Zakharia 1:1

Introduction

1:1 In the eighth month of Darius’ ¹  second year, ²  the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah, ³  son of Berechiah son of Iddo, as follows:

Zakharia 1:11

1:11 The riders then agreed with the angel of the Lord, ⁴  who was standing among the myrtle trees, “We have been walking about on the earth, and now everything is at rest and quiet.”

Zakharia 1:15

1:15 But I am greatly displeased with the nations that take my grace for granted. ⁵  I was a little displeased with them, but they have only made things worse for themselves.

Zakharia 4:7

Oracle of Response

4:7 “What are you, you great mountain? ⁶  Because of Zerubbabel you will become a level plain! And he will bring forth the temple ⁷  capstone with shoutings of ‘Grace! Grace!’ ⁸  because of this.”

Zakharia 5:9

5:9 Then I looked again and saw two women ⁹  going forth with the wind in their wings (they had wings like those of a stork) and they lifted up the basket between the earth and the sky.

Zakharia 8:20

8:20 The Lord who rules over all says, ‘It will someday come to pass that people – residents of many cities – will come.

Zakharia 10:11

10:11 The Lord ¹⁰  will cross the sea of storms and will calm its turbulence. The depths of the Nile will dry up, the pride of Assyria will be humbled, and the domination ¹¹  of Egypt will be no more.

Zakharia 11:2

11:2 Howl, fir tree,

because the cedar has fallen;

the majestic trees have been destroyed.

Howl, oaks of Bashan,

because the impenetrable forest has fallen.

Zakharia 12:2-3

12:2 “I am about to make Jerusalem ¹²  a cup that brings dizziness ¹³  to all the surrounding nations; indeed, Judah will also be included when Jerusalem is besieged. 12:3 Moreover, on that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy burden ¹⁴  for all the nations, and all who try to carry it will be seriously injured; ¹⁵  yet all the peoples of the earth will be assembled against it.

Zakharia 12:7

12:7 The Lord also will deliver the homes ¹⁶  of Judah first, so that the splendor of the kingship ¹⁷  of David and of the people of Jerusalem may not exceed that of Judah.

Zakharia 13:4

13:4 “Therefore, on that day each prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies and will no longer wear the hairy garment ¹⁸  of a prophet to deceive the people. ¹⁹ 

Zakharia 14:13

14:13 On that day there will be great confusion from the Lord among them; they will seize each other and attack one another violently.

[1:1]  ¹ sn Darius is Darius Hystaspes, king of Persia from 522-486 b.c.

[1:1]  ² sn The eighth month of Darius’ second year was late October – late November, 520 b.c., by the modern (Julian) calendar. This is two months later than the date of Haggai’s first message to the same community (cf. Hag 1:1).

[1:1]  ³ sn Both Ezra (5:1; 6:14) and Nehemiah (12:16) speak of Zechariah as a son of Iddo only. A probable explanation is that Zechariah’s actual father Berechiah had died and the prophet was raised by his grandfather Iddo. The “Zechariah son of Barachiah” of whom Jesus spoke (Matt 23:35; Luke 11:51) was probably the martyred prophet by that name who may have been a grandson of the priest Jehoiada (2 Chr 24:20-22).

[1:11]  ⁴ sn The angel of the Lord is a special being who throughout the OT represents God himself and on occasion almost approaches divine hypostatization or incarnation (cf. Gen 18:2, 13, 17, 22; Exod 23:20-21; Josh 5:13-15; Judg 6:11-24; 13:2-20).

[1:15]  ⁵ tn Or “the nations that are at ease” (so ASV, NRSV). The Hebrew word in question is שַׁאֲנָן (sha’anan) which has the idea of a careless, even arrogant attitude (see BDB 983 s.v. שַׁאֲנָן); cf. NAB “the complacent nations.” Here it suggests that the nations take for granted that God will never punish them just because he hasn't already done so. Thus they presume on the grace and patience of the Lord. The translation attempts to bring out this nuance rather than the more neutral renderings of TEV “nations that enjoy quiet and peace” or NLT “enjoy peace and security.”

[4:7]  ⁶ sn In context, the great mountain here must be viewed as a metaphor for the enormous task of rebuilding the temple and establishing the messianic kingdom (cf. TEV “Obstacles as great as mountains”).

[4:7]  ⁷ tn The word “temple” has been supplied in the translation to clarify the referent (cf. NLT “final stone of the Temple”).

[4:7]  ⁸ sn Grace is a fitting response to the idea that it was “not by strength and not by power” but by God’s gracious Spirit that the work could be done (cf. v. 6).

[5:9]  ⁹ sn Here two women appear as the agents of the Lord because the whole scene is feminine in nature. The Hebrew word for “wickedness” in v. 8 (רִשְׁעָה) is grammatically feminine, so feminine imagery is appropriate throughout.

[10:11]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “he,” in which case the referent is the Lord. This reading is followed by KJV, ASV, NAB (which renders it as first person), and NASB. The LXX reads “they,” referring to the Israelites themselves, a reading followed by many modern English versions (e.g., NIV, NRSV, TEV, NLT).

[10:11]  ¹¹ tn Heb “scepter,” referring by metonymy to the dominating rule of Egypt (cf. NLT).

[12:2]  ¹² map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[12:2]  ¹³ sn The image of a cup that brings dizziness is that of drunkenness. The Lord will force the nations to drink of his judgment and in doing so they will become so intoxicated by his wrath that they will stumble and become irrational.

[12:3]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “heavy stone” (so NRSV, TEV, NLT); KJV “burdensome stone”; NIV “an immovable rock.”

[12:3]  ¹⁵ sn In Israel’s and Judah’s past they had been uprooted by various conquerors such as the Assyrians and the Babylonians. In the eschaton, however, they will be so “heavy” with God’s glory and so rooted in his promises that no nation will be able to move them.

[12:7]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “the tents” (so NAB, NRSV); NIV “the dwellings.”

[12:7]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “house,” referring here to the dynastic line. Cf. NLT “the royal line”; CEV “the kingdom.” The same expression is translated “dynasty” in the following verse.

[13:4]  ¹⁸ tn The “hairy garment of a prophet” (אַדֶּרֶת שֵׁעָר, ’adderet she’ar) was the rough clothing of Elijah (1 Kgs 19:13), Elisha (1 Kgs 19:19; 2 Kgs 2:14), and even John the Baptist (Matt 3:4). Yet, אַדֶּרֶת alone suggests something of beauty and honor (Josh 7:21). The prophet’s attire may have been simple the image it conveyed was one of great dignity.

[13:4]  ¹⁹ tn The words “the people” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation from context (cf. NCV, TEV, NLT).