Page:Visions and Prophecies of Zechariah (Baron, David).djvu/532



516 VISIONS AND PROPHECIES OF ZECHARIAH

The glorious picture of salvation in vers. 8-12 has its obverse side, namely, the judgments which will be inflicted on the enemies of God and His people. Chrono logically, vers. 12-15 follow ver. 3, for the terrible punishment of the confederated anti-Christian hosts which they describe (and which are an amplification and supple ment to the prophetic announcement of the destruction of these same Gentile hosts in chap. xii. 410) are the immediate consequence of the manifest interposition of Jehovah in the person of the Messiah as the Deliverer of His people, when He shall " go forth and fight against those nations as when He fought in the day of battle " ; but the detailed description of the judgments on Israel s enemies is passed over by the prophet for a time in order that the wonderful deliverance of God s people and the glorious transformation of Jerusalem and the " Holy Land " might be first fully described.

Three weapons will be used by God for the destruction of the enemies of His Kingdom: (i) The fearful plague described in verse 1 2 ; (2) mutual destruction in conse quence of a great panic of terror " from Jehovah " ; and (3) the superhuman strength of the saved remnant of Judah, who shall suddenly become like " a pan of fire " among wood, and like " a flaming torch among sheaves " l and shall devour their enemies round about, on their right hand and on their left. Of these three simultaneous judgments, the first two are spoken of as being inflicted by God s own hand, for maggeplia, rendered " plague " (which is used in the Hebrew for " infliction? " slaughter," " plague," " pesti lence "), always denotes a plague or judgment sent direct by God. 2

The description of the " plague " is terribly realistic. Literally, " He (Jehovah} makes his flesli to rot (or consume away}, while he standeth on his feet " (1y?1 -^ "J$? Nim o vehu omed al rag-lav), which is perhaps intended to express the suddenness with which God s stroke will alight upon him : " And his eye (singular} shall consume aivay in their sockets

1 Chap. xii. 6. J See Ex. ix. 14 ; Num. xiv. 39 ; i Sam. vi. 4.