Zechariah 14:6

"And it shall come to pass in that day, that there shall not be light; the bright ones shall withdraw themselves: but it shall be one day which is known unto Jehovah; not day and not night; but it shall come to pass that at evening time there shall be light."

Scholars complain that the text here "appears to be damaged and is very puzzling";[16] but we are sure that the best chance of understanding it lies in the acceptance of what has descended to us through so many centuries, and not in the acceptance of the wild guesses of those who subjectively try to imagine what the prophet wrote or should have written. As Watts correctly noted, "The various parts are not mentioned in the order of their occurrence."[17] Here, as in Matthew 24, we have a montage of events connected with the total time between the two Advents of Christ. No one can be sure, in some instances, of the particular time indicated, other than the general inclusion of all in the times of Messiah.

"These words have been interpreted from time immemorial in very different ways."[18] To us, the most reasonable interpretation is that which sees the whole passage as a "figurative description of the fortunes of the Church militant."[19] "Not day" and "not night," simply means that Satan will be able to confuse many people. The demarcation between truth and error shall not always be distinct. "The bright ones shall withdraw themselves" speaks of the failure of those very institutions which should be teaching people the truth, but yet are teaching them error. Universities, churches, and many other institutions fill the bill on this perfectly. The vial of God's wrath shall be poured upon the sun itself (Revelation 16:8), so that it scorches men instead of illuminating them. See the extended comment on this in my commentary on the Book of Revelation.

"At evening time, there shall be light, ..." At the close of the Gospel Age, the truth shall at last be clearly visible to all men. In the meanwhile, "we must through great tribulation enter into the kingdom of God" (Acts 14:22).

"One day which is known unto Jehovah ..." As Deane observed, "This suggests what Jesus said in Matthew 24:36."[20]

However, throughout the Scriptures such events as the sun's becoming as sackcloth of hair, and the moon becoming as blood, and the stars falling, and mighty earthquakes, and removal of mountains and islands are everywhere associated with the "last days"; and while these things certainly have a spiritual and symbolical meaning for all the generations of the Christian era, it should be remembered that a final fulfillment of such things may definitely occur in a most literal manner. There is every reason to believe that our earth shall be involved in some kind of cataclysmic disaster that shall conclude the era; and we claim no capability whatever for ascertaining exactly what it may be. The extensive references to this throughout the Bible are so numerous that no effort to present them all and comment upon them will be attempted here. One passage in Hebrews will suffice, in which the Word of God affirms that:

Yet once more will I make the earth to tremble, and not the earth only, but the heavens also. And this word "Yet once more," signifies the removing of those things which are shaken, as of things that have been made, that those things which are not shaken may remain (Hebrews 12:26,27).

We believe that same thought is included in this passage of Zechariah.