JERUSALEM. Zechariah ch 2.
Jerusalem is the spiritual epi-centre of the World. Jerusalem is mentioned 680 times in the Bible. God is involved with this city. The role of Jerusalem teaches something about the character of God and His wider purposes for the World. Jerusalem not only had a significant past. It is currently in the forefront of World news, as the struggle intensifies for control of the city. Its future will herald perhaps the greatest battle in modern times – the battle of Armageddon.
John ch 3 v 16. God so loved the World. This is not limited to the people in the World but the whole of creation. It is hardly surprising that humans have a love of the mountains. They are made in the image of God who also has a love of the mountains and all the natural creation. God has a deep concern for the city of Jerusalem. He chose it for a purpose, which is intimately linked to His plan of salvation for human beings who are the pinnacle of His creation.
It is an ancient city - 5000 years old - 20 times conquered and 14 times destroyed. Melchizedek, who met Abraham in B .C. 1800, was the King of Salem - Shalom – peace or righteousness. Gen ch 14 v 18. Abraham recognised someone greater than himself and gave him a tenth of everything. A secret relationship was birthed at that moment between God and Jerusalem. It appears as Jebus in Judges ch 19 v 10. It was inhabited by foreigners, who were not the people of God. It was chosen by God to be symbolic of a spiritual reality. It is pictured to foreshadow the Heavenly Jerusalem, where man will dwell in eternity with God forever. It is the physical picture of the spiritual truth. It has remained the spiritual centre of the World. It was 3,000 years ago that David captured the city from the Jebusites and made it his capital city. 2 Sam ch 5 v 6-11. After David captured the city he placed the Ark of the Covenant there. The ark symbolised the presence of God in Jerusalem. David reigned over Israel from there for 33 years. The Lord said in 2 Kings ch 21 v 4: "In Jerusalem shall I put my name." Solomon built the temple there. It was the centre of worship to God. The temple was huge and towered over the city. People went up to worship because Jerusalem sits on top of the mountains and the temple sits on top of Jerusalem. It was symbolic of the supremacy of God. After the Jewish people were exiled to Babylon for their sins it was the Lord who decided to rebuild Jerusalem. 2 Chron ch 36 v 22-23. It was the Lord who stirred up the spirit of Cyrus to help rebuild the temple and the city of Jerusalem. There has always been a Jewish presence in the city. Since 1900 the Jewish community spread far outside the walls of the city and created a modern urban community. Zech ch 2 v 3.
Many nations have risen and are no more. All their glory has gone - Babylon, Thebes and Nineveh. Jerusalem is the city where God chose to honour His name. It was by the Spirit of God that Nehemiah wept and mourned over Jerusalem. Nehemiah felt ashamed that the walls were broken down. He asked the king for permission to rebuild the walls. He faced an enormous struggle in the face of determined efforts of the neighbours to prevent the walls being rebuilt. What was their great concern? Why were they so bothered that the walls of a small city should be rebuilt? What was upsetting the forces of darkness, that they should go to such lengths to stop the work? It is because the rebuilding was important to God.
Jesus was presented as a baby in Jerusalem. Luke ch 2 v 22. He had His Bar Mitvah in Jerusalem at the age of 12. Luke ch 2 v 41. In Jesus’ day it was the great capital city where all the important decisions were made. Jesus went up to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles. He stood up on the last day of the feast and claimed that He was the fulfilment of the feast. It was the clearest statement of His divinity that He is God the Son and the Son of God. The Feast was designed to show that God lives amongst His people. Jesus came to fulfil the Passover and did this in Jerusalem. The trial of Jesus took place in Jerusalem and it was just outside the city walls where He was crucified. Jesus rose from the dead in Jerusalem. In Mat ch 23 v 37-39 Jesus wept over the city - not just for the people but for the city itself. God has promised to protect it. Isaiah ch 31 v 5. “He will spare and protect it.” Psalm 122 v 6-9 is a command to pray for the peace (salvation) of Jerusalem. The word for peace is shalom, which means wholeness or salvation – not just a cessation of physical hostilities. The last sight of Jesus’ physical eyes as He gave up His spirit was of the city, which lay below Him. It is hardly surprising that Jerusalem has a special place in the heart of Jesus. Jesus had often read Psalm 137 v 5. “If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand wither and let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, if I do not set Jerusalem above my highest joy.” Jesus will return to Jerusalem. The angel said so in Acts ch 1 v 11. The Eastern Gate has been closed ever since. Ezekiel says that the King will enter by the Eastern Gate. Jesus was born King of the Jews and died King of the Jews and rose as King of the Jews and is coming back as King of the Jews to His capital city - Jerusalem. The Church started in Jerusalem. Acts ch 1 v 8. “You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea and in Samaria to the ends of the Earth.” Peter preached at the southern end of the Temple Mount and 3,000 were converted. Jerusalem has a pivotal role to play. Rev ch 21 v 2.
Jesus prophesied that Jerusalem would be downtrodden by the Gentiles or non-Jews until the days of the Gentiles are fulfilled. Mat ch 23 v 37. The history of domination of Jerusalem by the Romans, the Muslims and the Turks from A. D. 70, when it was destroyed by the Romans, until 1967, is horrific. Jerusalem has been an attraction to many peoples down through the centuries for religious reasons. The Crusaders fought over her. But Rome was the first city of Christendom. The Muslims came and built their mosques on the site of the temple, which Solomon had built for the Lord at His instigation. But Mecca was always their first city. Jerusalem is never mentioned once in the Koran. Other rulers have not made Jerusalem the capital of the country ruled by them. The transformation of the city since 1967 has been amazing.
In 1917 General Allenby walked into Jerusalem freeing it from Turkish rule of the Ottoman Empire. In 1967 it came under Jewish rule for the first time since A. D. 70. That was exactly 50 years later – the law of Jubilee when property returns to its natural owner. The principle of Jubilee was taught to the Jews so that they accepted that everything belonged to God. This principle protected against the gap between rich and poor widening. It applies to believers also. The house of a believer is owned by God and leased to the believer. God is entitled to take it back like any gift and give it to another, if it is not being used properly and appreciated. The same rule applies to the body. It is on loan to house the spirit. Believers rely entirely on God for a new body one day – an immortal body to house the spirit forever. Jerusalem is a symbol of that principle.
Since 1967 Jerusalem has been transformed. In the land there have been millions of trees planted and the rainfall has increased 450% since the Turks occupied it. This is in marked contrast to places like Ethiopia, where trees were cut down and drought has been the result. Man was told by God to be a steward of the Earth. It is dangerous to spiritualise everything. Man has a responsibility to the natural World. There are parks in Jerusalem. Gradually it is being prepared for the return of the King.
Jerusalem differs from other capital cities. It is not on a major river or on the sea. It does not have a harbour. There is no mineral wealth. It is not on a major trade route. There is no major industry nor are there any natural resources nearby. It does not even have a natural water supply. There is hardly a flat piece of ground in the whole city. Everything is built on a slope. God chose the weak and foolish to confound the wise. God chose Jerusalem to challenge the people of the World. Mankind chooses a symbol of strength, like a lion or bear. God chose a lamb – one of the most vulnerable animals. Jerusalem is a household word. The Scriptures are full of references to the city. 2 Kings ch 21 v 4. “In Jerusalem shall I put my name.” Jerusalem is the capital city of a small nation at the crossroads of three continents. Ezekiel ch 5 v 5. “I have set Jerusalem at the centre of the World with countries all round her.” The salvation of the city is the real heart of World history. It is at the centre of the World. Ezek ch 5 v 5.
The wickedness of Manasseh brought terrible destruction on Jerusalem. God brought the Chaldeans to destroy the city. 2 Chr ch 36 v 19. The city was broken and burned down. Cyrus the King of Persia was charged by God to build a house for God in Jerusalem. The city is closely linked to the people. The blessings and curses of God in relation to His people are worked out in the city of Jerusalem. When the people returned, Jerusalem was the focus of their concern for the restoration of the land. David's prayer in Psalm 51 v 18 was to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. The restoration of the city was symbolic of the restoration of the people to God. That thought is confirmed by Psalm 137 v 5-6. Jesus makes it clear in Mat ch 23 v 37 that His coming is linked with the restoration of the city and the restoration of the people within the city. Man tends to spiritualise everything. The physical city of Jerusalem is loved by God
Despite the Jewish people being scattered the city of Jerusalem was central to their thoughts. They were never fully assimilated into any other country. No capital city rivalled Jerusalem in their prayers. They never belonged to Berlin or New York. “Next year in Jerusalem” was always the end of the prayers. The spirit of God has been at work reminding the people of their love affair with Jerusalem. The destruction was due to sin. The return was due to repentance. Restoration was symbolic of their being restored to God.
The use of the word trampled implies that it was unnatural for the city to be governed by those who were not Jewish. From David's time the responsibility for this unique city had been committed by God to the Jewish people. Only because of disobedience was it governed by others, but it was still unnatural. In June 1967 governmental control was returned into Jewish hands. Under the rule of the Turk, Palestine was reduced to a howling wilderness. Trees were cut down and rainfall decreased. Jesus entered Jerusalem through the Eastern Gate. Ezekiel ch 34 v 24 prophesied this. To this day the Eastern Gate has been closed and blocked with great stones and it remains closed. There is a Muslim cemetery outside of the Gate to prevent the Holy One returning through that gate.
Jerusalem is near the top of God’s agenda. Jesus promised that the city would see Him again but only when the sing Baruchaba – blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord. Jerusalem is in the centre of World attention because it has to do with the return of the Messiah. It is marvellous in the eyes of God.
The struggle for control of Jerusalem is to do with the desire of the powers of darkness to frustrate the purposes of God in relation to the city. There is not a single Middle East leader who would negotiate for the future of Jerusalem. Anwar Sadat tried it and was assassinated for his efforts. Jerusalem is at the centre of jihad – a holy war. God said that He would make Jerusalem a cup of reeling to all who try to control her. Zech 12 v 1-5. Ch 12 v 10 and ch 13 v 1.
The Jewish Parliament – the Knesset – declared that Jerusalem is the indivisible and eternal capital of Israel. It is not open for negotiation. All kinds of people want to take it away from the Jewish people. The Roman Catholic Church seeks to internationalise it. The One World Church may seek to have its centre there to deflect the purposes of God. It seems that it is not just God who has a special interest in the city. The same forces of darkness, which attempted to stop the building of the walls in Jeremiah’s time are appearing again in different guises.
Zech ch 14 v 1-5. There is still a battle to be fought over Jerusalem. The enemy will have one final onslaught against the city and the purposes of God. Ezekiel chs 38-39 describe this as the battle of Armageddon. The battle between the forces of darkness and light will come to its climax before Jesus returns. Jesus will fight against them as they attack Jerusalem. God has revealed Himself in Jerusalem. It has a special place in His thoughts and purposes. He has taught principles of truth through Jerusalem. He has challenged mankind to allegiance to Him in Jerusalem. He had given the city as a capital to His Son.