Today's first reading is the opening vision of Zechariah, an angel and four differently-colored horses, which will patrol the ends of the earth for God. After an opening invitation to repent, the prophet Zechariah is told that God has returned favor to Jerusalem after the Jews were exiled in Babylon for 70 years. The defeat of the Babylonians by the Persian emperor Darius has begun a new period of history.
[links to Bible Gateway open in a new window]
The second reading offers a vision and invitation. The vision is of a rebuilt Jerusalem filled with people faithful to God (so many that walls cannot hold them in). After this, there is an invitation to the Jewish exiles throughout the earth (in the poetic language of Zechariah, from the four directions) to await God's defeat of their enemies so they can return to Jerusalem, where they will be joined by members of other nations who will become faithful to the one true God.
[links to Bible Gateway open in a new window]
Reading the Bible in Its Entirety
If you are planning to read the Bible in its entirety, you should read Zechariah 1-2 today.
If you are planning to read the Bible in its entirety, you should read Zechariah 1-2 today.
