Commentary - Zechariah 3:6-10

Bird's-eye view

Following the dramatic scene where Joshua the high priest is cleansed of his filthy garments and reinstated, the angel of Yahweh moves from vindication to exhortation and promise. This passage is a dense, gospel-packed prophecy that bridges the gap between Joshua's immediate priestly duties and the ultimate work of the Messiah. The Lord lays out the terms of covenantal faithfulness for Joshua, promising him a place of honor, and then pivots to the ultimate foundation of all such blessings. Joshua and his companions are identified as a sign, pointing forward to the coming of God's servant, the Branch. This Branch, the Lord Jesus, is associated with a mysterious stone, full of divine perception, through which the iniquity of the land will be decisively removed in a single day. The result of this great redemptive act is a world filled with peace, prosperity, and fellowship, beautifully pictured as every man sitting under his own vine and fig tree.

In short, this passage moves from the personal restoration of a high priest to the cosmic restoration accomplished by the great High Priest, Jesus Christ. It is a glorious affirmation that the entire Old Testament system of priests, temples, and sacrifices was a magnificent signpost pointing to the one who would fulfill it all. The promises made here are the bedrock of our hope: a final and complete atonement, resulting in a worldwide kingdom of peace and righteousness.

Outline

Clause-by-Clause Commentary

v. 6 And the angel of Yahweh testified to Joshua, saying,

The scene continues without a break. Joshua is now clothed in clean garments, a new turban on his head, fully restored to his office. But this restoration is not an end in itself. It is for a purpose. The angel of Yahweh, who we should understand as the pre-incarnate Christ, now delivers a solemn charge. The word here is "testified," which carries a heavy, formal weight. This is not casual advice; it is a binding covenantal charge. Having been saved by grace alone, as the filthy garments being removed so clearly demonstrated, Joshua is now called to a life of grateful obedience. Grace is not opposed to effort; grace is the foundation of all righteous effort.

v. 7 “Thus says Yahweh of hosts, ‘If you will walk in My ways and if you will keep the responsibility given by Me, then you will also render justice in My house and also keep My courts, and I will grant you access to walk among these who are standing here.”

Here we have the classic covenantal structure: the conditional "if/then." This is not the condition for salvation, which has already been pictured as a free gift, but the condition for fruitful service and greater blessing. "Walk in My ways" refers to personal holiness and moral integrity. "Keep the responsibility given by Me" refers to his official, priestly duties. The law of God has both a moral and a ceremonial component, and the high priest was responsible for both.

The promises are twofold. First, he will "render justice in My house and also keep My courts." This means he will have the authority to govern the affairs of the temple and its personnel. He will be a faithful administrator. Second, and quite startlingly, he is promised "access to walk among these who are standing here." Who is standing there? The angelic court of heaven. This is a promise of intimate fellowship with God, of access into the heavenly places. This was a foretaste of what Christ would secure for all His people, granting us boldness to enter the holy place by His blood (Heb. 10:19).

v. 8 “Now listen, Joshua the high priest, you and your friends who are sitting in front of you, indeed they are men who are a wondrous sign, for behold, I am going to bring in My servant the Branch.”

The focus now widens from Joshua to include his "friends," the other priests sitting with him. They are commanded to pay close attention because what is about to be said is of monumental importance. They themselves are a "wondrous sign" or men of portent. Their restoration to priestly service after the exile is a living, breathing object lesson. They are a type, a foreshadowing of a greater reality. And what is that reality? "Behold, I am going to bring in My servant the Branch."

This is a direct Messianic prophecy. The "Branch" (Hebrew: tsemach) is a title for the Messiah used elsewhere by Isaiah (Isa. 4:2, 11:1) and Jeremiah (Jer. 23:5, 33:15). He is the righteous shoot that will spring up from the seemingly dead stump of David's line. He is God's servant, the one who comes to do the Father's will. The entire restored priesthood under Joshua was just a placeholder, a sign pointing to the one who would be the true and final priest, the servant who would accomplish all of God's purposes.

v. 9 “For behold, the stone that I have put before Joshua; on one stone are seven eyes. Behold, I will engrave an inscription on it,’ declares Yahweh of hosts, ‘and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.”

The prophecy now becomes even more concentrated. Connected to the coming of the Branch is this "stone." What is this stone? In Scripture, stones can represent many things, but here it is clearly a foundation stone, a cornerstone (cf. Ps. 118:22; Isa. 28:16). This is Christ Himself, the foundation of the true temple, the Church. On this one stone are "seven eyes." Seven is the number of perfection and completion. The seven eyes signify the fullness of the Spirit, divine omniscience, and perfect watchfulness (cf. Rev. 5:6, where the Lamb has seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God). This is no dead foundation stone; this is a living stone, perceiving all things.

Yahweh Himself will "engrave an inscription on it." This speaks of God's sovereign purpose and election. The Father has set His mark upon the Son. And what is the purpose of this engraved, all-seeing foundation stone? The climax of the verse tells us: "I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day." This is one of the clearest prophecies of the atonement in the Old Testament. The problem of sin, which required the entire sacrificial system, would be dealt with completely and finally in a single, decisive act. That "one day" was Good Friday, the day the Branch was cut off, the day the foundation stone was laid in death, in order to become the cornerstone of our salvation.

v. 10 “‘In that day,’ declares Yahweh of hosts, ‘every one of you will call for his neighbor to sit under his vine and under his fig tree.’”

The result of this one-day removal of iniquity is not just a cleared legal record in heaven, but a transformed world on earth. "In that day", the day inaugurated by Christ's finished work, a new reality dawns. The image of every man under his own vine and fig tree is a classic Old Testament picture of shalom: peace, security, prosperity, and settled fellowship (cf. 1 Kings 4:25). It is the picture of a world at rest.

And notice the activity: "every one of you will call for his neighbor." This is the gospel invitation. The peace we have with God through the atonement overflows into peace with one another. It creates a community, a society where men are not rivals but neighbors, inviting one another to share in the bounty of God's goodness. This is a profoundly optimistic, postmillennial vision. The work of the Branch on that "one day" was so powerful that it sets in motion a historical process that will culminate in the whole world being filled with this kind of peace and righteousness, as the waters cover the sea.

Application

First, we must see that our standing before God is exactly like Joshua's. We come with filthy garments, stained with our own sin and the sins of our generation. Our only hope is the gracious declaration of God, who removes our filthy rags and clothes us in the perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ. This is the great exchange, the doctrine of imputation, and it is the heart of the gospel. If you are trying to clean up your own robes to make them presentable to God, you are engaged in a fool's errand. The only solution is to have them taken away and replaced.

Second, this grace is not a license for laziness but a commission for faithful service. Like Joshua, we are called to walk in God's ways and keep His charge. Our obedience does not earn our salvation, but it is the necessary fruit of it. We are saved for good works, not by them. And the promise for faithfulness is greater intimacy with God and greater usefulness in His kingdom.

Third, we must fix our eyes on the Branch, the Lord Jesus. He is the substance of which all the Old Testament shadows spoke. He is the all-seeing foundation stone upon which the Church is built. His work on the cross was the "one day" that changed all of history. Our confidence is not in our own efforts, but in the finality and efficacy of His atoning sacrifice.

Finally, we must live in the light of the coming glory. The promise of the vine and fig tree is the promise of the kingdom's triumph in history. The gospel is not a private fire escape plan out of a doomed world. It is the power of God for the restoration of the world. Therefore, we should labor, work, and invite our neighbors to come and sit with us, enjoying the peace that Christ has purchased, a peace that will one day fill all the earth.