-33, “Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you. Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof: I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you. Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me: For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD: They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof. Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices. For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them. But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.”

The chastisement brought against the children of Israel was a terrible destruction. The wrath of God came against them. They suffered the consequences of their refusal to hear Him. There was death, slavery, sorrow, and woe. But God did not cast them off forever, and He will not cast you off forever either. It says in Zechariah 8:1-8, “Again the word of the LORD of hosts came to me, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; I was jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I was jealous for her with great fury. Thus saith the LORD; I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called a city of truth; and the mountain of the LORD of hosts the holy mountain. Thus saith the LORD of hosts; There shall yet old men and old women dwell in the streets of Jerusalem, and every man with his staff in his hand for very age. And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof. Thus saith the LORD of hosts; If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, should it also be marvellous in mine eyes? saith the LORD of hosts. Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will save my people from the east country, and from the west country; And I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness.” What man failed to do, God will do through the Lord Jesus Christ. This statement is true concerning every age of mankind. The things mentioned in Zechariah 8:1-8 would have happened during the times of the Old Testament, if the children of Israel had obeyed and followed the commandments of the Lord. God’s purpose was that a time of great prosperity and happiness and closeness to God would characterize the nation of Israel. Human beings could not make this happen. But God still wants it to happen, and so He will make it happen. Notice the last phrase of Isaiah 9:7. It says, “Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.”

Notice that the language used in Zechariah chapter 8 demonstrates that God does everything. He says in verse 2, “I was jealous.” He says in verse 3, “I am returned to Jerusalem.” God also says in verse 3, “I will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem.” The Lord says in verse 7, “I will save my people.” And He says in verse 8, “I will bring them.” There are no requirements for man: the Lord does everything. That is the only way that it will happen. That is why salvation is by grace and grace alone. Man is totally depraved: that is, man is totally depraved of being able to do anything to save himself. Jesus is the Savior. When you come to the realization that you need a Savior, perhaps then you will turn to Jesus and find the salvation that He alone can give.

There is a very interesting statement made by the Lord in Zechariah 8:6, “Thus saith the LORD of hosts; If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, should it also be marvellous in mine eyes?” It would have been marvelous in the eyes of the people if wonderful things would come to pass in favor of Israel. It would have been marvelous in the eyes of the people if Israel became the greatest nation on the earth. It would have been marvelous in the eyes of the people if all of those who had been scattered were reunited in the promised-land, and then lived in peace, and prosperity, and security. How good and how marvelous that would be. Wait a minute…..what the people thought would be marvelous is exactly what God also thought would be marvelous. But here is one of the differences between God and human beings: if God thinks something is good, then He is going to bring it to pass because He is good. In the end, that which is good will win, because God is good. That is what Jesus taught. One of the messages of the beatitudes is this: good wins in the end. Jesus said in Matthew 5:3-10, “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

God is good. Because of that truth, all goodness proceeds from God. He is the source of all goodness. That is why it says in James 1:17, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” God said to the Israelites in Zechariah 8:6, “Thus saith the LORD of hosts; If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, should it also be marvellous in mine eyes?” The word “marvelous” means “extraordinary” or “wonderful.” In other words it refers to something very desirable: something that would be truly a good thing if it happened. Here is the message: every good thing will happen eventually because God is good, and God is going to see that it will happen. That means that we only need to have the right hopes and dreams and the right thoughts, and we will eventually see those thoughts realized. If what you think is truly a good thing, then what you think comes from God. All goodness comes from God. If what you want is a good thing, then God wants that too. That is one of the reasons that it says in Philippians 4:8-9, “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.”

Zechariah 8:8 tell us two important principles that are always a part of salvation. It says, “And I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness.” God does not become your God until you become saved by putting your faith in the Lord Jesus. Being saved by faith in Jesus certainly involves both truth and righteousness. Jesus is the truth. Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” The truth about every person is that we are sinners. We should have lived a righteous life, but we did not. We should have been holy, but we were not. The truth is that we need the righteousness that only Jesus can give, and once we put our faith in Jesus we are given righteousness as a free gift. It says in Second Corinthians 5:21, “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” Since we cannot attain unto righteousness by our own actions, we become righteous when we put our faith in Jesus. In other words, we turn to Jesus, He forgives us of our sins, and He declares us to be righteous by His grace. Therefore, Jesus Christ justifies us. Confess your sinfulness, bow down to Jesus, and He will also give you the righteousness of faith.

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