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Zechariah, Prophet of God's remembrance, part 27

Zechariah compares Judah to a bow in God’s hand, while Ephraim is God’s arrow. Judah’s calling, since the day of Jacob’s blessing in Genesis 49:10, was to hold the Dominion Mandate and provide the kings for the house of Israel, culminating in Christ Himself. The calling of Ephraim, Joseph’s son, was to carry the Fruitfulness Mandate. Ephraim means “doubly fruitful,” and it was to be through this tribe that the sons of God were to come.

Putting these two concepts together, we see that Christ the King of Judah was to launch (as arrows) the sons of God at the second coming of Christ, this time as a manifestation of Joseph. The two comings of Christ were necessary to reunite the portions of the birthright that Jacob had divided among his sons in Genesis 49.

More prophetic metaphors are used to describe Judah in Zechariah 10:4,

⁴ From them [Judah] will come the cornerstone [pinna], from them the tent peg [yawthade], from them the bow of battle, from them every ruler, all of them together.

The Chief Cornerstone

The first metaphor in this verse is “the cornerstone.” It is a metaphor denoting the main stone that anchors a large building. It is a Hebrew metaphor for a chief, or leader, one who carries the weight of responsibility. Isaiah 28:16 prophesies this about Christ:

¹⁶ Therefore thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone, a costly cornerstone [pinna] for the foundation, firmly placed. He who believes in it will not be disturbed.”

This verse is quoted in Romans 9:33 in reference to Christ Himself. Those who believe in Christ will be as stable and unmovable as the foundation stone itself. Again we read in 1 Peter 2:6-8,

⁶ For this is contained in Scripture, “Behold, I lay in Zion a choice stone, a precious corner stone, and he who believes in Him will not be disappointed.” ⁷ This precious value, then, is for you who believe; but [on the other hand] for those who disbelieve, “The stone which the builders rejected, this became the very corner stone” [Psalm 118:22], ⁸ and “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offence”; for they stumble because they are disobedient to the word, and to this doom they were also appointed.

The “stone” in question is a corner stone for believers, even though “the builders” rejected it, having determined it to be faulty. This, of course, was the main dispute of the New Testament, where the chief priest condemned Jesus on the charge of blasphemy for claiming to be the Messiah—a claim which they presumed ahead of time to be false.

Hence, to those rejecting Christ, the same stone became “a stone of stumbling and a rock of offence, quoting Isaiah 8:14, 15,

¹⁴ Then He [the Lord of hosts] shall become a sanctuary, but to both the houses of Israel, a stone to strike [trip over] and a rock to stumble over, and a snare and a trap for the inhabitants of Jerusalem. ¹⁵ Many will stumble over them; then they will fall and be broken; they will even be snared and caught.

Paul affirms this view in Romans 9:32, saying, “they stumbled over the stumbling stone.” Zechariah was no doubt familiar with the prophecies of Psalm 118:22, Isaiah 8:14, and Isaiah 28:16. He provides no detail other than that this corner stone would come from Judah.

The Tent Peg

Zechariah also says that Judah was like a tent peg, which keeps a tent upright and prevents it from blowing away in the wind. This is probably a reference to the story of Eliakim, who replaced Shebna as the keeper of David’s treasury. Isaiah 22:22, 23 says of him,

²² Then I will set the key of the house of David on his shoulder; when he opens, no one will shut, when he shuts, no one will open. ²³ I will drive him like a peg [yawthade] in a firm place, and he will become a throne of glory to his father’s house.

Eliakim was a prophetic type of Christ, according to the message to the church in Philadelphia. Revelation 3:7 says,

⁷ And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: “He who is holy, who is true, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, and will shut and no one opens, say this:”

In this case there is a contrast between Shebna and Eliakim. Shebna was David’s treasurer until he was found to be unworthy, at which time he was replaced by a faithful treasurer, Eliakim. Revelation 3:9 suggests that Shebna was a prophetic type of “the synagogue of Satan.”

Overall, the tent peg of Judah is a two-part prophecy, one negative and the other positive. This shows a split in the house of Judah. The man Judah betrayed Joseph by suggesting that they sell him to slave traders (Genesis 37:26, 27). Later, Judah was the one who repented (Genesis 44:16-34), at which time Joseph revealed himself to his brethren.

In the New Testament, Judas Iscariot, whose name is the Greek form of Judah, betrayed Jesus, but the other Judas (or Jude) was a faithful disciple who wrote the book in the New Testament. These biblical examples show the two conflicts within the house of Judah itself and is also the basis of Paul’s teaching in Romans 2:28, 29. There the apostle tells us who a “Jew” is and who is not.

Zechariah’s prophecy indicates that the house of Judah would bring forth the faithful tent peg, a peg that could be counted upon to hold firm in the face of stress or disturbances. The background, of course, shows a contrast between those who are worthy and those who are not.

The Bow and Ruler

Zechariah 10:4 repeats the earlier comparison that pictures Judah as a bow in God’s hands. Likewise, he repeats the fact that “the ruler” was to come from Judah as per Genesis 49:10. Zechariah 10:5 continues,

⁵ They will be as mighty men, treading down the enemy in the mire of the streets in battle, and they will fight, for the Lord will be with them, and the riders on horses will be put to shame.

The horsemen in this case are the cavalry of the enemy. Horses themselves are a powerful symbol of fleshly strength in battle. The law forbade the kings of Judah from accumulating horses (Deuteronomy 17:16), because they were supposed to depend upon God to defend them. Having a strong physical defense was a sign of their lack of faith. Isaiah 30:2 explains that buying horses from Egypt would bring the Israelites back into the bondage of Egypt. In other words, building a strong military would not secure freedom but would ensure bondage.

So Isaiah 31:1, 3 says,

¹ Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses, and trust in chariots because they are many and in horsemen because they are very strong, but they do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek the Lord… ³ Now the Egyptians are men and not God, and their horses are flesh and not spirit…

Isaiah’s revelation sets forth a New Covenant perspective. When the nation rejects God and falls into sin, God brings judgment by raising up their enemies against them. The nation then reacts in fear by strengthening its military defense instead of repenting. In this way, they depend upon “flesh and not spirit.” In other words, they try to protect themselves against God’s judgment.

The true house of Judah, those who support King Jesus, are those who have faith and, as Paul says, have heart circumcision (Romans 2:29), which defines them as Jews (i.e., praisers). These are the ones Zechariah calls “mighty men.”

Zechariah 10:6 concludes,

⁶ I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will bring them back, because I have had compassion on them; and they will be as though I had not rejected them, for I am the Lord their God and I will answer them.

The salvation of Judah and Joseph (i.e., Israel) is based on God’s New Covenant vow, by which He causes them to repent by faith in Christ. This means that in the time of the first resurrection, this salvation is to benefit only those who are true Judahites and true Israelites, as God defines these terms. The more extensive salvation will come later and will ultimately include all of humanity. No one is saved apart from faith in Christ. Those who fail to have faith in Jesus Christ will have to wait for a later occasion in the age to come, so that they may have the opportunity to repent, reverse course, hear the word, and respond by faith.