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Zechariah 3 (ESV)

1 Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. 2 And the Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, O Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this a brand plucked from the fire?” 3 Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clothed with filthy garments. 4 And the angel said to those who were standing before him, “Remove the filthy garments from him.” And to him he said, “Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments.” 5 And I said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the Lord was standing by.

⁶ And the angel of the Lord solemnly assured Joshua, ⁷ “Thus says the Lord of hosts: If you will walk in my ways and keep my charge, then you shall rule my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you the right of access among those who are standing here.

⁸ Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, you and your friends who sit before you, for they are men who are a sign: behold, I will bring my servant the Branch. ⁹ For behold, on the stone that I have set before Joshua, on a single stone with seven eyes, I will engrave its inscription, declares the Lord of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of this land in a single day. ¹⁰ In that day, declares the Lord of hosts, every one of you will invite his neighbor to come under his vine and under his fig tree.”

 

REFLECTION:

• In this vision of Joshuathe high priest and Satan, God revealed that He would accomplish the work of removing sin and cleansing among the people. Joshua, the high priest (cf. Hag 1:1), was the representative of the chosen people, and Satan was taking a hostile position with Joshua, accusing him of being unclean and unable to assume his high priesthood. God declares here: He will give Joshua pure vestments and a clean turban to replace his filthy garments. Through this cleansing work of God, the position and function of Joshua (representing the chosen people) were renewed.
• Promise of the Branch (8-9) – Joshua and his companions typify God’s promised servant, the Branch of David. God will set up a servant in the presence of the chosen people (Isaiah 53:2), who will appear like a branch nurtured by seven fountains of living waters (seven eyes can be interpreted as seven fountains); it will come out in a single day.
• The promise of the Branch was fulfilled in Jesus Christ hundreds of years later. God said to take away the iniquity of the land in a single day (9). “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18). We cannot take away our sins by our own efforts. We can only allow God to take away all our sins through Christ.
• God promises that when Christ reigns, every Christian will have his own peaceful home (cf. Micah 4:4). Sitting under vines and fig trees is a symbol of peace and prosperity (10).

 

PRAYER:

Dear God! Sometimes when I am trapped in sin and weakness, Satan will accuse me and make me feel ashamed and unworthy of being a child of God. Thank you, Lord Jesus, my High Priest, for cleansing me from sin, for being sympathetic to my weakness, and for giving me a life of peace and joy.

 

HYMN:

Broken Vessels – youtu.be/61l1zx9Y_MQ