In the book of Zechariah, Zechariah shared how Jehovah God said, “I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land, says the LORD: but, lo, I will deliver the men every one into his neighbor's hand, and into the hand of his king: and they shall smite the land, and out of their hand I will not deliver them”, and in chapter eleven and verse seven of Zechariah, Zechariah shared how Jehovah God said, “I will feed the flock of slaughter” where we read,
And I will feed the flock of slaughter, even you, O poor of the flock. And I took unto me two staves;
the one I called Beauty, and the other I called Bands; and I fed the flock.
The verse reads, “And I will feed the flock of slaughter, even you, O poor of the flock. And I took unto me two staves;”Zechariah began with the words, “and I will feed” or “and I, Jehovah God, shall tend, graze and provide food to” “the flock of slaughter” which means “the multitude belonging to the ones destined to be killed”, “even you” or “also and indeed you, the people of Israel”, “O poor of the flock” which means “O afflicted, humble, wretched, weak and impoverished belonging to the multitude”. “And I took unto me” or “and I, Jehovah God, fetched, lay hold of, seized and acquired to me, Jehovah God” “two staves” which means “two rods or staffs”. Zechariah shared how Jehovah God said He would provide food and nourishment to the people of Israel who were destined to be destroyed, so He seized two staffs.
The verse continues, “the one I called Beauty, and the other I called Bands; and I fed the flock.” Zechariah added the words, “the one I called Beauty” or “the one staff I, Jehovah God, named Beauty which means kindness, pleasantness, delightfulness and favor”, “and the other I called Bands” which means “and the other staff I, Jehovah God, named Bands which means a cord, rope, territory, company or region”; “and I fed the flock” or “and I, Jehovah God, tended, grazed, gave food and nourishment to the multitude”. Zechariah shared how Jehovah God named His two staffs “Beauty and Bands” which represented the excellency of Israel and the bond of brotherhood between Judah and Israel to whom God nourished.
When we think through the words in this verse, we learn through Zechariah how Jehovah God would intervene in the lives of His people Israel once again. Because they were neglected and taken advantage of by their “shepherds” or leaders, He would assume the pastoral role and tend to them Himself. God reunited the divided nations of Judah and Israel, and He recognized them as delightful, favored and as one company or cord. God loves Israel, and He loves us. He gave His Only Begotten Son Jesus to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind, and when we believe and trust in Him as our personal “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and put within us an understanding of how He chose the nation of Israel to be the nation through whom all the world might be saved.
Next time Zechariah shares how Jehovah God says, “three shepherds also I cut off”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".
No comments:
Post a Comment