THE BASKET OF INIQUITY

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Then the angel who was speaking to me came forward and said to me, “Look up and see what is appearing.”

I asked, “What is it?”

He replied, “It is a basket.” And he added, “This is the iniquity of the people throughout the land.”

Then the cover of lead was raised, and there in the basket sat a woman! He said, “This is wickedness,” and he pushed her back into the basket and pushed its lead cover down on it.

Then I looked up—and there before me were two women, with the wind in their wings! They had wings like those of a stork, and they lifted up the basket between heaven and earth.

“Where are they taking the basket?” I asked the angel who was speaking to me.

He replied, “To the country of Babylonia to build a house for it. When the house is ready, the basket will be set there in its place.”

Zechariah 5:5-11

This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

As we continue our study of Zechariah, we find yet another vision at the end of chapter 5, the next to last documented vision of the prophet. And in continuing in the tradition of the prior visions, we find bizarre imagery used to convey God’s message. Look again at these verses here:

Then the angel who was speaking to me came forward and said to me, “Look up and see what is appearing.”

I asked, “What is it?”

He replied, “It is a basket.” And he added, “This is the iniquity of the people throughout the land.”

Then the cover of lead was raised, and there in the basket sat a woman! He said, “This is wickedness,” and he pushed her back into the basket and pushed its lead cover down on it.

Then I looked up—and there before me were two women, with the wind in their wings! They had wings like those of a stork, and they lifted up the basket between heaven and earth.

“Where are they taking the basket?” I asked the angel who was speaking to me.

He replied, “To the country of Babylonia to build a house for it. When the house is ready, the basket will be set there in its place.”  Zechariah 5:5-11

Fresh off seeing a flying scroll, unfurled and displaying a commandment from God with an associated condemnation for His people’s disobedience in keep in the command, we find Zechariah looking at a basket which the angel of the Lord describes as representing the “iniquity of the people throughout the land.” We then are told the basket had a lead cover, symbolic of the heavy nature of sin and how it serves as a weight shackled to the sinner.

As Zechariah watched the basket, the lead cover was lifted to reveal a woman sitting inside, a woman who was wickedness personified. We get a sense that the sin within the basket couldn’t wait to escape because the “woman” was quickly pushed back into the basket and the lead cover closed on “her”.

It didn’t take long for another amazing sight to come before Zechariah because we see him see two other women appear with “wind in their wings”, wings that were described as being “like those of a stork”, wings that the women used to lift up the basket “between heaven and earth.” It was fitting that God’s agents (the two women) would carry away wickedness from the Israelites, especially since they had already paid the price for their wickedness. God wished for the prior wickedness of His people to be carried away so His people could start fresh in rebuilding their nation, their homes, and their relationships with God which would start by reconstructing God’s temple.

So where was wickedness heading? Where were the two women with wind in their wings taking it?

That’s what Zechariah wanted to know and the angel gladly explains, telling the prophet that the basket of iniquity was heading to “the country of Babylonia” where a house would be built for it. The contrast and comparison here is striking.

God’s temple was being rebuilt by the restored Israelites and once done, God’s presence and glory would once again dwell within. There was no place for sin anymore and so it was taken to a nation of irreverence toward God, a nation where idolatry and the worshiping of false gods reigned supreme. If wickedness wanted to establish a home, it could be in Babylonia for there was no longer a place for it in Israel.

So how does this relate to our world today?

Well, I think it’s obvious that sin has not been obliterated yet. Wickedness is still alive and well in our world today, having spread well away from its home in Babylonia to infect and infest the entire world. Thank goodness it’s not going to last forever for a day is coming when wickedness within the basket of iniquity will once again be carried away, this time for good on the day when Jesus returns. Indeed, sin will be destroyed and never return. Ever.  

It’s what will make that glorious day so much more satisfying for all who placed their hope and trust in Jesus because not only will they be going to live with their Savior and the Father who sent Him forever but they will be doing so minus all the things of this world that afflict them, things like affliction, hardship, hurt, and, of course, sin.

I don’t know about you but I can’t wait for that magnificent day to come.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark
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A BANNER OF REMINDING OR CONDEMNATION

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

I looked again, and there before me was a flying scroll.

He asked me, “What do you see?”

I answered, “I see a flying scroll, twenty cubits long and ten cubits wide.”

And he said to me, “This is the curse that is going out over the whole land; for according to what it says on one side, every thief will be banished, and according to what it says on the other, everyone who swears falsely will be banished. The Lord Almighty declares, ‘I will send it out, and it will enter the house of the thief and the house of anyone who swears falsely by my name. It will remain in that house and destroy it completely, both its timbers and its stones.’”

Zechariah 5:1-4

This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

A man on a red horse among myrtle trees with more horses behind.

Four horns and craftsmen.

A man with a measuring line.

A high priest in filthy garments.

A gold lamp stand between two olive trees.

What do all these have in common?

They were all centrally featured in visions we have seen Zechariah have in this book, the next to last book in the Old Testament.

As chapter five opens, we find yet another vision take center stage, the sixth of eight. As we will see, this vision centers on a flying scroll. Look again at these four verses here:

I looked again, and there before me was a flying scroll.

He asked me, “What do you see?”

I answered, “I see a flying scroll, twenty cubits long and ten cubits wide.”

And he said to me, “This is the curse that is going out over the whole land; for according to what it says on one side, every thief will be banished, and according to what it says on the other, everyone who swears falsely will be banished. The Lord Almighty declares, ‘I will send it out, and it will enter the house of the thief and the house of anyone who swears falsely by my name. It will remain in that house and destroy it completely, both its timbers and its stones.’”  Zechariah 5:1-4

God had given His people specific commandments within the law and His expectation was that His people would comply with His wishes. Unfortunately, many of the Israelites opted to sin instead, something God would have no part of. It’s this truth that is at the center of the sixth vision of Zechariah.

Note that the large scroll, which in the vision flew unfurled in plain sight of Zechariah, contained commands which if violated would result in punishment (represented by the curse mentioned in the passage). Of interest, the stone tablets, which were handled by Moses and contained God’s commandments, had writing on each side:

“Moses turned and went down the mountain with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands. They were inscribed on both sides, front and back.” Exodus 32:15

If you looked at those commandments, you would have found the following:

“You shall not steal.” Exodus 20:15

Obviously, stealing violated the eighth commandment God issued and yet as we find within the vision, there were some Israelites who didn’t care:

“Every thief will be banished… it will enter the house of the thief… It will remain in that house and destroy it completely, both its timbers and its stones.”

God told His people not to steal and yet there were still thieves within the Israelite community and the Lord wasn’t going to tolerate them, promising judgment would come.

But thievery wasn’t the only transgression singled out by God in this scripture excerpt. We also find Him calling out those who would swear falsely by the Lord’s name:

“Everyone who swears falsely will be banished… it will enter the house of anyone who swears falsely by my name… It will remain in that house and destroy it completely, both its timbers and its stones.”

You see, swearing falsely by the Lord’s name violated the third commandment found in the 20th chapter of Exodus:

“You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses His name.” Exodus 20:7

So we know that the people of God committed at least two transgressions against Him but the broader meaning of this vision was centered on the general inclination of the Israelites to disobey His commands and instead opt to sin. Given that, the overall message would apply to us as well.

When is that overall message?

It’s pretty simple.

For God will not stand for sin and anyone who chooses to violate His will is going to find themselves in the throes of His judgment. In the end translation, God despises iniquity and will always take action when anyone thinks they don’t have to follow His rules.

As we close this devotion, I hope the vision of the flying scroll is one that will remain unfurled and visible in our minds, a banner representing either one of two things:

1. A reminder of what God expects in regard to how we live.

or

2. A condemnation and declaration of judgment for any sinner who violates God’s expectations for right and righteous living.

Let’s all commit ourselves to making sure it’s always the former and never the latter.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark
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THE PERPETUAL SPIRIT

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Then the angel who talked with me returned and woke me up, like someone awakened from sleep. He asked me, “What do you see?”

I answered, “I see a solid gold lampstand with a bowl at the top and seven lamps on it, with seven channels to the lamps. Also there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left.”

I asked the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?”

He answered, “Do you not know what these are?”

“No, my lord,” I replied.

So he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.”

“What are you, mighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become level ground. Then he will bring out the capstone to shouts of ‘God bless it! God bless it!’”

Then the word of the Lord came to me: “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple; his hands will also complete it. Then you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you.”

“Who dares despise the day of small things, since the seven eyes of the Lord that range throughout the earth will rejoice when they see the chosen capstone in the hand of Zerubbabel?”

Then I asked the angel, “What are these two olive trees on the right and the left of the lampstand?”

Again I asked him, “What are these two olive branches beside the two gold pipes that pour out golden oil?”

He replied, “Do you not know what these are?”

“No, my lord,” I said.

So he said, “These are the two who are anointed to serve the Lord of all the earth.”

Zechariah 4

This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Zechariah had a total of eight visions, each described within the text of the book that bears the prophet’s name. We have looked at half of the visions so far and as we turn to chapter 4, we see vision number five revealed. Look again at that vision here:

Then the angel who talked with me returned and woke me up, like someone awakened from sleep. He asked me, “What do you see?”

I answered, “I see a solid gold lampstand with a bowl at the top and seven lamps on it, with seven channels to the lamps. Also there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left.”

I asked the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?”

He answered, “Do you not know what these are?”

“No, my lord,” I replied.

So he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.”

“What are you, mighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become level ground. Then he will bring out the capstone to shouts of ‘God bless it! God bless it!’”

Then the word of the Lord came to me: “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple; his hands will also complete it. Then you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you.”

“Who dares despise the day of small things, since the seven eyes of the Lord that range throughout the earth will rejoice when they see the chosen capstone in the hand of Zerubbabel?”

Then I asked the angel, “What are these two olive trees on the right and the left of the lampstand?”

Again I asked him, “What are these two olive branches beside the two gold pipes that pour out golden oil?”

He replied, “Do you not know what these are?”

“No, my lord,” I said.

So he said, “These are the two who are anointed to serve the Lord of all the earth.”  Zechariah 4

Think about the people of God and the kingdom work they are called to carry out. This vision represents a good representation of how that happens.

First, the Lord needs people to be His hands and feet, His light in the midst of a world where so much darkness exists. The seven lamps on the gold lamp stand are representative of the servants of the Lord sent forth by His Spirit to do His will.

This leads to the second important part of what Zechariah sees because the lamps are being filled with oil from a bowl that is kept constantly replenished by the two olive trees. In other words, the burning lamps would give our perpetual light always fueled by oil just as a servant of the Lord will always be fueled by the Holy Spirit to do whatever the Lord wants.

Thus, this is why the Lord proclaims to Zerubbabel that what he will accomplish will not be done by his might or power but rather by the Spirit of the Lord. Through that Spirit, Israel’s governor will be able to do what the Lord desires and specifically not only lay the foundation of the holy temple but to see the construction through to completion. The end result will be all glory to God for it was by His Spirit that the temple was able to be built, a truth that would be celebrated in great rejoicing when the last stone (the capstone) of the temple was laid.

In the end translation of this vision, the Lord wants us to remember that as His will is sought and carried out throughout creation, it is being dictated and driven through His amazing Holy Spirit which an extension of God Himself and thus the same yesterday, today, and forever. Through that Spirit, we, like Paul, can discover that we can so all things (Philippians 4:13) for God will always bring us through what He brings us to in life.

Even if He commands us to rebuild His holy temple like Zerubbabel, Joshua, and the Israelites were called to do in the time of Zechariah.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark
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A COMING SERVANT

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“‘Listen, High Priest Joshua, you and your associates seated before you, who are men symbolic of things to come: I am going to bring my servant, the Branch. See, the stone I have set in front of Joshua! There are seven eyes on that one stone, and I will engrave an inscription on it,’ says the Lord Almighty, ‘and I will remove the sin of this land in a single day.’”

“‘In that day each of you will invite your neighbor to sit under your vine and fig tree,’ declares the Lord Almighty.”

Zechariah 3:8-10

This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Thus far, we have found a lot of information within the fourth vision of Zechariah the prophet as we’ve looked at the third chapter of this next to last book in the Old Testament.

We first learned that the Lord was willing to cleanse His people from their sins, removing their filthy clothes and exchanging them for clean ones.

Next, we found the Lord telling His people how they could remain in His favor by revealing requirements which, if followed, would keep the Israelites in good standing with their God.

Well, in today’s closing verses from this chapter, we find the Lord God Almighty saving the best news for last as He tells His people of a coming servant who would change everything. Look again at these words:

“‘Listen, High Priest Joshua, you and your associates seated before you, who are men symbolic of things to come: I am going to bring my servant, the Branch. See, the stone I have set in front of Joshua! There are seven eyes on that one stone, and I will engrave an inscription on it,’ says the Lord Almighty, ‘and I will remove the sin of this land in a single day.’”

“‘In that day each of you will invite your neighbor to sit under your vine and fig tree,’ declares the Lord Almighty.”  Zechariah 3:8-10

Note that the first command God gives His people is to listen as He is about to share with them something that is to come. He then goes into sharing that something, that God was about to send His servant to His people, a servant who certainly wasn’t ordinary by any means. In fact, God gave His coming servant a title, referring to Him as the Branch.

Now, maybe you might think that this use of terminology might be a little odd and confusing to the Israelites but if you did think that, you would be wrong. You see, the prophecies about a coming Branch were not restricted to this vision of Zechariah. Rather, both Isaiah and Jeremiah spoke used the same reference in their prophecies well before the Israelite exile. Look at these three excerpts from those books:

“In that day, the Branch of the Lord will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel.” Isaiah 4:2

“The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land.” Jeremiah 23:5

“‘In those days and at that time I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David’s line; He will do what is just and right in the land.’” Jeremiah 33:15

A great King (capital “K”) was coming, who would have a lineage both of heaven and earth, a Messiah named Jesus who would be God’s only Son and yet a branch from the line of David, a Servant who would be fully God and fully man at the same time. This beautiful, glorious, righteous Servant King would usher in a day of great fruitfulness and prosperity for the nation of Israel and its people, a day when He would reign in wisdom and do what would be just in the land. Indeed, His coming would restore pride and glory for all the survivors of Israel who would live to return to their nation after the Babylonian captivity.

It was this group of Israelite survivors that we find the Lord addressing in today’s scripture passage, beckoning His people back to the words of Isaiah and Jeremiah while reminding them that His promise of a coming Servant was still in play. In fact, look at what God promised to do with this Servant King:

“I will remove the sin of this land in a single day.’”

Indeed, as we are in our Lenten season right now, we reflect on the day when Jesus hung on the cross of Calvary, bearing the sins of all mankind as He died. Jesus, the promised coming Servant mentioned in Zechariah 3, took sin with Him to the grave, defeating it in a single day after drawing His last breath. He then took it one step further when He defeated death as well, rising from the dead on the third day through God’s resurrection power. Forty days later, He would ascend to the heavens to sit at His Father’s right hand, given all authority over all creation.

Since that time, there has never been another Servant like Jesus but the good news is that all those who follow Him can commit themselves to live as He did, serving God and others through every day of life until that day when Jesus, the Savior Servant, comes again to save those who placed their belief in Him.

What a glorious day of rejoicing that will be for all Christians!

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark
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