Hello people today I write about the amazing revelation given in a vision to the prophet Zechariah in the Old Testament.

Zechariah 3:1-9
1 Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him.2 The LORD said to Satan, “The LORD rebuke you, Satan! Indeed, the LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?”3 Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments and standing before the angel.4 He spoke and said to those who were standing before him, saying, “Remove the filthy garments from him.” Again he said to him, “See, I have taken your iniquity away from you and will clothe you with festal robes.”5 Then I said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments, while the angel of the LORD was standing by.
6 And the angel of the LORD admonished Joshua, saying,7 “Thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘If you will walk in My ways and if you will perform My service, then you will also govern My house and also have charge of My courts, and I will grant you free access among these who are standing here.
8 Now listen, Joshua the high priest, you and your friends who are sitting in front of you–indeed they are men who are a symbol, for behold, I am going to bring in My servant the Branch.9 For behold, the stone that I have set before Joshua; on one stone are seven eyes. Behold, I will engrave an inscription on it,’ declares the LORD of hosts, ‘and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.10 ‘In that day,’ declares the LORD of hosts, ‘every one of you will invite his neighbor to sit under his vine and under his fig tree.'”

To give you some ground for the above story, Joshua is High Priest of God’s Temple around 520BC & he is assigned with restoring the Temple, the people return from exile in Babylon. I’d like to tell you first that “Satan” means one who accuses you before God. From verse 2 we learn Biblical etiquettes even in dealing with Satan, you can see here that Joshua or the angel of God did not stone or throw footwear at Satan, God has no intention to let His people stoop to the level of Satan, Satan’s punishment is not stoning or throwing footwear but eternal fire. We see here that God denounced Satan by speaking rebuke towards him and declaring possession over His people right in front of this accuser. The word rebuke means to express stern disapproval and we see something along the same lines in Matthew 4:1-11, which brings me to ponder that Zech 3:2 was spoken by Jesus Himself.

Matthew 4:1-11
1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.2 And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry.3 And the tempter came and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.'”
5 Then the devil took Him into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple,6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written,
‘He will command His angels concerning You’;
and
‘On their hands they will bear You up,
So that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.'”
7 Jesus said to him, “On the other hand, it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.'”
8 Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and *showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory;9 and he said to Him, “All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me.”10 Then Jesus said to him, “Go, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.'”11 Then the devil left Him; and behold, angels came and began to minister to Him.

The word ‘Brand’ in Zechariah 3:2, is a burning stick and in reference to Joshua refers to him being saved from hell’s fire. Zech3 verse 3 synchronizes with Isaiah 64:6 also from the Old Testament, we see here that when we stand before God clothed in the righteousness of our own good deeds or lawful religion, our garments seem like rags compared to the righteousness God is clothed in.

Isaiah 64:6
6 We have all become like one who is unclean,
and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment.
We all fade like a leaf,
and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.

Zech 3 verses 3-5 are very similar to the reconciliation in the story of the prodigal son has after he comes back to his father, having squandered his share of inheritance in Luke 15:20-24.

Luke 15:20-24
20 So he got up and started back to his father.
“He was still a long way from home when his father saw him; his heart was filled with pity, and he ran, threw his arms round his son, and kissed him. 21 ‘Father,’ the son said, ‘I have sinned against God and against you. I am no longer fit to be called your son.’ 22 But the father called his servants. ‘Hurry!’ he said. ‘Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and shoes on his feet. 23 Then go and get the prize calf and kill it, and let us celebrate with a feast! 24 For this son of mine was dead, but now he is alive; he was lost, but now he has been found.’ And so the feasting began.

You will notice great similarity in Zech 3:4 & Luke 15:22-23. The inequity that was taken away from Joshua was similar to shame taken away from the prodigal son in Luke 15. This friend is what grace about; grace being the undeserved favour you receive from God, as a sinner. Your life here in this world is about religious performance but about what God has done for you as a sinner.

You may however ask as how come Joshua was saved, when the price of sin was not as yet paid on the cross, incase you are wondering if there were more cases like these in the Old Testament, the answer is yes, consider the case of the prophet Isaiah.

Isaiah 6:7
He touched my lips with the burning coal and said, “This has touched your lips, and now your guilt is gone, and your sins are forgiven.”

In case you don’t know how such a thing can happen then let me introduce you to something called radical faith. Something which will make you thank God for something before you even ask for it or before it is given to you. Let me give you an example, I have been struggling with my new job and going to work was like walking to the gallows. One day I just looked up on my way to work and I thanked Jesus, in my pain but knowing that he would deliver me from this trial. A strange peace came upon me then, which you will know only if His Spirit stirs you. I have now been transferred to e-mails, this peace made me so sure of my rescue like a person who is sure of a better life when he walks out of prison. So you see prophets and patriarchs such as Isaiah and Abraham, lived in faith with God (Romans 4:3) & this is what counted them among the righteous that is ‘saved them’. The price of their sin was paid later but their slate was wiped clean as soon as they put their trust in God, they too have Jesus to thank for their salvation. Hebrews 9:25-28 will provide some scripture to show you that the work of Salvation on the cross was all ages before and after.

Romans 4:3
3 For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.”

Hebrews 9:25-28 (New Testament)
25 Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, 26 for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27 And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, 28 so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

The House of God in Zech 3:7, refers to God’s people,

2Corinthians 6:16 (Apostle Paul to the Church)
For we are the temple of the living God! As God himself has said: “I will make my home with my people and live among them; I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”

“The Branch” referred to in Zech 3 verse 8 refers to the body of believers in Jesus as a whole, known as the Church.

John 15:5 (Jesus’ word)
5 “I am the vine, and you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will bear much fruit; for you can do nothing without me.

This is confirmed in Zech 3 verse 9, as the stone with seven eyes refers to Jesus (Rev 5:6), but Biblically the body of Christ is the whole Church (Eph 5:23), for whom Christ died to take away the inequity of that land in one day. Rev 3:11-12 gives you an idea for what the Lord of Host, will inscribe on His Church. Incase you ask why Jesus refers to His father as His God when He (Jesus) Himself is God, then I would like to tell you that in the Bible even the Father referred to His Son as God (Heb 1:8). This should not be interpreted as God has a God but that they all are the same God (John 10:22), obey Jesus is obeying the Father (1Jn2:23 & 2Jn1:9).

Revelation 5:6
6 And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.

Revelation 3:11-12 (Jesus’ word to His Church)
11 I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown. 12 The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name.

2John 1:9
Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son.

Zech 3 verse 10 speaks of days, when every one who believes in Jesus (the Church), will openly invite his neighbor out of love (Mat 22:39) to sit under the goodness of his vine, which is Biblically Jesus as per John 15:5 (above) and under the fig tree is figuratively speaking from John 1:43-50 to have a revelation of Jesus and come to love Him (Mat 22:37) for who He really is, which is the only way to Salvation

Matthew 22:37-39
37…“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

John 1:43-50
43 The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” 44 Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. 45 Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 46 Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” 47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!” 48 Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” 49 Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” 50 Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.”