Zechariah prophesied in Jerusalem in the same year as Haggai, about eighteen years after the first exiles returned. The temple foundation had been laid and abandoned. The people were few, poor and discouraged. Zechariah came from a priestly family, and Nehemiah lists him among its heads, perhaps a young man when he began.
In one night God gave him eight visions: horsemen among myrtle trees, a man measuring Jerusalem, the high priest given clean clothes, a golden lampstand fed by two olive trees. The message was that God had not forgotten them. Then came words that the Gospels would quote again and again: a humble king riding on a donkey, thirty pieces of silver, a shepherd struck and his sheep scattered, and a people who look on the one they pierced.
“
Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts.
Name means
“The LORD remembers”
Home
Jerusalem, after the return from Babylon
Role
Prophet and priest after the exile
Read in
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Zechariah's story
The lampstand and the olive trees
Beginning
Return to me
His first word: return to me, and I will return to you.
High point
Night visions
Eight visions in one night show God's care for Jerusalem.
High point
Not by might
God's Spirit, not human strength, will finish the temple.
High point
Your king is coming
A righteous, humble king riding on a donkey.
Ending
The one they pierced
Grief for the pierced one, and a fountain opened for sin.
Starts as a young priest among discouraged returnees. Ends as the prophet who saw the coming king most clearly.
Where Zechariah lived and went
Only places Scripture records. Softer, dotted pins are traditional or uncertain sites. Tap a pin for the passage.
HomeMinistryKey momentTraditional or uncertainPinch or use + to zoom. Tap a cluster to spread it out.
Zechariah's ministry was in Jerusalem.
How Zechariah is wired
Why there's no type here
Zechariah's book is almost all visions and oracles, with almost nothing about the man himself, so a type would be guesswork.
Strengths & struggles
What's good in Zechariah
Encouraged the builders to finish the temple (). Called the people back to God first (). Held out far-reaching hope ().
Where Zechariah struggles
Scripture records nothing of his failings.
What Zechariah wanted most
For the people to return to God, so he would return to them ().
Zechariah saw a humble king on a donkey. Five centuries later, Jesus rode one into Jerusalem.
Matthew and John both quote when Jesus rides into Jerusalem (; ). The thirty pieces of silver (; ), the struck shepherd (; ) and the pierced one (; ) all point to him. No prophet saw Holy Week more clearly.
Questions to sit with
1
Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit. What are you trying to do by your own strength?
2
Zechariah's name means the LORD remembers. Where do you need to hear that God has not forgotten you?
Study Zechariah with your group
Ready-to-lead group studies with discussion questions and a leader's note are on the way.
