TRUTH!

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE NATIONS COME AGAINST JERUSALEM—AND GOD HIMSELF ENTERS THE BATTLE? The armies gather. Jerusalem is surrounded. The city is suffering. The nations believe its future rests in their hands. But they have overlooked one terrifying reality. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob has already declared what happens next. “Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations.” — Zechariah 14:3 The nations will come to determine Jerusalem's future. They will discover that the LORD has already declared it. More than 2,500 years ago, the Jewish prophet Zechariah foretold an extraordinary confrontation centered on one city. Not Babylon. Not Rome. Not Washington. YERUSHALAYIM (יְרוּשָׁלַיִם). JERUSALEM. And the outcome will not ultimately be determined by armies, political alliances, or international resolutions. 1. A CUP THEY CANNOT DRINK. A STONE THEY CANNOT LIFT. Zechariah describes Jerusalem using two extraordinary images. Zechariah 12:2 — “Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about.” The Hebrew imagery conveys staggering and disorientation. The nations believe they can control Jerusalem's destiny. But the city will become a cup that causes those opposing her to stagger. Then comes a second warning. Zechariah 12:3 — “And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.” A cup that makes the nations reel. A stone that injures those attempting to lift it. The nations believe Jerusalem is their problem to solve. Zechariah declares that their opposition to God's purposes will become their undoing. Why Jerusalem? Because God repeatedly identifies this city with His name and covenant purposes. Psalm 132:13 — “For the LORD hath chosen Zion; he hath desired it for his habitation.” And following Israel's judgment and exile, God declared: Zechariah 2:12 — “And the LORD shall inherit Judah his portion in the holy land, and shall choose Jerusalem again.” God did not abandon Jerusalem after judging His people. He reaffirmed His choice. 2. GOD WILL REMEMBER EVEN THE TENTS OF JUDAH Here is a remarkable detail that many readers overlook. Zechariah 12:7 — “The LORD also shall save the tents of Judah first.” Why distinguish Judah's tents from Jerusalem? The verse explains that Jerusalem and the house of David must not exalt themselves above the rest of Judah. God's promised deliverance extends beyond the capital. Beyond its walls. Beyond its rulers. The God who remembers Jerusalem also remembers the people of Judah. This is the same covenant-keeping God who declared: “God hath not cast away his people which he foreknew.” — Romans 11:2 The Jewish people have endured exile, persecution, scattering, and suffering. Yet God's promises remain. His covenant faithfulness does not depend upon Israel's military strength or political influence. It depends upon His own unchanging character. 3. THE DAY OF THE LORD: JERUSALEM'S DARKEST HOUR Zechariah repeatedly uses the Hebrew expression Bayom Hahu (בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא). “IN THAT DAY.” Again and again, the prophet points toward God's decisive intervention. But we must not overlook something troubling. Zechariah does not promise that Jerusalem will escape suffering. Zechariah 14:2 describes the city being captured, houses plundered, women violated, and part of the population taken into captivity. This is not an easy prophecy. Jerusalem will experience terrible distress. And then comes one of the most consequential words in the entire chapter. THEN. Zechariah 14:3 — “Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.” Jerusalem's suffering will not be the end of Jerusalem's story. The nations will not have the final word. THE LORD HIMSELF WILL INTERVENE. Notice the contrast. The nations gather against Jerusalem. The city experiences devastating judgment and suffering. Then the LORD goes forth to confront those nations. Human power reaches its limit. Divine sovereignty is revealed. 4. THE KING RETURNS TO THE MOUNT OF OLIVES Now Zechariah reveals something astonishing. Zechariah 14:4 — “And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east.” The Har HaZeitim (הַר הַזֵּיתִים). The Mount of Olives. An identifiable mountain east of Jerusalem. And Zechariah describes that mountain splitting, creating a great valley. Now consider Acts 1:9–12. Yeshua ascended into heaven from the vicinity of the Mount of Olives. And the angels declared: “This same Jesus ... shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.” — Acts 1:11 The Jewish Messiah who entered Jerusalem riding a donkey will return in glory. The suffering Shepherd will be revealed as the reigning King. The One who was pierced will be recognized by His people (Zechariah 12:10). Israel's greatest deliverance will not merely be military. It will be spiritual. The LORD promises to pour upon the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem the spirit of grace and supplication. The people will mourn. They will recognize their Messiah. And God will accomplish His promised redemption. “And so all Israel shall be saved.” — Romans 11:26 Not through a separate path of salvation. But through Yeshua, Israel's promised Mashiach (משיח). 5. FROM A BATTLEFIELD TO A PLACE OF WORSHIP Here is one of the most extraordinary reversals in biblical prophecy. Zechariah 14:9 — “And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.” These words echo Israel's great confession of faith, the Shema: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD.” — Deuteronomy 6:4 And the declaration of the LORD's universal kingship in Zechariah 14:9 also appears in the traditional Jewish Aleinu prayer. But Zechariah reveals something else. Zechariah 14:16 describes survivors from the nations that came against Jerusalem traveling there to worship the King and celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles. Sukkot (סֻכּוֹת). The biblical festival commemorating God's provision for Israel during the wilderness journey. Even today, Zechariah 14 is traditionally read in synagogues during Sukkot. Consider the extraordinary prophetic reversal. The nations gather against Jerusalem. The LORD intervenes. The King establishes His reign. And survivors from those nations journey to Jerusalem to worship Him! THE CITY ONCE SURROUNDED BY ENEMIES BECOMES A CENTER OF WORSHIP FOR THE NATIONS. Isaiah foresaw the same remarkable future: “For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.” — Isaiah 2:3 The nations will no longer gather to conquer Jerusalem. They will come to worship the King who reigns there. And God's ancient promise to Abraham will find extraordinary expression: “And in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” — Genesis 12:3 God's purposes for Israel have always included blessing the nations. THE QUESTION THE WORLD MUST CONFRONT Who determines Jerusalem's ultimate future? The nations? The international community? Political leaders? Military alliances? Or the God who declared: “For the LORD hath chosen Zion; he hath desired it for his habitation.” — Psalm 132:13 Zechariah does not describe a God struggling to preserve His promises. He describes a sovereign God bringing His promises to fulfillment. The nations will gather. Jerusalem will suffer. The LORD will intervene. Israel will recognize her Messiah. And the King will reign. The nations will come to determine Jerusalem's future. They will discover that the LORD has already declared it. And Zechariah reveals one final extraordinary transformation. The nations that once gathered against Jerusalem will send their survivors to worship the King. The place of conflict becomes a center of worship. The city surrounded by enemies becomes the city from which the LORD reigns. “And the LORD shall be king over all the earth.” — Zechariah 14:9 God has not abandoned Israel. He has not canceled His covenant. He has not forgotten Jerusalem. THE WORLD MAY DEBATE JERUSALEM'S FUTURE. BUT THE GOD WHO CHOSE HER HAS ALREADY DECLARED HIS PURPOSES.

FIVE COVENANTS. ONE NATION. ONE FAITHFUL GOD. Why would God establish FIVE covenants with ONE nation—only to cancel His promises to that nation? Of the eight major biblical covenants commonly identified, five concern God's covenant dealings with Israel. Not because Israel earned His favor. “Because the LORD loved you and kept the oath which He swore to your forefathers.” — Deuteronomy 7:8 But what exactly did God promise? 1. THE ABRAHAMIC COVENANT GOD SWORE AN EVERLASTING OATH. “I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant.” — Genesis 17:7 God promised Abraham descendants, a nation, a land, and blessings extending to all nations (Genesis 12:1–3; 15:18). But notice something extraordinary. In Genesis 15, Abraham falls into a deep sleep while God alone passes between the divided animals. The Hebrew expression karat berit (כָּרַת בְּרִית) means “to cut a covenant.” And Hebrews 6:13 declares: “Since He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself.” Abraham was asleep. God made the commitment. The promise rests upon God's faithfulness, not Israel's perfection. 2. THE MOSAIC COVENANT A CONDITIONAL COVENANT THAT ISRAEL BROKE. “If you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples.” — Exodus 19:5 Notice the word IF. Unlike the covenant promises to Abraham, the Mosaic Covenant established conditional obligations for Israel. Israel repeatedly broke those obligations. Hebrews 8:13 declares the Mosaic Covenant obsolete. But does that invalidate God's earlier oath to Abraham? “The Law, which came four hundred and thirty years later, does not invalidate a covenant previously ratified by God.” — Galatians 3:17 The Mosaic Covenant became obsolete. The Abrahamic promise was not annulled! That distinction is essential. 3. THE LAND COVENANT GOD PROMISED TO REGATHER THE PEOPLE HE SCATTERED. “The LORD your God will restore you from captivity, and have compassion on you, and will gather you again from all the peoples where the LORD your God has scattered you.” — Deuteronomy 30:3 Moses foretold Israel's dispersion among the nations—and God's future regathering of His people. But WHY would God restore an often-disobedient nation? “It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for My holy name.” — Ezekiel 36:22 Consider that! God says His restoration of Israel will demonstrate His holiness before the nations (Ezekiel 36:23–28). Israel's restoration is not about Jewish superiority. It is about God's faithfulness and His holy name! 4. THE DAVIDIC COVENANT HEAVEN NEVER FORGOT THE THRONE. “Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever.” — 2 Samuel 7:16 Centuries passed. The monarchy collapsed. Jerusalem fell. David's descendants no longer ruled from his throne. Had God forgotten? Listen to Gabriel's announcement concerning Yeshua: “The Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever.” — Luke 1:32–33 The promised throne. The house of Jacob. An everlasting kingdom. Heaven had not forgotten David's throne! And in Psalm 89:34–37, God declares that He will not violate His covenant with David, invoking the sun and moon as enduring witnesses. 5. THE NEW COVENANT GOD PROMISED TO TRANSFORM THE NATION HE HAD NOT FORGOTTEN. Now we arrive at the covenant that many believers misunderstand. “I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.” — Jeremiah 31:31 Read those words carefully. Israel. And Judah. Why both? Because the nation had been divided for centuries. Yet God promised to reunite both houses under one king (Ezekiel 37:15–28). And what would this New Covenant accomplish? “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.” — Jeremiah 31:33 Forgiveness. Cleansing. Spiritual regeneration. And here is the astonishing connection. “If this fixed order departs from before Me ... then the offspring of Israel also will cease from being a nation before Me forever.” — Jeremiah 31:36 The fixed order refers to the sun, moon, and stars! The very chapter announcing the New Covenant also affirms Israel's continuing existence as a nation before God! AND WHAT DOES PAUL SAY? “God has not rejected His people whom He foreknew.” — Romans 11:2 Israel remains beloved for the sake of the fathers (Romans 11:28). “For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.” — Romans 11:29 Gentile believers have been graciously grafted into the olive tree. They share in spiritual blessings through Yeshua, but Paul warns them not to boast over the natural branches (Romans 11:17–24). Yeshua fulfills God's redemptive promises. But their fulfillment does not require the cancellation of God's promises to Israel. Before allowing theological tradition to redefine a covenant, examine who made it, to whom it was given, what was promised, and whether God ever revoked it. Five covenants. One nation. One covenant-keeping God. God has not forgotten Abraham. He has not abandoned David. He has not rejected Israel. Look at the sun. The moon. The stars. God Himself invoked the heavens when declaring His faithfulness to His promises. THE GOD OF ISRAEL KEEPS HIS WORD.