"On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, the month of Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah, the son of Iddo." (Zechariah 1:7) This vision comes to Zechariah about three months after the Lord calls him to be a prophet to the nation.
"During the night I had a vision, and there before me was a man mounted on a red horse. He was standing among the myrtle trees in a ravine. Behind him were red, brown, and white horses." (Zechariah 1:8) This type of imagery would have been familiar to anyone under Persian rule, as Judah was at that time. Persian rulers kept companies of horses and riders roaming the kingdom at all times in order to watch over their territories and the people in them. Since Zechariah's primary theme is that the King and His kingdom are coming, this imagery is quite significant. Darius the king of Persia has secured protection for the Jewish people as they rebuild the temple, and he has even helped to supply their needs, but he is not the king who has sent emissaries to check on the work. Though he has promised to defend their right to rebuild, Darius is not going to be angry with these people if they fail to complete the project for their God. He is not emotionally or spiritually invested in this endeavor. But another King is, and He has sent emissaries on horseback to check on the work. The rebuilding of the temple is kingdom work...His kingdom work. Here is Someone who is emotionally and spiritually invested in this project which, as we learned yesterday, has fallen drastically behind.
"I asked, 'What are these, my lord?' The angel who was talking with me answered, 'I will show you what they are.'" (Zechariah 1:9) Here we learn that there is an angel leading Zechariah through his vision, so we now have two characters: an angel and the man among the myrtle trees. It's not unusual in the Scriptures to find an angel by the side of the person experiencing visions. When we studied the book of Daniel we found him receiving the interpretations of his visions from an angel, and when we studied the book of Revelation we found an angel guiding the Apostle John through his visions.
"Then the man standing among the myrtle trees explained, 'They are the ones the Lord has sent to go throughout the earth.' And they reported to the angel of the Lord who was standing among the myrtle trees, 'We have gone throughout the earth and found the whole earth at rest and at peace.'" (Zechariah 1:10-11) In some of my commentaries I found the opinion that this angel of the Lord represents a Christophany: an Old Testament vision of the pre-incarnate Christ. But we cannot be certain of this. There are portions of the Old Testament in which a good case can be made for the "angel of the Lord" being Christ, but there are other portions where it would be quite a stretch to interpret the verses this way. In Zechariah's vision we may have to be content with not knowing the exact identity of either the angel or the man among the myrtle trees.
We would expect it to be good news that the earth is at rest and at peace, but we will find that the angel is distressed at this news. The entire region under Darius' rule was indeed enjoying a time of stability. The Persian Empire was at its peak during the reign of this man who was not in line for the throne but who overthrew the usurper Guamata who tried to pass himself off as a son of Cyrus the Great upon the death of Cyrus' son Cambyses. Darius was the son of Hystaspes, a satrap appointed by Cyrus, and he quickly quelled any rebellion against his rule. As we learned yesterday, he secured protection for the Jewish people to rebuild the temple without interference from their enemies. So the fact that the region is at rest, and the Jews have been given the peace to rebuild but have not rebuilt, causes the angel to cry out in distress. "Then the angel of the Lord said, 'Lord Almighty, how long will You withhold mercy from Jerusalem and from the towns of Judah, which You have been angry with these seventy years?' So the Lord spoke kind and comforting words to the angel who talked with me." (Zechariah 1:12-13) The seventy years predicted for the captivity are finished. They have been finished for some time, but much of the land still lies in ruins. Zechariah called the people to repentance and, as we studied yesterday, many answered this call. The Lord invited them to return to Him, promising He would also return to them. The angel now asks when the Lord intends to return. How long before He comforts Judah? How long before He rebuilds His people both literally and spiritually?
"Then the angel who was speaking to me said, Proclaim this word: This is what the Lord Almighty says: 'I am very jealous for Jerusalem and Zion, and I am very angry with the nations that feel secure. I was only a little angry, but they went too far with the punishment.' Therefore this is what the Lord says: 'I will return to Jerusalem with mercy, and there My house will be rebuilt. And the measuring line will be stretched out over Jerusalem,' declares the Lord Almighty. 'Proclaim further: This is what the Lord Almighty says: 'My towns will again overflow with prosperity, and the Lord will again comfort Zion and choose Jerusalem.'" (Zechariah 1:14-17) The angel interprets for Zechariah what he has heard from the Lord. The Lord is saying, "Do not fear. I will keep every promise ever made to My people. I will punish your enemies. I will build you up. As I promised in the days prior to the captivity, through My servant the prophet Jeremiah, 'In the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are deserted, inhabited by neither people nor animals, there will be heard once more the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, and the voices of those who bring thank offerings to the house of the Lord, saying, 'Give thanks to the Lord Almighty, for the Lord is good; His love endures forever.' For I will restore the fortunes of the land as they were before,' says the Lord." (Jeremiah 33:10b-11) This is why Zechariah says these words are "kind and comforting". God re-affirms His covenant with His people. He restates His promises to rebuild the nation, and God has never broken a promise.
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