Zechariah 12-13:1 God’s Plan. God’s Promise. The Person of the Holy Spirit

​Key Verse
10 “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn. 
 
Meditation
God’s Word uncovers the fullness of His covenant blessing through deeper revelation of His plan, His promises, and the person of the Holy Spirit.
 
In today’s reading, Zechariah directs the perspective of God’s people towards the future, detailing what to expect “on that day” (vv. 3, 6, 8, 11, 13:1). After the king comes (9:9) there will be opposition, but the Lord will deliver His people (vv. 1-9). Following the victory, God promises to “pour out a spirit of grace” (v. 10). The people will see the one who was pierced, mourn (vv. 11-14), and receive cleansing from all sin and uncleanness (13:1). 

God’s plan was for Jesus to be pierced (John 19:34-37) for our transgressions (Isaiah 53:5), water and blood flowing from His side. 
God’s promise is that Jesus is the headwaters of the “fountain opened for the house of David… to cleanse from sin.” William Cowper wrote his famous hymn celebrating the fountain of grace highlighted 13:1, There is a fountain filled with blood. 
The person of the Holy Spirit connects God’s plan on the cross and God’s promise for the hearts of His people, the “Spirit of grace” (v. 10) to be “poured out” on all who believe.
 
The promised covenant Spirit (Galatians 3:14) came after the King’s victory, collectively at Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 2) and individually in our adoption (Romans 8:15). He is the person of the Trinity who gives faith so that the fountain of grace is open for all who look upon the One who was pierced for our sins, that we might receive His forgiveness and begin again. 
 
Today’s Reading
The oracle of the word of the Lord concerning Israel: Thus declares the Lord, who stretched out the heavens and founded the earth and formed the spirit of man within him: 2 “Behold, I am about to make Jerusalem a cup of staggering to all the surrounding peoples. The siege of Jerusalem will also be against Judah. 3 On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And all the nations of the earth will gather against it. 4 On that day, declares the Lord, I will strike every horse with panic, and its rider with madness. But for the sake of the house of Judah I will keep my eyes open, when I strike every horse of the peoples with blindness. 5 Then the clans of Judah shall say to themselves, ‘The inhabitants of Jerusalem have strength through the Lord of hosts, their God.’
6 “On that day I will make the clans of Judah like a blazing pot in the midst of wood, like a flaming torch among sheaves. And they shall devour to the right and to the left all the surrounding peoples, while Jerusalem shall again be inhabited in its place, in Jerusalem.

7 “And the Lord will give salvation to the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem may not surpass that of Judah. 8 On that day the Lord will protect the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the feeblest among them on that day shall be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, like the angel of the Lord, going before them.9 And on that day I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.

Him Whom They Have Pierced
10 “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn. 11 On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great as the mourning for Hadad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. 12 The land shall mourn, each family by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves; 13 the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the Shimeites by itself, and their wives by themselves; 14 and all the families that are left, each by itself, and their wives by themselves.
 
13:1 “On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness.
 
Richly Dwelling
-Do you appreciate the promises of verse 10 and 13? Why or why not? Take a moment to meditate on Cowper’s hymn: There is a fountain filled with blood.
 
-Why is it significant that the work of Christ is the headwaters of the fountain of God’s grace and not our own works- and  that it is God’s Spirit who connects God’s work and His promise of grace for your heart (In other words… it is all Him!)?
 
-Where in your heart and life do you need to believe and receive God’s grace, to be washed in the fountain of His faithfulness for forgiveness and cleansing? Be specific.
 
Key Verse
10 “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.