A Chiastic Reconfiguration Of Zechariah 1-6

Kuruvilla Thomas
Bangalore
Published on 23 April 2024 *

Fig. 1

Introduction

This study treats Zechariah 1:8-6:15 as a cryptochiasmus in order to arrive at a coherent reconfiguration of the text ( see definition of cryptochiasmus in [1] ). If you wish to skip the technicalities of a chiastic parse, you may read starting from Section 4 of the Discussion section, which has the reconfigured text.

The prophecy in Zechariah 1:8-6:15 consists of a series of seemingly unconnected symbolic vignettes. It primarily details various aspects of the administration of the New Israel and the world after the defeat of Satan's empire at the start of the Millennial Reign. The prophecy also makes predictions regarding the construction of the Second Temple and the rebuilding of Jerusalem. It additionally provides an insight into some of the workings of the angelic realm.

Discussion

1. Presuppositions

We base our parse of Zechariah 1:8-6:15 on the assumption that it refers to 3 Periods:

1. The Judahites Reconstruct the Temple and Jerusalem (c.519BC - c.444BC). This Period extends from the time this prophecy was given to Zechariah, to the time of the reconstruction of Jerusalem under Nehemiah.
2. The Judahites are Warned and Punished during the First Jewish–Roman War (66AD–73AD).
3. Satan is Defeated and Christ's Reign is Established at the Start of the Millennial Reign (circa 2027AD).

2. Parsing the chiasmus

We will use the NIV Bible for this parse.

Parsing this chiasmus involves dividing portions of the text into three categories as above. We will call the period of the Construction of the Second Temple Period 1, The time of the First Jewish–Roman War Period 2 and The Start of Christ's Millennial Reign Period 3.

Categorizing Zechariah 1:8-6:15

Ch 1 Vs 8-17 belong to Period 1. After the exile in Babylon, the temple and the city of Jerusalem are restored with the help of the "horsemen".

Ch 1 Vs 18 - Ch 4 Vs 14 belong to Period 3. A series of prophecies regarding various aspects of governance of the New Israel and the world: political, religious and economic. We establish the opening boundary of this subunit based on the fact that 1:19 mentions all of Israel, including the Northern Tribes.

Ch 5 Vs 1-4 belong to Period 2. Judahites are warned and punished during the First Jewish-Roman War through a "scroll".

Ch 5 Vs 5 - Ch 6 Vs 8 belongs to Period 3. Satanic influence over the world economy is removed. Christ defeats Satan and takes control over the world.

Ch 6 Vs 9-15 belong to Period 1. Zechariah performs prophetic actions that makes predictions regarding Period 3.

Original text

We color-code the chiastic units of the original text (NIV) below for easy visual identification using: red for Period 1, blue for Period 2 and green for Period 3.

Zechariah 1 8 During the night I had a vision, and there before me was a man mounted on a red horse. He was standing among the myrtle trees in a ravine. Behind him were red, brown and white horses.
9 I asked, “What are these, my lord?”
The angel who was talking with me answered, “I will show you what they are.”
10 Then the man standing among the myrtle trees explained, “They are the ones the Lord has sent to go throughout the land [a].”
11 And they reported to the angel of the Lord who was standing among the myrtle trees, “We have gone throughout the land [b] and found the whole land [c] at rest and in peace.”
12 Then the angel of the Lord said, “Lord Almighty, how long will you withhold mercy from Jerusalem and from the towns of Judah, which you have been angry with these seventy years?” 13 So the Lord spoke kind and comforting words to the angel who talked with me.
14 Then the angel who was speaking to me said, “Proclaim this word: This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘I am very jealous for Jerusalem and Zion, 15 and I am very angry with the nations that feel secure. I intended a limited punishment, but they went too far with it [d].’
16 “Surely,[e] this is what the Lord says: ‘I will return to Jerusalem with mercy, and there my house will be rebuilt. And the measuring line will be stretched out over Jerusalem,’ declares the Lord Almighty.
17 “Proclaim further: This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘My towns will again overflow with prosperity, and the Lord will again comfort Zion and choose Jerusalem.’”
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 that scattered Judah, Israel and Jerusalem.”
20 Then the Lord showed me four craftsmen. 21 I asked, “What are these coming to do?”
He answered, “These are the horns that scattered Judah so that no one could raise their head, but the craftsmen have come to terrify them, to throw down these horns of the peoples, that lifted [f] up their horns against the land of Judah to scatter its people.”

Retranslation notes for Zechariah 1
[a-c] vs 10-11 "land" instead of "earth".
[d] vs 15 "I intended a limited punishment, but they went too far with it" instead of "I was only a little angry, but they went too far with the punishment".
[e] vs 16 "Surely," instead of "Therefore".
[f] vs 21 "them, to throw down these horns of the peoples, that lifted" instead of " them and throw down these horns of the nations who lifted".


Zechariah 2 1 Then I looked up, and there before me was a man with a measuring line in his hand. 2 I asked, “Where are you going?”
He answered me, “To measure Jerusalem, to find out how wide and how long it is.”
3 While the angel who was speaking to me was leaving, another angel came to meet him. 4 He said to him:[a] “Run, tell that young man, ‘Jerusalem will be like towns without walls [b] because of the great number of people and animals in it. 5 And I myself will be a wall of fire around it,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will be its glory within.’
6 “Come! Come! Flee from the land of the north,” declares the Lord, “though [c] I have scattered you to the four winds of heaven,” declares the Lord.
7 “Come, Zion! Escape, you who live in Daughter Babylon!” 8 Truly this is what the Lord Almighty says after the Glorious One has sent me against the peoples that have plundered you. Truly whoever touches you touches the pupil of his eye. [d] 9 I will surely raise my hand against them, so that they will become plunder for their own slaves [e]. Then you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me.
10 “Shout and be glad, Daughter Zion. For I am coming, and I will live among you,” declares the Lord. 11 “Many nations will be joined with the Lord in that day and will become my people." I will live among you and you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you.[f] 12 The Lord will inherit Judah as his portion, as the holy land, [g] and will again choose Jerusalem. 13 Be still before the Lord, all mankind, because he has roused himself from his holy dwelling. [h]

Retranslation notes for Zechariah 2
[a] vs 3,4 "him. 4 He said to him" instead of "him 4 and said to him:". Modified to fit chiasmus.
[b] vs 4 "Jerusalem will be like towns without walls" instead of "Jerusalem will be a city without walls". "Jerusalem" represents all of Israel in this verse.
[c] vs 6 "though" instead of "for".
[d] vs 8 'Truly this is what the Lord Almighty says after the Glorious One has sent me against the peoples that have plundered you. Truly whoever touches you touches the pupil of his eye.' instead of 'For this is what the Lord Almighty says: “After the Glorious One has sent me against the nations that have plundered you—for whoever touches you touches the apple of his eye— '.
[e] vs 9 ", so that they will become plunder for their own slaves" instead of "so that their slaves will plunder them".
[f] vs 11 modified the punctuation: ' “Many nations will be joined with the Lord in that day and will become my people." I will live among you and you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you.' instead of ' “Many nations will be joined with the Lord in that day and will become my people. I will live among you and you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you.'
[g] vs 12 ", as the holy land," instead of "in the holy land".
[h] vs 13 modified the punctuation: moved the closing quote to vs 11 above.


Zechariah 3 1 Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him. 2 The Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?”
3 Now Joshua was dressed in filthy clothes as he stood before the angel. 4 The angel said to those who were standing before him, “Take off his filthy clothes.”
Then he said to Joshua, “See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put fine garments on you.”
5 Then I said, “Put a clean mitre [a] on his head.” So they put a mitre [b] on his head and clothed him, while the angel of the Lord stood by.
6 The angel of the Lord gave this charge to Joshua: 7 “This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Since you [c] will walk in obedience to me and keep my requirements, [d] you will govern my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you access to [e] these standing here.
8 “‘Listen, High Priest Joshua, you and your associates seated before you, who are men symbolic of things to come. I [f] am going to bring my servant, the Branch. 9 See, the stone I have set in front of Joshua! There are seven eyes on that one stone. I will engrave its inscription [g],’ says the Lord Almighty. I [h] will remove the sin of this land in one [i] day.
10 “‘In that day each of you will invite your neighbor to sit under your vine and fig tree,’ declares the Lord Almighty.”

Retranslation notes for Zechariah 3
[a,b] vs 6 "mitre" instead of "turban".
[c] vs 7 "Since you" instead of "If you".
[d] vs 7 removed "then" as this is not a conditional sentence.
[e] vs 7 "access to" instead of "a place among".
[f] vs 8 "come. I" instead of "come: I". Changed the punctuation.
[g] vs 9 "stone. I will engrave its inscription" instead of "stone, and I will engrave an inscription on it".
[h] vs 9 "Almighty. I" instead of "Almighty, ‘and I".
[i] vs 9 "one day" instead of "a single day".


Zechariah 4 1 Then the angel who talked with me returned and woke me up, like someone awakened from sleep. 2 He asked me, “What do you see?”
I answered, “I see a solid gold lampstand with a bowl at the top and seven lamps on it, with seven channels to the lamps. 3 Also there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left.”
4 I asked the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?”
5 Then the angel who talked with me answered and said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.” [a]
6 So he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.
7 “What are you, mighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become level ground. Then he will bring out the capstone to shouts of ‘God bless it! God bless it!’”
8 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 9 “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple; his hands will also complete it." [b] Then you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you.
10 “Who dares despise the day of small things? The seven eyes of the Lord that range throughout the earth will rejoice when they see the chosen capstone in the hand of Zerubbabel. [c]”
11 Then I asked the angel, “What are these two olive trees on the right and the left of the lampstand?”
12 Again I asked him, “What are these two olive branches beside the two gold pipes that pour out golden oil?”
13 He replied, “Do you not know what these are?”
“No, my lord,” I said.
14 So he said, “These are the two sons of oil who [d] serve the Lord of all the earth.”

Retranslation notes for Zechariah 4
[a] vs 5 Used ESV translation for the verse, as it is closer to the Hebrew.
[b] vs 9 Added closing quote after "complete it".
[c] vs 10 "things? The seven eyes of the Lord that range throughout the earth will rejoice when they see the chosen capstone in the hand of Zerubbabel." instead of "things, since the seven eyes of the LORD that range throughout the earth will rejoice when they see the chosen capstone in the hand of Zerubbabel?".
[d] vs 14 "sons of oil who" instead of "who are anointed to".


Zechariah 5 1 Again I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, a flying scroll! [a]
2 He asked me, “What do you see?”
I answered, “I see a flying scroll, twenty cubits long and ten cubits wide.”
3 And he said to me, “This is the curse that is going out over the whole land; for example, here it says that every thief will be purged, and, for instance, here it says that everyone who swears falsely will be purged [b]. 4 The Lord Almighty declares, ‘I will send it out, and it will enter the house of the thief and the house of the one [c] who swears falsely by my name. It will remain in that house and destroy it completely, both its timbers and its stones.’”
5 Then the angel who was speaking to me came forward and said to me, “Look up and see what is appearing.”
6 I asked, “What is it?”
He replied, “It is an ephah [d].” And he added, “This is their appearance in all the land.[e]”
7 Then the cover of lead was raised, and there in the ephah [f] sat a woman! 8 He said, “This is the iniquity [g],” and he pushed her back into the ephah [h] and pushed its lead cover down on it.
9 Then I looked up—and there before me were two women, with the wind in their wings! They had wings like those of a stork, and they lifted up the ephah [i] between heaven and earth.
10 “Where are they taking the ephah [j]?” I asked the angel who was speaking to me.
11 He replied, “To build her a prison in the country of Babylonia: and when it is prepared, she shall be set there in her own place.[k]”

Retranslation notes for Zechariah 5
[a] vs 1 "Again I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, a flying scroll!" instead of "I looked again, and there before me was a flying scroll.". From the ESV.
[b] vs 3 "for example, here it says that every thief will be purged, and, for instance, here it says that everyone who swears falsely will be purged" instead of "for according to what it says on one side, every thief will be banished, and according to what it says on the other, everyone who swears falsely will be banished". Partly based on the NET.
[c] vs 4 "the one" instead of "anyone".
[d] vs 6 "an ephah" instead of "a basket".
[e] vs 6 "This is their appearance in all the land" instead of "This is the iniquity of the people throughout the land".
[f] vs 7 "ephah" instead of "basket".
[g] vs 8 "the iniquity" instead of "wickedness".
[h-j] vs 8-10 "ephah" instead of "basket".
[k] vs 11 "To build her a prison in the country of Babylonia: and when it is prepared, she shall be set there in her own place." instead of "To the country of Babylonia to build a house for it. When the house is ready, the basket will be set there in its place".


Zechariah 6 1 I looked up again, and there before me were four chariots coming out from between the two mountains [a]—mountains of bronze. 2 The first chariot had red horses, the second black, 3 the third white, and the fourth colorful, mottled [b]. 4 I asked the angel who was speaking to me, “What are these, my lord?”
5 The angel answered me, “These are four spirits [c] of heaven, going out from standing in the presence of the Lord of the whole world. 6 The one with the black horses is going toward the north country, the one with the white horses goes after them [d], and the one with the mottled [e] horses toward the south.”
7 When the colorful horses went out, they were eager to patrol the earth. And he said, “Go patrol the earth!” So they patrolled the earth. [f]
8 Then he called to me, “Look, those going toward the north country have brought me peace about the north country.” [g]
9 The word of the Lord came to me: 10 “Take offerings from the exiles. Take offerings from Heldai, Tobijah and Jedaiah. When they come from Babylon, go [h] the same day to the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah. 11 Take the silver and gold and make crowns [i], and set them [j] on the head of the high priest, Joshua son of Jozadak. 12 Tell him this is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Here is the man whose name is the Branch, and he will branch out from his place. He will build the temple of the Lord. 13 Yes, He will build the temple of the Lord. He will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on his throne, and he will be a priest on his throne; and [k] there will be harmony between the two.’ 14 The crowns [l] will be given to Helem [m], Tobijah, Jedaiah and Hen son of Zephaniah as a memorial in the temple of the Lord. 15 Those who are far away will come and help to build the temple of the LORD. And [n] you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you. This will happen if you diligently obey the Lord your God.”

Retranslation notes for Zechariah 6
[a] vs 1 "the two mountains" instead of "two mountains".
[b] vs 3 "colorful, mottled" instead of "dappled—all of them powerful". The word translated "colorful" literally means "strong", but since the context is colour, we treat it as figuratively meaning a striking variety of colours.
[c] vs 5 "four spirits" instead of "the four spirits".
[d] vs 6 "goes after them" instead of "toward the west".
[e] vs 6 "mottled" instead of "dappled".
[f] vs 7 'When the colorful horses went out, they were eager to patrol the earth. And he said, “Go patrol the earth!” So they patrolled the earth.' instead of 'When the powerful horses went out, they were straining to go throughout the earth. And he said, “Go throughout the earth!” So they went throughout the earth.'
[g] vs 8 "brought me peace about the north country" instead of "given my Spirit rest in the land of the north". Based on the New English Translation.
[h] vs 10 "Take offerings from the exiles. Take offerings from Heldai, Tobijah and Jedaiah. When they come from Babylon, go" instead of "Take silver and gold from the exiles Heldai, Tobijah and Jedaiah, who have arrived from Babylon. Go".
[i] vs 11 "crowns" instead of "a crown".
[j] vs 11 "them" instead of "it".
[k] vs 12,13 "place. He will build the temple of the Lord. 13 Yes, He will build the temple of the Lord. He will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on his throne, and he will be a priest on his throne; and" instead of "place and build the temple of the Lord. 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 will be a priest on his throne. And". Primarily for the chiasmus.
[l] vs 14 "crowns" instead of "crown".
[m] vs 14 "Helem" instead of "Heldai", as in the Hebrew.
[n] vs 15 "LORD. And" instead of "LORD, and".

3. Building the reconfigured text

From this parse, it appears that Zechariah 1:8-6:15 forms a cryptochiasmus as below:

A1   Ch 1 Vs 8-17 Period 1. Jerusalem and its temple are restored
  B1   Ch 1 Vs 18 - Ch 4 Vs 14 Period 3. The New Israel is set up
    X   Ch 5 Vs 1-4 Period 2. Wicked Judahites are warned and punished
  B2   Ch 5 Vs 5 - Ch 6 Vs 8 Period 3. Christ takes control over the world
A2   Ch 6 Vs 9-15 Period 1. A prophetic action regarding the coming Messiah

We now reconstruct the passages in the right order based on the chiastic structure above and based on the ordering rules of a cryptochiasmus [1].

We lead with central pivot point 'X'. The corresponding subunits (For example; subunit A1 corresponds to A2) are placed contiguously to form units (For example, A1,A2 is a unit ) so that we get a list of such units.

The sequence selected for rearrangement is:

X  [A1,A2]  [B1,B2]        (1)

Translating (1) into verse numbers, we get:

Ch 5 Vs 1-4   [Ch 1 Vs 8-17, Ch 6 Vs 9-15]   [Ch 1 Vs 18 - Ch 4 Vs 14, Ch 5 Vs 5 - Ch 6 Vs 8]        (2)

We arrive at the reconfigured passage in the next section by rearranging the verses so they are in sequence (2).

4. Zechariah 1:8-6:15 Reconfigured

The Judahites are Warned and Punished during the First Jewish–Roman War (66AD–73AD) (Ch 5 Vs 1-4)



The Judahites Reconstruct the Temple and Jerusalem (c.519BC - c.444BC) (Ch 1 Vs 8-17, Ch 6 Vs 9-15)

Chiasmus 1: The Restoration of Jerusalem and its Temple after the Exile in Babylon: The Horsemen at the Myrtle Trees in the Ravine


Chiasmus 2: Prophetic Actions regarding the Messiah and the Temple of the Millennial Reign: The Crowns on the High Priest



Satan is Defeated and Christ's Reign is Established at the Start of the Millennial Reign (circa 2027AD) (Ch 1 Vs 18 - Ch 4 Vs 14, Ch 5 Vs 5 - Ch 6 Vs 8)

Chiasmus 1: The Israelites' enslavers are destroyed, Israel is restored to a nation under God: The Four Horns, The Four Craftsmen, The Measurement of Jerusalem


Chiasmus 2: The New Israel gets Righteous Political Leadership: Joshua is Clothed in Clean Garments


Chiasmus 3: The Church of the Millennial Reign: The Lampstand and the Olive Trees, the Capstone of the Temple


Chiasmus 4: The World is rid of Unethical Commercial Institutions: The Ephah and the Three Women


Chiasmus 5: Satan is Defeated and Christ takes Control of the World: The Four Chariots

5. A Commentary on the Reconfigured Text

5.0 Introductory Statement (Ch 1 vs 7)

Chapter 1 7 On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, the month of Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah, the son of Iddo.

Darius I (Darius the Great), son of Hystaspes, became king of Persia in Sep. of 522BC. Zechariah was given this prophetic message at the end of Darius' second year, specifically the 24th day of the 11th month, the month of Shebat - around Jan/Feb 519BC. ( Interestingly, a number of prophetic messages have been given to Haggai and Zechariah in this 2nd year of Darius, with their exact dates recorded.)

5.1 The Judahites are Warned and Punished during the First Jewish–Roman War (66AD–73AD) (Ch 5 Vs 1-4)

This Period is arranged in the form of a single-unit chiasmus:

A1 5:1,2 The wicked Judahites are punished: Introduction
    X 5:3 The meaning of the Flying Scrolls: A curse for sins
A2 5:4 The wicked Judahites are punished


Subunit A1: The wicked Judahites are punished: Introduction (5:1,2)

Note that this subunit A1 is a sort of introduction to the corresponding subunit A2 below. This pattern is repeated for all of the regular chiasmi of this prophecy.

Chapter 5 1 Again I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, a flying scroll!
2 He asked me, “What do you see?”
I answered, “I see a flying scroll, twenty cubits long and ten cubits wide.”

The "scroll" represents both God's warnings to the wicked Judahites of this Period and punishment for those who ignore His warnings. A "scroll" is sent to each household that has a wicked Judahite as its head (based on 5:4 below), and Zechariah is shown one such scroll. The scroll flies upright, and it has the same warnings written on both sides (cf. Rev 5:1), so that it is visible from all directions, to indicate that wicked Judahites had been given clear, unmissable warnings from God, Christ and his followers (for ex. see Matt. 3:7-10, 23:33-39).

The dimensions of the scroll, 20x10 cubits (around 9.1x4.5 metres), are the same as those of the porch of Solomon's temple (1 Kings 6:3). It may be that announcements from the temple to the public, including those regarding punishment under the Law, were made from this porch, so the dimensions presumably represent the temple and the Law of the Old Covenant. The Judahites who believed in Christ came under the New Covenant and did not need to fear this scroll, as they were forgiven through Christ's sacrifice on the cross (Hebrews 9:15). However those who chose to remain under the Old Covenant were punished according to the Old Covenant Law (Romans 2:12, Hebrews 9:16-22).

Pivot X: The meaning of the Flying Scrolls: A curse for sins (5:3)

Chapter 5 3 And he said to me, “This is the curse that is going out over the whole land; for example, here it says that every thief will be purged, and, for instance, here it says that everyone who swears falsely will be purged.

Each "scroll" sent out represents a curse; the scroll has a list of the sins of the head of the house to which it is sent, to indicate the reason for the curse. The two example sins on this particular scroll are thievery and swearing falsely (violations of the 3rd and 8th laws of the Ten Commandments - Exodus 20:2–17).

The Judahites of the time who remained under the Old Covenant did not do so out of a sense of faithfulness to God and His Law (see John 5:45-47). They rejected Christ because of their wickedness and so that they could exploit the Law for their own benefit (Matt. 23); for this, they and their families were cruelly purged.

Subunit A2: The wicked Judahites are punished (5:4)

Chapter 5 4 The Lord Almighty declares, ‘I will send it out, and it will enter the house of the thief and the house of the one who swears falsely by my name. It will remain in that house and destroy it completely, both its timbers and its stones.’”

The warnings of the "scrolls" were sent to each of the houses of the Judahites that were destined for destruction by God through the Romans; for the sins of the father, the entire household ("house", "timbers and stones") was to be destroyed. These warnings/curses of the "scroll" stayed with the Judahites' homes until they were destroyed, but even on that last day, as the Romans surrounded Jerusalem, they could lift these curses and save themselves by accepting Christ's message and heeding his exhortation to flee when the Romans began their siege (see Matt. 24:15-18). ( See details on this war in our parse of the 70 Weeks of Daniel [2].)

5.2 The Judahites Reconstruct the Temple and Jerusalem (c.519BC - c.444BC) (Ch 1 Vs 8-17, Ch 6 Vs 9-15)

This Period is structured as a series of 2 chiasmi.

Chiasmus 1: The Restoration of Jerusalem and its Temple after the Exile in Babylon: The Horsemen at the Myrtle Trees in the Ravine

The passage below in 1:8-17 is arranged in the form of a two-unit chiasmus:

A1 1:8-9 Jerusalem and its temple are restored by the "horsemen": Introduction
  B1 1:10-11 The hostile nations in the region of Israel anger God: Introduction
    X 1:12-13 God comforts the angel regarding Judea
  B2 1:14-15 The hostile nations in the region of Israel anger God
A2 1:16-17 Jerusalem and its temple are restored by the "horsemen"

Subunit A1: Jerusalem and its temple are restored by the "horsemen": Introduction (1:8-9)

Chapter 1 8 During the night I had a vision, and there before me was a man mounted on a red horse. He was standing among the myrtle trees in a ravine. Behind him were red, brown and white horses.
9 I asked, “What are these, my lord?” The angel who was talking with me answered, “I will show you what they are.”

Zechariah saw this vision at night in 519BC on the date specified in the previous verse, 1:7 (see section 5.0). He is guided through the vision by an angel of God ("The angel who was talking with me" of vs 9), and based on indications in several passages in this prophecy (like 1:12,13), we believe this angel is the Archangel Michael, the protector of Israel (Dan 12:1) (Michael also guided John through the prophecy in the book of Revelation).

In the vision, Zechariah sees horsemen on horses of 3 different colours; they are of unspecified number and they are standing among myrtle trees. Only one of the horsemen/angels speaks - the leader of the horsemen with red horses - presumably because he is given an assignment he must immediately complete, as detailed in Subunit B1 below.

A horseman, in prophecy, represents an angel (see 1:11) who is given a significant, extended assignment on earth (cf. Rev 6:1-7); the horse represents the angel's mode of operation and colour of the horse indicates its domain of operation. The meaning of the colours, in this case, can be inferred from the corresponding Subunit A2 and Subunit B1 - see commentary below - and from other prophecies with symbolic "horses" (Rev. 6:1-8, Zech. 6:1-8). The vision takes place at night to represent the destitute condition of the Judahites at the time of the vision. The myrtle (an evergreen, fragrant shrub) and the ravine (likely a wadi, a life-giving watercourse), seem to symbolise the revitalization and prosperity predicted through the vision of this chiasmus (regarding the myrtle, see Isaiah 41:19, 55:13, Neh. 8:15).

Subunit B1: The hostile nations in the region of Israel anger God: Introduction (1:10-11)

Chapter 1 10 Then the man standing among the myrtle trees explained, “They are the ones the Lord has sent to go throughout the land.”
11 And they reported to the angel of the Lord who was standing among the myrtle trees, “We have gone throughout the land and found the whole land at rest and in peace.”

With the Northern Tribes and most of the Judahites exiled, the land of Israel was occupied by peoples that were hostile to the small company of Judahites that returned (see Ezra 4:4); however, in the spiritual realm, all of Israel was still considered God's land (see 1 Kings 17:24-28). The angel on the red horse explains that his angels have been given the task of surveying God's land and its neighbourhood. The angels report back to their leader that the enemies of the Judahites enjoy peace in the region of God's land (red horses are associated with war/peace - cf. Rev 6:4).

Pivot X: God comforts the angel regarding Judea (1:12-13)

Chapter 1 12 Then the angel of the Lord said, “Lord Almighty, how long will you withhold mercy from Jerusalem and from the towns of Judah, which you have been angry with these seventy years?” 13 So the Lord spoke kind and comforting words to the angel who talked with me.

The Judahites had been punished for their sins through an exile in Babylon that lasted 70 years (see Jer. 29:10, Jer. 25:4-11). The Archangel Michael, the angel guiding Zechariah through this vision, asks God how much longer the Judahites should suffer God's wrath - Michael is particularly concerned, because he is the angel responsible for the Judahites (see Dan. 12:1). God comforts Michael by assuring him that the Judahites' period of extreme punishment through Babylon has ended. This pivot encapsulates the message of this chiasmus.

Subunit B2: The hostile nations in the region of Israel anger God (1:14-15)

This subunit continues from the corresponding Subunit B1 above.

Chapter 1 14 Then the angel who was speaking to me said, “Proclaim this word: This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘I am very jealous for Jerusalem and Zion, 15 and I am very angry with the nations that feel secure. I intended a limited punishment, but they went too far with it.’

An edict by Cyrus, circa 535BC, had freed the Judahites to begin the reconstruction of their temple (see Ezra 1:1-4), but the enemies of Judah living in the land of Israel and its neighbourhood, such as the Samaritans, had opposed the rebuilding and stopped the temple construction (see Ezra 4:4,17,24). The angels on the red horses reported that these hostile peoples were at peace, and this angered God ("I am very jealous"), because His own people were in a state of unease at being without temple or city. God had given up the Judahites to the Babylonians for 70 years as punishment for their sins (see Jer. 29:10, Jer. 25:4-11), but now that the punishment was concluded, He wished to reinstate His protection and support of His people. God now wanted to punish those who continued to harass His people.

Subunit A2: Jerusalem and its temple are restored by the "horsemen" (1:16-17)

This subunit continues from the corresponding Subunit A1 above.

Chapter 1 16 “Surely, this is what the Lord says: ‘I will return to Jerusalem with mercy, and there my house will be rebuilt. And the measuring line will be stretched out over Jerusalem,’ declares the Lord Almighty.
17a “Proclaim further: This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘My towns will again overflow with prosperity, 17b and the Lord will again comfort Zion and choose Jerusalem.’”

With God's support, the temple reconstruction was completed around 3 years after this prophecy in 516BC (see Ezra 5,6) and Jerusalem was rebuilt around 75 years later in 444BC under Nehemiah (see Neh. 2:1-9) - the act of measurement indicates that the Judahites retook ownership of the city with God's help (cf. Rev 11:1,2). The city will once again come under God's protection ("comfort Zion", "choose Jerusalem")

We propose that the meanings of the colours of the horses in the corresponding Subunit A1 [1:8-9] - red, brown and white - can be inferred from this passage:

• White horses represent political operations. The "horsemen"/angels on these "horses" are responsible for restoring and controlling the nation ("the measuring line will be stretched out"), as detailed in 1:16 (see also Rev. 6:2, Rev. 19:11, Zech. 6:3).
• Brown horses The angels on these horses are charged with growing the economy (as opposed to the angels on the black horses that bring economic ruin - see Rev. 6:5-6 and Zech. 6:2,6). Under their care, the Judahite economy will expand and thrive ("overflow with prosperity" in vs 1:17a).
• Red horses represent assignments related to war/peace. Verse 1:17b indicates that the city will now come under God's protection ("comfort Zion", "choose Jerusalem"), and peace for the Judahites comes through these angels on the red horses (see also Rev 6:4, Zech. 6:2, Isaiah 40:1,2). These angels were also sent to assess the state of war/peace in Israel (1:11).

Chiasmus 2: Prophetic Actions regarding the Messiah and the Temple of the Millennial Reign: The Crowns on the High Priest

The passage below in 6:9-15 is arranged in the form of a two-unit chiasmus:

A1 6:9 Zechariah must perform the prophetic actions as commanded: Introduction
  B1 6:10 A prophetic action regarding the temple of the Millennial Reign
    X 6:11-14 A prophetic action that foretells the reign of the Messiah as king and priest
  B2 6:15a A prophetic action regarding the temple of the Millennial Reign
A2 6:15b Zechariah must perform the prophetic actions as commanded


Subunit A1: Zechariah must perform the prophetic actions as commanded: Introduction (6:9)

Chapter 6 9 The word of the Lord came to me:

The instructions in this chiasmus from the Lord came to Zechariah through the Archangel Michael, like the other visions of this cryptochiasmus (see also 4:8). According to this chiasmus, Zechariah must perform two prophetic actions - in a prophetic action, the prophet acts out a prediction (as in Ezekiel 4,5 and Zechariah 11:4-17).

Subunit B1: A prophetic action regarding the temple of the Millennial Reign (6:10)

Chapter 6 10a “Take offerings from the exiles.

Zechariah is to take donations from Judahite exiles who have come from Babylon. According to the corresponding subunit B2 below, this is a prophetic action that predicts that the temple of the Millennial Reign will be built with the help of people from far away in Period 3.

Chapter 6 10b Take offerings from Heldai, Tobijah and Jedaiah. When they come from Babylon, go the same day to the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah.

This passage provides additional instructions on the prophetic action of 6:10a, but these details only apply to Period 1 (this is not to be considered a part of the prophetic action regarding Period 3).

A few devout Judahites - Heldai, Tobijah and Jedaiah - will come to Judea to pass on donations of silver and gold from Judahite exiles still in Babylon, towards the temple reconstruction efforts; they will arrive at the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah - we believe that Zephaniah is responsible for procurement for the temple reconstruction and his sons help him. Zechariah must meet them as soon as they come from Babylon, before they donate their offerings to the temple as they planned.

Pivot X: A prophetic action that foretells the reign of the Messiah as king and priest (6:11-14)

Chapter 6 11 Take the silver and gold and make crowns, and set them on the head of the high priest, Joshua son of Jozadak. 12a Tell him this is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Here is the man whose name is the Branch, and he will branch out from his place.

In this second prophetic action, Zechariah is to take the offerings of precious metals and make two crowns, one of silver and one of gold, and he is to place them on the head of Joshua the high priest; the two crowns indicate leadership in two domains. Although the quote from God in 6:12-13 is addressed to Joshua, it is regarding the coming Messiah of Period 3, because Joshua represents the Messiah.

This prophetic action predicts the crowning of the coming Messiah of the Millennial Reign in Period 3 (see also Rev. 19:12). The coming Messiah is called the Branch (or Shoot/Sprout) because he is a shoot from the dormant root of the line of David ("branch out from his place") (see Jer. 23:5,33:15, Isaiah 4:2,11:1). The Messiah will be king over Israel, restoring the Davidic line to power forever, as promised to David (2 Sam. 7:12).

Chapter 6 12b He will build the temple of the Lord. 13a Yes, He will build the temple of the Lord.

The coming Messiah, in his role as high priest, will build the temple of the Millennial Reign. The Messiah is the descendant of David who will build the temple, as promised to David (see 2 Samuel 7:13-17).

Note the parallel design of 6:12-13. The passage in 6:12-13a above is regarding both the Messiah's roles as king and high priest, and so is 6:13b below.

Chapter 6 13b He will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on his throne, and he will be a priest on his throne; and there will be harmony between the two.’

Joshua is crowned with two crowns, because the coming Messiah, like Melchizedek and Christ, will be both king ("rule on his throne") and priest ("priest on his throne"). The two offices and the hierarchies under those offices will work as a united whole ("harmony between the two") - the Church and State will work together under the Messiah. ( We believe Melchizedek was a previous incarnation of the coming Messiah, as detailed in our paper on Micah [4].)

Chapter 6 14 The crowns will be given to Helem, Tobijah, Jedaiah and Hen son of Zephaniah as a memorial in the temple of the Lord.

This passage in 6:14, addressed to Zechariah (Zechariah's address to Joshua is ended), provides additional details on the prophetic action - it is regarding Period 1 only and is not a part of the prophetic action.

The crowns must not stay on Joshua's head (Zerubbabel remains the political leader), but instead they must be returned to the donors, so that they can be displayed in the temple as symbols of the glorious future leadership of Israel. When Zechariah returns to Zephaniah's house to return the gold and silver, some of the people who receive it will be different from those who gave it to him (see also 6:10b): Helem instead of Heldai, and Zephaniah's son Hen instead of Josiah.

Subunit B2: A prophetic action regarding the temple of the Millennial Reign (6:15a)

This subunit explains the prophetic action in 6:10a in the corresponding Subunit B1 above.

Chapter 6 15a1 Those who are far away will come and help to build the temple of the LORD.

The Archangel Michael indicates that Zechariah's act of taking the offerings from the Judahites from Babylon in 6:10a in Subunit B1 predicts that the temple of the Millennial Reign in Period 3 will be built with the help of people from far away - Israelites who have just returned from other nations and other foreigners.

Chapter 6 15a2 And you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you.

The Messiah of the Millennial Reign will be a human incarnation of Michael the Archangel. So Michael, speaking for himself, says that when the Israelites of Period 3 see him perform his duties as high priest - when he builds the temple with the help of people from far away - they will recognize the Messiah as someone sent by God (see also 4:9).

Subunit A2: Zechariah must perform the prophetic actions as commanded (6:15b)

Chapter 6 15b This will happen if you diligently obey the Lord your God.”

The predictions of this chiasmus that are exclusively regarding Period 1 will come true only if Zechariah diligently follows the instructions in it.

5.3 Satan is Defeated and Christ's Reign is Established at the Start of the Millennial Reign (circa 2027AD) (Ch 1 Vs 18 - Ch 4 Vs 14, Ch 5 Vs 5 - Ch 6 Vs 8)

This Period is structured as a series of 5 chiasmi.

Chiasmus 1: The Israelites' enslavers are destroyed, Israel is restored to a nation under God: The Four Horns, The Four Craftsmen, The Measurement of Jerusalem

The passage below in 1:18-2:9 is arranged in the form of a two-unit chiasmus:

A1 1:18-19 The Four Horns are punished: Introduction
  B1 1:20-21 Flee from "Babylon", because the Four Craftsmen will destroy the Horns
    X 2:1-5 God takes control of the New Israel
  B2 2:6-8a Flee from "Babylon", because the Four Craftsmen will destroy the Horns
A2 2:8b-9 The Four Horns are punished

The Archangel Michael guides Zechariah through this vision ("the angel who was speaking to me" of 1:19 - see also 1:9). Parsing note: In Unit A the New Israel is called "Judah, Israel and Jerusalem", in Unit B it is called "Judah" and "Zion", and in the Pivot X it is called "Jerusalem".

Subunit A1: The Four Horns are punished: Introduction (1:18-19)

Chapter 1 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 that scattered Judah, Israel and Jerusalem.”

During the period of tribulation before the Millennial Reign, four "horns" (horns represent centres of power - for ex., see Dan. 8:20) will scatter some of the Israelites ("Judah, Israel and Jerusalem" represent all of Israel, both the southern and northern tribes) to regions outside the New Israel (see Joel 3:4-8 where these centres of power are called "Tyre, Sidon and regions of Philistia", see also Isaiah 23:1,14-17).

These "horns" are not described as attached to any animal (the animal would indicate the nation to which they belong, as in Daniel 7), and so we propose that they are powerful international organizations connected to trade and commerce (based on clues in Joel 3:4-8) that are a part of Satan's organization of "Babylon" (based on Subunit B2 below).

Subunit B1: Flee from "Babylon", because the Four Craftsmen will destroy the Horns (1:20-21)

Chapter 1 20 Then the Lord showed me four craftsmen. 21 I asked, “What are these coming to do?”
He answered, “These are the horns that scattered Judah so that no one could raise their head, but the craftsmen have come to terrify them, to throw down these horns of the peoples, that lifted up their horns against the land of Judah to scatter its people.”

At the start of the Millennial Reign, 4 angels ("craftsmen") will terrorize and destroy the 4 organizations ("horns") that have enslaved ("no one raised their head") and scattered some of the Israelites ("Judah" in this passage refers to all of Israel).

We believe the "craftsmen" are angels, because Israel's victories in this Period are typically achieved with the aid of supernatural forces; and they are called "craftsmen" to indicate that, like the "horns", they specialize in the field of trade and commerce.

Pivot X: God takes control of the New Israel (2:1-5)

Chapter 2 1 Then I looked up, and there before me was a man with a measuring line in his hand. 2 I asked, “Where are you going?” He answered me, “To measure Jerusalem, to find out how wide and how long it is.”

An angel of God (in the form of a "man") tells Zechariah that he was about to establish the dimensions of the New Israel (for the passages of the Pivot X, "Jerusalem" synecdochically refers to the New Israel of the Millennial Reign). Measurement is an act of taking control and ownership, so this passage indicates that God will reign over the New Israel (see also Zech. 1:16, cf. Rev 11:1,2).

Chapter 2 3 While the angel who was speaking to me was leaving, another angel came to meet him.

Another angel, superior to the angel of 2:1, immediately arrives to correct any possible errors in communication. In addition the predictions contained in it, this prophecy provides a glimpse into the workings of the angelic realm.

Chapter 2 4 He said to him: “Run, tell that young man, ‘Jerusalem will be like towns without walls because of the great number of people and animals in it. 5 And I myself will be a wall of fire around it,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will be its glory within.’

The angel with the measuring line is sent back by the superior to correct any misapprehension on the part of Zechariah ("the young man"), because Zechariah may have been under the impression that the New Israel ("Jerusalem") would be a land with fixed borders. During the Millennial Reign, Israel will be an unwalled, continually expanding land because of its teeming, surging population and its growing wealth ("animals") and power (cf. Obadiah 1:19-20). The New Israel will have no use for fortifications, because God Himself will protect it ("wall of fire") (see Isaiah 27:2,3, Zech. 9:10) and God will be its glory (see Isaiah 4:5,6, 60:19,20).

Subunit B2: Flee from "Babylon", because the Four Craftsmen will destroy the Horns (2:6-8a)

This subunit continues from the corresponding Subunit B1 above

Chapter 2 6 “Come! Come! Flee from the land of the north,” declares the Lord, “though I have scattered you to the four winds of heaven,” declares the Lord.
7 “Come, Zion! Escape, you who live in Daughter Babylon!” 8a Truly this is what the Lord Almighty says after the Glorious One has sent me against the peoples that have plundered you.

The Israelites had been scattered all over the world by God as punishment for the sins of their forefathers (Deut. 28:64), and they will soon return (Isaiah 11:12). But the Israelites that are associated with "Babylon" are to exit the evil organization immediately (see also Rev 18:4), for the coming Messiah (the Archangel Michael, the speaker of 2:7-9) will attack these divisions ("horns") of "Babylon" with the aid of these "craftsmen" (see also 6:6,8 below and Rev. 6).

We believe that the "land of the north" is another name for Satan's organization of "Babylon", because 2:6-7 form a parallelism, and because the word translated "north" can also mean "dark" or "hidden". This Satanic organization is spread around the world in this Period, so "north" is not a literal direction ("north" is similarly used in 6:6 and 6:8 below).

Subunit A2: The Four Horns are punished (2:8b-9)

This subunit continues from the corresponding Subunit A1 above.

Chapter 2 8b Truly whoever touches you touches the pupil of his eye. 9 I will surely raise my hand against them, so that they will become plunder for their own slaves. Then you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me.

The 4 "horns" have dealt grievously with the Israelites, and harming God's people is akin to poking Him in the eye - a personal affront that will be dealt with severely (see also Joel 3:4-6). The coming Messiah/Michael, the speaker of this passage, will devastate these "horns" with the aid of the "craftsmen" angels, so that they will be taken into slavery by the Israelites and other peoples they had enslaved (see Joel 3:7-8). The Messiah's success in this mission, in his role as king of the Israelites, will prove to the Israelites that he is indeed sent by God (see also 2:11b below).

Chiasmus 2: The New Israel gets Righteous Political Leadership: Joshua is Clothed in Clean Garments

The passage below in 2:10-3:10 is arranged in the form of a three-unit chiasmus:

A1 2:10-11a God restores Israel spiritually and physically: Introduction
  B1 2:11b-13 God will reign over Israel through the Messiah
    C1 3:1-2 The Messiah will be a righteous leader
      X 3:3-5 The royal line of David is cleansed and restored to the throne
    C2 3:6-7 The Messiah will be a righteous leader
  B2 3:8-9a God will reign over Israel through the Messiah
A2 3:9b-10 God restores Israel spiritually and physically


Subunit A1: God restores Israel spiritually and physically: Introduction (2:10-11a)

Chapter 2 10 “Shout and be glad, Daughter Zion. For I am coming, and I will live among you,” declares the Lord. 11a “Many nations will be joined with the Lord in that day and will become my people."

The Israelites ("Daughter Zion") are to rejoice, because the Lord God will figuratively "live among" them, in the sense that He will control the land through His representatives and nurture the Israelites (Isaiah 4:5,6, 30:19-20). Before the start of the Millennial Reign, the Israelites will be the majority race in a few nations, and these nations will unite to form the New Israel. ( This passage is introductory to Subunit A2 below, which predicts that God will restore Israel.)

Subunit B1: God will reign over Israel through the Messiah (2:11b-13)

Chapter 2 11b I will live among you and you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you.

The coming Messiah (the Messiah will be an incarnation of the Archangel Michael, and Michael speaks as himself in this passage) will literally live among the Israelites (Isaiah 9:6), and rule the New Israel for God and Christ. It will be clear to Israel that the Messiah was sent by God to be their king (see also 2:9 above).

Chapter 2 12 The Lord will inherit Judah as his portion, as the holy land, and will again choose Jerusalem. 13 Be still before the Lord, all mankind, because he has roused himself from his holy dwelling.

The nations of the world are controlled from the spiritual realm by heavenly beings (see Psalm 82), but all the Israelites ("Judah"/"Jerusalem") will once again come under God's dominion, as it was before their exile. The nations of the world are to "be still" before God - that is, honour God or be punished - for, after 6 millennia under Satan, the world will now be ruled by God ("roused Himself") through the New Israel (see Zech. 14:16, Rev 2:27).

Subunit C1: The Messiah will be a righteous leader (3:1-2)

Chapter 3 1 Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him. 2 The Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?”

In this symbolic vision, Joshua the High Priest stands before an "angel of the Lord" in a judicial setting, with Satan standing at his right side (cf. Psalm 109:6), in the position of the accuser (see Rev. 12:10). All the actors in this vision (and the other visions in this regular chiasmus) represent someone else:

• The "angel of the Lord" represents God and speaks for God (the prophet refers to him both as an angel and as the Lord).
• Joshua the High Priest represents the Messiah in his role as a member of the royal line of David, the Branch from a long dormant root (see 3:8 in Subunit B2 below), the next king of Israel (this chiasmus is regarding kingship and not priesthood).
• We propose that Satan represents all the fallen angels who object to the Messiah's reign (Satan himself will be imprisoned throughout the Millennial Reign - Rev 20:1-3).

The question before the court appears to be whether the Messiah ("Joshua") should reign as king over Israel; this concerns the fallen angels, because the king of the New Israel will also have authority over the world, even the territories outside Israel that are ruled by fallen angels. "Satan's" argument is not stated here, but he presumably pleads that the position should remain closed, probably replaced by a democracy, seeing that the kings of the Davidic line in the past have been less than ideal - many of them have proved wicked and unworthy of ruling over the world (see, for ex., 2 Kings 21:1–18).

But God, in His judgement on this case, says He has chosen Israel ("Jerusalem") as His nation again, and He has chosen to restore its kingship. God counters "Satan's" accusations by pointing out that the royal line of David had been purged of its wicked through the fire of punishment. The Messiah ("Joshua") is a righteous angel sent from heaven to revive the forgotten line of David, but even he had to face difficult times for 49 years (Dan 9:24,25) before he was deemed worthy ("a burning stick snatched from the fire"). God rebukes "Satan" because he is already well aware of all this.

The Pivot X and the Units A and B of this chiasmus also contain similar symbolic visions. Some of the actors may change in these visions, but God ("angel of the Lord") is present in all of them.

Pivot X: The royal line of David is cleansed and restored to the throne (3:3-5)

Chapter 3 3 Now Joshua was dressed in filthy clothes as he stood before the angel. 4 The angel said to those who were standing before him, “Take off his filthy clothes.” Then he said to Joshua, “See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put fine garments on you.”

In this symbolic vision, the angel (representing God) tells the angels standing before him to remove Joshua's filthy clothes and replace them with fine clothes.

• The angels standing before the angel (representing God) presumably represent all God's angels.

We propose that the vision of this passage indicates that the sins of the royal line of David will be cleansed. The angels participate in this ceremony to indicate that God's angels will help the Messiah reign righteously (see also Rev 19:14).

Chapter 3 5 Then I said, “Put a clean mitre on his head.” So they put a clean mitre on his head and clothed him, while the angel of the Lord stood by.

Zechariah suggests that Joshua be crowned with a clean mitre. The mitre, a priestly crown, here represents a political crown.

• Zechariah presumably represents the people of the New Israel.

"Zechariah's" request for a clean mitre on "Joshua's" head indicates that the Israelites of the Millennial Reign, seeking righteous leadership ("clean mitre"), will gladly once again accept one of the line of David, the Messiah, as their king. God ("The angel of the Lord") stands by and watches approvingly as the king of Israel is crowned (see also Rev 19:12, Zech. 6:11,12). ( Note that this is a vision that Zechariah saw; it is not a prophetic action that he participated in, as in Chiasmus 2 of Period 1.)

Subunit C2: The Messiah will be a righteous leader (3:6-7)

The vision of this subunit continues from the one in the corresponding Subunit C1.

Chapter 3 6 The angel of the Lord gave this charge to Joshua: 7 “This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Since you will walk in obedience to me and keep my requirements, you will govern my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you access to these standing here.

This passage is the closing statement of God's judgement in the "court case" of the Subunit C1 above. Since the Messiah will be obedient to God and His Law, he will forever reign over and be responsible for the Israel of the Millennial Reign (the "house and courts" of the temple represents the New Israel, in keeping with the metaphor of the high priest representing kingship). The king will have free access to divine assistance from God's angels ("those standing here") (see also Rev 19:14).

Subunit B2: God will reign over Israel through the Messiah (3:8-9a)

Chapter 3 8a “‘Listen, High Priest Joshua, you and your associates seated before you, who are men symbolic of things to come.

In this symbolic vision, the High Priest Joshua and "those seated before" him represent the leadership of Israel during the Millennial Reign.

• Those seated before Joshua represent the 7 leaders of Israel's political administration during the Millennial Reign.

Chapter 3 8b I am going to bring my servant, the Branch. 9a See, the stone I have set in front of Joshua! There are seven eyes on that one stone.

This passage expands on the symbolism of "Joshua" and "his seated associates" of 3:8a above, adding more symbolism:

• The Messiah, "Joshua", in this and several other passages, is called God's "Servant" (see Isaiah 52:13) for his obedience to God, and he is called the "Branch/Shoot" (Jer. 23:5, cf. Isaiah 11:1-5), because he is the shoot from a dormant root of the royal line of David (see also 2 Sam. 7:16).
• The seven political leaders, "the seated associates", are the "seven eyes" watching the "stone", indicating that they will help the Messiah rule over Israel ("stone").

We take the "stone" to be a brilliant gemstone that represents the New Israel ("this land" in 3:9b). God sets the stone in front of "Joshua and his associates" to indicate that He will place the New Israel under their control and delegate them to lead His nation.

Subunit A2: God restores Israel spiritually and physically (3:9b-10)

Chapter 3 9b1 I will engrave its inscription,’ says the Lord Almighty.

In this symbolic vision, the gemstone (of 3:9a), representing Israel, will be carved to identify its owner (it is like an intaglio or a signet); the inscription on this "stone" will indicate that Israel is God's nation. He will take control of it once more and restore it spiritually and physically, as detailed below.

Chapter 3 9b2 I will remove the sin of this land in one day.

God will reopen Israelites' hearts to His truth (He had hardened their hearts against Himself as punishment - see Isaiah 29:9,10), and He will write His law on the Israelites hearts (see Jer. 31:33), so that they stop worshipping idol gods and turn back to their God in a short time ("one day") (see Ezekiel 37:23, Isaiah 66:7,8).

Chapter 3 10 “‘In that day each of you will invite your neighbor to sit under your vine and fig tree,’ declares the Lord Almighty.”

The New Israel will enjoy an age of peace ("invite your neighbor") and prosperity ("under your vine and fig tree") during the Millennial Reign of Christ and his Messiah - the Israelites will no longer be punished for the waywardness of their forefathers (see 1 Kings 4:25, Isaiah 60:17,18, Micah 4:4).

Chiasmus 3: The Church of the Millennial Reign: The Lampstand and the Olive Trees, the Capstone of the Temple

The passage below in 4:1-14 is arranged in the form of a two-unit chiasmus:

A1 4:1-3 Communication between God and the faithful: The Lampstand and Olive Trees: Introduction
  B1 4:4-7a The Messiah builds the worldwide Church with God's help
    X 4:7b The Messiah "places the capstone" on the Church
  B2 4:8-10 The Messiah builds the worldwide Church with God's help
A2 4:11-14 Communication between God and the faithful - The Lampstand and Olive Trees


Subunit A1: Communication between God and the faithful: The Lampstand and Olive Trees: Introduction (4:1-3)

Chapter 4 1 Then the angel who talked with me returned and woke me up, like someone awakened from sleep. 2a He asked me, “What do you see?”

Zechariah is wakened again by the Archangel Michael for a new vision regarding the Church of the Millennial Reign.

Chapter 4 2b I answered, “I see a solid gold lampstand with a bowl at the top and seven lamps on it, with seven channels to the lamps. 3 Also there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left.”

Consider the physical mechanism Zechariah sees in the vision: the olive oil from the two olive trees flows into the bowl at the top of the lampstand, and this oil is then distributed by gravity from the bowl to the 7 lamps through 7 channels.

We believe that this entire structure represents the primary mechanism of communication between God and the faithful during the Millennial Age. The two 'olive trees' are two prophets of God and Christ (see subunit A2 below, see also Rev 11:3,4) and the 'oil' symbolizes spiritual wisdom from God (cf. Matt. 25:1-13). The 'lampstand' is the Church's communication structure, with the gold indicating its fidelity and purity (like the gold in the tabernacle - see Exodus 25), and the 7 'lamps' representing the Church's seven divisions (note that while Israel is politically divided into 12, the Church is divided into 7 - see Rev 1:20,2:1,5:6). The 'bowl' and 'channels' represent a broadcasting mechanism for God's word to the Church (like the 7 letters to the 7 churches in Rev 1-3).

So the wisdom ('oil') from God is passed on through his prophets ('olive trees') and then through the Church's broadcasting mechanism ('lampstand') to the Christian congregations ('lamps'); the faithful in these congregations, fuelled by this spiritual wisdom ('oil'), bring light to the world through their character and conduct (cf. Matt 5:16).

Subunit B1: The Messiah builds the worldwide Church with God's help (4:4-7a)

For this Unit B and the Pivot X, "Zerubbabel" represents the Messiah in his role as priest (the previous chiasmus was about the Messiahs role as king), and the "temple" represents the worldwide Church (note, however, that in Chiasmus 2 of Period 1, the Second Temple represented the physical Third Temple of this Period). Ironically, Zerubbabel the governor represents the Messiah's role as high priest here, while Joshua the high priest represented the Messiah as king in the previous chiasmus.

Chapter 4 4 I asked the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?” 5 Then the angel who talked with me answered and said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.” 6 So he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty. 7a “What are you, mighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become level ground.

The prophet sees some writing in his vision (as in Dan 5:5-7) and asks about it (this is not an inquiry into the meaning of the lampstand and olive trees, as that can be found in subunit A2), The angel answers that these are words from God to the Messiah ("Zerubbabel"). Exchanges like those in 4:4-5, where the guiding angel asks the prophet if he understands what he sees, are designed to call attention to the important prophecy that follows (cf. Rev 7:13-14).

The message is that God will build the worldwide Church through the work of his angels in people's hearts ("by my Spirit") - not through any kind of physical force ("Not by might nor by power"). At this time of the start of the Millennial Reign, true Christianity will grow tremendously, both in the New Israel and in the rest of the world. Christianity will also grow through the Messiah's work of publishing God's word to the world (Rev 14:6-7); the "mountain" of obstacles to the Messiah's work will be flattened so that it is as "level ground".

Pivot X: The Messiah "places the capstone" on the Church (4:7b)

Chapter 4 7b Then he will bring out the capstone to shouts of ‘God bless it! God bless it!’”

The Messiah ("Zerubbabel") completes the teaching of true Christianity to the whole world ("bring out the capstone"), to the joy of the faithful around the world (Matt 24:14). God will bless this Church throughout the Millennial Reign.

Subunit B2: The Messiah builds the worldwide Church with God's help (4:8-10)

We propose that this subunit has a parallel design. The passage in vs 8-9 is regarding the foundation and regarding the completion of the Church and so is vs 10.

Chapter 4 8 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 9a “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple; his hands will also complete it."

The Messiah ("Zerubbabel"), as the Holy Spirit, played a role in the physical foundation of the Church: he was instrumental in Christ's conception (Matthew 1:20) and he aided Christ at his First Coming from the spiritual realm (Matt 3:16). In this Period, as the high priest, he will complete the building of the Church.

Chapter 4 9b Then you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you.

When the coming Messiah (an incarnation of Archangel Michael, the speaker of this passage) completes the worldwide Church, it will be clear to the faithful of the world that the he was sent by God to be a high priest (see also 6:15).

Chapter 4 10 “Who dares despise the day of small things? The seven eyes of the Lord that range throughout the earth will rejoice when they see the chosen capstone in the hand of Zerubbabel.”

The Church had a humble beginning and was initially despised by the world (see for ex. Matt. 13:55) - the entire period of Jesus' life may be considered a "day of small things". But in this Period the 7 angels responsible for the Church (see Rev 1:20) rejoice when they see the Messiah ("Zerubabbel") getting ready to complete the building of the worldwide Church ("the capstone in Zerubabbel's hand") (Matt. 24:14, Rev 14:6).

Subunit A2: Communication between God and the faithful - The Lampstand and Olive Trees (4:11-14)

This subunit continues from the corresponding Subunit A1 above.

Chapter 4 11 Then I asked the angel, “What are these two olive trees on the right and the left of the lampstand?”
12 Again I asked him, “What are these two olive branches beside the two gold pipes that pour out golden oil?” 13 He replied, “Do you not know what these are?” “No, my lord,” I said.
14 So he said, “These are the two sons of oil who serve the Lord of all the earth.”

The two olive trees/branches are two prophets and priests that serve Christ, the "Lord of all the earth", by transmitting wisdom from God and Christ to the faithful during Millennial Reign (vs 12 is a restatement of the question of vs 11). They are called "sons of oil", because they are conduits of wisdom ("oil") from God and Christ. They will continue to serve as prophets even after the Millennial Reign, for they are the Two Witnesses of the Last Days (Rev 11:3,4). We infer the meaning of the lampstand (see Subunit A1) from this passage. Note the question and answer format of this passage that indicates its significance.

Chiasmus 4: The World is rid of Unethical Commercial Institutions: The Ephah and the Three Women

The passage below in 5:5-11 is arranged in the form of a single-unit chiasmus:

A1 5:5-6 Unethical commercial institutions will be removed and confined to "Babylonia": Introduction
    X 5:7-9 Identification of the 3 "women"
A2 5:10-11 Unethical commercial institutions will be removed and confined to "Babylonia"

Subunit A1: Unethical commercial institutions will be removed will be removed and confined to "Babylonia": Introduction (5:5-6)

Chapter 5 5 Then the angel who was speaking to me came forward and said to me, “Look up and see what is appearing.”
6 I asked, “What is it?”
He replied, “It is an ephah.” And he added, “This is their appearance in all the land.”

The Archangel Michael ("the angel who was speaking to me") shows the prophet a ephah or measuring basket, the kind that was typically used in commerce in the region ("this is their appearance in all the land"). We believe that the prophet was shown one example of many such "ephahs". We propose that this chiasmus is regarding the commerce of the world, and that an "ephah" represents an aspect of commerce.

Pivot X: Identification of the 3 "women" (5:7-9)

Chapter 5 7 Then the cover of lead was raised, and there in the ephah sat a woman! 8 He said, “This is the iniquity,” and he pushed her back into the ephah and pushed its lead cover down on it.

We propose that the "woman" in the ephah represents an iniquitous institution (a woman also represents a wicked organization in Rev. 17) that performs unethical acts in the world (for ex., one that engages in predatory lending). The Archangel Michael shows her to the prophet and identifies her as iniquitous ("this is the iniquity"); the "lead cover" hides the iniquity of this organization so that to the public the organization appears to be a legitimate organ of commerce. This ephah and the woman in it together represent a corrupt aspect of the economy. The angel then pushes the woman back in and closes the lead cover of the ephah over her so that her iniquity does not infect other "ephahs".

Chapter 5 9 Then I looked up—and there before me were two women, with the wind in their wings! They had wings like those of a stork, and they lifted up the ephah between heaven and earth.

Since a "woman" represents an organization in this vision, we propose that these two women, the ones with wings, represent two righteous organizations that are created to monitor world commerce. The "wings", centres of power on a bird, represent leaders (see Dan 7:4,6), and these organizations have powerful leaders (a "stork" has powerful wings), so that the organizations are also powerful ("wind in their wings"). These two organizations will take the iniquitous institution ("woman in the ephah") away from the world, so that the world is protected from it during the Millennial Reign.

Subunit A2: Unethical commercial institutions will be removed will be removed and confined to "Babylonia" (5:10-11)

Chapter 5 10 “Where are they taking the ephah?” I asked the angel who was speaking to me.
11 He replied, “To build her a prison in the country of Babylonia: and when it is prepared, she shall be set there in her own place.”

The two organizations ("women with wings") take the unethical institution ("ephah with the woman") to the "land" of wicked people ("Babylonia") to be "imprisoned" there (note that Satan's organization of "Babylon" will be destroyed at the start of the Millennial Reign, and this "Babylonia" is another evil group of people controlled by fallen angels). So this and other iniquitous institutions ("ephahs with iniquitous women") will only operate among the wicked of the earth, and they will not be able to infest the rest of the world with their evil.

Chiasmus 5: Satan is Defeated and Christ takes Control of the World: The Four Chariots

The passage below in 6:1-8 is arranged in the form of a single-unit chiasmus:

A1 6:1-3 "Babylon" is destroyed and Christ rules over the earth: Introduction
    X 6:4-6 Identification of the missions of the "chariots"
A2 6:7-8 "Babylon" is destroyed and Christ rules over the earth

Subunit A1: "Babylon" is destroyed and Christ rules over the earth: Introduction (6:1-3)

Chapter 6 1 I looked up again, and there before me were four chariots coming out from between the two mountains—mountains of bronze.

Since mountains signify large populations (as in Rev 17:9) and bronze represents spiritual strength (as in Rev 1:15, Dan. 7:19), we take the two "mountains of bronze" to represent the two great angelic armies of the spiritual world: those of God and Satan. Because of the presence of chariots, we presume that this vision occurs in a context of war: these angelic forces ("bronze mountains") are battling it out at the start of the Millennial Reign in a war that mirrors the earthly war between the forces of good and evil. ( Note that the 'mountain' that represents the angels of God must be twice as large as the 'mountain' of fallen angels, because only a third of the angels chose to defect with Satan - see Rev 12:4.)

Chapter 6 2 The first chariot had red horses, the second black, 3 the third white, and the fourth colorful, mottled.

In the other visions involving horses (Zech. 1:7-17, Rev. 6:1-7) "horsemen" represented angels, and so here "charioteers" represent angels ("spirits" in 6:5); the "chariot" indicates that they are warrior angels, and the "horses" represent their mode of operation.

The colours of the four sets of horses indicate their domain of operation, and we infer the meaning of the colour based on clues in this and other "horse" visions (Zech. 1:7-17, Rev. 6:2-8). We propose that:

• White represents those that wage political battles.
• Black represents those that battle over economics and commerce.
• Red is related to literal war and peace.
• Colourfully mottled represents those that battle across multiple domains.

Pivot X: Identification of the missions of the "chariots" (6:4-6)

Chapter 6 4 I asked the angel who was speaking to me, “What are these, my lord?” 5 The angel answered me, “These are four spirits of heaven, going out from standing in the presence of the Lord of the whole world.

These angels are sent into the world by Christ, the "Lord of the whole world" (cf. Rev. 11:4). The angels peel off from the spiritual battle between the two heavenly forces ("from between the two mountains") to complete their assignment on earth.

Chapter 6 6 The one with the black horses is going toward the north country, the one with the white horses goes after them, and the one with the mottled horses toward the south.”

We take the "north country" to represent Satan's land, "Babylon" (the word translated "north" can also mean "dark" or "hidden"); this 'Babylon' is an organization that is spread across the globe, so "north" here is not a literal direction (the word "north" is similarly used in 2:6). Two angels go to the "north" to defeat and destroy "Babylon": the 'black chariot' devastates it economically and the 'white chariot' destroys it politically (see Rev 18).

By extension, "south" is also not a direction, but represents everything that is not a part of the organization of 'Babylon', essentially the whole world (this idea is supported in 6:7 below). The "colourful, mottled horses" go out to bring the whole world ("south") under the control of Christ and his Messiah - they are colourful to indicate that Christ will take control of all aspects of the world with their help (Isaiah 9:7).

Since no particular direction is assigned to the "red chariot", we assume it stays in the New Israel to protect the land from attacks by hostile forces, such as Satan's Beast army (see Rev 19:19).

Subunit A2: "Babylon" is destroyed and Christ rules over the earth (6:7-8)

Chapter 6 7 When the colorful horses went out, they were eager to patrol the earth. And he said, “Go patrol the earth!” So they patrolled the earth.

After the "colourful horses" brought the world under Christ's control, they asked if they might continue patrolling the earth (outside Israel) for Christ, to ensure continued compliance, and they were given permission to do so; we take the "horses" in this case to represent the humans through which the angel worked. The nations outside Israel will be ruled by fallen angels, but this policing "chariot" will make sure that the nations are run within the parameters set by Christ.

Chapter 6 8 Then he called to me, “Look, those going toward the north country have brought me peace about the north country.”

The Archangel Michael ("angel who was speaking to me" in 6:4), the Messiah, is the speaker of this passage. The "white" and "black" angels have destroyed "Babylon" ("north country"), his most dangerous enemy, so setting the Messiah's mind at ease (see also Rev 18).

Conclusion

With this chiastic reconstruction of the text, we have shown that Zechariah 1-6 contains prophecies on three Periods. The prophecy is primarily regarding the institution of the New Israel of the Millennial Reign and the establishment of Christ's reign over the world after Satan's defeat. The prophecy also provides an insight into the workings of the spiritual world - it gives us a glimpse into the interactions between various spiritual beings in the heavenly hierarchy and the effects of their work in the physical realm. Some of the symbolism that is used in this difficult passage can also be found in the book of Revelation, and this helps corroborate our interpretations of both books.

References

[1] A Definition of Cryptochiasmus
[2] A Chiastic Reconfiguration Of "The 70 Weeks Of Daniel"
[3] A Chiastic Reconfiguration Of Revelation 4-22 Part 2
[4] A Chiastic Reconfiguration Of Micah 4 and 5
[5] A Chiastic Reconfiguration Of "The Olivet Discourse" in Matthew 24
[6] A Chiastic Reconfiguration Of Revelation 4-22 Part 3





* First version published on 7 March 2022.