Monday, November 28, 2016

Zechariah 7: Fair Play

"Just as, when I called, they would not hear, so, when they called, I would not hear, says the Lord of hosts" (vs. 13).

The second half of Zechariah 7 deals with the sins that caused the exile.  God accuses the people of disregarding his laws of compassion.  "Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another; do not oppress the widow, the orphan, the alien, or the poor; and do not devise evil in your hearts against one another" (vs. 9 and 10).

But instead of heeding the Lord's word sent through His prophets, the people intentionally refused to listen.  God says that they "stopped their ears in order not to hear" (vs. 11) and "made their hearts adamant in order not to hear the law" (vs. 12).  They were not just disobedient; they were willfully disobedient.  They resolutely closed their ears to the commands of God.

In response, God closed His ears to their pleas.  As they became deaf to Him, He became deaf to them.  The exile came, and there was no stopping it when the Israelites called out to Him.  Why should the Lord listen to the prayers of His people when they refused to listen to Him?  Turnabout is fair play, after all.

Makes me thankful for the grace of the New Testament where we receive mercy when we deserve none.

No comments:

Post a Comment