Zechariah I
For thus said the Lord of hosts, after His glory sent me to the nations who plundered you, for he who touches you touches the apple of His eye. (Zechariah 2:8 ESV)
Eye Apples
What does it mean to be the apple of God’s eye?
For those who first heard Zechariah’s words, the apple of an eye meant the most important core part of them.
More than merely the pupil, the apple of an eye referred to the deep central part of who we are.
The apple of our eye is protected. Think how quickly we duck when something flies towards our eye.
The apple of our eye is our focus. When we speak to someone, we do not talk to their chin, their elbow, or their big toe. We look them in the eye.
Our facial expression centers around our eye. A smiling mouth means nothing without that eye-twinkle. A blushing cheek is given meaning by a gentle eye. Anger is not just displayed in breath and eyebrow, but the eyes speak anger like nothing else.
And WE are the apple of GOD’S eye!
So, He protects us.
So, we are the way others encounter God.
So, we are the way God is displayed to the world.
So, God sees us as His central focus, a most important part of Him, even His core.
In other words… oh you apples… you are loved!