Zechariah 9
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The conquering path of Alexander the Great (9:1-8)
In the first eight verses Zechariah prophesies of the coming judgments upon the nations and cities that surround the land of Israel. In verse 1 we see the burden of the word of the Lord is against Damascus. In verse 2 judgments are pronounced against Hamath, Tyre, and Sidon. In verses 5-6 further judgments are declared against the land of Philistia, including the cities of Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and Ashdod. However, while all of these nations are being judged, verse 8 tells us that God will camp at His house, being a reference to the temple or the whole city of Jerusalem. Historically we can find out that these events were fulfilled in the conquests of Alexander the Great. Alexander was the first to be able to penetrate and destroy Tyre. Tyre had been able to withstand a five year siege from the Assyrians and a 13 year siege by the Babylonians. Because of these military successes, Tyre and Sidon thought themselves to be very wise and unconquerable (vs. 2). However, Alexander the Great was able to conquer the city in seven months, fulfilling the prophecies found here and in Ezekiel 26:12-14. Alexander the Great was able to conquer the known world rather swiftly, as prophesied by Daniel in Daniel 8.
How could Jerusalem be spared in all of this? Josephus records for us an interesting story: When Alexander was besieging Tyre he sent a letter to the high priest, who lived in Jerusalem, requesting him to send him assistance and provisions. The priest declined to do this because he had sworn an oath to King Darius of Persia. This infuriated Alexander and he was determined to attack and destroy Jerusalem once he finished with the coastal cities. Once these cities were conquered, Alexander and his armies made their way to Jerusalem. The high priest was terrified and ordered the Jews to make sacrifices to God asking for deliverance. After the sacrifice, God spoke to the high priest while in his sleep to adorn the city with wreaths and open the gates of the city to meet the coming invaders. The people were to be dressed in white garments and the priests in their robes. When Alexander saw the multitudes in whites garments and the priests in their full attire, he approached alone and prostrated himself before God and the high priest. Alexander’s men were astonished at this and demanded to know why he bowed down to the high priest. Alexander responded, “It was not before him that I prostrated myself but the God of whom he has the honor to be high priest, for it was he whom I saw in my sleep dressed as he is now, when I was at Dior in Macedonia. As I was considering with myself how I might become master of Asia, he urged me not to hesitate but to cross over confidently, for he himself would lead my army and give over to me the empire of the Persians. Since, therefore, I have beheld no one else in such robes, and on seeing him now I am reminded of the vision and the exhortation, I believe that I have made this expedition under divine guidance and that I shall defeat Darius and destroy the power of the Persians.�
Of course, most scholars are skeptical of this account. But we must remember that God talked directly to Nebuchadnezzar concerning his invasions of Judah and the conquering of the land, which is seen in Daniel 4. God also spoke to king Cyrus of the Persians and moved him to free the Jews from captivity and allow them to return to the Jerusalem to rebuild. It is extremely possible, if not probable, that God also moved Alexander, according to prophecy, to conquer the world but to leave Jerusalem alone. All the other surrounding Gentile cities were destroyed, but not the Jewish cities in Judah.
The arrival of the conquering King (9:9-11)
Now Zechariah declares a time for rejoicing for “your king is coming to you� (vs. 9). There are four descriptions giving to the coming king: righteous, bringing salvation, humble, and riding on a donkey. The people would be able to realize two things about these descriptions. First, that this is a clear reference to the Messiah, because he is called the king and he is bring salvation. Second, these are not the typical descriptions of a king. Zechariah is describing the perfect king. This king would rule in righteousness and would be humble and gentle. This king will offer salvation and deliverance to his subjects. But there is another interesting description given concerning the king. He will ride of a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. One would imagine that there would be some pondering of the meaning of this description. Matthew 21:1-8 enlightens us as Matthew gives his commentary of this prophecy. We often note that this would not be the usual glory and majesty that would be expected for a king entering the city of Jerusalem. However, Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey so that the people would see this event and would hopefully be mindful of the prophecy He was fulfilling. This event was to a sign of Jesus’ fulfillment and becoming their king. According to verse 11, these things would be done as a remembrance of the covenant God had made with His people.
The warring during the Maccabees (9:12-17)
Zechariah returns to describing the events that will lead up to the coming of the king. In verse 13 we are told that the sons of Zion would go to war against the sons of Greece. The fulfillment of these words seems to come in the time of the Maccabees around the time of 165 B.C. This is in keeping with the prophecies of Daniel, which speaks of the unrest that would take place during the time of Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Judas Maccabees won many stunning victories against Antiochus’ generals and achieve independence for the Jews for about 100 years until Roman rule appeared. Verses 14-17 declare that God will be with His people. Those who are the Lord’s will be blessed and will flourish. But because of the language that is given in this text, the true fulfillment of these things must be found spiritually. As we have noted in many times before, some prophecies have a partial physical fulfillment as a token or guarantee that the complete promise will be fulfilled. God will remain with His people and will bring the Messiah as a deliverer for the people.
