Zechariah 1:20
18 Then I looked up and saw four horns.
19 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.”
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
- Then the LORD showed me four craftsmen.
- KJV
- And the LORD shewed me four carpenters.
- WEB
- The LORD showed me four craftsmen.
- ASV
- And Jehovah showed me four smiths.
- DARBY
- And Jehovah shewed me four craftsmen.
- BLB
- And YHWH showed me four craftsmen.
- ÅB
- Så lot Herren meg se fire smeder.
- OTB
- Og Herren viste meg fire håndverkere.
- B1930
- Så lot Herren mig se fire smeder.
Study notes (Tyndale)
Original text and word study
Cross references
Zechariah 10:3–5
“My anger burns against the shepherds, and I will punish the leaders. For the LORD of Hosts attends to His flock, the house of Judah; He will make them like His royal steed in battle.
Read in contextZechariah 12:2–6
“Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples. Judah will be besieged, as well as Jerusalem.
Read in contextZechariah 9:12–16
Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; even today I declare that I will restore to you double.
Read in contextObadiah 1:21
The deliverers will ascend Mount Zion to rule over the mountains of Esau. And the kingdom will belong to the LORD.
Read in contextMicah 5:5–6
And He will be our peace when Assyria invades our land and tramples our citadels. We will raise against it seven shepherds, even eight leaders of men.
Read in contextNehemiah 9:27
So You delivered them into the hands of enemies who oppressed them, and in their time of distress they cried out to You. From heaven You heard them, and in Your great compassion You gave them deliverers who saved them from the hands of their enemies.
Read in context1 Samuel 12:11
So the LORD sent Jerubbaal, Barak, Jephthah, and Samuel, and He delivered you from the hands of your enemies on every side, and you dwelt securely.
Read in contextJudges 11:16
But when Israel came up out of Egypt, they traveled through the wilderness to the Red Sea and came to Kadesh.
Read in context