“Then I turned and raised my eyes, and saw there a flying scroll. And he said to me, “What do you see?” So I answered, “I see a flying scroll. Its length is twenty cubits and its width ten cubits.” Then he said to me, “This is the curse that goes out over the face of the whole earth: ‘Every thief shall be expelled,’ according to this side of the scroll; and, ‘Every perjurer shall be expelled,’ according to that side of it.” “I will send out the curse,” says the LORD of hosts; “It shall enter the house of the thief And the house of the one who swears falsely by My name. It shall remain in the midst of his house And consume it, with its timber and stones.” Zechariah 5:1-4 NKJV
Oftentimes when one chooses to study the Word of God, especially the Old Testament, you come across passages which at first glance seem extraordinarily confusing and difficult to understand. When I first discovered this vision of Zechariah and began to study it, I immediately placed it in that category as so much of it seems to make no sense at all. Yet as I began to study it with the help of commentaries and Old Testament scholars, I found that this vision given to Zechariah might well be strangely relevant to our times although it seems to have been ignored completely by many discussing eschatology today.
The word in the Hebrew for scroll is “megillah”, which is a long sheet of parchment that is rolled up and placed in an ornate cylinder for safekeeping. The first confusing fact I came across in this passage though, can be found in the dimensions of the scroll Zechariah saw. By doing the math I was surprised to find that the size he describes, if rolled up and put in its container would be approximately 30 feet tall and 5 feet in diameter. As I thought about that, a very uncomfortable coincidence occurred to me as these dimensions are very comparable to many ICBM’s around the world today.
Now, while you might believe this to be a stretch, stay with me a little longer as we examine this text with that possibility in mind. Zechariah goes on to call it a “curse”, which is present throughout the whole earth, and tells us it will not only enter a house, but completely consume it, “timber and stones”. So now we have to consider just what the nature of this curse could be if it is able to do exactly what Zechariah describes. Since a normal detonation of a typical explosion only produces power capable of destroying a structure, we have to ask the question what sort of payload is capable of actually consuming it. Believe it or not, Zechariah tells us what it is.
“Then the angel who talked with me came out and said to me, “Lift your eyes now, and see what this is that goes forth.” So I asked, “What is it?” And he said, “It is a basket that is going forth.” He also said, “This is their resemblance throughout the earth: “Here is a lead disc lifted up, and this is a woman sitting inside the basket”; then he said, “This is Wickedness!” And he thrust her down into the basket, and threw the lead cover over its mouth.” Zechariah 5:5-8 NKJV
Now before some of you decide to have some fun explaining how a woman could be a curse, there is something about Hebrew you need to know. In the Hebrew, the word for woman is ish·shä' , but the word used for fire, especially a sacrificial burnt offering, is ish·shä'. Confused? I as well, but this is one of those times when the meaning is determined by the context, and most of the Hebrew scholars I found believe the meaning here is of fire. I think too, you will agree, that fire seems to be a better explanation for the type of destruction described.
Next, the word for basket used here is “ephah”, which typically describes the baskets commonly used at that time to carry a measure of grain or other commodities. What is different here is that Zechariah tells us that not only does it carry the fire, it is made of lead. In the Hebrew Masoretic text, we are told the lead disk lifted up is a “talent” of lead which would be approximately one hundred pounds. Now if just the lid is that heavy, how heavy is the rest of the container? Not to mention the most intriguing question of all; what sort of “fire” needs to be shielded by lead in this day and age?
“Then I raised my eyes and looked, and there were two women, coming with the wind in their wings; for they had wings like the wings of a stork, and they lifted up the basket between earth and heaven. So I said to the angel who talked with me, “Where are they carrying the basket?” And he said to me, “To build a house for it in the land of Shinar; when it is ready, the basket will be set there on its base.” Zechariah 5:9-11 NKJV
Of course, although these “megillahs” are said to go forth to all the earth, Zechariah goes on to tell us that the base of operations in the future will be in the land of Shinar, which is translated as the country of two rivers, or what later became known as Babylonia. Considering that the book of Revelation tells us that rebuilt Babylon will be the center of the coming anti-Christ’s power, it seems to make perfect sense he will have this sort of weaponry to unleash upon the whole earth. Would he actually use nuclear weapons to advance his cause? If you look closely at what is described to occur during that period of time soon to come, I believe the answer is self-evident.
“And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: Blood and fire and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD. Joel 2:30-31 NKJV
Did Zechariah have a vision of nuclear bombs being unleashed from the Middle East? That is entirely possible yet let's not forget he also said they go forth over the entire world. While that might not have made much sense in Zechariah’s day, considering where we find ourselves today and the situation evolving in that part of the world, I don’t believe it is a stretch at all to think this may be exactly what Zechariah’s vision was about. We can see the signs of the end all around us today, but believe it or not, 3000 years ago Zechariah saw it too. Imagine how it must have appeared to him to watch what will unfold in our time. Taking into account what we see happening all around us, according to many, these events might well occur in the very near future.
With that in mind, if you have never made the decision to accept the free gift of salvation that is offered to all of us by our Father, I encourage you to do so today. Simply ask God to forgive you of your sin based on your belief that his Son, Jesus Christ, died to pay the price for your sin, and turn over control of your life to Him. You can do that right now by praying a prayer just like this one;
"Dear Lord Jesus, I know I am a sinner. I believe You died for my sins. Right now, I turn from my sins and open the door of my heart and life. I confess You as my personal Lord and Savior. Thank You for saving me. Amen."
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