Examination of the Book of Zechariah

As one who has found spoil, which he would fain share, the author writes across this prophetic treatise, Dig here; and hopes that many will be attracted by Zechariah's holy and eager spirit, through which God spake (5).

The book is divided into fifteen chapters. The chapters examine the Book of Zechariah in order, chapter by chapter. The more important chapters are examined at greater length; for example, the first chapter of the Book is examined in three consecutive chapters beginning Meyer's book.

The general thrust of Meyer's book is that Zechariah and his visions and prophecies were meant to comfort the Jews in a time of darkness and near-despair. The prophecies were promises to the Jews of better times to come, times when God would make clear once again His connection with them. Zechariah was meant to give them the sense that it is darkest right before the dawn. Writing of the second vision, for example, Meyer says that "The next vision was full of comfort. The good words and comfortable words of the previous chapter are continued, like the long drawn-out sweetness of a lullaby" (24).

In the first chapter, Meyer establishes the historical context in which Zechariah lived and prophesied. Meyer emphasizes the reassuring aspect of Zechariah's works,

. . .
the three appeals of Zechariah ii---to the exiles, to Zion, and to all flesh---and concludes that God should always be the center of humankind's attention. The chapter on Joshua---Zechariah iii---stresses again the essential role which God should play in the spiritual life. Meyer becomes even more openly preaching in this chapter: "We have been plucked from the burning. . . . It is a proof that He will perfect what concerneth you" (48-49). In the chapter examining the vision of the candlestick, Meyer writes that the meaning is that no human individual or group of individuals could by himself or herself or themselves be strong or pure or true enough to carry the message of God---without the intervention of God. The Jews, says Meyer, were meant to carry the word of God and to be strengthened at the same time by virtue of carrying the word: "These men . . . were but mediums for Divine communications. Their sufficiency was not of themselves, but of God" (53). Also, interpreting Zechariah from a Christian perspective, Meyer sees the candlestick vision as a call to Christ: "We must very carefully abide in Christ, that He may abide in us" (59). In Chapter VII, Meyer examines three more visions of Zechariah, the visions of the fly
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Approximate Word count = 1514
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page)

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