1:1 Born in Babylon during the Exile, Zechariah was a fairly young man when he returned to Jerusalem in 538 B.C. King Cyrus of Persia had defeated Babylon in 539 and had decreed that captives in exile could return to their homelands. Zechariah and Haggai were among the first to leave. Zechariah, a prophet and a priest, began ministering at the same time as the prophet Haggai (520–518 B.C.). His first prophecy was delivered two months after Haggai’s first prophecy.
Like Haggai, Zechariah encouraged the people to continue rebuilding the Temple, whose reconstruction had been halted for nearly 10 years. Zechariah combated the people’s spiritual apathy, despair over pressures from their enemies, and discouragement about the smaller scale of the new Temple foundation. Neglect of our spiritual priorities can be just as devastating today to fulfilling God’s purpose.
1:2-6 The familiar phrase “Like father, like son” implies that children turn out like their parents. But here, God warned Israel not to be like their forefathers, who disobeyed him and reaped the consequences—his punishment. We are responsible before God for our actions. We can’t use our heredity or environment as excuses for our sins. We are free to choose, and individually we must return to God and follow him.
1:5, 6 The words God had spoken through his prophets a century earlier, before the captivity, also applied to Zechariah’s generation, and they are still relevant for us. Because God’s Word endures, we must read, study, and apply what is preserved for us in Scripture. Learn the lessons of God’s Word so you will not have to repeat the mistakes of others.
1:11 The angel of the Lord saw that all the nations were secure and at peace, while Israel was still oppressed and despised. But God was planning a change. He had released his people, and he would allow them to return and rebuild his Temple.
1:12 Seventy years (“threescore and ten years”) was the time that God had decreed for Israel to remain in captivity (Jeremiah 25:11; 29:10). This time was over, and the angel asked God to act swiftly to complete the promised return of his people to Jerusalem.
1:13 God’s people had lived under his judgment for 70 years during their captivity in Babylon. But here God spoke words of comfort and assurance. God promises that when we return to him, he will heal us (Hosea 6:1). If you feel wounded and crushed by the events of your life, turn to God so he can heal and comfort you.
1:15 Although the pagan nations afflicted God’s people beyond his intentions, God was not powerless to stop them. God used these nations to punish his sinful people. When the nations went beyond his plans by trying to destroy Israel as a nation, he intervened.