Zechariah 7:1-14--A Call for Justice and Mercy

Zechariah 7
English Standard Version

A Call for Justice and Mercy
7 In the fourth year of King Darius, the word of the LORD came to Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month, which is Chislev. 2 Now the people of Bethel had sent Sharezer and Regem-melech and their men to entreat the favor of the LORD, 3 saying to the priests of the house of the LORD of hosts and the prophets, “Should I weep and abstain in the fifth month, as I have done for so many years?”

4 Then the word of the LORD of hosts came to me: 5 “Say to all the people of the land and the priests, ‘When you fasted and mourned in the fifth month and in the seventh, for these seventy years, was it for me that you fasted? 6 And when you eat and when you drink, do you not eat for yourselves and drink for yourselves? 7 Were not these the words that the LORD proclaimed by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and prosperous, with her cities around her, and the South and the lowland were inhabited?’”

8 And the word of the LORD came to Zechariah, saying, 9 “Thus says the LORD of hosts, Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another, 10 do not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, or the poor, and let none of you devise evil against another in your heart.” 11 But they refused to pay attention and turned a stubborn shoulder and stopped their ears that they might not hear. 12 They made their hearts diamond-hard lest they should hear the law and the words that the LORD of hosts had sent by his Spirit through the former prophets. Therefore great anger came from the LORD of hosts. 13 “As I called, and they would not hear, so they called, and I would not hear,” says the LORD of hosts, 14 “and I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations that they had not known. Thus the land they left was desolate, so that no one went to and fro, and the pleasant land was made desolate.”

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Men come from Bethel to inquire of the LORD whether they should still observe the days of fasting that they have been observing while in Exile now that they have returned to the Land and the Temple is rebuilt.  One of the days of fasting (Yom Kipur, The Day of Atonement).  The LORD asks them why they were fasting?  Was it for Him or for themselves?  Certainly they believed the days of feasting were for themselves, and they weren't asking if they should give up on the feast days.  Why are they so quick to give up the solemn days that are meant to show us our need for the LORD and His daily provision?  While there is no definite "Yes" or "No" given, I believe an answer of "No" is implied and the Jewish people still celebrate both the days of fasting and the days of feasting.

The LORD will ultimately answer their question in the next passage we study (he will tell them their times of fasting will even be a time of joy and celebration), but He now reminds them that their Exile and the desolation they see around them is a result of their hard hearts and they need to solemnly focus on the spiritual restoration that is needed--not just the physical restoration.  The LORD will take care of both the people and the Land as we'll see next time.