American King James Version - AKJV - 1999
Zechariah 4
1
And the angel that talked with me came again, and waked me, as a man that is wakened out of his sleep.
Reference
2
And said to me, What see you? And I said, I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl on the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are on the top thereof:
Reference
3
And two olive trees by it, one on the right side of the bowl, and the other on the left side thereof.
Reference
4
So I answered and spoke to the angel that talked with me, saying, What are these, my lord?
Reference
5
Then the angel that talked with me answered and said to me, Know you not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.
Reference
References Lord
Zechariah 4:13
6
Then he answered and spoke to me, saying, This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, said the LORD of hosts.
Reference
Parallel theme
Psalm 33:16
Ezra 5:2
References Lord
2 Chronicles 14:11
Spirit
Isaiah 32:15
Isaiah 30:1
Numbers 27:16
1 Peter 1:12
Word
Hosea 1:7
7
Who are you, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace to it.
Reference
8
Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
9
The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you.
Reference
Parallel theme
Ezra 5:16
10
For who has despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth.
Reference
Parallel theme
Job 8:7
Haggai 2:3
Revelation 5:6
Proverbs 4:18
Isaiah 66:11
Revelation 8:2
References Lord
2 Chronicles 16:9
Proverbs 15:3
Zechariah 3:9
Isaiah 66:14
11
Then answered I, and said to him, What are these two olive trees on the right side of the candlestick and on the left side thereof?
Reference
12
And I answered again, and said to him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves?
Reference
13
And he answered me and said, Know you not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.
Reference
References Lord
Zechariah 4:5
Summary of Zechariah 4
Zechariah 4 presents a vision designed to encourage Zerubbabel and the returned Jewish community to continue rebuilding the Temple, assuring them that the work will succeed not because Judah possesses great military or political strength but because God's Spirit is actively providing everything necessary for His purposes to be completed.
The chapter begins with Zechariah being awakened by the interpreting angel so that he can receive another important vision.
He sees a golden lampstand with seven lamps and an elaborate system for supplying oil, accompanied by two olive trees standing beside it.
The picture emphasizes continuous provision.
The lamps do not appear to depend upon an ordinary human effort to keep supplying oil.
Instead, the oil flows from the olive trees through a system that keeps the light burning.
Zechariah does not understand what he is seeing, so he asks the angel for an explanation.
The answer reveals the central message of the chapter.
God tells Zerubbabel that the Temple will not be completed through human strength or military power but through God's Spirit.
This is especially meaningful because Zerubbabel was governing a small and relatively weak Persian province, while the Temple project had already experienced discouragement and delays.
The community could easily have concluded that its limited resources made completion impossible.
God's message directly challenges that conclusion.
The obstacles before Zerubbabel are compared with a great mountain, yet God declares that the mountain will become level ground.
What appears impossible from a human perspective will become possible because God is directing the work.
The promise is not merely that construction will continue.
God specifically declares that the same hands that laid the Temple's foundation will also complete it.
This gives Zerubbabel personal assurance that the work he began will not remain unfinished.
The chapter then addresses another source of discouragement: the modest appearance of the project.
The people are told not to despise the day of small beginnings.
The rebuilt Temple may not initially resemble the glory associated with Solomon's Temple, but God does not measure the significance of His work according to human impressions of size, wealth, or appearance.
The important question is whether the work is accomplishing God's purpose.
The seven eyes of the Lord symbolize His complete awareness of the earth, showing that nothing happening to the rebuilding community is hidden from Him.
Zechariah then returns to the two olive trees and repeatedly asks what they represent.
The angel finally explains that they are the two anointed ones who stand beside the Lord of the whole earth.
In the immediate historical setting, this points to the two principal leaders of the restored community: Zerubbabel, the governor, and Joshua, the high priest.
Together they represent the civil and priestly leadership through which the restoration of Judah is being carried forward.
The central message is that Zechariah 4 teaches that God's purposes do not depend upon human strength, political power, financial resources, or impressive beginnings, because the rebuilding of the Temple will succeed through God's Spirit and because He will remove the obstacles standing before His people.
The chapter also encourages people not to despise small beginnings, because work that appears modest or insignificant at first can still become part of something much greater when God is directing it, and the continuous supply of oil for the lampstand provides a powerful picture of God's ongoing provision for the leaders and community He has called to accomplish His purposes.
The chapter begins with Zechariah being awakened by the interpreting angel so that he can receive another important vision.
He sees a golden lampstand with seven lamps and an elaborate system for supplying oil, accompanied by two olive trees standing beside it.
The picture emphasizes continuous provision.
The lamps do not appear to depend upon an ordinary human effort to keep supplying oil.
Instead, the oil flows from the olive trees through a system that keeps the light burning.
Zechariah does not understand what he is seeing, so he asks the angel for an explanation.
The answer reveals the central message of the chapter.
God tells Zerubbabel that the Temple will not be completed through human strength or military power but through God's Spirit.
This is especially meaningful because Zerubbabel was governing a small and relatively weak Persian province, while the Temple project had already experienced discouragement and delays.
The community could easily have concluded that its limited resources made completion impossible.
God's message directly challenges that conclusion.
The obstacles before Zerubbabel are compared with a great mountain, yet God declares that the mountain will become level ground.
What appears impossible from a human perspective will become possible because God is directing the work.
The promise is not merely that construction will continue.
God specifically declares that the same hands that laid the Temple's foundation will also complete it.
This gives Zerubbabel personal assurance that the work he began will not remain unfinished.
The chapter then addresses another source of discouragement: the modest appearance of the project.
The people are told not to despise the day of small beginnings.
The rebuilt Temple may not initially resemble the glory associated with Solomon's Temple, but God does not measure the significance of His work according to human impressions of size, wealth, or appearance.
The important question is whether the work is accomplishing God's purpose.
The seven eyes of the Lord symbolize His complete awareness of the earth, showing that nothing happening to the rebuilding community is hidden from Him.
Zechariah then returns to the two olive trees and repeatedly asks what they represent.
The angel finally explains that they are the two anointed ones who stand beside the Lord of the whole earth.
In the immediate historical setting, this points to the two principal leaders of the restored community: Zerubbabel, the governor, and Joshua, the high priest.
Together they represent the civil and priestly leadership through which the restoration of Judah is being carried forward.
The central message is that Zechariah 4 teaches that God's purposes do not depend upon human strength, political power, financial resources, or impressive beginnings, because the rebuilding of the Temple will succeed through God's Spirit and because He will remove the obstacles standing before His people.
The chapter also encourages people not to despise small beginnings, because work that appears modest or insignificant at first can still become part of something much greater when God is directing it, and the continuous supply of oil for the lampstand provides a powerful picture of God's ongoing provision for the leaders and community He has called to accomplish His purposes.