Christian Standard Bible
Zechariah 1:20
20Then the Lord showed me four craftsmen.
Zechariah 1:20 in other versions
Context of Zechariah 1:20
18Then I looked up and saw four horns. 19So I asked the angel who was speaking with me, “What are these?” And he said to me, “These are the horns that scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.” Then the Lord showed me four craftsmen. 21I asked, “What are they coming to do?” He replied, “These are the horns that scattered Judah so no one could raise his head. These craftsmen have come to terrify them, to cut off the horns of the nations that raised a horn against the land of Judah to scatter it.”
Read all of Zechariah 1Zechariah 1:20 word by word
וַיַּרְאֵ֣נִי יְהוָ֔ה אַרְבָּעָ֖ה חָרָשִֽׁים׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Zechariah 1:20
- Zechariah 9:12Return to a stronghold, you prisoners who have hope; today I declare that I will restore double to you.
- Zechariah 10:3My anger burns against the shepherds, so I will punish the leaders. For the Lord of Armies has tended his flock, the house of Judah; he will make them like his majestic steed in battle.
- Zechariah 12:2“Look, I will make Jerusalem a cup that causes staggering for the peoples who surround the city. The siege against Jerusalem will also involve Judah.
- Deuteronomy 33:25May the bolts of your gate be iron and bronze, and your strength last as long as you live.
- Judges 11:16But when they came from Egypt, Israel traveled through the wilderness to the Red Sea and came to Kadesh.
- 1 Samuel 12:11So the Lord sent Jerubbaal, Barak, Jephthah, and Samuel. He rescued you from the power of the enemies around you, and you lived securely.
- Nehemiah 9:27So you handed them over to their enemies, who oppressed them. In their time of distress, they cried out to you, and you heard from heaven. In your abundant compassion you gave them deliverers, who rescued them from the power of their enemies.
- Isaiah 54:15If anyone attacks you, it is not from me; whoever attacks you will fall before you.
- Obadiah 1:21Saviors will ascend Mount Zion to rule over the hill country of Esau, and the kingdom will be the Lord’s.
- Micah 5:5He will be their peace. When Assyria invades our land, when it marches against our fortresses, we will raise against it seven shepherds, even eight leaders of men.
Commentaries on Zechariah 1:20
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 20Four carpenters - Four other powers, who should defeat the powers intended by the horns. These are the same as the four chariots mentioned Zechariah 6:1-3, Zechariah 6:6, Zechariah 6:7. The first was Nabopolassar, father of Nebuchadnezzar, who overturned the empire of the Assyrians. The second was Cyrus, who destroyed the empire of the Chaldeans. The third was Alexander the Great, who destroyed the empire of the Persians. And the fourth was Ptolemy, who…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 18-21Verses 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 safety of every good man, and the success of every good work; but the Lord showed him four workmen empowered to cut off these horns. With an eye of sense we see the power of the enemies of the church; look which way we will, the world shows us that; but…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 20The word translated as blacksmiths could refer to any type of craftsman, such as a mason, carpenter, or smith. If the horns representing the nations were metal (see 1 Kings 22:11), then blacksmiths were suitable for the task of destroying them (see 2 Chronicles 24:12; Isaiah 44:12).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2020. four carpenters--or "artificers." The several instrumentalities employed, or to be employed, in crushing the "Gentile" powers which "scattered" Judah, are hereby referred to. For every one of the four horns there was a cleaving "artificer" to beat it down. For every enemy of God's people, God has provided a counteracting power adequate to destroy it.Read the comment
Topics related to Zechariah 1:20
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Zechariah 1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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