3. Zechariah 8:1-3 (NLT) 8 Then another message came to me from the Lord of Heaven’s Armies: 2 “This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: My love for Mount Zion is passionate and strong; I am consumed with passion for Jerusalem! 3 “And now the Lord says: I am returning to Mount Zion, and I will live in Jerusalem. Then Jerusalem will be called the Faithful City; the mountain of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will be called the Holy Mountain.

5. Zechariah 8:4-8 (MSG) 4-5 A Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies: “Old men and old women will come back to Jerusalem, sit on benches on the streets and spin tales, move around safely with their canes— a good city to grow old in. And boys and girls will fill the public parks, laughing and playing—a good city to grow up in.” 6 A Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies: “Do the problems of returning and rebuilding by just a few survivors seem too much? But is anything too much for me? Not if I have my say.” 7-8 A Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies: “I’ll collect my people from countries to the east and countries to the west. I’ll bring them back and move them into Jerusalem. They’ll be my people and I’ll be their God. I’ll stick with them and do right by them.”

7. First Blessing: Zechariah 8: A Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies: “Old men and old women will come back to Jerusalem, sit on benches on the streets and spin tales, move around safely with their canes— a good city to grow old in. And boys and girls will fill the public parks, laughing and playing—a good city to grow up in.”

10. Second Blessing: Zechariah 8:6 6 A Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies: “Do the problems of returning and rebuilding by just a few survivors seem too much? But is anything too much for me? Not if I have my say.”

11. How often do we make the mistake of judging God’s ability by our own ability?

12. Like David, we foolishly number our troops, thinking that our power is proportional to how many warriors we can muster for the battle. But the Lord does not save by many or by few.

13. 1 Samuel 14:6 (VOICE) Jonathan (to his armor-bearer): 6 Come on
1 Samuel 14:6 (VOICE) Jonathan (to his armor-bearer): 6 Come on! Let’s cross over to this force of Philistines, these uncircumcised, these idol-worshipers. Maybe the Eternal One will fight for us. If He wants to save us, then no force is too big or too small.

14. Like the disciples, we count up our meager five loaves and two fish, or we calculate the amount that it would take to feed the vast multitude. But the Lord does not meet the need according to what we have or what we wish we had, but according to His purpose and His power.

15. Matthew 19:26 (NLT) 26 Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.”

16. How would this prophecy have served as a source of hope for the people of Zechariah’s day? How does this promise of heaven serve as a source of hope for believers today?

17. Zechariah 9:9-12 (VOICE) 9 Cry out with joy, O daughter of Zion
Zechariah 9:9-12 (VOICE) 9 Cry out with joy, O daughter of Zion! Shout jubilantly, O daughter of Jerusalem! Look—your King is coming; He is righteous and able to save. He comes seated humbly on a donkey, on a colt, a foal of a donkey.

19. Zechariah 9: I will dismantle Ephraim’s chariots, retire the warhorses from Jerusalem, send home the archers to their families in peace. He will make peace with the nations; His sovereignty will extend from coast to coast, from the Euphrates River to the limits of the earth. 11 Eternal One: As for you, because of the covenant promise I made with you through your ancestor David, a covenant sealed in blood, I will free your prisoners from the waterless pits of death. 12 Return to your walled cities, safe and secure, O hostages of hope. I announce today that I will restore to you twice as much as what was taken.