In today’s episode of ADDBIBLE, we delve into the striking vision found in Zechariah 3, where Joshua, the high priest, stands in filthy garments before an angel, as Satan accuses him. Join Allen J. Huth as he uncovers the profound symbolism and theological consequences of this exchange. Discover how the themes of redemption and grace resonate deeply within the biblical narrative, outlining a spiritual dynamic that remains relevant for every believer today.
Welcome to ADDBIBLE, an audio daily devotion from the Ezra Project. We join Allen J. Huth as he shares Bible passages and comments from over 30 years of his personal Bible reading journals.
SPEAKER 03 :
Today we are in Zechariah chapter 3. We’ll listen to Faith Comes By Hearing’s readings of only the 10 verses of this chapter. Let’s listen in.
SPEAKER 01 :
Zechariah 3
SPEAKER 02 :
Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him.
SPEAKER 01 :
And the Lord said to Satan, The Lord rebuke you, O Satan. The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you. Is not this a brand plucked from the fire?
SPEAKER 02 :
Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clothed with filthy garments. And the angel said to those who were standing before him, Remove the filthy garments from him.
SPEAKER 05 :
And to him he said, Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments.
SPEAKER 02 :
And I said, Let them put a clean turban on his head. So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the Lord was standing by. And the angel of the Lord solemnly assured Joshua,
SPEAKER 05 :
Thus says the Lord of hosts, If you will walk in my ways and keep my charge, then you shall rule my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you the right of access among those who are standing here. Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, you and your friends who sit before you, for they are men who are assigned. Behold, I will bring my servant the branch.” For behold, on the stone that I have set before Joshua, on a single stone with seven eyes, I will engrave its inscription, declares the Lord of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of this land in a single day. In that day, declares the Lord of hosts, every one of you will invite his neighbor to come under his vine and under his fig tree.
SPEAKER 03 :
In my journal in 1991, remember I read the first nine chapters of Zechariah in one day? I referred to one verse in chapter 3, and that’s verse 7. If you will walk in my ways, and if you will perform my service, then… Yes, there are many if-thens in the Bible. If you do this, then God will do this. And this is one of them. If you will walk in my ways and if you will perform my service, then, then what? Then you will rule my house and have charge of my courts and I will give you the right of access among those who are standing here. So often in the scriptures, God wants something from us and then he performs. So, this is another one of those if-thens. If you do this, I’ll do this. Ten years later, in 2001, again, I read Zechariah 1 through 3 on the same day, and I wrote about this chapter. As we stand, an angel of the Lord may be on one side, and Satan standing on our right hand to oppose us. That’s referring to verse 1. And then, if you walk in my ways, and if you keep my commandments, then. And I wrote blessings, referring to that same thing we just talked about back in 1991. In 2011, like in 2001, I read Zechariah 1 through 3 on the same day. And on chapter 3, I wrote, Zechariah sees Joshua, the high priest, standing before an angel and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. Is that what it is like? Angels to help us and Satan right there to accuse us? God help us rebuke Satan. Let’s look at what Zacharias saw as he recorded it in chapter 3. It says in verse 1, Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. And the Lord said to Satan, Now Joshua was standing before the angel clothed with filthy garments. And the angel said to those who were standing before him, Remove the filthy garments from him. And to him he said, And I said, let them put a clean turban on his head so they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments and the angel of the lord was standing by most likely we are just like joshua the high priest here we stand before the angel of the lord and satan stands right there next to us to accuse us before the lord we like joshua are standing there with filthy garments We are guilty as charged, just like Joshua is before the Lord. But the Lord himself rebukes Satan. He and he alone plucks us from the fire. He and he alone removes our filthy garments and clothes us with pure vestments. Hallelujah, Lord. Thank you for standing in our place and rebuking Satan when he accuses us. This story relates to Joshua, the high priest of that day, there to reestablish the priesthood and spiritual sacrifices in the temple to be rebuilt in Jerusalem. Satan obviously didn’t want him to do that. But the Lord chose Jerusalem to be rebuilt. He chose the temple to be rebuilt. He chose Joshua as his servant to make this happen. And Satan was not going to get in the way of the Lord’s plan. By the way, my English Standard Version Study Bible footnote on verse 3 says this, Satan has a very strong case, for Joshua was not merely clothed with filthy garments, but more precisely clothed in garments soiled with excrement, which would automatically defile the wearer. Joshua’s defilement posed a severe problem for the people. since he was the intermediary through whom their own defilement was to be removed on the Day of Atonement. Yet the Lord ruled Satan’s charges inadmissible before he could present them. The Lord’s election of Jerusalem and Joshua’s position as one plucked from the fire brought safety from the Holocaust of exile, meaning that Joshua is free from any possible condemnation. We are no different. Satan has a very strong case against every one of us. We stand there with filthy rags, sin all over us. But before Satan can even make his charges, the Lord dismisses them as inadmissible. That’s, friends, if we are covered in the blood of Jesus. That’s what the Lord is referring to in Revelation chapter 7, verse 13. Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, Who are these clothed in white robes, and from where have they come? And I said to him, Sir, you know. And he said to me, These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. What a picture in Zechariah chapter 3. Father, thank you. Thank you for exchanging our filthy rags for pure vestments, robes white, dipped in the blood of the Lamb. Thank you for this picture revealed to us in Zechariah chapter 3. And thank you for rebuking Satan before he can even accuse us. Thank you for going to the cross so that I could stand pure before you. Oh yes, I’m guilty, I’m sinful, and that’s why you hung on a cross for me. I fall on my knees before you and say thank you, thank you, thank you. In the name of Jesus, my Lord and Savior, we pray. Amen. Thanks for listening to ADDBIBLE today. If you love the Bible and you love a radio program fully committed to the Bible, keep ADDBIBLE on the air by investing in ADDBIBLE at ezraproject.net. Without your financial partnership, ADDBIBLE will go off the air on September 30th. Let me say that again. Without your financial support, ADDBIBLE will go off the air on September 30th. Visit EzraProject.net to donate online or get our mailing address there on our website. Help us continue to connect God’s people to God’s Word, and we will thank you for your support. You know, sometimes we need a plumb line, a true north, a solid basis of truth to live life. We’re not going to find it in the media or in social media or Google or your friends, but it is available right at your fingertips. Pilate asked Jesus in John 18.38, What is truth? The chapter before, Jesus had answered the question in his prayer to God for his disciples. In the 17th verse, Jesus pleads with the Father, Sanctify them in the truth. Thy word is truth. So what would it be like if everyone, everywhere, read the Bible every day? Wow, it might be heaven on earth. What would it be like if every Christian read the Bible every day? Would we be better ambassadors for Christ? What would it be like if everyone in your community read the Bible every day? Would we have greater impact in our communities? And what would it be like if you personally read the Bible every day? Could you use a closer walk with Jesus? Could you use a light unto your path and a lamp unto your feet to walk through this life? Could you use a spiritual power surge in your life? Matthew 22, 29, Jesus speaking to the Sadducees said, You are mistaken not understanding the Scriptures or the power of God. Yes, the Scriptures can give us power to live this life. So I’m going to give you three easy action steps to make the Bible worth your time each and every day. Number one, commit to daily Bible readings. Commit to seek God and His Word daily, every day. And if you miss a day, start again the next day. Change your belief about God’s Word to behavior in God’s Word. Use any of our Ezra Project resources to help you. Visit EzraProject.net to get an Ezra Project Bible reading journal or one of our day-by-day through the Bible books. Commit today and visit EzraProject.net for easy-to-use resources for your daily time in God’s Word.
SPEAKER 1 :
2.
SPEAKER 03 :
Be intentional. Decide what you want out of your Bible reading. I got to visit the headquarters of Back to the Bible once in Lincoln, Nebraska. And in one hallway down the one side, they had scribbled all the reasons people say they don’t read the Bible. On the other side were all the reasons people do read the Bible. And I want to give you some of those to encourage you. On that wall, it said, God wants me to. Yes, God wants you to read the Bible. Do you want to meet with him daily? Because he’ll meet with you every day through his word. Number two, it changes me. Where could you be in one year with more Bible reading in your life? Number three, it improves my outlook on life. Yeah, turn out the bad news and saturate yourself with good news from the Word of God. Number four, it keeps me grounded. Yes, when the storms of life come, and they will, can you stand? Yes, you’ll stand better and more solid because you’re in the Word of God. Next, it keeps my heart soft. Yeah, Nehemiah 8, when people heard the word, they wept and they worshipped. You will do the same as the word softens your heart. Lastly, on the wall it said, it keeps my daily focus on God. Yeah, that’s a great reason to read the Bible. You’ll gain the spiritual power to live life in our secular world. And then thirdly and lastly, feed your soul. Let God minister to your soul. Hebrews 4.12 says, the word of God pierces between your soul and your spirit, between joints and marrow, and is the discerner of the thoughts and intents of your heart. Nothing else goes that deep. I don’t know where the place is between my soul and my spirit, but I want to put the Word of God there each and every day of my life. I hope you do too. God bless you as you spend time in God’s Word.
