I did a comprehensive study on faith several years ago.  I think I have even written a few posts on the things I learned, but I don't think I ever did one on this aspect of faith.  If I did, it was before I reached the startling conclusion that faith, far from being some sort of mystical quality that can be difficult to define, boils down to simple trust.  Trust that God knows what He is doing, no matter how it feels to me at the moment.  Trust that He has my best interests at heart in a spiritual way, even if it looks like my physical life is falling apart.  I love making discoveries when I study, and I love sharing them.  So here goes.
            I saw many occasions in the Scriptures where things like this were said:  O ye of little faith; I have not seen so great a faith; and Increase our faith.  In some way, faith can be quantified, and, more important to us I think, it can grow.  A little more searching and pondering and I came to the conclusion that some things take more faith (trust) to handle than others.  So maybe we should take note of those things so that our faith will not fail because we were unprepared.
            And as they went on their way through the cities, they delivered them the decrees to keep which had been ordained of the apostles and elders that were at Jerusalem. So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and increased in number daily (Acts 16:4-5).  When we exercise a particular muscle, that muscle will usually be sore the next day.  We can either stop exercising and see an actual decrease in strength, or we can keep exercising and grow stronger.  It seems to me that exercising our "learning muscle" can work the same way.  Sometimes learning hurts because it shows us our weaknesses, our faults, our misunderstandings of the Word.  So what will we do about it?  Keep working and studying and learning, or quit because we don't want to learn something new or what we learn—some "decrees"--may not be to our liking.  So learning new things not only requires us to trust that God knows best whether you agree with Him or not!  Only those without that kind of trust (faith) will rebel.
            We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers, as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing. Therefore we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring (2Thess 1:3-4).  Paul tells the Thessalonians that he boasts about their growing faith and love for each other.  But what is it that is making that faith grow?  Persecutions and afflictions.  I suppose this ought to be a no-brainer.  Of course it requires more faith to handle persecution and afflictions, and those very things are also making their faith and love grow. 
            Pay attention to yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him, and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.” The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” (Luke 17:3-5).  I have always found this passage hilarious.  Jesus says we are to forgive again and again and again, even for the same sin, and the apostles immediately cry out, "Lord, increase our faith!"  These men knew that it would take a lot more faith than they had at the moment to obey that command.  Faith to forgive?  Yes.  Remember, faith is trust, and it takes that kind of faith to rely on God to take care of the wrongs done against us.  Vengeance is mine, he says in Romans 12:19, I will repay.  Do we trust Him to handle our affairs, or do we think we need to take care of it ourselves?  If we find ourselves unable to forgive, then maybe we don't have enough faith (trust) in God to do so, no matter how much we protest otherwise.
            But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. They said to you, “In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions.” It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit. But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life (Jude 1:17-21).  This might be the most obvious case.  We need a strong faith to handle it when people scoff at our beliefs.  How many have fallen because someone called them stupid for believing in God?  How many could not stand up to the crowd and dare to be different?  And how many times have divisions in the Lord's body caused the weak to falter and eventually leave.  "If this is the Lord's church, I don't want any part of it."  If only they had worked harder on "building up" their faith instead of allowing others to tear it down.  When you see these things happening, pray for God to "Increase our faith."  We are trusting in Him, not in fallible, flawed people, because that is what the church is made of.  If you want the perfect group of people, then you had better stay away from it yourself.
            Remember when these times come to shore up your faith.  In fact, start working on it now before the hard times come.  Lack of preparation is no excuse.  If I can find over 200 passages on faith, what it is, how to build it, when we need it most, and the wonderful things it can do for us, so can you!
 
And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, said, “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. And I brought him to your disciples, and they could not heal him.” And Jesus answered, “O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me.” And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him, and the boy was healed instantly. Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.” (Matt 17:14-20).
 
Dene Ward

If you "grew up in the church," if you have been a Christian for 20 years or more, you certainly know Hebrews chapter 11.  Some people call it the Faith Hall of Fame, as good a description as any, I suppose.  If I asked you to list the names in that chapter, you probably could.  But even though we are all familiar with it, I am not sure very many of us really understand what it means to our lives.  After all, we aren't great heroes of faith are we?  We certainly ought to be!
           So I have taken a liberty or two—or three, or four—and with your kind indulgence present the following, hoping it will help not only me, but you also.

            By faith the young mother arises to another day of endless chores, sick babies, and not enough time to handle it all, knowing in her heart the importance God has set on her managing her home and teaching her family, and willing to work hard at it even when it seems to present no immediate rewards.
            By faith the father returns to a job he doesn't really like, among people who are godless, immoral, often foul-mouthed and intemperate because he realizes that God has given him a family to support and children to raise.  He won't quit because he doesn't enjoy the work or the boss doesn't treat him right, but will keep on working "as unto the Lord."
            By faith the teenager takes the mean teasing of his so-called friends and still refuses to participate with them in their filthy language, immodest apparel, drinking, drugging, and sexual immorality, valuing his purity as a vessel fit for God's use rather than his own comfort among his peers.
            By faith the single child of God serves even those who constantly pester him about his choices in life, making him feel useless or immature as a Christian, simply because he has not married.  He takes it all with equanimity and grace, accomplishing just as much or more than they do for the God he loves.
            By faith the widow arrives at the meetinghouse on Sunday morning, sits where she has always sat with an empty place next to her, and sings with even more spirit the songs of a loving Savior and the promises he has given us, planning to meet her life's love at the gate where she is sure he is waiting.
            By faith the woman whose husband has forsaken her, who now faces a life of hardship and perhaps even poverty, understands that she still has children to raise, and who, despite a life that has completely fallen apart, a broken heart, and endless, but hidden, tears, raises them to be good citizens, good servants, and even to respect a father who has deserted them because that is what God expects her to do.
            By faith the man who receives a terminal diagnosis faces it with strength because he believes in the hope God has promised, and sees it as his responsibility to set the example for others.
            By faith the couple who lose a child, despite the most horrible pain imaginable, teach their remaining children about a God who loves them and a sibling who will be with them again someday if they will only be as true and faithful as the example their parents are setting before them.
            I will let you supply the names to these people.  I know them all.  Some of them are you.
 
And what shall I more say? for the time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah; of David and Samuel and the prophets: who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, waxed mighty in war, turned to flight armies of aliens. Women received their dead by a resurrection: and others were tortured, not accepting their deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection: and others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: they were stoned, they were sawn asunder, they were tempted, they were slain with the sword: they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated (of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves, and the holes of the earth. And these all, having had witness borne to them through their faith, received not the promise, God having provided some better thing concerning us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect. (Heb 11:32-40)
 
Dene Ward        

I hate packing for a trip.  I hate unpacking when I get home worse.  That is one thing so exciting about the trip to Heaven.  I won’t have to do either one!
            And you know what?  When we decide to make that move into the kingdom, we don’t have to pack for that either.  In fact, Jesus wants us to leave all our baggage behind.  Not just our lives of sin, but all those biases that keep us from seeing clearly. 
            Sometimes I let the difficult times I have been through color my view of everything else.  It can affect how I view my brethren, always expecting the worst and even looking for it.  It can affect my faith so that I cannot totally surrender my life to God; I feel a need to “help Him out” just a little.  It can affect my view of the kingdom itself, so that I want to protect it by building walls closer inside to help keep it pure, and even make me less than welcoming to others who need a haven.  It can make me too sober, too serious, too unwilling to crack a smile and rejoice! 
           I may have fought some serious battles for the Lord, but that does not make me the only good judge of what is and is not good for the health of the kingdom.
           I may have come from a religious group that does many things contrary to the law of Christ, but that does not mean that “what those people did” is the authority for deciding what God’s people cannot do.  95% of rat poison is good rat food; otherwise the rats would never eat it!  So what we do may in some cases match what they do—the scriptural parts anyway. 
           I may have learned that a doctrine is unscriptural but that does not mean that a full 180 degree turn in the other direction is necessary.  We often overreact just to make sure we do not do something wrong, and wind up being wrong in the opposite direction.  The Pharisees were good at that.
        I need to remember that I should come to Christ with empty hands, bringing nothing from the old life.  Wherefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things have passed away; behold they have become new.  All the old things have changed to new things.  No old baggage to deal with any longer.
           If I truly have faith in my Lord, I don’t need anything from that old life.  It’s a little scary, but that is the nature of trust, isn’t it?
 
Peter began to say to him, Lo we have left all and have followed thee.  Jesus said, Truly I say to you, there is no man who has left house or brothers or sisters, or mother, or father, or children, or lands, for my sake, and for the gospel’s sake, but he shall receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brothers, and sisters, and mothers, and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the world to come eternal life.  Mark 10:28-30        
 
Dene Ward

The last in the series.

Again I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, four chariots came out from between two mountains. And the mountains were mountains of bronze. The first chariot had red horses, the second black horses, the third white horses, and the fourth chariot dappled horses—all of them strong. Then I answered and said to the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?” And the angel answered and said to me, “These are going out to the four winds of heaven, after presenting themselves before the Lord of all the earth. The chariot with the black horses goes toward the north country, the white ones go after them, and the dappled ones go toward the south country.” When the strong horses came out, they were impatient to go and patrol the earth. And he said, “Go, patrol the earth.” So they patrolled the earth. Then he cried to me, “Behold, those who go toward the north country have set my Spirit at rest in the north country.” (Zech 6:1-8)
            First of all, you can't miss the similarities in this passage and the ones in Ezek 14:21 and Rev 6:1-8.  Yes, you can find small differences, but the overall picture is what matters in figurative language, not the tiny details, and the picture here is judgment. 
            In Revelation the white horse is conquest, the red is war, the black is famine, and the pale horse is death, and they were given authority… to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by wild beasts of the earth. (Rev 6:8)  In Ezekiel the judgments are sword (war), famine, wild beasts, and pestilence.  Obviously, then, the chariots and horses in Zechariah are also judgments sent from God.  In this case, the judgment is over the heathen. 
            Notice the full circle these visions have taken.  In the first vision, the horses had gone out to patrol the earth and had reported to God that the heathen nations were "at rest."  The next six visions deal with God's people and the promised kingdom.  God would protect them, and any who hurt them would be dealt with.  He would cleanse them, He would help them accomplish the task of rebuilding and be with them while they waited for the Messiah.  His Law was still in effect and wickedness would be removed.  And now, here, in the final vision, we are back to the pagans again.  Only this time the horses are not coming back with a report.  This time the horses are going out in judgment. 
            And so for us today, judgments from God keep coming.  Nations have fallen in wars, earthquakes have shaken and destroyed great cities, volcanoes have erupted and left vibrant cities in ruins, storms have swept in and blown away homes and families.  Sometimes we are caught in those judgments, but God does not forget who we are and what is happening to us.  (His faithful are marked in both Revelation and Ezekiel.)  God is calling for repentance among the pagans.  He is giving them another chance, and we may yet lie under the altar with the martyrs before it's over, asking Him, "How long?"
            The message is clear.  You may have to wait a long time, but the time will come.  God will judge the unbelieving.  He will avenge his slaughtered and persecuted people.  He has brought them all together in a pure kingdom under a mighty Messiah—forever.
 
But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, forever and ever.’ (Dan 7:18)
 
Dene Ward
 

Then the angel who was speaking with me went out and said to me, “Lift up now your eyes and see what this is going forth.” I said, “What is it?” And he said, “This is the ephah going forth.” Again he said, “This is their appearance in all the land (and behold, a lead cover was lifted up); and this is a woman sitting inside the ephah.” Then he said, “This is Wickedness!” And he threw her down into the middle of the ephah and cast the lead weight on its opening. Then I lifted up my eyes and looked, and there two women were coming out with the wind in their wings; and they had wings like the wings of a stork, and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heavens. I said to the angel who was speaking with me, “Where are they taking the ephah?” Then he said to me, “To build a temple for her in the land of Shinar; and when it is prepared, she will be set there on her own pedestal.” (Zech 5:5-11)
            Zechariah sees an "ephah."  An ephah is a standard Hebrew measure, about 22 liters I found in several books.  However it is quite possible that the word here simply means "large."  Here is a large basket, large enough to hold a grown woman.  Evil is often personified as a woman in the Bible, but lest you get your knickers in a knot, notice who it is that carries this "Evil" away and disposes of it—two [good] women.  She is deposited in Shinar, "the ancient name for the district in which Babylon, Erech, and Akkad were situated (Gen 10)."  (Homer Hailey)  These places were associated with going against God's way.  Baldwin says they were symbolic of Satan's government.
            The message is this:  wickedness will not be tolerated in God's kingdom.  It will be removed.  So how is that encouraging, especially when we know we still on occasion sin?  It's the attitude, people.
            Then he cried in my ears with a loud voice, saying, “Bring near the executioners of the city, each with his destroying weapon in his hand.” And behold, six men came from the direction of the upper gate, which faces north, each with his weapon for slaughter in his hand, and with them was a man clothed in linen, with a writing case at his waist. And they went in and stood beside the bronze altar. Now the glory of the God of Israel had gone up from the cherub on which it rested to the threshold of the house. And he called to the man clothed in linen, who had the writing case at his waist. And the LORD said to him, “Pass through the city, through Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in it.” And to the others he said in my hearing, “Pass through the city after him, and strike. Your eye shall not spare, and you shall show no pity. (Ezek 9:1-5)
            In Ezekiel's vision, God is ready to slaughter the people of Jerusalem.  But first he sends a man to mark those who "sigh and groan" over the sin in that city so they will be spared.  These people are not perfect, but they don't sit back and enjoy watching the sin either.   They don't abstain while wishing they could participate.  These people hate the sin, even when they themselves slip and fall.  When you have that attitude, when you have learned to love what God loves and hate what he hates—sin!—the thought of being in a place where it no longer exists is liberating.
            And that is why God's kingdom ousts the rebellious.  (1 Cor 5, etc.) Not the people who slip and fall, but the ones who sin and dare you to do anything about it.  The ones who are proud of their sin, as well as those who approve of them (Rom 1:32).  
            If you hate sin, God's kingdom will be your haven.  It is the place you can go to get away from the filth of this world and calm your weary heart, your sore eyes, and battered ears.  This is where your soul can rest.
​
Hot indignation seizes me because of the wicked, who forsake your law. ​I look at the faithless with disgust, because they do not keep your commands. My eyes shed streams of tears, because people do not keep your law. (Ps 119:53, 158,136)
 
Dene Ward

Again I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, a flying scroll! And he said to me, “What do you see?” I answered, “I see a flying scroll. Its length is twenty cubits, and its width ten cubits.” Then he said to me, “This is the curse that goes out over the face of the whole land. For everyone who steals shall be cleaned out according to what is on one side, and everyone who swears falsely shall be cleaned out according to what is on the other side. I will send it out, declares the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter the house of the thief, and the house of him who swears falsely by my name. And it shall remain in his house and consume it, both timber and stones.” (Zech 5:1-4)
            In this vision Zechariah sees a flying scroll, one about 30 by 15 feet, like a billboard or, as one of my students most aptly said, like one of those signs airplanes pull after them in the sky.  Although a lot of commentators go on and on about the meaning of this short vision, it really is not that difficult.
            The scroll represents the Law.  The two particular laws mentioned represent the two aspects of the Law.  Thou shalt not steal stands for all the sins against one's neighbor, while invoking God's name to swear falsely stands for all the sins against God.  The Law always carried with it blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience.  These people stand a thousand years after the giving of the Law.  God is making sure they understand that He still judges them by it.  It is still relevant.  Nothing about right and wrong has changed, and neither have the blessings and curses.
            This vision also stands as an encouragement to those such as Joshua and Nehemiah who had to enforce the Law.  If they must make hard decisions concerning covenant breakers among them, God is squarely behind them.  In fact, even in their own homes, the sinners will find that lawbreaking will eventually be their undoing.  Anyone who has seen the results of sin in a home, whether adultery, abuse, drunkenness, addiction, or any other such thing, knows it is true.
            And now the people know, too, that their sin will not be tolerated; that they cannot claim affinity with the people of God while breaking his Law. 
            In our day, in our culture, we need the same lesson.  The gospel is still relevant.  The laws of God are still in effect.  The leaders we have need the same encouragement:  you must still enforce those laws, even if it means "cleaning out" the house of God.  And we must support them for if we do not, we are standing against God.
            Trying to do right in a sin-filled society is hard.  Surely it helps to know that we are standing on the side of truth, no matter what our neighbors might think, and someday, no matter what our civil laws might say. 
 
​The LORD's curse is on the house of the wicked, but he blesses the dwelling of the righteous. (Prov 3:33)
 
Dene Ward

And he said to me, “What do you see?” I said, “I see, and behold, a lampstand all of gold, with a bowl on the top of it, and seven lamps on it, with seven lips on each of the lamps that are on the top of it. And there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left.” And I said to the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?” Then the angel who talked with me answered and said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.” Then he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts. Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain. And he shall bring forward the top stone amid shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’” Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also complete it. Then you will know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you. For whoever has despised the day of small things shall rejoice, and shall see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. “These seven are the eyes of the LORD, which range through the whole earth.” Then I said to him, “What are these two olive trees on the right and the left of the lampstand?” And a second time I answered and said to him, “What are these two branches of the olive trees, which are beside the two golden pipes from which the golden oil is poured out?” He said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.” Then he said, “These are the two anointed ones who stand by the Lord of the whole earth.” (Zech 4:2-14)
            This night vision is a bit more involved, but many elements of it become obvious if you have spent any time in the Old Testament at all.
            Zechariah sees a lampstand.  Lampstands were common in the time, and one even stood in the Temple.  Scholars argue about the details of this one, but everyone gets the main point—this lampstand is directly attached to an olive tree on either side, from which the oil flows constantly.  This lampstand will never go out.
            In the middle of the vision, the angel gives a message for Zerubbabel—you will accomplish your mission.  Evidently, the man needed some encouragement, just as all good leaders do.  The people had been uncooperative at times—else why had the services of Haggai and Zechariah been needed?  The work was long, hard, and dangerous.  Yet, "the hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation…and his hands will complete it."  How?  Not with an army, not with wealth or status, but by the Spirit of God.  How could he fail with that power behind him?
            And then the prophet gives a message for them all:  "Do not despise the day of small things."  No, this is not the glorious, restored kingdom you have been promised.  Yes, this Temple is nothing compared to Solomon's, but those glorious things cannot come without these small things happening first.  If these people had not returned, if they had not built up their nation once again, if they had not built a Temple and rebuilt the walls, then what?
            Surely you can see the application to us.  We are that glorious Messianic kingdom.  And how is it built?  Not with armies, not with wealth or status, but by the Spirit of God.  It is built when we edify one another.  It is built when the world sees our love for each other, our peace, our joy, and wants the same things.  It is built when we offer the gospel day in and day out, not worrying about the "increase" but leaving that to God.
            And though our efforts may look small, especially when we insist on quantifying it, nothing is small when it comes to the work of God.  We all have our place in His plan.  Small congregations few and far between are large in the eyes of God as long as we are working, teaching, serving, giving, sharing, spreading light to the world through our lampstands (Rev 1:20).  We must never stop.
            The vision ends with "the two anointed ones"—the offices of priest and king under the Law.  In reality for us, the priest is the king, the Messiah, two in one.  This was their hope for thousands of years, and now He is ours too.
 
Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. (Phil 2:14-16)
 
Dene Ward

Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. And the LORD said to Satan, “The LORD rebuke you, O Satan! The LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this a brand plucked from the fire?” Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clothed with filthy garments. And the angel said to those who were standing before him, “Remove the filthy garments from him.” And to him he said, “Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments.” And I said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the LORD was standing by. And the angel of the LORD solemnly assured Joshua, “Thus says the LORD of hosts: If you will walk in my ways and keep my charge, then you shall rule my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you the right of access among those who are standing here. Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, you and your friends who sit before you, for they are men who are a sign: behold, I will bring my servant the Branch. For behold, on the stone that I have set before Joshua, on a single stone with seven eyes, I will engrave its inscription, declares the LORD of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of this land in a single day. In that day, declares the LORD of hosts, every one of you will invite his neighbor to come under his vine and under his fig tree.” (Zech 3:1-10)
            First, let's get some basic information out of the way.  Joshua here is not the Joshua of the Two Faithful Spies and Successor of Moses.  This is the high priest who returned from Babylon with the exiles.  Understand, that meant the exiles were careful to keep their genealogies intact.  This had to be an exciting time for Joshua.  Ezekiel and his colleagues had been priests without a Temple.  The only duty that a priest in exile could perform lawfully was teaching the Law.  Finally they have the opportunity to perform all the tasks they had trained for.
            However, in this vision, Joshua, the high priest, represents the people standing before the Accuser in a trial of sorts.  There is no doubt about his guilt—he is clothed in filthy garments, plainly identified as "iniquity."  Animal sacrifices are never mentioned.  It takes heavenly beings to remove the dirty clothing and only God himself can replace them with garments suitable for spiritual service as priests. 
            Then the Branch is introduced in the same vision, in the same context.  While he is not specifically identified here, in 6:12,13 we see that he will build the Temple of the Lord and rule as priest on his throne.  From many other passages, we are certain this is the Messiah.  And look what he is associated with in this night vision:  the removal of iniquity "in one day."  You can argue about whether that day is his crucifixion, his resurrection, or even the Day of Pentecost when "the land" (Isa 66:8) came into existence.  Whichever it is, we know that salvation is coming with this "Branch."
            And not only that, but every one of you will invite his neighbor to come under his vine and under his fig tree.  To those people, dwelling under your vine and fig tree symbolized peace and security.  With the trials these returning exiles continued to experience, with the arbitrary nature of the pagan kings they counted upon for provisions, with the droughts and crop failures, and the enemies who lived just over the rise, security sounded wonderful.  It was icing on the promised Messiah cake.
            And we, too, need this vision.  Sometimes we forget the wonderful thing our Savior has accomplished for us—saving us from sin—because we are so wrapped up in the trials of life.  We have security and peace too, not from persecution, not from the calamities of a physical world, but from the wrath of God.  Our sins have been removed.  That is what we have to share with our neighbors.  That is the peace we invite them to—peace with God.  But if they do not see the joy and peace it brings in our lives, even in the midst of trials, they won't think it is worth very much either.
 
​Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. (John 14:27)
 
Dene Ward

And I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, a man with a measuring line in his hand! Then I said, “Where are you going?” And he said to me, “To measure Jerusalem, to see what is its width and what is its length.” And behold, the angel who talked with me came forward, and another angel came forward to meet him and said to him, “Run, say to that young man, ‘Jerusalem shall be inhabited as villages without walls, because of the multitude of people and livestock in it. And I will be to her a wall of fire all around, declares the LORD, and I will be the glory in her midst.’” Up! Up! Flee from the land of the north, declares the LORD. For I have spread you abroad as the four winds of the heavens, declares the LORD. Up! Escape to Zion, you who dwell with the daughter of Babylon. For thus said the LORD of hosts, after his glory sent me to the nations who plundered you, for he who touches you touches the apple of his eye: “Behold, I will shake my hand over them, and they shall become plunder for those who served them. Then you will know that the LORD of hosts has sent me. Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion, for behold, I come and I will dwell in your midst, declares the LORD. And many nations shall join themselves to the LORD in that day, and shall be my people. And I will dwell in your midst, and you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you. And the LORD will inherit Judah as his portion in the holy land, and will again choose Jerusalem.” Be silent, all flesh, before the LORD, for he has roused himself from his holy dwelling. (Zech 2:1-13)
            If ever a night vision should be a comfort to us in this present age, it is this one.  Yes, it also reminded those people that as long as God was on their side they needed no other protection. The temple was the priority, but when the time was right, they built the walls under Nehemiah's leadership.  But the Jerusalem Zechariah pictures here is not that ancient city.  The Jerusalem in the vision is one that experiences a population explosion like none seen before.  God's children from every part of the world--from many nations--will come into it.  God will dwell in its midst, yet we know that the glory of God that had dwelt in the physical Temple never returned to their rebuilt Temple.  Zechariah is speaking of the New Jerusalem, the one where all nations, both Jew and Gentile, would be his people, the one in which His glory would again dwell.   And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the LORD of hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the LORD of hosts. The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the LORD of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the LORD of hosts.’” (Hag 2:7-9)
            And that is us, folks, the kingdom of his son, the body of Christ, the church, "a kingdom which cannot be shaken" (Heb 12:28).  Because we are a spiritual city, we have no walls, but he is telling us that we won't need them.  He will be our "wall of fire about them, there's nothing now to fear" ("Lily of the Valley," lyrics by William C. Fry).  As we approach a new age of possible, and probable, persecution, that promise should mean even more.  People all over the world have suffered.  Our turn might be coming. 
            Understand, that does not mean we won't be harmed physically.  But it does mean that the promised kingdom will not be destroyed, and that our reward is sure.
 
O LORD, how many are my foes! Many are rising against me; many are saying of my soul, there is no salvation for him in God. — Selah But you, O LORD, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head. I cried aloud to the LORD, and he answered me from his holy hill. — Selah I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the LORD sustained me. I will not be afraid of many thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around. Arise, O LORD! Save me, O my God! For you strike all my enemies on the cheek; you break the teeth of the wicked. Salvation belongs to the LORD; your blessing be on your people! — Selah (Ps 3:1-8)
 
Dene Ward        

And I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, four horns! And I said to the angel who talked with me, “What are these?” And he said to me, “These are the horns that have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.” Then the LORD showed me four craftsmen. And I said, “What are these coming to do?” He said, “These are the horns that scattered Judah, so that no one raised his head. And these have come to terrify them, to cast down the horns of the nations who lifted up their horns against the land of Judah to scatter it.” (Zech 1:18-21)
            The second night vision is short and, to those returned exiles, probably very sweet.  "Horns" in the Bible represent power and especially military strength.  To cut off a nation's horn is to render it powerless against attack.  God here is promising them that the "four horns" which scattered his people will be destroyed.
            Who are the four horns?  That is a source of debate among the scholars, but I would think that Assyria and Babylon are two of them—it only makes sense.  But once again, it's that number "four" that may be the key.  Israel had enemies on every side.  Even during the siege of Jerusalem there were allies who were no help to them (Egypt) and old enemies that actively aided the Babylonians against them (Edom).  Perhaps the meaning is this:  all of their enemies on every side (north, south, east, and west) would be punished for their part in the destruction of Judah, and especially Jerusalem and the Temple.
            And who are the "smiths" in the vision?  Just as a smith is an artisan who creates and mends, these are the people who would carefully and selflessly work to put back together the nation.  I have never seen a list of possible names, but it seems to me that Ezra, Nehemiah, and the three post-exilic prophets—Haggai, Zechariah himself, and Malachi—should be included.
            God is once again telling these people that he knows what they are going through and that he cares.  But added to that, he is promising judgment on the wicked for their part in Judah's suffering.  He is also promising that His people will have what they need to repair themselves and become that promised, glorious, restored kingdom that every one of the prophets spoke of.
            And for us?  Most of us have never felt severe physical persecution.  The worst we have had is a bit of name-calling or being left out of the popular crowd.  But do not think it won't come.  Our country is moving in a direction where we may begin to feel the heat in our own lifetimes and our children and grandchildren may suffer real persecution. 
            God tells us that it is not our place to exact vengeance (Rom 12:19).  However, He has always promised that He will take vengeance for his people (1 Sam 24:12; Psa 58:10,11; Isa 61:2; 2 Thes 1:6-8, etc.).  He will not allow our suffering to go unrequited. 
            And He also gives us the promise that we will have what we need in this glorious restored kingdom of the Messiah, the church--to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, (Eph 4:11-16).  Look around at the "smiths" you have among you, who work for little or no remuneration, who give of themselves for hours upon end to teach the ignorant, to heal the broken, to lead the flock, and you will see the hand of God working among you.  If we don't see it, it is only because, like so many of those people long ago, we aren't looking for the right things.  We can be certain that God will not fail us.
 
When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been. (Rev 6:9-11)
 
Dene Ward