Zechariah 10:4: “From him comes the cornerstone, / From him the tent peg, / From him the battle bow, / From him every ruler together.”

December 21st, 2021 by Pastor Ed in devotional

Judah’s leadership had led God’s people astray, and God was promising them that He would give them leadership they could trust and rely on. Verse 4 is a series of pictures of Jesus Chist, the coming Messiah, who was of the tribe of Judah. Jesus is the cornerstone—the foundation the kingdom of God rests on. He is also a tent peg, which is a similar picture to the cornerstone. It was not unusual in that day to use a nail or peg in the wall to hang important articles on to keep them close at hand, like a bow and arrows for protection. In a tent, a peg was attached to one of the tent’s poles to hang utensils and other valuables on. The picture is that Jesus is the peg or nail where important things are to be hung. The third picture given is the battle bow, speaking of a weapon, an instrument of war. According to Revelation 19:19, Jesus will return to battle evil: “And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army.” And the last picture is of rulers and means that every ruler will be brought underneath Jesus’ rule when He returns. Some have called the Book of Zechariah the Apocalypse of the Old Testament because it has some of the same messages as the Book of Revelation.

In the middle of our nation’s capital, Washington DC, stands the Washington Monument. Engraved on the metal cap are two Latin words Laus Deo, positioned on the highest monument, over the most powerful city, of the most powerful nation on earth. So what does Laus Deo mean? “Praise Be to God.” Sadly, our nation’s leaders are moving farther and farther away from the godly example they were set; and are, like Judah’s leadership, beginning to lead people astray. We should pray daily for our leaders, that they would turn to God and follow Him. But ultimately, we look forward with eager anticipation to the day when Jesus Christ, our perfect King, takes His throne. It will be amazing to have a government that we can completely trust and rely on.

“LORD, we chose to praise You because You are worthy of all honor and respect—Laus Deo!”