“In that day a fountain shall be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness” (Zechariah 13:1). The prophet Zechariah, inspired by the Holy Spirit, penned these words approximately five hundred years before the coming of Jesus Christ. Because of the immediate context containing prophecies regarding Jesus Christ before and during His crucifixion, we understand that this passage pertains to His death. In Zechariah 9:9, the writer mentioned that “Your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, Lowly and riding on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey” (NKJV). This was fulfilled according to Matthew 21:4-5. In Zechariah 12:10, we read, “And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.” This prophecy was fulfilled according to John 19:37. Again, we find another prophecy regarding Christ in Zechariah 13:7, “…Strike the Shepherd, And the sheep will be scattered.” The fulfillment of this prophecy is recorded in Matthew 26:31.
The location of the “fountain” in Zechariah 13:1 was to be in Jerusalem. A fountain is a source of fresh water that gushes forth for thirsty souls. However this “fountain” refers to that which flowed from the side of our Savior while He hung on Calvary’s cross. It was a Roman soldier who “pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out” (John 19:34). His precious blood was shed “for sin and for uncleanness.” When Jesus instructed His disciples to drink of the cup, He said, “For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins” (Matthew 26:28). Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:7, “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.” In Romans 6:3-4, the apostle Paul explained that we come in contact with Christ’s blood that saves when we are “buried with Him through baptism.”
In 1772, William Cowper wrote the lyrics of the moving and beautiful hymn, “There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood,” based on the words found in Zechariah 13:1. Here is the first stanza of the song:There is a fountain filled with blood,
Drawn from Immanuel’s veins,
And sinners plunged beneath that flood
Lose all their guilty stains:
Lose all their guilty stains,
Lose all their guilty stains;
And sinners plunged beneath that flood
Lose all their guilty stains.
Praise God for His immeasurable love!
