Behold, the day of the LORD is coming, And your spoil will be divided in your midst. For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem; The city shall be taken, The houses rifled, And the women ravished. Half of the city shall go into captivity, But the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city.  Zechariah 14:1-2

Many people might not realize this but the Old Testament prophet Zechariah foretells alot of details about the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. While Christians have spent the last 2,000 years speculating when and where Christ will return, the prophet Zechariah by the Holy Spirit has already given us great details into the second coming of Jesus!

The Day of The Lord, this is a term/title is used about 31 times in The Bible, its referencing not only the physical return of Christ , but also the judgement of God upon the world. So when Jesus does return, what is the first thing to happen? 

“I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem” The entire world will come against Israel, doesn’t that sound familiar today? As I’m writing this, the majority of people, including those who profess to be Christians, hate Israel. We blame Israel for all the worlds problems, why? Because it is written! God already foretold this is how it would be! You hate Israel because you were groomed by Satan to hate them! 

But the good news for the remnant of Israel and the world, is The Lord himself Jesus Christ is coming to save Israel! Isn’t that a tough bitter pill to swallow for all the anti-semtic “Christian Nationalists” The Lord you came to serve is coming to restore the people you hate!

Jesus also foretold this event in his Olivet Discourse..

At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. / And He will send out His angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.  Matthew 24:30-31

Then the LORD will go forth And fight against those nations, As He fights in the day of battle.  And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, Which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two, From east to west, Making a very large valley; Half of the mountain shall move toward the north And half of it toward the south.  Zechariah 14:3-4

Where will Jesus Christ physically return? The Holy Spirit says “the Mount of Olives”, why would Jesus return there? The Apostle Paul answers this question, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit 

And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: “The Deliverer will come out of Zion, And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;  For this is My covenant with them, When I take away their sins.”  Romans 11:26-27

The deliverer , Jesus Christ, will come out of Zion (Jerusalem) and turn away the ungodliness of Jacob (Israel) Why would God do this? “For this is my Covenant with them” So if you want to know why Israel is the center of the news and all prophecy, because Israel is the center of the return of Jesus Christ!

Just as when Jesus ascended back into Heaven from the Mount of Olives, the angels said 

who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.”  Acts 1:11

Just as Christ physically ascended to the right hand of The Father, Jesus will physically return at the Mount of Olives to save the remnant of Israel and bring judgement upon the would, Amen!

“Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, Against the Man who is My Companion,” Says the LORD of hosts. “Strike the Shepherd, And the sheep will be scattered; Then I will turn My hand against the little ones.  Zechariah 13:7

As you walk through the book of Zechariah, you realize the prophet is pointing you to Jesus Christ, the fulfilment of the Messianic prophecies. Just as Jesus was the fulfilment of Zechariah’s prophecy in the Triumphant Entry riding on a donkey in Jerusalem on Palm Sunday (Zechariah 9:9) 

Here we see another fulfillment of prophecy by Jesus, as Christ predicts his disciples will abandon him when they take him away to be beaten and crucified as The Lamb of God (Isaiah 53) When you understand who Jesus Christ is, then the Old Testament scriptures and shadows make perfect sense. Without Christ, what sense would these scriptures make?

Then Jesus said to them, “This very night you will all fall away on account of Me. For it is written: ‘I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’  Matthew 26:31

Jesus clearly identifies himself as the “Good Shepherd” Jesus is The Shepherd prophesied by Zechariah here, Christ is the Good Shepherd in Psalm 23, Jesus is the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for His Sheep, Jesus is the Good Shepherd who will walk with us through the valley of death

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.  John 10:11

And it shall come to pass in all the land,” Says the LORD, “That two-thirds in it shall be cut off and die, But one-third shall be left in it:  I will bring the one-third through the fire, Will refine them as silver is refined, And test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, And I will answer them. I will say, ‘This is My people’; And each one will say, ‘The LORD is my God.’ ”  Zechariah 13:8-9

So what about Israel? The prophet Zechariah states “in all the land” meaning Israel. And as predicted the majority “two-thirds” will reject Christ and be cut off. However “one-third” the remnant of God will be saved. They will call upon the name of Jesus and will be saved (Romans 10:13) 

As the Apostle Paul prophesied under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, as the prophet Elijah fortold , God will always have a remnant chosen by grace. There will be a remnant of Israel that will be saved in the end, this is written and prophesied by the Word of God

In the same way, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace.  Romans 11:5