NOTES for Zec 4:1-14
The prophet Zechariah's visions continue, and once again, even more clearly, the Lord announces to him the twofold nature of the ministry of the coming Messiah, Israel's Deliverer. In the new vision, the Messiah is represented by a golden seven-branched lampstand whose light illumines the inner rooms of the Temple under construction. Standing at the entrance to the Holy of Holies, the place of the Invisible One's mysterious presence, the lampstand was the only source of light in Moses' tabernacle and occupied a central position beside the altar in Solomon's Temple. Its fire symbolised the searing flame of God's Presence, while its seven lamps spoke of the fullness of divine life. The custom of lighting lamps and candles during prayer, as a sign that at that moment people stand before God Himself, originates precisely in the lampstand of Moses' tabernacle. It is therefore natural that for Zechariah the lampstand became a symbol of Christ, who brought the light of divine love into the world.
Now the prophet sees two olive trees beside the lamps of the lampstand, the source of the oil feeding its flame. In the previous chapter the prophet spoke of the high-priestly ministry of God's Servant, the Messiah; this revelation differs markedly from the Messiah-King known through the earlier prophets. Thus Zechariah sees Christ's twofold ministry, that of King and High Priest of the coming Covenant. In the Jerusalem of his own day, the more likely foreshadowing of the Messiah would have been Zerubbabel, a prince of David's line who led the country's inhabitants after their return from Babylon. So the prophet addresses Zerubbabel, saying that the Messiah's ministry will be accomplished neither by force of arms nor by the power of earthly authority. This ministry is of another, mysterious nature: ‘Not by an army, nor by power,’ the Lord tells Zerubbabel through the prophet, ‘but by My Spirit’ will the design for Israel's purification, restoration and salvation be fulfilled.
For the Jerusalem of those days, these words also mean God's blessing upon the restoration of the Temple. The Lord promises that no obstacles, above all military and political ones, will halt the building, and that Zerubbabel will be granted to see its completion just as he saw its beginning. Yet it is perfectly clear that the saving action of God to be accomplished with the Messiah's coming cannot be contained within the Temple's restoration. Zerubbabel, then, will be only a foreshadowing of the Messiah, partially fulfilling His ministry.
Chapter 4 concludes with the words that the two olive trees beside the lampstand represent ‘the two anointed with oil’. These are the prince and the high priest, Zerubbabel and Joshua, who together foreshadow two different yet inseparable aspects of Christ's saving ministry. The Messiah is King and Priest, and He will exercise both ministries by God's Spirit: this is the chapter's central thought.
Zechariah's prophecy of the Messiah's twofold ministry became one of the foundations of the theory of two Messiahs, popular among the Jews during the Lord Jesus Christ's earthly life. Its adherents believed that one should await both the Messiah-King foretold by the early prophets and a Messiah-High Priest who would purify people in accordance with Zechariah's prophecy. From the standpoint of Jewish customs, the union of kingship and priesthood in the Messiah seems impossible. Israel's priesthood was strictly confined to the tribe of Levi; only Aaron's descendants could approach the altar, and Levites were required to marry only women of Levitical descent. Yet according to all the prophecies, the Messiah must be a descendant of David from the tribe of Judah. Nevertheless, this contradiction was resolved in Jesus of Nazareth: His most pure Mother was closely related to the priestly family of Zechariah, John the Baptist's father, while Joseph, who adopted Him, was a descendant of David.
The essential point is that the Lord Jesus truly unites both ministries in Himself, which allows us to regard chapters 3 and 4 of Zechariah as a prophecy about Him. We should also note that Zerubbabel's entirely earthly princely ministry can be interpreted as a symbol of Christ's human nature, and the high priest's spiritual ministry as a symbol of His divine nature. Yet Zechariah himself is unlikely to have consciously sought to make such an interpretation possible: the mystery of Christ's divine-human nature remained hidden from the Old Testament.