Question: Mr. Albrecht,

Will you please explain Zech. 14:16 to me, please?

Thank you

Wayne

Answer: Dear Wayne,

You may be wondering if this passage implies that Old Testament festivals will be required at some future time for all people. There are , however, several clues in the context of the passage that tell us otherwise.

1. Verse 6 – time as we know it will cease. How will a Hebrew calendar be calculated so that the "right day and time" is observed?
2. Verse 21 – "no Canannites will be in the house of the Lord Almighty" – salvation is contingent upon race?
3. Verse 20-21 – the bells of horses and cooking pots will be holy, with an inscription – doesn’t this seem to be a rather literal reversion to the old covenant?

One of the first rules of Bible study is to understand that the passage of the Bible one is studying was written to an original audience, within an original historical context and milieu. God inspired the writing, but he did it within our culture, using our language, and using appropriate imagery and symbolism for the culture being addressed. When we read the Bible our first task is to discover what the text meant to the original audience, for we are not that original audience. Once we discover the original meaning, we may (and should) apply that text to our lives today (in our case, after the cross, in the year of our Lord, 1999). Many passages are misunderstood and misapplied by simply trying to apply them to the reader’s world, without first finding out what the text originally meant. Thus the interpretative maxim, a text without a context is a pretext.

This passage in Zechariah uses religious symbolism and imagery familiar to Jews who lived under the old covenant to help them understand the glory of the age to come.

I hope this helps you. Let me know if I can be of further assistance.

In Christ,

Greg Albrecht