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Zechariah’s Eighth Vision

I looked up again,[a] and I saw, and look!—four chariots coming out from between two mountains, and the mountains were mountains of bronze. With the first chariot there were red horses, and with the second chariot there were black horses. And with the third chariot there were white horses, and with the fourth chariot there were strong[b] dappled horses. And I answered and said to the angel that was talking to me, “What are these, my lord?” And the angel answered and said to me, “These are the four winds[c] of the heavens going out after presenting themselves before the Lord of all the earth. The one with[d] the black horses is going out to the north country, and the white horses go after them,[e] while the dappled ones go to the south country.” When the strong horses went out, they were anxious to go to patrol the earth. And he[f] said, “Go, patrol the earth.” And they patrolled the earth. And he cried out to me and said to me, “See those going out to the north country have set my spirit at rest in the north country.”

The Branch is Crowned

And the word of Yahweh came to me, saying, 10 “Collect[g] from the exiles—from Heldai, Tobijah, and from Jedaiah, all of whom came from Babylon—and go on that day, go to the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah. 11 Take the silver and gold and make a crown, and set it on the head of Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest. 12 And say to him, ‘Thus says Yahweh of hosts: “Look, here is a man whose name is Branch,[h] and from his place he will sprout, and he will build the temple of Yahweh. 13 And he will build the temple of Yahweh, and he will bear majesty and will sit and rule on his throne. And he shall be a priest on his throne, and the counsel of peace will be between the two of them.”’[i] 14 And the crown will be for Helem,[j] for Tobijah, for Jedaiah, and for Hen[k] son of Zephaniah, as a memorial in the temple of Yahweh. 15 And those who are far off will come and build the temple of Yahweh, and you will know that Yahweh of hosts has sent me to you. And it will happen if you will listen diligently to the voice of Yahweh your God.”

Footnotes

  1. Zechariah 6:1 Literally “I did again, I lifted up my eyes”
  2. Zechariah 6:3 Other ancient versions read “grey” here
  3. Zechariah 6:5 Or “spirits” (The same Hebrew word can be translated “wind” or “spirit” depending on the context)
  4. Zechariah 6:6 Literally “Her with which”
  5. Zechariah 6:6 Some interpret the word “after” to indicate a westward direction
  6. Zechariah 6:7 That is, “Lord of all the earth”
  7. Zechariah 6:10 The imperative “Collect” has no object; many translations supply “silver and gold” or “an offering”
  8. Zechariah 6:12 Hebrew “Sprout” or “Shoot” (“Branch” is a traditional rendering in English)
  9. Zechariah 6:13 That is, between king and priest
  10. Zechariah 6:14 “Helem” is probably another name for Heldai (v. 10)
  11. Zechariah 6:14 “Hen” is frequently understood as a reference to Josiah (v. 10)

Four Chariots

I looked up again, and there before me were four chariots(A) coming out from between two mountains—mountains of bronze. The first chariot had red horses, the second black,(B) the third white,(C) and the fourth dappled—all of them powerful. I asked the angel who was speaking to me, “What are these, my lord?”

The angel answered me, “These are the four spirits[a](D) of heaven, going out from standing in the presence of the Lord of the whole world.(E) The one with the black horses is going toward the north country, the one with the white horses toward the west,[b] and the one with the dappled horses toward the south.”

When the powerful horses went out, they were straining to go throughout the earth.(F) And he said, “Go throughout the earth!” So they went throughout the earth.

Then he called to me, “Look, those going toward the north country have given my Spirit[c] rest(G) in the land of the north.”(H)

A Crown for Joshua

The word of the Lord came to me: 10 “Take silver and gold from the exiles Heldai, Tobijah and Jedaiah, who have arrived from Babylon.(I) Go the same day to the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah. 11 Take the silver and gold and make a crown,(J) and set it on the head of the high priest, Joshua(K) son of Jozadak.[d](L) 12 Tell him this is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Here is the man whose name is the Branch,(M) and he will branch out from his place and build the temple of the Lord.(N) 13 It is he who will build the temple of the Lord, and he will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on his throne. And he[e] will be a priest(O) on his throne. And there will be harmony between the two.’ 14 The crown will be given to Heldai,[f] Tobijah, Jedaiah and Hen[g] son of Zephaniah as a memorial(P) in the temple of the Lord. 15 Those who are far away will come and help to build the temple of the Lord,(Q) and you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you.(R) This will happen if you diligently obey(S) the Lord your God.”

Footnotes

  1. Zechariah 6:5 Or winds
  2. Zechariah 6:6 Or horses after them
  3. Zechariah 6:8 Or spirit
  4. Zechariah 6:11 Hebrew Jehozadak, a variant of Jozadak
  5. Zechariah 6:13 Or there
  6. Zechariah 6:14 Syriac; Hebrew Helem
  7. Zechariah 6:14 Or and the gracious one, the