Zechariah 3:6-8
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
6 Then the angel of the Lord charged Joshua: 7 “Thus says the Lord of hosts: If you walk in my ways and carry out my charge, you will administer my house and watch over my courts;[a] and I will give you access to those standing here.”
Supplementary Oracle. 8 “Hear, O Joshua, high priest! You and your associates who sit before you! For they are signs of things to come I will surely bring my servant the Branch.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 3:7 If you walk…watch over my courts: four components of priestly activity: (1) following God’s commandments and teaching them to the people, (2) carrying out cultic functions, (3) participating in the judicial system in certain difficult cases, and (4) administering the laborers and lands in the Temple’s domain.
- 3:8 Signs of things to come: the restoration of the priesthood is a sign of the expected restoration of the Davidic line. The Branch: a tree metaphor for the expected future ruler as a descendant of the Davidic dynasty. This imagery also appears in Is 11:1, 10; Jer 23:5; 33:15; and Zec 6:12.
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.