Background+of+Zechariah

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Zechariah is one of the twelve minor prophet books within the Bible and has been called “the most messianic, as well as the most truly apocalyptic and eschatological of all the writings of the Old Testament.”[|[i]] Because of the Messianic emphasis, this book is frequently cited by New Testament writers. There are about 41 quotations or allusions to the book of Zechariah found within the New Testament.[|[ii]] The theological theme of this minor prophet book is “God remembers… the past, the present, and the future,” as He provides assurance for perseverance.[|[iii]] Zechariah was a great prophet in the days of the restoration from Babylonian captivity. Therefore, the background of Zechariah will play an influential role in setting the stage for the rest of the book as it is the key to an accurate interpretation.

=**Authorship **= 

This minor prophet book is named after its author, the postexilic prophet Zechariah. The name Zechariah means, “Yahweh (The Lord) remembers.”[|[iv]] He was a Levite born in Babylon of a priestly family, as he was the son of Berekiah and the grandson of Iddo the priest.[|[v]] Similar to Jeremiah and Ezekiel before him, Zechariah was both a prophet and a priest.[|[vi]] According to Jewish tradition, he was a member of the Great Synagogue, which was a council of 120 members who gathered and preserved the sacred writings and traditions of the Jews after the exile.[|[vii]] Zechariah lived and prophesied during the same time period as Haggai the prophet, Zerubbabel the governor, and Joshua the high priest. After the exile, Zechariah was in the first group of about 50,000 Israelites (who returned to Jerusalem from Babylon) under the leadership of Zerubbabel and Joshua.[|[viii]] According to Zechariah 2:4, he was probably a relatively young man when he commenced his prophetic ministry to the nation of Israel.

=**Date **=

As a contemporary of the prophet Haggai, Zechariah began his ministry in Jerusalem about two months after him. Zechariah first started prophesying in 520 B.C., which was the second year in the reign of King Darius of Persia.[|[ix]] The actual length of Zechariah’s ministry is uncertain; however, the last dated prophecy occurred approximately two years after the first one, aligning them in time with Haggai’s prophecy.[|[x]] Due to the differences in writing style and references to other countries, particularly Greece, the second half of the book (chapters 9-14) is thought to have taken place during a later time in Zechariah’s ministry. Therefore, this indicates a date of 480-470 B.C. during the reign of King Xerxes of Persia.[|[xi]] Because of these major differences between the first half (chapters 1-8) and second half (chapters 9-14) of Zechariah, the unity of the book has been questioned. Conservative scholars have proven, however, that the entire book of Zechariah was written by the prophet himself. They attest that “the differences in subject matter, literary style, and probably a later period in Zechariah’s life account for the stylistic differences found in chapters 9-14.”[|[xii]] The historical setting of Zechariah coincides with that of Haggai, who prophesied at a similar time. When Jerusalem fell to Babylon in 586 B.C., it signified the end of the kingdom of Judah. The majority of Jerusalem’s inhabitants were deported to Babylon for about seventy years. After the Persian Empire defeated the Babylonians in 539 B.C., the Persian ruler, Cyrus the Great, allowed the Jews to return to Jerusalem in order that they could rebuild their temple.[|[xiii]] Only a small amount of about 50,000 Jews (which included Haggai and Zechariah) actually returned under the civil leadership of Zerubbabel and the spiritual leadership of Joshua. Upon their return, the Israelites reinstituted Levitical sacrifices on a rebuilt altar of burnt offering, and during the second year, they began to lay the foundation for the temple.[|[xiv]] However, due to external oppression and internal depression, the rebuilding of the temple was abandoned. About sixteen years later, God commissioned the prophets Haggai and Zechariah to encourage the people to press on and continue the work that God had planned for them.[|[xv]]

=**Purpose **=

Zechariah’s prophetic ministry originated when God called him to speak to the people of Israel in order to motivate them to be spiritually revived and to once again initiate the rebuilding of the temple.[|[xvi]] The prophet accomplished this by revealing to them God’s plans for Israel’s future. Zechariah encouraged the people to construct God’s temple with the promise that one day the Messiah would come to dwell within it. In reality, the Israelites were not only building the temple for their present time, but more importantly for the future hope of the coming Messiah.[|[xvii]] Throughout his ministry, Zechariah reminded the people that the Lord has not forgotten His covenant promises to Israel, but would graciously restore and bless them. With this exhortation, the people completed the temple reconstruction in 516 B.C., only about four years after the prophecy was given.[|[xviii]] Interestingly enough, Zechariah’s prophesy does not only relate to his direct audience, the Israelites; moreover, it applies to those in the future as he speaks of when the Messiah will return to His temple and establish His earthly kingdom. Zechariah ensured that the Israelites understood that the Messiah possessed both an immediate and long-term commitment to His chosen people.[|[xix]] In the doxological-historical aspect of Zechariah’s message, he emphasized the importance of identifying how the current building of the temple contributed to God’s plan. The temple needed to exist so that when the Messiah returns in the future, He can come in and make the declaration that He is the King. God is present through the continually flowing oil within the temple, empowering Israel to be the light to the nations. This is why Israel was required to start the rebuilding of the temple. The Messiah is the ultimate embodiment of Israel and the full embodiment of the presence of God as He is both King and Priest. Zechariah encouraged the Israelites to be motivated by future hope – they needed to stop looking at the past, and instead look forward to their redeemer. The gracious and comforting words of Zechariah 1:13 were given to the prophet by the Lord Almighty to encourage both the Jewish exiles during the time of Zechariah, as well as to the remnant of God’s chosen people in that future day.[|[xx]]

[|[i]] J. F. Walvoord et al., //The Bible Knowledge Commentary: Old Testament// (Victor Books, 1985), http://books.google.com/books?id=tSJWE-sR5HkC. [|[ii]] Ibid. [|[iii]] Ibid. [|[iv]] C. L. Feinberg, //The minor prophets// (Moody Press, 1976), http://books.google.com/books?id=dWiWAAAACAAJ. [|[v]] J. F. Walvoord et al., //The Bible Knowledge Commentary: Old Testament//. [|[vi]] C. L. Feinberg, //The minor prophets//. [|[vii]] Ibid. [|[viii]]<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> J. F. Walvoord et al., //The Bible Knowledge Commentary: Old Testament//. [|[ix]]<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> Ibid. [|[x]]<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> J. MacArthur, with MacArthur, //The MacArthur Bible Commentary// (Thomas Nelson Inc, 2005), http://books.google.com/books?id=polW0PX25nkC. [|[xi]]<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> Ibid. [|[xii]]<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> J. F. Walvoord et al., //The Bible Knowledge Commentary: Old Testament//. [|[xiii]]<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> Ibid. [|[xiv]]<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> Ibid. [|[xv]]<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> Ibid. [|[xvi]]<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> Ibid. [|[xvii]]<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> J. MacArthur, //The MacArthur Bible Commentary//. [|[xviii]]<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> Ibid. [|[xix]]<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> Ibid. [|[xx]]<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> Ibid.

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