On That Day

6 On that day there shall be neither cold nor frost.  7 And there shall be continuous day (it is known to the LORD), not day and not night, for at evening time there shall be light. 8  On that day living waters shall flow out from Jerusalem, half of them to the eastern sea and half of them to the western sea; it shall continue in summer as in winter. Zech. 14:6-8

Our vision of what the Garden of Eden must have been like. The river of living waters, or eternal life, flows out from Jerusalem; the source never dries up as it flows in summer as well as winter.

A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. Gen. 2:10 

Jesus said to her, “Every one who drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst; the water that I shall give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:13, 14

And on the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing.” Ezek. 47:12

And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine upon it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb.  By its light shall the nations walk; and the kings of the earth shall bring their glory into it,  Rev. 21:23-24

Then he showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb  2 through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. Rev. 22:1-2

This is the blessing poured out on the Gospel Jerusalem. Repentance and the remission of sin are preached to the whole world by those who are of the Gospel Jerusalem.

But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. Gal. 4:26

. . . and many peoples shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. Is. 2:3

. . . and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. Luke 24:47

The Lord is King

And the LORD will become king over all the earth; on that day the LORD will be one and his name one. Zech. 14:9  [See Also:  God’s Name]

The King and His Kingdom are universal. He has united all under His authority. All who acknowledge Him can see the Kingdom; those who reject Him are blind, but are still under His authority; none are exempt. His authority shall be owned and submitted to. 

“The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever.” Rev. 11:15b

37 As he was now drawing near, at the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, 38 saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” 39 And some of the Pharisees in the multitude said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” 40 He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”Luke 19:37-40

By myself I have sworn, from my mouth has gone forth in righteousness a word that shall not return: ‘To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.’ Is. 45:23

. . . for it is written,  “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall give praise to God.” Rom. 14:11

. . . that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, Phil. 2:10

The Kingdom Age is universal, as salvation is offered to every people, nation, and tongue. However, as the parables of the Kingdom Age explain, the Kingdom is currently full of corruption. We wait for the cleansing day when the weeds, unclean fish, foul birds, etc., will be removed.

The Plain

10 The whole land shall be turned into a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem. But Jerusalem shall remain aloft upon its site from the Gate of Benjamin to the place of the former gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the king’s wine presses.  11 And it shall be inhabited, for there shall be no more curse; Jerusalem shall dwell in security. Zech. 14:10-11

The plain is described literally with the names of known gates and towers in Zechariah’s day. The size of this plain is considerably smaller and thus unable to contain the dimensions of the New Jerusalem in the book of The  Revelation. The temple of Ezekiel, which is huge, seems out of scale to the New Jerusalem. If Ezekiel and The Revelation are about the same day of the Lord, then their highly symbolic imagery must “reduce” to this plain.

However, if we continue in the symbolic view, the plain is the way the congregation goes. The Mount of Olives, i.e., Jewish polity, was no longer in the way. The Roman Empire had built roads all over the known world.

Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. Is. 40:4

And I will lead the blind in a way that they know not, in paths that they have not known I will guide them. I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I will do, and I will not forsake them. Is. 42:16

Nothing stands in the way of the congregation of the Lord for long. The missionaries go out and conquer in the name of the Lord. Bringing the peoples to the Jerusalem above.

The Gates and Tower

The gates being named is odd. Why just these two gates? Why only one Tower? Names have meant things all through Zechariah, why would he stop now?

Benjamin – son of my right hand.

Corner – The Hebrew word means face, before, in the presence.

Hananel – Hananel means God is gracious

These gates and tower are mentioned as a weak spot in Jerusalem’s ancient walls.

And Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash, son of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh, and came to Jerusalem, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem for four hundred cubits, from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate. 2Kings 14:13

And Joash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, son of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh, and brought him to Jerusalem, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem for four hundred cubits, from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate. 2Chr. 25:23

“Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when the city shall be rebuilt for the LORD from the tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate. Jer. 31:38

The sentence we get from the string of names is, The son of my right hand is in the presence by God’s graciousness. This is how the favored sons of God come to the presence of God. Through His grace.

For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God — Eph. 2:8

The Plague

  And this shall be the plague with which the LORD will smite all the peoples that wage war against Jerusalem: their flesh shall rot while they are still on their feet, their eyes shall rot in their sockets, and their tongues shall rot in their mouths.  13 And on that day a great panic from the LORD shall fall on them, so that each will lay hold on the hand of his fellow, and the hand of the one will be raised against the hand of the other;  14 even Judah will fight against Jerusalem. And the wealth of all the nations round about shall be collected, gold, silver, and garments in great abundance.  15 And a plague like this plague shall fall on the horses, the mules, the camels, the asses, and whatever beasts may be in those camps. Zech. 14:12

The word plague could translate to slaughter, and slaughter makes a whole lot more sense. A contagion would not likely affect both people and different species of animals. Most diseases are host-specific and only cross-species under specific circumstances.

All this seems to be happening at the same time that Jerusalem is being made a paradise. The warring nations have horses, mules, camels, and donkeys. This is not a modern army. If this is modern war, why these animals? The last time the city of Jerusalem was taken by an army with animals was by British General Allenby in WWI. Since then, it has been jeeps and tanks, missiles and grenades.

The Ezekiel passages indicate the plague, or slaughter, is self-inflicted. The Revelation presents the nation as consumed by fire. The Gog passages are not parallel to this.

. . . so that each will lay hold on the hand of his fellow, I will summon every kind of terror against Gog, says the Lord GOD; every man’s sword will be against his brother. Ezek. 38:21 

 You shall fall upon the mountains of Israel, you and all your hordes and the peoples that are with you; I will give you to birds of prey of every sort and to the wild beasts to be devoured. You shall fall in the open field; for I have spoken, says the Lord GOD. Ezek. 39:4-5 

. . . and will come out to deceive the nations which are at the four corners of the earth, that is, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea.  And they marched up over the broad earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city; but fire came down from heaven and consumed them, Rev. 20:8-9

The RSV has chosen that Judah is against Jerusalem; other translations translate that Judah is with Jerusalem. The Hebrew is ambiguous as to which side Judah is on. It woodenly says, And also Judah shall fight forever in/at/with Jerusalem. With no period, the “and” would put Judah with the Gentile nations being despoiled by the city.

Just Rewards

Those nations that trouble God’s people always find themselves consumed by their own selfish, evil ways, as God is separating the sheep from the goats. We believe this is the real parallel passage. It is the judgment of all who would not submit to Messiah.

 “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung round his neck and he were thrown into the sea. 43 And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. 45 And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell. 47 And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell, 48 where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched. 49 For every one will be salted with fire. 50 Salt is good; but if the salt has lost its saltness, how will you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.” Mark 9:42-50

The Feast of Booths/Tabernacles/Sukkot

 Then every one that survives of all the nations that have come against Jerusalem shall go up year after year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of booths.  17 And if any of the families of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, there will be no rain upon them.  18 And if the family of Egypt do not go up and present themselves, then upon them shall come the plague with which the LORD afflicts the nations that do not go up to keep the feast of booths.  19 This shall be the punishment to Egypt and the punishment to all the nations that do not go up to keep the feast of booths. Zech. 14:16 

The Feast of Tabernacles required the worshippers to rejoice [Lev. 23:40].

But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, Heb. 10:12

For if we sin deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, Heb. 10:26 

And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. Rev. 21:22 

Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready Rev. 19:6, 7  See Also: The Cycle of Levitical Feasts

Everyone who survives. Not those already in the Gospel Jerusalem. It is the people of the nations who came against Jerusalem who are indicated here. All the survivors must tabernacle with God. If they refuse to keep Sukkot, their nations will not receive rain. The Feast of Sukkot is primarily a Harvest/Thanksgiving Feast. Every day in the Believer’s life is a day of thanksgiving; every day we worship our Lord of hosts with a peculiar solemnity. Our Kingdom is spiritual, our food is spiritual, our sacrifice is spiritual. All who believe tabernacle or live with God all the time. The life of a Believer is a constant Feast of Tabernacles. We live in His tent. We walk on the way. We read His precious Word. We go to Messiah, our King, with our spiritual offering, for we are the Temple of the Holy Spirit.

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God? You are not your own; 1Cor. 6:19

For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2Cor. 5:1 

4   Come to him, to that living stone, rejected by men but in God’s sight chosen and precious; 5 and like living stones be yourselves built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 1 Pet 2:4-5

Interestingly, Egypt is singled out. Egypt is the first nation that came against God’s people. It is Egypt that enslaved them and killed the firstborn. It is Egypt that would not let God’s people go. It is Egypt that hospitably welcomed them as friends, then inhospitably turned on them and enslaved them. So they stand in the Bible for all who are inhospitable towards God’s people.

FYI: Literal physical Egypt hates rain. It brings flooding and destruction. They want the rain to fall elsewhere in Africa and cause the Nile to rise.

All are Sacred

20   And on that day there shall be inscribed on the bells of the horses,  “Holy to the LORD.” And the pots in the house of the LORD shall be as the bowls before the altar;  21 and every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be sacred to the LORD of hosts, so that all who sacrifice may come and take of them and boil the flesh of the sacrifice in them. And there shall no longer be a trader in the house of the LORD of hosts on that day. Zech. 14:20-21

War horses never have bells; however, festival horses do. These are horses that announce their riders. Warhorses will no longer be used against God’s people, but for them. The Congregation rode out from Jerusalem to bring the joyful Gospel. Not to conquer and destroy.

All the utensils in our spiritual temple must be spiritual as well. All their duties must be spiritual. All Believers are living temples and spiritual priests. Believers and everything a believer does is dedicated to the honour of God. All are employed in His service. The congregation is sacred.

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, that you may declare the wonderful deeds of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 1Pet. 2:9 

The trader

Salvation is free. There is no buying or selling in the spiritual temple. The traders in the temple were money changers; sellers of goats, sheep, and cattle for the sacrifices. This trading was not always honest and upright. That is why Messiah chased them out.

He said to them,  “It is written,  ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer’; but you make it a den of robbers.” Matt. 21:13 

And he taught, and said to them,  “Is it not written,  ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations? But you have made it a den of robbers.”  Mark 11:17 

saying to them,  “It is written,  ‘My house shall be a house of prayer’; but you have made it a den of robbers.” Luke 19:46

Those who teach that this is a literal return to the temple with its cult sacrificial code are misled. The Kingdom is a Spiritual Kingdom.

12 But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, 13 then to wait until his enemies should be made a stool for his feet. 14 For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are sanctified. Heb. 10:12-14