Zechariah 8:3
“Thus says the Lord: ‘I will return to Zion, And dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth, The Mountain of the Lord of hosts, The Holy Mountain.’
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Bible Commentary
Zechariah 8:3 is a Bible verse from the Old Testament where God is promising to return to His people and dwell in the midst of them.
Zechariah chapter 8 is entitled, “Jerusalem, Holy City of the Future.” God speaks about returning to Zion, which infers that He has been separated from it in some way. We know God is omnipresent—He is present everywhere, so what does this verse mean?
When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, God’s covering of glory departed from them and they became aware of both good and evil, just as God warned. They were naked and ashamed. Before sin, there was no nakedness.
Individually, each of us has the opportunity to be restored to God through His Son, Jesus Christ. But there was also a corporate separation from God. Throughout history, the Bible records times of separation and restoration between God and the nation of Israel.
So it is with us. We endure repercussions of that separation from God, both individually and corporately. In Zechariah 8:3, God promises to return to Zion.
Return to Zion
The word Zion in Hebrew means: a mountain of Jerusalem. This is indicative of the place where God’s Presence dwelled, which is a representation of individuals who have accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior.
But God also promises to dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Each of us who have trusted in Christ as Savior make up the city of Jerusalem. No matter what nation we live in, together we make up the city of Jerusalem.
Jesus Christ said in John 6:40, “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”
It is the city of truth that He will raise up on the last day, the city He has been building spiritually within us and among us through the power of the Holy Spirit. He is uniting His people. Ephesians 1:10 says,
“that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in Him.”
City of Truth
In Zechariah 8:3, God says Jerusalem will be called a city of truth. “Truth” in Hebrew means: stability, certainty, truth, trustworthiness, faithful, right.
Jesus Christ will present His bride to God unspotted and without stain. Ephesians 5:27 says,
“that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.”
In other words, the Holy Spirit has been doing a meticulous work of molding us to look like Jesus Christ—faithful, trustworthy, stable and right.
In Him, we are a faithful bride—a city of truth.
In Zechariah 8:3, God says the mountain of the LORD of hosts will be called the Holy Mountain. Zion is where His Presence dwells. He has returned to be a Husband to us again, to gather us (His bride) with great compassion (Isaiah 54:7).
It is time for the restoration of holy matrimony between Jesus Christ and His bride. Study the Bible verse of Zechariah 8:3, and be united in Holy Matrimony to the King of kings and Lord of lords, Jesus Christ.
