And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication.

They will look upon Me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for Him as one grieves for a firstborn son. On that day the weeping in Jerusalem will be great, like the weeping of Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. The land will mourn, each clan by itself, with their wives by themselves: the clan of the house of David and their wives, the clan of the house of Nathan and their wives, the clan of Shimei and their wives, and all the rest of the clans and their wives. On that day a fountain will be opened to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and impurity. Zechariah 12:10-13:1 The Prophet Zechariah gives us a wonderful picture here of a coming revival in which many of the people of Jerusalem and of the House of David will be brought into a saving relationship with the LORD Jesus Christ. Zechariah is looking ahead to the Day of the LORD in which there will be a separation of people into those who will be condemned in their sinful rebellion and those who will be saved by the coming Good Shepherd. The day of the LORD is a day of separation because it is a day in which we encounter the reality of the LORDs nature. We therefore see our sin clearly, as well as the gift of grace that God calls us to in Christ. Therefore we are brought to the point of decision. Several things confront us as we meditate upon what Zechariah writes about here. This is first of all a work of Gods grace. He pours out upon His people a Spirit of grace and supplication. His Spirit is poured out upon His People. The Scriptures echo this point in numerous places. Then they will know that I am the LORD their God, for though I sent them into exile among the nations, I will gather them to their own land, not leaving any behind. I will no longer hide My Face from them, for I will pour out My Spirit on the House of Israel, declares the Sovereign LORD. Ezekiel 39:28-29 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 1 Corinthians 1:18 But thanks be to God who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. 2 Corinthians 2:14-16a God will pour out upon His people His Spirit causing us to draw near to Him in prayer because we see Him as He is and ourselves as those who are completely lost in our sin. Zechariah tells us that the reason for this is found in the fact that we find ourselves looking upon the One who we have pierced. The Apostle Paul loves to preach the message of Christ Crucified. The description that Luke

gives us of the events on the day of Pentecost show us that as Peter was preaching to the crowd under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit that the people began to see that they were personally responsible for the crucifixion of the LORD Jesus Christ, they cried out in anguish What shall we do? Surely this is a fulfillment of Zechariahs prophesy. Could it be that it is fulfilled every time there is a revival? Looking ahead we can also see that there is a coming great revival in which many of the people of Israel will see Christ crucified clearly, and come to faith in Him. Zechariah tells us that this is the work of God among His people as He pours out His Spirit of supplication upon us. We are called to prayer, to repentance and to see the One Pierced clearly. We grieve, repent and come to the crucified one in faith, receiving from Him living water that cleanses us from every sin. What a wonderful promise from God. What a wonderful call to repentant faith in the Crucified One.