Zechariah 14:1-5
1 Behold, a day is coming for the Lord when the spoils taken from you will be divided among you.
2 For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city will be taken, the houses plundered, the women raped, and half of the city exiled, but the rest of the people will not be eliminated from the city.
3 Then the Lord will go forth and fight against those nations, as when He fights on a day of battle.
4 On that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west forming a very large valley. Half of the mountain will move toward the north, and the other half toward the south.
5 And you will flee by the valley of My mountains, for the valley of the mountains will reach to Azel; yes, you will flee just as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the Lord, my God, will come, and all the holy ones with Him!
The Battle of Armageddon (1)
The siege of Jerusalem
The battle of Armageddon was discussed in chapter 12. Here again, a prophecy concerning the battle of Armageddon is given. Some things repeat what has already been stated, while some new information is added. “Behold, a day is coming for the Lord when the spoils taken from you will be divided among you” (v 1). The battle that takes place at the end of the Great Tribulation is the battle of Armageddon. “You” refers to Jerusalem. On that day, Jerusalem will be surrounded, plundered, and the spoil will be divided on the spot. “For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city will be taken, the houses plundered, the women raped, and half of the city exiled, but the rest of the people will not be eliminated from the city” (v 2). The content of this verse is a restatement of the prophecy in 12:2-3. In the battle of Armageddon, all the Gentile nations will come up against the land of Judah and Jerusalem. As a result, (a) the city will be captured, (b) the houses will be plundered, (c) the women will be violated, and (d) alf of the population of the city will go into captivity. (e) However, the remaining half will stay there.
The Second Coming of the Messiah
“Then the Lord will go forth and fight against those nations, as when He fights on a day of battle” (v 3). This verse prophesies the Second Coming of the Messiah. Before saving Jerusalem, the returning Messiah will save the tents of Judah. As we have already seen, 12:7 says: “The Lord also will save the tents of Judah first, so that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem will not be greater than Judah.” (1) The Lord first saves the inhabitants of Judah. The expression “the tents of Judah” indicates that the people of Judah are living in tents in a place of refuge. That place of refuge is “Bozrah” (present-day Petra) (ref. Isa. 34:6; 63:1). (2) The returning Messiah will first destroy the Gentile nations at Bozrah and then fight for the inhabitants of Jerusalem. This is the sequence of the final stage of the battle of Armageddon. (3) When the Messiah stands on the Mount of Olives, a great earthquake will occur, and the landscape will be drastically changed. Verses 4-5, which we will study next time, prophesy this event. The Second Coming of the Messiah and the establishment of the Messianic Kingdom are a great hope both for Jews and for Gentiles. Continuing to hold on to that hope becomes strength for our daily walk. Let us give thanks to God that we have been given faith in the Second Coming.
Today's prayer
Father God of Jesus Christ, all the injustice and unfairness of this world will be set right at the time of the Messiah’s Second Coming. Help me today to remember that the day of life’s reckoning will surely come. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen.