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The divine king: Zechariah 9 (Day 356)

Our daily reflections follow the M'Cheyne Bible reading plan, designed for those who want to read the whole Bible in one year. Each reflection focuses on one of the chapters from that day's readings. Darllenwch rhain yn Gymraeg.

Pray

Pray

Lord, open my ears to hear what you have to say to me; open my heart to love your word, and open my mind to understand your truth.

Reflect

Daily reflections: Zechariah 9

The context of this chapter is war – the destruction of Israel’s enemies as God judges in favour of his own people. It is written, of course, from the viewpoint of the Israelites, who feel themselves to be oppressed by the greater power of their neighbours and long for deliverance from their God. And God does deliver them, bringing fear and anguish to the nations round about. The wealthy city of Tyre experiences economic disaster as precious cargo is tipped overboard from its trading ships (verse 4).

But right in the middle of the chapter, the clamour of war fades out, and the volume is turned up on the sound of rejoicing. For Christians, verse 9 is one of the most well-known snippets from this prophecy, because Jesus acted it out on his entry into Jerusalem a few days before his crucifixion. Matthew 21.5 draws attention to his actions as a deliberate fulfilment of Zechariah’s oracle. A triumphant but humble king appears out of the chaos, to end war and ‘command peace to the nations’ (verse 10).

Can we really say, though, that Jesus’ entry to Jerusalem was the once-and-for-all fulfilment of this prophecy? Of course not. War continues around the world (not least in the regions listed by Zechariah). Fear, anguish, the trauma of death and economic collapse are a very present reality for many people.

Yet the human yearning for peace and stability still draws us to passages like verses 9–10, inviting us to put our trust in the divine king. God is a warrior in this chapter, but his true desire is for his people to live in everlasting peace, with everything they need to enable them to flourish. This is his ultimate will, and we should work and pray for it to come to fruition.

Pray

Pray

Thank you, Lord God, for the hope of true and lasting peace that Jesus holds out to us. Help us to recognise you as king in every area of our lives, and to work for peace wherever we go.


This reflection was written by Lisa Cherrett, Editorial Project Manager in the Publishing team

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