Zechariah

Zechariah 7: The LORD wants hearts that listen

Begin in prayer

Before we read the LORD’s question about fasting, please come to Him in prayer together. Ask Him to show us what He looks for in our hearts, and how He softens them.

He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for his Maker, but he who is kind to the needy honors him.

Proverbs 14:31

Father in heaven, please open our eyes as we read Your Word. Show us that You want hearts that listen, and help us to see Jesus. Make us more like Jesus. And please bless our family as we worship You together. In Jesus' name, Amen.

See where we're going

In the fourth year of King Darius, men from Bethel ask the priests whether they should keep weeping in the fifth month. They had fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months for seventy years. The LORD answers with a question, asking whether they fasted to Him at all, or only for themselves. He reminds them of His word by the former prophets, “Execute true judgment, and show kindness and compassion every man to his brother.” He names the widow, the fatherless, the foreigner and the poor, and tells them to plan no evil against one another. Their fathers refused to listen, stopped their ears, and made their hearts as hard as flint, so great wrath came from the LORD. He scattered them with a whirlwind among the nations, and the pleasant land became desolate.

As you read Zechariah 7, look for the answers:

Reflect together

Key truth

The LORD wants hearts that listen and show kindness, and He judged those who refused.

Two years after the visions began, men from Bethel come to Jerusalem with a question (verses 1 to 3). For seventy years the people had fasted in the fifth month and the seventh (verse 5). The fifth month was when the temple was burned (2 Kings 25 verses 8 and 9). Now the LORD’s house was being rebuilt, so they ask whether the weeping should go on (Zechariah 4 verse 9). The LORD does not answer yes or no. He asks whether their fasting was for Him at all, or for themselves (verses 5 and 6). He points back to the former prophets, “Execute true judgment, and show kindness and compassion” (verse 9). Their fathers refused to listen, turned their backs, and made their hearts hard as flint (verses 11 and 12). As He called and they refused to listen, so they would call and He would not listen (verse 13).

How does Zechariah 7 show us that the LORD wants hearts that listen and show kindness, and that He judged those who refused?

The LORD asks if their fasting was for Him at all.

Men from Bethel ask whether they should keep weeping in the fifth month, as they have for years (verses 2 and 3). The LORD asks, “did you at all fast to me, really to me?” (verse 5). When they ate and drank, it was for themselves (verse 6). The question shows that the LORD looks at who the fast is for.

The LORD commands truth, kindness and compassion toward others.

He repeats what the prophets said, “Execute true judgment, and show kindness and compassion” (verse 9). He names those who are easily wronged, the widow, the fatherless, the foreigner and the poor (verse 10). No one is to plan evil against his brother in his heart. Jesus taught that these commands reach the heart (Matthew 5 verses 21 and 22). We all fall short of them, so we need a Savior.

The LORD’s great wrath came because they refused to listen.

The fathers refused to listen, turned their backs, and stopped their ears (verse 11). They made their hearts as hard as flint, and would not hear the law or the words He sent (verse 12). Therefore great wrath came from the LORD. As He called and they refused, so they would call and He would not listen (verse 13). He scattered them with a whirlwind among nations they had not known, and the pleasant land became desolate (verse 14).

Memorise

Thus has Yahweh of Armies spoken, saying, ‘Execute true judgment, and show kindness and compassion every man to his brother.

Zechariah 7:9

Looking to Jesus in my life

Ask yourself in your heart, am I listening to God, and why do I need Jesus to soften my heart?

The LORD asked, “did you at all fast to me, really to me?” He looks at the heart. Jesus said the same about people who honor God with their lips while their hearts are far from Him (Matthew 15 verses 7 and 8).

Our hearts are hard like flint, and we cannot soften them ourselves. Jesus lived the truth and kindness that God asks for, and He carried the sin of His people to the cross. Their hard hearts and their wrongs were laid on Him. His one sacrifice is enough for all of it. God raised Him from the grave, and by His Spirit He gives hard hearts a new start.

So do not harden your heart today. Listen to Him, turn from your sin, and trust Jesus. The LORD gives forgiveness to everyone who comes.

Parent's note

Tell your children that God cares about the heart, and that Jesus gives hard hearts a new start. Please do not tell them they are saved just because they grew up in a Christian home. Call each child to turn from sin and trust Jesus, and pray that God would give them a new heart.

Pray together

Now please close your time together in prayer. Thank God for asking for hearts that listen, and bring the heart question to Him. Every child can pray, so invite each one to speak to Him.

He does execute justice for the fatherless and widow, and loves the foreigner, in giving him food and clothing.

Deuteronomy 10:18

Lord God, thank You that You look at the heart. Thank You that Jesus carried the sin of His people. Please soften our hearts to listen, lead each one of us to turn from sin and trust Him, and help us to show kindness this week. Amen.