Zechariah was a prophet who spoke the divine word to the people who had returned from exile. After the return the people are discouraged. God did not protect them from the enemy or preserve their homes. What good is it to have God in your life if you still have troubles and difficulties and suffering? The prophet answers that the divine plan is unfolding exactly as it should. The Chosen People have a larger mission in the world — not to hunker down in their own little enclave but to bring the message of God into the larger world. “I am coming to dwell among you, says the LORD. Many nations shall join themselves to the LORD on that day, and they shall be his people.”
