In Zechariah chapter 5 we see our prophet friend having an absolutely bizarre vision, one I’ve heard more than one person attempt to explain – never in a way that made sense to me. But I may finally understand it.
Then the angel who was talking with me came forward and said, “Look up and see what’s coming.”
Zechariah 5:5-11 NLT
“What is it?” I asked.
He replied, “It is a basket for measuring grain, and it’s filled with the sins of everyone throughout the land.”
Then the heavy lead cover was lifted off the basket, and there was a woman sitting inside it.
The angel said, “The woman’s name is Wickedness,” and he pushed her back into the basket and closed the heavy lid again.
Then I looked up and saw two women flying toward us, gliding on the wind. They had wings like a stork, and they picked up the basket and flew into the sky.
“Where are they taking the basket?” I asked the angel.
He replied, “To the land of Babylonia, where they will build a temple for the basket. And when the temple is ready, they will set the basket there on its pedestal.”
According to the vision…
- The basket is filled with the sins of everyone throughout the land.
- The woman’s name is Wickedness.
- The basket will be taken to Babylon.
- A temple will be built for the basket.
- The basket will be placed on a pedestal in the temple.
As a reminder, Old Testament prophesies are sometimes literal and sometimes figurative. They also can have multiple fulfillments. With that in mind…
Working our way backwards through this list, it becomes clear that the basket or, more accurately, what it contains, will be worshipped. This is, after all, what happens in temples. Just as God was worshipped in the Temple built for Him, this basket’s contents will be worshipped in the temple built for it.
I’m thinking a figurative temple.
The temple will be built in Babylon, which in the Bible represents the world’s system.
So, if I read this prophecy correctly, it’s telling us that the world’s system will worship wickedness and sin.
Which it takes little discernment to see pretty much sums up the condition of the world right now. Today’s society condones just about everything God condemns. In fact, it doesn’t just condone sin; it exalts sin, pushing it to the forefront in every arena possible, sadly even in the church. The world system we live in, indeed, worships sin and wickedness.
As I see it, this is just one more sign of how close we are to The End.
Celebrating Jesus and looking for His return!
Tammy C
