I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have found that by writing this daily blog of what I see when I read these scriptures, I get more out of them. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. In order to make that possible I read the passages and write my thoughts a day in advance. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.
Zechariah has another vision in which an angel gives him a message from God concerning Zerubbabel’s task of rebuilding the Temple. However, this message is for everyone whom God has called to a task (which is everyone). No matter how simple or how daunting that task is, let us remember God’s word concerning the tasks He has given us: “It is not by force nor by strength, but by My Spirit says the Lord.” We will not accomplish any task God has set us by force, nor by our strength. We will only accomplish the tasks which God has set us by relying on His Spirit.
Zechariah’s vision next included an image of a basket containing the sins of everyone throughout the land. Those sins were represented by a woman named “Wickedness”. The basket containing Wickedness was carried to Babylon, where a temple will be built for it to be worshiped. The implication here is that there are lands and peoples who build temples and worship wickedness in the same way in which the people of God worship God and His righteousness. Are we building a temple to wickedness today? Or is it already built? Let us not worship at the temple of wickedness.
John recounts how the Lamb (Christ) will gather the 144,000 (a symbolic number), who had His name and the name of the Father on their foreheads, and present them as a first fruits offering before God’s throne. Following this, three angels will fly over the earth proclaiming God’s messages. The first will proclaim the Good News over all of the earth. People of every nation, tribe, language, and people will hear the Gospel message and have the opportunity to turn to God and worship Him. The second angel will announce the message that “Babylon” has fallen. In this case, Babylon represents those dominant cities and nations which encourage the people of the world to embrace immorality. Actually, it goes beyond merely encouraging to using force to get people to accept immorality. Finally a third angel will pass over the earth announcing that those who have accepted the mark of the beast will suffer God’s judgment.
A voice then tells John that those who die in the Lord are blessed, they will rest from their hard work and their good deeds will follow them. Our reading today ends with two angels harvesting the earth. The first harvests the grain to be gathered into heaven’s storehouses, the second harvests the grapes which are ripe for judgment to be crushed in the wine press of God’s wrath. The grain represents those who have served God in this life. The grapes represent those who have sought out the pleasures of wickedness rather than serving God.
I will pour out my troubles to the Lord. When I am overwhelmed He knows the path I should turn and will guide me to it. Even if no one cares what happens to me, God will help me. He will rescue me from my persecutors. The wonderful thing is that even if I fell alone and uncared for, if I turn to God and listen to Him, I will realize that the godly have crowded around me seeking to help me in any way that they can.
The writer tells us four things which cause problems. When a servant becomes king or displaces her mistress(this is two of the four). When a fool becomes wealthy. When a bitter woman gets married. Sometimes people are upset by this because people are unfair and think that those who receive this good fortune do not deserve it. However, more commonly the problem is because when these types of people receive this good fortune, they do not know how to carry out the responsibility that comes with their new station and cause great misery for everyone around them.