SERMON TITLE: Pierce
SCRIPTURE: Zechariah 12:10, John 19:34-37, Revelation 1:7, Revelation 19
SPEAKER: Matt Heft
DATE: 04-02-2026
Good evening. It’s always an honor to preach to our Gateway Church family, but it’s a special honor to preach at a Maundy Thursday service. Maundy Thursday is a special night that many Christians set aside to remember the great sacrifice that Jesus Christ made for us. Tonight, we’ll be continuing the short sermon series that Josh started on Sunday where we look at a prophecy from the Old Testament, and then find the fulfillment in the New Testament.
And as Josh so often says, God loves you and I love you too. I think you’re going to see God’s love in a powerful way tonight through scripture.
Tonight we’ll be focusing in on the prophecy that Jesus would be pierced. But in addition to a fulfillment in the Gospel of John, we’re going to also look at the ultimate fulfillment of this prophecy in the book of Revelation. As we read and study tonight, it is my prayer that your hearts will be stirred to action as you consider what it means that Jesus was pierced and one day, every eye will see him when he comes again. The question is not if you will see him, but whether it will result in rejoicing or mourning when you see him.
We’ll begin tonight by looking at our key prophecy in Zechariah chapter 12. While you’re turning there in your Bibles, let’s talk a bit about the background of this book.
Zechariah is considered a minor prophet. Remember, when we say “minor prophet”, we’re describing the length of the book the prophet wrote, we’re not saying that the words God spoke through them are any less important. Major prophet or minor prophet, God’s words deserve our full attention and obedience.
There are twelve books in the Old Testament that we often put in this category of minor prophets. Those minor prophets are also called “The Book of the Twelve”, because some scholars see them as one, unified story that’s been carefully woven together. We’ll see a brief glimpse of that this evening. The twelve books are Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.
Those last three books, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi were written in the post-exilic period. Post-exilic simply means in that time after the Jews returned to the city of Jerusalem and the land of Judah, after having been in exile in Babylon. Zechariah was speaking to this group that returned to Judah.
Zechariah is divided into two major sections. In the first section, from chapters 1 through 8, Zechariah is encouraging the people to finish the work to rebuild the Temple. In that section, you’ll find that Zechariah had some very odd visions. The second section, chapters 9 through 14, point to the coming Messiah. And as we look at this section, take notice that Chapter 9 starts with an ominous title, “An Oracle”. An oracle means a heavy or serious message from God. As you flip to Chapter 12, you’ll notice that this chapter also starts with “An Oracle”. If we were to study these out, you’d see strong parallels between these two oracles.
One more quick observation before we dive into Chapter 12. If you turn over to the start of the book of Malachi, it begins, “An oracle: The word of the Lord to Israel through Malachi”. This is just one small stitch that ties the minor prophets together. I know for myself, I’d like to dive much deeper into how the minor prophets are connected, but for tonight, let’s go back to Zechariah 12 and key in on a few verses.
We’ll start by reading Zechariah 12, verses 10-14.
“And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn. On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great as the mourning for Haddad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. The land shall mourn, each family by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the Shimeites by itself, and their wives by themselves; and all the families that are left, each by itself, and their wives by themselves.
That was a mouthful. What’s our common reaction when we read a passage like this? Our eyes start to gloss over and we begin to skim words looking for something that feels more applicable than Shimeites and Haddad-rimmon. But I think we have some great truths buried in here, if we’ll take the time to dig and examine each piece that we find. Let’s take our verses one phrase at a time.
First, God is going to pour out on the people a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy. This is God pouring out his favor on the people, and we should emphasize that this is God’s undeserved favor. These people have done nothing to deserve what God is doing for them. And the result of God’s undeserved favor is a recognition of sin and a crying out to him for forgiveness.
From where we sit today, we can be confident that through the blood of Jesus Christ, the penalty for our sin has been paid and forgiveness is freely offered to those who will cry out to him. If you’re here this evening, and you wouldn’t call yourself a Christian, let me encourage you to call out to God for the forgiveness of your sins. He is willing and able to lift that heavy burden off you.
If we claim to be followers of Christ, we’re claiming that God’s spirit of grace has been poured out on us. If his grace has been poured out on us, then it should result in ongoing repentance… not just one time long ago. If we claim that we’ve received this beautiful gift from God, yet we lack repentance over our sin, we should pause and examine whether we’ve truly received God’s grace.
So whether you would call yourself a Christ Follower or not, know that we all need God’s grace, his undeserved favor. He is our only hope.
The next phrase states that when they look on the one they have pierced, they shall mourn for him. The one they have pierced is clearly pointing us to Jesus. Don’t lose your place here in Zechariah, we’ll be coming back, but I want us to flip over to John 19 and we’ll be reading verses 34 through 37.
This passage in John picks up at the very end of the crucifixion. Leading up to this passage, we know that Jesus was arrested, he was put on trial. He was falsely accused, he was beaten, he was whipped, a crown of thorns was placed on his head. He was then forced to carry his own cross to a hill called Golgotha, where he was nailed to the cross. That cross was lifted up, and there, Jesus continued to show mercy to those who said and did evil things against him. Finally, Jesus said, “It is finished”, and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
The Jews were in a hurry to observe the Sabbath, so they asked Pilate to have the legs of those crucified broken and the body of Jesus and the men on other crosses taken down. They came through and broke the legs of the two men beside Jesus, so it would expedite their death. But when they came to Jesus, they saw he was already dead, so they did not break his legs.
And now picking up in verse 34.
John 19:34-37 (ESV) says, But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. He who saw it has borne witness – his testimony is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth – that you also may believe. For these things took place that the Scripture might be fulfilled: “Not one of his bones will be broken.” And again another Scripture says, “They will look on him whom they have pierced.”
The fact that Jesus' legs were not broken, like the other two men fulfilled a prophecy from Psalm 34:20 which says “not one of the Messiah’s bones will be broken.” John wanted to make sure we didn’t miss the fulfilled prophecy.
And then John says, “And again another Scripture says, ‘They will look on him whom they have pierced.’” Since the soldiers did not break Jesus’ legs, they ran a spear into his side. That’s when blood and water flowed. And this amazing small detail provides further evidence, in fact medical (or physiological) evidence, that Jesus had died before the soldiers pierced him in the side.
Jesus was pierced, and that takes us back to Zechariah 12:10a (ESV) “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him…”
This prophecy and the fulfillment we read in John, is at least talking about Jesus being pierced in the side, but he was also pierced by the nails in his hands and by the nails in his feet, he was pierced by the whip that struck him, he was pierced by the thorns in the crown that was placed on his head. And in case we’re tempted to blame all of this on the Jewish rulers and the Roman guards, remember, it was our sin that pierced him. But here’s the good news, he was not only pierced because of your sin, he was pierced for your sin. We weren’t there, but it was for you, for me, for us. If we repent and call out to him for forgiveness, he will take our old, sinful heart of stone and give us a new, forgiven heart of flesh.
So we can see the direct connection between Zechariah 12 and John 19 through the piercing of Jesus, but what about the rest of our passage from Zechariah? It talks a lot about mourning and weeping. Let’s read the rest of our passage again and talk through it. Zechariah 12:10b-14 (ESV) they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn. On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great as the mourning for Haddad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. The land shall mourn, each family by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the Shimeites by itself, and their wives by themselves; and all the families that are left, each by itself, and their wives by themselves.”
Let’s look at each of these phrases. “they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.” How would one weep over the loss of an only child or over a firstborn? To lose a child in any context would be a horrific thing to experience, but in this ancient culture, it would hold generational significance. A family’s entire future and place in their society would be tied to their children and especially an only child or a firstborn child.
And then the next sentence talks about the mourning being as great as it was for Haddad-Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. Who is that and what does that have to do with anything we’d care about? Historically, Haddad-rimmon was a place of mourning for the people of Israel.
Earlier this year, my son, Marshall, had the great honor of laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. This memorial is a well-known place for Americans. We know it as a solemn place. A place of remembrance. A place of national mourning for those who died fighting for our country.
Haddad-rimmon was this type of place for Israel. It was at this location that they’d remember and mourn for the loss of Judah’s great king, King Josiah. King Josiah was a reformer who sought after God. After he had ordered the Temple to be repaired and restored, the Book of the Law was found. And once it was found, he commanded the people to follow it, and he led by his own example.
But, at 39 years old, King Josiah went out with his army to the plain of Megiddo to intercept the Egyptian army. In this battle, King Josiah was killed. So Haddad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo became a place of mourning for the people. Mentioning Haddad-rimmon would have been a very personal, meaningful reminder of mourning for all the people of Judah.
Let’s re-read these couple verses again. Zechariah 12:10b-11 (ESV) they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn. On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great as the mourning for Haddad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo.
Verse 11 begins with a simple phrase, “on that day”. In this second oracle from Zechariah, chapters 12 through 14, that phrase is used 16 times. Throughout the minor prophets, “on that day” is used 47 times. In all the prophetic literature, about 110 times. And in all of the Old Testament, over 200 times. On that day is a very significant phrase. For now, just hold onto that thought.
This brings us to verse 12. Let’s read verses 12 to 14 again. Zechariah 12:12-14 (ESV) The land shall mourn, each family by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the Shimeites by itself, and their wives by themselves; and all the families that are left, each by itself, and their wives by themselves.”
The mourning will include all families in Israel. David is mentioned and he represents the full royal line, Nathan is mentioned, Nathan was a son of David, and he’s representing a specific family within the royal line. With each of these the wives are mentioned and this shows us that this mourning will impact every individual member of the royal line. It’s as if Zechariah is saying, broadly speaking this will impact the full royal line. But specifically, the mourning will include every single branch of the family tree. And this will not only impact those direct descendants, it will impact even the wives who married into the royal line.
And then we have Levi. Broadly speaking, Levi represents the full priestly line. Specifically, the family of Shimeites are a clan of priests within the priestly line. And again, the wives are mentioned and represent that the weeping and mourning will impact everyone in this family tree.
Between the royal and priestly lines, along with their wives, every single person of Israel is represented. We see the nation, the family, and every individual weeping. No one will be left out.
Now if we think back to the crucifixion, we know that Mary and maybe a few disciples were at the cross and would’ve been weeping and mourning, but this doesn’t seem to account for the intensity of mourning that we just read. In order to see the level of intensity from Zechariah, we have to read Revelation 1:7. There it says, Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen.
Zechariah 12:10 tells us that there is one who will be pierced and we see that fulfilled in John 19. But Zechariah 12:10-14 also tells us that there will be extreme weeping and mourning, but we’ll not see that part of the prophecy fulfilled until Jesus returns and all the tribes of the earth will wail on account of him.
And that provides the framework for the entire book of Revelation. Revelation isn’t about what kind of cool maps or timelines we can put together. Revelation is not about being able to definitively identify the beast or the dragon or what 666 means. The book of Revelation is all about the one who was pierced and the one who was pierced is Jesus.
If we stop at the fact that Jesus was pierced, we’ve not gone far enough. Please turn to Revelation 19. Now we’re going to see Jesus coming back with all power, and honor, and judgment. In fact, we’re going to see THAT DAY that Zechariah and the other prophets were talking about. Let’s start reading in verse 1.
Revelation 19:1-2a (ESV) After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying out, “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for his judgments are true and just; … hold tight a second. Have you ever wondered what that will sound like? Me too. Will you say the underlined part with me? Revelation 19:1-2a (ESV) After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying out, “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for his judgments are true and just
And jumping down to verse 4, Revelation 19:4-10 “And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who was seated on the throne, saying, “Amen. Hallelujah!” And from the throne came a voice saying, “Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, small and great.”
Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder crying out, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure – for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.” Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.” For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
I love that last line. For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. What a great verse as we reflect on what God has been saying since the beginning of time about how he would send us a savior. Continuing in Revelation:
Revelation 19:11-16 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.
The one who was pierced has already come and the one who was pierced is coming again. On that day, the reign of Christ will become a visible reality for the whole world.
As we move towards our conclusion of this message, I want to close with several points of application. First, I hope you’ve grown in your trust of God’s Word. As you see these prophecies stated and then fulfilled, I hope you see that our God not only said great things, he’s done great things and he keeps his word to us. I also hope you’ve been challenged to dig deeper into God’s Word, really trying to understand all that he’s already provided to us.
The second point I want to make is that Jesus loves you. I know that we didn’t spend much time in the book of John tonight, but do we really comprehend the love Jesus must have for us that he would willingly suffer and die for us? He died, so that you, a sinner, could be saved from eternal punishment and restored to a right relationship with him. Every single one of us has sinned. We’ve both inherited sin and we’ve sinned on our own. And this keeps us separated from God.
But Jesus shed his blood for you. Did you see in our Revelation 19 passage that Jesus is wearing a robe dipped in blood? He died on the cross, he became our sacrifice, so that if we’ll repent of our sin, he’ll wash away our sin.
How about you? Have you ever repented of your sin and asked Jesus to forgive you? Are you living your life under his authority as your Lord and Savior? I truly hope you have, because my final point of application is that on that day, it will make all the difference.
Let me re-read Revelation 19 verses 11 through 16.
Revelation 19:11-16 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.
Remember earlier in the message, when I briefly mentioned the phrase “On that day”. Well, right here in Revelation, all of this that we just read…This is that day. And you see, because of That Day, This Day can be different.
Think about life…your life, “on this day”. On this day, there is confusion and uncertainty, pain and suffering, hurt from friends and family, but also hurt from strangers. On this day, there is loss and sadness, when the weight of the world feels unbearable. On this day, all of these things feel like they have the upper hand, like they’re just going to crush you, devastate you, and keep you pinned down. All our efforts feel useless. But also on this day, we ignore God, we let our schedules get full of temporary things, we spend money on short-term pleasures.
But God calls us to look beyond ‘this day’ to ‘that day.’ Revelation 19 shows us what that day will be like. On that day, confusion will be replaced with understanding. On that day, suffering will be replaced with joy. On that day, the loss will be replaced with eternal comfort and peace. On that day, God will complete his perfect plan. On that day, what was hidden will be revealed, what was broken will be restored, and the ultimate victory of God will be complete.
Zechariah captures this vision of hope. He tells us that one day, God will pour out his Spirit, and his people will look on the one they pierced with repentance. They will mourn, but it will be the mourning that turns hearts back to God. And Revelation shows the culmination of this promise: Christ returns as the victorious King, judging the nations, saving his people, and bringing God’s kingdom to full reality.
On this day, turn to our Lord and Savior who was pierced for you, because we know that on that day, he will return as the victorious king. And on that day we will either be weeping over the fact that we rejected him or rejoicing in the fact that we accepted his free gift. On this day, you can still turn to him. On that day, you will only be responding to him. Turn to him, on this day.
As we reflect on our coming king with his robe dipped in blood, it is right for us to reflect on what he has done for those who have called upon his name.
As we approach his table, take a moment to consider which side of that final battle you’ll be on. And even more importantly, why do you feel that way? If you think you’ll be on the Lord’s side for any reason other than his free gift to you, then I challenge you to talk with me or one of the other elders after the service.
Perhaps you’d say, “I’ve accepted him”, but in some area of life or many areas of life, you’re running as far away as you can get. I urge you, turn back to him today.
In 1 Corinthians 11:23-26, Paul describes this meal in this way.
The Lord Jesus, on the night when he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. We are reminded that he was pierced for us.
Christ has commanded all believers to eat this bread and drink this cup in faith, with a confident hope of his return. The victorious return we just read about in Revelation 19.
Now all Christians are welcome to this table, but Paul gives us a warning to those who are running from God.
For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. (1 Corinthians 11:27-30) For some of you, perhaps in this moment, it would be best for you not to take communion. If that is you, we encourage you to not take communion tonight.
As our servers are coming forward, let’s take a moment in silent prayer to turn our hearts back to God, repent of any sin in our lives, and allow his blood to wash us clean.
- moment of silence -
Lord, you were pierced because of our sins. You were pierced, but we fail to weep and mourn over what was done to you, the innocent lamb. But despite this, you are willing to forgive us and cover over our sin with your righteousness, but only if we will call on you. Thank you for this free gift of salvation. Salvation and glory and power belong to our God. Amen
At this time, ushers will begin dismissing you by rows, so you can come forward to receive the bread and the cup. Take both before returning to your seats. There are baskets — up front — for you to put your empty cups in. We also have a gluten free wafer if you prefer. If you’re unable to come forward — raise your hand and let the usher know as they dismiss your row — and our servers will come to you. And finally, for any members that are shut-ins and unable to join us in person this Easter season, please reach out to your shepherding elder or the church office, so we can celebrate this meal with you.
Come —Let us receive the bread and cup together!
Tonight, remember that the one who was pierced, was pierced for you. And the one who was pierced is coming again. On this day, we may have struggles and hardships, but on that day, we will see him coming on the clouds to take his rightful place on his throne.
You are sent.
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