And he shewed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him.

And the Lord said unto Satan, The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan; even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee: is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?

Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel.

And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment.

And I said, Let them set a fair mitre upon his head. So they set a fair mitre upon his head, and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the Lord stood by.

And the angel of the Lord protested unto Joshua, saying,

Thus saith the Lord of hosts; If thou wilt walk in my ways, and if thou wilt keep my charge, then thou shalt also judge my house, and shalt also keep my courts, and I will give thee places to walk among these that stand by.

Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, thou, and thy fellows that sit before thee: for they are men wondered at: for, behold, I will bring forth my servant the Branch.

For behold the stone that I have laid before Joshua; upon one stone shall be seven eyes: behold, I will engrave the graving thereof, saith the Lord of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.

10 In that day, saith the Lord of hosts, shall ye call every man his neighbour under the vine and under the fig tree.

And the angel that talked with me came again, and waked me, as a man that is wakened out of his sleep.

And said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof:

And two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof.

So I answered and spake to the angel that talked with me, saying, What are these, my lord?

Then the angel that talked with me answered and said unto me, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.

Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.

Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it.

Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto you.

10 For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the Lord, which run to and fro through the whole earth.

11 Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof?

12 And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves?

13 And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.

14 Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth.

A prophecy of Christ and of his kingdom.

And he showed me Joshua the high Priest, [a]standing before the Angel of the Lord, and [b]Satan stood at his right hand to resist him.

And the [c]Lord said unto Satan, The Lord reprove thee, O Satan: even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem, reprove thee. Is not this a [d][brand] taken out of the fire?

Now Joshua was clothed with [e]filthy garments, and stood before the Angel.

And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the [f]filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have [g]caused thine iniquity to depart from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment.

And I said, Let them [h]set a fair diadem upon his head. So they set a fair diadem upon his head, and clothed him with garments, and the Angel of the Lord stood by.

And the Angel of the Lord testified unto Joshua, saying,

Thus saith the Lord of hosts, If thou wilt walk in my ways, and keep my watch, thou shalt also [i]judge mine house, and shalt also keep my [j]courts, and I will give thee place among [k]these that stand by.

Hear now, O Joshua the high Priest, thou and thy fellows that sit before thee: for they [l]are monstrous persons: but behold, I will bring forth the [m]Branch my servant.

For lo, the [n]stone that I have laid before Joshua: upon one stone shall be seven eyes: behold, I [o]will cut out the graving thereof, saith the Lord of hosts, and I will take [p]away the iniquity of this land in one day.

10 In that day, saith the Lord of hosts, shall ye call every man his neighbor under the [q]vine, and under the fig tree.

The vision of the golden candlestick, and the exposition thereof.

And the Angel that talked with me, came again and waked me, as a man that is raised out of his sleep,

And said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold, a [r]candlestick all of gold with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps therein, and seven [s]pipes to the lamps which were upon the top thereof,

And two olive trees over it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof.

So I answered and spake to the Angel that talked with me, saying, What are these my Lord?

Then the Angel that talked with me, answered and said unto me, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my Lord.

Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto [t]Zerubbabel, saying, Neither by [u]an army nor strength, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.

Who art thou, O [v]great mountain, before Zerubbabel? thou shall be a plain, and [w]he shall bring forth the headstone thereof, with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it.

Moreover, the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house: his hands shall also finish it, and [x]thou shalt know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto you.

10 For who hath despised the day of the [y]small things? but they shall rejoice, and shall see the stone of [z]tin in the hand of Zerubbabel: [aa]these seven are the eyes of the Lord, which go through the whole world.

11 Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right and upon the left side thereof?

12 And I spake moreover, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches, which through the two golden pipes empty themselves into the gold?

13 And he answered me, and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my Lord.

14 Then said he, These are the two [ab]olive branches, that stand with the ruler of the whole earth.

Footnotes

  1. Zechariah 3:1 He prayed to Christ the Mediator for the state of the Church.
  2. Zechariah 3:1 Which declareth that the faithful have not only war with flesh and blood, but with Satan himself and spiritual wickedness, Eph. 6:12.
  3. Zechariah 3:2 That is, Christ speaketh to God as the Mediator of his Church, that he would rebuke Satan: and here he showeth himself to be the continual preserver of his Church.
  4. Zechariah 3:2 Meaning, that Joshua was wonderfully preserved in the captivity, and now Satan sought to afflict and trouble him when he was doing his office.
  5. Zechariah 3:3 In respect of the glorious garments and precious stones that the Priests did wear before the captivity: and by this contemptible state the Prophet signifieth, that these small beginnings should be made excellent when Christ shall make the full restitution of his Church.
  6. Zechariah 3:4 See verse 3.
  7. Zechariah 3:4 He showeth of what apparel he speaketh, which is, when our filthy sins are taken away, and we are clad with God’s mercies, which is meant of the spiritual restitution.
  8. Zechariah 3:5 The Prophet prayeth, that besides the raiment, the Priest might also have tyre for his head accordingly, that is, that the dignity of the Priesthood might be perfect: and this was fulfilled in Christ, who was both Priest and King: and here all such are condemned, that can content themselves with any mean reformation in religion, seeing the Prophet desireth the perfection, and obtaineth it.
  9. Zechariah 3:7 That is, have rule and government in my Church, as thy predecessors have had.
  10. Zechariah 3:7 Whereby he meaneth to have the whole charge and ministry of the Church.
  11. Zechariah 3:7 That is, the Angels, who represented the whole number of the faithful: signifying that all the godly should willingly receive him.
  12. Zechariah 3:8 Because they follow my word, they are contemned in the world, and esteemed as monsters, Isa. 8:18.
  13. Zechariah 3:8 That is, Christ, who did so humble himself, that not only he became the servant of God, but also the servant of men: and therefore in him they should have comfort, although in the world they were contemned, Isa. 11:1; Jer. 23:5 and 33:14, 15.
  14. Zechariah 3:9 He showeth that the ministers cannot build, before God lay the first stone, which is Christ, who is full of eyes, both because he giveth light unto all others, and that all ought to seek light at him, Zech. 4:10.
  15. Zechariah 3:9 That is, I will make perfect in all points, as a thing wrought by the hand of GOD.
  16. Zechariah 3:9 Though I have punished this land for a time, yet I will even now be pacified, and visit their sins no more.
  17. Zechariah 3:10 Ye shall then live in peace and quietness, that is, in the kingdom of Christ, Isa. 2:2; Mic. 4:4; Hag. 2:10.
  18. Zechariah 4:2 Which was ever in the midst of the Temple, signifying that the graces of God’s spirit should shine there in most abundance, and in all perfection.
  19. Zechariah 4:2 Which conveyed the oil that dropped from the trees into the lamps, so that the light never failed: and this vision was to confirm the faithful that God had sufficient power in himself to continue his graces, and to bring his promise to pass though he had no help of man.
  20. Zechariah 4:6 Who was a figure of Christ and therefore this doctrine was directed to all the Church who are his body and members.
  21. Zechariah 4:6 He showeth that God’s power only is sufficient to preserve his Church, though he use not man’s help thereunto.
  22. Zechariah 4:7 He compareth the power of the adversaries to a great mountain, who thought the Jews nothing in respect of them, and would have hindered Zerubbabel, who represented Christ, whom the enemies daily labor to let in the building of his spiritual Temple, but all in vain.
  23. Zechariah 4:7 Though the enemies think to stay this building, yet Zerubbabel shall lay the highest stone thereof, and bring it to perfection, so that all the godly shall rejoice, and pray unto God that he would continue his grace and favor toward the Temple.
  24. Zechariah 4:9 Meaning, the Prophet, that I am Christ sent of my Father for the building and preservation of my spiritual Temple.
  25. Zechariah 4:10 Signifying, that all were discouraged at the small and poor beginnings of the Temple.
  26. Zechariah 4:10 Whereby he signifieth the plummet and line, that is, that Zerubbabel which represented Christ, should go forward with his building to the joy and comfort of the godly, though the world be against him, and though his for a while be discouraged, because they see not things pleasant to the eye.
  27. Zechariah 4:10 That is, God hath seven eyes: meaning, a continual providence, so that neither Satan nor any power in the world, can go about to bring anything to pass to hinder his work, Zech. 5:9.
  28. Zechariah 4:14 Which were ever green and full of oil, so that still they poured forth oil into the lamps: signifying, that God will continually maintain and preserve his Church, and endue it still with abundance and perfection of grace.

Clean Garments for the High Priest

Then he showed me Joshua(A) the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan[a](B) standing at his right side to accuse him. The Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you,(C) Satan! The Lord, who has chosen(D) Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this man a burning stick(E) snatched from the fire?”(F)

Now Joshua was dressed in filthy clothes as he stood before the angel. The angel said to those who were standing before him, “Take off his filthy clothes.”

Then he said to Joshua, “See, I have taken away your sin,(G) and I will put fine garments(H) on you.”

Then I said, “Put a clean turban(I) on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him, while the angel of the Lord stood by.

The angel of the Lord gave this charge to Joshua: “This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘If you will walk in obedience to me and keep my requirements,(J) then you will govern my house(K) and have charge(L) of my courts, and I will give you a place among these standing here.(M)

“‘Listen, High Priest(N) Joshua, you and your associates seated before you, who are men symbolic(O) of things to come: I am going to bring my servant, the Branch.(P) See, the stone I have set in front of Joshua!(Q) There are seven eyes[b](R) on that one stone,(S) and I will engrave an inscription on it,’ says the Lord Almighty, ‘and I will remove the sin(T) of this land in a single day.

10 “‘In that day each of you will invite your neighbor to sit(U) under your vine and fig tree,(V)’ declares the Lord Almighty.”

The Gold Lampstand and the Two Olive Trees

Then the angel who talked with me returned and woke(W) me up, like someone awakened from sleep.(X) He asked me, “What do you see?”(Y)

I answered, “I see a solid gold lampstand(Z) with a bowl at the top and seven lamps(AA) on it, with seven channels to the lamps. Also there are two olive trees(AB) by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left.”

I asked the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?”

He answered, “Do you not know what these are?”

“No, my lord,” I replied.(AC)

So he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel:(AD) ‘Not(AE) by might nor by power,(AF) but by my Spirit,’(AG) says the Lord Almighty.

“What are you, mighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become level ground.(AH) Then he will bring out the capstone(AI) to shouts(AJ) of ‘God bless it! God bless it!’”

Then the word of the Lord came to me: “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation(AK) of this temple; his hands will also complete it.(AL) Then you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me(AM) to you.

10 “Who dares despise the day(AN) of small things,(AO) since the seven eyes(AP) of the Lord that range throughout the earth will rejoice when they see the chosen capstone[c] in the hand of Zerubbabel?”(AQ)

11 Then I asked the angel, “What are these two olive trees(AR) on the right and the left of the lampstand?”

12 Again I asked him, “What are these two olive branches beside the two gold pipes that pour out golden oil?”

13 He replied, “Do you not know what these are?”

“No, my lord,” I said.

14 So he said, “These are the two who are anointed(AS) to[d] serve the Lord of all the earth.”

Footnotes

  1. Zechariah 3:1 Hebrew satan means adversary.
  2. Zechariah 3:9 Or facets
  3. Zechariah 4:10 Or the plumb line
  4. Zechariah 4:14 Or two who bring oil and