They Fought the Lord and the Lord Won
- The second oracle sets forth Zechariah’s vision of the day of the Lord, a global apocalyptic battle in which all the nations fight Judah. Guess who wins.
- God will strengthen Jerusalem so that anyone who tries to harm her will be sorry.
- Even the wimpiest Jerusalemite will be as strong as David.
- Once the enemies are taken care of, God will get down to the business of purging Jerusalem of its idols and false prophets.
- The ones that were left after the city’s destruction will become purified like precious metals.
- Chapter 14 describes another “Day of the Lord” when Jerusalem will be plundered and the women raped, but God will take vengeance on all the attackers.
- The mountains will split, the sun won’t set, and fresh water will flow through the city.
- Most of the land will flatten out, but Jerusalem will stay high up on its hill.
- Does the way that Yahweh destroys his enemies sound familiar? “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.” (NRSV 14:12)
- And the heathens who are left? They’ll all make pilgrimages to Jerusalem from Egypt and elsewhere to worship God if they know what’s good for them.
- And that’s what makes Zechariah the greatest minor prophet of them all--he totally called the ending to Raiders of the Lost Ark.