Zechariah 1:12-16: a reflection

12Then the LORD’s angel replied, “O LORD of Armies, how long will you not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which you have had indignation these seventy years?” 13The LORD answered the angel who talked with me with kind and comforting words. 14So the angel who talked with me said to me, “Proclaim, saying, ‘The LORD of Armies says: “I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy. 15I am very angry with the nations that are at ease; for I was but a little displeased, but they added to the calamity.” 16Therefore the LORD says: “I have returned to Jerusalem with mercy. My house shall be built in it,” says the LORD of Armies, “and a line shall be stretched out over Jerusalem.”’

After seventy years of exile and discipline, when God's people might have wondered whether his anger would never end, God speaks words of return and mercy. The angel cries, how long will you not have mercy on Jerusalem? And the LORD answers with kind and comforting words: I have returned to Jerusalem with mercy. My house shall be built in it. The long years of discipline were not the end; God returns to his people in mercy, to rebuild and restore. The discipline had a limit; after it, God comes back with mercy, with comfort, with restoration. However long the season of chastening seemed, it gave way to God's return in mercy; his anger did not last forever, but his mercy came back to build and restore what had been laid low.

Notice what follows the long discipline: God's return in mercy. The seventy years had been hard, and the people might have thought God's anger would never lift; but God answers with kind and comforting words, and declares, I have returned to Jerusalem with mercy. The discipline was not the final word; after it came God's return, his mercy, his purpose to rebuild. His chastening had a limit; beyond it lay mercy and restoration. God does not stay angry forever with his people; after a season of discipline, he returns to them with mercy, to comfort and to build. The return in mercy after the discipline shows a God whose heart toward his people is not finally anger but mercy, whose chastening gives way to compassion. The discipline passed; the mercy returned.

That is worth resting in, for after a season of discipline, God returns to his people in mercy. When God's discipline is hard and long, we can fear that his anger toward us will never lift, that we are cast off for good; but God returned to Jerusalem with mercy after the long years, with kind and comforting words and a purpose to rebuild. His discipline of his people has a limit; beyond it lies his return in mercy. When you feel the weight of a long chastening, remember that God returns to his people in mercy, that his anger does not last forever. Take comfort that God returns to his people in mercy after a season of discipline, that his chastening gives way to compassion, as he said after the long years, I have returned to Jerusalem with mercy, my house shall be built; for God does not stay angry forever with his people, but his discipline has a limit and beyond it lies his return in mercy, to comfort and rebuild and restore what had been laid low.

Lord, after seventy years of exile and discipline, when your people might have wondered whether your anger would never end, you speak words of return and mercy. The angel cries, how long will you not have mercy on Jerusalem? And you answer with kind and comforting words: I have returned to Jerusalem with mercy; my house shall be built in it. The long years of discipline were not the end; you return to your people in mercy, to rebuild and restore. The discipline had a limit; after it, you come back with mercy, with comfort, with restoration. Your anger did not last forever, but your mercy came back to build and restore. Show me what follows the long discipline: your return in mercy. The seventy years had been hard, and the people might have thought your anger would never lift; but you answer with kind and comforting words, and declare, I have returned to Jerusalem with mercy. The discipline was not the final word; after it came your return, your mercy, your purpose to rebuild. You do not stay angry forever with your people. Let me rest in that, for after a season of discipline, you return to your people in mercy. When your discipline is hard and long, I can fear that your anger toward me will never lift, that I am cast off for good; but you returned to Jerusalem with mercy after the long years. Your discipline has a limit; beyond it lies your return in mercy. When I feel the weight of a long chastening, help me remember that you return to your people in mercy, Lord, that your anger does not last forever, as you said, I have returned to Jerusalem with mercy.