Zechariah 12 Devotional

When Grace Brings Tears

“Then I will pour out on the house of David and on the people of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and prayer, and they will look on Me, the One they have pierced. They will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for Him as one grieves for a firstborn son.”Zechariah 12:10 (BSB)

The chapter opens with the Creator of the heavens and of the human spirit promising to defend Jerusalem when the nations come against it (12:1-9). Even the weakest of his people will be strong like David (12:8).

Then the chapter turns from victory to grief. God pours out on David's house and on Jerusalem a spirit of grace and prayer. They look to him, the one they pierced, and mourn as one mourns for an only child or a firstborn son (12:10). The mourning spreads family by family, each grieving on its own (12:12-14). John connects this verse to the soldier's spear that pierced the side of Jesus on the cross (John 19:34-37). Notice the order: grace is poured out first, and only then do people see what their sin has done and grieve over it. Real sorrow for sin is not something we work up. It is a gift God gives, so that we turn to the one we wounded and find him full of mercy.

To think about: What would it look like to let God's grace, rather than fear, lead you to honest sorrow over your sin?