September 22 — The Pierced One and the Coming Day
SCRIPTURE READING:
Zechariah 10-14
SCRIPTURE:
Zechariah 10
¹Ask ye of the LORD rain in the time of the latter rain; so the LORD shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain, to every one grass in the field.
²For the idols have spoken vanity, and the diviners have seen a lie, and have told false dreams; they comfort in vain: therefore they went their way as a flock, they were troubled, because there was no shepherd.
³Mine anger was kindled against the shepherds, and I punished the goats: for the LORD of hosts hath visited his flock the house of Judah, and hath made them as his goodly horse in the battle.
⁴Out of him came forth the corner, out of him the nail, out of him the battle bow, out of him every oppressor together.
⁵And they shall be as mighty men, which tread down their enemies in the mire of the streets in the battle: and they shall fight, because the LORD is with them, and the riders on horses shall be confounded.
⁶And I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will bring them again to place them; for I have mercy upon them: and they shall be as though I had not cast them off: for I am the LORD their God, and will hear them.
⁷And they of Ephraim shall be like a mighty man, and their heart shall rejoice as through wine: yea, their children shall see it, and be glad; their heart shall rejoice in the LORD.
⁸I will hiss for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed them: and they shall increase as they have increased.
⁹And I will sow them among the people: and they shall remember me in far countries; and they shall live with their children, and turn again.
¹⁰I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon; and place shall not be found for them.
¹¹And he shall pass through the sea with affliction, and shall smite the waves in the sea, and all the deeps of the river shall dry up: and the pride of Assyria shall be brought down, and the sceptre of Egypt shall depart away.
¹²And I will strengthen them in the LORD; and they shall walk up and down in his name, saith the LORD.
Zechariah 11
¹Open thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour thy cedars.
²Howl, fir tree; for the cedar is fallen; because the mighty are spoiled: howl, O ye oaks of Bashan; for the forest of the vintage is come down.
³There is a voice of the howling of the shepherds; for their glory is spoiled: a voice of the roaring of young lions; for the pride of Jordan is spoiled.
⁴Thus saith the LORD my God; Feed the flock of the slaughter;
⁵Whose possessors slay them, and hold themselves not guilty: and they that sell them say, Blessed be the LORD; for I am rich: and their own shepherds pity them not.
⁶For I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land, saith the LORD: but, lo, I will deliver the men every one into his neighbour's hand, and into the hand of his king: and they shall smite the land, and out of their hand I will not deliver them.
⁷And I will feed the flock of slaughter, even you, O poor of the flock. And I took unto me two staves; the one I called Beauty, and the other I called Bands; and I fed the flock.
⁸Three shepherds also I cut off in one month; and my soul lothed them, and their soul also abhorred me.
⁹Then said I, I will not feed you: that that dieth, let it die; and that that is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let the rest eat every one the flesh of another.
¹⁰And I took my staff, even Beauty, and cut it asunder, that I might break my covenant which I had made with all the people.
¹¹And it was broken in that day: and so the poor of the flock that waited upon me knew that it was the word of the LORD.
¹²And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver.
¹³And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the LORD.
¹⁴Then I cut asunder mine other staff, even Bands, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.
¹⁵And the LORD said unto me, Take unto thee yet the instruments of a foolish shepherd.
¹⁶For, lo, I will raise up a shepherd in the land, which shall not visit those that be cut off, neither shall seek the young one, nor heal that that is broken, nor feed that that standeth still: but he shall eat the flesh of the fat, and tear their claws in pieces.
¹⁷Woe to the idol shepherd that leaveth the flock! the sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened.
Zechariah 12
¹The burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him.
²Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem.
³And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.
⁴In that day, saith the LORD, I will smite every horse with astonishment, and his rider with madness: and I will open mine eyes upon the house of Judah, and will smite every horse of the people with blindness.
⁵And the governors of Judah shall say in their heart, The inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be my strength in the LORD of hosts their God.
⁶In that day will I make the governors of Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; and they shall devour all the people round about, on the right hand and on the left: and Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place, even in Jerusalem.
⁷The LORD also shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem do not magnify themselves against Judah.
⁸In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them.
⁹And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.
¹⁰And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.
¹¹In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon.
¹²And the land shall mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart;
¹³The family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart; the family of Shimei apart, and their wives apart;
¹⁴All the families that remain, every family apart, and their wives apart.
Zechariah 13
¹In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness.
²And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land.
³And it shall come to pass, that when any shall yet prophesy, then his father and his mother that begat him shall say unto him, Thou shalt not live; for thou speakest lies in the name of the LORD: and his father and his mother that begat him shall thrust him through when he prophesieth.
⁴And it shall come to pass in that day, that the prophets shall be ashamed every one of his vision, when he hath prophesied; neither shall they wear a rough garment to deceive:
⁵But he shall say, I am no prophet, I am an husbandman; for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth.
⁶And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.
⁷Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones.
⁸And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein.
⁹And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God.
Zechariah 14
¹Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.
²For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
³Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.
⁴And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.
⁵And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.
⁶And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark:
⁷But it shall be one day which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light.
⁸And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be.
⁹And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.
¹⁰All the land shall be turned as a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem: and it shall be lifted up, and inhabited in her place, from Benjamin's gate unto the place of the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananeel unto the king's winepresses.
¹¹And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited.
¹²And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.
¹³And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.
¹⁴And Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered together, gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance.
¹⁵And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents, as this plague.
¹⁶And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles.
¹⁷And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain.
¹⁸And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the LORD will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.
¹⁹This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.
²⁰In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses, HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD; and the pots in the LORD'S house shall be like the bowls before the altar.
²¹Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the LORD of hosts: and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein: and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts.
DEVOTIONAL:
Zechariah 10 begins with the LORD's commitment to gather and strengthen His scattered people while condemning false shepherds who have left the flock troubled. Judah and Joseph are both named in the promise of restoration, and the LORD speaks of bringing His people back from distant lands. Chapter 11 then turns that shepherd theme toward rejection. Zechariah enacts the role of a shepherd whose work is valued at thirty pieces of silver, a contemptuous price that is cast to the potter in the house of the LORD. Matthew later draws on this prophetic complex when narrating Judas's betrayal and the purchase connected with the potter's field. The New Testament does not treat Jesus' rejection as an accident outside God's redemptive story. Israel's Messiah is the Shepherd who is undervalued and betrayed, yet God's purpose moves through that rejection toward salvation.
Chapter 12 intensifies the messianic horizon. The LORD promises a spirit of grace and supplications upon the house of David and Jerusalem, followed by the arresting statement that they will look upon Him whom they have pierced and mourn deeply. John explicitly cites this verse at Jesus' crucifixion. The pierced Messiah becomes the center of a mourning that is not hopeless despair but grace-awakened repentance. Chapter 13 follows with a fountain opened for sin and uncleanness and the removal of idols and false prophecy. Jesus also quotes Zechariah 13:7 about the shepherd being smitten and the sheep scattered as His disciples flee before the cross. These are not isolated proof texts. Together they form a pattern in which the rejected Shepherd, cleansing from sin, and restored people belong to one redemptive movement.
Zechariah 14 looks toward the day of the LORD in sweeping, difficult imagery: Jerusalem's crisis, divine intervention, the Mount of Olives, living waters, the LORD as King over all the earth, nations coming to worship, and even ordinary objects marked 'HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD.' Christians differ about the precise relationship of these details to the second coming, a future millennium, Jerusalem, and the final state. The passage should produce conviction before speculation. God's reign will become universally manifest, His enemies will not prevail forever, living water will flow, and holiness will permeate common life. The biblical future is not a sacred corner preserved inside an otherwise profane world. God's kingship claims everything, down to the ordinary pots and bells of daily work.
The cross gives Christians the interpretive center for these chapters. The One pierced is not a failed Messiah awaiting replacement. He is the risen Shepherd-King whose wounds become the means by which sinners are cleansed. His resurrection assures us that the coming day belongs to Him. That future should reshape the present. If ordinary things will bear the inscription of holiness, then Christian discipleship cannot be confined to explicitly religious moments. The kitchen, shop, office, courtroom, classroom, voting booth, workshop, and family table all belong beneath Christ's lordship. Holiness is not withdrawal from material life; it is material life consecrated to God. We await the day when the LORD is King over all the earth by learning to treat every present sphere as accountable to Him now.
In daily life, bring the whole day under Christ's kingship instead of dividing sacred from secular. Pray before difficult work because the task belongs to Him. Keep a promise because your speech is holy. Handle tools, food, money, sexuality, and technology as gifts that can be consecrated or profaned by their use. When conviction of sin comes, look to the pierced Messiah rather than hiding in shame. Repentance becomes possible because the fountain of cleansing is God's provision, not your self-punishment. In family life, make forgiveness concrete and holiness ordinary. In church, resist treating spiritual gifts as proof of character; Zechariah's false-shepherd warnings require discernment about those who claim religious authority.
In U.S. civic life, the virtue is reverence for the moral limits of every sphere of power. Pray for peace in Jerusalem and for Jewish and Arab civilians who live amid conflict, asking God for protection, justice, restraint, truthful leadership, and opportunities for reconciliation without pretending that one devotional can settle complex geopolitical questions. Pray for rulers everywhere to remember that the LORD alone is ultimate King. Ask that American Christians discuss prophecy without contempt, triumphalism, or reckless certainty. Christians should show up in public life as holy peacemakers who protect life, resist hatred, pray for Israel and all affected neighbors, and place every national interest beneath the authority of the pierced and risen Messiah.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
How do the rejected shepherd and thirty pieces of silver contribute to the New Testament's understanding of Jesus' betrayal?
What does John's citation of Zechariah 12:10 at the crucifixion reveal about the identity and significance of the pierced One?
How does 'HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD' on ordinary objects challenge a sacred-versus-secular division of Christian life?
What habits can keep discussion of Israel, prophecy, and conflict both biblically serious and pastorally humble?
PRAYER:
ADORATION: LORD and King, You will reign over all the earth, cleanse Your people, judge false shepherds, and make holiness reach ordinary life. Your pierced Messiah is worthy of worship and trust.
CONFESSION: Forgive us for undervaluing Christ, tolerating idols, dividing life into sacred and secular compartments, and using prophecy as a field for pride rather than repentance and hope.
THANKSGIVING: Thank You for the fountain opened for sin and uncleanness through Jesus, the Shepherd who was smitten and raised. Thank You that His wounds do not announce defeat but the grace by which sinners are reconciled.
SUPPLICATION – GENERAL: Consecrate our ordinary work, speech, homes, and decisions. Give churches discernment about spiritual leadership, families durable forgiveness, and believers courage to live every sphere beneath Christ's lordship.
SUPPLICATION – U.S. / CIVIC: Grant protection and justice in Jerusalem and throughout the region, restrain hatred against Jews and Arabs, guide our nation's leaders with wisdom, and teach American Christians to pray and speak about prophecy without arrogance or dehumanization.
SCRIPTURE: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him,