Again I lifted up my eyes, and saw, and behold, four chariots came out from between two mountains; and the mountains were mountains of bronze. In the first chariot were red horses; in the second chariot black horses; in the third chariot white horses; and in the fourth chariot dappled horses, all of them powerful. Then I asked the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?”
The angel answered me, “These are the four winds of the sky, which go out from standing before the Lord of all the earth. The one with the black horses goes out toward the north country; and the white went out after them; and the dappled went out toward the south country.” The strong went out, and sought to go that they might walk back and forth through the earth: and he said, “Go around and through the earth!” So they walked back and forth through the earth.
Then he called to me, and spoke to me, saying, “Behold, those who go toward the north country have quieted my spirit in the north country.”
John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv1–8 Here we have another vision; and the Prophet distinguishes…
Here we have another vision; and the Prophet distinguishes it from the former visions by saying, that he turned, as though he had said, that there had been some intervening time. They were not then continued visions, but he turned himself elsewhere, and then he raised up his eyes, and the Lord revealed to him what he now relates. But as the vision is obscure, interpreters have given it different meanings. They who think that the four Gospels are designated by the four chariots, give a very frigid view. I have elsewhere reminded you, that we are to avoid these futile refinements which of themselves vanish away. Allegories, I know, delight many; but we ought reverently and soberly to interpret the prophetic writings, and not to fly in the clouds, but ever to fix our foot on solid ground. Others think that those changes are meant which we know happened in Chaldea and Assyria. As Nineveh was overthrown that Babylon might be the seat of the empire, they suppose that this is meant by the first chariot, the horses of which were red. Then they think that the Persian empire is intended by the second chariot, as the Jews had at the beginning suffered many grievous evils. Afterwards by the white horses are signified, as they suppose, the Macedonian power, as Alexander treated the Jews with humanity and kindness. By the fourth chariot they understand the Roman Empire, and think that the horses are of different colors, because some of the Caesars raged cruelly against the Jews and the Church of God, and some of them showed more lenity. But I know not whether these things are well founded.
We see that the fourth chariot went to the south, and wandered through various regions, and almost through the whole world. As then this cannot be applied to Chaldea, the simpler view seems to be — that the four chariots signify the various changes which happened not only in Chaldea and among the Babylonians, but also in Judea and among other nations: and this may be easily gathered from the context. But as all these things cannot be stated at the same time, we shall treat them in the order in which the Prophet relates them. I shall now repeat what I have elsewhere said respecting the words, that he raised up his eyes, as intimating the divine authority of what is predicted. The words indeed signify that he did not bring forward what he had vainly imagined, nor adduce tales which he had himself fabricated, but he was attentive to what was revealed to him; and also that he was somewhat separated from common life in order to be an interpreter between God and men. Hence authority is here ascribed to the prophecy, as Zechariah did not come forth to speak of uncertain things, but as one sent by heaven, for he delivered nothing but what he had received from above.
Read full note →
He now says, that four chariots appeared to him, which came forth from mountains, and that the two mountains where the chariots were seen were mountains of brass. The Prophet no doubt understood by these mountains the providence of God, or his hidden counsel, by which all things have been decreed before the creation of the world; and hence he says, that they were mountains of brass, as they could not be broken. The poets say, that fate is unavoidable (ineluctable); but as this sentiment is profane, it is enough for us to understand it of God’s eternal providence, which is immutable. And here is most fitly described to us the counsel of God; for before things break forth into action they are inclosed as it were between the narrow passes of mountains, inasmuch as what God has decreed is not apparent, but lies hid as it were in deep mountains. Hence we then begin to acknowledge the counsel of God when experience teaches us, that what was previously hid from us has been in this or in that manner decreed. But it was not in vain that Zechariah adds, that they were mountains of brass; it was to teach us that God’s counsel is not changeable as foolish men imagine, who think that God is doubtful as to the issue, and is, as it were, kept in suspense: for according to their notions, events depend on the free-will of men. They entertain the idea that God foreknows what is to come conditionally: as this or that will not be, except it shall please men. And though they confess not that God is changeable, yet we gather from their dotages that there is in God nothing sure and certain. The Prophet therefore says here, that they were mountains of brass, because God has fixed before all ages what he has purposed to be done, and thus fixed it by an immutable decree, which cannot be broken by Satan, nor by the whole world.
We hence see how suitable is this representation when the Prophet says, that chariots went forth from mountains.
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 vv1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 By chariots here, as by horses afore, he meaneth…
By chariots here, as by horses afore, he meaneth the swift messengers of God to execute and declare his will.
By the brazen mountains he meaneth the external counsel, and providence of God whereby he hath from before all eternity decreed what shall come to pass, and that which neither Satan nor all the world can alter.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 Zec 6:1 And I turned, and lifted up mine…
Zec 6:1 And I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came four chariots out from between two mountains; and the mountains [were] mountains of brass.
Ver. 1. And I turned, and lift up mine eyes] i.e. I passed on to another vision; and I lifted up the eyes of my mind, higher to heaven, saith Jerome, to receive a further revelation from God. And whereas he saith, I turned, he declareth, that God from on every side giveth his Church clear testimonies of his care of her so that she will give heed unto them, and lift up her eyes.
Read full note →
There came four chariots out] i.e. Four squadrons of angels, God’s warriors, and ministers of his manifold decrees, which are here set forth by the name of brazen mountains, see Zec 1:8, {See Trapp on "Zec 1:8"} Chariots the angels are called in many places, 2Ki 2:11; 2Ki 6:17 Hab 3:8, but especially Psa 68:17. The chariots of God (in the Hebrew it is chariot, in the singular, to note the joint service of all the angels) are twenty thousand, even thousands of angels (of cheerful ones, so the Septuagint: ευθυμουντων, of such as serve the Lord readily and freely, with joy and tranquillity, and so do quiet his spirit, as it is said here, Zec 6:8, give him full satisfaction). The Lord is among them as in Sinai, in the holy place; that is, the angels by their swiftness and warlike prowess make Zion, the Church, as dreadful to all her enemies (did not one of them so to Sennacherib?) as those angels made Sinai, at the delivery of the law, which was given in fire, Deu 33:2. God rideth upon the heavens for Israel’s help, i.e. upon the angels. Heb. the word rendered angels, in the above cited Psa 68:17 (and so the Chaldee plainly expresseth it), is by some (who derive it from Shaan, to sharpen) referred to chariots; to note a kind of chariots armed with sharp hooks, used in wars, as many humane writers record. And so it maketh something to the confirmation of this interpretation, concerning angels, rather than the four monarchies. But the angel himself is our best interpreter, Zec 6:5, where, being asked by Zechariah what these chariots were? he answereth, These are the four spirits of the heavens, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth, for a plain periphrase of the angels, Zec 1:10. {See Trapp on "Zec 1:10"}
From between two mountains] Tanquam e carceribus, as designed by God’s all-disposing providence and power, and ready pressed at his appointment and pleasure to run their race, do their office, execute God’s judgments, which are both unsearchable and inevitable; and this the poets hammered at in their ineluctabile Fatum, unescapable destiny, as they called it. God’s decrees lie hidden under mountains of brass, as it were, till they come to execution; they run as a river underground, till they break out and show themselves. When he hath once signified his will then we understand it, which before lay hidden from us; that is, when these chariots come out from between the mountains of brass, when the event declareth what was the immutable decree of God. Hence the Psalmist, "Thy righteousness is like the great mountains; thy judgments are a great deep"; this for the decree. And for the execution, "Thou preservest man and beast," {Psa 36:6} but by such means and in such manner as to thee seemeth best. It is our part to say Amen to his Amen, and to put our Fiat and Placet to his. "The will of the Lord be done," said those primitive Christians, Act 21:14 "Here am I, send me," Isa 6:8.
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 vv1–8 And I turned, and lifted up mine eyes: see…
And I turned, and lifted up mine eyes: see Zec 5:1.
There came four chariots: the appearance or emblem is plain enough, we can easily conceive that; but the things signified hereby are most difficultly found out, and perhaps not found when we think they are: here then, if any where, all are bound to write modestly, and all are bound to read carefully, and to judge candidly. Whether by these chariots are meant,
Read full note →
1. The various changes made by wars in the nations; the chariots, as some say, were chariots for war, and drawn by several-coloured horses, and thus wars and mutations thereby might be signified: or,
2. The four monarchies, of different temper and carriage toward the Jews and others, whom they ruled, as very many learned expositors think: or,
3. The four Gospels, with the apostles and preachers of the gospel sent by Christ, as others.: or,
4. Angels, who are sometimes styled chariots of God, and who are by the prophets, Daniel, Ezekiel, Zechariah, and by the Apocalypse, introduced as great ministers and servants of Christ in the affairs of his church, —I determine not; though perhaps all these might fairly be woven into one web, in which angels, as employed in the affairs of church and empire, act their part in the revolution and changes of things, be these of what temper soever they will in both, till the gospel be preached by the Messiah and his apostles.
Out from between two mountains; out of a deep; shady, and dark valley, which here is laid between two mountains; so God’s judgments are a great deep, whilst his righteousness is as the great mountains, Psa 36:6.
The mountains were mountains of brass: these mountains appear to the prophet very wonderful; for they were of brass, to denote the immovable decrees of God, his steady executions of his counsels, the insuperable restraints upon all empires and councils, which God keeps within the barriers of such impregnable mountains, whence not one can start till he open the way: and possibly it may import the pressures, difficulties, and distresses of the times signified hereby.
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 v1 The prophet is forward to receive this vision, and,…
The prophet is forward to receive this vision, and, as if he expected it, he turned and lifted up his eyes and looked. Though this was the seventh vision he had had, yet he did not think he had had enough; for the more we know of God and his will, if we know it aright, the more desirous we shall be to get a further acquaintance with God. Now observe here the sight that the prophet had offour chariots drawn by horses of divers colours, together with the explication of the sight, Zac 6:1-5. He did not look long before he discovered that which was worth seeing, and which would serve very much for the encouraging of himself and his friends in this dark day. We are very much in the dark concerning the meaning of this vision. Some by the four chariots understand the four monarchies; and then they read (Zac 6:5), These are the four winds of the heavens, and suppose that therein reference is had to Dan 7:2, where Daniel saw, in vision, the four winds of the heavens striving upon the great sea, representing the four monarchies. The Babylonian monarchy, they think, is here represented by the red horses, which are not afterwards mentioned, because that monarchy was now extinct. The second chariot with the black horses is the Persian monarchy, which went forth northward against the Babylonians, and quieted God's Spirit in the north country, by executing his judgments on Babylon and freeing the Jews from their captivity. The white, the Grecians, go forth after them in the north, for they overthrow the Persians. The grizzled, the Romans, who conquered the Grecian empire, are said to go forth towards the south country, because Egypt, which lay southward, was the last branch of the Grecian empire that was subdued by the Romans. The bay horses had been with the grizzled, but afterwards went forth by themselves; and by these they understand the Goths and Vandals, who with their victorious arms walked to and fro through the earth, or the Seleucidae and Lagidae, the two branches of the Grecian empire. Thus Grotius and others.
But I incline rather to understand this vision more generally, as designing to represent the administration of the kingdom of Providence in the government of this lower world. The angels are often called the chariots of God, as Psa 68:17; Psa 18:10. The various providences of God concerning nations and churches are represented by the different colours of horses, Rev 6:2, Rev 6:4, Rev 6:5, Rev 6:8. And so we may observe here, 1. That the counsels and decrees of God are the spring and original of all events, and they are immovable, as mountains of brass. The chariots came from between the two mountains; for God performs the thing that is appointed for us: his appointments are the originals, and his performances are but copies from them; he does all according to the counsel of his will. We could as soon grasp the mountains in our arms as comprehend the divine counsels in our finite understandings, and as soon remove mountains of brass as alter any of God's purposes; for he is in one mind, and who can turn him? Whatever the providences of God are concerning us, as to public or private affairs, we should see them all coming from between the mountains of brass, and therefore see it as much our folly to quarrel with them as it is our duty to acquiesce in them. Who may say to God, What doest thou, or why doest thou so? Act 2:23; Act 4:28. 2. That God executes his decrees in the works of Providence, which are as chariots, in which he rides as a prince in an open chariot, to show his glory to the world, in which, as in chariots of war, he rides forth conquering and to conquer, and triumphing over all the enemies of his glory and government. God is great and terrible in his doings (Psa 66:3), and in them we see the goings of our God, our King, Psa 68:24. His providences move swiftly and strongly as chariots, but all directed and governed by his infinite wisdom and sovereign will, as chariots by their drivers. 3. That the holy angels are the ministers of God's providence, and are employed by him, as the armies of heaven, for the executing of his counsels among the inhabitants of the earth; they are the chariots, or, which comes all to one, they are the horses that draw the chariots, great in power and might, and who, like the horse that God himself describes (Job 39:19, etc.), are clothed with thunder, are terrible, but cannot be terrified nor made afraid; they are chariots of fire, and horses of fire, to carry one prophet to heaven and guard another on earth. They are as observant of and obsequious to the will of God as well-managed horses are to their rider or driver. Not that God needs them or their services, but he is pleased to make use of them, that he may put honour upon them, and encourage our trust in his providence. 4. That the events of Providence have different aspects and the face of the times often changes. The horses in the first chariot were red, signifying war and bloodshed, blood to the horse-bridles, Rev 14:20. Those in the second chariot were black, signifying the dismal melancholy consequences of war; it puts all into mourning, lays all waste, introduces famines, and pestilences, and desolations, and makes whole lands to languish. Those in the third chariot were white, signifying the return of comfort, and peace, and prosperity, after these dark and dismal times: though God cause grief to the children of men, yet will he have compassion. Those in the fourth chariot were of a mixed colour, grizzled and bay; some speckled and spotted, and ash-coloured, signifying events of different complexions interwoven and counter-changed, a day of prosperity and a day of adversity set the one over-against the other. The cup of Providence in the hand of the Lord isfull of mixture, Psa 75:8. 5. That all the instruments of Providence, and all the events of it, come from God, and from him they receive their commissions and instructions (Zac 6:5): These are the four spirits of heaven, the four winds (so some), which seem to blow as they list, from the various points of the compass; but God has them in his fists and brings them out of his treasuries. Or, rather, These are the angels that go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth, to attend upon him and minister to him, to behold his glory in the upper world, which is their blessedness, and to serve his glory in their blessedness, and to serve his glory in this lower world, which is their business. They stand before him as the Lord of the whole earth, to receive orders from him and give up their accounts to him concerning their services on this earth, for it is all within his jurisdiction. But, when he appoints, they go forth as messengers of his counsels and ministers of his justice and mercy. Those secret motions and impulses upon the spirits of men by which the designs of Providence are carried on, some think, are these four spirits of the heavens, which go forth from God and fulfil what he appoints, who is the God of the spirits of all flesh. 6. That there is an admirable beauty in Providence, and one event serves for a balance to another (Zac 6:6): The black horses went forth, carrying with them very dark and melancholy events, such as made every person and every thing look black; but presently the white went forth after them, carrying joy to those that mourned, and, by a new turn given to affairs, making them to look pleasant again. Such are God's dealings with his church and people: if the black horses go forth, the white ones presently go after them; for as affliction abounds consolation much more abounds. 7. That the common general aspect of providence is mixed and compounded. The grizzled and bay horses were both in the fourth chariot (Zac 6:3), and though they went forth, at first, towards the south country, yet afterwards they sought to walk to and fro through the earth and were directed to do so, Zac 6:7. If we go to and fro through the earth, we shall find the events of Providence neither all black nor all white, but ash-coloured, or gray, mixed of black and white. Such is the world we live in; that before us is unmixed. Here we are singing, at the same time, of mercy and judgment, and we must sing unto God of both (Psa 101:1) and labour to accommodate ourselves to God's will and design in the mixtures of Providence, rejoicing in our comforts as though we rejoiced not, because they have their allays, and weeping for our afflictions as though we wept not, because there is so much mercy mixed with them. 8. That God is well-pleased with all the operations of his own providence (Zac 6:8): These have quieted my spirit, these black horses which denote extraordinary judgments, and the white ones which denote extraordinary deliverances, both which went towards the north country, while the common mixed providences went all the world over. These have quieted my spirit in the north-country, which had of late been the most remarkable scene of action with reference to the church; that is, by these uncommon appearances and actings of providence God's wrath is executed upon the enemies of the church, and his favours are conferred upon the church, both which had long been deferred, and in both God had fulfilled his will, accomplished his word, and so quieted his Spirit. The Lord is well-pleased for his righteousness' sake; and, as he speaks, Isa 1:24, made himself easy.
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 vv1–8 And I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and…
And I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked,.... When he saw another vision, as follows:
and, behold, there came four chariots; by which are meant, not the four Gospels; rather the apostles of Christ, who had their commission from Christ; were sent into all the world by him, and carried his name and Gospel thither; were the instruments Christ made use of in bringing many souls to him, and into his church, and for the defence of his Gospel, and of his interest; and were military chariots, who fought the good fight of faith; and triumphal ones, who were made to triumph in Christ, being more than conquerors through him; though others think angels are here meant, the chariots of the Lord, Psa 68:17 since they are called the four spirits of the heavens; and are said to go forth from standing before the Lord of the earth, and are sent by him into each of the parts of it, Zac 6:5 and are represented by horses of various colours, as in Zac 1:8 these may be signified by chariots, for their glory, strength, and swiftness, in which Jehovah rides about the world, and executes his will; and are made use of for the destruction of the church's enemies, and for its protection and defence. The Jewish writers, after the Targum, generally interpret them of the four monarchies, the Persian, Grecian, and Roman, by whom were done the will of God in the world; and seem to be greatly the design of the vision:
Read full note →
these came out from between two mountains: and the mountains were mountains of brass; such in which this metal is found, as in Chalcis, where it is said to be first found (o); and from thence it has its name in the Greek tongue; or in the island of Cyprus, from whence it may be is the name of copper; and such mountains were in Judea, Idumea, and Arabia, formerly; as Carmel, according to Hesychius (p); and Phinon in Idumea; and some mountains in Arabia, about eleven miles from Horeb, which, Jerom says (q), formerly abounded with veins of gold and brass: these may intend the decrees and purposes of God, which, like "mountains", are very ancient, earlier than the everlasting hills, high and deep, not to be reached and searched into; are dark, obscure, and hidden to men, till made known; and are firm, solid, and immovable, and are lasting and durable; and, like mountains of "brass", are never to be broken in pieces, revoked, made null and void; for they stand upon the unalterable will of God, upon the basis of infallible wisdom; are supported by uncontrollable power, and can not be disannulled by all the men on earth, and devils in hell: and, according to these fixed and immutable decrees, the said monarchies in succession have took place in the world; unless rather it should be thought, that by these mountains of brass are designed the power and providence of God, by which the several people that first founded those empires were restrained for a while from going forth to make war upon others, and subdue their kingdoms; until the time was come, it was the will of God they should. The allusion may be to race horses in chariots, formerly used for such exercises, which were held within the circus or bars, till the sign was given when they should start: in like manner these nations were kept within bounds for a while, just as the four angels were bound by the providence of God at the river Euphrates, until they were loosed; which signify the Saracens, and their numerous army of horsemen under their four leaders, who were restrained from overrunning the "eastern" empire of the Romans, until it was the pleasure of God to loose them, and give them liberty, Rev 9:14. Grotius understands this literally of the straits of Cilicia, and the vastness of the mountains there, through which the Babylonians and Persians, Alexander and his generals, used to pass into Syria, Judea, and Egypt; but rather these visionary chariots seemed to steer their course through a valley, which lay between two mountains, whereby they escaped the difficulties that lay in their way by the mountains; and may denote the low estate of these monarchies in their original, and the difficulties they grappled with, and got over, before they rose to the grandeur they did. Some interpret the two mountains of brass of the kingdom of Israel, after the Babylonish captivity, and the kingdom of the Messiah; and the four chariots, of the four kingdoms, in this order; the Persian, the Grecian, that of the Lagidae and Seleucidae, and the Roman, which is in course last; but was seen first by the prophet, because utter destruction was brought upon Israel by it (r): according to this interpretation, the red horses are the Romans; and the other, the above mentioned. So Cocceius is of opinion that the two mountains are two powerful and unshaken kingdoms, set up by God; or rather two manifestations of the same kingdom; the one the kingdom of the house of David; the other the kingdom of Christ, which is spiritual, but as to the effect earthly, in the subjection of all nations to it, Dan 7:22 the kingdom of the house of David, as to the external form, is abolished, but notwithstanding remains in the root, until it appears in another mountain; and between these two, or in the middle space of time, four kingdoms with their armies would possess the promised land; and he observes, that in Dan 2:35, mention is made of two mountains, and, that these chariots in part agree with the several parts of the image there.
(o) Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 4. c. 12. Vid. l. 7. c. 56. & l. 34. c. 2. (p) Apud Bochart. Hierozoic. par. 2. l. 6. col. 886. (q) De locis Hebraicis, fol. 90. A. (r) Vid. Gurtler. Voc. Typ. Prophet. Explic. p. 58, 177.
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 vv1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 The vision of the four chariots, representing God's government…
The vision of the four chariots, representing God's government of the world, ver. 1-8. Joshua crowned as a type of Christ, ver. 9- 15.
Four chariots - Angels who are sometimes styled chariots of God. These as employed in the affairs of church and empire, act their part in the revolution and changes of things, 'till the gospel be preached by the Messiah, and the apostles. Of brass - These denote the immoveable decrees of God, his steady execution of his counsels and the insuperable restraints upon all empires and countries, which God keeps within the barriers of such impregnable mountains.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 The vision of the four chariots drawn by several…
CHAPTER VI
The vision of the four chariots drawn by several sorts of
Read full note →
horses, 1-8.
The other vision in thus chapter may refer in its primary
sense to the establishment of the civil and religious polity of
the Jews under Joshua and Zerubbabel; but relates in a fuller
sense, to the Messiah, and to that spiritual kingdom of which
he was to be both king and high priest. In him all these types
and figures were verified; on him all the promises are yea and
amen, 9-15.
NOTES ON CHAP. VI
Verse 1. There came four chariots] Four monarchies or empires. This is supposed to mean the same with the vision of the four horns, in Zec 1:18-21.
Mountains of brass.] The strong barriers of God's purposes, which restrained those powers within the times and limits appointed by Jehovah.
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 vv1, 2, 5, 6, 8 Zec 6:1. And I turned and looked, &c. —…
Zec 6:1. And I turned and looked, &c. — “The main design of this eighth and last vision is to confirm the Jews in their faith in, and dependance upon God, by showing them that, weak and defenceless as they seemed to be, they had nothing to fear from the greatest earthly powers, while they remained under the divine protection; since all those powers originally proceeded from the counsels of the Almighty, were the instruments of his providence, and could not subsist, nor act, but under his permission.” — Blayney. And behold there came four chariots — Horses and chariots are the usual emblems of conquerors: see Isa 21:7-9; Zec 10:3. The four chariots, here mentioned, denoted the four great empires, which either had subdued, or were to subdue the greater part of the then known world, namely, the Assyrian, or Babylonian, the Persian, Grecian, and Roman. They are here represented as coming from between two mountains, because mountains are the natural barriers which divide kingdoms; which, though they be strong as brass, are here supposed to be broken through by those that invade and conquer their neighbours. And it is observable, that several of the mighty conquerors of the world owed the beginning of their greatness to their successful passage through the straits of mountains, where a small force might have maintained the passes against a powerful army. Thus the beginning of Alexander’s success against the Persians, was his passing without opposition through the straits of Cilicia; through which also the Babylonians and Persians had passed before, when they marched into Syria and Judea.
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 vv1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8 Behold, four chariots going forth - Alb.: “By the…
Behold, four chariots going forth - Alb.: “By the secret disposal of God into the theater of the world,” “from between two mountains of brass.” Both Jews and Christians have seen that the four chariots relate to the same four empires, as the visions in Daniel.
“The two mountains.” It may be that the imagery is from the two mountains on either side of the valley of Jehoshaphat, which Joel had spoken of as the place of God’s judgment, Joe 3:2, and Zechariah afterward Zec 14:4. It may then picture that the judgments go forth from God. Anyhow the powers, symbolized by the four chariots, are pictured as closed in on either side by these mountains, strong as brass, unsurmountable, undecaying, (Ribera), “that they should not go forth to other lands to conquer, until the time should come, fixed by the counsels of God, when the gates should be opened for their going forth.” The mountains of brass may signify the height of the Divine Wisdom ordering this, and the sublimity of the power which putteth them in operation; as the Psalmist says, “Thy righteousnesses are like the mountains of God” Psa 36:6.
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 vv1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 Four chariots. The four great empires of the Chaldeans,…
Four chariots. The four great empires of the Chaldeans, Persians, Greeks, and Romans; or, perhaps, by the fourth chariot are represented the kings of Egypt and of Asia, the descendants of Ptolemeus and Seleucus. (Challoner) (See Daniel ii.) (Worthington) --- The chariots seem to represent the same thing as the four horns, (chap. i. 18.) namely, the punishment of the four empires. The angel says nothing of the first chariot, as the Chaldeans, who overthrew the Assyrians, were now devoid of power. --- Brass, or hard; signifying that the chariots were designed to bruise nations. (Calmet) --- Empires depend on the decrees of God. (Menochius) --- The two mountains may denote the passes of Cilicia, through which the conquerors must pass from Egypt and Syria to Babylon. (Tournemine)
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 v1 A. Four Chariots drawn by Horses of different Colors…
VISION VIII. THE FOUR CHARIOTS
Zec_6:1-8
Read full note →
A. Four Chariots drawn by Horses of different Colors (Zec_6:1-4). B. Explanation of their Meaning (Zec_6:5-8).
1And I lifted up my eyes again,1 and saw, and behold, four chariots came from between the two mountains, and the mountains were mountains of brass. 2In the first chariot were red horses, 3and in the second chariot black horses, And in the third 4chariot white horses, and in the fourth chariot speckled bay2 horses. And I answered and said to the angel that talked with me, What are these, my lord? 5And the angel answered and said to me, These are the four winds3 of the heavens, coming forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth. That in which are 6the black horses goes4 forth into the land of the north, and the white go behind them, and the speckled go forth to the land of the south. 7And the bay went forth, and desired to go—pass to and fro5 through the earth; and he said, Go, pass to and fro through 8the earth; and they went through the earth. And he called me and spake to me, saying, Behold, these that go forth into the land of the north have caused my Spirit to rest6 upon the land of the north.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
This vision completes the cycle of the series by returning to the point of departure, using imagery much like that of the first vision, and indicating the complete fulfillment of what had there been pledged. Here it is not horses and riders who serve only as exploring scouts, but chariots of war who actually execute what they are commanded. They go forth not from a grove of myrtles in an open bottom, but from between lofty brazen mountains, an adequate symbol of the strength and permanence of the divinely guarded theocracy. They act in all directions, but especially in those regions whence in the past the most formidable enemies of the kingdom of God proceeded. They put in exercise the various destructive agencies indicated by the colors of the horses,—war, pestilence, mourning, famine,—until the Spirit of God is satisfied with the overthrow. But the destruction of the Lord’s enemies is the triumph of his friends, and in this view the eighth vision appropriately terminates the first series of revelations granted to Zechariah, with a cheering prospect, of which a fuller development is given in the closing chapters of the book.
a. The Symbol of the Four Chariots (Zec_6:1-4). Zec_6:1. Four chariots. … mountains. The prophet in the usual way indicates that another vision is disclosed to him. The four chariots which he sees can scarcely be other than war chariots, and are therefore a symbol of authority and judgment. The article prefixed to two mountains does not necessarily refer to them as already known (so Hengstenberg, who supposes a reference to Psa_125:2, which is certainly far-fetched), but simply defines them as forming the back ground of the scene presented to the prophet. Their ideal character is confirmed by the statement that they are “of brass,’ a manifest symbol of impregnable strength. There is no need, therefore, of referring to Zion and Moriah (Maurer, Umbreit, etc.), or to Zion and the Mount of Olives (Keil, Moore), although the latter may have suggested the symbol. A valley guarded by two brazen hills is not an unworthy image of the resistless might of Him who from such a place sends forth the executioners of his will. The number of the chariots, according to the analogies of Ezekiel, Daniel, and Revelation, indicates, like the four points of the compass, universality, a judgment that goes in every direction.
Zec_6:2-3. In the first chariot.…. bay horses. The number of the horses is not mentioned, although the rabbins say there were four to each chariot. The colors are specified, and must be significant. The usual interpretation makes red denote war and bloodshed, black, sorrow and death, white, victory. The fourth color, speckled, commonly derived from a root=hail, and hence rendered, “having hail-like spots,” is explained by Hengstenberg as denoting judgments falling like hail (Rev_8:7; Rev_16:21). but by Keil as indicating famine and pestilence, which is better than to regard it with Henderson, as indicating a mixed dispensation of joy and sorrow, or with T.V. Moore as combining all the others. A more difficult question arises concerning the next word, אֲמֻצִּים. It is strange to find as epithet of quality in immediate connection with a series referring to color, yet this must be admitted if the word is take in its usual sense, given in the margin of E.V., Vulgate, and by most expositors. i.e., strong. To escape the difficulty, some represent the first consonant, א, as softened from ח, and get חֲמֻצִּים=bright red (Kimchi, Calvin, Cocceius, Ewald, Köhler). others suppose an error of the transcriber (Hitzig, Maurer, Pressel). But it is better with Fürst (in Lex.) to derive the word in the text from an Arabic root=to shine, whence he obtains the signification, dazzling red. Dr. Van Dyck, in the modern Arabic Bible, renders it by װׁُُْ=shining red. In any event, the colors of the horses denote the character of the mission on which they are sent. But an elaborate effort has been made by Hoffman, followed by Kliefoth, Wordsworth, and others, to represent the colors as indicating the four great empires of Daniel as instruments of God’s judgments. But this is forbidden by the contemporaneousness of the going forth of the several chariots, by their destination as stated in the text, by the lack of historical verification, and other considerations. See Keil and Köhler in loc. for a full refutation of this apparently plausible view.
b. The Explanation (Zec_6:5-8). Zec_6:5. These are the four winds. Not four spirits, as the text of the E. V. has it, and Henderson and Neumann, for angels are rarely if ever so described in the Old Testament, nor in that case would the appended words, “of the heavens,” have any suitable meaning, nor does the Scripture know anything of four angels par eminence. These winds, the angel said, came forth from standing before the universal Lord, in whose service they were. Psa_148:8. “Stormy wind fulfilling his word.” The agency of the four winds in the work of destructive judgment is seen in Jer_49:36, Dan_7:2, Rev_7:1.
Zec_6:6-7. That in which are, etc. These verses describe the particular regions visited by these divinely appointed messengers. The black went toward the land of the north, which all agree denotes the territory washed by the Tigris and Euphrates. See on Zec_2:6-7. The white go after them, not to the West, as Ewald translates, for then we should expect the East also, which does not occur; and besides, the west to the Hebrews represented only the sea. Better is the ingenious view of Pressel, who, insisting on the force of the preposition, renders “to the land farther behind them.” This is grammatically tenable, and favored by the fact that it brings into view the farther East, the Medes and Persians, as one of the distinct objects of the divine visitation. The land of the south is of course Egypt and Arabia.
Zec_6:7. And the bay went, etc. So far, the prophet seems to have omitted the first chariot, the one with red horses, and in order to make up the number four, to have divided the third team into two, taking its second designation of color, bay, as the fourth. How are we to understand this? Keil, who, however, renders אֲמֻצִים, strong, regards the problem as insoluble. Hengstenberg affirms that the class mentioned in the seventh verse is in reality the first, and they are called strong, because they really were the strongest of all; but this assumes what is certainly not stated, and cannot be proved. Hitzig and Maurer assume that צֲמִצֻּים was omitted from Zec_6:6 by mistake, and afterwards erroneously substituted in Zec_6:7 for אֲדמִֻּים. It is better to interpret the term as Fürst does in Zec_6:3, although even then it remains inexplicable why the prophet should have described the first class not by its own name but by one already appropriated as part of that of the third. It may, however, be safely inferred that while the various colors of the horses had some significance, yet that this was not a matter of very great importance, else the distinctions stated would have been more accurately observed., Certainly the general sense of the vision is plain, whatever view one adopts as to the variations in the description. One point all agree in, namely, that the seventh verse sets forth what was done by the horses of the first chariot. These appear to have been not content like the others with one particular territory, but asked permission to go through the whole earth. And he said, i. e., the Lord of the whole earth, who (ver 5) causes the chariots to go forth.
Zec_6:8. And he called me. The interpreting angel calls aloud to the prophet, arousing his attention to the purport of the vision. Have caused my Spirit to rest upon. This has often been explained as analogous to the phrase “to cause fury to rest,” in Eze_5:13; Eze_16:42, but wrath is not the same as spirit. Nor is such a violent assumption at all necessary. The Lord’s Spirit is sometimes a Spirit of judgment and of burning (Isa_4:4), and it is in this sense that the chariots let down his manifestations on the nations. This verse specifies only the land of the north as the scene of these operations. But it could easily be inferred from this what was the result in the other directions. The north country was mentioned because, as the inveterate foe of the covenant people, it was the principal mark of the judgments of God, and should in the first instance feel the consuming energies of the Holy Spirit.
THEOLOGICAL AND MORAL
1. The same law obtains in the punishment of the heathen as in that of God’s professed people. The harvest is not cut until it is ripe. The measure of iniquity must be full before judgment falls. This doctrine was shown in the last vision in its application to the Jews. In the present as compared with the first, of which it is the complement, the same principle is illustrated in relation to the world at large. At the beginning of this night of disclosures, the prophet learned that there was no indication in the state of the heathen world of any such convulsion as his predecessor Haggai had predicted; but, on the contrary, actual inspection by horsemen commissioned for the purpose brought back information that all the earth was quiet and at rest, thus furnishing a painful contrast to the weak and suffering condition of the people of God. Now he learns that this prosperity and peace of the heathen was not a permanent thing. The time had not come, and nothing could be done until it did come. But it was sure to arrive. The wrath of God is not a caprice or an impulse, but the steady, uniform, eternal opposition of his holy nature against all sin. It can no more cease than He can. It is the very element of his being. He is necessarily “of purer eyes than to behold evil.” Not more certainly is He infinite in power or wisdom than He is in justice and truth. And these perfections must find expression in his administration of the affairs of the world. Delay is no evidence to the contrary. The accumulation of sins thus produced, only makes more evident the desert of wrath, and causes a deeper destruction when the blow falls.
2. The resting of God’s Spirit upon a land is generally the cause of life, holiness, and peace, but sometimes it is the reverse. In visitations of judgment, the Spirit is a consuming fire. It overwhelms, scatters, destroys. It removes out of the way obstacles otherwise insuperable. It turns mountains into plains. It lays low hoary despotisms, and prepares means and access for the gentler forms of diffusing the truth. Pacem petit ense. The utter destruction of a godless power is sometimes a necessary preliminary to the spread of the Gospel.
Footnotes:
[1]Zec_6:1.—וָאָשֻב=again. Cf. Zec_5:1.
[2]Zec_6:3.—“Speckled bay,” that is, speckled upon a bay ground. The word here rendered speckled is not the same as the one so rendered in the E. V. of Zec_1:8. Noyes translates ,in this place, spotted-red.
[3]Zec_6:5.—רוּחוֹת. The margin of E. V., winds, is better than the text, spirits. Cf. Jer_49:36. I can find no instance in which the plural is used to denote angelic beings. Certainly Psa_104:4 is not one.
[4]Zec_6:6.—The first clause contains a singular anacoluthon, יֹּצְאִים, referring by its number to the horses, instead of the implied מֶרְכָבָה, to which it grammatically belongs.
[5]Zec_6:7.—“to Pass to and fro,” i. e., in every direction.
[6]Zec_6:8.—Noyes renders הִנִיחוּ רוּחי, execute my wrath, which is an excellent interpretation, but hardly a translation. The E. V. quieted cannot be sustained by usage, and is at best ambiguous, although it is copied in Dr. Van Dyck’s New Arabic version. The invariable use of the hiphil verb requires the rendering given in the text.
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 vv2–8 red--implying carnage.
red--implying carnage.
black--representing sorrow; also famine (Rev 6:5-6; compare Zac 1:8).
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 vv1, 2, 4, 8 The eighth vision — the four chariots with horses…
The eighth vision — the four chariots with horses of different colors, Zec_6:1-8.
In the eighth and last vision the prophet sees coming from between two mountains four chariots drawn by horses of different colors (1-4). According to the present Hebrew text, two were commissioned to go toward the north, and one toward the south; the destination of the fourth is not indicated (see on Zec_6:7). This vision is more obscure than the preceding ones. The interpreting angel informs the prophet (Zec_6:5) that the four chariots are the four spirits (R.V., “winds”) of heaven (but see on Zec_6:5), ready to carry out the divine commands; but this interpretation retains a symbolical element: the chariots symbolize divinely appointed messengers (Zec_1:10). The interpretation is expanded in Zec_6:8, which shows that the vision is intended to reveal the fate which is to befall the enemies of the Jews, especially those in the north country (see on Joe_2:20). When the judgment upon the north country is executed the anger of Jehovah is appeased and his spirit is quieted. This vision, then, like the first, is meant to assure the prophet that Jehovah is about to execute judgment upon the nations hostile to him and to his people (compare Hag_2:7).
Read full note →
1. The introductory formula is practically the same as in Zec_1:18; Zec_2:1; Zec_5:1.
Chariots — War chariots. The occupants are sent forth to war.
Four — To be interpreted as in Zec_1:18; they were to be sent to the four points of the compass, that is, in every direction. Attempts to identify the four chariots with four world powers, be they those of Dan_2:31-35; Dan_7:3-7, or any others, are vain. The angel suggests no such identification. The chariots represent the agents — whatever or whoever they may be — ordained by Jehovah to execute judgment upon the nations, and to bring about the “shaking” which was expected to usher in the Messianic era (Hag_2:7).
Between two mountains — The Hebrew has the article, the two (well-known) mountains. What mountains were in the mind of the prophet we do not know — some think Mount Zion and Mount Moriah; some, Mount Zion and Mount Olives. The mountains play no further part in the vision, therefore it is immaterial to know what mountains they were; one thing is certain, that they were thought to be near the dwelling place of Jehovah (Zec_6:5).
Of brass — A symbol of strength and immovableness.
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 vv1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 1. turned, and lift up] Rather, lifted up again.…
1. turned, and lift up] Rather, lifted up again. Comp. Zec_5:1.
looked] Rather, saw.
Read full note →
four chariots] These have very commonly been identified with the four great powers or kingdoms of Daniel’s visions (chap. 2, 7). The first chariot, as to the destination of which the vision is silent, will then represent the Babylonian empire, of which the power was already broken, and which had therefore no future to be foretold. The second and third chariots are, on this supposition, the Medo-Persian and Macedo-Grecian empires, by which successively the overthrow of Babylon, “the north country,” was to be completed; while the fourth chariot, the power of Rome, triumphing first over Egypt, “the south country,” extends its victorious sway over all the earth. This view, however, is not without its difficulties, and some commentators prefer to regard the chariots generally, in accordance with the interpretation put upon them by the Angel (Zec_6:5), as swift and mighty engines of destruction (four in number like “the winds of heaven”), which fall with twofold vengeance (Zec_6:6) on Babylon the latest enemy of Israel, while they execute wrath also upon Egypt (Ib.), her earlier oppressor, and thus cause that “shaking of all nations,” which was the promised precursor of good. Hag_2:7.
two mountains] Lit. the two mountains. The use of the definite article has been held to indicate the (well-known) mountains, either of Zion and Moriah (which, however, do not appear to have been generally regarded by the Jews as two), or more commonly of Zion and Olives. The chariots would then travel along the valley of Jehoshaphat. This is not, however, necessarily the force of the article (comp. “the ephah,” Zec_6:6). It may only mean that the prophet saw the chariots coming into view between “the two mountains,” which he had previously noticed though he has not previously mentioned them, as the side-scenes of the picture.
mountains of brass] Denoting, perhaps, that the great powers or agencies, which overthrow empires and shape the destinies of nations, as they come forth from God (Zec_6:5), so also have their course defined by the counsels of His irresistible and immutable will.
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 vv1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8 (1) And I turned . . . eyes.—Better, And…
VI.
SEVENTH VISION.—THE FOUR CHARIOTS.
Read full note →
(1) And I turned . . . eyes.—Better, And again I lifted up my eyes (Zec_4:1; Zec_5:1; Zec_8:3).
There came.—Better, coming forth. The prototypes of these two mountains were, no doubt, the Mount of Olives (Zec_14:4) and Mount Zion, between which lies the Valley of Jehoshaphat, where the Lord judges (such is the meaning of the name) the nations (Joe_3:2, sqq.). But the mountains themselves were visionary, and are represented as of brass, to denote, according to some, the immovable firmness of the place where the Lord dwells, and where He has founded His kingdom.
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 vv1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8 Vers. 1-8. The eighth vision: the four chariots.
Vers. 1-8. The eighth vision: the four chariots.
I turned, and lifted up mine eyes. (see note on Zec_5:1) Four chariots. These are war chariots. The angel explains, in vers. 5, etc., what these chariots mean, how that they represent God"s judgments on sinners in all the world. Though evil is removed from the Church, God"s vengeance pursues it wherever it is located. If we compare this vision with the first, (Zec_1:8-11) we shall see that the quiet there spoken of is here broken, and that the shaking of the nations, which is to accompany Messiah"s advent, (Hag_2:7) has begun. That the four chariots are to be identified with the four powers of Daniel"s visions (Da 2 and Da 7) the Babylonian, Medo-Persian, Macedonian, and Roman is an opinion that does not commend itself. These four kingdoms and their fate have been already symbolized in the horns of the second vision, (Zec_1:19-21) and it is most unlikely that they should be again introduced under a different figure. This would mar the orderly development of the revelation. And how could these kingdoms, such as they were, be said to issue from the seat of the theocracy and to be attentive to God"s commands? Further, how could the chariots symbolize the kingdoms which were to be the objects of punishment, when at the same time they are themselves the instruments which inflict the chastisement? Neither does the angel"s explanation suit this notion; for kingdoms are nowhere found under the figure of winds, and such a symbol would have been unintelligible to the prophet without further elucidation. Two mountains. The Hebrew has the article, "the two mountains," two well known mountains. The scene of the vision is Jerusalem or its neighbourhood; hence the two mountains mentioned are thought to he those of Zion or the temple mount, and Olives. (comp. Zec_14:4 Joe_3:16) It is impossible to identify them; end probably nothing more is meant than that the chariots came forth from a defile between the two mountains which appeared in the vision. Mountains of brass; or, copper . These impregnable, undecaying mountains represent the immovable, invincible nature of the theocracy and of God"s decrees respecting it. From it the chariots go forth, because for the sake of God"s kingdom and to promote its objects the world powers are destroyed (Knabenbauer). (Isa_66:15) The number "four" represents completeness; the judgment shall leave no quarter unvisited.
Read full note →
Vers. 1-8. The ministry of angels.
"And I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came four chariots out from between two mountains." This, the last of the present series of visions, is perceptibly similar in several points, to the first. (Zec_1:7-11) We find mention in both, e.g., of "horses;" of the variety of their colours; of the prophet"s inquiry respecting their meaning; of some of them going to and fro on the earth; and of final "quiet" (ver. 8) or "rest". (Zec_1:11) If we were right, therefore, in understanding the first as a "vision of angels," we may do the same, of course, of this last. This idea is confirmed by the frequent way in which "chariots," as here spoken of, are employed in Holy Scripture as descriptive of the angels of God; (see Psa_68:17 Deu_33:2 Act_7:53 2Ki_2:11 2Ki_6:17) as also by what is said of those seen as "standing by the Lord of the whole earth". (1Ki_22:19 Dan_7:10 Luk_1:19; also Zec_4:14, supra, where we, perhaps, have an example of the placing of men on an angelic level; Psa_8:5 Luk_20:36) Taking this general view of the passage, it may be understood as giving us instruction
(1) respecting the nature of the angels; and
(2) respecting their work.
I THEIR NATURE. We are shown in this vision, for example:
1. How mighty they are. They are represented as chariots of war chariots of "fire," in other places probably because such chariots, in old days, were, like artillery in these days, the most formidable "arm" of an army. (see Jud_1:19 4:3 2Ch_18:30, 2Ch_18:31; and note how angels, whether elect or fallen, are spoken of in Rom_8:38 Eph_1:21 Eph_6:10 2Pe_2:11)
2. How orderly. Each separate emblematical "colour" being distinguished from the others, and each coming forth in its turn. May we not trace similar ideas of perfect order and symmetrical arrangement, and consequent facility in ascertaining numbers? (comp. in Rev_5:11 Dan_7:10 Mar_6:40, 44; and the words of the collect, "the services of men and angels in a wonderful order
3. How diverse. This, also, seems intimated by what is said of the different "colours" of the horses. This also we can easily understand to be true. If the varieties of men are so many, who yet are all "men," however diverse, (Act_17:26) why not of the angels also? why not of the angels much more, being innumerable? (Heb_12:22) This same truth seems intimated to us also in Col_1:16; and, perhaps, of evil angels, in Mar_9:29. A legitimate subject this for meditation and praise, though not for intrusion. (Col_1:18)
4. How diversely employed. Like "the four winds of heaven," e.g., some go in this direction, some in that. Also some are to follow, some to precede. Some, again, to move in one direction only; some in every direction, "to and fro." Angels, in short, like the stars of the mighty firmament, and apparently bearing, therefore, the same name, "the host of heaven", (Gen_2:1 Psa_33:6 Luk_2:13Jo Luk 38:6) are, as it were, some fixed, and some revolving; some of one light, some of another; some larger, some smaller; some single, some double or treble; some nearer, some more remote. (1Co_15:41)
II THEIR WORK. However mighty or diverse these angels, all that they here do is seen to be:
1. In strict subordination to Gods purposes. These mystical "chariots" only run, as it were, "between," and not over the mountains the unsurmountable and undecaying "brass" mountains of God"s settled arrangements. (see Mic_4:13) Even of the mightiest angels Act_4:28 holds good.
2. In strict obedience to Gods directions. Observe what is said in ver. 7 of those who "sought to go," but till expressly allowed, did not go, "to and fro". (comp. Dan_9:23 Heb_1:14, "sent forth;" and see, even of evil angels, Luk_8:32)
3. To the complete satisfaction of Gods Son. See the emphatic declaration of the Angel-Jehovah in ver. 8. This is true, even if we understand that verse (with some), "These have made my anger to rest on the north country." Why else does this Divine Angel employ this word "my"? Why proclaim this fact thus "aloud"? (Pusey; comp. Psa_103:20, 21 Mat_6:10)
4. For the sake of Gods friends. What is this "north country" on which God"s anger is thus caused to abide? What but that great enemy of his Zion that mystic Babylon, or "Shinar," by banishment in which (see last chapter) he had punished his Israel for their sin? Compare this predicted fate of the future "Babylon" with that of the literal as described in Isa_47:6-9, and elsewhere; and compare Zec_1:15, and perhaps Rev_18:5, Rev_18:6.
From the whole, we may see, to conclude:
1. The exceeding complexity of Gods government. How many instruments what varied agents, both in heaven and earth he employs! (comp. Dan_4:35) Much as there is to admire in that visible "cosmos" of which men have discovered (under one aspect) so much; how much more there is when we include also that invisible "cosmos", (Gen_28:12Jo Gen 1:51) of which revelation informs us I It is, in fact, only less marvellous than its Maker himself.
2. The exceeding simplicity of its general principle. So far as explained to us, it all turns on one point, viz. "Israel"s" calling and work. This shown here of the literal Israel. This still more true of the spiritual. See two last references again; also such passages as 2Co_4:15 1Co_3:21 Eph_3:10, Eph_3:11. Note, also, how this principle was laid down once for all in Gen_12:3; and how it corresponds with and is partly explained by the remarkable declaration of Eph_1:23.
HOMILIES BY W. FORSYTH Vers. 1-8. The world ruled in the interest of Christianity.
I THE POWERS OF THE WORLD ARE UNDER THE CONTROL OF GOD. East and west, north and south, all the world over, God is supreme. He is the Lord of all forces, the Ruler of all events, the Arbiter of all destinies. War, famine, pestilence, may be the result of natural causes, but, all the same, they are his servants; they come and go at his command; they accomplish what he pleases. "Happy the man who sees a God employed In all the good and ill that chequer life. (Cowper)
II THE POWERS OF THE WORLD ARE CONTROLLED BY GOD IN THE INTEREST OF CHRISTIANITY. God takes a direct and living interest in his people. He is Enemy of their enemies, and the Friend of their friends. "All things work together for good to them who love God." And there is nothing arbitrary in this. God is not partial, but just. As he is God, he must act as God. The true and the righteous and the holy must ever receive the protection and the blessing of the True and the Righteous and the Holy One. God"s government is marked by immutability of counsel, variety of method, universality of range, sovereignty of sway, and beneficence of result. How grand and benign must be the end that satisfies the mind of the Eternal! "Quieted my spirit. F.
HOMILIES BY D. THOMAS Vers. 1-8. God"s government of the world.
"And I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came four chariots out from between two mountains; and the mountains were mountains of brass," etc. This is the last in the series of visions, which amount in all to eight, during that one night. All are so obscure that the more scholarly and enlightened the expositor, the less disposed will he be to regard his interpretation as absolutely correct. Certainly this is not more easy of interpretation than the preceding ones. The objects which were now revealed to the prophet"s vision are various and strange.
1. He sees four chariots. It does not say expressly whether they were chariots of war bearing the warrior out to battle or home in triumph, or whether they were chariots used for private or public conveyances; but it is implied that they were war chariots.
2. He saw these four chariots proceeding from two mountains. These were not mountains of earth or intone, but mountains of brass; mountains, therefore, having peculiar solidity and strength.
3. He saw these chariots drawn by horses of different colours. In the first chariot we have red horses; in the second, black; in the third, white; and in the fourth, grisled or piebald grey. Now, the prophet seemed utterly unable to understand the meaning of these objects. But he is anxious to do so, and he addresses the interpreting angel, and says, "What are these, my lord?" Here is the answer: "And the angel answered and said unto me, These are the/bur spirits of the heavens, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth," etc. The chariots, then, are the four "spirits," or winds, as the margin has it. Some translate the word, "celestial spirits," and suppose that angels are referred to. The "four winds" probably represent the invisible agencies by which the Almighty is pleased to carry on the government of the world. These spirits stand before the Lord of all the earth, and are in his presence, at his disposal, ever ready to execute his behests. My purpose in these sketches is not speculative, but practical. Were it speculative, I should find a wide and fertile field for hypothetical thought. For example, a large variety of opinions exist concerning the four chariots and horses and their charioteers. Some suppose that they represent the great monarchies of the ancient world the Chaldean, the Grecian, and the Roman. Some, indeed, have supposed them to refer to the four Gospels. And some have supposed them to refer to the history of the Church after Constantine the first, to the wars of invaders of the Roman Empire, and the wars of controverted doctrines and opinions; the second, to the blackness of darkness, the ignorance, oppression, and misery of papal domination; the third, to the light and knowledge, the joy and triumph, of the Reformation; and the fourth, to the mixed condition of things, the confusion of false doctrine and true, right and wrong precepts, holy and unholy rites of worship, subsequent to that great revolution. But I take the vision to illustrate God"s government of the world; and it illustrates four facts concerning that government its variety, immutability, universality, and supremacy.
I VARIETY. This is suggested by the colour of the steeds that bear onward the chariots of his plans. The "red horses," emblem of war and bloodshed. The "black," emblem of calamity, distress, and mourning. The "white," emblem of gladness and prosperity. The grisled" and bay," or piebald, a mixture of events, prosperity and adversity, friendship and bereavement, sorrow and joy, etc. Has not this variety characterized the providence that is over man from the beginning until this hour? It is not only seen in every page of the history of nations and Churches and families, but in the history of individuals. The experience of every man is more changeable than the weather. There is a constant alternation the red, the black, the white, the mixed. These changes are useful.
1. They break the monotony of life. They tend to keep the heart of humanity on the alert. There is but little opportunity for moral sleep.
2. They create a desire for a state of certainty. They prompt a search for a "city that hath foundations, whose Builder and Maker is God." This is not our rest.
II IMMUTABILITY. These chariots move between two "mountains of brass." Though they are borne by a variety of steeds, and move rapidly towards every point of the compass, and carry a variety of events wherever they go, they are overshadowed and hedged in by the immutable, represented by mountains of brass. God"s immutable counsels of decrees keep all the motions and commotions, all the convulsions and revolutions of the world in their place. As the ocean, amidst all its ebbings and flowings, rage and fury, is bound to obey the moon, which remains serenely settled in her orbit, so all the agitations of the earth are bound to obey the immutable decrees of Heaven. Thank God, that in this changing world of ours there are mountains of brass, things that cannot be shaken. "All flesh is grass,... but the word of our God shall stand forever;" "My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.
III UNIVERSALITY. These chariots, borne by these varied coloured steeds, rolled towards every point of the globe, some to the north and some to the south. They walked "to and fro through the earth." Yes; through the earth through every part of it. Not a spot unvisited or ignored. God"s providence embraces all, matter and mind, great and small, good and evil. All we have, and all that every creature has, is borne to us in these chariots; they bear to us our trials and our joys. Hence we should bow with resignation under all our sorrows, and shout with gratitude in all our enjoyments. Hence, too, we should practically realize our dependence upon him in every moment of our life. "Give us this day our daily bread," etc.
IV SUPREMACY. "These are the four spirits of the heavens, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth." He is at the head of all. No evil spirit moves without his permission and control; no good spirit without his inspiration and guidance. He is the Lord of all the earth. How great must he be who manages all things! "All good proceedeth from him, as sunbeams from the sun; All evils fall before him; his will through all is done.
Let us trust him with an unbounded confidence. Let us obey him with loving loyalty, "Of him, and by him, and to him are all things." "He is over all, God blessed forever. D.T.
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 v1 Behold there came four chariots out from between two…
Zec_6:1-8
Behold there came four chariots out from between two mountains
Read full note →
The four chariots
The general meaning of this vision is very clear.
The enemies of the Church shall be punished, is the motto of the picture, and the purport of the vision. The immediate application of the truth was to the existing circumstances of the Jewish Church, but it contains a general proposition or law of the Divine procedure that is now in fulfilment, and will so continue until the restitution of all things spoken of by the holy prophets since the world began. Following the preceding vision, which denounced wrath on the Jews, it declares that after the Jews have been punished, God will destroy their enemies, who will also be the enemies of the Church. Now, as the threatened punishment of the Jews is not yet completed, so this punishment which was to follow that completion is also incomplete, and the main fulfilment yet to come. We have therefore in this vision an instance of what has been called the continuous fulfilment of prophecy. This takes place when the prophecy is not so much a simple prediction of facts, as the annunciation of a great principle of Divine procedure, in the garb of existing and well-known facts, but yet equally applicable to other facts all along the history of Gods dealings with man. Thus the most abstract and formulated statement of the essence of this vision is, the enemies of the Church shall be punished. Its immediate application was to Babylon and Egypt, the existing representatives of the ancient enmity of the serpents seed, but this application is of course a single one, that does not exclude the future examples of this principle of the Divine government that may and must arise. This is wholly different from the old double sense of prophecy, and is a most obvious and reasonable canon of interpretation. How striking the fulfilment of this threatening, when we remember the circumstances under which it was made. Could the haughty nobles of Babylon, in the gorgeousness of its magnificence and the pride of its power, have heard the threatening of this obscure Jew, amidst the ruins of Jerusalem, with what derision and contempt would they have treated the threat! The anathema that was so feebly uttered against the mightiest and richest city in the world, to the eye of sense seemed like the ravings of lunacy. Yet that feeble whisper was the uttered voice of Jehovah, and the elements of ruin in their remotest lurking place heard the summons, and began to come forth. Slowly and silently did they come up to this dread work, and yet surely and resistlessly, until the glory of these high palaces was dimmed, and the magnificence of these gardens and temples was covered, and now the winds whistle through the reeds of the Euphrates, where Babylon then sat in her pride; and loneliness, desolation, and death are stationed there the sentinel witnesses of the truth that His word returns not to Him void, that His Spirit is quieted in the land of the north. The same is true of Egypt, and later on of Greece and Rome. So it will be with guilty and godless Europe. Learn--
1. That the history of the world is all arranged and conducted in reference to the destinies of the Church, and the agencies that control that history go forth from the seat of the Churchs great head, the unseen, temple.
2. God has in operation every species of agency, human and angelic, animate and inanimate, needful for the accomplishment of His purposes, and will send these forth at the proper time. Political changes and revolutions are only the moving of the shadow on the earthly dial plate that marks the mightier motions going forward in the heavens. (T. V. Moore, D D.)
The supremacy of God
The entire vision was designed to teach a great general lesson--the lesson of the universal supremacy and superintendence of the God of Israel over all the agencies of nature, and all the varying movements of progress or retrogression, of prosperity and adversity, of peace and war, amongst the nations; and to teach it with a special application to themselves, as His chosen people, and to those adjoining or more distant countries by which their condition had been, or might hereafter be, beneficially or injuriously affected. It called upon them to put their trust in the wisdom, power, and love of their own Jehovah,--the governor among the nations;--in one word, to have faith in God. Let us learn the lesson. Amidst all the convulsions and revolutions that are agitating Europe, let us not only acknowledge but rejoice in the supremacy of the infinitely wise, and good, and mighty. All the winds are His. He holds them in His fist. The zephyr and the hurricane are alike His agents. All influences--in every department of creation, and in the hearts and wills and words and actions of men of every kindred and tongue and people and nation, are under His absolute control. None can stay His hand, or say unto Him, What doest Thou? Let us trust in Him, own Him, pray to Him,--deprecating, on behalf of our country, and of our guilty world, merited wrath,--and imploring, especially, that all events may result in glory to His name. (Ralph Wardlaw, D. D.)
Gods government of the world
This is the last in the series of visions, which amount in all to seven, during that one night. This is not more easy of interpretation than the preceding ones. The objects which were now revealed to the prophets vision are various and strange.
(1) He sees four chariots. It does not say whether they were chariots of war bearing the warrior out to battle, or home in triumph, or whether they were chariots used for private or public conveyances.
(2) He saw these four chariots proceeding from two mountains. These were not mountains of earth or stone, but mountains of brass; mountains, therefore, having peculiar solidity and strength.
(3) He saw these chariots drawn by horses of different colour. I take the vision to illustrate Gods government of the world, and it illustrates four facts concerning that government.
I. Variety. This is suggested by the colour of the steeds that bear on the chariots of His plans. The red horses, emblem of war and bloodshed. The black, emblem of calamity, distress, and mourning. The white, emblem of gladness and prosperity. The grisled and bay, or piebald, a mixture of events, prosperity and adversity, friendship and bereavement, sorrow and joy, etc. Has not this variety characterised the providence that is over man from the beginning until this hour? It is not only seen in every page of the history of nations and Churches and families, but in the history of individuals. The experience of every man is more changeable than the weather. There is a constant alternation,--the red, the black, the white, the mixed. These changes are useful
1. They break the monotony of life. They tend to keep the heart of humanity on the alert. There is but little opportunity for moral sleep.
2. They create a desire for a state of certainty. They prompt a search for a city that hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. This is not our rest.
II. Immutability. These chariots move between two mountains of brass. Though they are borne by a variety of steeds, and move rapidly towards every point of the compass, and bear a variety of events wherever they go, they are overshadowed and hedged in by the immutable in mountains of brass. Gods immutable counsels of decrees keep all the motions and commotions, all the convulsions and revolutions of the world in their place. As the ocean amidst all its ebbings and flowings, rage and fury, is bound to obey the moon, which remains serenely settled in her orbit, so all the agitations of the earth are bound to obey the immutable decrees of Heaven. Thank God! that in this changing world of ours there are mountains of brass, things that cannot be shaken. All flesh is grass, but the word of our God shall stand forever.
III. Universality. These chariots, borne by these varied coloured steeds, rolled towards every point of the globe, some to the north and some to the south. They walked to and fro through the earth. Not a spot unvisited or ignored. Gods providence embraces all, matter and mind, great and small, good and evil. Hence we should bow with resignation under all our sorrows, and shout with gratitude in all our enjoyments.
IV. Supremacy. These are the four spirits of the heavens, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth. He is at the head of all. No evil spirit moves without His permission and control; no good spirit without His inspiration and guidance. He is the Lord of all the earth. How great must He be who manages all things! (Homilist.)
These are the four spirits of the heavens--
Four spirits of the heavens
Eminent interpreters translate the words celestial spirits, and thus present us at once, in our own customary theology, with angels. There is difficulty here, however. In the first place, spirits of the heavens is a very unwonted designation for angels in Scripture. I know not that it has a parallel. And secondly, if angels are intended, how come we to have four? Their number is ten thousand times ten thousand; and unless they are mentioned in connection with something else that leads and limits to the number four, it is difficult, by any analogy, to account for it. Let me illustrate the remark from another passage--And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree (Rev_7:1). Here we have four angels. But we at once see why they are four. They are, in the vision, employed in holding the four winds of the earth. Now the four winds, from the four cardinal points--understood as representing and embracing all the intermediate points, and thus signifying the winds in general--was a style of expression familiar to the ancients as ourselves. The word rendered spirits, as most if not all of you are aware, signifies also winds. The question then is, whether what are called the four winds of the earth, in the Book of Revelation, be not the same as what are here called the four spirits, or winds, of the heavens. I am strongly tempted to think that we have, in this vision, one symbol, or emblem, explained by another. The four winds are an emblem--a most natural and appropriate one--of all the powers and agencies by which the earth can be affected; especially agencies of judgment--of wars and desolations, arising from the contending elements of human passions and Satanic malignity. (Ralph Wardlaw, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Expositor's Bible 1887 · Public Domain On v1 As the series of Visions opened with one of…
THE EIGHTH VISION: THE CHARIOTS OF THE FOUR
Zec_6:1-8
Read full note →
As the series of Visions opened with one of the universal providences of God, so they close with another of the same. The First Vision had postponed Gods overthrow of the nations till His own time, and this the Last Vision now describes as begun, the religious and moral needs of Israel having meanwhile been met by the Visions which come between, and every obstacle to Gods action for the deliverance of His people being removed.
The prophet sees four chariots, with horses of different color in each, coming out from between two mountains of brass. The horsemen of the First Vision were bringing in reports: these chariots are coming forth with their commissions from the presence of the Lord of all the earth. They are the four winds of heaven, servants of Him who maketh the winds His angels. They are destined for different quarters of the world. The prophet has not been admitted to the Presence, and does not know what exactly they have been commissioned to do; that is to say, Zechariah is ignorant of the actual political processes by which the nations are to be overthrown and Israel glorified before them. But his Angel-interpreter tells him that the black horses go north, the white west, and the dappled south, while the horses of the fourth chariot, impatient because no direction is assigned to them, are ordered to roam up and down through the earth. It is striking that none are sent eastward. This appears to mean that, in Zechariahs day, no power oppressed or threatened Israel from that direction; but in the north there was the center of the Persian empire, to the south Egypt, still a possible master of the world, and to the west the new forces of Europe that in less than a generation were to prove themselves a match for Persia. The horses of the fourth chariot are therefore given the charge to exercise supervision upon the whole earth-unless in Zec_6:7 we should translate, not "earth," but "land," and understand a commission to patrol the land of Israel. The center of the worlds power is in the north, and therefore the black horses, which are dispatched in that direction, are explicitly described as charged to bring Gods spirit, that is His anger or His power, to bear on that quarter of the world.
"And once more I lifted mine eyes and looked, and lo! four chariots coming forward from between two mountains, and the mountains were mountains of brass. In the first chariot were brown horses, and in the second chariot black horses, and in the third chariot white horses, and in the fourth chariot dappled horses. And I broke in and said to the angel who talked with me, What are these, my lord? And the angel answered and said to me, These be the four winds of heaven that come forth from presenting themselves before the Lord of all the earth. That with the black horses goes forth to the land of the north, while the white go out west, and the dappled go to the land of the south. And the go forth and seek to go, to march up and down on the earth. And he said, Go, march up and down on the earth; and they marched up and down on the earth. And he called me and spake to me, saying, See they that go forth to the land of the north have brought my spirit to bear on the land of the north."
William Robertson Nicoll, ed., The Expositor's Bible (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1887–1910) — public domain. 65 of 66 books (1 Corinthians is not separately keyed, as that volume carries no machine-parseable verse references); section-level commentary keyed to the opening verse. Introductory and overview sections not keyed to a specific passage are excluded.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v1 CRITICAL NOTES.] Chariots] Symbolic of four great empires described…
CRITICAL NOTES.] Chariots] Symbolic of four great empires described (Dan_2:31-43; Dan_7:3-7): or of the four winds of heaven (Zec_6:5). Two mountains] Between Moriah and Zion, some; others, emblems of Medes and Persians, corresponding to the two horns (Dan_8:14). Brass] Strength and solidity (cf. Jer_1:18).
Zec_6:2. Red] The colours indicate the character of the dispensations. Red, a symbol of cruelty, war, and bloodshed. Black] of calamity and sorrow. White] of prosperity and gladness. Grisled and bay] or piebald, of a mixed dispensation, light and darkness, prosperity and adversity.
Read full note →
Zec_6:5. Angel] explains. Spirits] (winds, marg.), emblem of the destructive powers and agencies of Divine judgments (cf. Psa_148:8; Jer_49:36; Rev_7:2; Rev_7:8). Henderson gives, “angels or celestial spirits, represented as employed by God to carry into effect his high behests, which they receive in his immediate presence (Job_1:6; Job_2:1), and then proceed to the different quarters of the globe in which the special operations of Divine Providence are to be carried forward.”
Zec_6:6. North] To conquer Babylonians. After them] Alexander and his suceessors go forth to conquer the Persians. South] Egypt and Arabia.
Zec_6:7. Bay] Lit. strong or fleet. Sought] Eagerly seeking for permission to do what had to be done. Walk] in the land, unmolested by invasion, yet not free from annoyance; a mixed state of affairs in Israel for a considerable period. Get] Permission given by him who commands the chariots.
Zec_6:8. Quieted my spirit] i.e. have appeased mine anger, or caused it to rest (Jdg_8:3; Ecc_10:4; Eze_5:13). Babylon alone in the days of the prophet was punished; God’s anger was satisfied in that direction; other monarchies had to expiate their sins.
HOMILETICS
GOD’S PROVIDENCE GUARDS THE INTERESTS OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.—Zec_6:1-8
Under the type of four chariots the providence of God is represented in this vision as guiding the agencies of the world, in reference to the destinies of God’s people.
I. The powers of the world are subservient to the interests of the Christian Church. The history of the world is arranged with a view to promote the welfare of God’s people and to establish the kingdom of the Messiah. Hence all things are designed and adjusted to work in mutual action and united tendency for the good of the Christian (Rom_8:28).
1. In their origin. “There came four chariots out from between two mountains.” Calvin explains the mountains as the hiding-place of the Divine purpose, which is kept back until the time for its revelation and execution. All events and agencies emanate from the decrees of God, which are firm and immovable as mountains of brass.
2. In their nature. The messengers of God are sent to accomplish various designs. Some go on errands of bloodshed and mourning; some as heralds of joy and triumph; and others have missions mixed with joy and grief, prosperity and adversity
3. In their direction. Some go to the north, and others to the south (Zec_6:6). They all start from a common centre, the purpose of the Eternal, but are sent in different directions. In all quarters of the globe God is supreme, and sees the end from the beginning of events. Nothing is contingent or happens unknown to him. “Political changes,” says Moore, “are only the moving of the shadow on the earthly dial-plate that marks the mightiest revolutions going forward in the heavens.”
II. The powers of the world are employed according to the design of God concerning the Christian Church. God’s swift messengers are sent forth to accomplish the counsels of his will.
1. To punish some. War, pestilence, famine, and destructive agencies bring mourning and distress. God can turn nations one against another, and white horses may follow black.
2. To caution others. To many, providences are a cup mixed with bitter and sweet; life to them is now prosperous and then adverse.
3. To help God’s people. Whatever be the dispensations of God to others, they portend good only to his people. Swiftly and triumphantly are the chariots driven along, agitating the earth like rushing winds; but the Church of God is secure. “God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early.”
THE ADMINISTRATION OF DIVINE PROVIDENCE.—Zec_6:2-8
In this vision we have an insight of the providence of God in its relation to men.
I. It is various in its aspects. There were red and white horses, grisled and bay. Events have different aspects, and the times change like the face of the sky. One thing is set over against the other, and the cup of God’s hand is full of mixture (Psa_75:8).
II. It is supreme in its operations. All events “go forth” from God. He commands and he restrains. He is supreme,
1. Over all agencies. The chariots are driven by his skill, and the winds gathered in his fists (Pro_30:4).
2. Over all times. In all ages of the world, and in every period of national and personal history, God rules. All the laws and forces of the universe were created and are preserved and directed by him. There is no chance nor caprice; there are no inferior deities, like the store-keepers of Jupiter, in the providence of God.
III. It is wonderful in its method. In John’s vision angels are represented as holding the winds (Rev_7:1). “Why not the angels,” asks Wardlaw, “in the vision of Zechariah, be considered as directing the winds?” Angels stand before God, “excel in strength,” and are “ministers of his that do his pleasure.” How strange that God should employ the mightiest and most intelligent creatures in the universe on our behalf. Well may Shakespeare exclaim, “Angels and ministers of grace, defend us!”
IV. It is rapid in its movements. Swift as chariots and sudden as the winds are changes often wrought. Now sunshine beams upon nations and they bask in prosperity; then clouds and storms gather over them and joy is driven away. “The chariot of God’s providence runneth not upon broken wheels,” says Rutherford.
V. It is satisfactory to God in its results. “They have quieted my spirit.” This may refer to the satisfaction of Divine justice in executing vengeance upon the enemies of his people (of. ch. Zec_1:15, and Isa_1:24). Wrath and mercy may be deferred, but will eventually be revealed God’s people should hope on and work earnestly. God’s enemies should beware lest they be overtaken in their sins. “The work of righteousness shall be peace, and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever.”
THE MINISTRY OF ANGELS.—Zec_6:7
In these words the charioteers are represented as asking permission to do what they could for the holy land. They have to wait, but the command is given and they are swift in obedience. Take them as describing the ministry of angels.
I. It is extensive in range. “To and fro through the earth.” North or south, as God commissions them (Zec_6:6).
II. It is antagonistic in its character. Satan and his angels walk to and fro in the earth to do mischief. They roam in restless activity, and no place is secure from their attacks (Job_1:7). But the messengers of Jehovah are more numerous and powerful than all against us. The ultimate triumph is certain, we may therefore have confidence.
III. It is retributive in its design. To punish the enemies of God’s people and satisfy the demands of his justice. They not only minister mercy but execute vengeance.
IV. It is eager in its spirit. They “sought to go that they might walk,” they were eager and ready to be employed.
“They stand with wings outspread
Listening to catch the Master’s least command,
And fly through Nature ere the moment ends” [Carrington].
HOMILETIC HINTS AND SUGGESTIONS
Zec_6:1. Brass. Mountains of brass denote the immovable decrees of God, his steady execution of his counsels, and the insuperable restraints that are upon all empires and counsels, which God keeps within the barriers of such impregnable mountains that not one can start till he opens the way [Cruden’s Concordance].
Zec_6:4. What? Difficulty doth but whet desire in heroic spirits; the harder the vision, the more earnest was the prophet’s inquisition; he was restless till better resolved, and therefore applieth himself again to his angel tutor, rather than tutelar, whom for honour’s sake he called my lord [Trapp].
Zec_6:7. Sought. This doth not teach that the angels are more careful of this world than God is, of whom they desired it. But first, that they can do nothing without commission from him. Secondly, that they are ever ready to offer their service and yield obedience upon the least intimation of the Divine pleasure [Trapp]. From the whole section we learn—that the earth may seem to be quiet and at peace while the people of God are in a weak and suffering condition; that the outward peace of the earth will be disturbed in due time, and God’s people wonderfully delivered; that whatever sad dispensations God sends upon the nations, the Church will be his special care; that his purpose will be fully accomplished and all things done according to his mind, therefore his people may trust his wisdom, power, and love.
ILLUSTRATIONS TO CHAPTER 6
Zec_6:1-8. Providence. Everything or what mark it is aimed at; but the that acts for an end must know that archer that puts it in and darts it out of end or be directed by another to attain the bow knows [Charnock]. Providence that end. The arrow doth not know certainly does not attend merely to the who shoots it, or to what end it is shot, interests of individuals, but the profound wisdom of its counsels extends to the right ordering and betterment of all [Humbolt].
Zec_6:5. Angels stand. A king is there where his court is, where his train and retinue are; so God, the Lord of Hosts, is there specially present where the heavenly guard, the blessed angels, keep their sacred station and rendezvous [Mede].
Zec_6:8. Justice satisfied. Justice is the key-note of the world, and all else is ever out of tune [Theodore Parker]. Justice always whirls in equal measure [Shakespeare].
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Sermon Bible 1900 · Public Domain On v1 Zec 6:12-13
Zec 6:12-13
I. A priest upon His throne in the temple of the Lord. Such is the vision upon which the gaze of Zechariah was fixed, and which gave joy to his heart in that cloudy and dark day. The great ideal of which Hebrew psalmists have sung and Hebrew prophets spoken shall be realised. The promised Son of David shall be seen seated as a priest upon His throne in the temple, bearing glory and ruling.
Read full note →
II. Five hundred weary years passed by, and as the prophecy of Isaiah and Zechariah awaited fulfilment the sons of Zion mourned. But at length the time appointed came. Jesus is born of Mary, and He is the man whose name is The Branch, growing out of the roots of Jesse. He comes (1) to build the temple of the Lord. That is His great work during His ministry on earth. (2) To be enthroned in it, and to rule over it as King. The ascension of Jesus is His entrance as man into heaven, and His enthronement in our nature on the throne of God. As the enthroned King, Jesus reigns over His Church as the Vicegerent of God.
III. The writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews repeats the revelation of Jesus as the enthroned Priest, and teaches us its practical effect on Christian conduct. He tells us that we have a great High Priest who is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God. He teaches us to recognise His sympathy because of His experimental knowledge of the conditions of our life. He reveals Him to us as enthroned on the throne of grace, in the fulness of power, and with the tenderness of a perfect sympathy, and bids us "come with boldness to the throne of grace, to obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."
G. Body, Anglican Pulpit of To-Day, p. 258.
References: Zec 6:12, Zec 6:13.—Bishop Moorhouse, The Expectation of the Christ, p. 80.
Zec 6:13.
I. The true hope of the world is a Priest. The idea of priesthood is universal. It has been distorted and abused; it has been made the foundation of spiritual tyranny. The priest has not been the teacher nor the elevator of the people. All over the world he has been the ally of oppression and darkness; he has hindered and cramped social and intellectual progress. And yet, in spite of all this, there the office stands, and wherever men go, by some strange perversity, they take with them this idea, and choose from among themselves those who, being endowed with some sort of ceremonial and symbolic purity, shall discharge for their brethren the double office of representing them before God and of representing God to them. That is what the world means, with absolute and entire unanimity, by a priest—one who shall be sacrificer, intercessor, representative, bearer of man’s worship, channel of God’s blessing.
What is the Priest whom men crave? (1) The first requisite is oneness with those whom He represents. We have a Priest who "in all things is made like unto His brethren." (2) As in nature and character, so in function, Christ corresponds to the widely expressed wants of men, as shown in their priesthoods.
II. The priest of the world is the King of men. (1) He does rule. "The kingdom of Christ" is no fanciful phrase. (2) The foundation of His rule is His sacrifice. (3) His rule is wielded in gentleness.
III. The Priest-King of men builds among men the temple of God. (1) Christ is Himself the true temple of God. (2) Christ builds the temple. By faith the individual soul becomes the abode of God, and into our desecrated spirits there comes the King of Glory. (3) Christ builds this temple because He is the temple. By His incarnation and work He makes our communion with God and God’s dwelling in us possible. By His death and sacrifice He draws men to Himself, and blends them in a living unity. By the gift of His Spirit and His life He hallows their wills, and makes them partakers of His own likeness; so that, coming to Him, we also are built up a spiritual house. (4) Christ builds the temple, and uses us as His servants in the work.
A. Maclaren, Sermons Preached in Manchester; 2nd series, p. 310.
References: Zec 6:13.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. iv., No. 191; vol. xxv., No. 1495; Ibid., Morning by Morning, p. 174. Zec 7:1-14.—W. Lindsay Alexander, Homiletic Magazine, vol. vii., p. 105. Zec 7:3.—A. Mursell, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xix., p. 353. Zec 7:5, Zec 7:6.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. viii.. No. 438; Ibid., My Sermon Notes: Ecclesiates to Malachi, p. 368. Zech 7, Zech 8—Expositor, 3rd series, vol. iv., p, 216.
The Sermon Bible, ed. William Robertson Nicoll (1888–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. R. Dummelow 1909 · Public Domain On v1 The Eighth Vision. The Symbolic Crowning
The Eighth Vision. The Symbolic Crowning
1-8. Four war-chariots, with variously coloured horses, go forth to execute God's judgments against the enemies of oppressed Israel in different parts of the earth. Two, in particular, go. northwards, to 'quiet His spirit' (i.e. to satisfy His anger) upon Babylon.
Read full note →
9-15. Zechariah is commanded to take gold and silver from the Temple offerings, and make a crown for Joshua the high priest. At the same time, the Messiah ('Branch') is again promised. Under Him the Temple will be completed with the help of people from afar, probably returned exiles.
1. It is noteworthy that the first vision showed God's universal providence in mercy (messengers coming from all parts of the earth), the last vision reveals God's universal providence in judgment (war chariots going forth in all directions). And I turned, and lifted] RV 'Then again I lifted.' In Heb. to 'turn' and do something is to do it 'again.' Chariots] used for military purposes, and also on state occasions, therefore symbolical of power and majesty. They are four because they go to the four quarters of the earth.
3. Grisled and bay] lit. 'spotted, vigorous.' It is difficult to explain the two adjectives. The first etymologically means 'spotted as with a hailstorm'; and those who see a significance in the colours of the horses connect hail with the judgment which the fourth chariot carries: cp. Rev_8:7; Rev_16:21. The second adjective has, in reality, no reference to colour (see RM), and some scholars omit it. Grisled] = 'grizzled,' 'grey.'
5. The four spirits of the heavens] RV 'winds' (the word for 'wind' in Heb. means also 'spirit,' i.e. breath); but would the prophet speak of winds 'standing before the Lord'? The addition of a single letter in the Heb. gives the following reading: 'These (i.e. the chariots and horses) go forth to the four winds of heaven after they have presented themselves before the Lord.'
6. North country] Babylonia. South country] Egypt. Egypt, like Babylon, was at this time part of the Persian empire, Cambyses having overcome the Egyptians in the battle of Pelusium in 527 b.c. Two of the chariots go north, a double doom on Babylon. But some scholars consider that the Heb. words for 'behind them' (RV 'after them') are a corruption for words meaning 'to the east.'
7. Through the earth] as a reserve force to go wherever they may be required, but some scholars read 'to the west.' Bay] or 'strong.' Some read 'red,' see RM.
The reading of the vision is somewhat complicated, but its meaning is clear. Jehovah will defend Judah against her enemies, and especially He will deprive Babylon of the power to do her harm.
8. Quieted my spirit in] lit. 'caused my spirit to rest in.' The meaning may be either, (1) 'brought peace to,' or (2) 'sated my fury by stirring up trouble in.' The historical situation supports the second interpretation. Even while Cambyses was yet alive (in 522 b.c.) the magician Gautama, who pretended to be Smerdis, the brother of Cambyses, had been proclaimed king. Cambyses died of an accidental wound on his way to fight Gautama. The latter was in turn slain by Darius, who ascended the Persian throne in 521. Immediately revolts broke out in all parts of the empire, which were not subdued finally till 514.
9-15. A party of Jews had just come from Babylon. Zechariah is instructed to take part of the silver and gold which they have brought for the Temple, and to make a set of circlets for Joshua, the high priest. Thus he will more fully be a type of One to come, who is both Priest and King to His people.
11. Then take silver] RV 'yea, take of them silver.' Crowns] some read 'a crown.'
12. 13. These vv. are somewhat difficult. The simplest way out of the difficulty is to suppose that, after the word head in Zec_6:11, the words 'of Zerubbabel and' have accidentally fallen out. This explains the use of the plural 'crowns' in Zec_6:11, Zec_6:14, but it does not explain why only one of these rulers is addressed in Zec_6:12, Zec_6:13. Many scholars hold that the crown is really for Zerubbabel, the civil ruler, whose name, for political reasons, has been suppressed, and. that Zec_6:12-13 refer to him, as fulfilling the prophecy of the Branch (see Isa_11:1) and completing the Temple. However this may be, the ultimate fulfilment of the prophecy is in Him, through whom we have the far more glorious Temple, 'not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.'
13. And he shall be a priest] RM 'there shall be a priest.' If the preceding clauses refer to Zerubbabel, this would refer to Joshua. We should then have a clear meaning for the following sentence, 'and the counsel of peace shall be between them both,' i.e. these two (Joshua and Zerubbabel) would rule together in harmony. Thus these vv. give the same thought as the vision of the golden candlestick.
14. The crowns (RV 'crown') are to be laid up in the Temple, as a memorial of the generosity of the deputation which brought the silver and gold. Helem should probably be 'Heldai'; Hen seems to be a corruption of 'Josiah': see Zec_6:10.
15. As a sign of the fulfilment of Zechariah's word, more people will come (from Babylon) to assist in completing the Temple. And this shall come to pass, if] better, 'and it shall come to pass that if.' The v. breaks off unfinished.
J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On vv1, 4, 5 four chariots
four chariots
The interpretation of the tenth vision must be governed by the authoritative declaration of Zec 6:5. That which is symbolized by the four chariots with their horses is not the four world-empires of Daniel, but "the four spirits of heaven which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth" (Zec 6:5). These "spirits" are angels; Luk 1:19; Heb 1:14 and are most naturally interpreted of the four angels of; Rev 7:1-3; Rev 9:14; Rev 9:15. These have also a ministry earthward, and of like nature with the "spirits" of Zec 6:1-8. viz. judgment. The symbol (chariots and horses) is in perfect harmony with this. Always in Scripture symbolism they stand for the power of God earthward in judgment.; Jer 46:9; Jer 46:10; Joe 2:3-11 Nah 3:1-7. The vision, then, speaks of the Lord’s judgments upon the Gentile nations north and south in the day of the Lord; Isa 2:10-22; Rev 19:11-21.
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Arno C. Gaebelein 1922 · Public Domain On v1 1. The eighth vision (Zec 6:1-8)
CHAPTER 6
1. The eighth vision (Zec 6:1-8)
Read full note →
2. The crowning of Joshua, the High-Priest (Zec 6:9-15)
Zec 6:1-8. The last vision is the vision of the four chariots. We notice the similarity with the first night-vision. The visions opened with the hosts of heaven upon red, speckled, and white horses. It was a vision of judgment for the Gentiles and a vision of comfort to Israel. In this last vision the chariots of judgment are seen sweeping over the earth. It seems to denote judgment in its final accomplishment. The riders of the first vision may be termed the beginning of God’s dealing with the nations, but the chariots put the divine judgment decrees into operation.
The riders halted in a valley amidst a myrtle grove, but the chariots rush forth to execute their terrible work from between two mountains of brass. These mountains mean undoubtedly Mount Moriah and the Mount of Olives. They rush through the Valley of Jehoshaphat. The brass is mentioned to denote the firmness and stability of these mountains, which shall never be moved. We do not think that in the four chariots there is an allusion to the four world-powers. The judgment of them is now come. The stone is falling and smiting the image at its feet and pulverizing it, putting it completely out of existence. The chariots are God’s powers, agencies for judgment in the earth, which will pass swiftly along, shown by the fast running chariots. In Rev 6:1-17 the seven seals are opened, and there go forth the four terrible riders upon white, red, black, and pale horses. The riders in the Apocalypse are the riders which go through the earth during the great tribulation, but in the eighth night vision of Zechariah we see the chariots of God’s wrath. The vision falls in the time when the heaven opens and He appears riding upon a white horse, His name Faithful and True, coming in righteousness to judge and to make war. Wonderful vision of Him who is clothed with a vesture dipped in blood! He is followed by the armies of heaven upon white horses, all clothed in fine linen white and clean. “And out of His mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it He should smite the nations, and He shall rule them with a rod of iron, and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of almighty God” Rev 19:1-21.
The angel interprets to the prophet that the chariots are the four spirits of the heavens which go forth from standing before the Lord of the earth. These agencies for wrath were with God, standing before Him, the Lord of all the earth, but now at His command they descend to scatter death and destruction. They go forth in sets, and the north country and south country both so prominent in the prophetic word are mentioned. The bay horses, however, are not confined to one direction, they go through the entire earth. At last in the judgment of the land of the north the spirit is caused to rest. The overthrow of the enemies of Israel is complete and the spirit is quieted. How long may the wrath last and for how long may the chariots do their deadly work? Perhaps longer than we think. The millennial reign of Christ, as foreshadowed in the bloody rule of David, followed by the peaceful reign of Solomon, may teach us lessons in this direction. The night visions have ended. They may be termed the Apocalypse of Zechariah. Daniel, Zechariah, and Revelation go together in a wonderful harmony and explain each other. Alas! that just these three parts of the Bible should be so little studied and so little understood.
Zec 6:9-15. The memorable night with its great visions was gone. The first streaks of the morning heralded the coming dawn. Then the Word of the Lord came to the young prophet commanding him to make crowns of silver and gold and crown Joshua, the High-Priest.
Some consider this to be the ninth vision of the prophet. It is, however, the word of the Lord which comes to the prophet. There can be no doubt but the command was actually carried out and Cheldai (robust), Tobiah (God’s goodness), and Jedaiah (God knows), gave their silver and gold, and crowns were made out of it and placed upon the head of Joshua the high-priest. But the action had a much deeper meaning. It was a highly typical one. It must have astonished Joshua and the people to hear such a command, for the royal crown did not belong to the high-priest but to the descendant of David. He must have understood that the whole command had a symbolical bearing. Joshua hears it from the Word of the Lord that another person is only typified by him, “Behold the man whose name is the Branch.” It is this man the Branch who will be a priest upon the throne. This, of course, is our Lord Jesus Christ. The name of the high-priest Joshua is in itself very significant, for the meaning is, God is salvation, Saviour, Jesus. Pontius Pilate was fulfilling prophecy when he stood there leading out Jesus of Nazareth before that tumultuous multitude, and when he said “Behold the man.” If the assembled Jews had known the Scriptures they would have recognized the phrase. But how did He then come forth? He wore a crown of thorns upon His meek and loving brow, and the people gazed into the blood-stained face of the Lamb of God now ready to be placed upon the altar and slain. But once again it will sound forth, “Behold the man,” for when He appears it will be after He has gathered His saints, and then He will come as the Son of Man in the heavens, and the sign of the Son of Man will be seen there. He will be crowned again, too, but not with the crown of suffering and shame, but with the crowns of glory. Thus He is seen in Rev 19:12 as wearing many crowns.
He comes to build the temple of Jehovah, bearing majesty, sitting and ruling upon His throne. He is now the builder of the spiritual temple, which is composed of living stones Eph 2:21,1Pe 2:5. But when He comes again there will be the building of another temple. It is now no longer His Father’s throne but His own, upon which He is a priest as well. The King of Kings and the Lord of Lords has now taken possession of His inheritance. The times of overturning are over and He whose right it is has come. There is a very instructive thought in the fact that the persons of the exile, as mentioned above, were to bring the silver and the gold out of which the crowns were to be made. The time will come when the whole exiled nation, so long scattered and peeled, though even in dispersion, the richest nation of the earth, will bring their silver and gold, their glory and their all and lay it at the feet of the King.
Arno C. Gaebelein, The Annotated Bible (1913–1922) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v1 The Vision of the Four Chariots
The Vision of the Four Chariots
v. 1. And I turned and lifted up mine eyes, or, "And again I lifted up my eyes,". and looked, and, behold, there came four chariots out from between two mountains, the location of the vision being somewhere in the mountainous country near Jerusalem, very likely between Mount Zion and the Mount of Olives; and the mountains were mountains of brass, firm and immovable.
Read full note →
v. 2. In the first chariot, harnessed to it, were red horses, signifying war and bloodshed; and in the second chariot black horses, the color of misfortune, of mourning, and of death;
v. 3. and in the third chariot white horses, implying joy and victory; and in the fourth chariot grizzled and bay horses Cf Rev 6:8.
v. 4. Then I answered and said unto the angel that talked with me, the one who had acted as interpreter in all the visions, What are these, my lord?
v. 5. And the angel answered and said unto me, These are the four spirits of the heavens, the four winds as the instruments of the Lord’s will, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth. Cf Psa 104:4; Psa 148:8. The agency of the winds in the work of destructive judgment is mentioned also elsewhere in the Bible Cf Rev 7:1.
v. 6. The black horses which are therein, that is, the chariot drawn by these horses, go forth into the North country, where the great world-powers, Assyria and Babylon, were situated; and the white go forth after them, victory following death and destruction; and the grizzled go forth toward the South country, where Idumea and Egypt were situated.
v. 7. And the bay went forth and sought to go that they might walk to and fro through the earth, visiting all the countries of the world with a terrible, universal judgment, with war and bloodshed, with death and destruction; and he said, Get you hence, walk to and fro through the earth. So they walked to and fro through the earth, carrying out the Lord’s command upon the various nations.
v. 8. Then cried he, the angel, upon me and spake unto me, in great excitement, saying, in the name of the Lord, Behold, these that go toward the North country have quieted My Spirit in the North country, have caused the Spirit of Jehovah to rest there, to be satisfied with the extent of the punishment inflicted upon the world-powers. It is clear that the angel is speaking of a last great Judgment, by which all the enemies of the Lord would be overthrown, in order that His Church may be safely established.
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 vv1, 5, 7 lifted my eyes
lifted my eyes
Here the word "eyes" represents the person who sees. AT: "looked up" (See: Synecdoche)
Read full note →
between two mountains; and the two mountains were made of bronze
Since the second phrase describes the mountains in the first phrase, the two phrases may be combined. AT: "between two bronze mountains"
The first chariot had red horses
It is implicit that the horses were pulling the chariots. AT: "The first chariot had red horses pulling it" or "Red horses were pulling the first chariot" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
translationWords
chariot
bronze
horse
angel
lord
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 vv1, 2, 5, 7, 8 6:1-8 In Zechariah’s first and last visions, God sends…
6:1-8 In Zechariah’s first and last visions, God sends horses to patrol the earth. Both visions show God’s sovereignty and his concern for the nations, a vital component of Zechariah’s message of comfort and encouragement to postexilic Judah.
6:1 Chariots symbolize the swift and decisive power of God’s intervention in human affairs. • The two bronze mountains are enhanced images of the two bronze pillars that once flanked the entrance to Solomon’s Temple (1 Kgs 7:13-22). Bronze symbolizes the impregnable strength of God’s dwelling.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.