ZECHARIAH: GOD’S PRESENT DIRECTIVES AND FUTURE HOPE

IX: God’s Final Judgment Of The Defiled Gentile Nations

(Zechariah 6:1-8)

I. Introduction

A. Zechariah along with Haggai called the returning Hebrews back to rebuilding the temple, and he gave God’s directives and future hope. (Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978, “Introduction to the Book of Zechariah,” p. 1310)

B. The eighth vision in Zechariah 6:1-8 of a set of eight visions predicts God’s final judgment of the defiled Gentile nations before the Millennial Kingdom. We view it for our insight and application:

II. God’s Final Judgment Of The Defiled Gentile Nations, Zechariah 6:1-8.

A. This last vision of the eight visions given together by God to Zechariah is explained in light of the first vision: both visions deal with horses or horsemen that represent angelic servants of God, Zechariah 1:7-10 with 6:1.

B. However, where the first vision presents the angels finding the Gentile nations at ease “far removed from the trouble and ferment in which they were prophesied to be thrown, before the Lord would restore His chosen people to millennial blessing,” the last vision has the horses connected to war chariots, indicating God’s actual end-time, war-like judgments of the Gentiles, Zechariah 6:1; Merrill F. Unger, Zechariah, 1974, p. 100.

C. This eighth vision shows four chariots coming out from between two mountains of bronze (Zechariah 6:1), and the symbolism signals God’s coming worldwide judgment of the nations as carried out by angelic beings:

1. The number four represents the four corners of the earth (cf. Isaiah 11:12) to focus on the whole world.

2. The chariots come out from between two mountains of bronze, and since bronze typifies divine judgment in Scripture (cf. Numbers 21:9), the chariots are moving out from the two mountains to judge the nations.

3. The two mountains are Zion and the Mount of Olives, for the Kidron Valley between them, the Valley of “Jehoshaphat,” with the word “Jehoshaphat” symbolically meaning “Yahweh judges,” is repeatedly shown in prophecy to be “the theatre of divine judgment (Zech. 14:4; Joel 3:2 [4:2]) . . . Judgment upon the nations oppressing Israel will proceed from the heart and capital of the Jewish homeland,” Ibid., p. 101.

D. The four sets of horses, each set joined to a chariot, are colored in order as red, black, white and dappled (Zech. 6:2-3), roughly corresponding to the four horses of Revelation 6:1-8: the red typify war and bloodshed, the black famine and death, the white victory and triumph and the dappled roughly align with the pale horse of Revelation 6:8 to refer to death “by more direct divine plagues and judgments,” Ibid., p. 102-103.

E. The angel told Zechariah that these chariots represent spirit beings that go forth from before the Lord of all the earth, the Lord Who will one day reign over the whole world in the Millennial Kingdom, obviously to administer judgment as signified in the use of chariots on a destructive, war-like mission, Zechariah 6:4-5.

F. Chariots did not travel west from Israel as that was the Mediterranean Sea, nor did they go east into the desert, so the angel mentions that the chariots leave Israel going only in the northerly and southerly directions, and they apparently fan out from there to administer God’s judgments worldwide, Zech. 6:6-7; Ibid., p. 105-106.

G. Though the black and white horses are stated as going north and the dappled horses south, with no reference made to the direction the red horses take (Zechariah 6:6), the “scope is worldwide and all the horsed chariots go out in every direction after the black and the white horses have executed judgment in the north country and the dappled” to the south, Ibid., p. 106.

H. In Zechariah 6:7, all the horses “sought to go to walk to and fro in the earth,” and since the word “seek” renders the Hebrew verb yebhaqeshu, meaning “to strive after, be zealous,” the horses were “restively eager to go forth in every direction to unloose judgment upon the earth preparatory to the establishment of Messiah as King-Priest (Zechariah 6:9-15) over His universal kingdom,” Ibid.

I. The angel speaking with Zechariah then cried out, saying, “Behold they that go toward the north country have quieted my spirit in the north country,” Zechariah 6:8; Ibid., p. 107. The north was the direction one in Israel went to go to Babylon where the woman in the ephah had been sent in the last vision, Zechariah 5:10-11. So, God’s judgment on Babylon that had so badly oppressed His people and influenced them to adopt materialistic idolatry that had delayed their rebuilding His temple, which idolatry would fuel to the world apostate Babylon the Great in the end-time, would be fully punished to the appeasing of God’s great wrath, Ibid., p. 107-108.

Lesson: God will surely judge the world and apostate Babylon the Great before He sets up the Millennial Kingdom.

Application: Due to the certainty of God’s future judgment of the nations and of the Babylon the Great apostacy, may we live for Christ and not this world, and may we stand fast for Bible truth and against errant religious views.