NOTES for Zec 4:1-14

The prophet Zechariah's visions continue, and once again, still more clearly, the Lord reveals to him the twofold ministry of the coming Messiah, the Deliverer of Israel. In this new vision, a golden seven-branched lampstand becomes an image of the Messiah, its light illuminating the interior of the Temple under construction. Standing at the entrance to the Holy of Holies, the place of the mysterious presence of the Invisible One, the lampstand was the only source of light in Moses' Tabernacle and occupied a central position by the altar in Solomon's Temple. Its fire symbolized 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 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 that feeds its flame. In the preceding chapter, the prophet spoke of the high-priestly ministry of God's Servant, the Messiah, and 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 figure to foreshadow the Messiah would have been Zerubbabel, a prince of David's line who led the inhabitants of the land upon their return from Babylon. And so the prophet addresses Zerubbabel, saying that the Messiah's ministry will be carried out neither by force of arms nor by the power of earthly rule. This ministry is of another, mysterious nature: “Not by an army and not by strength,” the Lord says to Zerubbabel through the prophet, “but by My Spirit” will the plan for Israel's purification, restoration and salvation be fulfilled.

For the Jerusalem of those days, these words also signify God's blessing upon the rebuilding of the Temple. The Lord promises that no obstacles, above all military and political ones, will halt the building work, and that Zerubbabel will be granted the sight of its completion, just as he saw its beginning. Yet it is perfectly clear that God's saving action, which is to take place with the Messiah's coming, cannot be confined to the rebuilding of the Temple. Zerubbabel, then, will be only a foreshadowing of the Messiah, partly fulfilling His ministry. Chapter four ends by saying that the two olive trees beside the lampstand represent “two anointed with oil.” These are the prince and the high priest, Zerubbabel and Joshua, who together foreshadow two different but 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.

This prophecy of Zechariah concerning the Messiah's twofold ministry became one of the foundations of the theory of two Messiahs, popular among Jews during the earthly life of the Lord Jesus Christ. Its adherents believed that one should expect a Messiah-King, foretold by the earlier prophets, and a Messiah-High Priest, who would bring about the purification of the people in accordance with Zechariah's prophecy. The point is that, from the perspective of Jewish customs, such a union of kingship and priesthood in the Messiah appears impossible. The priesthood in Israel 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 was to be a descendant of David, from the tribe of Judah. This contradiction, however, was resolved in Jesus of Nazareth: His Most Pure Mother was closely related to the priestly family of Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, while Joseph, who adopted Him as his son, was a descendant of David.

What matters most, however, is that the Lord Jesus does indeed unite both ministries in Himself, which allows us to regard the third and fourth chapters of Zechariah as a prophecy about Him. We must also note that Zerubbabel's purely earthly ministry as prince 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.