Глава 12

Zechariah 12:1. The prophecy of the word of the Lord against Israel, says the Lord, expand the heavens, and found the earth, and build up the spirit of man in it. It is not I, says the Prophet, who present this to you, but the Creator and Founder of everything. He, who now forms bodies in the wombs and, together with them, commands the creation of souls, He speaks through me. Zechariah 12:2. I believe that Jerusalem is the threshold that will move all the people around, and in Judea there will be an attack on Jerusalem. I will make this city accessible and surmountable for all nations, I will liken it to the thresholds that waver and are ready to fall, so that the enemies, seeing it deprived of My providence for it, will approach, besiege it, and cause it the disasters that usually happen. Zechariah 12:3. And on that day I will lay a stone in Jerusalem that will be trodden underfoot by all the tongues: whoever tramples it underfoot will curse, and all the nations of the earth will be gathered together. Because this “stone,” according to the prophecy of Isaiah, “of great value, chosen, honorable,” which was at the forefront (Is. 28:16), they rejected as worthless; then I will cause Jerusalem to be trampled by all those who curse and intend to insult it. This prophecy is attested to by events; for we see that the place, anciently holy and revered, is now being trampled under foot. And this happened to the Jews after the cross and its fury; because before this insolence they never stopped taking advantage of God’s care for them. This is also revealed by the prophetic word, according to which God utters a promise to everyone that, when the Macedonian peoples invade them, he will deprive the horses of their natural courage, and together with the horsemen will lead them into madness and fear, and Judas will be honored with His providence for him. For he expressed this by saying: Zechariah 12:4–5. On that day, says the Lord Almighty, I will strike every horse with terror and its rider with madness: and I will open My eyes against the house of Judah, and I will strike all the horses of the people blind. And the thousands of Judah all said in their hearts, “Let us who dwell in Jerusalem find ourselves in the Lord Almighty their God.” The enemy's horses, wandering here and there, will be in no way different from the blind, and therefore the Jewish commanders, encouraged, will tell each other that Jerusalem, with the help of God, will be filled with inhabitants. Zechariah 12:6. On the day he will set the thousands of Judah as the top of fire in the wood, and as the light of fire in the stalks, and all the people around will devour on the right hand and on the left. As a brand ignites wood, and the flame consumes the stubble; so they too will destroy the enemies attacking them from everywhere. And Jerusalem will be inhabited again, that is, living according to the law, without entering into communication with pagans. And Jerusalem had this advantage until it became furious against the Savior. Zechariah 12:7. And the Lord will save the villages of Judah, as at first, for let not the praise of the house of David be magnified, nor the magnification of those who dwell in Jerusalem be magnified against Judah, because they learn from experience that without God’s help they could not succeed in anything, and having learned this, they will neither think highly of the royal power nor hope for the size of the fences. Zechariah 12:8. And on that day the Lord will protect those living in Jerusalem: and the weak one in them in that day will be like the house of David, and the house of David like the house of God, like the Angel of the Lord before them. They will place their trust in God’s providence; and therefore the Lord, common to all, will grant them His help in everything, and will give them such strength that the weakest will become like the royal house (for the Prophet called the royal house the house of David), and the royal house, by its inviolability, will be likened to the house of God; why everyone will begin to run to it, as to God’s church, and consider themselves as safe as if an Angel had been assigned to save them. For the Jews, as a result of the victory of Judah and Jonathan, acquired such glory that those living around, neighboring and adjacent peoples, willingly volunteered to fight them, and not only those close to them, but many days away, inhabiting the western countries, the Romans and the Spartans, with great zeal desired to be in an alliance with them. Zechariah 12:9–10. And it shall come to pass on that day that I will require that all the tongues that come against Jerusalem be taken away. And I will pour out on the house of David, and on them that dwell in Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and compassion. I rewarded them with so many good deeds, giving over to the enemies who attacked them to death of all kinds, and opening to them sources of mercy, and filling them with all grace; When I came to them, they repaid Me with those who opposed me, nailed me to the cross, pierced my side with a military spear, and did not cease to curse and mock Me. However, it will not be for a long time that they will see Me come in Divine glory, and they will mourn their foolishness, and just as they mourn for the firstborn youth, so, like those who mourn for the firstborn, they too will be tormented. And they will look at the nan who has broken him, and they will mourn for Him like a beloved, and they will ache for Him with illness like a firstborn. Zechariah 12:11. On the day there will be great mourning in Jerusalem, like mourning over pomegranate trees cut to the ground, Just as woodcutters, cutting down a large number of pomegranate trees, make a great knock, so their cry will be deafening to the ears of all. Not without intention, without mentioning other trees, the Prophet also presented the image of a pomegranate tree, but because their crying is likened to crying for a beloved and firstborn. The pomegranate apple, in which the seeds are very closely compressed and connected, is an image of love. Therefore, he rightly said that this cry is like cutting pomegranate trees. Zechariah 12:12–13. And the land shall mourn according to the tribes: the tribe of the house of David for themselves, and their wives for themselves: the tribe of the house of Nathan for themselves, and their wives for themselves: the tribe of the house of Levi for themselves, and their wives for themselves: the tribe of Simeon for themselves, and their wives for themselves. All the other tribes are tribes about themselves, and their wives about themselves. This means that, having divided among the tribes, especially the men, and especially the wives, will do this. The prophet mentions not only the tribes, but also the clans, the clan of David, to which promises were given about the Lord Christ, and the clan of Nathan, who, prophesying then, heard David’s prophecies, and himself uttered his own prophecies to David. Having mentioned the tribes of Levi and Simeon, he finally added: Zechariah 12:14. all the other tribes will mourn, the tribe for themselves and their wives for themselves. The Lord predicted this in the Holy Gospel: “Then they will see the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn” (Matthew 24:30). Obviously, those who did not accept the Divine preaching will weep, awaiting their destruction. But this will happen at the end; and until then, says the Lord, I will not deprive them of My providence for them, even knowing that when I come to show them good deed, they will crucify Me.