The Writings of Zechariah

Imagine having two responsibilities.  You are a pastor and you are a prophet.  Or in Zechariah’s case you are both a priest and a prophet.  You care deeply about the temple because you are a priest but as a prophet you have a message for the far future.  Which role is more important?  How do you know what to say so that you do not confuse your message as a prophet with your role as a priest?

This is the challenge for Zechariah.  Israel is returning from Babylon.  They are reestablishing the nation.  But the people are slow to finish the temple.  They are quickly caught up in sing again.  Now that they are free from captivity they are quickly returning to their old ways of neglecting their worship of God.

Because Zechariah is both priest and prophet he can uniquely speak to the people in this very moment and he can point them to a future.  As a priest Zechariah is concerned how God can dwell with such a sinful people.  As a prophet Zechariah looks to the future and the coming Messiah who will make God’s dwelling with His people possible.

When you read the gospels and the book of Revelation, you quickly discover how well these New Testament authors knew Zechariah and his prophecies.  With the freedom from captivity, nothing stood in the way of the coming Messiah.  It would be 400 years until Christ comes to earth but Zechariah speaks of it as if it will be tomorrow.  His message is clear.

As a priest Zechariah speaks to the people to live in the hope of that tomorrow.  Zechariah knows now that they have returned to Jerusalem from captivity, God will establish justice and bring His promises to reality.

So read Zechariah, both as a message from a pastor and as a message from a prophet.  The messages are not opposite.  They help each be best understood when read together.  Trusting God for the future and living faithfully for God in the present is the message of Zechariah.