Zechariah 1
Malachi 1 begins with a declaration of God’s love for the people of Israel, and at the same time it points out the way in which the people failed to respond to that love. This chapter can be divided into three main parts. First, it reminds us that God chose Jacob and emphasizes God’s unchanging love (verses 1–5). Second, it rebukes the priests and the people for offering sacrifices that are merely formal and do not truly fear God (verses 6–14). Within this structure, God tells them that His name must be honored among all nations.
1verseIn the eighth month, in the second year of Darius, the LORD’s word came to the prophet Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, saying,
2verse“The LORD was very displeased with your fathers.
3verseTherefore tell them, the LORD of Armies says: ‘Return to me,’ says the LORD of Armies, ‘and I will return to you,’ says the LORD of Armies.
4verseDon’t you be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets proclaimed, saying: The LORD of Armies says, ‘Return now from your evil ways and from your evil doings;’ but they didn’t hear nor listen to me, says the LORD.
5verseYour fathers, where are they? And the prophets, do they live forever?
6verseBut my words and my decrees, which I commanded my servants the prophets, didn’t they overtake your fathers? “Then they repented and said, ‘Just as the LORD of Armies determined to do to us, according to our ways and according to our practices, so he has dealt with us.’”
7verseOn the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, which is the month Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the LORD’s word came to the prophet Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, saying,
8verse“I had a vision in the night, and behold, a man riding on a red horse, and he stood among the myrtle trees that were in a ravine; and behind him there were red, brown, and white horses.
9verseThen I asked, ‘My lord, what are these?’” The angel who talked with me said to me, “I will show you what these are.”
10verseThe man who stood among the myrtle trees answered, “They are the ones the LORD has sent to go back and forth through the earth.”
11verseThey reported to the LORD’s angel who stood among the myrtle trees, and said, “We have walked back and forth through the earth, and behold, all the earth is at rest and in peace.”
12verseThen the LORD’s angel replied, “O LORD of Armies, how long will you not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which you have had indignation these seventy years?”
13verseThe LORD answered the angel who talked with me with kind and comforting words.
14verseSo the angel who talked with me said to me, “Proclaim, saying, ‘The LORD of Armies says: “I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy.
15verseI am very angry with the nations that are at ease; for I was but a little displeased, but they added to the calamity.”
16verseTherefore the LORD says: “I have returned to Jerusalem with mercy. My house shall be built in it,” says the LORD of Armies, “and a line shall be stretched out over Jerusalem.”’
17verse“Proclaim further, saying, ‘The LORD of Armies says: “My cities will again overflow with prosperity, and the LORD will again comfort Zion, and will again choose Jerusalem.”’”
18verseI lifted up my eyes and saw, and behold, four horns.
19verseI asked the angel who talked with me, “What are these?” He answered me, “These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”
20verseThe LORD showed me four craftsmen.
21verseThen I asked, “What are these coming to do?” He said, “These are the horns which scattered Judah, so that no man lifted up his head; but these have come to terrify them, to cast down the horns of the nations that lifted up their horn against the land of Judah to scatter it.”
God’s Love and Human Indifference
Malachi 1 opens with a declaration of God’s love. In response to “I have loved you,” Israel asks, “How have You loved us?” God gives the example of His choosing Jacob and hating Esau, reminding them of the grace and favor of election. However, the people fail to understand that love and do not respond to their own lives and worship with sincerity. The tension between human indifference and God’s ongoing love runs throughout the passage.
Formal Worship and God’s Rebuke
In the latter part, God the worship offered by the priests and the people rebukes it as something that does not come from the heart and is merely formal. He strictly points out that they do not give Him their sincere devotion, such as offering sacrifices with blemishes and giving sick animals. God says that He will not receive worship that has lost its essence, nor sacrifices lacking reverence. This scene makes you reflect again on the true meaning of worship and godliness.
Meditation Points
- How sensitively am I responding to God’s love?
- Does the worship and life I offer contain genuineness, or does it remain only as habit?
- Can I look back today at my own way and attitude with a heart that fears God?
Try Applying It to Yourself
- Check whether what you give to God—your time, effort, and resources—is not only staying at the level of form.
- Think about how God’s covenant love is affecting your everyday life, and make a decision to live a life of reverence with sincerity throughout today.
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