Zakharia 1:11

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

Zakharia 1:17

1:17 Speak up again with the message of the Lord who rules over all: ‘My cities will once more overflow with prosperity, and once more the Lord will comfort Zion and validate his choice of Jerusalem.’”

Zakharia 6:14

6:14 The crown will then be turned over to Helem, ²  Tobijah, Jedaiah, and Hen ³  son of Zephaniah as a memorial in the temple of the Lord.

Zakharia 8:3

8:3 The Lord says, ‘I have returned to Zion and will live within Jerusalem. ⁴  Now Jerusalem will be called “truthful city,” “mountain of the Lord who rules over all,” “holy mountain.”’

Zakharia 8:21

8:21 The inhabitants of one will go to another and say, “Let’s go up at once to ask the favor of the Lord, to seek the Lord who rules over all. Indeed, I’ll go with you.”’

Zakharia 9:4

9:4 Nevertheless the Lord will evict her and shove her fortifications ⁵  into the sea – she will be consumed by fire.

Zakharia 10:8

10:8 I will signal for them and gather them, for I have already redeemed them; then they will become as numerous as they were before.

Zakharia 11:5

11:5 Those who buy them ⁶  slaughter them and are not held guilty; those who sell them say, ‘Blessed be the Lord, for I am rich.’ Their own shepherds have no compassion for them.

Zakharia 11:17--12:1

11:17 Woe to the worthless shepherd

who abandons the flock!

May a sword fall on his arm and his right eye!

May his arm wither completely away,

and his right eye become completely blind!”

The Repentance of Judah

12:1 The revelation of the word of the Lord concerning Israel: The Lord – he who stretches out the heavens and lays the foundations of the earth, who forms the human spirit within a person ⁷  – says,

Zakharia 12:12

12:12 The land will mourn, clan by clan – the clan of the royal household of David by itself and their wives by themselves; the clan of the family of Nathan ⁸  by itself and their wives by themselves;

Zakharia 14:14

14:14 Moreover, Judah will fight at ⁹  Jerusalem, and the wealth of all the surrounding nations will be gathered up ¹⁰  – gold, silver, and clothing in great abundance.

[1:11]  ¹ 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).

[6:14]  ² tn “Helem” is probably the same individual as “Heldai” in v. 10. Since the MT and the major ancient versions leave the apparent conflict unresolved it is probably best to view “Helem” as interchangeable with “Heldai” (cf. “Heled” in 1 Chr 11:30 with “Heleb” [2 Sam 23:29] and “Heldai” [1 Chr 27:15]). A number of modern English versions use “Heldai” here (e.g., NAB, NIV, NRSV, TEV, NLT).

[6:14]  ³ tn Since the “son of Zephaniah” in v. 10 is Josiah, it might be best here to understand “Hen” in its meaning “grace” (חֵן, khen); that is, “Hen” is a nickname for Josiah – “the gracious one.” A number of modern English translations use “Josiah” here (e.g., NCV, NRSV, NLT).

[8:3]  ⁴ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[9:4]  ⁵ tn The Hebrew word חַיִל (khayil, “strength, wealth”) can, with certain suffixes, look exactly like חֵל (khel, “fortress, rampart”). The chiastic pattern here suggests that not Tyre’s riches but her defenses will be cast into the sea. Thus the present translation renders the term “fortifications” (so also NLT) rather than “wealth” (NASB, NRSV, TEV) or “power” (NAB, NIV).

[11:5]  ⁶ sn The expression those who buy them appears to be a reference to the foreign nations to whom Israel’s own kings “sold” their subjects. Far from being good shepherds, then, they were evil and profiteering. The whole section (vv. 4-14) refers to the past when the Lord, the Good Shepherd, had in vain tried to lead his people to salvation and life.

[12:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “who forms the spirit of man within him” (so NIV).

[12:12]  ⁸ sn By the time of Zechariah the line of descent from David had already been transferred from the Solomon branch to the Nathan branch (the clan of the family of Nathan). Nathan was a son of David (2 Sam 5:14) through whom Jesus eventually came (Luke 3:23-31). Matthew traces Jesus’ ancestry back through Solomon (Matt 1:6-16) but apparently this is to tie Joseph into the Davidic (and thus messianic) line. The “official” descent of Jesus may be viewed as passing through Solomon whereas the “physical” descent came through Nathan.

[14:14]  ⁹ tn The Hebrew phrase בִּירוּשָׁלָם (birushalam) with the verb נִלְחַם (nilkham, “make war”) would ordinarily suggest that Judah is fighting against Jerusalem (so NAB, CEV). While this could happen accidentally, the context here favors the idea that Judah is fighting alongside Jerusalem against a common enemy. The preposition בְּ (bÿ), then, should be construed as locative (“at”; cf. KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).

[14:14]  ¹⁰ tn The term translated “gathered up” could also be rendered “collected” (so NIV, NCV, NRSV, although this might suggest a form of taxation) or “confiscated” (which might imply seizure of property against someone’s will). The imagery in the context, however, suggests the aftermath of a great battle, where the spoils are being picked up by the victors (cf. NLT “captured”).