The Pulpit Commentary — Zechariah — Section 156

r,ifHls further details oonccrninr, the destrucwm vii. 2-i, 25). Tents; eamps; Septuagint, ,rap• of the enemies : they shall perish by plague, ,µ{3oJ..a,s. The verse illustrates the utter by mutual slaughter, by the sicord of Judcth. deetmction which shall befall the enemies of God's Church. Ver. 12.-Thia aha.II be the plague. These 1uo tho instruments which the Lord uses Vere.16-19.-§ 9. Warned by theBe mani- when ho fights 11ga.inat the nations (not the feBtationB of Gor!B power, the residue nf the people, 11B in the A uthorizeel Version), ver. 3. 'l'he plague, or smiting (maggephah), is some heathen Bhall be converted, and shall join contagious affiiction sent by Goel, a.e in Exoel. with the Hebrews in the regular worBhip of ix. 14; Numb. xiv. 87; 1 Ba.m. vi. 4. Their. Jehrn;ah. It is, in the Hebrew, "hie flesh, his feet," eto., to show that the general plague extends Ver. 16.-Every one that is left. All the to. every individual. In the last clause the heathen that attacked the holy city shall plural is used," their mouth." With body, not be destroyed; the remnant saved shall eye, and tongue they opposed the holy city, become subjects of the Divine kingdom. e,nd took pleasure in its discomfiture: in all Shall go up. This is the usual phrase for their members they .shall suffer retributive going to Jerusalem for the pul'i)ose of wor- punishment. While they stand upon their ship (comp. Isa. ii. 2, 3; Micah iv. 2; Luke feet, 'l'!Je flesh of ea.ell shall putrefy and ii. 42; John vii. 8). The prophet here and moulder e.we.y, while he ia still alive e.nd in the following clause speaks as a Jew arrayed agn.iust the city of God. Holes; to Jews, who knew and observed only the sockets. The eyes hn.d spied out the weak prescribed form of worship. It is evident places in the defence, and looked with that the announcement could never be li te- malicious pleasure on the defeat and fall. ra.lly fulfilled; the Gentile world could never Tongue. 'fhey had blasphemed Goel, and come yearly to pay their devotions at J eru- oried against his holy place, "Down with salem. The prediction can only signify it, even to the grouud I" that under Messiah's reign the Gentiles Ver. 13.-A great tumult from the Lord shall be converted to true religion and (eh. :xii. 4). A. general panic or confusion. worship God in regnlar, orderly fashion, sent by the Lord, such as befell the the prophet intimating this in terms derived Midionites (Judg. vii. 22) and the Philis- from the old dispensation, which had the tines (1 Sam. xiv. 20), which ends ia mutual Divine sanction. The Feast of Tabernaoles. slaughter. They aha.II lay hold every one, The Israelites were required to appear etc. In this general panic ea.eh shall seize before the Lord three times in the vear his neighbour's hand in fierce contention. (Exod. x:xiii. 17; Dent. xvi. 16)-at" tile '.fbe next clause gives the same meaning festivals of the Passover, Pentecost, and (comp. eh. xi. 6). Tabernacles. But tile Gentiles are here Ver. 14.-Juda.h also shall :fight at Jeru- required to present themselves only once. salem. The adversus Jerusalem of the Vul- The Feast of Tabernacles is chosen for tbi gate e.nd some Jewish interpreters is a. occasion owing to its peculiar character and mistake, and introduces a. wholly irrelevant the associations connected with it. It com- idea.. 'l'he meaning ia that the Judmans memorated not only the ingatbering of the outside of Jerusalem, the na.Lion at large, harvest, but also Israel's sojourn in the rallying .to the attack, shall fall on the wilderness and the Divine protection there enemy, now thinned by pestilence and in- accorded to them, and their entrance in to ternecine conflicts within the walls of the the promised land; it WI\S therefore a fitting city, and prevail against them (comp. eh. symbol of the rescue of the Gentiles from xii. 6). Septuagint, .'Ioo6as ,rapaTd(eTa, ,~ the devil's kingdom, and their entry into 'lepau<TaJ..~µ," Judah shall draw up bis forces the Church of God, where they enjoyed the in Jerusalem." The wealth of all the heathen blessings of God's grace and proteclion. It (nations) round a.bout. The costly booty of was also a more catholic feast, in one sense, the enemy shall fall into Judah's hands. than the Passover or Pentecost, not being Thus the Church emerges victorious from so distinotively Jewish, but one which all persecutions, and is enriohec;l and adorned na.tiolli! oould keep in gratitude to the by the means of those who planned her Giver of material benefits. We must re- nverthrow. member, olso, that it was at this feast that Ver. 15.-So shall be the plague of the our Lord cried (John vii. 37), '' If any man horse, eto. As was the plague that came thirst, let him como unto me, and ,lrink," on men (ver. 12), so sha.11 be the plague that and likewise he declared himself to be fa.lie on their beasts and oa.ttlo. The brute ''the Light of the world" (John viii. 12), nnima.ls suffer for their owners' sin aocord- wishing us, it may be, to understand that iug to the ban under the old Law (Deut. this feast wo.s the one we should need to x.iii. 15; comp. Numb. :xvi. 32, 33; Josh. keep, being the olle which specially sets 160 THE BOOK OF ZECHARIAH. [en. XIV, 1-21.