Chapter 5 of Zechariah has two very interesting visions. The first is the flying scroll.
Zechariah 5:1–4
[1] Again I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, a flying scroll! [2] And he said to me, “What do you see?” I answered, “I see a flying scroll. Its length is twenty cubits, and its width ten cubits.” [3] Then he said to me, “This is the curse that goes out over the face of the whole land. For everyone who steals shall be cleaned out according to what is on one side, and everyone who swears falsely shall be cleaned out according to what is on the other side. [4] I will send it out, declares the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter the house of the thief, and the house of him who swears falsely by my name. And it shall remain in his house and consume it, both timber and stones.” (ESV)
The interesting part of the flying scroll is the dimensions which is the same as the Holy Place, representing divine standards for which man is to be judged. As MacArthur eluded, probably having the ten commandments with the two mentioned representative of the whole. Though applicable in all time, when combined with the other vision, it seems to mainly to represent the time before Christ’s millennial reign on earth. If that was enforced as such today, who would be left, especially the families with immense wealth who rule the world as Satan’s vassals, which have been active for generations.
Now the second half of the vision is extremely interesting, in that within a basket is a women who is wickedness.
Zechariah 5:5–11
[5] Then the angel who talked with me came forward and said to me, “Lift your eyes and see what this is that is going out.” [6] And I said, “What is it?” He said, “This is the basket that is going out.” And he said, “This is their iniquity in all the land.” [7] And behold, the leaden cover was lifted, and there was a woman sitting in the basket! [8] And he said, “This is Wickedness.” And he thrust her back into the basket, and thrust down the leaden weight on its opening.
[9] Then I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, two women coming forward! The wind was in their wings. They had wings like the wings of a stork, and they lifted up the basket between earth and heaven. [10] Then I said to the angel who talked with me, “Where are they taking the basket?” [11] He said to me, “To the land of Shinar, to build a house for it. And when this is prepared, they will set the basket down there on its base.” (ESV)
The basket is thought to represent an ephah, with Israelites representing kernels of grain, perhaps indicating the wickedness is particularly materialistic, which was a sin picked up in the Babylonian exile. So this secular commercialism is central to the final world system, but wickedness is restrained until their final time to act in the tribulation before Christ’s return, represented by the weight on the lid of the basket. The two women with stork wings, the stork being unclean, is thought to represent fallen angels who carry away the basket to its home in Shinar, a older term for Babylon possibly with a look back to the tower of Babel as a sign to the opposition of God by mankind. And it would appear this final world system is ripening as the time grows near. And the world’s commercialism is a type of idolatry in practice today.
Reading this along with Rev 17-18 takes me to the luxurious city with one of the largest malls which already has the human slaves mentioned in Revelation, which I believe may be Dubai for which I speculate their heir may be the Antichrist. Interestingly, if you do a search for Dubai commercialism, you get some interesting results. And I’ll highlight the mall below connected to the world’s tallest Asherah pole.
Dubai Mall
Since its opening in 2008, The Dubai Mall has been renowned for its extravagance and grandeur. With a gross floor area of 12 million sq ft, it’s one of the largest shopping malls in the world. Housing over 1,200 shops, the mall also features a colossal aquarium, an Olympic-sized ice-skating rink, a virtual reality park, an indoor theme park, and the world’s largest candy store. The Dubai Mall has gained popularity for its innovative design and forward-thinking planning, which seamlessly connects it to the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building.
Zechariah 5
A Vision of a Flying Scroll
[1] Again I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, a flying scroll! [2] And he said to me, “What do you see?” I answered, “I see a flying scroll. Its length is twenty cubits, and its width ten cubits.” [3] Then he said to me, “This is the curse that goes out over the face of the whole land. For everyone who steals shall be cleaned out according to what is on one side, and everyone who swears falsely shall be cleaned out according to what is on the other side. [4] I will send it out, declares the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter the house of the thief, and the house of him who swears falsely by my name. And it shall remain in his house and consume it, both timber and stones.”
A Vision of a Woman in a Basket
[5] Then the angel who talked with me came forward and said to me, “Lift your eyes and see what this is that is going out.” [6] And I said, “What is it?” He said, “This is the basket that is going out.” And he said, “This is their iniquity in all the land.” [7] And behold, the leaden cover was lifted, and there was a woman sitting in the basket! [8] And he said, “This is Wickedness.” And he thrust her back into the basket, and thrust down the leaden weight on its opening.
[9] Then I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, two women coming forward! The wind was in their wings. They had wings like the wings of a stork, and they lifted up the basket between earth and heaven. [10] Then I said to the angel who talked with me, “Where are they taking the basket?” [11] He said to me, “To the land of Shinar, to build a house for it. And when this is prepared, they will set the basket down there on its base.” (ESV)