I Will Bless Those Who Bless You

August 2

“I will be a wall of fire around Jerusalem, and I will be the glory inside the city.” Zechariah 2:5.

The God of Creation loves His people Israel. It is His intention to do them good and to bless them. Though they have suffered sore trials through their long spiritual journey, they have never been abandoned by the Lord who always delivers them from their distress. He will not abandon them today.

He will “never fail them nor forsake them,” Hebrews 13:5. That thought was not original to Paul, for Moses had spoken it originally in Deuteronomy 31:6, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

In Isaiah 41:10, the Lord says to His people, “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will help you, I will strengthen you; I will hold you up with My strong right hand.” As we see turmoil that appears virtually endless swirling around Israeli soil, the rest of the world should be mindful of God’s promise to His people.

It is prophesied that in the Last Days, “…all the earth shall be gathered together against Israel,” Zechariah 12:3. In fact, the prophet introduces the verse by saying that the Jews will be “a burdensome stone” to all the people of the earth. The events that are unfolding in the Middle East at this juncture in time give us reason to contemplate the words of Zechariah 12:

“The burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, says the LORD, who stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundation of the earth, and formed the spirit of man within him.

Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem.
And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.

In that day, says the LORD, I will smite every horse with astonishment, and his rider with madness: and I will open Mine eyes upon the house of Judah, and will smite every horse of the people with blindness.

And the governors of Judah shall say in their heart, ‘The inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be my strength in the LORD of hosts their God.’

In that day will I make the governors of Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; and they shall devour all the people round about, on the right hand and on the left: and Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place, even in Jerusalem.

The LORD also shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem do not magnify themselves against Judah.

In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them.

And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.

And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon Me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for Him, as one mourns for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for Him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon.

And the land shall mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart;
The family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart; the family of Shimei apart, and their wives apart;

All the families that remain, every family apart, and their wives apart.”

As with the entirety of prophecy, it becomes clearer as the time of its fulfillment draws near. This seems far more relevant to us today than it did to even our parents’ and grandparents’ generations, for today there is a restored nation of Israel that has emerged from the wasteland. We see how the Jews have, through their diligent effort and ingenuity caused “the desert to bloom like a rose,” Isaiah 35:1.

As we search the scripture to find more evidence of the Lord’s hand of power and protection over His ancient people, may we become resolute in our determination to speak in their behalf among the gathering nations that desire their destruction, knowing that the Holy One has said, “I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you,” Genesis 12:3.