Zechariah 12:9-11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.… Consider the language of the prophet as denoting a state of mind which in its great lineaments is becoming to all men in all ages, and which must be felt in order to secure the enjoyment of spiritual blessing. I. THE SORROW HERE EMBODIED IS TO BE REGARDED IN ITS CAUSE. Here sorrow is traced to one cause. It is sorrow on account of sin. The sense of its being, its guilt and consequence, is pungently pressed upon the consciences. Observe — 1. The particular order of the sin. Although, in their relationship to the death of the Lord Jesus, the Jews were of course peculiar, there is an important sense in which all men must be regarded as participating in the guilt of "piercing Him." His death was an atoning sacrifice; the sins of men being the cause of what He endured, in order to expiate wrath and to secure salvation. "He is the propitiation for our sins," and thus it is that every sinner becomes an accomplice in the crucifixion of the Lord of glory. Set forth as Christ has been to men in the institutes and by the ministry of the Gospel, each thought and each deed of sin, cherished and loved, has been but striking at Christ another and another blow — rearing the Cross again, fastening the nails again. 2. This being the precise nature of the sin, we must notice the influence by which the guilt of it is recognised and felt. The sinner admits no guilt; his heart is a heart of stone. The consciousness of guilt is ascribed directly to Divine influence, the influence of the Holy Spirit. II. THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THIS SORROW. The conviction of sin, arising from the influence of the Spirit of grave, leads men to that mourning which constitutes the theme of these verses. That mourning of sorrow will be found suggested to us in its three great characteristics of intensity, solitude, and prayerfulness. III. THE RESULTS. One is pardon: connected with pardon is sanctification. And the third result of this sorrow for sin is joy: nothing can compare with the joy arising from the hope of pardon for sin. (James Parsons.) Parallel Verses KJV: And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.WEB: It will happen in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. |
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