Not by Might, Not by Power: Zerubbabel’s Call to Covocational Leadership

by Dave Miller

When the prophet Zechariah received his vision in chapter 4, the message was as much for the governor as it was for the priest.

Zerubbabel wasn’t a prophet like Zechariah. He wasn’t a priest like Joshua. He was a governor — the political leader appointed to guide the people of Judah in the turbulent years after exile. In our modern terms, he had more of an “identity” in the so-called secular world (air quotes intended), overseeing administration, civic order, and the logistics of rebuilding a nation.

And yet, in God’s eyes, his role was not secondary to the “ministry.” It was essential to it.

The Partnership That Built a Temple

The books of Ezra, Haggai, and Zechariah all show the same picture: the work of God’s people could not be accomplished without both Joshua the high priest and Zerubbabel the governor laboring together. Joshua’s role was priestly—representing the people before God, leading worship, and ensuring the spiritual life of the nation stayed aligned with God’s covenant. Zerubbabel’s role was civic and administrative—overseeing construction, organizing labor, managing resources, and defending the project from opposition.

In other words, Joshua brought the altar; Zerubbabel brought the architecture. Joshua brought the worship; Zerubbabel brought the walls. Both were needed for the temple to stand.

This is the biblical pattern for kingdom work: a collaboration that refuses to divide “ministry” and “marketplace” into separate, competing worlds.

A Word for the Covocational Leader

If your primary role is in business, government, education, medicine, or any other so-called “secular” space, Zechariah 4 is for you. The Spirit’s word to Zerubbabel was not, “Step aside so the priests can finish the work.” It was:

“Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit,” says the Lord Almighty. (Zechariah 4:6, NLT)

The work God called Zerubbabel to do — overseeing the rebuilding of His house — was as Spirit-empowered and kingdom-critical as Joshua’s priestly ministry.

Your leadership, administration, and resource stewardship are not supporting roles. They are kingdom assignments. When joined with disciplemakers whose identity is more visibly “ministry,” your role builds the structures, platforms, and systems in which disciple-making flourishes.

Breaking the Divide That the Bible Never Made

Our culture has drawn a line between sacred and secular that the Bible never drew. The Scriptures don’t separate “real ministry” from “real work.” They present a seamless vision of life under God’s rule, where governance, trade, education, and agriculture are just as much under His lordship as preaching or leading worship.

Covocational leaders embody this reality. You lead teams, start companies, manage budgets, solve problems — and when surrendered to Christ, these very skills become tools for gospel advance. Like Zerubbabel, your daily leadership can carve out space for the mission of God to take root in your city.

The Lampstand and the Olive Trees

Zechariah’s vision in chapter 4 showed a golden lampstand fed continually by two olive trees — representing Joshua and Zerubbabel together. Light for the world came not from one leader or one type of ministry, but from their unified calling before God.

The same is true today. The mission moves forward when covocational leaders and disciple-making leaders work side-by-side, refusing to compete for authority and instead leveraging their God-given assignments for the same kingdom.

If you are a covocational leader whose daily work feels far from “ministry,” Zechariah 4 is your invitation to see yourself differently. You are not a bystander or a donor to God’s mission — you are a builder of platforms, protector of space, and steward of resources that make the mission possible.

Like Zerubbabel, your work is by His Spirit. And when joined with others who labor in the Word and prayer, your role becomes a vital part of God’s unshakable kingdom.