ON WATCH

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In Christ, Mark

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

A prophecy:

“The word of the Lord is against the land of Hadrak and will come to rest on Damascus—for the eyes of all people and all the tribes of Israel are on the Lord—and on Hamath too, which borders on it, and on Tyre and Sidon, though they are very skillful.”

“Tyre has built herself a stronghold; she has heaped up silver like dust, and gold like the dirt of the streets. But the Lord will take away her possessions and destroy her power on the sea, and she will be consumed by fire.”

“Ashkelon will see it and fear; Gaza will writhe in agony, and Ekron too, for her hope will wither. Gaza will lose her king and Ashkelon will be deserted. A mongrel people will occupy Ashdod, and I will put an end to the pride of the Philistines. I will take the blood from their mouths, the forbidden food from between their teeth.”

“Those who are left will belong to our God and become a clan in Judah, and Ekron will be like the Jebusites. But I will encamp at My temple to guard it against marauding forces. Never again will an oppressor overrun My people, for now I am keeping watch.”

Zechariah 9:1-8

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

In the last chapter of Zechariah, we found good news for the remnant of Israelites who had returned to rebuild Israel following the Babylonian captivity. That good news included God’s promise to restore and revive Jerusalem, the holy city that would once again be the host of the Lord’s temple. Additionally, God promised to bless His people as long as they continued to live in His righteousness, even giving them specific ways He expected them to live. As long as they would be obedient to His word, will, and way, they would bask in the glow of His favor and protection. In fact, as the chapter closed, we saw where nations outside of Israel would want to join the population of God’s people, committing themselves to Him so they too could be blessed.

Well, as Chapter 9 opens, we get a sense that not all nations were onboard with leaving their past wickedness behind in order to sign up for God’s team. And as we see through these verses, the decision to reject God would be one they would regret. Look again at these words here:

A prophecy:

“The word of the Lord is against the land of Hadrak and will come to rest on Damascus—for the eyes of all people and all the tribes of Israel are on the Lord—and on Hamath too, which borders on it, and on Tyre and Sidon, though they are very skillful.”

“Tyre has built herself a stronghold; she has heaped up silver like dust, and gold like the dirt of the streets. But the Lord will take away her possessions and destroy her power on the sea, and she will be consumed by fire.”

“Ashkelon will see it and fear; Gaza will writhe in agony, and Ekron too, for her hope will wither. Gaza will lose her king and Ashkelon will be deserted. A mongrel people will occupy Ashdod, and I will put an end to the pride of the Philistines. I will take the blood from their mouths, the forbidden food from between their teeth.”

“Those who are left will belong to our God and become a clan in Judah, and Ekron will be like the Jebusites. But I will encamp at My temple to guard it against marauding forces. Never again will an oppressor overrun My people, for now I am keeping watch.”  Zechariah 9:1-8

We’re told right away that these verses constitute a prophecy, a message given to Zechariah, the prophet, from God Himself. Note that the message was crystal clear regarding those nations who would close to remain enemies of God and His people:

“Choose to oppose Me or My people and you will perish.”  

Indeed the prophecy tells of the destruction that would come to Israel’s opposition:

- The word of the Lord was against Hadrak, Damascus, Hamath, Tyre, and Sidon.

- Tyre would have her possessions taken away and her sea power destroyed before being “consumed by fire”.  

- The devastation of Tyre would bring fear and agony to the Philistine city states of Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and Ashdod who would see their hope wither and rightfully so. Such is what happens when any nation is staring down the barrel of God’s judgment.   

Yes, all was not looking good for the enemies of God and Israel except for some of the people of Philistine who would survive and be absorbed into the Israelite population as a clan like the Jebusites who had been inhabitants of Jerusalem when the Israelites entered and took over Canaan. Note that this clan as well as all of God’s people in Israel would not have to fear their enemies because God promised to never allow another oppressor to overrun His people because He was always on watch, encamped at His temple to guard against “marauding forces”.

 Today, the good news is that God is still on watch and guarding Israel, ready to protect His beloved nation and its people against enemies who would seek to oppose them and Him. Perhaps countries who foolishly levy threats against the Israelites today should go back in history from the time of Zechariah and see that Israel has never been completely destroyed and left abandoned since the judgment executed by Assyria and Babylon.

As we have seen over and over again, God never fails to keep His promises. We should revel and rejoice in that truth today and every day we’re blessed with.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark
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