“Be silent, all flesh, before the LORD, for He is aroused from His holy habitation!”
Zechariah 2:13

What is your impression of God when you read this verse: a passive lofty God, folding His arms while looking down at us, unconcerned? Or a proactive God who is sensitive to our needs and passionately cares for us?

As what God says in the earlier chapter of Zechariah:

“I am zealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with great zeal.”
Zechariah 1:14b

Towards His people, God is anything but unconcerned.

God’s zeal for us shows in His possessiveness and His protectiveness.

Possessive, because He wants to dwell in our midst and to possess us as His people and His inheritance (Zech 2:10-12).

Protective, as He wants to be our wall of fire (Zech 2:5), protecting us like the apple of His eye from enemies that threaten to harm us (Zech 2:8).

Why, then, does God want to measure us (Zech 2:1-2)?

To gauge if we are fit for His dwelling. Then, if we are not (yet), to start spiritual ‘renovations’ so that we can be a people and a possession pleasing to Him.

God’s zeal means He will not easily give up on us, but fight to keep us in His grace.

How about us? Do we reciprocate God’s zeal with a passion?

God earnestly wants us to be as zealous as He is for our personal salvation. As He says in verses 6-7:

“Up, up! Flee from the land of the north […]
Up, Zion! Escape, you who dwell with the daughter of Babylon.”
Zechariah 2:6-7

Our zeal for God will show in our readiness to flee from the land of sin (Revelation 18:4) and into God’s kingdom.

May we zealously rely on God to possess and protect our salvation!