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Scott's Reference Library
Zechariah 1:7 through Zechariah 1:17 (NIV)
7On 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.
8During the night I had a vision—and there before me was a man riding a red
horse! He was standing among the myrtle trees in a ravine. Behind him were red,
brown and white horses.
9I asked, “What are these, my lord?”
The angel who was talking with me answered, “I will show you what they are.”
10Then the man standing among the myrtle trees explained, “They are the ones the
LORD has sent to go throughout the earth.”
11And they reported to the angel of the LORD, who was standing among the myrtle
trees, “We have gone throughout the earth and found the whole world at rest and
in peace.”
12Then 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?” 13So the LORD spoke kind and comforting words to the angel
who talked with me.
14Then 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, 15but I am
very angry with the nations that feel secure. I was only a little angry, but
they added to the calamity.’
16“Therefore, 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.’”
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
The prophet saw a dark, shady grove, hidden by hills. This represented the
low, melancholy condition of the Jewish church. A man like a warrior sat on a
red horse, in the midst of this shady myrtle-grove. Though the church was in a
low condition, Christ was present in the midst, ready to appear for the relief
of his people. Behind him were angels ready to be employed by him, some in acts
of judgment, others of mercy, others in mixed events. Would we know something of
the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, we must apply, not to angels, for they
are themselves learners, but to Christ himself. He is ready to teach those
humbly desirous to learn the things of God. The nations near Judea enjoyed peace
at that time, but the state of the Jews was unsettled, which gave rise to the
pleading that followed; but mercy must only be hoped for through Christ. His
intercession for his church prevails. The Lord answered the Angel, this Angel of
the covenant, with promises of mercy and deliverance. All the good words and
comfortable words of the gospel we receive from Jesus Christ, as he received
them from the Father, in answer to the prayer of his blood; and his ministers
are to preach them to all the world. The earth sat still, and was at rest. It is
not uncommon for the enemies of God to be at rest in sin, while his people are
enduring correction, harassed by temptation, disquieted by fears of wrath, or
groaning under oppression and persecution. Here are predictions which had
reference to the revival of the Jews after the captivity, but those events were
shadows of what shall take place in the church, after the oppression of the New
Testament Babylon is ended.