City Wey No Get Wall

One young man waka comot enter di night, with measuring line wey e roll put for im shoulder. E get work to do. E wan find out exactly how big Jerusalem suppose be. But heaven get another plan.

Di prophet Zechariah live for Jerusalem for di same time with Haggai, when Darius be king of Persia. Di exiles don come back from Babylon to one city wey don scatter. Im big walls lie down for heaps. Houses no plenty. Di building of di temple just start again. To dis small community wey don tire, God give Zechariah plenty visions, all for one night. Strange pictures wey full with horses and horns and lamps and angels, and each one carry message of hope. Dis one na di third one.

Zechariah look up, and one man dey there with measuring line for im hand. So Zechariah ask am: Where you dey go? And di man answer: I dey go measure Jerusalem, to see how wide e be, and how long e be. E be like correct thing. Before you build wall, you need to know where e go pass. You go mark di edges, so you go know wetin dey inside and wetin dey outside. Then di angel wey dey talk with Zechariah comot, and another angel run come meet am.

Di second angel talk: run. Run go talk to dis young man say: Jerusalem go be like towns wey no get wall, because of di plenty people and animals wey go dey inside am. Put your line down, young man. You no fit measure dis city. People go plenty, animals go plenty, so tey no wall go fit hold dem. Di city go spread enter di countryside like village wey im edges dey open. And who go protect dem if wall no dey? God imself answer. Because I, na so Di Lord talk, I go be wall of fire round am, and I go be di glory for im middle. Ring of fire round di outside. God own presence wey dey shine for di centre.

Then di vision turn to call. God talk to di exiles wey still dey live far for Babylon: come back home. E tell im people how dem precious to am reach. Anybody wey harm dem, e talk, dey touch di apple of im eye, di softest part of di eye, wey you dey protect even without thinking. And then one song. Sing and rejoice, daughter of Zion: because see, I dey come, and I go live for your middle. And e no be for Israel alone. Plenty nations, God talk, go join demself to Di Lord for dat day, and dem go be im people. Di chapter end with quietness. Make all flesh keep quiet for Di Lord front: because e don rise up from im holy place.

For di old world, walls matter well well. City wey no get wall na easy target. And Jerusalem walls remain broken for long time after Zechariah vision. About seventy-five years after, for di twentieth year of di Persian king Artaxerxes, one man wey im name na Nehemiah hear say di wall of Jerusalem still dey broken and dem don burn im gates with fire. E cry, e pray, and e go build am again. For all dat time, di people of Jerusalem must trust God promise say na im go be dem wall.

City wey no get wall. You go find dis one for di book of Zechariah, chapter two. One young man with measuring line, and one God wey im plans too big to measure. Wall of fire round di edge, and im glory for di middle. So see one question wey you go carry dey go. Where for your life you dey try measure wetin God fit do?