Chapters 12—14 of this book unveil Christ as the Messiah returning to be enthroned as the King not only over Israel but also over the whole world. His first coming, described in chs. 9—11, was humble and intimate; His coming back, described in chs. 12—14, will be with power and authority.

In His creation God made three crucial, equally important items — the heavens, the earth, and the spirit of man. The heavens are for the earth, the earth is for man, and man was created by God with a spirit that he may contact God, receive God, worship God, live God, fulfill God’s purpose for God, and be one with God. In His economy God planned to have Christ as the centrality and universality of His move on earth. For His chosen people, who would care for Him as the Creator and as the Redeemer, there was the need for Him to create a receiving organ so that they would have the capacity to receive all that God had planned for Christ to be. Hence, this book charges us to pay full attention to our human spirit, that we may receive the Christ revealed in this book and may understand all that is revealed therein concerning Him (Eph. 1:17-18a; Eph. 3:5). See note Gen. 2:7^5b, note Isa. 42:5¹, note John 4:24⁴ and note Phil. 4:23^2b.

Chapters 12—14 prophesy concerning Israel’s destiny in the great war of Armageddon, in their household salvation, and in the millennium. The war of Armageddon will be the greatest war among mankind. This war will take place at the end of the three and a half years of the great tribulation (Matt. 24:21; Dan. 7:25; 12:7; Rev. 11:2; 13:5). Although this war will be motivated by Antichrist with the intention of destroying Israel, it will be waged by Satan through his human followers as his earthly army, against God with His saints as His heavenly army ( Zech. 14:2-5; Joel 3:11; Rev. 16:13-14; 17:14; 19:14). Antichrist, the embodiment of Satan, will be the commander of Satan’s army, and Christ, the embodiment of God, will be the Commander of God’s army. In this divine war Christ will destroy Antichrist by the breath of His mouth and bring him to nothing by the manifestation of His coming (2 Thes. 2:8). This war will be the great winepress of the fury of God trodden by Christ at His coming back to judge the world (Isa. 63:1-6; Rev. 14:17-20).

Here Angel of Jehovah is in apposition to God earlier in the verse (cf. Exo. 3:2-6 and note Exo. 3:2^1b).

In Acts 2 God poured out His Spirit upon all flesh, and three thousand were saved (Acts 2:17, 41). But when God pours out the Spirit of grace upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, many thousands of Israel, even the entire race of Israel alive at that time, will be saved (Rom. 11:26-27). The Spirit of grace here is in contrast to the Spirit of power in Acts 1:8 and Acts 2:1-4. The Spirit of power is to strengthen us, but the Spirit of grace is to bring us into the enjoyment of the Triune God. In Acts 2, at the beginning of the age of grace, the church age, the Spirit was mainly the Spirit of power, but in this verse, at the end, the consummation, of the age of grace, the Spirit will be mainly the Spirit of grace for the enjoyment of the Triune God. The Jews on the day of Pentecost were stubborn and hard; hence, the Spirit of power was poured out to inspire them to repent. But the half of the inhabitants of Jerusalem that survive the attack of Antichrist and his armies (Zech. 14:2) will have lost their taste for everything other than God and will have already repented. Therefore, the Spirit of grace will be poured out upon them so that they can receive the Triune God as their enjoyment.

At the end of the war of Armageddon, Christ will come to earth, and the remnant of Israel will look on Him whom they have pierced (John 19:34, 37; Rev. 1:7), will repent and wail, and will believe in Christ and receive Him. In this way all Israel will be saved (Rom. 11:26-27). This will be the household salvation rendered to Israel by God.

Although it was their forefathers who pierced the Lord Jesus, God counts that as something done by these repentant ones.

The piercing of Christ is the foundation of redemption (John 19:34). Apart from Christ’s being pierced, there is no base for our redemption.

Repentant Israel will wail over Christ as the only Son of God (John 1:18; 3:16) and will cry bitterly over Him as the firstborn Son of God (Rom. 8:29; Heb. 1:6a). Christ’s being the only begotten Son is for us to be redeemed and to receive eternal life (John 3:14-16). Christ’s becoming the firstborn Son through His death and resurrection (Rom. 1:3-4) is for us to become sons of God as heirs to inherit all the riches of what God is, that is, to receive, participate in, and enjoy all the riches of the Triune God (Rom. 8:14-17; Gal. 3:26, 29). In their repentance Israel will realize that as the only begotten Son Christ has redeemed them and has brought them eternal life and that as the firstborn Son He has made them heirs to inherit the riches of the Triune God as their enjoyment.

Zechariah uses three kinds of families — the royal family of David (David and Nathan), the family of the priesthood (Levi), and the family of an evil man (Shimei, who cursed David — 2 Sam. 16:5-8) — as illustrations. All those who look upon Christ, the pierced One, with a repentant spirit, will wail over Him.