So the angel who talked with me said to me, “Proclaim, saying, ‘Yahweh of Armies says: “I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy. I am very angry with the nations that are at ease; for I was but a little displeased, but they added to the calamity.” Therefore Yahweh says: “I have returned to Jerusalem with mercy. My house shall be built in it,” says Yahweh of Armies, “and a line shall be stretched out over Jerusalem.” ’
“Proclaim further, saying, ‘Yahweh of Armies says: “My cities will again overflow with prosperity, and Yahweh will again comfort Zion, and will again choose Jerusalem.” ’ ”
I lifted up my eyes, and saw, and behold, four horns. I asked the angel who talked with me, “What are these?” He answered me, “These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”
Yahweh showed me four craftsmen. Then I asked, “What are these coming to do?” He said, “These are the horns which scattered Judah, so that no man lifted up his head; but these have come to terrify them, to cast down the horns of the nations, which lifted up their horn against the land of Judah to scatter it.”
John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21 Zechariah now mentions the chief consolation to which he…
Zechariah now mentions the chief consolation to which he had referred; for it would not have been sufficient to say in general, and in a few words without explanation, that God gave a kind answer to the angel. For we know how strong were those temptations with which the faithful had to struggle. It was then needful for them to be furnished, not with light weapons, in so arduous a contest. This is the reason why Zechariah more fully expressed the words by which God then strengthened the faith of his people.
He says that the angel had spoken; and he thus intimates that the consolation was not given privately to the angel that he might keep it in his own bosom, but convey it to the whole people. This was not then a secret consolation but what the Lord intended to be proclaimed by his Prophets, according to what is said by Isaiah in the passage to which we have already referred — “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people saith your God.”
Read full note →
What God says, that he was moved with great zeal for Jerusalem and Sion, is according to the common language of Scripture. For as God cannot otherwise sufficiently express the ineffable favor which he has towards his elect he is pleased to adopt this similitude, that he undertakes the defense of his people according to what is done by a husband who fights with the greatest zeal for his own wife. This is the reason why he says that he was zealous for Jerusalem. And we ought especially to notice this mode of speaking, that we may not think that God is indifferent when he delays and defers his aid: for as we are hasty in our wishes so we would have God to be precipitant in the same manner; and we impute to him indifference when he does not hasten according to our desires. These doubts God checks when he testifies that he is zealous: for he intimates that his slowness did not proceed from neglect or because he despised or disregarded them; but that there was another reason why he held them in suspense. We may therefore be fully persuaded that even when God withholds his aid he is not otherwise affected towards us than the best of fathers towards his own children; and further that the signs of his love do not appear because it is not always expedient for us to be delivered soon from our troubles. Let this then be our shield against all hasty desires, so that we may not indulge our too ardent wishes, or think that our salvation is neglected by God, when he hides himself for a time and does not immediately stretch forth his hand to help us. It follows —
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20 Though for a time God defer his help and…
Though for a time God defer his help and comfort from his Church, yet this declareth that he loveth them still most dearly, as a most merciful father his children, or an husband his wife, and when it is expedient for them, his help is ever ready.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv14–21 Zec 1:14 So the angel that communed with me…
Zec 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.
Ver. 14. So the angel that communed with me] See the note on Zec 1:10.
Read full note →
Cry thou, saying] q.d. Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God, speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, speak ye to her heart and cry unto her, saying, that her appointed time is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned, and so the quarrel is ended; for she hath received of the Lord’s hands double for her sins. Nothing so much as I have deserved, saith she, Ezr 9:13; twice so much as she hath deserved, saith he. O sweet contradiction! O beautiful contention! The same Hebrew word signifieth to repent and to comfort, 1Sa 15:35 Isa 60:1. God’s care is to comfort those that are cast down. His command to his prophet is, to cry comfort to the penitent with an extraordinary earnestness, from the God of all consolation.
I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy] Love is strong as death, zeal, or jealousy (for the same word signifieth both), is hard as hell, Son 8:6. Non amat qui non zelat, saith Augustine. He loves not that zeals not. And Basil, venturing himself very far from his friend, and by some blamed for it, answered, Ego aliter amare non didici, I cannot love a man, but I must do mine utmost for him. When one desired to know what manner of man Basil was, it is said there was presented in a dream to him a pillar of fire with this motto, Talis est Basilius, Lo, such a one is Basil. It is certain that our God is a consuming fire. "Who would set the briers and the thorns," saith he, that is, the Church’s enemies, "against me in battle? I would go through them, I would burn them together," Isa 27:4. And yet he saith in the same place, "Fury is not in me." What will he do then when jealousy is in him as here? "Jealousy is the rage of a man," Pro 6:34, and hath these three properties:
First, it is exceeding watchful and quick sighted; hardly shall the paramour escape the husband’s eye, and a wanton glance is soon noted and noticed. God is no less sensible and observant of the least indignity done to his dear spouse, his Hephzibah, be it but in a frown or a frump. Why is thy countenance cast down? saith God to that dog-bolt Cain, Gen 4:6. Why dost lower upon my righteous Abel? What, will he force the queen also before me in the house? Est 7:8. If David’s enemies mow and make mouths at him, if they cry, Aha, aha, so would we have it, God will reckon with them for it, Psa 40:15. If Edom say jeeringly to the prophet, Watchman, what of the night? watchman, what of the night? If Ammon clap but his hands at God’s Israel, if he stamp with the feet, and rejoice in heart only, when it goes ill with the Church, "God will stretch out his hand upon him, and cut him off out of his country, and he shall know that he is Jehovah," Eze 25:6-7; yea, that the Lord God of Israel is a jealous God. He will be jealous for his land, and pity his people, Joe 2:18.
Secondly, jealousy is violent, it is cruel as the grave, the coals thereof are coals of fire, Son 8:6. The same word is elsewhere put for fiery thunderbolts, Psa 78:48; also for a carbuncle or burning fever, Deu 32:24. Jealousy puts a man into a fever fit of outrage; arms him with fiery darts, yea, with lightbolts; makes him cast firebrands, be ready to take any revenge. Think the same of God in a way of justice. He will spit in the face of a Miriam, that shall but mutter against his Moses, Num 12:14; what, then, will he do (or rather, what will he not do) against Jezebel, Athaliah, Herodias.
Thirdly, jealousy is irreconcilable, implacable: Pro 6:34-35 "He will not spare in the day of vengeance, He will not regard any ransom, neither will he rest content though thou give many gifts." What would not Balak have given to have had his will upon Israel? What large offers made Haman! he would pay ten thousand talents of silver to those that had the charge of the business to destroy the Jews. Ahasuerus yielded; but so did not God. "We are sold (said Esther), I and my people, to be destroyed, to be slain and to perish." But God never consented to the bargain, Est 3:9; Est 7:4. He had war with Amalek for ever, and laid his hand upon his own throne, as swearing to root him out, Exo 17:16. And this proud Agagite Haman shall feel the force of his curse in his very bowels. Let the labouring Church but cry out, Help, O King, hear, O husband, give ear, O shepherd of Israel, the enemy is come into thy land, O Immanuel, and the stretching out of his wings filleth the whole breadth of it. Where is thy zeal (or jealousy) and thy strength, the sounding of thy bowels, and of thy mercies towards me? are they restrained? Doubtless thou art our Father, our Redeemer, or near kinsman, nay, our husband, Isa 8:8; Isa 63:15. Thy Church is unto thee a sister, a spouse; and canst thou hide thine eyes from thine own flesh? Isa 58:7, from her that is joined to the Lord, and is one spirit? 1Co 6:17; shall Abraham venture for the rescue of his kinsman, David of his two wives, and wilt thou do nothing for the dearly beloved of thy soul? shall she be given up into the hand of her enemies? shall the sword reach unto the soul? Gen 14:14 1Sa 30:18 Jer 12:7; Jer 4:10. Let Christ but hear such words from the mouth of his spouse; and he will soon gird his sword upon his thigh, he will act Phineas’ part and execute judgment; he will smite his enemies in the hinder parts (whip them, as men used to do boys), and so put them to a perpetual reproach; shame them for ever, as a company of punies or zanies, Psa 78:66.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv14–21 So, i.e. when the Father had heard the Son…
So, i.e. when the Father had heard the Son and answered him; this is spoken to our apprehension, and so must be understood.
The angel of the covenant, the Lord Christ. That communed with me: see Zec 1:13.
Read full note →
Cry thou; now publish what thou hearest, preach by commission from me, and assure my poor captive, impoverished church, that God, my God and her God, will do good for her.
Saying, Thus saith the Lord of hosts; publish what God, Lord of hosts, and Father of his people, promised to do for them.
I am jealous; I have been jealous against, but now am jealous for Jerusalem; my love is now heightened to a very high degree of compassion for my people, and of indignation against her enemies and oppressors.
For Jerusalem; the city called by my name.
For Zion; where my temple stood; those gates of Zion, which I loved more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
With a great jealousy; that zeal I bear, and now will, show for them, is great to a wonder; it is the zeal of a God who infinitely loves and pitieth his people.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On v18 It is the comfort and triumph of the church…
It is the comfort and triumph of the church (Isa 59:19) that when the enemy shall come in like a flood, with mighty force and fury, then the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him. Now, in this vision (the second which this prophet had), we have an illustration of that, God's Spirit making a stand, and making head, against the formidable power of the church's adversaries.
I. We have here the enemies of the church bold and daring, and threatening to be its death, to cut off the name of Israel; such the people of God had lately been insulted by: I looked and behold four horns (Zac 1:18), which are explained Zac 1:19. They are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem, that is, the Jews both in the country and in the city, because they were the Israel of God. They have tossed them (so some read it), as furious bulls with their horns toss that which they are enraged at. They have scattered them, so that no man did lift up his head, Zac 1:21. No man durst show his face for fear of them, much less give them any opposition, or make head against them. They are horns, denoting their dignity and dominion - horns exalted, denoting also their strength, and power, and violence. They are four horns, for the Jews are surrounded with them on every side; when they avoid one horn that pushes at them they run upon another. The men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and many of Israel that joined themselves to them, set about the building of the temple; but the enemies of that work from all sides pushed at them, and drove them from it. Rehum, and Shimshai, and the other Samaritans that opposed the building of the temple, were these horns, Ezr 4:8. So were Sanballat and Tobiah, and the Ammonites and Arabians, that opposed the building of the wall, Neh 4:7. Note, The church's enemies have horns, and use them to the hindrance of every good work. The great enemy of the New Testament church has seven heads and ten horns (Rev 17:3), so that those who endeavour to do the church any service must expect to be pushed at.
Read full note →
II. We have here the friends of the church active and prevailing. The prophet did himself lift up his eyes and see the four horns, and saw them so formidable that he began to despair of the safety of every good man, and the success of every good work; but the Lord then showed him four carpenters, or smiths, who were empowered to cut off these horns, Zac 1:20, Zac 1:21. With an eye of sense we see the power of the enemies of the church; look which way we will, the world shows us that. But it is with an eye of faith that we see it safe, notwithstanding; it is the Lord that shows us that, as he opened the eyes of the prophet's servant to see the angelic guards round about his master, Kg2 6:17. Observe, Those that were to fray or break the horns of the Gentiles, and to cast them out, were, 1. Carpenters or smiths (for they are supposed by some to have been horns of iron), men who had skill and ability to do it, whose proper business it was, and who understood their business and had tools at hand to do it with. Note, God calls those to serve the interests of his church whom he either finds, or makes, fit for it. If there be horns (which denote the force and fury of beasts) against the church, there are carpenters (which denote the wisdom and forecast of men) for the church, by which they find ways to master the strongest beasts, for every kind of beasts is tamed, and has been tamed, of mankind, Jam 3:7. 2. They were four carpenters, as many horns so many hands to saw them off. Note, Which way soever the church is threatened with mischief, and opposition given to its interests, God can find out ways and means to check the force, to restrain the wrath, and make it turn to his praise. Some by these four carpenters understand Zerubbabel and Joshua, Ezra and Nehemiah, who carried on the work of God in spite of the opposition given to it. Those horned beasts broke into God's vineyard to tread it down; but the good magistrates and the good ministers whom God raised up, though they had not power to cut off the horns of the wicked (as David did, Psa 75:5, Psa 75:10), yet frightened them and cast them out. Note, When God has work to do he will raise up some to do it and others to defend it and protect those that are employed in the doing of it.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv14–21 So the angel that communed with me,.... Having an…
So the angel that communed with me,.... Having an order from the other Angel, or the Lord of hosts:
said unto me, Cry thou; proclaim, publish, declare in the hearing of the people, for their comfort and encouragement. The Targum renders it, "prophesy":
Read full note →
saying, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, I am jealous for Jerusalem, and for Zion, with a great jealousy; which is expressive of his conjugal affection for his church and people, his zeal for their good, and his indignation at their enemies, and of the vengeance he would execute on them.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 21 Cry thou - Now publish what thou hearest, and…
Cry thou - Now publish what thou hearest, and assure my poor captive church, that God will do good for her.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21 Verse 14. I am jealous for Jerusalem] I have…
Verse 14. I am jealous for Jerusalem] I have for them a strong affection; and indignation against their enemies.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On v18 Zec 1:18-21. Then, behold, four horns — Horns often…
Zec 1:18-21. Then, behold, four horns — Horns often signify the power of princes or people, the metaphor being taken from those cattle whose strength lies in their horns. The horns here mentioned denote the powers which had scattered Israel and Judah, or that should scatter them, as a bull, in his fury, tosses into the air whatever opposes him. It is uncertain whether the number four is here used indefinitely, or to denote that specific number; and if the latter, what particular powers are pointed out by it. Calmet supposes the Assyrians, Chaldeans, Persians, and Egyptians. But “the most ancient and prevailing opinion among the Jews themselves, and perhaps the most probable of any, is, that the four great empires, the Assyrian, or Babylonian, the Persian, Grecian, and Roman, are intended; namely, the empires alluded to by the four beasts, Daniel 7. By each of these the Jewish nation hath been in turns oppressed, and all of them have been successively brought down and annihilated; although, from the depression of the last, the Jews have not as yet apparently derived any considerable advantage.” — Blayney. The Lord showed me four carpenters — Or workmen, as Bishop Newcome renders the word, observing, “Vitringa supposes that the horns were iron, and that these were fabri ferrarii malleis dolabris que intructi,” blacksmiths furnished with hammers and axes. Then said I, What come these to do? — He inquires not who or what they were, but what was their business and design. And he spake, (or said,) These are the horns — In order to satisfy the inquiry of the prophet, the angel first points to the four horns, mentioned Zec 1:18-19, as if he had said, See, there are four horns, which have scattered Judah. The LXX. add, και την Ισραηλ κατεαξαν, and have broken Israel. Instead of which addition the Arabic has, and destroyed Jerusalem. So that no man did lift up his head — No one had either strength or courage to make any resistance: so dispirited and dejected were all the people. But these are come to fray them — These are principal commanders, or powers, raised up by God to dismay and deter them. To cast out the horns of the Gentiles — To break, or cast down, the power of these nations; which lifted up their horn over the land of Judah — Who employed their strength, and used all possible efforts, to hinder the Jewish people from flourishing again in Judea. Observe, reader, in what way soever the church is threatened with mischief, and whatever opposition is given to its interests, God can find out ways and means to check the force, or restrain the wrath of its enemies, and make it turn to his praise.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv14–19 Cry thou - The vision was not for the…
Cry thou - The vision was not for the prophet alone. What he saw and heard, that he was to proclaim to others. The vision, which he now saw alone, was to be the basis and substance of his subsequent preaching Jon 1:2; Isa 40:2, Isa 40:6, whereby he was to encourage his people to persevere.
I am jealous for Jerusalem - Literally, “I have been,” not now only but in time past even when I did not show it, “and am jealous”, with the tender love which allows not what it loves to be injured . The love of God, until finally shut out, is unchangeable, He pursues the sinner with chastisements and scourges in His love, that he may yet be converted and live . But for God’s love to him and the solicitations of His grace, while yet impenitent and displeasing Him, he could not turn and please Him.
Read full note →
And for Zion - Which especially He had chosen to put His Name there, and there to receive the worship of His people; “the hill which God desired to dwell in” Psa 68:16, “which He loved” (Psa 78:68; add Psa 132:13-14). Dionysius: “With great and special love have I loved the people of the Jews and what pertained to them, and out of that love have I so diligently and severely corrected her excesses, that she may be more careful for the time to come, as a husband corrects most sharply a wife most dear to him, if she be unfaithful. Whence in the book of Maccabees it is written, “It is a token of His great goodness, when wicked doers are not suffered any long time, but are immediately punished. For not as with other nations, whom the Lord patiently forbeareth to punish, till they be come to the fullness of their sins, so dealeth He with us; lest, being come to the height of sin, afterward He should take vengeance of us. And therefore He never withdraweth His mercy from us, and though He punisheth with adversity, yet doth He never forsake His people” (2 Macc. 6:13-16).
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 16, 18, 21 Zeal. I will again treat her as my spouse.…
Zeal. I will again treat her as my spouse. (Haydock)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures 1864 · Public Domain On v18 A. Four Horns which scattered the People of God…
VISION II. THE FOUR HORNS AND FOUR SMITHS
Zec_1:18-21
Read full note →
A. Four Horns which scattered the People of God (Zec_1:18-19). B. Four Smiths which cast down these Horns (Zec_1:20-21)
18–19 And I lifted up my eyes and saw, and behold, four horns. And I said to the angel that talked with me, What are these? And he said to me, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem. 20 And Jehovah showed me four smiths. 21 And I said, What come these to do? And he said thus,22 These are the horns which have scattered Judah, so that23 no man lifted up his head, but these are come to terrify them, to cast out24 the horns of the nations which lifted up the horn against the land of Judah to scatter it.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
This vision carries forward the assurance given in the one before it, by showing the provision made for repelling the foes of the covenant people.
Zec_1:18. I lifted up my eyes. After seeing the first vision, the Prophet had sunk down in meditation. Again he raises his eyes, and behold, four horns. The horn is a common Scriptural symbol of strength, and in the prophecies usually represents a kingdom or political power. Do these four horns refer to just so many kings or empires which oppressed the covenant people? Not a few expositors answer in the affirmative, but they differ widely in the designation of these opposing powers. Cyril names Pul, Salmaneser, Sennacherib, and Nebuchadnezzar; Grotius, the Persian Kings, Alexander, Antiochus, and Ptolemy; Pressel, Assyria, Chaldæa, Egypt, and Persia; but the greater number refer to the four great empires predicted by Daniel, so Jerome; Kimchi, Hengstenberg, Keil, Baumgarten, Wordsworth. It is not a sufficient objection to this last view, to say with Henderson and Köhler, that of these powers two were not in existence at this time, and cannot have been spoken of, because the hostility described in the vision had already taken place; for the vision might very well have included the future as well as the past. A more serious objection is that each of these destroyed its predecessor, whereas in the vision the smiths are represented as distinct from the horns. And besides, neither the Persian nor Alexander were enemies of the Jews. It is better, therefore, with the majority of interpreters (Theodoret, Calvin, Umbreit, Hitzig, Maurer, Köhler), to refer the number four to the cardinal points of the compass, and thus make it include all possible enemies. As a matter of fact the people of God had enemies on all sides, the Assyrian, Chaldean, and Samaritan on the north, the Egyptian on the south, Philistines on the west, and Moabites and Ammonites on the east. These foes scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem, i. e., the twelve tribes in their completeness, with special mention for the sake of emphasis, of the capital city. The objection to this founded upon the lack of אֵת before the last substantive (Keil) is of no force, as that sign of the definite object may be inserted or omitted at pleasure, Deu_12:6 (Green H. G., § 270 b).
Zec_1:20. The Prophet saw four smiths. The LXX. render חָרָשִׁים, τεκτονες, whence our E. V., “carpenters.” The Vulgate gives fabri, which corresponds exactly to the Hebrew, but in view of the work assigned to these persons, most expositors render the term smiths. No man lifted up his head=all were in an utterly prostrate condition. To scatter it=its inhabitants. The four smiths simply express the various powers which God raises up and employs to overthrow the agencies which are hostile to his people. There is no indication in the passage itself what these powers are, and there seems to be no need to seek information elsewhere. The point of the entire vision lies in the coincidence of the numbers of the horns and the smiths. For every horn there was a smith to beat it down. The Church then could rest calmly in the assurance that every hostile power that rose in opposition should be judged and destroyed by the Lord. The primary reference was of course to the work of the Jews in restoring the city and completing the Temple, but this did not exhaust the meaning of this very simple but significant symbol. It had as wide a sweep as the corresponding verbal statement of Isaiah (Isa_54:17), “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper.” Zion’s God controls all persons and powers and events; and through the long tract of the Church’s history it will be seen that for every evil there is a remedy, and for every enemy a deliverer. The horn will arise and do its work, but the smith will also appear and do his work.
It is worthy of observation that what the angel in Zec_1:19 calls “Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem,” he calls in Zec_1:21 simply “Judah.” So that here is a clear and indubitable proof, in the first part of the Book whose post-exile origin is unquestioned, that Israel is used, not to denote distinctively the northern kingdom, but merely to round out the view of what was left of the entire covenant people after the restoration. This bears upon the similar use of “Israel” and “Ephraim” in the second part of these prophecies.
DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL
1. The Church of God on earth exists in the midst of conflict. There always have appeared horns which attempt to scatter it. A halcyon period sometimes is found like that mentioned in Act_9:31, “Then had the Churches [true text, Church] rest throughout all Judæa and Galilee and Samaria,” but its normal state is that of a struggle against numerous and mighty foes. The Saviour came not to send peace on earth but a sword. The carnal mind is enmity with God, and the flashing of truth upon an unregenerate conscience must needs provoke wrath. Hence the bloody tracks which so often occur in the records of the past. There has never been any considerable period since our Lord’s ascension, in which persecution of his followers has not existed in some quarter of the earth. Even now it is found in the remote east, in the Turkish Empire and in the Baltic Provinces of Russia. True believers are tossed on the horns of furious foes. Their course lies through a storm to the haven, through a battle to the crown. Let them not “count it a strange thing” when even a fiery trial befalls them. Such an experience belongs to the fixed purpose of God.
2. Conflict does not mean defeat. The very same voice which announces the gory horn, sets forth the agency which is to crush it. The character of this agency varies indefinitely. One horn may be used to destroy another horn, or a totally different instrument may be employed, but in either case the result is the same. Such an equilibrium between assault and defense is maintained that the Church is indestructible. One heathen ruler persecuted, another protected and restored. So in the conflicts of the early Church and of the Reformation, for every formidable horn there was found an equally formidable smith. Thus, too, in the organized attacks of Deism, Rationalism, and Scientific Atheism, at first the air was filled with the shouts of victory, but the rejoicing was premature. In every instance, the head of the Church raised up, sometimes in an unexpected quarter, a workman who needed not to be ashamed, who successfully vindicated the old truth and put to flight the armies of the alien.
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL
Jay: We see from this that the friends of Zion are as numerous as her foes; that her defense is equal to her danger; and that as the state of his people requires it, the Lord will seasonably raise up means and instruments for their succor and deliverance. The assurance may be derived from four principles: the love of God; the power of God; the faithfulness of God; the conduct of God. In the first we see that He must be inclined to appear for them as they are infinitely dear to Him. In the second, we see that He is able to do it. In the third, that He is engaged to do it, and his promise cannot be broken. In the fourth, that He always has done it, Scripture, history, and experience being witness.
Then let the world forbear their rage,
The Church renounce her fear;
Israel must live through every age,
And be the Almighty’s care.
Calvin: The Prophet by asking the angel (Zec_1:19), sets before us the example of a truly teachable disposition. Tough the Lord does not immediately explain his messages, there is no reason for us disdainfully to reject what is obscure as many do in our day, who complain that God’s Word is ambiguous and extremely difficult. The Prophet although perplexed did not morosely turn away, but asked the angel. And though the angels are not nigh us or at least do not visibly appear, yet God can by other means afford us help when it is needed. He promises to give the Spirit of understanding and wisdom. If then, we do not neglect the word and sacraments, and especially if we ask for the guidance of the Spirit, there is nothing obscure or intricate in the prophecies which He will not make known so far as is necessary.
Footnotes:
[22]Zec_1:21.—אֵלֶּה הַקְּרנוֹת is not an absolute nominative which would require a different construction, but to be rendered just as the same phrase is in Zec_1:19.
[23]Zec_1:21—כְּפִי, supply אֶשֶׁר=so that. This is a rare use of the form, but it is allowed by nearly all critics.
[24]Zec_1:21—יַדּוֹת. Prof. Cowles says that this word has the sense cast down to the ground, but none of the instances of its use (Jer_50:14; Lam_3:53, etc.) will bear a stronger sense than cast or cast out.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv14–21 Cry--Proclaim so as to be heard clearly by all…
Cry--Proclaim so as to be heard clearly by all (Isa 40:6; Isa 58:1).
I am jealous for Jerusalem--As a husband jealous for his wife, wronged by others, so Jehovah is for Judah, who has been injured wantonly by the heathen (Zac 8:2; Num 25:11, Num 25:13; Kg1 19:10; Joe 2:18).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv14, 15, 16, 18 14-17. The interpreting angel joins to the interpretation an…
14-17. The interpreting angel joins to the interpretation an exhortation to make the message known to all the people.
Cry thou — So that all may hear (compare Zec_1:4).
Read full note →
Thus saith Jehovah — The present announcement is the word of Jehovah as much as the pre-exilic prophecies.
I am jealous… with a great jealousy — See on Joe_2:18. The intensity of the divine emotion is indicated by the addition “with a great jealousy.” The Hebrew tense implies the continuity of the divine jealousy. The restoration from exile was an expression of it, and even when there was no external manifestation of it, it was there, and soon it will show itself again.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv14–21 14. I am jealous] “I have been, not now…
14. I am jealous] “I have been, not now only, but in time past even when I did not shew it, and am jealous, with the tender love which allows not what it loves to be injured.” Pusey. Comp. chap. Zec_8:2.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv14–21 (14) That communed with me.—The Hebrew words are the…
(14) That communed with me.—The Hebrew words are the same as those rendered elsewhere, “that spake with me.”
I am jealous.—The verb is in the perfect, like “I am returned” (Zec_1:16), and denotes that the Lord had already shown His jealous love for Israel in bringing them out of captivity, and that He would continue to do so in completing the restoration of Jerusalem. “The hour of darkest desolation to the Church, and of haughtiest triumph to her enemies, is often the very hour when God begins His work of judgment on the one, and returning mercy on the other” (Moore).
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv14–21 Cry thou. (Isa_40:6) The prophet has to publish two…
Cry thou. (Isa_40:6) The prophet has to publish two things:
(1) God"s love for his people, however humiliated and miserable their present position might be; and
Read full note →
(2) the promise of coming prosperity. I am jealous. The term implies ardent love, which cannot bear itself to be slighted, or the object of its affection to be injured. (comp. Zec_8:2, and note there; Num_25:11, 13Jo 2:18) For Jerusalem, as the capital of the kingdom; and for Zion, as the seat of worship.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv14, 16, 17, 18, 20 I am jealous for Jerusalem
Zec_1:14-17
I am jealous for Jerusalem
Read full note →
Mercy mingled with chastisement
Jealousy is that particular uneasiness which arises in our minds from the fear that some rival may rob us of the affection of one whom we greatly love, or from suspicion that he has already done it.
Gods jealousy, or zeal, denotes His distrust of His creatures, His eminent care of His people, and His readiness to punish such as injure them. He is peculiarly jealous for everything whereby He maketh Himself known. Comparatively speaking, God may be said to be but a little displeased with His people, whatever be the manner of His dealing with them in this world. Their afflictions are only temporary and of short duration. They are also designed for their profit, and overruled for promoting their best interests. And though the troubles that afflict the just be great and many in number, the Lord will deliver him out of them all. Let us take the comfort which the good words spoken to Israel are designed to yield, amid all the trials and afflictive dispensations of providence with which we may be visited in this life. You may be in darkness and in doubts, perplexed on every side, and encompassed with difficulties, but still you need not despair. The Lord is jealous for you with a great jealousy. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. (Matthew Fraser.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On vv18–20 A "horn" is the symbol of a Gentile king…
horn
A "horn" is the symbol of a Gentile king Dan 7:24; Rev 17:12 and the vision is of the four world empires; Dan 2:36-44; Dan 7:3-7 which have "scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem" (Zec 1:19)
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v18 The Vision of the Four Horns and the Four…
The Vision of the Four Horns and the Four Smiths
v. 18. Then, after the first vision had fully come to an end, lifted I up mine eyes and saw, in a second distinct vision, and behold four horns, the common Scriptural symbol of strength.
Read full note →
v. 19. And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What be these? the prophet again desirous of knowing their significance. And he answered me, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem, the heathen nations that had destroyed the twelve tribes as a people.
v. 20. And the Lord showed me four carpenters, rather, four craftsmen in iron, four smiths.
v. 21. Then said I, What come these to do? What was the object in introducing them into the picture?. And He spake, saying, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, so that no man did lift up his head, being altogether discouraged; but these are come to fray them, to terrify the great powers of evil, to cast out the horns of the Gentiles, to break them off, which lifted up their horn over the land of Judah to scatter it. It has ever been a characteristic of the enemies of the Lord that they rejoice over the misfortune of His people; but in the end the Church will triumph.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv14, 16, 18, 20 I have been jealous for Jerusalem
I have been jealous for Jerusalem
Here the word "jealous" refers to Yahweh's strong desire to protect his people.
Read full note →
I am very angry with the nations that are at ease
The phrase "at ease" means that the people thought that they lived in peace and security. AT: "I am very angry with the nations that enjoy peace and security" (See: Idiom)
I was only a little angry with them
"I was only a little angry with the people of Jerusalem"
they made the disaster worse
"the nations that are at ease made the disaster worse." This means that although Yahweh used these nations to punish Jerusalem, they did more harm to Jerusalem than what Yahweh had intended for them to do. (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
translationWords
angel
Yahweh of hosts
jealous
Jerusalem
Zion
anger
nation
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv14, 17, 18, 20, 21 1:14 My love . . . is passionate and…
1:14 My love . . . is passionate and strong: This phrase, sometimes translated as “I am very jealous,” reflects intense, single-minded devotion that could produce hatred and envy or zeal and devotion. God is jealous—as the one true and living God, he has exclusive rights to his creatures’ worship (see Exod 20:5; 34:14). • Jerusalem signifies the territories ruled by Judean kings; Mount Zion was the site of the Lord’s Temple.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.