Presents
Pamphlet #1107
Zechariah chapter 7
Zechariah chapter 7
What a privilege our Father has given us in these last days to enable us to "lift up our eyes" in His Word and "see" the eight visions of Zechariah which outline the purpose, the time frame, the overall plan and the details of the work of God in this final generation as He pours out His spirit through His two sons of oil, His two witnesses, unto those two lighted candlesticks which are the two churches of Philadelphia and Smyrna comprised of the sons and daughters spoken of by Peter in Acts chapter two.
Two things are for certain though:
1.) Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior who now sits at the right hand of the Father in heaven is returning to Zion at the sound of the 7th Trump to be crowned King of kings and Lord of lords of ALL the earth and to "establish it with judgment (divine law) and with justice".Before we complete these next two chapters we are going to learn how and why it is that our people shall fall away from the true Messiah, which Paul calls "the great apostasy" in 2 Thes. 2, and worship the false messiah (Satan) when he comes at the sound of the 6th Trump, and claims he is God. Not only that, we shall see how the whole wide world shall "take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew" and go up to Jerusalem in a great religious revival and worship this abominable desolator of men's souls (Satan) who stands in the holy place claiming to be God. These next two chapters therefore are very important to our understanding of the times in which we live today. In fact, the hour glass has already been tipped and the last grains of sand are about to run out on this flesh age. So as we Baby Boomers are used to hearing, "Ready or not, here He comes!"2.) It is written that before we gather back to Christ there shall first come a false messiah to Zion at the sound of the 6th Trump, one "Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God (2 Thes. 2:4)."
As we begin the 7th chapter of Zechariah, the timeframe given in the first verse corresponds to our late November/early December in the fourth year of Darius the king, two years from the beginning of Zechariah's prophecies and two years from the completion of the Temple which was in the 6th year of Darius the king in 405 BC. Keep in mind what we learned in our opening study that unlike Haggai who prophesied during a four month period, Zechariah's prophecies span a period of 7 years which we even "saw" from his visions correspond to the last 7 years of Daniel culminating with the return of the King of kings.
Zech. 7:1
And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Darius, that the word of the LORD came unto Zechariah in the fourth day of the ninth month, even in Chisleu;
Let us first check-out the meanings of the names given in this verse that we might come to a deeper understanding of what is going on here. "Sherezer" is an Assyrian name meaning "prince of fire", call him "prince of (strange) fire" (see Numbers 3:4), and "Regem-melech" means "king" (melech) of a "regem", which is a "heap of stones", which pretty much describes what the 12 tribes symbolized by the 12 stones in the breastplate of the Levitical priests had become. So here we have representatives of Bethel, which is supposed to be the "house of God" ("Beth-El" means "House of God" in Hebrew), whose names are basically synonymous with "Idolatry" and a heap of "Confusion". Well, perhaps it may offend some, but as wise old Solomon declared, "there is nothing new under the sun", and idolatry and confusion (babel) are pretty good overall descriptions of the Christian priests/ministers in our land today, both catholic and protestant.[2] When they had sent unto the house of God Sherezer and Regem-melech, and their men, to pray before the LORD,
Here is the question these representatives were to ask the priests in the house of the LORD of hosts:
We are going to learn in great detail in the next chapter about the "fasts" (appointed times) of the fourth, fifth, seventh, and tenth months for they are very crucial to our understanding of what is happening even right now in the land of Judea! Nevertheless, we should make note of the fact that the two fasts spoken of here and in the next verse, i.e. the fasts of the fifth and the seventh months, were on the 10th of Ab (5th month) when the Temple and the houses were burnt (Jer. 52:12-13) and on the 3rd of Tishri (7th month) when Gedaliah was slain by Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah (Jer. 40:8 & 41:1-3) respectively. These dates correspond to about the last weeks of our July and September.[3] And to speak unto the priests which were in the house of the LORD of hosts, and to the prophets, saying, Should I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done these so many years?
However, the important thing to understand as it relates to the lesson to be learned in the following few verses is that these were religious ceremonies they were concerned about, not the Word of God, and the question the representatives of Bethel are asking is "Should they continue weeping and mourning on these days as they have done throughout the 70 years of their captivity?" Here is the answer straight from the word of the LORD of hosts:
Well now, God says! Let's take a galloping poll and do a little analysis and just see how much good all that fasting and mourning has done to date! (Hmmm, wonder if they know why they went into captivity in the first place?)[4] Then came the word of the LORD of hosts unto me, saying,[5] Speak unto all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying, When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh month, even those seventy years, did ye at all fast unto me, even to me?
Question to all ye people of the land and all you so-called priests (ministers): "For whose benefit did you do all that fasting and mourning?"
Do you think they did it unto the LORD God of hosts, i.e.
that they might repent of their sins and of their disobedience to His laws
and commands which brought on their captivity in the first place?
Seems to me if they even have to ask the question as to whether they should
stop or continue that it has become nothing more than a ritual, wouldn't
you say? You see, most of them now listened to "princes of strange fire",
i.e. they had become idolatrous and worshipped after other gods, even enjoying
the prosperity and security that their captors provided! Therefore, they
really did not pray to the living God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob but
to
a strange god of another fire, even Satan himself.
Do you think it is any different in our land today?
Next question from the LORD of hosts:
Yes, they were "eating and drinking" for themselves and it is obvious that they were "marrying and giving in marriage" to strange gods (see Mat. 24:38). You see, they were not into "hungering and thirsting" after righteousness, i.e. for His Word, His truth! They were not putting God first either in their sorrowing nor in their eating and drinking![6] And when ye did eat, and when ye did drink, did not ye eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves?
Again, there is nothing new under the sun in this final
generation. Many of our brothers and sisters listen to those priests (ministers) with
strange "fire" who claim to be representatives of the "house of God", i.e.
claim to be Christian ministers and priests preaching and teaching in the
name of Christ, but who teach our people to follow after the traditions
of men which cause "great confusion" (Babel)!
Jesus Christ warned us of those false preachers of strange fire, those MANY who would come in His name in this generation and deceive the multitudes with traditional fairy tales of apples and snakes and instill a false sense of security and hope in our people by promising them they will "fly-away" in a rapture when Satan the spurious messiah comes to town.
The problem is... that false teaching that Christ will return at any moment literally "sets them up" for the spiritual kill, as in it prepares them for the great apostasy (2 Thes. 2:3), the great falling away which is to accept the first supernatural entity (Satan) who comes from heaven (Rev. 12:7-9) who will be none other than the false messiah coming at the sound of the 6th Trump. Jesus Christ's first warning concerning our day was to watch out for false preachers and teachers and the apostle Paul says to watch out especially for those who teach doctrines declaring that we gather back to the real Christ before the would-be Christ, the son of perdition, comes and reigns in His stead deceiving the whole world with great signs and wonders showing the world that he is God:
Paul also said:Matthew 24:4
And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.[5] For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
2 Thes. 2:3
Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day [the day of our gathering back to Christ] shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;[4] Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
Zech 7:7
Should ye not hear the words which the LORD hath cried by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, and the cities thereof round about her, when men inhabited the south and the plain?
No, our people did not listen back in the days of old when God so richly blessed them, nor will they listen today "while the good times roll"! And so it is that this nothing-new-under-the-sun scenario pertaining to THIS final generation is part of the "Song of Moses", the 32nd chapter of Deuteronomy, that the overcomers of Satan and of his beast system will be singing at the victory celebration when Yeshua returns (Rev. 15:3). Are you familiar with the words of this song? You see, it is not when a person is in big trouble, like hanging upside down in a deep well, that he forgets to cry out and acknowledge God. It is when he is "rich and increased with goods and has need of nothing" (Rev. 3:17) that he forsakes God and is so easily "drawn away" from His Word. Hey, "It's the economy stupid!" they now say! Therefore, peace and prosperity, which is exactly what the great tribulation of Satan is, is the greater test of one's love for God and of one's loyalty to the mercy seat, the seat of truth, justice, and the American way.Amos 5:23
Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols.[24] But let judgment [divine law] run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.
"Jeshurun" is a name referring to Jacob whose name was changed to Israel. Did you know that you MUST know where his sons and daughters, especially the so-called "lost 10 tribes" of the house Israel, dwell today in order to understand the prophecies of God's Word pertaining to this generation.Deut. 32:15
But Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked: thou art waxen fat, thou art grown thick, thou art covered with fatness; then he forsook God which made him, and lightly esteemed the Rock of his salvation.
They already follow the abominable one (Satan) through their idolatrous traditions of men![16] They provoked him to jealousy with strange gods, with abominations provoked they him to anger.
There's the answer to the questions: "When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh month, even those seventy years, did ye at all fast unto me, even to me? [6] And when ye did eat, and when ye did drink, did not ye eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves?"[17] They sacrificed unto devils, not to God; to gods whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom your fathers feared not.
How does one forget or forsake God? By not studying His Written Word. One cannot separate the Living Word from the Written Word. You see, the way one gets to know Jesus Christ is through His Word because He is the Word of God. That is why Christ will say to the many churchgoers who cry Lord, Lord and try to cash in their tithes and do-gooder deeds along with their gold stars for faithfully teaching Sunday school, etc., all done in the name of Christ of course, to GET AWAY from me, I never knew you! Matthew 7:21-23 "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. [22] Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? [23] And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity."[18] Of the Rock that begat thee thou art unmindful, and hast forgotten God that formed thee.
They roll the fertility goddess Ishtar's eggs during the high day of Christianity, the Passover, and they accept liberalism instead of demanding truth and justice and accountability and then people wonder why the LORD does not answer their prayers? Go figure! I mean think about it! How many blessings do you pour out and how many requests do you fill for the things your children ask for, after they act totally irreverently and willfully disobey your every wish and command... especially after you have warned and warned them and told them to shape up or ship out? Well, Israel did NOT shape up after being warned by the prophets and God did ship them out just as He said He would![19] And when the LORD saw it, he abhorred them, because of the provoking of his sons, and of his daughters.
Next we shall learn straight from the LORD of hosts exactly what it is He wants all the people and the priests of THIS NATION to do! Do you know what it is?[20] And He said, I will hide my face from them, I will see what their end shall be: for they are a very froward generation, children in whom is no faith.
We just saw the priestly representatives of the people who were anxious concerning their religious worship services and came to question God's prophets (Zech. 7:3) as to whether or not they should continue the fasting and mourning for the destruction of the temple (now that it was being rebuilt) as they have been doing these many years of their captivity.
That had to be really disappointing to our Father! Why? Because they should have been less worried about church and more concerned about the fact that His prophets warned them, foretold them, of their captivity that would come IF they continued to ignore and disobey His laws and statutes (thereby following after other gods). In other words, IF they failed to execute His judgment (divine law) with justice and compassion throughout the land, the "natural result" would be destruction and captivity. To wit, there is nothing new under the sun!
Do you not think it is amazing that even after having witnessed His words of warning, those same curses written on the "flying scroll", come to pass exactly as they were written in the law and exactly as they were spoken by the Holy Spirit through the mouths of His prophets, that they were still not repentant nor desirous to seek Him and follow His ways? Well, unfortunately it is not amazing at all. In fact, it is very characteristic of the "sottishness" (Jer. 4:22) of our people even to this day. You see, though they claim to love the Lord, most Christians do not really know Jesus Christ, the Word of God, because they do not study His Word! Therefore in their ignorance they have none understanding of the difference between the holy and the profane, nor the wisdom to "discern between the unclean and the clean"!
To do good is to trust in God and follow His ways, His Word, which is truth and justice, NO MATTER WHAT! Yes, we need to stick to and follow our national motto, "In God We Trust"! To do evil is to allow liberalism to creep in and gnaw away like locusts at the fabric of truth and justice and all that is righteousness! And never forget that all those things that happened to our forefathers happened unto them as ensamples for our benefit, i.e. for the benefit of this generation upon whom the ends of the world are come that we may "see" and "understand" what shall befall us! And it is "befalling us" now! Wake up!Jeremiah 4:22
For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish [means "stupid"] children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.
It is true that History repeats itself, which is another way of saying that History is prophecy! So if you think you are in good standing with the Lord because of your "churchianity" and yet you do not know the lessons of the "things that happened" unto our forefathers and have "taken heed" yourself, then you are in for a fall... a great fall... even the great falling away of the majority in 2 Thes. 2:3 when that man of sin, the lawless one, the little horn, the son of perdition, Satan himself, comes standing in the holy place claiming to be God!1 Cor. 10:11-12
Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.
Here then is something else to consider! Not only has our gracious and loving Father given us His Word with His clear instructions along with numerous and explicit ensamples of "cause and effect" written for our understanding, but He has further given us TYPES and ensamples in these last days (even of the 6th and 7th Trumps)! Have we not been given to "SEE" almost a decade {The 1990s} of leadership by a charming and charismatic "lawless one", a "rock & roll" "little horn" player from "little tyre ("rock" in Hebrew)", who entered in during times of peace and prosperity and profaned the highest office of our land, perverted justice, scorned truth, despised the rule of law, dealt "treacherously" with foreign governments, as in "sold out" and accepted bribes, debased women and committed fornication with the "harlot"?[12] Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.
Question: How is it possible for one who has "stooped (fallen) so low" to receive a 66% job approval rating in a nation where more than 90+% of the population professes to be Christian? Yes, "sottish" is an appropriate word and now we have been given a 9-11 wake-up call, even a witness to the ways the prophets warned our ancestors not to follow, the ways which brought forth terror and the destruction of the temple which they now religiously mourned! Should they continue with their fasting and mourning? What for? If you stay in your Father's Word and follow Christ like He said, then there will be no cause for fasting and mourning, only feasting! Now you know how to "wipe away all tears"!
Wake up America! What is it our Father would have us do?
There is nothing new under the sun, even from the "first earth age" throughout all eternity concerning our Father's righteous ways! These words were given unto our forefathers in the wilderness following their captivity in Egypt and these same words are now given to the sons and daughters of this final generation. Hebrews 13:8 "Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever."Zechariah 7:8
And the word of the LORD came unto Zechariah, saying,[9] Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Execute true judgment, and shew mercy and compassions every man to his brother:
[10] And oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor; and let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart.
Again, "Wake-up Christian" and learn the lessons of "yesterday" for they aptly apply "today"! God said so (1 Cor. 10:11)! Did our forefathers listen to the words of the prophets, to God's Word? No, they did not and they suffered the consequences of their decisions documenting that God's Word is true!
They just don't want to hear the truth about the consequences of their actions, do they? They would rather blame someone else and play the role of victim or poor-me-baby! That's Satan's way and the way of his children of disobedience, i.e. the kenites! Victim, victim, victim! Remember? The "little horn" was never at fault. It was just that someone was always out to get him, especially those far-right-wing-conservatives who were after justice![11] But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear.
The phrase they "made their hearts as an adamant (stone)" means they are a strong-willed, self-willed, stubborn people, i.e. a bunch of "hard heads"! They especially harden their hearts during times of peace and prosperity. You see, they did enjoy the prosperity of their captors in Babylon. There is nothing new under the sun.[12] 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.
Let's see! If you were to totally ignore your mother and father and not listen to them one whit, and worse yet you go contrary to their wishes and take heed to the bad advice of others, would you then expect your parents to reward your behavior and give you everything you ask them for? I don't think so! Yet some people wonder why God does not answer their prayers! They are "sottish" indeed! Read His Word... there is no need to wonder about anything! You see, our Father poured out His wrath in the first earth age and destroyed the "world that then was" (Jer. 4, 2 Pet. 3:6, Gen. 1:2).[13] 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:
They blew it, didn't they? Let us therefore use wisdom and learn from the error of their ways lest HIStory repeats itself at our expense, because it is written that God shall pour out His wrath on this froward (disobedient) generation IF they will not turn to Him! Shall we close our eyes and ears and pretend it isn't so? As a nation, far too many of us closed our eyes and ears during the reign of the "little horn" (Bill Clinton) and look what it brought us! Satan's ways always bring "desolations", which is why He is called the "desolator"![14] 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.
Then we SAW one who came come to power (George Bush) who claimed to stand for truth and justice and the American way, one who holds accountable the wicked and unrighteous. Time will tell, what is it we should expect from doing things God's way or if we don't? You know something! One does not have to be a "guru" nor have "supernatural powers" to know what the future brings. Any child who can read can learn of the blessings and cursings in Deut. 28 which naturally, by Divine Law, follow obedience or disobedience respectively! We as individuals have a choice! We as a nation have a choice! Therefore, it is up to you! Just don't "fast and mourn and whine" when you get what is coming to you as result of your bad choice! Your Father won't listen to you! "So what will it take for Him to turn unto you", you ask? We go back to the beginning words in Zechariah. If you did not hear them then, will you be able to hear them now?
Zech. 1:3
Therefore say thou unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn ye unto me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the LORD of hosts.[4] Be ye not as your fathers, unto whom the former prophets have cried, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn ye now from your evil ways, and from your evil doings: but they did not hear, nor hearken unto me, saith the LORD.
As you can see, God is "Pro Choose Life"!Deut. 30:19
I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:
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