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The ESV Global Study Bible's Study Notes

Zechariah 1:18-21

ZECHARIAH—NOTE ON Zechariah 1:18 The second vision describes four horns. “Four” symbolizes all the world powers responsible for exiling Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem. These nations had scattered God’s people for their sins, just as the covenant curse of Leviticus 26:33 had warned. Those who fought against Judah will now be brought down by four craftsmen, another group of nations. The Abrahamic covenant promise to curse those who dishonor Abraham and his offspring (Genesis 12:3) is still in force.

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See also Zechariah 1:18-21 in other biblical comments:

  • Adam Clarke Bible Commentary

    Verse 18. _AND BEHOLD FOUR HORNS._] Denoting _four powers_ by which the Jews had been oppressed; the _Assyrians, Persians, Chaldeans_, and _Egyptians_. Or these enemies may be termed _four_, in refere...

  • Albert Barnes' Bible Commentary

    AND I LIFTED UP MINE EYES - o. Cyril on Zechariah 2:1 : “Not those of the body (for such visions are invisible to the eyes of the flesh), but rather the inner eyes of the heart and mind.” It seems as...

  • Annotated Bible by A.C. Gaebelein

    ANALYSIS AND ANNOTATIONS 1. THE NIGHT VISIONS CHAPTER 1 _ 1. The introduction (Zechariah 1:1) _ 2. The first night vision (Zechariah 1:7) 3. The second night vision (Zechariah 1:18)...

  • Arthur Peake's Commentary on the Bible

    The four horns which have scattered Judah and Jerusalem (Israel should probably be omitted) represent the whole world arrayed against Judah, and are perhaps iron horns like those made by Zedekiah (1 K...

  • Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes

    FOUR HORNS: "horns" being put by Figure of speech _Metonymy_ (of Adjunct), App-6, for the Gentile (Zechariah 1:21) powers signified by thorn....

  • Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

    _four horns_ The horn is a symbol of honour (1 Samuel 2:1; Job 16:15), and of power (Jeremiah 48:25; Amos 6:13). Here the latter idea is prominent. By the fo

  • Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible

    BEHOLD, FOUR HORNS— In this second vision, under the emblem of four horns, is represented, that God, by such agents as he would appoint, would quell and bring down all those powers which had risen, or...

  • College Press Bible Study Textbook Series

    CHAPTER XXVIII A VISION OF FOUR HORNS AND SMITHS Zechariah 1:18-21 RV. And I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, four horns. And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What are these? And...

  • Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

    Then lifted I up mine eyes, and saw, and behold four horns. The power of the Jews' foes shall be dissipated. Verse 18. BEHOLD, FOUR HORNS. To a pastoral people like the Jews the horns of the stron...

  • Darby's translation notes (1890)

    1:18 (d-0) In the Hebrew, ch. 2 begins here....

  • Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible

    LESSONS FROM THE PAST. THE FIRST AND SECOND VISIONS 1-6. The Prophet's message. He calls the people to repentance. 8-17. The First Vision: The Divine Messengers ever watching over the affairs of the...

  • Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible

    FOUR HORNS] Vain efforts have been made to identify these with four nations or races, who at one time or another were Israel's oppressors, e.g. Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia. A more likely suggestio...

  • EasyEnglish Bible Commentaries

    GOD REMEMBERS HIS PROMISES ZECHARIAH _GORDON CHURCHYARD_ ‘The *prophet (Zechariah) said that these events would happen. And these events did happen.’ (Matthew 21:4) (A *prophet tells people what G...

  • Ellicott's Commentary On The Whole Bible

    A SERIES OF SEVEN VISIONS. Zechariah 1:7 to Zechariah 6:15. Between the commencement of Zechariah’s prophetic labours and the incidents recorded in Zechariah 1:7 to...

  • Ellicott's Commentary On The Whole Bible

    SECOND VISION. — THE FOUR HORNS AND THE FOUR SMITHS (ZECHARIAH 1:18). (18) HORNS. — The horn is a symbol of power and hostility. The “four horns” denote the heathen nations which had oppressed them....

  • ETCBC data on Hebrew bible

    _[Zechariah 2:1]_ וָ אֶשָּׂ֥א אֶת ־עֵינַ֖י וָ...

  • Expositor's Bible Commentary (Nicoll)

    THE VISIONS OF ZECHARIAH Zechariah 1:7; Zechariah 2:1; Zechariah 3:1; Zechariah 4:1;...

  • Frederick Brotherton Meyer's Commentary

    THE REDEMPTION OF JERUSALEM Zechariah 1:18-21; Zechariah 2:1-13 The work of Temple-building had ceased for fifteen years and the new resolve to arise and build might meet with a similar fate. But the...

  • G. Campbell Morgan's Exposition on the Whole Bible

    About a month after Haggai's second message, in which he had encouraged the people who were in danger of being disheartened by the memory of the past, Zechariah uttered his first prophetic word. He ga...

  • Geneva Study Bible Commentary

    Then I lifted up my eyes, and saw, and behold (r) four horns. (r) Which signifies all the enemies of the Church: east, west, north, and south....

  • George Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary

    Four horns,...four smiths. The four horns represent the empires, or kingdoms, that persecute and oppress the people of God: the four smiths or carpenters (for faber may signify either) represent those...

  • Hawker's Poor man's commentary

    "Then lifted I up mine eyes, and saw, and behold four horns. (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, Isra...

  • Introductory Lectures - Commentary by William Kelly

    Lectures on the Minor Prophets. W. Kelly. Zechariah was plainly a contemporary of Haggai. Like him he dates his prophecies from the second imperial power of the Gentiles; but he goes a great deal far...

  • John Calvin's Bible Commentary

    Now follows another vision, by which God confirms what he had before testified to his Prophet. He then says, that though enemies should on every side rise up against the Church and cause it many troub...

  • John Darby's Synopsis

    The Spirit of God begins with an exhortation, founded on the proofs that the history of the people supplied of the manner in which the word of the prophets had taken hold of them. Jehovah's displeasur...

  • John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

    THEN I LIFTED UP MINE EYES,.... To behold another vision which follows: AND SAW, AND BEHOLD FOUR HORNS; either iron ones, such as Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made to push the Syrians with, 1 Kings...

  • John Trapp Complete Commentary

    Then lifted I up mine eyes, and saw, and behold four horns. Ver. 18. _Then I lift up mine eyes, and saw_] That is, I gave good heed to this second vision also; which was added purposely for confirmat...

  • Joseph Benson’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

    _Then, behold, four horns_ Horns often signify the power of princes or people, the metaphor being taken from those cattle whose strength lies in their horns. The horns here mentioned denote the powers...

  • Kretzmann's Popular Commentary of the Bible

    THE VISION OF THE FOUR HORNS AND THE FOUR SMITHS...

  • Kretzmann's Popular Commentary of the Bible

    Then, after the first vision had fully come to an end, LIFTED I UP MINE EYES AND SAW, in a second distinct vision, AND BEHOLD FOUR HORNS, the common Scriptural symbol of strength....

  • Leslie M. Grant's Commentary on the Bible

    GOD'S CALL TO RETURN TO HIM (vv. 1-6) Zechariah's name means "Jehovah remembers." He was the son of Berechiah ("Jehovah blesses") who was the son of Iddo ("the appointed time"). Israel had long been...

  • Matthew Henry Commentary on the Whole Bible

    18-21 The enemies of the church threaten to cut off the name of Israel. They are horns, emblems of power, strength, and violence. The prophet saw them so formidable that he began to despair of the sa...

  • Matthew Poole's Concise Commentary On The Bible

    THEN; after I had seen those things, and heard those comfortable words, and received commission to publish all the good news I had heard. I LIFTED UP MINE EYES: he was so intent before, that he looked...

  • Patchworkid's Personal Study Bible Notes

    Zechariah 1:18 raised H5375 (H8799) eyes H5869 looked H7200 (H8799) four H702 horns H7161 lifted -...

  • Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible

    THE SECOND VISION. THE VISION OF THE HORNS AND THE SMITHS (ZECHARIAH 1:18). God will now pare back the horns that have been directed at Jerusalem. The message is that although Israel and Judah have b...

  • Scofield's Bible Commentary

    HORN A "horn" is the symbol of a Gentile king (Daniel 7:24); (Revelation 17:12) and the vision is of the four world empires; (Daniel 2:36); ...

  • Sermon Bible Commentary

    Zechariah 1:18 I. As physical emblems of force, horns are in the prophetic visions representative of earthly powers or kingdoms. The number four, in its prophetic acceptation, is the signature of the...

  • Summarized Bible Commentary

    CONTENTS: Zechariah's symbolic visions, warning of Jehovah's dispreasure with the nations. CHARACTERS: God, Darius, Zechariah. CONCLUSION: The judgments of God which those who went before us were un...

  • Sutcliffe's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

    Zechariah 1:1. _Zechariah;_ that is, the memory of God; a name which might seem prophetic, for the Lord remembered his people while yet in Babylon. He was contemporary with Haggai, and acted in concer...

  • The Biblical Illustrator

    _Behold four horns _ THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH’S ENEMIES Three things there are which this age of ours hath brought forth: malignant enemies, special instruments of their ruin, and great endeavours...

  • The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary

    CRITICAL NOTES.] ZECHARIAH 1:16. RETURNED] to Jerusalem, from whom God had withdrawn. LINE] All obstacles removed, the temple completed, and the whole city shall be regular in shape, and exact in its...

  • The Pulpit Commentaries

    EXPOSITION VERSE 1-6:15 Part I. A SERIES OF EIGHT VISIONS, AND A SYMBOLICAL ACTION. ZECHARIAH 1:1 § 1. _Title of the book, and author. _THE EIGHTH MONTH. This was called Bul before the Captivit

  • Through The Bible C2000 Serie by Chuck Smith

    Shall we tonight now get into our study in the book of Zechariah beginning with chapter 1. Now if you remember when we studied the book of Haggai last week, Haggai was dating his prophesies in the sec...

  • Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

    2 Kings 15:29; 2 Kings 17:1; 2 Kings 18:9; 2 Kings 25:30; Dan

  • Wells of Living Water Commentary

    THE MAN AMONG THE MYRTLE TREES Zechariah 1:1 INTRODUCTORY WORDS The visions have to do primarily with God's dealings with His chosen people Israel. They will, however, be full of lessons for the sai...

  • Wesley's Explanatory Notes

    Four horns — Emblems of the enemies of the Jews....

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