This lesson teaches children that God cares about how we treat other people, not just whether we follow the rules of religious days. Children ages 5 to 11 can learn it in 20 to 30 minutes, and it works well for a single class or a family devotion.
Big Idea
God wants us to be fair, kind, and caring to everyone, especially people who are easy to forget. Doing right by others pleases God more than just going through the motions.
Memory Verse
Zechariah 7:9
“Thus has the LORD of Armies spoken, saying, ‘Execute true judgment, and show kindness and compassion every man to his brother.
(WEB)
Teach the children to hold both hands out in front of them, palms up, like they are giving a gift. Then bring their hands gently to their hearts. Say the words together as they move, so the idea of showing kindness is linked to a warm, open motion.
The Story: Zechariah 7 for Kids
A long time ago, the people of Israel had been away from their home city of Jerusalem for many years. They were living in a faraway land, and they were sad about all that had happened. Every year they had special days when they stopped to cry and go without food. They did this to remember the sad things that had happened to their city.
One day, some people from the town of Bethel came to the priests and prophets in Jerusalem. They asked a question. Should they keep crying and fasting on those sad days, just like they had always done? They wanted to know if it still mattered.
God answered through a prophet named Zechariah. God asked the people a simple question. When you fasted and cried all those years, were you really doing it for me? Or were you only doing it for yourselves? God wanted them to think about their hearts, not just their habits.
Then God gave them a clear message about how to live. He said, “Be fair when you judge others. Show kindness and mercy to one another.” God told them not to hurt the widows, the children without parents, the strangers in their land, or the poor. He wanted them to care for these people.
But the people did not listen. They closed their ears, turned away, and made their hearts hard like stone. Because of this, things went very badly for them. God said that the same way they had refused to listen to him, he would not listen to them when they called out. This is a serious lesson, and it shows how much God cares about how we treat each other.
Read It Together
Zechariah 7:4-5
4 Then the word of the LORD of Armies came to me, saying, 5 “Speak to all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying, ‘When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and in the seventh month for these seventy years, did you at all fast to me, really to me?
(WEB)
Point out that God asked the people a question about their hearts. Ask the children why God would want to know the reason behind the fasting. Help them see that God looks at what is really going on inside us.
Zechariah 7:9-10
9 “Thus has the LORD of Armies spoken, saying, ‘Execute true judgment, and show kindness and compassion every man to his brother. 10 Don’t oppress the widow, nor the fatherless, the foreigner, nor the poor; and let none of you devise evil against his brother in your heart.’
(WEB)
Show how God gave a list of things to do. Point out the words about fairness, kindness, and caring for people who are easy to overlook. Ask the children to name someone in their own life who might need this kind of care.
Zechariah 7:11-12
11 But they refused to listen, and turned their backs, and stopped their ears, that they might not hear. 12 Yes, they made their hearts as hard as flint, lest they might hear the law, and the words which the LORD of Armies had sent by his Spirit by the former prophets. Therefore great wrath came from the LORD of Armies.
(WEB)
Explain that the people chose not to listen and made their hearts hard. Help the children understand that God always gives us a choice. Encourage them to think about how it feels when someone refuses to listen to them.
Talk About It
- What is one thing you could do this week to be kind to someone who is often left out?
- Why do you think God cared more about how the people treated each other than about the special days they kept?
- How can you tell when your heart is getting hard, and what can you do to soften it again?
- Who are some people in our town who are poor, lonely, or new, and how could we help them?
- When someone tells you something important, what helps you really listen to them?
Activity Ideas
Heart Drawing Craft
You will need paper, crayons or markers, and scissors. Have each child trace a large heart on the paper and cut it out. Ask them to draw or write one kind thing they can do for someone this week inside the heart. Hang the hearts on the classroom wall or the fridge at home as a reminder.
Fair Share Game
You will need a bag of small snacks such as crackers or grapes, and a few cups. Give one child a large share and another child a tiny share, then ask the class how that feels. Talk about how God wants everyone treated fairly. Then redo the game so everyone gets an equal portion and discuss how the class feels now.
Kindness Jar Take-Home
You will need an empty jar, paper, and a pen. Ask each child to write one act of kindness they did during the week on a slip of paper and drop it into the jar. Next class, read a few of the notes aloud and celebrate them together. This helps children see that God’s kindness shows up in small, everyday choices.
Teacher Notes
For adults, this chapter shows that religious practice has no real value if it does not change how we treat other people. God’s concern for justice, mercy, and care for the vulnerable runs through the whole passage, and worship that ignores these things is empty. The people had kept their rituals but neglected the heart of what God asked of them.
With children, avoid making the consequences of the people’s disobedience sound like a simple cause and effect that applies directly to any child’s bad day. The passage speaks to a national situation in the time of Zechariah, so focus on the lasting principle of kindness and listening instead of frightening children about punishment.
A Prayer to Close
Dear God, we thank you that you care about how we treat each other. Help us to be fair and kind, to listen well, and to look out for people who are lonely or left out. Soften our hearts when they feel hard, and help us show your love in everything we do. Amen.
