Zech 12:10   And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication. They will look to me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him

   

   

Zechariah prophesied in the days of the rebuilding of the Temple after the Exile. The word that comes through him is one of great encouragement. It declares hope for the future for them. Perhaps they might have been a bit unsure of what it meant – prophecies are often like that. Yes, God would pour out His Spirit on them, but what about the one they have pierced? Did that just mean that they had pierced God's heart when they failed Him prior to the Exile, but why mourn for him now?

 

With the hindsight of history we can see that this word was exactly fulfilled on the day of Pentecost. The Spirit was poured out, Peter preached and concluded saying, “God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” (Acts 2:36). As the Spirit took his words and applied them, we then read, “When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do?” Note the supplication: what shall we do? Note that it came when they were faced with the one they had pierced and they mourned for what they had done. Zechariah's word told of what was yet to come – comfort that will come through this order: outpouring of the Spirit, conviction, prayer and then salvation. That's how God does it; He sends His Spirit to convict, we respond in prayer and He saved. Hallelujah!