Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Zechariah 1:19
And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What [be] these? And he answered me, These [are] the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.
19. Judah, Israel and Jerusalem ] The two tribes, the ten tribes, and the capital of the whole nation. So inclusive a description must be held to refer to the whole Jewish people, so that the vision predicts the overthrow of the oppressors of Israel as well as of Judah.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
These are the horns which have scattered – o The four horns which scattered Judah, Israel and Jerusalem, are four nations, Babylonians, Medes and Persians, Macedonians and Romans; as the Lord, on the prophets enquiry, explains here, and Daniel unfolds most fully Dan. 2; who in the vision of the image with golden head, silver breast, belly and thighs of brass, feet of iron and clay, explained it of these four nations, and again in another vision of four beasts Dan. 7, lion, bear, leopard and another unnamed dreadful beast, he pointed out the same nations under another figure. But that the Medes and Persians, after the victory of Cyrus, were one kingdom, no one will doubt, who reads secular and sacred literature. When this vision was beheld, the kingdom of the Babylonians had now passed away, that of the Medes and Persians was instant; that of Greeks and Macedonians and of the Romans was yet to come.
What the Babylonians, what the Medes and Persians, what the Greeks that is, the Macedonians, did to Judah, Israel and Jerusalem, a learned man acknowledgeth, especially under Antiochus, surnamed Epiphanes, to which the history of the Maccabees belongs. After the Coming of our Lord and Saviour, when Jerusalem was encompassed, Josephus, a native writer, tells most fully, what the Israelites endured, and the Gospel fore-announced. These horns dispersed Judah almost individually, so that, bowed down by the heavy weight of evils, no one of them raised his head. Though these were successive in time, they are exhibited to Zechariah as one. One whole are the efforts against Gods Church; one whole are the instruments of God, whether angelic or human, in doing or suffering, to repel them. Zechariah then exhibits these hostile powers as past and gone, as each would be at the end, having put forth his passing might, and perishing. They scattered, each in its day, and disappeared; for the next displaced it.
The long schism being ended, Judah and Israel are again one; and Jerusalem, the place of Gods worship, belongs to Israel as well as to Judah.
The explanation of the number four, as symbolizing contemporaneous attacks from the four quarters of the heavens, fails in matter of fact, that, in these later times, the Jews suffered always from one power at a time. There was no such fourfold attack. In Zechariahs time all around was Persian.
Osorius: Those horns, broken by the angels ministry, portended that no guilt against the church of Christ should be unpunished. Never will there be wanting fierce enemies from east, west, north, or south, whom God will strengthen, in order by them to teach His own. But when He shall see His work finished, that is, when He shall have cleansed the stains of His own and brought back His Church to her former purity, He will punish those who so fiercely afflicted her.
Spiritually, (Jerome), those who destroy vices, build up virtues, and all the saints who, possessing these remedies, ever build up the Church, may be called builders. Whence the Apostle says, I, as a wise builder, laid the foundation 1Co 3:10; and the Lord, when wroth, said that He would take away from Jerusalem artificer and wise man Isa 3:3. And the Lord Himself, Son of the Almighty God and of the Creator of all, is called the son of the carpenter Mat 13:55.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
The prophet prays for information from the Angel, from Christ, who is the best Teacher.
What be these? what may be the meaning of these horns, which I see, and know to be horns, and four in number?
These are the horns, powers, states, and kingdoms, which have from all sides pushed at, broken, and tossed my people, sorely bruised some and destroyed others: these horns are probably, on the north, the Syrians, Assyrians, and Babylonians; on the east, the Moabites and Ammonites; on the south, Edomites and Egyptians; on the west, the Philistines; all which had many a time spoiled the Jews.
Judah; the two tribes, which were the kingdom of Judah.
Israel; the ten tribes, carried away by Shalmaneser; or the relics of Israel, which adhered to the house of David.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
19. Judah, IsraelThough someof the ten tribes of Israel returned with Judah fromBabylon, the full return of the former, as of the latter, is hereforetold and must be yet future.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And I said unto the angel that talked with me,…. Zec 1:9:
What [be] these? that is, who do these horns signify? and what or whom do they represent?
and he answered me, These [are] the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem; which may design the distresses, vexations, and captivities of the people of Israel by their enemies, as by the Moabites, Ammonites, c. in the times of the judges and the captivity of the ten tribes of Israel by Shalmaneser; and of the two tribes of Benjamin and Judah, and of the destruction of Jerusalem, by Nebuchadnezzar; when they were ventilated or fanned, as the word x signifies, and so scattered abroad; see Jer 6:11 and also their troubles in the times of the Medes and Persians, under Cambyses, until this second year of Darius; and may likewise have reference prophetically to their after troubles and captivity by the Romans; and to Rome Pagan, which persecuted and scattered the churches of Christ and people of God in the several parts of the world; and the antichristian states, the persecutors of the same.
x “quae ventilaverunt”, V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, Vatablus, Drusius, Cocceius.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(19) Scattered.This word need not necessarily refer to dispersing into captivity, but may simply mean endeavoured to destroy the national unity, or disintegrated. Compare the Roman motto, Divide et impera.
Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.The expression Israel and Jerusalem is a closer definition of Judah, as in Mal. 2:11. (For undoubted instances of the name Israel being used in reference to Judah after the separation of the Kingdoms, see 2Ch. 12:1; 2Ch. 15:17, seqq.)
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
Zec 1:19 And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What [be] these? And he answered me, These [are] the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.
Ver. 19. And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What be these? ] Though the vision be dark and mysterious, yet the prophet despaireth not of a right understanding, neither doth he waywardly reject it with a Quod non vult intelligi, vult negligi; but wanting wisdom, he asketh it of God, as St James also adviseth us to do, Jas 1:5 , and as David practised: “Teach me good judgment and knowledge,” saith he, “give me understanding and I shall observe thy law.” Thus Daniel prayed, and had an angel sent to inform him not once, but often, in friendly and familiar manner, Dan 9:21 ; Dan 10:11 ; Dan 11:2-3 . So had Joseph, Cornelius, Paul, &c. And although angels are not so ready now, or appear not, at least, so visibly to tell us the mind of God; yet he will not be wanting to his willing servants; but in the use of means they shall be all taught of God; as David was by repairing to the sanctuary, Psa 73:13 , and as the eunuch was by Philip, Act 8:26-30 .
These are the horns which have scattered
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem. With ‘eth pre- fixed to the first two (not Jerusalem) for emphasis, so that we may not confuse them with the Church or with Gentile peoples. There is no “gloss”, as alleged.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
angel
(See Scofield “Heb 1:4”)
Fuente: Scofield Reference Bible Notes
What: Zec 1:9, Zec 1:21, Zec 2:2, Zec 4:11-14, Rev 7:13, Rev 7:14
scattered: Zec 1:21, Zec 8:14, Ezr 4:1, Ezr 4:4, Ezr 4:7, Ezr 5:3, Jer 50:17, Jer 50:18, Dan 12:7, Hab 3:14
Reciprocal: Jer 48:25 – horn Dan 8:13 – one saint Zec 2:3 – the angel Zec 3:1 – he Zec 4:4 – What Zec 5:5 – the angel Zec 6:1 – four Zec 6:4 – unto Zec 8:13 – O house
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Zec 1:19. The angel explained that the four governments were the ones that had scattered the Lord’s people. That does not mean that all four of them had a hand in the affair, for two of them were yet in the future when Zechariah was writing. But the four were considered as a unit because they represented the powers that were to be permanently removed from among mankind. And all of them had one characteristic in common, that of absolute domination over people who had a right to be free. It was this phase of them that prompted Babylon to oppress Israel. but the entire regime was destined to be overthrown by the means to be described shortly,
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
In response to the prophet’s request for an interpretation, the assisting angel explained that they represented the powers that had scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem. Assyria took Israel into captivity, and Babylonia destroyed Jerusalem and took the Judahites captive. So perhaps the fact that there were four horns symbolizes that they represented nations from the four corners of the world, the totality of opposition. [Note: Smith, p. 193.] Another view is that they stand for Babylonia, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome (cf. Daniel 2; Daniel 7). [Note: Charles H. Dyer, in The Old Testament Explorer, p. 823; and Feinberg, "Zechariah," p. 900.]