“And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the LORD, and to seek the LORD of hosts: I will go also.”
My Notes
What Does Zechariah 8:21 Mean?
"And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the LORD, and to seek the LORD of hosts: I will go also." Zechariah envisions city-to-city evangelism: the inhabitants of one city travel to ANOTHER city and say 'let us go seek the LORD — I'LL GO TOO.' The invitation is eager, contagious, and personal. The 'let us go' is communal. The 'I will go also' is individual. The invitation includes the inviter. The one who says 'let us' also says 'I myself.'
The phrase "let us go speedily" (nalkhah halokh — let us go, going — an emphatic doubling meaning 'let us go quickly/continuously') expresses URGENCY and EAGERNESS: the doubling intensifies the going. Not just 'let us go' but 'let us go GOING' — urgently, without delay, with sustained momentum. The seeking of God is EAGER, not reluctant. The going has energy.
The "I will go also" (elkhah gam ani — I will go, also I myself) is the PERSONAL commitment embedded in the communal invitation: the speaker doesn't just invite others. The speaker INCLUDES THEMSELVES. The invitation is authentic because the inviter is going too. The 'also I' means: this isn't a suggestion I'm giving you. It's a journey I'm taking. Come WITH me.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Are you inviting others to seek God — and are you going yourself?
- 2.What does city-to-city revival teach about seeking God being contagious and mobile?
- 3.How does the doubling ('go, going') describe eagerness that can't wait?
- 4.What makes 'I will go also' the most credible invitation?
Devotional
People from one city going to another saying: let's go seek the LORD — QUICKLY — and I'M GOING TOO. The invitation is contagious, eager, and personal. The inviter doesn't just suggest. The inviter GOES. The 'let us' includes the 'I will also.' The communal invitation carries personal commitment.
The 'inhabitants of one city shall go to another' is city-to-city revival: the seeking of God spreads geographically. It doesn't stay in one location. The people who've been moved to seek God TRAVEL to share the movement. The revival has LEGS — it walks from city to city, carried by the people who experienced it. The seeking is mobile.
The 'let us go speedily' — the emphatic doubling 'go, going' — is EAGERNESS that can't be contained: the seeking isn't reluctant or measured. It's URGENT. The doubling says: let's go NOW. Let's go QUICKLY. Let's not wait or deliberate or plan. The eagerness is the evidence of the genuineness. The people who've tasted the seeking can't wait to seek more — and they can't wait to invite others.
The 'I will go also' is the detail that makes the invitation CREDIBLE: the inviter says 'I'm going TOO.' Not: you should go. I'M going. The invitation that includes the inviter is the only invitation worth accepting. The person who says 'let us' and then says 'I will also' has put their own feet on the road. The invitation is authenticated by the inviter's participation.
Are you inviting people to seek the LORD — and are you going too?
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
Thus saith the Lord of hosts,.... For the further confirmation and illustration of this prophecy:
in those days it…
The inhabitants of one city shall go to another - It is one unresting extension of the fairly, the restlessness of faith…
I will go also - This is the answer of the person invited. It is a good work. We must have God for our friend. We cannot…
These verses contain two precious promises, for the further encouragement of those pious Jews that were hearty in…
speedily Lit. come let us go, to go, which may merely express the earnestness of the exhortation. "Omnes una et magno…
Cross References
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