1 Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. 2 And the Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, O Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this a brand (a burning stick) plucked from the fire?” 3 Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clothed with filthy garments. And the angel said to those who were standing before him, “Remove the filthy garments from him.” 4 And to him he said, “Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments.” 5 And I said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the Lord was standing by. Zechariah 3:1-5 English Standard Version

Much like the apostle John in the New Testament, Zechariah was given a series of visions to encourage God's people who were experiencing difficult days in the world. In Zechariah's case, the visions were for the encouragement of Jews who had returned from many years of exile and were faced with the task of rebuilding Jerusalem and it's temple. The work was not without opposition. Those who’d taken over the region when the Jews went into captivity did what they could to hinder the work of rebuilding, and they were not alone in making life difficult. Who else is a big stumbling block to the people of the Lord? (vs 1)

The name ‘Satan’ evidently means 'accuser'. Like a prosecutor in a court of law, he was bringing charges against the man who was now High Priest in Jerusalem. We see a similar scene in the Old Testament book of Job where we read: “There was a day when the sons of God (angelic beings) came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. The Lord said to Satan, 'From where have you come?' Satan answered the Lord and said, 'From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.'” (Job 1:6-7) In that case, Satan accused the man named Job of only being a God fearing man because of the many good things God had blessed him with. But in the case of Joshua in today's reading, were Satan's accusations false? (vs 3)

Absolutely not. Joshua, like the other Jews he had returned with to Jerusalem, was a member of a nation who had grieved God by sin after sin after sin. The nation had come under God's severe discipline and their city and temple had been burned to the ground. So Satan thought this case was easy to prove, and a guilty verdict could be demanded. Even the Bible teaches that sin brings a death sentence upon us. But what was God's response? (vs 2)

What a pitiful, yet beautiful picture. A brand plucked from the fire! Something charred and still smoking – seemingly worthless. But something plucked up by the mighty hand of God. And so the angel of the Lord gave instructions to take off the filthy garments – so unfit for a Priest – and to clothe Joshua with pure garments. (vs 3) That in itself was marvellous. But what was the deeper significance of this act? (vs 4)

It signified that the sins of Joshua, and of the nation, which Satan was so willing to point out as demanding retribution, had been removed by the only one who could justly do such a thing. It is God alone who can 'take iniquity away'. But how can He do that? If a magistrate on earth let a guilty criminal walk free as if they were innocent, would we not suspect a bribe had been made, or that the Judge himself must be crooked?

The answer is in Romans 3:25-26 where the apostle Paul wrote: “God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when He held back and didn't punish those who sinned in times past. For He was looking ahead and including them in what He would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate His righteousness, for He himself is fair and just, and He makes sinners right in His sight when they believe in Jesus.” This is why Paul goes on to say: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus - who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies.” (Romans 8:1 & 33) Like Joshua of old, the Christians iniquity has been taken away, and Satan, the accuser, has nothing on them.