Examining a Potential Relationship Between Zechariah 12:2 and Ezekiel Chapter 7

I’ve spent the past several days trying to piece together several Bible prophecy verses and chapters that I’ve been studying over the past several months with the hope that I can soon begin to write a series of detailed articles about several End Times related events including Gog’s invasion, the northern army mentioned in Joel, and clash of kings described in Daniel 11:40-45. As I was piecing together some of these verses and chapters, I noticed that there may be a potential relationship between Zechariah 12:2 and Ezekiel 7.

• Today I’ll discuss the potential relationship that may exist between Zechariah 12:2 and Ezekiel 7.

Zechariah 12 is seen by many prophecy commentators as a chapter that has End Times significance. Zechariah 12:2 suggests that people will attempt to enact a siege against Judah and against Jerusalem.

• Zec 12:1 The burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him.
• Zec 12:2 Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem.

Before I discuss Ezekiel 7, I’ll define what a “siege” is just in case there are some people who are unfamiliar with the term. A siege is basically a military blockade that isolates a location (like a city) from help and supplies. In the case of a city, the goal of a siege is to weaken the city through attrition to the point where the city surrenders or is weakened to the point where it can be defeated.

Ezekiel 7 is an interesting chapter that concerns a military campaign against the land of Israel (Ezekiel 7:2) & likely Jerusalem (Ezekiel 7:15) and is a chapter that I do not see a lot of prophecy commentators discuss. However, I think Ezekiel 7 has multiple verses which indicate that the chapter may have some End Times significance. The following sections include some examples of why I think that Ezekiel 7 may have some End Times significance.

1. Ezekiel 7:3-4 and Ezekiel 7:8-9 convey the message that the Lord will send His anger/pour out His fury during this military campaign:

Eze 7:3 Now is the end come upon thee, and I will send mine anger upon thee, and will judge thee according to thy ways, and will recompense upon thee all thine abominations. Eze 7:4 And mine eye shall not spare thee, neither will I have pity: but I will recompense thy ways upon thee, and thine abominations shall be in the midst of thee: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.

Eze 7:8 Now will I shortly pour out my fury upon thee, and accomplish mine anger upon thee: and I will judge thee according to thy ways, and will recompense thee for all thine abominations. Eze 7:9 And mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: I will recompense thee according to thy ways and thine abominations that are in the midst of thee; and ye shall know that I am the LORD that smiteth.

The Lord pouring out His fury is reminiscent of what is found in Jeremiah 25:15-38, which I believe is a passage that is associated with the End Times. Recall, Jeremiah 25:15-18 suggests that Jerusalem and the cities of Judah would drink from the cup of the Lord’s fury.

• Jer 25:15 For thus saith the LORD God of Israel unto me; Take the wine cup of this fury at my hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send thee, to drink it.
• Jer 25:16 And they shall drink, and be moved, and be mad, because of the sword that I will send among them.
• Jer 25:17 Then took I the cup at the LORD'S hand, and made all the nations to drink, unto whom the LORD had sent me:
• Jer 25:18 To wit, Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, and the kings thereof, and the princes thereof, to make them a desolation, an astonishment, an hissing, and a curse; as it is this day;

There will be more on the cup of fury imagery later…

2. Ezekiel 7:7 notes that the “day of trouble” approaches. The term “day of trouble” is sometimes used in End Times prophecy. For instance, Zephaniah 1:15 uses the term “day of trouble” to describe the nature of the Day of the Lord.

Eze 7:7 The morning is come unto thee, O thou that dwellest in the land: the time is come, the day of trouble is near, and not the sounding again of the mountains.

Zep 1:14 The great day of the LORD is near, it is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the LORD: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly. Zep 1:15 That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness,

3. Perhaps the biggest reason why I think Ezekiel 7 may have some End Times significance is that Ezekiel 7:19 is practically identical to Zephaniah 1:18, a verse which pertains to the Day of the Lord.

Eze 7:19 They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be removed: their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the LORD: they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels: because it is the stumblingblock of their iniquity.

Zep 1:18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD'S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.

4. Finally, another reason to consider Ezekiel 7 as a chapter that may have some End Times significance is that Ezekiel 7:25 and 1 Thessalonians 5:3 appear to be quite similar:

Eze 7:25 Destruction cometh; and they shall seek peace, and there shall be none.

1Th 5:2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. 1Th 5:3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

Theory: Ezekiel 7 may be related to Zechariah 12:2 in that it may be a chapter that provides a detailed overview of the siege mentioned in Zechariah 12:2. Ezekiel 7:15 and Ezekiel 7:16 describe a situation where there is disease and famine within “the city” (likely Jerusalem) and military forces (the sword) outside the city that are ready to attack people who are outside the city.

• Eze 7:15 The sword is without, and the pestilence and the famine within: he that is in the field shall die with the sword; and he that is in the city, famine and pestilence shall devour him.
• Eze 7:16 But they that escape of them shall escape, and shall be on the mountains like doves of the valleys, all of them mourning, every one for his iniquity.

The details provided in Ezekiel 7:15 and Ezekiel 7:16 are consistent with what would happen during a siege of a city. Military forces would be positioned outside the city to prevent people from coming to help the city and to prevent people from escaping the city. The people living in the city would suffer from a lack of food and from the rise of disease.

Returning to the cup of fury imagery mentioned earlier, Isaiah 51:17 onwards could potentially describe the aftermath of the siege depicted in Ezekiel 7:15-16.

Eze 7:8 Now will I shortly pour out my fury upon thee, and accomplish mine anger upon thee: and I will judge thee according to thy ways, and will recompense thee for all thine abominations. … Eze 7:15 The sword is without, and the pestilence and the famine within: he that is in the field shall die with the sword; and he that is in the city, famine and pestilence shall devour him. Eze 7:16 But they that escape of them shall escape, and shall be on the mountains like doves of the valleys, all of them mourning, every one for his iniquity.

Isa 51:17 Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the LORD the cup of his fury; thou hast drunken the dregs of the cup of trembling, and wrung them out. … Isa 51:19 These two things are come unto thee; who shall be sorry for thee? desolation, and destruction, and the famine, and the sword: by whom shall I comfort thee? Isa 51:20 Thy sons have fainted, they lie at the head of all the streets, as a wild bull in a net: they are full of the fury of the LORD, the rebuke of thy God.

Continuing further with Isaiah 51, Isaiah 51:22-23 may be related to Zechariah 12. These verses state that the cup of fury/the cup of trembling will now be given to those who afflicted Jerusalem. This is similar to what is found in Zechariah 12:2-3, which suggests that Jerusalem will become a cup of trembling and a burdensome stone for those who gathered against it.

Isa 51:22 Thus saith thy Lord the LORD, and thy God that pleadeth the cause of his people, Behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup of my fury; thou shalt no more drink it again: Isa 51:23 But I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee; which have said to thy soul, Bow down, that we may go over: and thou hast laid thy body as the ground, and as the street, to them that went over.

Zec 12:2 Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. Zec 12:3 And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.

I need to study these verses and other chapters and verses which I have not mentioned today (like Ezekiel 13 and Isaiah 22) further to see whether Ezekiel 7 actually describes the siege mentioned in Zechariah 12:2 in detail. I also need to figure out precisely when the siege mentioned in Zechariah 12:2 will take place and figure out why a siege is the method of attack. The verses included in today's article suggest that the siege will take place in connection with the Day of the Lord, but will it occur before the start of the Day of the Lord or will it take place at some time during the Day of the Lord?

• Finding out more about these issues will help me as I work to begin writing detailed articles about the End Times related events I mentioned at the beginning of the article and others.

Anyway, I hope you found this article useful in some way. Please let me know if you have any thoughts about what I discussed today. Please feel free to point out any weaknesses you find or ask any questions you may have.