“And the Lord will be king over all the earth. On that day the Lord will be one and his name one.”
- Zechariah 14:9
The apocalypse has so many uncertainties around it. In part, over every culture and throughout all of history, people have speculated how things will come to an end. As people exchange ideas, bits, and pieces of each start to feed into the next until we are left with something unbiblical.
Yet, even grazing through the Bible at the very end of days passages leads to a very confusing mess. Zechariah alone has alluded to these days for the last few chapters and continues to do so in chapter 14. We are left with some pretty bleak images of war and plague, but then in the middle of the chapter comes our verse of focus.
One King:
As we enter into chapter 14, we will walk through the details of the day of the Lord, but what is most important for us, our anchor point for the apocalypse is the truth that God will be our King.
According to Zechariah 14, the day of the Lord’s coming involves war centered around Jerusalem. The nations will surround Jerusalem and come against it. It might not be every single person, but it truly conveys the idea of the world against Jerusalem, even Judah will raise the sword against the city.
Jerusalem does not raise the sword through. Instead, God arises from His throne and causes the nations to turn on each other. Those who oppose God will strike one another. Those that survive are then left to worship God annually during the Festival of Booths.
As for God’s people, they become refugees, guided away from the city by God. As God rises from His throne, He causes an earthquake to open up a valley that cuts through the Mount of Olives, east of the temple in Jerusalem. You can visit there today and see the presumed garden of Gethsemane where Jesus wept over Jerusalem and anguished with God. That place of great anguish will become a pathway to a refuge. God’s people departed through the valley and ran off to Azal.
Where is Azal? We don’t know. Translating its meaning doesn’t do much either, for essentially it means the end or reaching the edge. So however far the earthquake cuts a valley is where the people will have refuge from the battle.
The region spanning from Geba to Rimmon will become a level plain, and the hill country will be flattened out. Once again, where these are exactly, we don’t know. Along with its leveling out though, the city of Jerusalem will be elevated above the plain.
From then on, Jerusalem will always dwell in security. But those on the outside who went to war against Jerusalem will be struck with a plague. A plague that is rather reminiscent of what we think of as zombies. Essentially, they decay away while alive.
There are other details, and I jumped out of the chapter a little bit, but you can start to picture it. War and Refuge. Plague and Security. It’s a world so drenched in wickedness they rise against God, only to be defeated.
Yet, we must come back to the anchor verse. God will be King over all the earth. The Lord will be one and his name one.
One Lord:
I know we don’t live in an apocalypse, but it’s important even from numerous New Testament passages that we focus on the Lord being one and that He is Lord over us. Especially as Christians, because in doing so we shift our lives to be centered on Him rather than whatever we would want.
In recent weeks, I have become more reminded of why we need His will above our will. June has been a doozy on social media, with it being both pride month and then the public revealing of the Roe vs. Wade decision. Nothing like two controversial topics for Christians in the same month! I’ve seen stories of people being hurt by their churches and Christian parents for “coming out.” I’ve also seen stories of people encountering grace. I’ve seen stories of Christians protesting in unchrist-like ways. I’ve also seen stories of Christians stepping up and into the lives of those considering abortions with grace and love.
I believe regardless of where one stands on these issues, and regardless of whatever legislation in place is determining what people have a right to do or not to do, we are called to live in a manner that we have one King. This is a King who sought to rescue and defend in love and grace. I believe He is a King who smiles when His people enter into uncomfortable and bleak situations in order to love, serve, and heal.
Having God be our one King and one Lord means listening to what His will is. No longer just presuming but diving deep into scripture and what He has revealed about Himself so that way we can more accurately be His kingdom of priests. When there is true harm and danger done toward His people, God graces us with an incomprehensible comfort through the Holy Spirit.
Final Blessing:
All that is easier said than done of course. Yet, I wonder how much more resilient, gracious, loving, forgiving, and redemptive we would be in even the hardest of situations the more we focused on God as our one King and one Lord. Not as His knights, but as His priests.
Now may the Lord of Life and Redemption be with you in every step, every breath, and every heartbeat of your journey.
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