Bible Journaling: The Book of Zechariah

In this book of Zechariah, we find a longer prophetic message of 14 chapters. In this post we will journey through this prophetic book and discover how we can creatively respond to the text. A good question to always keep in mind when we are reading the Bible is : “What does this say to me today? What can I obey from this text?”

For a broader view of this book of the Bible, we encourage you to watch this video:

Bible journaling tip: 

The Bible is actually one big story. As we near the end of the Old Testament in our Bible Journaling journey, it is a good time to pause and reflect. How can you infuse your future reading of the New Testament with your new knowledge and understanding about the Old Testament? When you read about Jesus, see if you can write down the Scripture references for what He is fulfilling from the prophecies about the Messiah. Jesus did everything very intentionally - nothing happened by accident.

LOOK UP (information): encounter God through the Scripture 

Author:

Zechariah has been called a mini-Isaiah, because this prophecy includes so many clear prophecies about the Messiah. The name Zechariah means “Yahweh remembers” and this speaks about God’s faithfulness to His people. He will not abandon them or forget about them, he remembers the promises that He made to them ever since the very beginning.

Audience:

This prophecy is a message of hope that was given to the remnant, the people who God has set apart for himself. See if you can find the parts of this book that point to Jesus. This prophecy was brought to the people after the Babylonian exile. 

History:

This book includes specific prophecies about the Messiah that were fulfilled by Jesus. Read Zechariah 9:9 and see how this links with why Jesus chose to ride a donkey into Jerusalem at the Triumphal Entry that we read about in Matthew 21, Mark 11, Luke 19, and John 12. 

Genre:

This book is still part of the prophetic literature. What do you think is the significance of prophecies? What could we miss out on when we read the New Testament alone? What does the prophecies say about Jesus Christ?

LOOK IN(revelation): contemplate / reflect on our own lives

Key verse:

Zechariah 1:3 NIV

Therefore tell the people: This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'Return to me,' declares the LORD Almighty, 'and I will return to you,' says the LORD Almighty. 

Inspiration:

There are always more places in our hearts where we can return to God. Read 1 John if you do not agree with this. Pray, wait, and listen to the Holy Spirit to identify a way that you can turn back to God - or go even deeper with Him. What does it mean when God says in this verse that He will return to us? Draw a picture of you and Jesus, standing back-to-back & then draw one where you’re face-to-face.

LOOK OUT (transformation): respond with creative worship action  

Drawing prompt:

In Zechariah 3 we read about how the dirty clothes is removed from Joshua and the angel says: "See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put fine garments on you." Illustrate this exchange in a painting or drawing. Think about how this was a prophetic picture for what Jesus would do later on the cross? Try to include a symbol of the cross in your picture to point to this link.

Bible Journey with HolyJot:

Here are some questions / prompts provided by the HolyJot community. 

• What are the four chariots of Zechariah 6:1 said to represent? (Zech. 6:5)
• What did those who went forth to the land of the north accomplish? (Zech. 6:8)
• To what degree should we use the fear of coming judgment (versus God’s love) in our witnessing?

Follow this link to dive into this book with an online Bible Study group.

 Writing prompt:

There are some very strange and unique images and metaphors throughout the book of Zechariah. Write down a paragraph explaining the meaning of each of these. You can find the meaning through reading the book, connecting it with the rest of the Bible, asking the Holy Spirit to give you an interpretation, and through researching what other commentaries have said about this. 

Some of the pictures include: a woman in a basket, a flying scroll, four chariots, and the gold lampstand and two olive trees. 

Prayer:

God, I want to thank you for the book of Zechariah. Help me to understand the images in this book and to not be overwhelmed with the strangeness of the images - but that I can see their meaning and see something of who You are through this book. Let my response to this text be worship unto you!