The passage in question refers to the time of the Millennium, after Christ’s return, when the Kingdom of God will be established here on earth.
Zechariah 13:2-3 reads:
“‘(Verse 2) It shall be in that day,’ says the LORD of hosts, ‘that I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, and they shall no longer be remembered. I will also cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to depart from the land. (Verse 3) It shall come to pass that if anyone still prophesies, then his father and mother who begot him will say to him,”‘You shall not live, because you have spoken lies in the name of the LORD.” And his father and mother who begot him shall thrust him through when he prophesies…'”
This passage is adopted from and reverts back to laws which God gave Old Testament Israel, to be found in Deuteronomy 13:1-11 (compare also Deuteronomy 18:20).
In explaining the passage in Zechariah 13:3, the Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary points out:
“The substantial truth expressed is that false prophecy shall be utterly abolished. If it were possible for it again to start up, the very parents of the false prophet would not let parental affection interfere, but would be the first to thrust him through. Love to Christ must be paramount to the tenderest of natural ties… Much as the godly love their children, they love God and His honor more.”
The New Bible Commentary: Revised, adds the following:
“This parental correction would hold in check the foremost cause of the adulteration of true religion. Such discredit would be cast on the false prophet by his own kin that he would be ashamed to wear the tokens of which he had formerly boasted (verse 4). His garb and his dream would be discredited.”
We see from this passage that God will not permit idolatrous and demonic doctrines, as well as sorcery and witchcraft, to be taught or practiced in the Millennium. At the same time, the passage above refers to a rebellious, wicked and incorrigible person who refuses to be submissive and obedient to God, even though he has been repeatedly warned (compare Isaiah 30:20). During the Millennium, the death penalty will be “on the books” and will even be enforced, either directly by God or human beings, in case of flagrant presumptuous violations (compare an early incident at the beginning of the Millennium, in Ezekiel 38:18-23; 39:6; also compare a similar incident at the end of the Millennium, in Revelation 20:7-9).
We should also note, however, that the death penalty will be administered rightly and justly. For more information on this highly misunderstood matter, please read our Q&A, explaining “our” position on the “death penalty.” In that Q&A, we wrote:
“Even in Old Testament times, judicial safeguards were built into God’s law to provide for the rights of the accused in order to prevent injustices, i.e. guilt had to be firmly established; circumstantial evidence was not sufficient, and at least two witnesses were required to establish guilt. False witnesses were themselves subject to death. Difficult cases could be sent, on appeal, for judicial review. Once rightly convicted, however–and since the nation of Israel was at that time a theocracy, God would see to it that no innocent person would be wrongly convicted—the death penalty was mandatory, and it was swift and sure… Eventually, following Christ’s Return, the administration of justice, including capital punishment, will be rendered by God’s saints as Kings, Priests and Judges. It will be meted out fairly and equitably.”
At the same time, we should clearly understand that members of the Church of God–true Christians–are not to be involved in any way today, directly or indirectly, with the administration of the death penalty or the execution of a convicted criminal. We wrote in the Q&A, mentioned above:
“In the meantime, God’s Church is to have no part in administering man’s ‘justice’ and the death penalty, and Church members are not to serve as judges or jurors.., ‘if the State is not fulfilling its obligations, it is not up to the individual to take to himself the State’s authority which was conferred by God Himself. It is not for the individual to “execute wrath on him who practices evil.” For Christians this is even more so as we are not to be the ruling executives, legislators or judges of the civil government. Paul explained this in 2 Corinthians 3. Though the administration of “the letter” which kills (verse 6) is from God—and a civil authority that administers it is even “God’s minister” of this particular function (Romans 13:4)—true Christians are to administer only “life” through the administration of the Spirit.'”
We are also to understand that at the time of Moses, God gave Israel certain temporary, civil, sacrificial and administrative laws, and because of their sins, He added certain penalties to His spiritual timeless Law. We wrote the following in our booklet, “And Lawlessness Will Abound,” on page 52:
“From a general standpoint, the laws in the Old Testament are divided into several categories. They may deal with temporary national or ritual circumstances, or they may address lasting principles to be incorporated in our personal lives. For instance, Deuteronomy 20 contains laws and regulations about national warfare. These laws are clearly not binding for Christians today, as a Christian is not to participate in war (Matthew 5:44; 26:52; Romans 12:20; 2 Corinthians 10:3–4; James 4:1–2; 1 John 3:15).
“In addition, God gave Israel certain national laws, for instance in Deuteronomy 16 and 17, dealing with the punishment and, in certain cases, the execution of criminals. Converted Christians are servants of the New Covenant, which gives life (2 Corinthians 3:6). They are not to judge or condemn another person. Christ said that he who is without sin may cast the first stone (John 8:7). At the same time, we are told that nobody can claim to be without sin (1 John 1:8). Therefore, Christians are not to participate, for instance as jurors, in the judicial systems of this world. In addition, the Church today is not to carry out the death penalty, either. Rather, the ministry is to preach today reconciliation and eternal life (2 Corinthians 5:18–21).”
Even when considering conditions during the Millennium, we need to understand that the nations will be “gradually” led to the truth. Foreigners will hear about God’s true and righteous rule in Jerusalem, and they will want to go there to learn more about it (Isaiah 2:1-3). We also read that God will introduce certain sacrifices in Jerusalem, at a New Temple, although we are clearly taught that because of Christ’s death, sacrifices are no longer necessary. Still, sacrifices will be given, at least temporarily, for the possible reason of leading people to Christ and making them understand the tremendous significance of Christ’s Sacrifice. (For more information, please read our free booklet, “The Sacrificial System and the Tabernacle in the wilderness,” pages 5-6.) The same concept might apply to certain other Old Testament laws, which God gave Israel at the time of Moses. Even though not applicable to or enforceable by God’s Church today, they might be reintroduced, perhaps on a temporary basis, for civil and criminal administration of the nations at the time of the Millennium.
When discussing the future role of true Christians–that of being kings and priests in the Millennium–we wrote the following in our free booklet, “The Meaning of God’s Fall Holy Days,” on pages 34-36:
“Some people will respond quickly to Godly teaching and guidance. Micah 4:1–3 explains that they will want to learn to do what is right. They will not want to learn the way of war any more; but rather, they will be willing to replace their weapons with useful tools. God’s rule will start in Jerusalem and will spread out from there, to include countries that had never heard, learned or understood the truth before (Isaiah 66:19, 23)… But not everyone will readily follow your guidance nor respond to your oral teaching when they hear your voice behind them telling them to go the straight and narrow way. Some will need to be dealt with in more drastic ways, such as the temporary withholding of physical blessings (compare Zechariah 14:16–19)…
“Total rebellion will be dealt with quickly and thoroughly. Those who refuse to obey God will be destroyed. This will also serve as a lesson to others, so that they will not feel motivated to rebel also (compare Ezekiel 38:8–12, 15–23; 39:3–10)…
“Many Old Testament laws will be applied in the Millennium, including the commandments regarding the Sabbath, the Holy Days, clean and unclean meats, and the sacrifices. When someone steals, he will have to make restitution. He will have to pay ‘an eye for an eye,’ that is, he will have to restore the value of the eye (compare Exodus 21:24–25, 18–19, 22)… The Old Testament ‘an eye for an eye’ principle was never meant to be applied literally by actually maiming an offender. It was meant to outlaw the personal vindictive ‘self-help’ approach and to allow, instead, a magistrate or a judge to consider the case and render righteous judgment by ordering the offender to pay just compensation to the victim…
“You might not allow it to go so far as an individual actually losing an eye, so that the offender would have to restore its value, but the law, and the penalty for breaking the law, will be taught. Even if you did allow such an offense to happen, you could immediately heal the person who lost an eye. Christ allowed Peter to strike the servant and cut off his ear, but then He healed the servant right away (Matthew 26:51; John 18:10; Luke 22:50–51).”
In conclusion, God will not allow rebellion, idolatry, witchcraft or false teachings and prophecies to be practiced during the Millennium. He will do everything which is necessary to prevent those evil practices from occurring.
Let us also note and be reminded that the children of Israel, at the beginning of their deliverance from Egypt, oftentimes sought to return to their idolatrous lives (compare Psalm 106). They even began to worship idols–although God had revealed Himself to this people! In the future, some may also look back at this present age of darkness, as did some of ancient Israel; however, when Jesus Christ rules the earth, wrong practices, such as those mentioned in Zechariah 13:2-3, will be quickly stopped.
Today, the Church of God has the duty to teach mankind God’s way of life and to proclaim the soon-coming Kingdom of God when righteousness will dwell in the land. But the Church and its members are not to participate today in the administration of man’s political, legal, religious or military systems, knowing that this is not God’s world.
Lead Writer: Norbert Link
