Christianity Oasis Forum

[cimi]

The Apple of His Eye
April 16, 2016

Read: Zechariah 2 | Bible in a Year: 1 Samuel 30–31; Luke 13:23-35

Whoever touches you touches the apple of his eye. Zechariah 2:8

A friend’s baby was suffering seizures, so they sped to the hospital in an ambulance, her heart racing as she prayed for her daughter. Her fierce love for this child hit her afresh as she held her tiny fingers, recalling too how much more the Lord loves us and how we are “the apple of His eye.”

The prophet Zechariah employs this phrase in his word to God’s people who had returned to Jerusalem after their captivity in Babylon. He calls them to repent, to rebuild the temple, and to renew their hearts of love for the true God. For the Lord loves His people greatly; they are the apple of His eye.

The Lord loves His people greatly.
Hebrew scholars suggest this phrase from Zechariah 2 denotes one’s reflection in the pupil of another’s eye, with the word “apple” emerging because it’s a common spherical object. So with eyes being precious and fragile, they need protecting, and that’s how the Lord wants to love and protect His people—by holding them close to His heart.

The Lord who dwells in our midst pours out His love on us—even, amazingly, far more than a loving mother who does all she can for her ailing child. We are the apple of His eye, His beloved.
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**Father God, You love us so much that You gave us Your only Son to die that we might live. May we receive Your love this day and live in it.

A parent’s love for a child reflects our Father’s love for us.

INSIGHT:
Old Testament prophets Zechariah and Haggai both spoke the word of the Lord to the people who had come back from exile to rebuild Jerusalem. Zechariah encouraged the people with words from visions about God’s love and care and about the glorious future that was in store for His people. J.R. Hudberg

By Amy Boucher Pye