18 And the word of the Lord of hosts came to me, saying, 19 “Thus says the Lord of hosts: The fast of the fourth month and the fast of the fifth and the fast of the seventh and the fast of the tenth shall be to the house of Judah seasons of joy and gladness and cheerful feasts. Therefore love truth and peace.
20 “Thus says the Lord of hosts: Peoples shall yet come, even the inhabitants of many cities. 21 The inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, ‘Let us go at once to entreat the favor of the Lord and to seek the Lord of hosts; I myself am going.’ 22 Many peoples and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem and to entreat the favor of the Lord. 23 Thus says the Lord of hosts: In those days ten men from the nations of every tongue shall take hold of the robe of a Jew, saying, ‘Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.’” – Zechariah 8:18-23 NLT
Chapter 7 began with a question about fasting. Now, Yahweh points to a future day when it will no longer be necessary to fast. Leviticus 16 records Yahweh’s command concerning fasting. ʿ
“And it shall be a statute to you forever that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict yourselves and shall do no work, either the native or the stranger who sojourns among you.” – Leviticus 16:29 ESV
The Hebrew word translated as “afflict” is ānâ and it carries the idea of humbling oneself, to be afflicted, or bowed down. It was commonly associated with fasting because fasting was intended as a sign of repentance and mourning over sins. The Book of Isaiah records Yahweh’s displeasure with the false fasting of the people of Israel.
“Is such the fast that I choose,
a day for a person to humble(ānâ) himself?
Is it to bow down his head like a reed,
and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?
Will you call this a fast,
and a day acceptable to the Lord?” – Isaiah 58:5 ESV
He accused His people of going through the motions of fasting without the requisite heart change that was required. The people couldn’t understand why their outward displays of self-denial were getting them nowhere with Yahweh.
“Why have we fasted, and you see it not?
Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?” – Isaiah 58:3 ESV
But Yahweh explained His disinterest and unwillingness to take their fasts seriously.
“Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,
and oppress all your workers.
Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight
and to hit with a wicked fist.
Fasting like yours this day
will not make your voice to be heard on high.” – Isaiah 58:3-4 ESV
Fasting was intended to display a repentant heart and a willingness to alter one’s behavior. It was an act of self-denial and public humiliation that demonstrated a recognition of one’s sin and a need for atonement.
But in this chapter, Yahweh describes a future in which fasting will be replaced by “seasons of joy and gladness and cheerful feasts” (Zechariah 8:19 ESV). The fasts associated with the fall of Jerusalem, the destruction of the Temple, and the exile of God’s people will no longer be necessary. Yahweh is pointing to a day when joy will replace mourning and celebrations commemorating His goodness will eliminate all memories of past sins and divine judgment.
The Temple, once completed, would fully restore the sacrificial system, not eliminate it. The need for atonement would continue to require the blood of bulls, goats, sheep, and rams. The immediate future of the people of Judah would require a fully functioning priesthood, a completed Temple, and the sacrifice of countless animals to serve as sin substitutes for the guilty. The Day of Atonement would still require fasting on the part of the people before they could be cleansed from sin.
The author of Hebrews explains the necessity of the sacrificial system but also identifies its shortcomings.
For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near. Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, since the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have any consciousness of sins? But in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. – Hebrews 10:1-4 ESV
So, when Yahweh speaks of “seasons of joy and gladness and cheerful feasts,” He is talking about a future day when full and permanent atonement will be attained for His people. This message from Yahweh includes His promise of the future restoration and spiritual transformation of His chosen people. It coincides with the message He delivered through the prophet Ezekiel.
“Therefore, give the people of Israel this message from the Sovereign Lord: I am bringing you back, but not because you deserve it. I am doing it to protect my holy name, on which you brought shame while you were scattered among the nations. I will show how holy my great name is—the name on which you brought shame among the nations. And when I reveal my holiness through you before their very eyes, says the Sovereign Lord, then the nations will know that I am the Lord. For I will gather you up from all the nations and bring you home again to your land.
“Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols. And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.” – Ezekiel 36:22-27 NLT
All of these promises will take place when Christ returns to set up His earthly Kingdom. Daniel was given a vision of the end times, including the period known as the Great Tribulation. During those days, God will bring judgment upon the earth and His people, both Jews and Christians, will suffer persecution at the hands of the Antichrist. But God will only allow this wicked world ruler to carry out his genocidal pogrom for three and a half years.
“He will defy the Most High and oppress the holy people of the Most High. He will try to change their sacred festivals and laws, and they will be placed under his control for a time, times, and half a time.
“But then the court will pass judgment, and all his power will be taken away and completely destroyed. Then the sovereignty, power, and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be given to the holy people of the Most High. His kingdom will last forever, and all rulers will serve and obey him.” – Daniel 7:25-27 NLT
This future kingdom will include believing Jews and Gentiles who will reign alongside Christ for 1,000 years.
“The manifestation of the kingdom will be attended by such a fulness of salvation that Judah will forget to commemorate the former mournful events and will only have occasion to rejoice in the benefits of grace bestowed by God.” – Merrill F. Unger, Zechariah
Yahweh wants Zechariah to know that the rebuilding of the Temple was just the beginning of His plans for the people of Judah. There is far more in store for His chosen people than they realize. They will accomplish their mission and complete the construction of God’s house. They will also rebuild the walls and hang the gates. The city will be repopulated and the nation will once again enjoy the blessings of Yahweh. But their greatest days lie in the distant future when God will redeem them fully and restore them to a right relationship with Himself that will last for eternity. The apostle Paul described this future day as a mystery.
I want you to understand this mystery, dear brothers and sisters, so that you will not feel proud about yourselves. Some of the people of Israel have hard hearts, but this will last only until the full number of Gentiles comes to Christ. And so all Israel will be saved. As the Scriptures say,
“The one who rescues will come from Jerusalem,
and he will turn Israel away from ungodliness.
And this is my covenant with them,
that I will take away their sins.” – Romans 11:25-27 NLT
As Zechariah listens to these amazing pronouncements from Yahweh, he can't help but consider the less-than-ideal circumstances surrounding him and the far-from-perfect spiritual state of his fellow Judahites. But God is promising Him a future free from godlessness and sin. Not only that, the formerly destroyed city of Jerusalem will become a light shining on a hill attracting people from all over the world. Countless individuals from distant nations will declare their intention to visit the glorious city of Jerusalem.
“Let us go at once to entreat the favor of the Lord and to seek the Lord of hosts; I myself am going.” – Zechariah 8:21 ESV
Three other prophets recorded this same scene, further certifying its validity and future certainty.
In the last days, the mountain of the Lord’s house
will be the highest of all—
the most important place on earth.
It will be raised above the other hills,
and people from all over the world will stream there to worship.
People from many nations will come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the house of Jacob’s God.
There he will teach us his ways,
and we will walk in his paths.”
For the Lord’s teaching will go out from Zion;
his word will go out from Jerusalem. - Isaiah 2:2-3 NLT
In the last days, the mountain of the Lord’s house
will be the highest of all—
the most important place on earth.
It will be raised above the other hills,
and people from all over the world will stream there to worship.
People from many nations will come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the house of Jacob’s God.
There he will teach us his ways,
and we will walk in his paths.”
For the Lord’s teaching will go out from Zion;
his word will go out from Jerusalem. – Micah 4:1-2 NLT
Long ago the Lord said to Israel:
“I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love.
With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself.
I will rebuild you, my virgin Israel.
You will again be happy
and dance merrily with your tambourines.
Again you will plant your vineyards on the mountains of Samaria
and eat from your own gardens there.
The day will come when watchmen will shout
from the hill country of Ephraim,
‘Come, let us go up to Jerusalem
to worship the Lord our God.’” – Jeremiah 31:3-6 NLT
Yahweh reiterates His future intentions for His chosen people to Zechariah, stating, “In those days ten men from the nations of every tongue shall take hold of the robe of a Jew, saying, ‘Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you’” (Zechariah 8:23 ESV). These promises concerning Judah’s future were meant to encourage Zechariah and motivate the people to carry out their work with enthusiasm and faith. They served a good and gracious God who loved them and had great plans for them.
But Yahweh didn’t want His people to live with their eyes focused on the future. They weren’t to live with their eye set on the preferred future God had in store for them. His promises of future redemption and restoration would take place long after they were gone so, in the meantime, they were to “love truth and peace” (Zechariah 8:19 ESV). In other words, they were to love what God loved. They were to live in keeping with His will, treating one another with love, dignity, respect, and honor. With all His future promises in mind, they were to dedicate themselves to living in a way that honored Him in the here and now.
“Speak the truth to one another; render in your gates judgments that are true and make for peace; do not devise evil in your hearts against one another, and love no false oath, for all these things I hate…” – Zechariah 8:16-17 ESV
The apostle Peter gave the same admonition to the believers who received his second epistle.
By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.
In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone.
The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. – 2 Peter 1:3-8 NLT
The people of Judah were to live with the end in mind, but they were never to lose sight of Yahweh’s call to live godly lives. God’s future faithfulness was meant to inspire present obedience in His covenant people. No matter how difficult the days ahead might be, they could rest in the promise of Yahweh’s unwavering love and long-term commitment to their well-being.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.