Zechariah 3:1-10
1 And he shewed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satana standing at his right hand to resist him.
2 And the LORD said unto Satan, The LORD rebuke thee, O Satan; even the LORD that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?
3 Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel.
4 And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment.
5 And I said, Let them set a fair mitre upon his head. So they set a fair mitre upon his head, and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the LORD stood by.
6 And the angel of the LORD protested unto Joshua, saying,
7 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; If thou wilt walk in my ways, and if thou wilt keep my charge,b then thou shalt also judge my house, and shalt also keep my courts, and I will give thee places to walk among these that stand by.
8 Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, thou, and thy fellows that sit before thee: for they are men wondered at: for, behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH.
9 For behold the stone that I have laid before Joshua; upon one stone shall be seven eyes: behold, I will engrave the graving thereof, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.
10 In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, shall ye call every man his neighbour under the vine and under the fig tree.
Zechariah 3:1. Joshua the highpriest standing before the angel of the Lord, to make intercession for the restoration of Israel. This was a figure of Jesus, whose name he bore. And Satan, the adversary, at his right hand, ready to oppose the building of the temple, by stirring up the evil efforts of Sanballat and others.
Zechariah 3:2. Is not this a brand plucked out of the fire? This chosen minister had been marvellously preserved, and was now plucked as a brand from the fiery furnace of the Babylonian captivity. The hairs of a good man are all numbered. In 1763, a print of the venerable WESLEY appeared, preaching in the open air. On one side was a scroll, exhibiting the burning of the straw- thatched vicarage of Epworth, when this eminent minister, then an infant, was saved from the flames through a window at the gable-end of the house.
Zechariah 3:3. Joshua was clothed with filthy garments. The thread-worn garments of the captivity, and the defilement of sin. These are now changed for the hallowed costume of office, and the robes of righteousness.
Zechariah 3:7. If thou wilt walk in my ways. These words are usually repeated in the renewal of the covenant and promises of God to his people. Genesis 28.
Zechariah 3:8. I will bring forth my servant THE BRANCH. The Chaldaic reads, Messiah, as in Zechariah 6:12. Christ emanating from the bosom of the Father, and born of the virgin, is the Branch of David's root. Isaiah 2:4; Jeremiah 23:5.
Zechariah 3:9. Upon one stone shall be seven eyes. All men looked at the foundation stone of the temple, and all the eyes of angels and men shall be fixed on Christ, as the corner stone of his church. The sevenfold offices of the Holy Spirit are also the admiration of heaven and earth. Revelation 4:5.
REFLECTIONS.
We have a most consoling word of comfort to the highpriest to proceed with the work of the Lord, and equally so to encourage all good men in doing good in their day. It is proper here to remember the remark which St. Peter and St. Jude make upon these words of the angel to the adversary, who represented the enemies of the jews: “the Lord rebuke thee.” The apostles remark upon these words, that since the angels themselves do not pronounce the sentence of condemnation against such as are exalted in dignity, but refer them to the judgment of God; so it is never lawful to revile and speak evil of the higher powers, but that we ought always to speak of them with meekness and respect.