Zechariah 14:16 - Exposition

Every one that is left. All the heathen that attacked the holy city shall not be destroyed; the remnant saved small become subjects of the Divine kingdom. Shall go up. This is the usual phrase for going to Jerusalem for the purpose of worship (comp. Isaiah 2:2 , Isaiah 2:3 ; Micah 4:2 ; Luke 2:42 ; John 7:8 ). The prophet here and in the following clause speaks as a Jew to Jews, who knew and observed only the prescribed form of worship. It is evident that the announcement could never be literally fulfilled; the Gentile world could never come yearly to pay their devotions at Jerusalem. The prediction can only signify that under Messiah's reign the Gentiles shall be converted to true religion and worship God in regular, orderly fashion, the prophet intimating this in terms derived from the old dispensation, which had the Divine sanction. The Feast of Tabernacles. The Israelites were required to appear before the Lord three times in the year ( Exodus 23:17 ; Deuteronomy 16:16 )—at the festivals of the Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. But the Gentiles are here required to present themselves only once. The Feast of Tabernacles is chosen for this occasion owing to its peculiar character and tile associations connected with it. It commemorated not only the ingathering of the harvest, but also Israel's sojourn in the wilderness and tide Divine protection there accorded to them, and their entrance into tide promised land; it was therefore a fitting symbol of the rescue of the Gentiles from the devil's kingdom, and their entry into the Church of God, where they enjoyed the blessings of God's grace and protection. It was also a more catholic feast, in one sense, titan the Passover or Pentecost, not being so distinctively Jewish, but one which all nations could keep in gratitude to the Giver of material benefits. We must remember, also, that it was at this feast that our Lord cried ( John 7:37 ), "If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink," and likewise he declared himself to be "the Light of the world" ( John 8:12 ), wishing us, it may be, to understand that this feast was the one we should need to keep, being the one which specially sets him forth as the Sustainer and Guide through life's pilgrimage.