Saving the High Priest (Zechariah 3)

In this chapter, the prophet describes his fourth vision in the series. We are not told where the incident in the vision takes place. It is probably in the temple area where Joshua would be going about his duties as high priest, although they would be limited given that the temple had not been rebuilt yet. As the high priest he was the most important individual in the group of official servants who looked after the worship of God. Joshua was a devout high priest unlike some others who occupied the position. Nevertheless, he was still a sinner who needed divine cleansing from his sins. This is a reminder that we are only sinners at best and that we cannot base our standing with God on our own abilities, even when engaged in one way or another in his service.

The confrontation (vv. 1-2)

As we can see, there are five individuals mentioned here. Two are observers, and they are Zechariah and the angel who is guiding him through the process of the visions. The other three are Joshua, the devil and the Angel of the Lord. Joshua has been accused by Satan of some imperfect activity, and the Angel of the Lord is announcing the divine verdict.

It is also important to realise that Joshua is there in a representative capacity as well as a personal one. As high priest, he represents the people of Israel, especially on the great Day of Atonement when important national rituals occurred. It may have been the case that the failure to rebuild the temple had resulted in the impossibility of keeping the rituals connected to that Day. There is a reference to iniquity on Joshua’s part, which may suggest that he was still responsible representatively for the sins of the nation as well as his own.

In any case, the devil was sure that he had grounds for accusation, both against the people in general and also against the high priest in particular. Nevertheless, the verdict was very different from what he may have expected the Lord to say. Instead he was rebuked by the Lord who had his reasons for doing so. The reasons for the rebuke were twofold: first, the Lord had selected Jerusalem and, second, Joshua had been rescued, plucked from a place of danger illustrated by the fire.

Those two reasons are important to think about because they inform us of how the process of divine vindication works. The Lord’s selection of Jerusalem stated to the devil that God was the sovereign. Whatever the devil was suggesting should happen, he was not in charge. There is only one sovereign and he is the Lord. Moreover, the choice of Jerusalem was not based on the city’s dedication because it had not been steadfast throughout its history. Instead the choice of the city was made solely by divine grace. The Lord in his mercy had now restored the city after the Babylonian captivity and its future recovery depended on his grace.

The rescue of Joshua reminds us that God had a method of restoring sinners who deserved to be punished. Joshua was not a perfect man, but in itself that was not a problem because there was a way of dealing with it. Still, we should observe that the high priest would have been in real danger if there had not been a way of dealing with his sin. Whatever is meant by the fire, it would have destroyed him.

What we have here is a description of what goes on behind the scenes that we normally see. The Bible calls the devil by the name, ‘accuser of the brethren’ (Rev. 12:10). An example of his tactics in this regard are given in the opening chapters of Job where the devil accused the patriarch of wrong motives in serving God. Another example is seen in the life of Peter when Jesus said that Satan had asked to sift that disciple as wheat. The vision also includes the activity of the individual known as the Angel of the Lord, a divine person, who here defends the guilty Joshua. This divine person is the second person of the Trinity and is the same person whom John calls the advocate with the Father (1 John 2:2).

Joshua here is a vivid picture of a well-known Bible verse in Isaiah 64:6, which says that all our righteous acts are like filthy rags. The verse does not say that all our sinful acts are like filthy rags. Instead it stresses that even the good things that we do are deeply stained by sin. Joshua the devout high priest needed something more than his religious connections and activities.

The change of clothing (vv. 3-5)

In the vision, Joshua receives a complete change of clothing. The Angel of the Lord explains why the high priest can receive this exchange. He can receive it because his iniquity has been taken away by the Angel. We are not told in the chapter how he has taken it away, but we are told of two things that the Angel does, and we are told the order in which he does them. He takes away the iniquity of Joshua and he provides new garments for Joshua.

In what way could the second person of the Trinity take away the iniquity of Joshua? I would suggest that he is basing the removal on what he would yet do when he would become a man and go to the cross. Therefore, he is saying that salvation came to Joshua in the same way as it came to all believers during Old Testament times. They looked ahead to what the Messiah would do as the Saviour of sinners.

What is depicted by the garments that Joshua was given? The Old Testament does refer to the garments of salvation. And elsewhere we are told about the robe of righteousness that is given to sinners to wear. As far as the doctrine of justification is concerned, we receive from God the robes that Jesus provided, his perfect obedience to the law that we failed to obey. It is given to us freely even as the new set of clothing was given freely to Joshua.

Something unusual is described in verse 5. Zechariah contributes to the procedure when he asks that a clean turban be put on the head of Joshua. Perhaps all that is meant is that here we have an example of unusual elements in apocalyptic literature and we are not to imagine that Zechariah could literally interrupt the process. Yet he was a prophet and they were involved in investitures of important people in Israel.

The turban of the high priest had special words written on it: ‘Holy to the Lord.’ I would suggest that Zechariah’s words reveal the strong desire of his heart, which was to see the official priesthood functioning again in the temple and on behalf of the people. The words on the turban revealed that the high priest and the people belonged to the Lord, that they had been set apart to serve him in a special way. After all, without the sanctified high priest and the sanctified people, there would not be much happening in the rebuilt temple.

The commission of Joshua (vv. 6-10)

The second person of the Trinity now addresses Joshua. His words can be divided into four different aspects. In verse 7, there is a personal charge; in verse 8, he is told that he and his friends are a sign that someone called the Branch is coming; in verse 9, he is told that purification is coming; and in verse 10, he is told that days of great peace are coming.

The details in the personal charge are obvious. Joshua was called to be a diligent and faithful high priest. His change of garment illustrated his justification and the charge here stresses his sanctification and service. Sanctification is detailed in ‘walk in my ways’ and his area of specific service in ‘keep my charge’, which was his rule over the temple. It is safe to assume that he could not engage suitably in the service unless he was being sanctified continually.

The Lord also mentions the spiritual benefits or blessing that Joshua will enjoy as one serving in a sanctified way. He will receive right of access to God’s presence. This is probably a reference to heaven because ‘those who are standing here’ are the angels and they have access to the Lord’s presence in heaven. Joshua is being assured that he will have constant contact with the throne of God as long as he lives a devoted life. This blessing is not limited to prominent servants of God, but is the blessing given to all believers who take their personal holiness and discipleship seriously.

The second detail says that Joshua and some friends, probably fellow priests, are a sign that a greater servant of the Lord will yet come, the one called the Branch. This individual was promised by the prophets before the exile and here the promise is repeated.

In Jeremiah 3:25, the prophet was told: ‘Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.’ In that prediction, the Messiah will be the ruler.

In Zechariah 6:2, a prophecy about the Branch stresses his humanity and his activity: ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, “Behold, the man whose name is the Branch: for he shall branch out from his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord.”’ And we know that Jesus was a man and we know that he is building the new temple, the church, as he adds millions of living stones to this amazing structure of which the earthly temple was but a shadow.

In Isaiah 4:2, the prophet announces that ‘In that day the branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious’. This description suggests that the Branch will be divine. It has been observed that this fourfold description of the Branch fits in with the characteristics of the Gospels. Matthew presents Jesus as king (Jeremiah’s prediction), Mark presents him as a servant (Zechariah’s first prediction), Luke presents him as a man (Zechariah’s second prediction), and John presents him as the eternal God (Isaiah’s prediction).

Isaiah also said that the Messiah would be a branch from the stem of Jesse, that he would be anointed with the Spirit and reign over a worldwide kingdom (Isa. 11). No doubt, such predictions would have encouraged the men here. Although the circumstances were so spiritually small, yet they were signs that a better kingdom was coming. And the same can be said of every Christian and of all Christians. They remind others that the new heavens and new earth will one day be here.

In the third detail, the Lord refers to an engraved stone with seven eyes. An unusual feature of this stone is that the inscription was engraved on it by the Lord. Probably the idea being stressed is the permanence of the words that he wrote. At the same time, seven eyes would be looking at the engraved words, a reminder that the Lord always looks at his own promises. It is accepted that seven is the number of perfection, and seven eyes suggests constant looking and full understanding. The Lord knows what his promises involve.

What was the promise? It was that the Lord would remove iniquity in a single day. The people of Israel were familiar with the annual day of atonement when iniquity was removed in a symbolic manner. Here the high priest is given a promise that what was depicted then would become a reality one day. We know that this is a prediction of Calvary when Jesus dealt with the iniquity of his people by paying the penalty on their behalf.

We should note the name that the Lord gives to himself here – he is the Lord of hosts, which refers to him being the Lord of the heavenly host. I wonder if we are being asked to look at the contrast here with what happened when the Lord of hosts previously engraved stones. The previous time was when he came to Mount Sinai and delivered his law to the Israelites, a law that they insisted they would be able to keep. That engraving promised punishment, but here the engraving is linked to mercy in a marvellous manner.

The fourth detail, in verse 10, says that fellowship will be enjoyed when the stain of iniquity is removed. We can see that the fellowship is both obligatory (the Lord has said it) and spontaneous (each will invite). The atmosphere will be one of peace and security.