Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Zechariah+003

Zechariah 3 (ESV)

1 Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. 2 And the Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, O Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this a brand plucked from the fire?” 3 Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clothed with filthy garments. 4 And the angel said to those who were standing before him, “Remove the filthy garments from him.” And to him he said, “Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments.” 5 And I said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the Lord was standing by.

⁶ And the angel of the Lord solemnly assured Joshua, ⁷ “Thus says the Lord of hosts: If you will walk in my ways and keep my charge, then you shall rule my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you the right of access among those who are standing here.

⁸ Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, you and your friends who sit before you, for they are men who are a sign: behold, I will bring my servant the Branch. ⁹ For behold, on the stone that I have set before Joshua, on a single stone with seven eyes, I will engrave its inscription, declares the Lord of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of this land in a single day. ¹⁰ In that day, declares the Lord of hosts, every one of you will invite his neighbor to come under his vine and under his fig tree.”

REFLECTION:

• In this vision of Joshua the high priest and Satan, God revealed that He would accomplish the work of removing sin and cleansing among the people. Joshua, the high priest (cf. Hag 1:1), was the representative of the chosen people, and Satan was taking a hostile position with Joshua, accusing him of being unclean and unable to assume his high priesthood. God declares here: He will give Joshua pure vestments and a clean turban to replace his filthy garments. Through this cleansing work of God, the position and function of Joshua (representing the chosen people) were renewed.
• Promise of the Branch (8-9) – Joshua and his companions typify God’s promised servant, the Branch of David. God will set up a servant in the presence of the chosen people (Isaiah 53:2), who will appear like a branch nurtured by seven fountains of living waters (seven eyes can be interpreted as seven fountains); it will come out in a single day.
• The promise of the Branch was fulfilled in Jesus Christ hundreds of years later. God said to take away the iniquity of the land in a single day (9). “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18). We cannot take away our sins by our own efforts. We can only allow God to take away all our sins through Christ.
• God promises that when Christ reigns, every Christian will have his own peaceful home (cf. Micah 4:4). Sitting under vines and fig trees is a symbol of peace and prosperity (10).

PRAYER:

Dear God! When I am trapped in sin and weakness, Satan will accuse me and make me feel ashamed and unworthy of being a child of God. Thank you, Lord Jesus, my High Priest, for cleansing me from sin, for being sympathetic to my weakness, and for giving me a life of peace and joy.

HYMN:

Broken Vessels – youtu.be/61l1zx9Y_MQ