Zechariah 13:2

And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land. I WILL CUT OFF THE NAMES OF THE IDOLS OUT OF THE LAND, AND THEY SHALL NO MORE BE REMEMBERED. Such are the consequences of pardon; not indolence, but the extirpation of sin. NAMES OF THE IDOLS. Their very names were not to be mentioned: thus the Jews, instead of Mephi-baal, said Mephi-bosheth (bosheth meaning a contemptible thing), (Exodus 23:13; Deuteronomy 12:3; Psalms 16:4), The "idols" ...

Here the Prophet mentions another effect, which would follow the repentance of the people, and which the Lord also would thereby produce. There was to be a cleansing from all the defilements of superstitions; for the pure and lawful worship of God cannot be set up without these filthy things being wiped away; inasmuch as to blend sacred with profane things, is the same thing as though one sought to take away the difference between heaven and earth. No religion then can be approved by God, except what is pure and free from all such pollution. We hence see why the Prophet adds, that there would be an end to falsehoods and all errors, and to the delusions of Satan, when God restored his Church; for the simplicity of true doctrine would prevail, and thus abolished would be whatever Satan had previously invented to corrupt religion. We hence learn what I have just stated — that God cannot be...

1-6 In the time mentioned at the close of the foregoing chapter, a fountain would be opened to the rulers and people of the Jews, in which to wash away their sins. Even the atoning blood of Christ, united with his sanctifying grace. It has hitherto been closed to the unbelieving nation of Israel; but when the Spirit of grace shall humble and soften their hearts, he will open it to them also. This fountain opened is the pierced side of Christ. We are all as an unclean thing. Behold a fountain opened for us to wash in, and streams flowing to us from that fountain. The blood of Christ, and God's pardoning mercy in that blood, made known in the new covenant, are a fountain always flowing, that never can be emptied. It is opened for all believers, who as the spiritual seed of Christ, are of the house of David, and, as living members of the church, are inhabitants of Jerusalem. Christ, by the...

Verse Zechariah 13:2. _I WILL CUT OFF THE NAMES OF THE IDOLS_] There shall not only be no _idolatry_, but the very _names_ of the _idols_ shall be forgotten, or be held in such abhorrence that no person shall _mention_ them. This prophecy seems to be ancient, and to have been delivered while idolatry had prevalence in Israel and Judah. _I WILL CAUSE THE PROPHETS_] All false teachers. _AND THE UNCLEAN SPIRIT_] That which leads to impurity, the spirit of _divination_; the lust of the flesh, and of the eye, and the pride of life. Satan shall have neither a _being in_, nor _power_ _over_, the hearts of sincere believers in Christ....

I WILL CUT OFF THE NAMES OF THE IDOLS - This had been a fence against idolatry. To name evil is a temptation to evil. Wrong words are the parents of wrong acts. To speak of evil awakens curiosity or passion; curiosity is one of the strongest incentives to act. All public mention of terrible crimes (it has been observed) produces imitation of the specific form of crime. Hence, it was commanded, “make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth” Exodus 23:13. And Joshua names it in his dying charge to Israel, “Be ye therefore very strong to keep and to are all that is written in the book of the law of Moses - either make mention of the name of their gods, nor cause to swear by them” Joshua 23:6. Hence, they “changed” the “names” of cities , which b

EXPOSITION ZECHARIAH 13:1 § 3._ This repentance will lead to purification from past defilement, and a reaction against idolatry and false prophet._ ZECHARIAH 13:1 IN THAT DAY. At the time when the great mourning (Zechariah 12:1.) takes place, or, more generally, in the Messianic period, when all these things shall be fulfilled. SHALL BE A FOUNTAIN OPENED, etc. Shah be opened and continue open. The allusion is to the lustral rites practised in the consecration of the Levites, who were to have "water of sin" sprinkled on them, and to "the water of separation," or "water of uncleanness" (the word found i

AND IT SHALL COME TO PASS IN THAT DAY, SAITH THE LORD OF HOSTS,.... In the latter day, at the time of the conversion of the Jews, when they shall turn to the Lord, and their sins shall be forgiven, and washed away in the fountain of his blood; for this refers not to the times of the Babylonish captivity, and their deliverance from that, which was now over, when idolatry ceased among that people; nor to the times of Christ, when soon after the false prophets among the Heathens, and their lying oracles, ceased, and Paganism in the Roman empire was destroyed; but to the times before mentioned, of which it is predicted by the Lord, saying, [THAT] I WILL CUT OFF THE NAMES OF THE IDOLS OUT OF THE LAND, AND THEY SHALL NO MORE BE REMEMBERED; meaning the idols of gold, silver, brass, and wood; images of the Virgin Mary, and saints departed, worshipped by the Papists, Revelation 9

Zechariah 12:10. _And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon. And the land shall mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart; the family of Shimei apart, and their wives apart; all the families that remain, every family apart, and their wives apart._...

CHAPTER 13 _ 1. The cleansing (Zechariah 13:1) _ 2. The blessed results of the cleansing (Zechariah 13:2) 3. The smitten Shepherd (Zechariah 13:7) 4. Salvation and condemnation (Zechariah 13:8) Zechariah 13:1. This verse is misplaced; it belongs to the preceding chapter. It is a prophecy of the cleansing of the repenting portion of God's earthly people. The fountain of cleansing, so beautifully expressed by Cowper: There is a fountain filled with blood, Drawn from Immanuel's veins, And sin

The result of the national repentance is the removal of guilt. The figure of the fountain is perhaps suggested by Ezekiel 47. The first sign of Judah's true restoration will be the abolition of all idolatry and of the spirit of uncleanness, _i.e._ Greek disregard of Hebrew laws of purity. There will also be a total abolition of all the professional prophets who, like modern fortune-tellers and palmists, traded upon the credulity of the foolish. The utter disrepute into which the prophetic order had fallen was due to the abandonment by the better teachers since Ezra's time of the older forms of prophecy for the exposition of the written Scripture. In other words, the true prophets had become scribes, while those who merely prophesied for a livelihood still carned on the calling which they had brought into disrepute. Some of the scribes were no doubt in the highest sense of the word prophe...