The Time Between

Read Zechariah 9
 
Zechariah 9:9-10 Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. 10 I will take away the chariots from Ephraim and the war-horses from Jerusalem, and the battle bow will be broken. He will proclaim peace to the nations. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth.
 
ONE reason we must not simply read but study the Bible is to grasp a deeper wisdom regarding God’s essence and character. Prophecies are a good way to know of God’s sovereign authority as chosen men and women declare what God is doing and what he will do. To understand the prophets, then, we must know they may shift from verse-to-verse and sometimes within a verse to speak of one future time and then another. These two verses are an example.
   Verse 9 may be a familiar verse to you. It describes Jesus’ triumphant “Palm Sunday” entry into Jerusalem. Matthew 21 records this prophecy to point to its fulfillment in Christ. We’ve learned from Isaiah, too, that such language is spoken around 700 BC before these words about 540 BC.
   Jesus, the King, came in peace. But he was crucified, rejected by the Jewish rulers who refused to see him as their King, who fulfilled Zechariah’s words. As a result, we await now for verse 10’s words to be accomplished.
   Jesus is the Prince of Peace, but his peace has not yet come to fulfillment. Beginning in verse 10 to the end of the chapter, God points to the end of war. One day there will be no more war horses or weapons in Israel – symbolic of the world. Peace will be announced to the nations, and the King’s peace will hold throughout the entire earth for eternity.  
   What is the time between verses 9 and 10? This is your time, the time for knowing God’s character and declaring salvation to the nations. It is the age of the church. This is the time God has ordained for his gospel to be proclaimed to the ends of the earth. The rejected then risen Messiah has commanded,  “Therefore (Because all authority had been given to him, he could command this.) go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” (Matthew 28:19-20a) In God’s plan there is a waiting time between verses 9 and 10 because it is God’s will to draw billions of people into heaven. He has decreed his purpose and given us his truth and his purpose.
   The final verses of this chapter portray a beautiful picture of eternity. Do want to know what heaven is like? See how the eternal city will sparkle as jewels in a crown. Divine blessing on nature will produce ongoing abundance. At the right time there will be no war, no tears, no disease, no one thing out of place.
   This is God’s character promising the fullness of himself to you.
 
 Psalms 87:5-7 Indeed, of Zion it will be said, “This one and that one were born in her, and the Most High himself will establish her.” 6 The Lord will write in the register of the peoples: “This one was born in Zion.” 7 As they make music they will sing, "All my fountains are in you.”