←Zechariah 1→BSB

In This Chapter 7 people 9 places 6 terms

People

Darius 4 Berechiah (Zechariah 1:1) 4 Iddo 4 Zechariah 2 Israel Jacob (Patriarch) Jeshurun (Israel)

Places

    Key Terms

    Horn (Symbol) 11 Word of the Lord 4 Decree 3 Fixed Allowance Fixed Quota Be Zealous

    A Call to Repentance

    (Jeremiah 3:11–25; Hosea 14:1–3)

    ⓘ The prelude identifies the book’s themes as repentance...

    The prelude identifies the book’s themes as repentance and spiritual renewal, and establishes a tone of hope and encouragement.

    1In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, saying:

    2“The LORD was very angry with your fathers. 3So tell the people that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘Return to Me, declares the LORD of Hosts, and I will return to you, says the LORD of Hosts.’

    4Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets proclaimed that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘Turn now from your evil ways and deeds.’ But they did not listen or pay attention to Me, declares the LORD.

    5Where are your fathers now? And the prophets, do they live forever? 6But did not My words and My statutes, which I commanded My servants the prophets, overtake your fathers? They repented and said, ‘Just as the LORD of Hosts purposed to do to us according to our ways and deeds, so He has done to us.’”

    The Vision of the Horses

    ⓘ Zechariah’s first vision depicts God’s concern for Jerusalem...

    Zechariah’s first vision depicts God’s concern for Jerusalem (1:7–15), followed by a response (1:16–17) that confirmed God’s intentions to rebuild his Temple and restore the city’s prosperity.
    ⓘ These eight visions addressed the Judeans’ fears that...

    These eight visions addressed the Judeans’ fears that prevented them from responding in faith to God’s promises. These visions, which occurred two months after Haggai’s final two messages (Hag 2:10–19, 20–23), suggest that Haggai’s prophecies were being fulfilled.

    7On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, the month of Shebat,† in the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo.

    8I looked out into the night and saw a man riding on a red horse. He was standing among the myrtle trees in the hollow, and behind him were red, sorrel, and white horses.

    9“What are these, my lord?” I asked. And the angel who was speaking with me replied, “I will show you what they are.”

    10Then the man standing among the myrtle trees explained, “They are the ones the LORD has sent to patrol the earth.”

    11And the riders answered the angel of the LORD who was standing among the myrtle trees, “We have patrolled the earth, and behold, all the earth is at rest and tranquil.”

    12Then the angel of the LORD said, “How long, O LORD of Hosts, will You withhold mercy from Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, with which You have been angry these seventy years?”

    13So the LORD spoke kind and comforting words to the angel who was speaking with me.

    14Then the angel who was speaking with me said, “Proclaim this word: This is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘I am very jealous for Jerusalem and Zion, 15but I am fiercely angry with the nations that are at ease. For I was a little angry, but they have added to the calamity.’†

    16Therefore this is what the LORD says: ‘I will return to Jerusalem with mercy, and there My house will be rebuilt, declares the LORD of Hosts, and a measuring line will be stretched out over Jerusalem.’

    17Proclaim further that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘My cities will again overflow with prosperity; the LORD will again comfort Zion and choose Jerusalem.’”

    The Vision of the Horns and the Craftsmen

    ⓘ Then I looked up suggests that the prophet...
    • Then I looked up suggests that the prophet was interrupted by another vision while still preoccupied with the previous one (also in 2:1; 5:1; 6:1).
    • Horns symbolized power and authority in the biblical world and might represent an individual ruler (see Dan 7:8; 8:8), a dynasty, or nations.
    ⓘ The second vision states God’s plan to bring...

    The second vision states God’s plan to bring his judgment against the nations who destroyed Jerusalem and exiled Judah. The prophet leaves unspecified the identity of the nations represented by the four horns; it is best to view the number four as symbolic of all those nations who will face divine judgment for scattering the people of God.

    18Then I looked up and saw four horns. 19So I asked the angel who was speaking with me, “What are these?” And he told me, “These are the horns that have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”

    20Then the LORD showed me four craftsmen.

    21“What are these coming to do?” I asked. And He replied, “These are the horns that scattered Judah so that no one could raise his head; but the craftsmen have come to terrify them and throw down these horns of the nations that have lifted up their horns against the land of Judah to scatter it.”