8:18-23 When God comes towards us in ways of mercy, we must meet him with joy and thankfulness. Therefore be faithful and honest in all your dealings; and let it be a pleasure to you to be so, though thereby you come short of the gains others get dishonestly; and, as much as in you lies, live peaceably with all men. Let the truths of God rule in your heads, and let the peace of God rule in your hearts. Thus the ancient servants of God drew the notice of heathen neighbours, whose prejudices were softened. A great increase to the church shall be made. Hitherto the Jews had been prone to learn the idolatries of other nations: what more unlikely than that they should teach religion to their conquerors, and to all the principal nations of the earth! Yet this is expressly foretold, and it came to pass. Hitherto the prophecy has been wonderfully fulfilled, and no doubt future events will explain it further. It is good to be with those who have God with them; if we take God for our God, we must take his people for our people, and be willing to take our lot with them. But let not any one think that mere zeal, either for Jews or Gentiles, will stand in the place of personal religion. Let us be living epistles of Christ, known and read of all men, so that others may wish to go with us, and to have their portion with us in the realms of bliss.

Verse 21. - The inhabitants of one city shall go to another. The LXX. has, "The inhabitants of five cities shall go unto one;" Vulgate, "The inhabitants go one to another." Let us go speedily. The Hebrew is an imperfect followed by an infinitive absolute - an idiom which implies combination, Let us go on and on, continually. So Pusey and Wright. To pray before the Lord; to entreat the favour of the Lord (see note on Zechariah 7:2). The Gentiles would be moved, not only to make pilgrimages to the great annual festivals, but to seek to know the Lord, and how to worship him acceptably. I will go also. The inhabitants answer willingly to those who exhort them. It is quite unnatural to take the clause to mean (as Drake does), "I, Zechariah, will go too, to see the alteration in the mode of observing these fast days."

And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another,.... Which shows their concern for the spiritual welfare of each other, their zeal for the honour and glory of God, and their readiness to attend divine worship:

saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord; for pardoning, justifying, and sanctifying grace which shows their sense of need of these things, and that they are only to be had of the Lord; and that their case required haste, and would admit of no delay:

and to seek the Lord of hosts: by prayer and supplication, as before: the Chaldee paraphrase is, "to seek doctrine from the Lord of hosts"; to learn the truths of his Gospel; to know his will, and be informed of the right way of worshipping him, as well as to seek to Christ for life and salvation:

I will go also; that is, "this shall say to that", as the Targum supplies it; one shall say to another, and express himself in such language, by way of example and encouragement.

21. Let us … I—manifesting zeal and love: converted themselves, they seek the conversion of others (So 1:4). To exhortation in general ("Let us go"), they add individual example ("I will go"). Or, the change from plural to singular implies that the general consent in religious earnestness leads each individual to decide for God.

go speedily—literally, "go, going"; implying intense earnestness.

pray—Hebrew, "entreat the face" (Zec 7:2); entreat His favor and grace.

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