“And the Lord shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one Lord, and his name one” (v. 9). After the nations have been punished and Israel has been purified, the Lord will establish His righteous kingdom and reign on David’s throne (Luke 1:32–33; Rev. 17:14; 19:16). His reign will be universal (“over all the earth”), He will be the only God worshipped, and His name will be the only name honored. (See Ps. 72; Jer. 30:7–9.) What will happen when the King reigns supremely?
The land will be healed (v. 8). Jerusalem is the only great city of antiquity that wasn’t built near a large river. But during the Kingdom Age, a river of “living waters” will flow from Jerusalem and bring healing and fertility to the land. (See Ezek. 47:1–12; Joel 3:18.) The river will divide so the waters can flow to the Dead Sea (“former sea” kjv, “eastern sea” niv) and to the Mediterranean Sea (“hinder” kjv, “western” niv). For centuries people have been wondering how the Dead Sea could be rescued, but it won’t be accomplished until the kingdom. For a beautiful description of the land during the Kingdom Age, read Isaiah 35.
The topography will be changed (vv. 10–11). Besides the changes caused by the earthquake at Christ’s return (vv. 4–5), two other changes will occur: (1) the land around Jerusalem will be lowered and leveled and become a plain, and (2) Jerusalem itself will be raised above the land around it. These changes will be the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy, “Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow to it” (Isa. 2: nkjv; and see Zech. 8:1–3; Mic. 4:1–3).
If Messiah is to reign as King-Priest (Zech. 6:9–15), then there must be a temple and a priesthood during the Kingdom Age, and it is described in detail in Ezekiel 40—48. Jerusalem will be the most important city on earth and the temple area the most important part of that glorious new city.
All dangers will be removed (v. 11). The mountains round about Jerusalem were for her protection (Ps. 48:1–8; 125:1–2); but now that Messiah is reigning, the city no longer faces danger from enemy invasion (Ezek. 34:22–31). “It will be inhabited” (niv) reminds us that only fifty thousand Jews were willing to leave the safe and comfortable city of Babylon to live in the ruins of Jerusalem, and even Nehemiah had trouble getting people to live in the city (Neh. 11). Zechariah has already told us that the children will play in the streets, and the old men and women will sit in the sun and talk together (Zech. 8:4–8).
The Gentiles will worship at Jerusalem (v. 16). Israel will have a ministry to the Gentiles who will trust the true and living God and come to Jerusalem to worship at His temple (Isa. 2:2–5; Zech. 2:10–13). Of the seven annual feasts listed in Leviticus 23, the Feast of Tabernacles is the only one that will be celebrated during the Kingdom Age (Lev. 23:33–44). This feast commemorated the nation’s wilderness wanderings, but it also was a time of rejoicing at the bountiful blessings of the Lord during the harvest (v. 40).
But why celebrate only the Feast of Tabernacles? Merrill Unger makes an excellent suggestion when he points out that the Feast of Tabernacles is the only one of the seven feasts of Leviticus 23 that will not have been fulfilled when the kingdom is established.
Passover was fulfilled in the death of Christ (1 Cor. 5:7; John 1:29), Firstfruits in His resurrection (15:23), and the week-long Feast of Unleavened Bread in the life of the church today as believers walk in holiness (5:6–8). Pentecost was fulfilled in Acts 2, and the Feast of Trumpets will be fulfilled before the kingdom begins when God regathers His people from the ends of the earth (Isa. 18:3, 7; Matt. 24:29–31). The day of Atonement will be fulfilled when the nation sees her Messiah, repents, and is cleansed.
But the Feast of Tabernacles foreshadows the joyful and fruitful Kingdom Age, so it will be celebrated while the kingdom is in progress. It will be an annual reminder to the Gentile nations that the bountiful blessings they enjoy come from a gracious and generous Lord. How easy it is to take our blessings for granted!
The Lord will exercise justice (vv. 17–19). The nations that don’t send their representatives to Jerusalem to worship will be disciplined by getting no rain for their land. This is the way God disciplined Israel when she refused to obey Him (Deut. 28:22–24). Remember, though the millennium is a time of peace and blessing, it is also a time when Jesus will reign over all the earth “with a rod of iron” and will judge disobedience (Ps. 2:9; Rev. 2:27; 12:5; 19:15). Not to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles would be tantamount to despising the blessings of the Lord, and this is a serious transgression. (See Rom. 1:18.)
Egypt is mentioned specifically because that nation especially depended on the annual flooding of the Nile for irrigation, and without the rains, the river could not rise. During the time of Joseph, there were seven years of terrible famine in Egypt. Also, Egypt had been Israel’s persecutor and enemy, and during the kingdom, she will enjoy blessing because of Israel’s Messiah. Not to show gratitude would be a heinous sin.
Holiness will characterize all of life (vv. 20–21). We might expect “holiness” to be written on the bells of the high priest’s robe (Ex. 28:36–38), but certainly not on the bells worn by the horses! And why would the common utensils in the home be treated like vessels used in the temple? These two images are God’s way of saying, “In the Kingdom Age every aspect of life will be holy to the Lord.” God had called Israel to be “a kingdom of priests” (Ex. 19:6), and now they would be just that by God’s grace.
For the believer today, this is the Old Testament version of 1 Corinthains 10:31, “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (nkjv). There is no “secular” or “sacred” in the Christian life, because everything comes from God and should be used for His glory.
The Hebrew word translated “Canaanite” in Zechariah 14: refers to merchants and traders or to any unclean person, both of whom would defile the temple of God. When Jesus began His ministry and ended it, He found “religious merchants” using God’s house for personal gain (John 2:13–22; Matt. 21:12–13; Mark 11:15–17; Luke 19:45–46). The house of prayer for all nations had been turned into a den of thieves for the profit of the Jewish high priest and his family. But the millennial temple will be a holy temple, not defiled by those who neither know the Lord nor love Him, and in it a holy priesthood will serve the Lord.
Zechariah’s book begins with a call to repentance, but it ends with a vision of a holy nation and a glorious kingdom. Zechariah was one of God’s heroes who ministered at a difficult time and in a difficult place, but he encouraged God’s people by showing them visions of what God has planned for their future. God is still jealous over Jerusalem and the Jewish people, and He will fulfill His promises.
M A L A C H I“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem” (Ps. 122:6).