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"In that day shall the Lord defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem . . . . . and it shall come
to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.
And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit
of grace and supplications, and they shall look upon Me Whom they have pierced, and
they shall mourn for Him" (Zech. 12: 8-14).
John 19: 34-37 leaves us in no doubt as to the identity of Him Who was thus pierced,
and Rev. 1: 7 reveals with equal certainty that Zech. 12: is future:--
"Behold, He cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see Him, and they also which
pierced Him: and all tribes of the land shall wail because of Him. Even so, Amen."
There has never been a national mourning by Israel for the death of Christ, there has
never been a destruction of the enemies of Jerusalem since N.T. times, and since the
partial beginning at Pentecost there has never been poured out upon Israel the spirit of
grace.
The Mount of Olives.
Zechariah resumes the theme of Jerusalem's trouble and the Lord's deliverance:--
"I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle . . . . . Then shall the Lord go forth
and fight against those nations . . . . . and His feet shall stand upon the Mount of Olives,
which is before Jerusalem on the east . . . . . and the Lord my God shall come and all the
saints with Thee" (Zech. 14: 1-6).
There can be no doubt as to the literality of the Mount of Olives. It is described
geographically as being "before Jerusalem on the east". Moreover, to question the
identity of the place would be to introduce a serious problem into Acts 1::--
"A cloud received Him out of their sight . . . . . This same Jesus, which is taken up
from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven.
Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet."
The direct association between the second coming of Acts 1: and Zech. 14:
established by the angel's message, confirms the appropriateness of the apostles' question
as to the restoration of the kingdom to Israel (Acts 1: 6), and leaves no room for
"the church" in this aspect of hope. It can be none other than "the hope of Israel"
mentioned by Paul as still obtaining in Acts 28: 20.
The visions of Zechariah concerning the second coming can be summed up in his own
words: "Jerusalem, Thy King cometh."
From one end of his prophecy to the other, Jerusalem and its deliverance and
restoration are prominent, and the coming Lord is set forth as Israel's King when the
reign of peace has commenced. This is twice given in Zech. 14: 16, 17, "The Kings, the
Lord of Hosts".