Zechariah 1:11-21

Zechariah 1:11

And they answered the angel of the LORD that stood among the myrtle trees, and said, We have walked to and fro through the earth, and, behold, all the earth sitteth still, and is at rest.

 

These angels that were dispatched to go throughout the earth have now reported back to Christ himself that they had gone to and fro through the earth.  Remember as spirit beings they have the ability to move about very quickly, probably faster than we can even realize.  They report back to the LORD that the earth is at rest and is sitting still at that time.  However, once the gospel goes forth on Pentecost in the final days of world evangelism, the world will no longer be at peace.  Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.  (Matthew 10:34)  As Zechariah looks forward to coming of the Messiah, at this time there is peace because the gospel has not yet been preached and Satan’s kingdom not yet invaded but once the gospel goes forth, there will be war between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan until the last day.

 

Zechariah 1:12

Then the angel of the LORD answered and said, O LORD of hosts, how long wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which thou hast had indignation these threescore and ten years?

 

This was the same angel which was standing among the myrtle trees who now asks God about his intentions of having mercy on Jerusalem.  He mentions the captivity of seventy years and how the LORD was angered against them because of their idolatry and evil ways of living.  Now that the seventy years of captivity was over and their punishment complete, the angel wants to know when the city of Jerusalem would once again be inhabited and would once again have a temple and be readied for the Messiah who would eventually come.

 

Zechariah 1:13

And the LORD answered the angel that talked with me with good words and comfortable words.

 

Then the LORD answered the angel with gracious and kind words and words of comfort.  The words spoken to the angel were words of deliverance and words of blessings.

 

Zechariah 1:14

So the angel that communed with me said unto me, Cry thou, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy.

 

Then Zechariah was told to “cry” which means he was to “proclaim and pronounce” the words which were given to him to be delivered to the returning exiles.  Now the LORD is jealous over Jerusalem which shows he had a heightened love for them and at the same time his indignation for their oppressors.  The zeal that God bears for them will be shown in his infinite love and the pity he has on his people.  Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;  (Exodus 20:5)  What Judah did was to bow down before idols and God specifically stated in the law they were not to bow down or serve any of the false idols and their accompanying false religion.  God was jealous over his people which could also be understood as being protective as we read in many places where God guided them and protected them from enemies.

 

Zechariah 1:15

And I am very sore displeased with the heathen that are at ease: for I was but a little displeased, and they helped forward the affliction.

 

The word “sore” may also be understood as “great or enormous.”  Now these empires which afflicted the people of Judah were at ease thinking that they would not face any consequences for their actions.  “Forwarding the affliction” means these people were not only used by the LORD to accomplish his punishment upon them but they were still to be held accountable for the cruelties they perpetrated upon the people of God.  These pagan nations did more than God ordained them to do concerning the punishment of Judah but now their day of reckoning is at hand.

 

Zechariah 1:16

Therefore thus saith the LORD; I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies: my house shall be built in it, saith the LORD of hosts, and a line shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem.

 

Now the LORD gives very encouraging information for Zechariah to give to the people.  Now the LORD will return to Jerusalem with great mercies.  It was not that he had left but because of their sin, God had to turn his back on them but now he is once again turned toward them. Then the temple will be built and once again the law will be obeyed and they will continue with the requirements of the law.  The line which will be stretched will be a plumbline that is used by builders to make sure all the calculations are correct and that the buildings will be straight and level which means that once again Jerusalem will be a great city and once again the temple will be in the midst of her and will be the center of worship. 

 

Zechariah 1:17

Cry yet, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; My cities through prosperity shall yet be spread abroad; and the LORD shall yet comfort Zion, and shall yet choose Jerusalem.

 

Then Zechariah will have more encouraging news for the people of Judah.  Then not only will Jerusalem be built but also the outlying cities shall also be built and will also experience prosperity as the people begin to settle in these towns and cities.  The ruined cities will be restored.  God’s favor on Judah was set aside for a time during their captivity but now the LORD will return to Zion and it will be comforted.  The word “comfort” carries with it the meaning of “relent or repent” that is, the LORD has now returned to Judah, not with his chastising hand but his hand of favor.  Previously, Jerusalem was chosen to receive punishment by the hand of God but now she shall be chosen once again as the center of worship.  The temple and the walls will be rebuilt under Nehemiah and Judah will prosper under the leadership of the Hasmonean princes.  These will be the princes of the Hasmonean Dynasty.

 

Zechariah 1:18

Then lifted I up mine eyes, and saw, and behold four horns.

 

Then the second vision begins with Zechariah seeing four horns.  Normally this would come in the shape of a horn of an animal like a ram’s horn.  It symbolically represented the power, command, or authority of a nation or a person.  The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence.  (2 Samuel 22:3)  God is the strength and power of our salvation.

 

Zechariah 1:19

And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What be these? And he answered me, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.

 

Then Zechariah asks the angel what are the meaning of these horns?  Then he answered that these horns represented the enemies of Israel and Judah who were responsible for their removal from their homeland and their scattering throughout their empires.  These could refer to the Assyrians, Babylonians, Syrians from the north.  The Edomites and Egyptians to the west.  The Moabites and Ammonites from the south and to the west the Philistines.  Four is normally the number of universality and the four horns may in this case represent the nations which surrounded Israel and Judah from all directions.

 

Zechariah 1:20

And the LORD shewed me four carpenters.

 

Now Zechariah sees four carpenters which would be considered craftsmen.  They are shown to counter the four horns.  The four horns were symbolic of destruction but the four carpenters were symbolic of the craftsmen who will be rebuilding Jerusalem, the temple, and the surrounding cities.

 

Zechariah 1:21

Then said I, What come these to do? And he spake, saying, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, so that no man did lift up his head: but these are come to fray them, to cast out the horns of the Gentiles, which lifted up their horn over the land of Judah to scatter it.

 

Then Zechariah explains to the people that the four horns had represented the powers of the Gentile nations which had attacked and persecuted the entire nation of Israel.  They were taken away in great shame and humility but now those days are gone and the four carpenters is the Lord’s promise that the Gentile powers will no longer reign over them or threaten them.  To “fray” means to make them frightened, scare, or horrify” which means the enemies will not make an attempt to attack Judah because now that God has once again placed them in his favor, they would not only be fighting Judah but will go up against God.  The power of the enemy has been broken and no longer poses a threat to them.  However, in 750 B.C., it marked the beginning of the Roman Empire which eventually grew bigger and in 820 years they would destroy the land of Judah by levelling it along with the temple declaring the complete end of the Mosaic law.

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