Now the angel who talked with me came back and wakened me, as a man who is wakened out of his sleep. And he said to me, “What do you see?” So I said, “I am looking, and there is a lampstand of solid gold with a bowl on top of it, and on the stand seven lamps with seven pipes to the seven lamps. Two olive trees are by it, one at the right of the bowl and the other at its left.” (vv.1-3)
Here God gave Zechariah a vision of the golden lampstand that was meant to stand in the temple. Since Zechariah and his people were there to rebuild the temple, it made sense that God spoke to them in images related to the temple. In addition to the lampstand, Zechariah saw something that was never in the temple – two olive trees that supplied the seven lamps with oil through seven pipes. We see in our text that Zechariah didn’t understand what it meant. So the angel made sure that Zechariah knew the meaning of what he saw.
First of all as we see in verse 6-7, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel.” Zerubbabel was the civic leader of Jerusalem, and had the responsibility to finish the work of rebuilding the temple. The work had stalled, and Zerubbabel needed encouragement to carry on the work. God’s Word to Zerubbabel was, “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the LORD of hosts.” In other words, rely on Me not on yourself. God wanted Zerubbabel to know that the Holy Spirit would continually supply his needs, just as the oil trees in the vision continually supplied oil to the lamps on the lampstand.
Although Zechariah understood the message of encouragement to Zerubbabel, he didn’t exactly understand how it connected to the vision asking, “What are these two olive branches that drip into the receptacles of the two gold pipes from which the golden oil drains?” The answer given by the Angel to him was, “These are the two anointed ones, who stand beside the Lord of the whole earth” (vv.11-14).
This is a very interesting exchange. In Zechariah’s day, the two anointed ones were Zerubbabel and Joshua. But is this a reference to the past, the present, or the future? I tend to believe it points to the future where God promises to raise up two witnesses, anointed ones, to preach the gospel to the world immediately before Jesus’ return (Revelation 11:3-13). And, that he LORD would empower them with His Spirit to prophecy 1,260 days.
While Malachi tells us that Elijah will be one of the two witnesses, it is possible that Zerubbabel himself could be the other (according to the prophecies of Haggai). Also Zechariah 4:23 states, "In that day says the Lord of hosts, I will take you O Zerubbabel, My servant, the son of Shealtiel, says the Lord, and I will make you as a signet, for I have chosen you, says the Lord of hosts." Zechariah is speaking of the last days here, and the overthrow of the kingdoms of the world." Of-course this is purely speculation on my part but nevertheless a possibility.
God has always said of truth (in His Word), that it needs to be established by two or more witnesses. Who the second witness is at this point is irrelevant, but "there will be another" besides Elijah for He tells us as much in His Word.
The Truth: “And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy one thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth. These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands standing before the God of the earth.” (Revelation 11:3-4)
