Zechariah 1:19
17 Proclaim further that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘My cities will again overflow with prosperity; the LORD will again comfort Zion and choose Jerusalem.’”
18 Then I looked up and saw four horns.
So I asked the angel who was speaking with me, “What are these?” And he told me, “These are the horns that have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”
20 Then the LORD showed me four craftsmen.
21 “What are these coming to do?” I asked. And He replied, “These are the horns that scattered Judah so that no one could raise his head; but the craftsmen have come to terrify them and throw down these horns of the nations that have lifted up their horns against the land of Judah to scatter it.”
This was said to Israel at a particular time, so it is wise to read it together with the surrounding text. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.
Compare
- BSB
- So I asked the angel who was speaking with me, “What are these?” And he told me, “These are the horns that have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”
- KJV
- And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What be these? And he answered me, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.
- WEB
- I asked the angel who talked with me, “What are these?” He answered me, “These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”
- ASV
- And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What are these? And he answered me, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.
- DARBY
- And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What are these? And he said to me, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.
- BLB
- And I said to the angel [who] was speaking with me, “What [are] these?” And he said to me, “These [are] the horns that have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”
- ÅB
- Da spurte jeg engelen som talte med meg: Hva er dette? Og han sa til meg: Dette er de horn som har adspredt Juda, Israel og Jerusalem.
- OTB
- Så spurte jeg engelen som talte med meg: "Hva er dette?" Og han sa: "Dette er hornene som har spredt Juda, Israel og Jerusalem."
- B1930
- Da spurte jeg engelen som talte med mig: Hvad er dette? Og han sa til mig: Dette er de horn som har adspredt Juda, Israel og Jerusalem.
Study notes (Tyndale)
Original text and word study
Cross references
Zechariah 1:21
“What are these coming to do?” I asked. And He replied, “These are the horns that scattered Judah so that no one could raise his head; but the craftsmen have come to terrify them and throw down these horns of the nations that have lifted up their horns against the land of Judah to scatter it.”
Read in contextEzra 4:4
Then the people of the land set out to discourage the people of Judah and make them afraid to build.
Read in contextZechariah 2:2
“Where are you going?” I asked. “To measure Jerusalem,” he replied, “and to determine its width and length.”
Read in contextZechariah 8:14
For this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Just as I resolved to bring disaster upon you when your fathers provoked Me to anger, and I did not relent,” says the LORD of Hosts,
Read in contextEzra 4:1
When the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the exiles were building a temple for the LORD, the God of Israel,
Read in contextZechariah 1:9
“What are these, my lord?” I asked. And the angel who was speaking with me replied, “I will show you what they are.”
Read in contextEzra 4:7
And in the days of Artaxerxes king of Persia, Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of his associates wrote a letter to Artaxerxes. It was written in Aramaic and then translated.
Read in contextJeremiah 50:17–18
Israel is a scattered flock, chased away by lions. The first to devour him was the king of Assyria; the last to crush his bones was Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.”
Read in context