Zec 7; 8: Questions concerning fasting. Another prophetic
message came to Zechariah from the Lord in 518 BC. The fourth day of the ninth
month would have been in early December. Chislev is the Babylonian name of the
month. This message (Zec 7; 8) came to the prophet almost two years after he
received the eight night visions (cp Zec 1:7) and about halfway through the
period of temple reconstruction (520-515 BC). A question posed by representative
Israelites provided the occasion for God to give four messages through
Zechariah. They all deal with the issue of empty ritualism, which the original
question introduced.
"As early as Zec 1:3-6 it was clear that Zechariah was
interested in the spiritual renewal of the postexilic community. Here he deals
further with this problem. The purpose of Zec 7; 8 is to impress on the people
their need to live righteously in response to their past judgment and future
glory" (EBC).
Zec 7:2
BETHEL: About 10 miles north of Jerusalem (cp Ezra
2:28; Neh 7:32; 11:31).
Zec 7:3
SHOULD I MOURN AND FAST IN THE FIFTH MONTH, AS I HAVE DONE
FOR SO MANY YEARS?: Cp Mal 1:9. These men wanted to know if they should
continue to observe a fast that had become traditional but which the Mosaic Law
did not require. (The only fast that the Mosaic Law prescribed was on the Day of
Atonement: Lev 16:29; 23:27-32.) Coming as they did from a place long associated
with apostate worship (1Ki 12:29-33; 2Ki 10:29; Jer 48:13; Amos 3:14; 4:4;
7:13), these men would be particularly concerned to determine orthodox practice
on behalf of those who sent them.
There were four fasts that the Jews in exile had instituted to
commemorate various events connected with the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC
(cp Zec 8:19). The one in the fifth month memorialized the destruction of the
temple (cp 2Ki 25:8-10). Since the temple was almost complete (cp Ezra 6:16),
did the LORD want His people to continue to fast? The people knew that the
captivity would last 70 years (Jer 25:11,12), and 68 of these had already
passed. It seemed to them that fasting over the destruction of the temple might
be inappropriate since the LORD had enabled them to rebuild the temple and
reestablish worship. The question was a reasonable one.
"What may have appeared to be an innocent question about the
propriety of fasting was instead a question fraught with hypocrisy, as Yahweh's
response puts beyond any doubt. It therefore appears that the query to Zechariah
by the Bethelites may not have been so much a matter of piety as it was of
posturing. May it not be that the delegation was trying more to impress the
prophet than to gain instruction from him?" (Merrill).
Zec 7:4
Vv 4-7: The first message. "Note that the inquiry put by the
Bethel committee is not being answered directly. In fact, throughout Zec 7; 8 no
direct answer is offered. The reason is: the question is not an important issue.
However, the attitude revealed by that question is of sufficient moment to
receive exhaustive treatment" (Leupold).
Zec 7:5
WHEN YOU FASTED AND MOURNED IN THE FIFTH AND SEVENTH MONTHS
FOR THE PAST SEVENTY YEARS, WAS IT REALLY FOR ME THAT YOU FASTED?: The LORD
spoke to Zechariah, and he proceeded to inform the messengers, all the people in
the land, and the priests. The issue that the messengers had raised had
widespread implications for the whole nation. The Lord asked rhetorically if the
people had really observed the fasts that they had instituted in the fifth and
seventh months for 70 years for His benefit or for themselves. (Seventy years is
a round number for the length of the Captivity.) The fast in the seventh month
commemorated the assassination of Gedaliah (2Ki 25:25; Jer 41:2). Evidently the
people had turned these events into occasions for self-pity over their physical
condition rather than engaging in prayer and genuine spiritual
repentance.
Zec 7:6
AND WHEN YOU WERE EATING AND DRINKING, WERE YOU NOT JUST
FEASTING FOR YOURSELVES?: They were simply perpetuating the selfishness for
which former prophets had rebuked their ancestors.
Zec 7:7
ARE THESE NOT THE WORDS THE LORD PROCLAIMED THROUGH THE
EARLIER PROPHETS WHEN JERUSALEM AND ITS SURROUNDING TOWNS WERE AT REST AND
PROSPEROUS...?: The prophets in view had lived before the captivity when the
whole land and its cities were still full of inhabitants (eg, Isa 58:3-9; Joel
1:14; 2:12). Now there were far fewer Israelites occupying the land.
AND THE NEGEV AND THE WESTERN FOOTHILLS WERE SETTLED?:
The Negev to the south of Beersheba and the foothills (Shephelah) toward the
Mediterranean coast were grazing and agricultural areas in which the returnees
had not yet settled.
Zec 7:8
Vv 8-14: The command to repent.
Zec 7:13
Vv 13,14: Since the forefathers refused to listen to the
Lord's Spirit when He called to them (cp Neh 9:20,30; 2Pe 1:21), the Lord
refused to listen to them when they called to Him in prayer (cp Jer 11:11-14).
Instead He scattered them among many nations, as though a windstorm had blown
them off the Promised Land (cp Deu 28:36,37,64-68; Hos 13:3). As a result, the
land had become desolate with none of the Israelites returning to it during the
Captivity (cp Deu 28:41,42,45-52). This desolation of the formerly "pleasant
land" of Israel was due to the sin of the people (cp Psa 106:24; Jer 3:19; Dan
11:16,41).
"While Zechariah may well not have answered the original
enquiry directly, he had nevertheless taken up the very essence of ritual in the
heart of the worshiper, which was that the outward form of religious activity
was useless and lifeless without an accompanying spirit of obedience, confession
and repentance" (Ellis).