Zechariah s prophetic ministry took place in the postexilic period, the time of the jewish restoration from babylonian captivity. His name, common to more than 29 old testament men, means the lord remembers. Then the prophets, haggai the prophet, and zechariah the son of iddo, prophesied unto the jews that were in judah and jerusalem in the. Zechariah is a difficult book, described as obscure by jerome translator of the latin vulgate, yet it is the most quoted section of the prophets in the passion narratives of the gospels.
Since such a large part of his book centers on eight visions which he received in one night zechariah might appropriately be. The visions resemble those in the books of daniel and ezekiel and revelation. Book of zechariah, also spelled zacharias, the 11th of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets, collected in the jewish canon in one book, the twelve. Zechariah 7 commentary james burton coffman commentaries. Zechariah s prophecies took place during the reign of darius the great, and were contemporary with haggai in a post exilic world after the fall of jerusalem in 5876 bc. Zechariah, on the other hand, experienced god through visions. The development of zechariah and its role within the twelve x this first volume focuses on the composition of zechariah. Zechariah was an existing prophet of the day with haggai and. Bible teaching online in audio, video, notes from the book of genesis by galyn wiemers of generation. But unfortunately we came to the end of that book and now we need to move on to something else. The book culminates in prophecies of the saviors mortal ministry and final return in glory. The book of zechariah teaches that salvation may be obtained by all.
Thus the author begins by drawing up suitable literary criteria that. Many commentators miss the symbolism, not knowing the symbolism of the tabernacletemple, priesthood, etc. Nonetheless, it is the book of zechariah among the minor prophets that is most often quoted in the new testament, so it was well known. Zechariah bible lesson questions for study andor discussion in the lesson the use of questions in a lesson stimulates active learning. After the start of the book in verse 1, zechariah began his book with a short speech in verses 26. Three other books should be read in connection with this study. Zechariahs ministry took place during the reign of darius the great zechariah 1. And as i prayed, a few different possibilities were in my mind. Zechariah reemphasizes that there will be internal peace among the israelites, and people will treat one another with love. We have many selections available from genesis to revelation. Brief commentary on the book of zechariah harbor bible. Grandson of the priest iddo, zechariah prophesied to the people of judah after they. The book of zechariah lacks unity in its contents, style, and.
Learn from the prophet zechariah, who too asked many questions of the interpreting angel. Zechariah overview james burton coffman commentaries on the. Zechariah 1 the staff covenant with the nations called favor was broken with the israelite leaders shepherds oppressed the people and openly hated god v. Zechariah was contemporary with haggai and also encouraged the jews to finish rebuilding the temple. Zechariah is also one of the most devotional of the prophetic books, dwelling more completely on the person and work of christ than any other of the prophetic writings. Here we see the pattern for coming to jesus and true repentance. Zechariah, like jeremiah and ezekiel was a priest as well as a prophet. Gods work is done only in the power of the holy spirit.
Zechariah gives the rest of the story, and shows how god is interested in lives, not only buildings. Since such a large part of his book centers on eight visions which he received in one night zechariah might appropriately be called the prophet of. The book of zechariah contains descriptions of visions concerning the rebuilding of jerusalem and the temple, the gathering of scattered. Many of these were interpreted for his benefit by an accompanying angel. Zechariah is a book filled with highly figurative passages that have led to wild and fanciful interpretations destructive to the soul. Study scripture verses and use highlighting, underlining, and take notes in the bible.
Questions prompt the students to reason things out for themselves which aids knowledge retention. The chief purpose of zechariah and haggai was to rebuke the people of judah and to encourage and motivate them to complete the rebuilding of the temple zec 4. Study some of the verses about babylon in the bible. Zechariah summary we have detailed a brief summary of the book of zechariah for bible study or sunday school lessons. Zechariah zechariah has been called the temple builder and the seer robinson. Study an entire book of the bible alone or in a group. The dates mentioned in the book confirm that he was a contemporary of haggai zechariah 1. Best commentaries and books on zechariah logos bible.
Study guide for zechariah 1 by david guzik blue letter bible. Thus the author begins by drawing up suitable literary criteria that will help to frame a reliable way of proceeding. The first prophecy is approximately two months after the jews again took up the task of building the postexilic temple in 520 b. Use highlighting, underlining, and take notes while you study the bible. Zechariah pictures christ in both his first coming zechariah 9. Zechariahs prophecies took place during the reign of darius the great, and were contemporary with haggai in a post exilic world after the fall of jerusalem in 5876 bc. The book of zechariah contains numerous references to the books in the hebrew canon and without proper study the mention of them can cause confusion. He also prophesied many details of the life and work of christ. The book of zechariah contains the clearest and the largest number of. The whole context of zechariah 12 puts this radical conversion in the setting of miraculous deliverance from an attack from the nations. First we look to jesus, then we mourn for our sins. The book of zechariah contains the clearest and the largest number of messianic about the messiah passages among the minor prophets. In this book, zechariahs visions foster hope in the future promise of the messianic kingdom and challenge israel after the exile to remain faithful to. Verse by verse teaching through the book of genesis.
Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. So, lets turn our attention to the 4 th chapter of that book zechariah chapter 4 well cover only the first 7 verses of this chapter today, but lets go ahead and read the whole chapter for context. The prophecy of zechariah is noted for its rich use of visions, pictures, and symbols. The critics have not to criticize much in the first part of the book chap. This chapter deals with a question from the jews at bethel about keeping a certain fast day.
Therefore, the book of zechariah is also about the prayer movement in jerusalem. His visions were relevant to getting the people to complete the second temple, but also are relevant for the last days we are living in right now. Well cover only the first 7 verses of this chapter today, but lets go ahead and read the whole chapter for context. Brief commentary on the book of zechariah the book of zechariah is called the apocalypse of the old testament. They definitely knew each other and prophesied to the same people at the same period of time. Following is a suggested outline of the book of zechariah. Zechariah is a commonly used name in the old testament and means the lord remembers, a meaning that contributes to the hope of the messiahs first and second coming prophesied in zechariahs book. Nehemiah is so called from the principal character, whose name means jehovah comforts. Gods big plan for struggling christians six studies for individuals or groups. Were going to be studying the fifth vision given to zechariah. Only chapters 18 contain the prophecies of zechariah. Librivox recording of the book of zechariah, from the american standard version. The last chapter depicts peoples from all over the world coming to worship god, who desires that all people follow him.
So, lets turn our attention to the 4th chapter of that book zechariah chapter 4. Patterson referred to this prophet as the idealist while ward branded him the enthusiast. Zechariah was contemporary with haggai, but his book is in direct contrast to haggais. Novices to bible study tend to get lost in the visions and predictions of this.
Zechariah 1 niv bible in the eighth month of the second. Zechariah probably wrote the undated part of his book chap. Bible teaching online in audio, video, notes from the book of genesis by galyn wiemers of generation word. A summary, synopsis or recap is a shortened version of the original. Outline of the book of zechariah zechariah zechariah was a prophet of a priestly lineage who had returned to jerusalem with zerubbabel that the temple of jehovah may be built cf. Hence zechariah was prophet and priest at the same time as were jeremiah and ezekiel. We can look at how the lord related to zechariah and zerubbabel, and see how he will relate to the leaders of jerusalem and those deeply involved in building houses of prayer at the end of the age.
Zechariah overview james burton coffman commentaries on. He was probably born in the babylonian empire during the 70 year exile and he returned to israel with the first caravan under zerubbabel and jeshua. Tom constables expository notes on zechariah this is also available in the net. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading zechariah reformed expository commentaries. The lord who rules over all says, turn to me, says the lord who rules over all, and i will turn to you. May 01, 2001 this book is about zechariah who was a prophet during the rebuilding of the second temple.
Zechariah chapters a call to return to the lord youtube. They are literally ages apart even though they were given to the same people at the same time. The book begins with three separate prophecies on three different dates. Generation word bible teaching ministry enjoy fast paced verse by verse teaching of scripture with exegetical insight, historical information and relevant application for your spiritual growth. Zechariah with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. An introduction to the book of zechariah an argument of the book of zechariah j. The universal tradition of both jews and christians endorses the prophet zechariah as author. Studies on zechariah takes an in depth look at the allusions used in zechariah 914 and brings to light the configuration of zechariah and to clarify how its structure has a specific form which differs from the other canonical books. Pastor paul leboutillier of calvary chapel ontario oregon teaches through the bible from the hebrew old testament book of zecharaiah.
The book of zechariah is set initially in 520 bce, some twenty years after the first jews returned from exile in babylon to the region of judah yehud. Oct 07, 20 pastor paul leboutillier of calvary chapel ontario oregon teaches through the bible from the hebrew old testament book of zecharaiah. The first is to elucidate the structure of the book of zechariah. The book of zechariah records the prophetic message of zechariah to the community that had returned to jerusalem after the babylonian exile and was charged with rebuilding the temple and city. This summary of the book of zechariah provides information about the title, author s, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of zechariah. But to do this, a satisfactory method of analysis must be found. Ministry magazine seven reasons for studying the book of.
So, for the last year and a few weeks, weve grown accustomed to turning our attention to the book of job. In this way it is much like the book of revelation or daniel which also have. Baldwin writes, even the tiny fragment of the greek manuscript found at qumran, which includes the end of chapter 8 and the beginning of chapter 9, shows no gap or spacing whatsoever to suggest a break between the two parts. Zechariah verse by verse teaching in the book of zechariah. He then is likely to have been killed by his own compatriots see 3. Zechariah reformed expository commentaries kindle edition by phillips, richard d download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Gcbi is a one year bible program designed to give students the tools and knowledge required to understand the bible and form a biblical worldview, with the goal of following jesus last command to. The occasion is the same as that of the book of haggai see background. Because he was a visionary, a lot of his words are very obscure. In that respect, its possible to think of the book of zechariah as a kind of miniature book of isaiah. By studying the book of zechariah, students can learn about the lords love for his people and his desire to cleanse and redeem them if they repent and keep their covenants.
Book of zechariah overview insight for living ministries. Apr 04, 2007 the book of zechariah records the prophetic message of zechariah to the community that had returned to jerusalem after the babylonian exile and was charged with rebuilding the temple and city. Best commentaries and books on zechariah logos bible software. In studying the book of zechariah look to the things one does understand, rejoice in them. Earlier prophets had promised a glorious restoration of the nation e. Zechariah prophecy study introduction messianic literary.
The book of zechariah, attributed to the hebrew prophet zechariah, is included in the twelve minor prophets in the hebrew bible. For those studying or teaching zechariah, these lectures are virtually a necessary resource. Three months later two months to the day after the foundation of the temple was again laid. Do not permit the difficult parts to blind you to the great passages of comfort and assurance that are given in his prophecy. But the physical return was meant to prompt a spiritual and theological return to faith in the lord. Except for the apocalyptic sections the eight night visions, its basic language and style are simple and direct. The security of the jews and the destruction of their enemies. In addition the canonical history of the book of zechariah has always included all fourteen chapters in the book.