“For there shall be a sowing of peace. The vine shall give its fruit, and the ground shall give its produce, and the heavens shall give their dew. And I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things. And as you have been a byword of cursing among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so will I save you, and you shall be a blessing. Fear not, but let your hands be strong.”
- Zechariah 8:12-13
If the last chapter was about God’s Justice and Mercy being true for His people then this chapter is about God’s Peace and Blessing being true for His people. In this chapter, we will talk about both the peace and the blessing using two images painted for us in this chapter, and how that then speaks to what we should be cultivating today!
Peace:
Peace is a lot more than simply the absence of war or strife. It’s also accompanied by cultivation. For plants to be fruitful and thriving and to be accessible to all the people! Chapter 8 also gives us another illustration of this peace, take a look at verses 4-6.
The Lord reveals a picture of the streets of Jerusalem bustling again! The elderly in those days tended to gather together and sit in the streets. Enjoying conversation and company as they tended to be too old to do anything else. Many would also sit at the gates of the cities to greet and question strangers. Now you may think it would be better to have younger military-age men stationed at the gates, but if you’re a city enjoying a time of peace, it's far more inviting and welcoming for the elderly than for the soldier.
To make that point clearer, the streets of ancient Jerusalem today have 3-6 heavily armed Israeli soldiers are various gates and checkpoints. While people carry on with life, as a tourist and college student at the time, it was intimidating and not a place I would want to stay. It also wasn’t a place for children to be playing in the streets…
The second part of the streets bustling was to see kids playing in the streets. If that isn’t one of the top signs of peace and safety, I’m not sure what else is. When times are tense or troublesome, we keep our kids inside. Even over the last few decades, children are playing outside less and less, and I don’t think it's just because of technology, but overall our culture and society feel less safe and less trusting.
Jesus once said, “Blessed are the peacemakers.” Zechariah talks about the importance of sowing peace. Now we can fake it on the surface and live holding a dagger behind our back. But a true peacemaker seeks out what is broken and seeks to make it whole. They create environments and systems for safety and trust that are welcoming to the stranger. They shift the culture to where the streets are bustling with life again as the elderly share stories and the kids can play. Peace counters the hostile culture and stances of our day. Peace builds community from wholeness, while hostility fractures community. Peace sees a restored Kingdom.
Blessing:
Zechariah also reminds the remnant of Judah and Israel of their ancient promise to God, to be a blessing to all the nations. Take a look for yourself in verses 20-23.
The Lord reveals a beautiful image of 10 people from various nations and tongues trying to draw near to God and doing so being led by a Jew. They clasp onto the Jew’s robe and they are led to the Lord. A blessing to all the nations, and Kingdom that is greater than Judah or Israel or any melting pot of a country today.
While in this image we are part of the 10, clinging onto the robe (unless you are Jewish), that does not negate our responsibility to be a blessing! For we are still commissioned…
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
- Matthew 28:19-20
While yes, the original group for that commission was all Jewish, we are part of the church! We have been invited into the New Covenant that is to sow peace and be a blessing! And we don’t just bless them, however, seems fitting. We bless them by leading them to experience the Lord. We take them to God’s very presence, allowing them to taste and see that the Lord is good! We do this by serving them, listening to them, and by showcasing the very love of God for humanity.
Sowing and Leading Today:
All that sounds amazing and beautifully purposeful. But living it out in certain areas of the world right now where wickedness is triumphant on the surface, is hard. This last week news erupted about the brutality and pure evil that occurred in Bucha, Ukraine. You can read about it here, but warning, it's disturbing. It’s a time when the elderly and the children cannot and should not be in the streets. It’s a time the test what it means to sow peace. At what point do we respond to this evil with God’s justice, and what would that even look like? The same can and should be wrestled through in so many other conflicts. Israeli-Palestinian, China-Taiwan, Religious conflicts throughout the world, Political divisiveness in our own country. Wickedness seems to have an easy grip on so much today. What exactly does that mean then to sow peace and be a blessing… I’m afraid it's not an easy answer to give out but to simply keep wrestling with it and seeking God within it.
Final Blessing:
It’s difficult to hold together God’s Justice, Mercy, Peace, and Blessing, and yet they also fit together in a coherent way that’s difficult to understand. But let us envision peace and blessing and lead one another to God and avoid multiplying the wickedness.
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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