An Exposition Of Zechariah
By Dr. David L. Cooper
Installment 9

Commercialism Removed From Palestine To Babylon

THEN the angel that talked with me went forth, and said unto me, Lift up now thine eyes, and see what is this that goeth forth. 6 And I said, What is it? And he said, This is the ephah that goeth forth. He said moreover, This is their appearance in all the land 7 (and, behold, there was lifted up a talent of lead); and this is a woman sitting in the midst of the ephah. 8 And he said, This is Wickedness: and he cast her down into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof. 9 Then lifted I up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, there came forth two women, and the wind was in their wings; now they had wings like the wings of a stork; and they lifted up the ephah between earth and heaven. 10 Then said I to the angel that talked with me, Whither do these bear the ephah? 11 And he said unto me, To build her a house in the land of Shinar: and when it is prepared, she shall be set there in her own place. (Zech. 5:5-11)

The subject for this discussion is the seventh vision granted to Zechariah on the night of the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month of the second year of Darius, king of the Medo-Persian Empire. As has already been learned, the text of the Book of Zechariah is 1:13 which speaks of the good and comfortable words which the Lord spake to the people of Israel. In each of these revelations some phase of cleansing and restoration of the nation and the land is set forth.

The Ephah And Its Covering

In this vision the prophet saw an ephah, which was the largest dry measure current among the Jews. This was not an actual measure but was an ideal one used for computation of large quantities.

There was a "circle of lead" which served as a cover to this ideal measure. In speaking of this ephah with its covering, the interpreting angel said to the prophet, "This is their appearance in all the land." It seems from the statements that are made by this angelic being that the thing signified in this vision was something that affects the entire country. What therefore could be symbolized by such a measure which has as its covering a circle or a talent of lead? When one thinks of various measures and weights, instantly there comes to his mind the idea of trade and commerce because these are essential to all business transactions. Confirmation of this position is seen by the covering which was placed upon the ephah; namely, the circle of talent of lead. Some commentators tell us that this talent of lead was the ideal unit for the computation of large sums of money. These facts lead us to believe that the ephah with its lead covering, therefore, symbolizes commercialism as its pertains to the Land of Israel and God's Chosen People, the Jews, in the endtime.

The Woman Wickedness

Within this ephah of commercialism there was a woman whose name is Wickedness. When one understands the symbolic significance of a woman as she appears in the Scriptures, he comes to this conclusion: A pure, chaste virgin signifies the church of the Lord Jesus, the body of believers; but a harlot represents a false religious system. These meanings are seen most clearly in the Book of Revelation. Once again, a woman is used as a symbol of a nation or a city. For instance, the Jewish people are represented as "the daughter of Zion." Let us make the scriptural distinction between the use of these expressions: "the daughters of Zion," which refers to the Jewish women (Isaiah 3) and the term, "daughter of Zion," which designates the Jewish people, as one can see when one examines the various occurrences of these terms. In view of the fact that women of different characters are used as symbols of nations, of the true church, and of a false ecclesiasticism, we are logical in concluding that this woman doubtless has one of these significations. Instantly, the symbolic meaning of the true church of the Lord is ruled out, because this woman is called "Wickedness." She must therefore symbolize a false religious system or must signify the wicked, apostate remnant of the people of Israel who are engrossed in commercialism based upon unscrupulous practices. When we consider all the facts, it seems most likely that this latter meaning is that which was intended.

The Woman With Wings Like A Stork

At this juncture of the vision the prophet lifted up his eyes and saw two women coming with the wind in their wings. These wings were those of a stork. These women transported the ephah with the woman of wickedness within from Palestine to the Plains of Shinar. Who therefore are these women with the wings of a stork? In view of all the facts it seems quite likely that they represent certain sections of the Jewish nation, engrossed in commercialism and wickedness, who assist in the transfer of the leading industries and all sorts of commerce and trade from Palestine to Babylon, which at that time will be the commercial center of the world. That the sections of the race indicated by the two women are an apostate renegade portion is indicated by the fact that the women have wings of the stork an unclean bird. Thus everything connected with this revelation seems to have been of an unclean, abominable nature.

Babylon The Commercial Center Of The World

The transfer of all commercialism from Palestine to Babylon at this future date will rid the land of the Redeemer of the many dubious practices and wicked dealings which will in the future develop in that land. That Babylon is to be the commercial center of the world seems to be the necessary inference of this passage. This supposition is strengthened by the fact that in Revelation 18 we see a prophecy of the destruction of Babylon, the city. One must differentiate most clearly between Babylon the harlot, described in Revelation 17, and Babylon the city depicted in the eighteenth chapter. It is evident from the facts of the seventeenth of Revelation that Babylon the harlot is a false ecclesiasticism; whereas the Babylon of chapter 18 is a literal city that is earmarked with every identification of being the commercial center of the world. From the description of the effects of the pouring out of the last bowl of God's wrath as described in Revelation l6 the shaking of the globe and the destruction of the cities of the nations we see that Babylon the city is last to fall at the very end of the Tribulation. We have every reason therefore, from the Scriptures, to believe that Babylon will rise from the dust of the centuries and will yet play a most important part in the commerce and trade of the world. But someone may conclude that, since this development must take place, there evidently is a long time between now and the time of the end. This is not a necessary inference at all, because things move very rapidly in this day of science and progress. We move farther, figuratively speaking, in a week's time than the ancients did in several thousand years. Things will be speeded up as this age draws to a close.

In Isaiah 13 and 14 and Jeremiah 50 and 51, appear prophecies concerning the destruction of Babylon. When these predictions are studied microscopically and when the history of Babylon of the past is before one's view, one concludes that these oracles were never fulfilled literally as they are written. Since God fulfills prophecy as written and not as interpreted by the speculations of men, we may expect this ancient center of wickedness to rise and become a dominant factor in the world in the end-time.

From the various passages of Scripture to which reference has been made in this article, one cannot avoid the conclusion that Babylon will be rebuilt and that it will become the center of a great commercialism in the End-time.