Zechariah 8:9

The Bible says in Zechariah 8:9-11, “Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Let your hands be strong, ye that hear in these days these words by the mouth of the prophets, which were in the day that the foundation of the house of the LORD of hosts was laid, that the temple might be built. For before these days there was no hire for man, nor any hire for beast; neither was there any peace to him that went out or came in because of the affliction: for I set all men every one against his neighbour. But now I will not be unto the residue of this people as in the former days, saith the LORD of hosts.” God said to the children of Israel, “Let your hands be strong.” Of course, God was not talking about their hands, but was talking about their hearts. If your heart is strong, then the rest of you will be strong. If your heart is weak, then the rest of you will be weak. This principle is explained more clearly in this passage when the same statement is repeated at the end of Zechariah 8:13, “fear not, but let your hands be strong.” The Bible also says in Joshua 1:9, “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”

Notice also that it says in Zechariah 8:9, “Let your hands be strong.” You have a choice as to the types of thoughts that you allow to take hold of your heart. You can choose to be weak or choose to be strong. You can choose to be fearful or choose to be confident. You can choose to have lustful thoughts or to be pure in heart. You can choose to be depressed or to be happy. It is your choice. Be careful what thoughts you choose to allow into yourself. It says in Proverbs 4:23, “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.”

Notice that the ones in Zechariah 8:9 who were told to be strong were the ones who heard “these words by the mouth of the prophets.” One of the benefits of the Word of God is that it will strengthen you more than anything else possibly can. That is why Jesus said in Luke 4:4, “That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.” God told the Israelites, “be strong.” You are going to need strength if you are going to fulfill the plan that God has for your life starting today and going forward. Life is a battle, and life is a great challenge. Many people have been crushed by life because they were too weak for the things that came against them. Of course, the Almighty God has strength and power for everything. He can strengthen you through His Word. It says in Ephesians 6:10-11, “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”

What God is telling the Israelites in Zechariah 8:10-11 is that they should not look at the future based upon what they have experienced in the past. In the past the opportunities were taken away. There was loss, and destruction, and sorrow. For example, it says in Zechariah 8:10, “For before these days there was no hire for man, nor any hire for beast; neither was there any peace to him that went out or came in because of the affliction.” Terrible things happened to the children of Israel, and they deserved what happened. They were simply reaping what they had sowed. But then something changed, and the affliction ended. What changed? God changed His mind. God stopped the affliction. God said basically that enough is enough. Since we are all sinners and since we all know what it means to reap what we have sown, it is nice to know that God also puts an end to the chastisement when it comes. He puts limits to the chastisement because He is merciful and because He loves us. It says in Isaiah 1:9, “Except the Lord of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah.” It also says in Psalm 103:11-14, “For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.”

The Bible says in Zechariah 8:12-13, “For the seed shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things. And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel; so will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing: fear not, but let you hands be strong.” The fruitfulness of the land was especially apparent to people in an agrarian society. Sometimes we get removed form this issue because we simply go to a grocery store and find whatever we can afford; but most people in the history of the world have been directly dependent upon how fruitful the crops were each year. Of course, no matter what is the source of your prosperity, God determines the outcome. The reason that America was prosperous in the past was not because of the policies of Democrats or Republicans, but because God gave the blessing of prosperity. If the blessing of prosperity is taken away, it will be because God takes it away. One of the blessings of being a Christian is that no matter what the economy in general is like, the Lord has promised to always take care of your needs. Jesus said in Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.”

The Lord said to the Israelites in Zechariah 8:12-13, “For the seed shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things. And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel; so will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing: fear not, but let your hands be strong.” Notice that Zechariah 8:13 talks about the Israelites being a blessing instead of a curse to those around them. This is an important statement because it reveals what the Lord is thinking about concerning the responsibilities that human beings have. We all have a very serious responsibility regarding our effect on others around us. Every person is teaching a lesson and setting an example by his or her life. In other words everyone is a role model. Everyone has an impact of some sort. You will either be a curse or you will be a blessing. You will either be a good example or a bad example. That is really what Jesus was talking about when He said in Mark 16:15, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” We know that preaching the gospel involves more than what we say: it also involves the life that we live.

Of course, in regards to this idea of being an influence on others, those who are the most easily influenced are children. How sad it is that a child can be put on the wrong path in life because they became exposed to the wrong influence. Jesus pronounced an especially harsh judgment on those who cause children to stumble. Jesus said in Matthew 18:6, “But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the dept of the sea.”

Concerning being a blessing to the people around you, another truth to notice from Zechariah 8:13 is that you cannot make yourself a blessing: only God can make you a blessing. That is another example of the fact that we can do nothing without Jesus, but that we can do whatever we need to do with Him as our Guide and Helper. Jesus said in Matthew 12:30, “He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad.”

The Bible says in Zechariah 8:14-17, “For thus saith the LORD of hosts; As I thought to punish you, when your fathers provoked me to wrath, saith the LORD of hosts, and I repented not: So again have I thought in these days to do well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah: fear ye not. These are the things that ye shall do; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates: And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the LORD.” It is best to be on the side of God’s mercy instead of on the side of His wrath against sin. That is one of the blessings of living during the age of grace because we can experience the forgiveness of sins that comes from Jesus only. How blessed we are that God created this grace and allows us to enter into it freely when we repent of our sins and turn to Jesus. What a difference there is between law and grace. It says in Romans 5:20, “But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.” It also says in Romans 5:1-2, “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”

The Lord said in Zechariah 8:15, “So again have I thought in these days to do well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.” It is important to notice that there were conditions to this possibility of blessing from God. The conditions are given in verses 16 and 17: “These are the things that ye shall do; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates: And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate.” There is a big emphasis on “truth” in these verses: it is mentioned three times. The Lord said, “Speak every man truth to his neighbor,” “execute the judgment of truth,” and “love no false oath.” One of the battles going on in this world is the battle between truth and lies. Of course, for a large number of reasons the truth is always better The primary reason is that God is truth, and He commanded us in the Ten Commandments, “Thou shalt not lie.” Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” When you speak the truth, you are speaking with power. The truth is always more powerful than a lie. And the truth always comes out eventually. It cannot be hidden forever, and thus it will always be best if you can be aligned with the truth as quickly and often as you can not only for your own sake, but also for the sake of pleasing God. Whose side are you on? Jesus said in John 8:44, “Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.” Make sure that you are on the side of truth by receiving Jesus as Savior, and always telling the truth when you speak.

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