Zec 13:1 “In that day a fountain will be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for impurity.
Zec 13:2 “It will come about in that day,” declares the LORD of hosts, “that I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, and they will no longer be remembered; and I will also remove the prophets and the unclean spirit from the land.
Zec 13:3 And if anyone still prophesies, then his father and mother who gave birth to him will say to him, ‘You shall not live, for you have spoken falsely in the name of the LORD’; and his father and mother who gave birth to him will pierce him through when he prophesies.
Zec 13:4 Also it will come about in that day that the prophets will each be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies, and they will not put on a hairy robe in order to deceive;
Zec 13:5 but he will say, ‘I am not a prophet; I am a tiller of the ground, for a man sold me as a slave in my youth.’
Zec 13:6 And one will say to him, ‘What are these wounds between your arms?’ Then he will say, ‘Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.’
Zec 13:7 “Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, And against the man, My Associate,”
Declares the LORD of hosts. “Strike the Shepherd that the sheep may be scattered; And I will turn My hand against the little ones.
These wounds are referring to the punishment of the cross and crucifixion, the perfected brutal Roman punishment.
The mention of these wounds, harmonize with the piercing before (Zec 12:10) and the smiting of the Good Shephard which follows in (Zec 13:7).
PSA 22:16 For dogs have surrounded Me;
A band of evildoers has encompassed Me;
They pierced My hands and My feet.
Mat 26:50 And Jesus said to him(Judas, the betrayer), “Friend, do what you have come for.” Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and seized Him.
Luke 23:34a But Jesus was saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”
Mat 5:44 But I say to you,
love your enemies and
pray for those who persecute you,
Romans 8:39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Acts 10:39 We are witnesses of all the things He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They also put Him to death by hanging Him on a cross.
Phi 2:8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
John 20:27 Then He said to Thomas, “Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving but believing.”
This Prophecy and fulfillment taken together, tells us how Jesus Christ came by the wounds; He received them as a “false prophet”.
Zechariah was an illustration of the Great Shephard, type of Christ pictured here…
However, remember they referred to Him as a prophet.
Telling him, Zechariah the prophet, not to prophesied, which they would have given him these wounds to be put to death for continuing.
Mat 26:63 But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, “I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.”
Mat 26:64 Jesus said to him, “You have said it yourself; nevertheless, I tell you, hereafter you will see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER and COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN.”
The Jews were turned by the false accusations and leadership of the religious hypocrites and their own harden hearts.
John 1:11 He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.
John 20:27 Then He said to Thomas, “Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.”
The number 8 days = in numerology means = a “new” beginning.
- Thomas was doubting before, but now will BE Believing!
Jesus Christ graciously, in His Goodness, handles Thomas by singled him out from the rest of the disciples.
The print of the nails, (wounds) are evident and should satisfy the questions of unbelief that Thomas was struggling with.
Jesus is saying “Keep moving forward Thomas” – Trust in Me!
Phi 4:13 I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. (He keeps pouring…)
John 20:25 So the other disciples were saying to him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”
Psalm 34:17 The righteous cry, and the LORD hears And delivers them out of all their troubles.
Jesus Christ comes to heal Thomas by gentle rebuke, curing him of his unbelief. John 20:27
Eze 34:16a “I will seek the lost, bring back the scattered, bind up the broken and strengthen the sick;
Rom 15:1 Now we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength and not just please ourselves. 2 Each of us is to please his neighbor for his good, to his edification.
John 20:28 Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.”
Luke 22:19 And when He had taken some bread and given thanks,
He broke it and gave it to them, saying,
“This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”
The Lord has instituted an ordinance on purpose to keep His death in remembrance, The Communion or The Lord’s Supper.
Remembering Him, “Proclaiming the Lord’s death” can be simulated into exactly what we see Thomas has experienced.
The prophecies fulfilled and Christ’s faithfulness to His people, should give us Hope to attest all these things about Him are True, to the entire world. Mat 28:19,20.
John 20:30 Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book;
John 20:31 but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.
- 21. Isaiah prophesied that Jesus would make intercession for sinners. This intercession began even during His crucifixion.
Prophesied: ISA 53:12
Fulfilled: LUK 23:34
Isa 53:12 Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, And He will divide the booty with the strong;
Because He poured out Himself to death, And was numbered with the transgressors;
(Isa 53:12) …Yet He Himself bore the sin of many
And interceded for the transgressors.
The Suffering Servant - Psalms 53
Heb 7:25 Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.
Luke 23:34 But Jesus was saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” And they cast lots, dividing up His garments among themselves.
Luke 23:34 “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing”;
- We see that the Love of Jesus never fails.
PSA 130: 3,4 If you, God, kept records on wrongdoings, who would stand a chance? As it turns out, forgiveness is your habit, and that is why you are worshiped. (The Message Bible)
PSA 130:3,4 If You, LORD, should mark iniquities,
O Lord, who could stand?
But there is forgiveness with You,
That You may be feared. (NASB)
Jesus not only fulfills the prophecy, but His own command also, to “love your enemies”, Mat 5:44.
Jesus practiced what He preached!!!
Mat 5:44 “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, (NKJV)
Mat 5:43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
Mat 5:45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
Mat 5:46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
Mat 5:47 If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
Mat 5:48 Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
This type of distraction can take you, being subtle or full blow attack, away from God and your advancement in the Spiritual life.
Zechariah 3:1 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.
Rev 12:10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren (Satan) has been thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night.
Jesus recognized the blindness of His enemies in His prayer. Even while going through the agony of the Cross.
We must learn to pray with the same heart, after the same pattern that Jesus did - Which is in Love. That is how Stephen did it – Acts 7:60
Acts 7: 59 They went on stoning Stephen as he called on the Lord and said, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!”
Acts 7:60 Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them!” Having said this, he fell asleep.
You are Forgiven by God, yet Accountable and Responsible for Yourselves! 2 Co 5:10, Rom 14:12
2 Corinthians 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
Romans 14:12 So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God.
1 Peter 4:8 Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins.
James 5:20 let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
Psalm 32:1 A Psalm of David. A Maskil. How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered!
Psalm 85:2 You forgave the iniquity of Your people; You covered all their sin. Selah.
We can see our discernment strengthen by the faith we place in TLJC and BE BELIEVING (like story of Thomas)
These religious leaders, mobs, self-righteous people, well knew that they were crucifying an innocent man.
1 Peter 3:15 but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence (respect for the LORD).