A Crown and a Brick

​“Take silver and gold, make an ornate crown and set it on the head of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Then say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, “Behold, a man whose name is Branch, for He will branch out from where He is; and He will build the temple of the Lord.”

‭‭Zechariah‬ ‭6‬:‭11‬-‭12‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬

https://bible.com/bible/100/zec.6.11-12.NASB1995

For consideration let’s see how The Young’s Literal Translation (YLT)translates Branch.

“And hast spoken unto him, saying: Thus spake Jehovah of Hosts, saying: Lo, a man! A Shoot — [is] his name, And from his place he doth shoot up, And he hath built the temple of Jehovah.”

‭‭Zechariah‬ ‭6‬:‭12‬ ‭YLT98‬‬

https://bible.com/bible/821/zec.6.12.YLT98

Here we see God having Zechariah call Joshua, the high priest to stand before them and an ornate crown was placed on his head. God prophesies that Joshua will be the one who will rebuild the temple during the time of Ezra and Nehemiah when they come back from exile. There is another figure in play here too. His name is Zerubbabel. He is the Governor of Judah. God has chosen him to be His 'signet ring', His royal stamp of authority.

“‘On that day,’ declares the Lord of hosts, ‘I will take you, Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, My servant,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will make you like a signet ring, for I have chosen you,’ ” declares the Lord of hosts.”

‭‭Haggai‬ ‭2‬:‭23‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬

https://bible.com/bible/100/hag.2.23.NASB1995

So the governor has been given a signet ring from God. And the high priest has been given an ornate crown from God. This is to say that They have been given ruling authority to make and seal laws and judge as king by God. 

I would say that very few people have had that amount of trust from God to act on His behalf before His people. I know that all authority has been established by God but how many of them were hand-picked by God? Saul, David, Solomon, Jesus! I also believe that Donald Trump was picked by God. And I am sure there are many others but not everyone is hand-picked by God. 

So then God called Joshua “Branch” or I think better would be “Shoot” like a new sapling growing out where God has planted him! Like Joshua, Simon was also given a name.

“And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭16‬:‭17‬-‭18‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬

https://bible.com/bible/100/mat.16.18.NASB1995

He was given the name rock or a better translation might be pebble, little rock. In each case, Joshua and Peter were given names that elude to something bigger than themselves. Joshua is given the name Branch but Jesus is The branch of David and Peter was given the name rock but the word of God is the Rock on which God would build His church. Joshua becomes a branch for The Branch to grow out of and Peter becomes a brick for God to build His Brick house out of. 

You and I are also branches and bricks for God to use to reach out with and build upon! Are we healthy branches? Are we strong bricks in our place in God’s church? If not we must search within ourselves to find out why! And if so are we branching out and supporting those who are around us?

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭5‬:‭14‬ ‭NASB1995‬‬

https://bible.com/bible/100/mat.5.14.NASB1995