Zechariah 12:10. They shall look upon Me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for Him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for Him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.
Countless crowds never do so. Far from feeling the poignant sorrow which the Holy Spirit here describes, sin occasions no regret, and the Saviour’s anguish no lamentation. No, men are busy piercing Him afresh, as far as they have the power. His love unto death is unheeded. His compassion for the lost and the wretched awakens no corresponding emotion. Men are in spirit ready to cry as of old, “Away with Him”; “Crucify Him, crucify Him”.
But not so all. The Spirit of grace and of supplications is poured out on some. They then discover what it is to have shared in the guilt of crucifying the Saviour, and of adding to the poignancy of His dying agonies. They now understand the strong language of the Spirit: They “shall be in bitterness for Him, as one is in bitterness for his firstborn”. And they feel that the dust is the appropriate bed for them, or sackcloth the appropriate garment.
O my soul, there is an eye upon you which looks you through and through. Conscience may be sharp, but the glance of that eye is keener still. It sees whether you have ever mourned for a Saviour’s agony, or whether you are still as wayward as ever. How then is it with you? Have you felt what it is to be a sinner? Have you seen the enormity of sin as committed against Him whose love was boundless, the report of which has reached even to you?
Then rejoice that some even of those who crucified Him were washed in the blood which they helped to shed, when an apostle preached salvation to them, through Him whom they had crucified and slain. Go with all your sins to Him. Look on Him whom you have pierced; and then, with godly sorrow, lay your hand on your mouth, and your mouth in the dust, crying out, Unclean, unclean. The more lowly your bed, if your humility is such as the Spirit of God produces, the brighter may be your hopes, and the higher your exaltation will be. There are many now in glory who were once ashamed even to look to the place where God’s honour dwells.
1Taken with editing from Tweedie’s Glad Tidings of the Gospel of Peace.