Zechariah 1:18-20
New English Translation
Vision Two: The Four Horns
18 (2:1)[a] Once again I looked and this time I saw four horns. 19 So I asked the angelic messenger[b] who spoke with me, “What are these?” He replied, “These are the horns[c] that have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.” 20 Next the Lord showed me four blacksmiths.[d]
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Zechariah 1:18 sn This marks the beginning of ch. 2 in the Hebrew text. Beginning with 1:18, the verse numbers through 2:13 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 1:18 ET = 2:1 HT, 1:19 ET = 2:2 HT, 1:20 ET = 2:3 HT, 1:21 ET = 2:4 HT, 2:1 ET = 2:5 HT, etc., through 2:13 ET = 2:17 HT. From 3:1 the verse numbers in the English Bible and the Hebrew Bible are again the same.
- Zechariah 1:19 tn See the note on the expression “angelic messenger” in v. 9.
- Zechariah 1:19 sn An animal’s horn is a common OT metaphor for military power (Pss 18:2; 75:10; Jer 48:25; Mic 4:13). The fact that there are four horns here (as well as four blacksmiths, v. 20) shows a correspondence to the four horses of v. 8 which go to four parts of the world, i.e., the whole world.
- Zechariah 1:20 tn Heb “craftsmen” (so NASB, NIV; KJV “carpenters”), a generic term which can mean “metalworker, smith, armorer” (HALOT 358 s.v. חָרָשׁ). “Blacksmiths” was chosen for the present translation because of its relative familiarity among contemporary English readers.sn The horns are perhaps made of iron, the strongest of all metals known to the ancient Near Eastern world, since military activity is implied in the context. Only blacksmiths can cut the horns off. If the horns represent oppressive nations, the blacksmiths must represent deliverers whom the Lord raises up, kings like Cyrus of Persia (cf. Isa 54:16).
Zechariah 1:18-20
New International Version
Four Horns and Four Craftsmen
18 Then I looked up, and there before me were four horns. 19 I asked the angel who was speaking to me, “What are these?”
He answered me, “These are the horns(A) that scattered Judah, Israel and Jerusalem.”
20 Then the Lord showed me four craftsmen.
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