Jerusalem, the Holy City to Come

Zechariah 8:1-10 

1 Again the word of the LORD of hosts came, saying,
2 "Thus says the LORD of hosts:

I am zealous for Zion with great zeal;
With great fervor I am zealous for her.'

3 "Thus says the LORD:

I will return to Zion,
And dwell in the midst of Jerusalem.
Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth,
The Mountain of the LORD of hosts,
The Holy Mountain.'

4 "Thus says the LORD of hosts:

Old men and old women shall again sit
In the streets of Jerusalem,
Each one with his staff in his hand
Because of great age.

5 The streets of the city
Shall be full of boys and girls
Playing in its streets.'

6 "Thus says the LORD of hosts:

'If it is marvelous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days,
Will it also be marvelous in My eyes?'
Says the LORD of hosts.

7 "Thus says the LORD of hosts:

'Behold, I will save My people from the land of the east
And from the land of the west;
8 I will bring them back,
And they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem.

They shall be My people
And I will be their God,
In truth and righteousness.'

9 "Thus says the LORD of hosts:

Let your hands be strong,
You who have been hearing in these days
These words by the mouth of the prophets,
Who spoke in the day the foundation was laid
For the house of the LORD of hosts,
That the temple might be built.

10 For before these days
There were no wages for man nor any hire for beast;
There was no peace from the enemy for whoever went out or came in;
For I set all men, everyone, against his neighbor.

Zechariah gave the message of God’s certain will to be done among His people.  He had a great zeal and fervent desire for their spiritual prosperity because they had been chosen and called out as His own precious ones.  That holy place where God met man on the top of Jerusalem where the tabernacle of meeting was constructed and then razed would once more be restored as the City of Truth on the Mountain of Holiness.  The people would be gathered together and grow old there once more instead of being killed in battle or dying of rampant disease or hunger.  They would see their children playing once more instead of suffering.  This remnant of God’s people whom He would save from certain death and release from captivity would be all gathered together (Luke 13:34) as a loving mother hen does with her brood and as Christ has done with us out of Israel and all nations.  He is making a safe dwelling place for us all (John 14:2-3, Ephesians 2:22) to live with Him forever in peace and safety from the presence of sin and its destruction to body and soul.  He will Himself live among us (Revelation 21:3) and be our God in truth and righteousness!  We then are to hear the words of comfort and compassion to all His ones who remain according to the gospel call and be strong in hands (Hebrews 12:12, 1 Peter 5:10) of faith to do His will until His return.  Just as they were faithful to trust that the earthly temple would be rebuilt, so we can fully trust in the eternal one brought down from heaven already prepared for us all (Revelation 21:2), not built by the hand of man but by God Himself as is our salvation.  Just as there was no peace beforehand among Israel and among us lost in our sin’s grip, so we will all be together set free in Christ for eternity.  We all have a heavenly holy city, the Celestial City, to look forward to.  What good and joyous news!