Zechariah 4

“And the angel that talked with me came again, and waked me, as a man that is wakened out of his sleep.  And he said unto me, ‘What seest thou?’  And I said, ‘I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof: And two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof.’  So I answered and spake to the angel that talked with me, saying, ‘What are these, my lord?’  Then the angel that talked with me answered and said unto me, ‘Knowest thou not what these be?’  And I said, ‘No, my lord.’  Then he answered and spake unto me saying, ‘This is the word of the LORD (YHVH) unto Zerubbabel, saying, NOT BY MIGHT, NOR BY POWER, BUT BY MY SPIRIT, SAITH THE LORD OF HOSTS.’………

Then answered I and said unto him, ‘What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof?’  And I answered again, and said unto him, ‘What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves?’  And he answered me and said, ‘Knowest thou not what these be?’  And I said, ‘No, my lord.’  Then said he, ‘These are the TWO ANOINTED ONES, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth.”

I was going to write this time on the Priesthood and Kingship of Yeshua according to the order of Melchizedek when I happened across this passage of Scripture in Zechariah.  This time, it took my breath away as I read it for I had read it many times before and even had parts of it marked in my Bible for reference.   This vision of Zechariah’s spoke so clearly of Yeshua’s priesthood and kingship roles that are in existence today through the house of Judah and the house of Israel.  I saw, as I have been seeing in bits and pieces for several years now, the end time picture of the Kingdom of YHVH.  I saw how God’s people have separated themselves from each other more clearly as the Spirit of YHVH opened up my understanding of this prophetic vision.

Clearly, Zechariah could not have understood this vision in his day, and I’m sure many of his contemporaries thought he was crazy and dismissed this vision as “nothing” because they too, could not understand the meaning.  It held a mystery for the end days time which we are in now.  Sometimes people have dreams or visions or prophecy that sounds “off the wall”.  What are we to do with them?  Cast them aside along with the individual just because it doesn’t sound right or pronounce an analytical judgment on it because it is not understood by anyone at the time?  I recall that when the angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she was going to give birth to the Son of God by the power of the Holy Spirit, her ultimate reaction to this was Luke 2:19, “But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.”  Though she did not comprehend the fullness of this birth, she knew it was from YHVH and did not wince at the persecution which I’m sure came against her as this pregnancy progressed. 

In this scripture we can picture a menorah (seven branched candlestick).  In the picture we see a bowl on the top at the center of the seven branched candle stick.  This bowl is receiving “anointed oil” from two other bowls just above it.  And these bowls are receiving “anointed oil” from the two olive trees; one on each side of the seven branched candlestick.  The center bowl is supplying the candlestick with this “anointed oil”.  Zechariah asks the obvious question, what are these two olive trees?  Then the angel answered him and said that these were the “two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth”.

So the question is, “Who are the two anointed ones represented here?  And what is this golden anointed oil that is being poured out?”

In Romans 11 Shaul talks about these two olive branches.  One he calls a natural olive branch and the other he calls a wild branch.   Both branches are broken off from the root of the natural olive tree.  He is telling us that the “natural” olive branch represents Judah (understood today as Jewish people living in Israel or natural born citizens of that country).  The “wild” branch that he refers to is represented by the Church; those comprised of the lost ten northern tribes of Israel that were dispersed throughout the world and joined with the gentile nations.  Basically he was telling the gentiles that both the Jewish people and the gentile church (those who became believers in Yeshua through a spiritual re-birthing) needed to be grafted back into the root of the original olive tree because they had both walked away from following the commandments of YHVH.  When this process takes place, in its fullness of time, he says, “And so all Israel will be saved…..”Rom 11:28 meaning both the gentile church and the Jewish nation.

Now we can see that the olive branches on either side of the candlestick are represented by the Jewish people (Judah - natural branch) and the Gentile Church (House of Israel - wild branch).  Zechariah says that these two are “anointed ones”. 

Ezekiel 37:15-22 The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying, “Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, ‘For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions’; then take another stick, and write upon it, ‘For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions:’  And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand.  And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, “Wilt thou not shew us what thou meanest by these?”  Say unto them, “Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand”.  And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes.  And say unto them, “Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side and bring them into their own land;  And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all:  and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all.”

Now we can see the picture of the two branches in a different light.  First, there is Judah, the children of Israel his companions as the natural branches.  Then Joseph, the stick in the hand of Ephraim and for all the house of Israel his companions as the wild branches.  In Zechariah’s vision, both branches are pouring out “anointed oil”.  Oil represents the Holy Spirit (the Ruach HaKodesh).  So what he is seeing is both Jews and Gentiles (Judah and the Church) being anointed and pouring out the Spirit of God upon all flesh.  Both Shaul and Ezekiel are showing us that (at the appointed time) both will come together as one in His hand. 

I believe that when this takes place, there will be the greatest revival man has ever witnessed.  But it will come at a very great cost.  Joel 2:28-32 says,  “And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophecy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.  And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.  And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: Blood and fires and pillars of smoke.  The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.  And it shall come to pass that WHOEVER CALLS ON THE NAME OF THE LORD SHALL BE SAVED.  For in  Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be deliverence, As the Lord has said, Among the remnant whom the Lord calls.”

Church and all believers in Yeshua our King and Priest, the tribulation is about to start, but do not fear for our redemption draws near and YHVH will see us through the tribulation time.  He will not leave us or abandon us, but will see us through every test and trial prior to that great eventful day of the Messiah’s coming to set up His Kingdom to rule and reign over His people.