Zechariah 5:1-4 Flying Scroll
Zechariah sees something one doesn’t see every day; a flying scroll. This scroll was HUGE and contained the names of thieves and liars. It was a testimony against them.
When I first saw the subtitle of our section it reminded me of the movie Dumbo. Especially the song “When I See and Elephant Fly”. “When elephants fly” is also used to communicate someone’s total disbelief of someone’s statement that they will do something. I suppose that fits with our actual text because this flying scroll bore witness to those who “sword by God’s name falsely.”
The scroll that Zechariah sees is HUGE! It is approximately 30 x 15 feet/9.1 x 4.5 meters. On it was the punishment/curse that would follow all those who stole or swore falsely by God’s name. It must have been a lengthy list of consequences as it filled both sides. I don’t know if it contained the names of these people too. But it was certainly for those who were in the land of Judah. These were the people who came ‘to rebuild God’s Temple’ but they had some things they needed to take care of in their own lives.
God told Zechariah that this scroll would follow those whom God identified and judged right into their houses. It would stay on them and “consume [their house], both timbers and stones” (verse 4b). I have a feeling that this is a spiritual AND physical consuming. From what I can surmise, their house itself would suffer rotting mildew and decay. But the destruction would not be limited to the physical structure of their house. It would permeate their entire life. Their crops would fail. Their finances would dwindle down to nothing. Their relationships would implode. Even their health would slip away.
I do NOT believe that these curses were for the people who occasionally fell in this area of sin but for those who made this their habitual lifestyle. It would probably also be for those who refused to repent or take responsibility when they did fall into this sin. Those who repented would be forgiven.
I’m curious about something. Those whom this ‘scroll followed into their houses’, would they be forgiven if they repented and be spared the fullness of the curse? Or were those whom it followed already beyond reaching for repentance? Maybe this was how God was going to get their attention to repent. The ‘lesson’ would continue to rain down on them until they finally turned to Him.
Jesus came and fulfilled God’s Law, which included both the blessings and the curses. But He STILL has consequences for those who engage in the lifestyles identified today. There are natural, physical, and spiritual consequences. The natural consequences are the results of the acts of stealing or lying. You go to jail, you lose friends, you lose your job, any number of effects that society finds appropriate ‘judgments’ for your actions. The physical consequences include those listed above but can also include declining health. The worst consequences are eternal. These are the spiritual consequences. God HATES liars; especially those who use HIS name to make others think they are trustworthy. We won’t see the spiritual results but we will certainly notice the natural and physical ones. We can be CERTAIN that God will see them.
It’s NOT worth it, no matter what it is you are thinking about stealing or lying about! The guilty conscious is enough to drive me to my knees! The ‘check in my spirit’ is enough to drive me away from relationships where this is a key component.
Father God, THANK YOU for changing my heart! I used to be accomplished at ‘stretching the truth’/lying. I wasn’t ‘swearing by Your name, but neither was I totally honest. You put the desire to change that part in my heart. And YOU gave me the strength to do so. THANK YOU for not giving up on me!!!
Keep working on my heart Father. Make it into a heart fully turned towards You. A heart that reflects You in all I do or say.
