Brit-Am Biblical Commentary (BABCOM) to the the Book of Zechariah
Contents:
A. Zechariah 1-1
The Return. Hebrew Months. The Need for Repentance.
B. Zechariah 1-2 [Vision of the Horses]
Contents of B:
1. Babylonian Names of the Months.
2. Vision of the Horses. The Angels as Men. The Red Horse of Hanover.
3. Revenge for the Destruction of Jerusalem and Persecution of Judah.
4. Rebuilding the Temple, Messiah son of Joseph, and the Ten Tribes.
Contents of C.
1. Rebuilding of Jerusalem.
2. Differences in Chapter and verse Divisions Between Jewish Printed Versions and Non-Jewish Ones.
3. Zechariah - the Four Messiahs and Possible Israelite National Divisions.
4. Cycles and Historical Rehearsals.
5. Parallels with World-Wars 1 and 2?
A. Zechariah 1-1
The Prophets Jeremiah and Ezekiel had begun writing their prophecies before the Fall of the First Temple in ca. 588 BCE according to conventional dating. Zechariah and Haggai wrote somewhat later in the reign of Darius. The Babylonians had taken the Jews into Exile. Cyrus the Great of Persia conquered Babylon and allowed the Jews to return to their Land. He also granted them permission to build the Temple but there were stops and starts along the way until it was completed.
Darius had succeeded Cyrus. A good number of Jews had begun to return to Judah. Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi were the last of the Prophets. They were members of the Great Assembly. This consisted of 120 members with Prophets and Sages together. They were to determine the Canon of the Bible, i.e. what books the Bible would include and what not. The 120 membership was evidently allowed to diminish by natural abatement until it reached 70 at which stage it became the Great Sanhedrin of 70 members. Other smaller Sanhedrins of 23 members each may also have existed subservient to the main one.
Zechariah (NKJV) 1:
1 In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came to Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet, saying,
The Hebrew Months are:
Nisan, Iyar, Sivan, Tammuz, Av, Elul, Tishrei, Cheshvan, Kislev, Tevet, Shevat, Adar.
The 8th month is Cheshvan also known as Marcheshvan. The "ch" sound in "Cheshvan" is usually pronounced more like a "H."
2 The LORD has been very angry with your fathers.
3 Therefore say to them, Thus says the LORD of Hosts: 'Return to Me,' says the LORD of Hosts, 'and I will return to you,' says the LORD of Hosts
This is a Principle of Repentance: Return to God i.e. try and do what the Almighty wants, pray, and act correctly, and the ALMIGHTY will then return to you and make his Presence felt for the better in your life.
4 'Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets preached, saying, 'Thus says the LORD of Hosts: 'Turn now from your evil ways and your evil deeds.' ' But they did not hear nor heed Me,' says the LORD.
Zechariah was a Jew. He lived among Jews. His initial message was primarily to his fellow Jews but it soon expands to encompass the rest of Israel.
At present we re using the Commentary of Mordecai Zar-Kvod in the series "Daat Mikra."
5 Your fathers, where are they?
And the prophets, do they live forever?
6 Yet surely My words and My statutes,
Which I commanded My servants the prophets,
Did they not overtake your fathers?
So they returned and said:
Just as the LORD of hosts determined to do to us,
According to our ways and according to our deeds,
So He has dealt with us.
Your forefathers went in their own way and they are now gone. The innate blessings and curses contained in the Torah came about as written. The prophesies of punishment and perdition made against your fathers came to pass.
The Prophets have also passed away.
Your forefathers when the disaster struck them acknowledged that it was because they had left the straight and narrow. Take heed.
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BB. Zechariah 1-2 [Vision of the Horses]
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1. Babylonian Names of the Months.
7 On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, which is the month Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came to Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet:
The Ancient Hebrews used different names for the months before the Exile to Babylon than afterwards.
Before the Exile these names are known to us:
Aviv - first month, literally "spring" later Nisan.
Ziv - second month, literally "light"; later Iyar.
Ethanim - seventh month, literally "strong" in plural, perhaps referring to strong rains; later Tishrei.
Bul, eighth month, later Cheshvan.
The names after the return from Babylon were Babylonian. Zechariah used these names as seen above in his mentioned "the month Shebet" also pronounced as 'Shevet."
Why Babylonian Names were allowed to replace the original Hebrew ones is a question perhaps worth looking into.
8 I saw by night, and behold, a man riding on a red horse, and it stood among the myrtle trees in the hollow; and behind him were horses: red, sorrel, and white. 9 Then I said, 'My lord, what are these?' So the angel who talked with me said to me, 'I will show you what they are.'
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2. Vision of the Horses. The Angles as Men. The Red Horse of Hanover.
A man. This was an angel.
We find angels referred to as men elsewhere, e.g. Genesis 18:12, 19:5, 32:25, Joshua 5:13-14,
Myrtle Trees. In Hebrew "Hadasim" in the plural. The "Hadas" (twig with leaves on it of a myrtle tree) is one of the four plants waived at Succot along with the etrog (citrus fruit), palm tree spine, and willow twigs. The myrtle in Jewish tradition is associated with decoration and a pleasing smell. The Hebrew name of Queen Esther was Hadassah which is the feminine of "Hadas." The Myrtle berries, whole or ground, may be used as a pepper substitute. It is said to have medicinal properties for sinus infections. Today it is often used as a hedge plant.
in the hollow. In the valley, or depression, in Hebrew "Ba-Mistsulah" literally in the shaded area. Zechariah may have been viewing this scene from a height.
The horses behind "the man" it is implied also had angelic riders.
red. blood red.
sorrel. Hebrew "sarukim" correctly translated as "sorrel" meaning brownish-red.
The "man" was riding a red horse. A red horse was the symbol of the Electors and Kings of Hanover in Germany whose dynasty later became the Kings of England.
The Electorate of Hanover was in West Germany and an Electorate of the Holy Roman Empire. The Holy Roman Empire was based in Germany and ruled over Germany, northern Italy, and several other European polities. The Electors of Hanover were considered princes (local kings) and members of the electoral college that elected the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.
Havover was located in northwestern Germany and took its name from the capital city of Hanover. Following the Hanoverian Succession the rulers of Hanover became the monarchs of Britain. In 1701 the English Parliament had passed The Act of Settlement saying that only Protestants could succeed to the English and Irish thrones. This excluded most of the descendants of Charles-1 who were Roman Catholics. The succession therefore devolved on the Electress (wife of the Elector) Sophia of Hanover, a granddaughter of James-1, father of Charles -1. The son of Sophia became King George-1 in 1714, and started the Hanoverian dynasty in Britain. Hanover remained a separately ruled territory with its own governmental bodies but technically the King of England was also King of Hanover. Napoleon conquered Hanover and incorporated it into the Kingdom of Westphalia that existed from 1807 to 1813. It was ruled by the brother of Napoleon, Jerome Bonaparte. The Holy Roman Empire had been dissolved in 1806. With the defeat of Napoleon, the Electorate was re-established as the Kingdom of Hanover in 1814, and the personal union with the British crown lasted until 1837. Soldiers from Hanover fought on the side of Britain in British wars. The personal union with the United Kingdom ended in 1837 on the accession of Queen Victoria. The Laws of Succession in Hanover were based on Salic Law that says that males always had precedence in inheritance This prevented a female inheriting the title if there was any surviving male heir (in the United Kingdom, a male took precedence only over his sisters). Victoria being a woman was therefore not entitled to become ruler of Hanover.
The uncle of Victoria (Queen of the UK), Ernest Augustus, became the King of Hanover. His only son succeed him to the throne as George-5 of Hanover. He backed the Austrians in a war with Prussia in1866. Prussia won and Hanover became a Prussian Province. George was deposed and feld to Austria. After that Hanover became part of the German Empire upon the Unification of Germany in January 1871.
10 And the man who stood among the myrtle trees answered and said, 'These are the ones whom the LORD has sent to walk to and fro throughout the earth.'
11 So they answered the Angel of the LORD, who stood among the myrtle trees, and said, 'We have walked to and fro throughout the earth, and behold, all the earth is resting quietly.'
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3. Revenge for the Destruction of Jerusalem and Persecution of Judah.
Zechariah 1:12 Then the Angel of the LORD answered and said, 'O LORD of Hosts, how long will You not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which You were angry these seventy years?'
It had been prophesied that the Babylonian Exile following the destruction of Jerusalem and the First Temple would last 70 years (Jeremiah 25:11-12, Ezra 1:1, 2-Chronicles 36:21-22, Daniel 9:1-2). It was not certain when these 70 years would be counted from. This passage is referring to the situation of Judah and Jerusalem in the time of Zechariah BUT this is the way of Prophecy. Prophecies take events and situations in the time of the Prophet and discuss them and THEN extrapolate from them for the Distant Future especially the End Times.
# Prophecy that was needed for Future Generations was written down. If it was not needed for future Generations it was not written down # (Talmud, Megillah 14;a).
13 And the LORD answered the angel who talked to me, with good and comforting words.
14 So the angel who spoke with me said to me, 'Proclaim, saying,
'Thus says the LORD of Hosts:
'I am zealous for Jerusalem
And for Zion with great zeal.
15 I am exceedingly angry with the nations at ease;
For I was a little angry,
And they helped. but with evil intent.
This is what happened in History.
It maybe that the Jews of Judah had sinned before they were exiled. It may also be that in their Places of Exile not all the Jews had behaved as they should have. This made them vulnerable. The Gentiles periodically persecuted them in a most cruel and severe manner. They inflicted upon the Jews trials and tribulations and sufferings that were excessive. Divine Providence had its own reasons for this. Nevertheless, the Gentile oppressors of the Jewish People at some stage will be punished from heaven for what they did.
This is one of the Proofs that the Jews are Judah.
See:
Why The Jews Are Judah! https://hebrewnations.com/articles/jew/judah.html
The Gentile Oppressors of Judah may avoid punishment by genuine repentance and good deeds. This however is unlikely to happen or if it does take place it probably will not last.
Daniel advised King Nebuchadnessar how to avoid punishment that had been prophesied concerning him:
Daniel (NKJV) 4:
27 Therefore, O king, let my advice be acceptable to you; break off your sins by being righteous, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. Perhaps there may be a lengthening of your prosperity.
Nebuchadnessar heeded the advice of Daniel for a while and the retri\bution was averted for a while but then he relented and it came upon him.
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4. Rebuilding the Temple, Messiah son of Joseph, and the Ten Tribes.
16 Therefore thus says the LORD:
'I am returning to Jerusalem with mercy;
My house shall be built in it,' says the LORD of Hosts,
'And a surveyor's line shall be stretched out over Jerusalem.''
The Temple will be rebuilt. There are indications that the Ten Tibes through the Messiah son of Joseph will be instrumental in this.
A Midrash (Pesikta Zutratha Lekach Tov, Balak,
Numbers 24;17) says that the Messiah Son of Joseph will rebuild the Temple.
God says that HE will send HIS messenger before HIM to prepare the way and rebuild the Temple (Malachi 3:1). Rav Saadia Gaon (b. ca. 890 CE) and Iben Ezra (1080-1164 CE) said that the MESSENGER is the Messiah son of Joseph. The Messiah son of Joseph, according to the Malbim (1809-1879) and others will be the future head of the Lost Ten Tribes when they return to re-unite with Judah. The Malbim equates this person, i.e. future head of the Ten Tribes, with the Messiah son of Joseph.
Shlomo Scheinman sent us the following:
Rabbeinu Bachiya (1255-1340, Spain) on Leviticus/Vayikra chapter 11 felt that Edom [i.e. Christianity in general?] would in the future help us rebuild the third Temple and that the forces in the past that were harmful to us would return together with other forces to help and support Israel...
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CC. Zechariah 1-3. Historical Rehearsals?
Contents of C:
1. Rebuilding of Jerusalem.
2. Differences in Chapter and verse Divisions Between Jewish Printed Versions and Non-Jewish Ones.
3. Zechariah - the Four Messiahs and Possible Israelite National Divisions.
4. Cycles and Historical Rehearsals.
5. Parallels with World-Wars 1 and 2?
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1. Rebuilding of Jerusalem.
Zechariah 1:
16 Therefore thus says the LORD:
'I am returning to Jerusalem with mercy;
My house shall be built in it,' says the LORD of Hosts,
'And a surveyor's line shall be stretched out over Jerusalem.'
The Temple will be rebuilt. The Jews will be gathered into Israel and centered on Jerusalem.
17 Again proclaim, saying, Thus says the LORD of Hosts:
'My cities shall again spread out through prosperity;
The LORD will again comfort Zion,
And will again choose Jerusalem.'
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2. Differences in Chapter and verse Divisions Between Jewish Printed Versions and Non-Jewish Ones.
In Jewish PRINTED VERSIONS of the Bible Zechariah 1:17 (sometimes given as 1:16) is the last verse of Chapter I. Chapter 2 begins with what in English versions if Zachariah 1:18.
For this present Commentary (and all Brit-Am Commentaries) we use the English Numbering of Chapter and verse.
The Original Jewish chapter and verse equivalent are no longer used in Printed Version even though the KOREN Edition uses both the Original One and the Modern one, indicated separately.
The Modern (i.e. for the last 2 centuries) Jewish numbering of Chapter and Verse in PRINTED VERSIONS appears to be derived from early Christian Practice as used in Europe.
VERSE-DIVISION:
By: Crawford Howell Toy, Max L. Margolis
https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/14682-verse-division
Extracts:
The system of breaking up the Biblical text into verses may seem, both in the original and in the versions, to go hand in hand with its division into chapters. In truth, however, the chapter-division and the verse-division are of different origin. The division into chapters was employed first in the Vulgate [Roman Catholic version], perhaps by Stephen Langton, Archbishop of Canterbury (d. 1228). It was adopted by Jewish scholars for purposes of reference, not only by Isaac Nathan ben Kalonymus in his great concordance, "Meir Netib" (Venice, 1523), but, not long after its introduction into the Vulgate, by Solomon b. Ishmael ... and was introduced into the printed editions of the Hebrew text, from the Bomberg Bible of 1521 downward. On the other hand, verse-division, with the elaborate systems of accentuation resting upon it, is in itself essentially a part of the Masoretic [Traditional Jewish Rabbinical] tradition, although notation by means of figures in the text, or on the margin, was employed first in the Latin Bibles of 1528 and 1555, and somewhat later (1571) by Arias Montanus in the Antwerp Bible: a figure on the margin corresponded to a cross in the text at the beginning of each verse. The Athias Bible (1659-61) was the first edition with verse-notation that could be used by Jews.
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3. Zechariah - the Four Messiahs and Possible Israelite National Divisions.
Zechariah :1
18 Then I raised my eyes and looked, and there were four horns.
19 And I said to the angel who talked with me, 'What are these?'
So he answered me, 'These are the horns that have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.'
20 Then the LORD showed me four craftsmen.
21 And I said, 'What are these coming to do?'
So he said, 'These are the horns that scattered Judah, so that no one could lift up his head; but the craftsmen are coming to terrify them, to cast out the horns of the nations that lifted up their horn against the land of Judah to scatter it.'
We saw an analysis of the above passage in our article:
Four Craftsmen? (6519)
https://hebrewnations.com/articles/bible/zechariah/fourwho.html
In the End Times the enemies of Israel especially of Judah will be represented by Four Horns.
In opposition to the "HORNS" there were Four Craftsmen. The RADAK [Rabbi David Kimchi (or "Kimhi"), a foremost Biblical Commentator, Narbonne -Southern France.1160-1235) suggests the Craftsmen who will defend Judah and Israel or be Israelites personified.
We quoted the Midrash (BaMidbar Rabah 12:2) identified the Four Craftsmen with individuals who will head Israelite National Groups.
They were:
1. Ephraim. "This is the Anointed Leader of War who comes from Ephraim. " It is implied by his title that Ephraim will be the leading force. Ephraim gave rise to the British and their offshoots.
2. Gilead personified by Eliyahu who was an inhabitant of Gilead: Gilead was the region east of the Jordan. It encompassed the Tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Half-Manasseh including most of Machir son of Manasseh.
This group appears to be identified with Manasseh. This is the USA. It could also include France (Reuben), and Scandinavia (Gad - Sweden).
3. There is also a Messiah son of David figure who leads Judah.
4. Another Descendant of David leading Israelites and descendants of Judah and Benjamin.
Psalms 80:
1 Hear us, Shepherd of Israel,
you who lead Joseph like a flock.
You who sit enthroned between the cherubim,
shine forth
2 before Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh.
We may return to this theme later.
For the moment it is worth noting that in the End Times the Forces of Israel may comprise Four Divisions and against them will be arraigned Four Heads of the Enemy.
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4. Cycles and Historical Rehearsals.
History may be considered to play itself out in Cycles and as Rehearsals of Players in a Theater-Play.
The Cycles in general terms repeated themselves but each time with more intensity and a greater similarity to the End One.
This is similar to Rehearsals for a play which is actually to appear a good time later. In this Play there are Players and Roles.
Each Rehearsal is a preparation for the next one. The Roles may change. At the beginning any role may be fulfilled by almost any Player.
The Plot in general terms remains the same though here and there significants changers may be introduced and different emphasize placed on one scenario or the other.
The closer the play gets to its Public presentation the more do the rehearsals and the apportioned roles reflect it.
In Europe there were numerous Wars between Nations. In Modern Times we had the Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815), World War-1 (1914-1918), and World War-2 (1939-1945).
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5. Parallels with World-Wars 1 and 2?
Comparing World War-1 and World War-2 we see the following Parallels.
In WW1 the "Central Powers" consisted of German Empire allied with the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Italy was at first on the German side then the Allied one. Germany invaded Belgium, Luxembourg and France. Russia was against Germany but then (after the Communist Revolution) pulled out of the War and became a potentially important virtual satellite of Germany. Japan was on the Allied side and China neutral but inclined to Germany. Turkey was on the German side. France fulfilled a dominant role on the Allied side. Britain and the Commonwealth along with France were the major adversaries of Germany. The Late (1917) entrance of the USA made the defeat of Germany almost certain. In WW1 Germany prevented the Turks from carrying out a massacre of the Jews in Palestine. After the War the deposed Kaiser blamed the Jews for Germany losing. This sentiment was widely held throughout Germany.
In WW2 the Axis (Germany, Italy, Japan) in Europe was primarily Nazi Germany supported by the forces of Austria and also of Hungary, Rumania, Bulgaria, and others. This is similar to WW1. The War in the West began with Germany invading Belgium, Luxembourg and France. Russia at first was an ally of Germany. They divided Poland between them and Russia supplied the Nazis with needed provisions. Then Hitler launched a surprise attack against Russia. Italy was on the German side but towards the end over three Mussolini and attempted to align itself with the Allies. Japan was on the German side and was a major adversary of the Allies. China was on the Allied side but could have gone the other way. Turkey was neutral but potentially inclined (like the Muslim World in general) towards the Germans. France was a leading Allied power at the beginning but collapsed and (under Vichy) went over to the Germans. The Late (December 1941) entrance of the USA made the defeat of Germany and Japan almost certain. Both Wars lasted about 6 years.