What does God mean when He says, "Not by might nor by power but by My Spirit" (Zechariah 4:6)?

To comprehend the meaning of the candlestick will enable us to understand the angel's answer to Zechariah. (v. 6.) The time had not yet come, as we know, for the establishment of the kingdom, when Christ will sit as a priest upon His throne; in fact, a poor, feeble remnant only of the people had returned from captivity; and these, without any visible signs of Jehovah's presence, were engaged, amid doubts and fears, in the erection of the temple. But Jehovah watched over the people. His eye and His heart were on their work, and He would animate their drooping spirits, supply them with new energy for their service by directing their gaze, through the prophet, to the glories of the future, and by teaching them that their feeble work was itself the promise of the fulfilment of all His purposes of grace towards His ancient people. Hence it is that when Zechariah enquires, "What are these, my Lord?" the angel replies, "This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts. Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shall become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it." (vv. 6, 7.)

This explains most clearly the application of the vision to the circumstances of the moment. There was, as already stated, the exhibition of the perfection of the light of God's order in the future, a testimony to the fact that God never forgets His ultimate purposes. But there was also a present application; and on this account it is that the explanation of the angel takes the form of a message to Zerubbabel — to Zerubbabel who, as governor of Judah, together with Joshua the high priest, was the leader of the people in the work of building the temple. (Ezra 5:2; Haggai 2:2, &c.) Zerubbabel was therefore taught that the time had not yet arrived for the display of Jehovah's might or power on behalf of His people; but that if it were, as it was, a time of feebleness, God's Spirit was working to secure, both in the hearts of the people and in their service, all that His name and interests required, and hence that the character of the moment demanded dependence upon, and confidence in, God. This was doubtless a needed lesson for Zerubbabel in his trying position — a position rendered more trying by his own fears. It is comparatively easy, even for the natural man, to engage in the service — the outward service — of God, when He intervenes in power to sustain His servants and to secure the result; but it is only the man of faith who can labour on amid discouragements of every kind, who can trust to a power not seen to uphold and prosper, and is assured that the Spirit, who is invisible in His working to the natural eye, is even more mighty than manifested power. There are many Elijahs indeed who prefer the strong winds and the earthquakes to the all-efficacious still small voice of the Spirit of God.

In the first place then Zerubbabel is to be directed to the only source of power — to the Spirit of God; in the next he is sustained by the promise of the successful issue of his work. The great mountain should "become a plain: and he should bring forth the headstone [of the temple] with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it." (v. 7.) By the mountain, we apprehend, is symbolized all the obstacles that lay, in the way of the completion of the work. It is a figure gathering up the whole of the difficulties, as well as the opposition encountered, the details of which are given in the book of Ezra. But all these — whatever the activity, power, or influence of the adversaries — are nothing to God; and they are likewise nothing to the man of faith when resting alone upon the power of the Spirit, and when walking in the path of God's will. It is thus that the question is triumphantly, not to say defiantly, put, "Who art thou, O great mountain?" It is indeed an exultant challenge, bringing out the confident assurance that before Zerubbabel it should become a plain. (Compare Isaiah 40:35.) The Lord Jesus, it is more than probable, referred to this scripture when He said to His disciples, "Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig-tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done." (Matthew 21:21.) For what is the mountain in this case? It was doubtless the Jewish nation in its unbelief and opposition to grace, that enmity of the Jews which was ever the obstacle to the proclamation of the gospel to the Gentiles, and which, overcome by the faith of the disciples, finally disappeared as the Jews were merged in the sea of the nations. But whether this or that, it affords abundant encouragement in the Lord's service, as it will enable His servants to regard the most insurmountable difficulties as occasions only for the display of almighty and victorious power through the working of the Holy Spirit.

But I wish to draw your attention to the answer of the angel to the prophet concerning the meaning of the candlestick and the olive trees. “The angel that talked with me answered and said to me, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord. Then he answered and spake to me, saying, This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord of hosts” (Zech. 4:5-6). Surely the angel in these words is not answering the prophet's question directly. The point of his query was what is the meaning of this candlestick with its seven branches, and the bowl of oil above it, and the pipes carrying the oil into the branches of it; and then the two olive trees, one on the right hand and one on the left hand? The prophet wanted to know exactly what it all meant; and the answer of the angel was, “Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord.”

How are we to understand this strange reply? The prophet must have known that there was some reference in it to the restoration of the testimony of God through Israel to all the world. But what else was in the mind of Zechariah? The difficulty in his mind was how this great work was going to be accomplished. How was the temple to be built? How was the scene of desolation at Jerusalem to be restored, the site cleared for the re-erection of the temple? How could the feeble little company of Jews accomplish this? The divine assurance against this doubt was this, “Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord.”

Having considered the first and last references to the olive tree in the Scriptures, we have concluded that the outstanding feature connected with it is witness. Those acquainted with the Old Testa­ment will know that the imagery of Revelation 11:4 is derived from Zechariah 4. The figure of a candlestick is prominent in that chap­ter. It is a little different from the candlestick in the tabernacle with which we are more familiar. "And the angel that talked with me came again. And said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof; And two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof" (Zech. 4:1-3). The prophet seems to have been at a loss as to what it all meant. He asks, "What are these, my lord?" In verse 6 the meaning of the vision is given, "Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith Jehovah of hosts." (J.N.D. Trans.). The meaning of the vision pointed to the Holy Spirit as the only power for witness and work for God. A feeble remnant had returned from captivity in Babylon to build the temple. They were concerned about the worship of Jehovah and so the first thing they did was to set the altar upon its bases (Ezra 3:3). They put first things first. Service God-ward must precede every other form of service. The work of building was difficult and there were many enemies. It was a day of small things and they had little strength but God's power was available to them. The vision was for the encouragement of Zerubbabel and his fellow-builders. It is recorded in Ezra how the work came to a halt and the builders became discouraged. It was only through the labours of the prophet Haggai that the work was started again. His message was very much in line with the vision in Zechariah 4. "The word that I cove­nanted with you when ye came out of Egypt, and My Spirit, remain among you: fear ye not" (Haggai 2:5, J.N.D. Trans.). We can follow the example of this remnant. There is much to be done and there are many discouragements, but if we confess our weakness we will find our strength in looking to the Lord and depending upon the presence of the Holy Spirit.

It was for this reason the vision had been given to Zechariah. In it there was a message of God for Zerubbabel and the returned remnant. God would have them to understand that for the accomplishment of His will He did not require the might of armies, or the power of man: all would he carried to a successful end by His Spirit. In the vision the whole process of sustaining the divine light on the golden candlestick was entirely independent of man; it depended only on the Spirit of God. What an important message it was for the returned remnant; and it is just as important for us today. There is an aspect of the truth in which God uses human instruments for the carrying out of His will: but He would have us to realise that whatever divine work is to be done can only be done for His pleasure by the working of His Holy Spirit.

The king of Persia, who had commanded the work to cease, might appear as a great mountain, an insurmountable obstacle before God's people, but He says to them for their encouragement. "Who art thou. O great mountain? before Zerubbabel (thou dost become) a plain." Later, when on earth, the Lord Jesus said to His disciples, "Have faith in God; for verily I say unto you, that whosoever shall say unto this mountain, be thou removed, and he thou cast into the sea: and shall not doubt in his heart … he shall have whatsoever he saith" (Mark 11:22-23). When faith rests its eye on God, the great mountain becomes a plain.

The answer is framed in the vision of the candlestick (v. 2) and two olive trees (v. 3), the latter representing Joshua and Zerubbabel, the two leaders of the people or “the two sons of oil, that stand before the Lord of the whole earth” (v. 14). Verse 6 gives a very plain message to Zerubbabel: “Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith Jehovah of hosts.” If the civil leader of the people had apparently insufficient power this would not frustrate the plans of God. It was not a time of outward display of power but “the day of small things” (v. 10). It was by the Spirit of God (v. 6) that a testimony (candlestick) would be maintained. Zerubbabel, despite apparent weakness, is one who is chosen to finish the work by grace (v. 7).

The answer is framed in the vision of the candlestick (v. 2) and two olive trees (v. 3), the latter representing Joshua and Zerubbabel, the two leaders of the people or "the two sons of oil, that stand before the Lord of the whole earth" (v. 14). Verse 6 gives a very plain message to Zerubbabel: "Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith Jehovah of hosts." If the civil leader of the people had apparently insufficient power this would not frustrate the plans of God. It was not a time of outward display of power but "the day of small things" (v. 10). It was by the Spirit of God (v. 6) that a testimony (candlestick) would be maintained. Zerubbabel, despite apparent weakness, is one who is chosen to finish the work by grace (v. 7).

The source of the power for labour should also be observed. It was not in the people, but in the Lord. It was He who stirred up the spirit of His people, and constrained them to go forward in His service, even as He had in the first instance "raised" their spirit to go up from Babylon to Jerusalem with the object of rebuilding the temple. It takes us a long time to learn that there is no power but in the Lord, that in the Lord's work human energy, will, or perseverance not only go for nothing, but are also really barriers in the way of divine strength. As indeed was said to this same remnant, "This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts." (Zech. 4:6.) Thus it is that when we are weak we are strong, because in the sense of our perfect weakness we are led to dependence on the Lord, and He can then display unhinderedly in and through us His own power. The perception of this truth puts our souls also into the right attitude for blessing; it leads our eyes upward, and keeps us waiting on the Lord in expectation.

Now the Holy Spirit had been working in the Old Testament, only not in the same manner as at Pentecost and after. God manifests Himself as He pleases, but we must heed the way in which He manifests Himself. According to Zechariah, the Spirit would put such energy into the Jews, such courage, such wisdom, such confidence, such power of resistance to their enemies, that the work of building the temple should be accomplished, that if they would only get on with their building and not neglect it as they had been doing for the past fourteen years the temple should be completed, the headstone laid and the whole work finished.

So that the great truth of this verse is this, that God works, and will continue to work, in the days of weakness in His own manner, but that manner will not be in outward show to the aggrandisement of those through whom He works.

God is now working in the church by His Spirit, and the Spirit of God works in a way that men cannot understand, that is to say, the Spirit of God works secretly, quietly, without noise. But you say, Surely when the Spirit of God came down at Pentecost there was outward evidence of His presence; surely people were then given to feel that a great phenomenon was before them. Fishermen stood up and preached with irresistible power. Men spake with tongues and prophesied, and wonderful things were done, so that the fear of God came upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

In Leviticus 24, Jehovah had instructed Israel to provide oil for the lamps, but in this vision the golden oil is not procured through the efforts of God's people; it flows directly from the two olive trees through the two golden tubes into the golden howl of the lampstand, and the seven pipes carry the precious oil from the bowl to the seven lamps. There is no thought of the responsibility of man, as in Revelation; nor is there any indication that man is used as an instrument to provide the light for the pleasure of God, as in Leviticus 24. It is the sovereign action of God in every part.