1:3 "Thus saith the Lord of Hosts (Angels); Turn ye unto Me, saith the Lord of Hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the Lord of Hosts". The triple repetition of "Lord of Hosts" clearly points towards the Angels. 'Turning' back to God has the implication of patching up a marriage: "If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man's, shall he return unto her again?. . . yet return again unto Me, saith the Lord" (Jer. 3:1). This is similar to Jer. 31:32 and Mal. 2:14, where again in an Angelic context God, through the Angel, implies He would be justified in divorcing Israel. Mal. 3:7 seems a parallel passage : "Even from the days of your fathers (cp. Zech. 1:2,4,5) ye re gone away from Mine ordinances (given by an Angel), and have not kept them. Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord of Hosts" (Angels).
1:8-11 "A man riding upon a red horse, and he stood among the myrtle trees"- defined in v. 10,11 as an Angel: "O my Lord, What are these? And the Angel that talked with me said. . . they answered the Angel of the Lord that stood among the myrtle trees". The red, speckled and white horses behind him (1:8; 6:2-7) would therefore also appear to be ridden by Angels- indeed they are called "the four spirits (Angels; Ps. 104:4) of the Heavens" in 6:5. See on 6:5
1:11 to and fro- see on Job 1:7
1:11- see on Jer. 25:11
Zech. 1:11 describes the Angels as walking "to and fro through the earth (Heb. 'eretz'- the land, of Israel), and behold, all the earth (land) sitteth still and is at rest". "They are the eyes (Angels) of the LORD which run to and fro through the whole earth" (Zech. 4:10). It may even be that the satan Angel of Job was walking to and fro through the land of Israel (going up and down in the "earth"- land) rather than through the whole planet, inspecting the true worshippers (who would only have been located in the area around Israel in all probability). See on Dt. 11:12
Angels pray for more knowledge. They "earnestly desire to look into" spiritual things and seek for signs of the times as much as we do- e. g. "The Angel of the Lord answered and said, O LORD of Hosts (recognizing God's control of the Angels), how long wilt Thou not have mercy on Jerusalem. . ?" (Zech. 1:12). If we are to made like Angels, this opens up a window into what the nature of eternity will be like.
In Zech. 1:12 “the angel of the Lord” asks Yahweh of hosts “how long wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem…?”. Surely the Angel was representing those of God’s people such as Ezra who were asking God “how long?”. And in response to that, the Angel seeks to persuade other Angels [“Yahweh of hosts”] to act. See on Dan. 8:15. "The Angel of the Lord answered and said, O Lord of Hosts, how long wilt Thou not have mercy on Jerusalem"- an Angel praying 'O God of us Angels. . '? Or one Angel asking another Angel? Angels have the same problems grappling with time periods as we do!
1: 13 "And the Lord (of Hosts) answered the Angel that talked with me with good words and comfortable words". There is a highly significant connection here with Is. 40, the start of Isaiah's prophecies concerning the restoration. Nehemiah means 'Comfort of Yah'; 'Nehemiah ye, Nehemiah ye My people'. The Angel spoke comfort to Jerusalem through the words and work of Nehemiah.
1:14 "Thus saith the Lord of Hosts; I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion (the temple) with a great jealousy". "Jealous" being the same Hebrew word translated "zealous", we see the tremendous zeal of the Angels for the restoration. Hence the ability of Ezra and Zerubbabel to achieve so much, seeing that they worked with the Angel. The pathetic, half hearted response of the Jews due to their obsession with materialism as decried by Haggai, Malachi, Ezra and Nehemiah must have been so 'frustrating' for the Angels, who were willing to provide so much power and success for those who would whole-heartedly commit themselves to the work. How many similarities with the new Israel?
1:16 "I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies: My house shall be built in it, saith the Lord of Hosts, and a line shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem". As the Jews literally returned to Jerusalem, the Angel too physically returned to "My house"- where He used to live. To some limited degree the Angel must have literally been in the temple- as Ez. 40 prophesied would happen. However, in the same way as the temple described by Ezekiel was not built on the scale intended by the Angels because of Israel's apathy, so maybe the Angelic presence too was greatly diminished to what it could have been. The presence of the temple Angel in Lk. 1 indicates that He was there to some degree. The Lord of Hosts stretched the line upon Jerusalem by the Angel surveying and measuring Jerusalem as described in Zech. 2, Rev. 11 and Ez. 40-47.
The exact dimensions of the temple given in Ezekiel recall Zech. 1:16 and 2:11, where the Angel accurately measures Jerusalem in preparation for the rebuilding of the temple. In the same way as it is possible to argue that Christ's second coming in AD70 was described in detail but was postponed to the last days because of Israel's lack of spiritual response, it may be that Ezekiel's visions of the temple were what should have been achieved during the restoration, but were re-interpreted and reapplied in later fulfillment.
1:18,19 "Four horns. . . which have scattered Judah, Israel and Jerusalem". The number four is associated with the four cherubim Angels- the four types of Angel-controlled punishment explained elsewhere in these studies.
The four horns of Zech. 1:19 would equate with the four living creatures of the cherubim and also of Daniel, and therefore the four nations of Dan. 2. Dan. 8:8 provides an example of these links: "When he was strong, the great horn was broken (see the link between horns and the cherubim- Angels in Hab. 3:3-5; the Angel behind Alexander); and for it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of Heaven". This would therefore describe the division of Alexander's Kingdom between four Angels- the "notable ones" or "winds", each of whom controlled one of Alexander's succeeding generals. His Kingdom was "divided toward the four winds of Heaven" (Dan. 11:4)- the Kingdom was not literally scattered throughout the world, but divided to four Angel-winds.
1:20,21 "Four carpenters. . . are come to fray them (the four horns), to cast out the horns of the Gentiles, which lifted up their horn over the land of Judah to scatter it". The four carpenter Angels "frayed" the horn Angels which had scattered Israel. For another example of Angels casting out other Angels from a previous position, see 'Angels and the ending of the Law' in Chapter 12. The Hebrew for 'fray' means 'to hasten (with anxiety), to frighten'. Thus one group of Angels hastens the fulfilment of other Angels' work; hence in v. 12 an Angel prayed to the Lord of Hosts (Angels) encouraging them to end their indignation because the 70 years were ended. Similarly the Comforter Angel says that Jerusalem has "received of the Lord's hand (Angel) double (i. e. too much?) for all her sins" (Is. 40:2), and that her warfare ('appointed time') has ended, or expired. The phrase "appointed time" is the same word translated "host", used concerning the Angels, thus indicating that the period of the captivity was under Angelic control. Thus Dan. 10:1 also points out that "the time appointed was long"- implying too long, seeing that "the thing was true"?. This helps us to explain Angels being in some ways in opposition to each other in Daniel, e. g. the Angel prince of Persia withstanding another Angel in His action because of the need to execute a certain time period first.
In chapter 2 an Angel begins to prepare judgements on Jerusalem, but is interrupted by another Angel who describes God's plan to restore Jerusalem, and quickly corrects the impression made on Zechariah by the first Angel. 2:1 "A man with a measuring line"- the Angel of 1:16; cp. Ez. 40:3; 47:3; Rev. 21:15-17 and the idea of "the measure of a man, that is an Angel". Measuring is a figure of judgement- e. g. "judge not. . . for with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you" (Mt. 7:12); "shall I come unto you with a (measuring) rod?" (i. e. in judgement- 1 Cor. 4:21). 2:3 continues: "The Angel (i. e. the one doing the measuring) that talked with me went forth, and another Angel went out to meet him, and said unto him, Run (i. e. run back), speak to this young man (the observing Zechariah), saying, Jerusalem shall yet be inhabited".
2:3 See on Is. 37:36
2:5 especially has reference to the Angels' part in the restoration: "I, saith the Lord, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and will be the glory in the midst of her". As the Angel had been a pillar of protecting fire to Israel previously, He would be to them instead of a physical wall as they started rebuilding Jerusalem amidst great opposition, with no physical wall to protect them.
The Angelic language continues: "Thus saith the Lord of Hosts (Angels). . . I will come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee" (2:8,10)- i. e. the Angel would physically return to Jerusalem (the temple? In which case this has yet to be fulfilled). The primary fulfilment of this was in the return from Babylon- the Angel led them back across the deserts, physically moving with them, to enter Jerusalem. This would explain the restoration from Babylon in terms of the wilderness journey and the Angel's guidance of them then- because this very same Angel was involved in leading them through a different wilderness, back to Israel.
The Angels are especially sensitive to affairs relating to Israel. The Angel-eyes of the Lord are ever upon the land of Israel. God likens those who oppress Israel to someone touching His eyeball ("the apple of Mine eye", Zech. 2:8). The Angels as God's eyes are thus very sensitive to Israel's natural and spiritual state.
A theme of Zechariah's early prophecies is the opposition between groups of people, individuals or Angels who want to rebuild the temple and restore Israel, and adversaries to them. Thus in chapter 1 there are the carpenters opposed to the horns, and the Angel who wants to measure (judge) Jerusalem being countermanded by the Angel who decrees that Jerusalem is to be inhabited in chapter 2. This is continued in chapter 3:1 by the vision of Joshua and satan standing before the Angel. It is suggested that this 'satan' is an Angel (we are familiar with satan Angels from 1 Chron. 21:1 and Num. 22:22 at least); this is because groups of people, even evil ones, have their viewpoint represented or brought to the notice of the court of Heaven by a satan Angel- a 'devil's advocate', as it were! The satan Angel "resists" the Angel representing Joshua. The resisting was during the 21 year period when the temple rebuilding was suspended (Ezra 4:24). This corresponds to the 21 days (years), during which the Angel prince of Persia resisted Gabriel's work of rebuilding (Dan. 10:13). Taking this further, this 21 day-year period is the same as the three weeks (21 days) which Daniel spent praying for the rebuilding to commence. Somehow the period Daniel spent praying was over-ruled; there is a sense of time in the court of Heaven, and probably will be in the Kingdom too (e. g. Zech. 14:16). His prayer was answered from the first day he prayed (Dan. 10:12), but despite one Angel being eager to answer it, another opposed it.
3:1 "And He shewed me Joshua the high priest standing before the Angel of the Lord, and satan standing at His right hand to resist him". The prayers offered by Joshua the high priest came before the Angel to whom all prayers go initially, in the form of an Angel presenting his case; whilst the satan Angel opposed Him. He was a satan by reason of representing the Samaritan opposition. In our notes on Jer. 24:1 we suggested that the two baskets of figs placed before the Angel in the temple laid the basis for this vision. The baskets represented the faithful and apostate Jews. The Joshua Angel would have represented the faithful Jews eager to rebuild Jerusalem, whilst the satan Angel would represent the apostates whose very existence militated against God answering the prayers of the rest of Israel. Does the same principle apply to Israel after the spirit- that the apostasy and apathy of some hinders the answering of the common prayers of the others? And our common prayer is surely for the second coming and the greater restoration of the true temple.
3:2 "And the Lord said unto satan, The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan; even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee". The Angel-Lord (Jude 9) says that despite the sins of the bad figs in Israel and the opposition of the Samaritans, His choice of rebuilding Jerusalem will stand. Jude 8-10 lends support to this line of interpretation. Jude says that Michael the Archangel did not "bring a railing accusation" against the satan Angel, nor did He "despise dominion" (another Angel-ruler) or "speak evil of glories" (AV:"dignities"; the same word is in Jude 24 "the presence of His glory"- the Angels). This marked lack of aggression which Jude emphasizes shows that there was no conflict between the Angels, as may be wrongly inferred from the severity of the English word "rebuke". Our demeanour generally, especially with each other when it is necessary to have divergent opinions, or to correct others' ways of executing God's purpose as they see it, should be done in the same mutually loving spirit. Notice how Jude 8 links the satan of Zech. 3 with a "dominion"- a ruler or 'prince'. The satan Angel who resisted the Joshua Angel for 21 days is "the prince of Persia" in Dan. 10:13. "The Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee; is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?". Another allusion in Jude (v. 23) interprets this: "Others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh". The implication is that the Angel just about decided in favour of saving Jerusalem out of the 'fire' of eternal punishment (cp. Jer. 17:27) for her sins- He had "compassion, making a difference" (v. 22). The "garment spotted by the flesh" must connect with the "filthy garments" worn by Joshua as he came into the Angel's presence.
3:4,5 The Angel "answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee. . so they (the Angels that stood by). . . clothed him with garments. And the Angel of the Lord stood by". Does this mean that the Angel commanded other Angels to arrange Joshua's forgiveness and to end his being "polluted from the priesthood" (due to lack of proven ancestry and the high priestly garments), in order that the prayers he presented should be more powerful? This would explain why he was given both a mitre and garments (v. 5). In passing, why did Zechariah suggest giving him a mitre (v. 5)? The greater Joshua was also clothed with a change of nature by the Angels (as outlined in Rev. 4 and 5).
3:4- see on Lk. 19:24
Rev. 4 and 5 describe the important part that the Angels had to play in welcoming Christ into Heaven on His ascension, and in giving Him then His full reward and glory. Having been so intensely involved in His every literal movement, this is understandable. Zech. 3:4,5 describes the same scene: "Joshua (Jesus) was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the Angel. And He (the Angel) answered and spake unto those (Angels) that stood before Him saying, Take away the filthy garments (human nature?) from Him. . they (the Angels) set a fair mitre upon His head, and clothed Him with garments. And the Angel of the Lord stood by". Perhaps the one Angel supervising this glorification of Jesus in Heaven was Gabriel, who appears to have been Christ's personal guardian Angel. God raised Jesus by His own right hand (Acts 2:33)- an Angelic phrase. Angels were visibly associated with Christ's resurrection and ascension.
It is possible to show that the Angels are described as the "fellows" of Christ by a careful comparison of Zech. 3:4 and 8, where the dedication of the High Priest ceremony is performed on Christ (in vision) by His "fellows" or Angels. Although it is not mentioned in Zech. 3, that ceremony included anointing. Thus Heb. 1:9 describes Jesus as being anointed "above thy fellows" in the context of proving His superiority to the Angels- i. e. His fellows.
3:7 "Thus saith the Lord of Hosts (Angels); If thou wilt walk in My ways, and if thou wilt keep Mine ordinance (of Lev. 18:30 about the abominations of the surrounding nations). . . thou shalt also judge My house. . . My courts, and I will give thee places to walk among these (Angels) that stand by". "My house" refers to the Angel dwelling in the temple; the offer of places to walk among the Angels is the same idea as being "made equal unto the Angels" in Lk. 20:35,36.
3:8- see on 4:14
3:9- see on Ex. 25:19
The "seven lamps are the seven eyes of the Lord, which run to and fro through the whole earth" (Zech. 4:2,10)- i. e. they represent the Angels active in the land of Israel to enable the restoration. They are energized by the spirit in the bowl. The candlestick being part of the tabernacle was therefore also a "pattern of things in the Heavens"; it represented how the Heavenly organization of Angels works.
4:2- see on Jer. 1:11,12
4:4- see on 4:14
4:6- see on Jud. 14:6
4:6,7 David's mocking "Who is this uncircumcised Philistine?" matches " Who art thou, O great mountain?" which was to be destroyed " not by might..but by My spirit" (Zech.4:6,7), as Goliath was killed by David without a sword in his hand, i.e. not by human might. Note that the Philistines were pitched on a mountain, comparing with the description of Babylon as " O great mountain" . See article "David and Goliath" in 1 Sam. 17.
4:10- see on Jer. 1:11,12; Zech. 1:11
The olive trees "are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth" (v. 14). The "Lord of the whole earth" is the Angel of 3:1 (making "the God of the earth" in Rev. 11:4 also an Angel). The olive trees actually stand by the candlestick, thus making the whole arrangement of bowl, branches, pipes and lamps represent the workings of the one Angel- in the same way as the Angel of Jesus in Rev. 1 can somehow stand in the midst of a candlestick. The olive being a symbol of leadership (in Judges 9:8 the olive tree was the first tree to be thought of as a national leader), it would be fitting that they represented Joshua and Zerubbabel. However, there is a definite allusion to the Angel cherubim here. "Within the oracle he made two cherubims of olive tree" (1 Kings 6:23); "and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two (olive tree) cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony" (Ex. 25:22). If the olive trees are like the Cherubim, then "the Lord of the whole earth" of Zech. 4:4 which was between them connects with the ark- the Angel that dwelt over the ark, between the Cherubim. Josh. 3:11-13 also makes the connection between the ark and the "Lord of all the earth". The candlestick therefore represents the Angel co-ordinating the restoration, as well as the other "seven" Angels in His control. This shows the close association between the Angel-cherubim and Joshua and Zerubbabel. Thus from the Angelic inspiration of these two men, the spirit was supplied to the candlestick through the gold pipes- the faith they showed and their prayers supplied the spirit which enabled the seven lamp Angels to act. However, the close link between the two olive trees and the Cherubim Angels once again shows that the ultimate impetus to our faith, prayers and spirituality comes from God's spirit in the Angels rather than from any personal inspiration we may feel. This idea of the flow of the spirit, enabling God's action through the Angels as a result of our prayers, is found elsewhere: "This shall turn to my salvation, through your prayer, and the supply of the spirit of Jesus Christ" (Phil. 1:19); ". . . how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit ("good things", Mt. 7:11) to them that ask Him?" (Lk. 11:13). Thus in the vision of the seven lamps, the prayers and faith of Joshua and Zerubbabel were the oil, the spirit that was supplied to activate the seven lamp Angels that went to and fro in the land of Israel preparing the way for the restoration. However, the olive trees were "sons of oil" (4:14 AVmg)- they were anointed with the oil initially. Is this a dim foreshadowing of the birth of the spirit ("sons of oil")? The oil of the spirit is clearly a symbol of the word- the men of the olive trees were sons of the spirit word through their belief in the word of God through Jeremiah concerning the restoration. The olive branches emptied the golden oil out of themselves- if we are to have the same victory of faith as Joshua and Zerubbabel, we have to in the same way pour ourselves out in prayer and golden faith. The amount of oil flowing into the bowl determined the amount flowing out of it to the lamp Angels, seeing that there was a constant flow of the oil in the vision. Thus the amount and intensity of our prayers and spirituality affect how brightly the Angels burn in their zeal to fulfil our requests. Notice too the power of the prayers of a small minority of God's people. The two olive branches which feed the bowl are replaced by Christ, the one branch (Zech. 3:8; 6:12), who would provide the Spirit in abundance so that the true spiritual temple could be built- "the branch. . . shall grow up out of His place, and He shall build the temple of the Lord" (6:12).
5:5 See on Is. 37:36
6:5- see on 1:8-11
The horse riders of Rev. 6 are clearly based on this vision in Zech. 6, and they would therefore be Angels. Zech. 6:5 describes the horses as "standing before the lord of the whole earth"- the mighty Angel of the Cherubim that stands for the land (earth) of Israel. In 1:8 they are behind Him, although He then sends them out to survey the state of the land of Israel. They return to Him, reporting that "we have walked to and fro throughout the earth (land), and behold, all the earth sitteth still and is at rest". Is there any reason to doubt that these Angels literally walked about in the land, albeit unseen, perhaps at a similar speed to which we walk? They walked "to and fro" because it is not in their ability to know the exact situation of a country just from a cursory glance. The comment of the Angel on this was: "I am very sore displeased with the heathen that are at ease" (v. 15)- that were sitting at rest in God's land. This scenario is similar to that in 1 Kings 22, where Angels come and go from God, reporting back information and receiving commands, showing how much the Angel in the myrtle trees, "the Lord of all the earth" (land), was a representation of God Himself.
'Chariots' and the 'cherubim' are linguistically connected, and thus also connected in Biblical usage- e. g. "He rode upon a cherub (chariot)" (Ps. 18:10). The number four has links with the Angel cherubim; John Thomas interprets these "four (chariot) spirits of the Heavens" (6:5) as the same as the four faces of the cherubim. The whole vision is full of Angelic language. "The chariots of God are. . . thousands of Angels" (Ps. 68:17); God makes His Angels spirits (Ps. 104:4). We have mentioned previously that the horses within the chariots also represent Angels (Chapter 3), under the control of the four mighty cherubim Angels. This is similar to Ps. 68:17 describing God's chariots as being full of Angels.
6:6 "The black horses which are therein go forth into the north country; and the white go forth after them". "The north country" must be Babylon (2:6; Jer. 1:13,14 etc. )- those Angels went to minister to the Jews there and to enable the hearts of the Persian rulers to continue to support the work of rebuilding (or is this looking back to the judgements on Babylon in preparation for Cyrus' decree concerning the restoration?). Another group of Angels went toward the South- i. e. the land of Judah (Ez. 20:46,47).
6:7 "The bay went forth, and sought to go that they might walk to and fro through the earth: and He (the Angel) said, Get you hence, walk to and fro through the earth. So they walked to and fro through the earth". The "earth" here is probably 'the land' of Israel- which would have included Babylon, at its proper extent from 'sea to sea'. These Angels, the same as those who originally surveyed the whole area by walking "to and fro through the earth"" in 1:10,11, "sought" permission from the co-ordinating Angel to continue their work.
6:8 "These (two groups of Angels) that go toward the north country (Babylon) have quieted My spirit (Angel) in the north country". The Spirit-Angel that needed quietening in Babylon was perhaps the satan-Angel that was resisting the Angel seeking to further the rebuilding work. He would have gone (literally?) to Babylon to give the "prince of Persia" the idea of banning the rebuilding. The two Angels that quietened Him were those of Dan. 10:12,13- the Joshua-Angel of Zech. 3:1, and Michael who "came to help Me" (Gabriel) in Dan. 10:13. Alternatively, note that Dan. 9:21 describes Gabriel being "caused to fly with weariness"- thus it may have been Gabriel who was 'quieted' or 'given rest' (AVmg. ) in Zech. 6:8, implying He was in Babylon trying to enable the rebuilding but needed the support of the other two Angels.
6:12- see on 4:14; Jer. 23:5
8:2 "Thus saith the Lord of Hosts (Angels); I was jealous (zealous) for Zion (the temple) with great jealousy, and I was jealous for her with great fury". The Angel's tremendous zeal for the restoration comes bubbling through. No wonder the Kingdom prophecies of Isaiah, Ezekiel and Zechariah could have been fulfilled if only the people had worked together with the Angels to their full potential!
8:3 "I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem". The physical movement of the Angel back to Jerusalem.
Shall dwell- The 'Yahweh Shammah', the Lord
is there, prophecy of Ez. 48 would then come true. But it did not at
the time of the restoration, and so Rev. 21 and 22 use this language to
describe how it will be fulfilled at the second coming of Christ.
City of truth- But this would only happen if her inhabitants were
truthful. Hence the appeal for them to be so in Zech. 8:16,17. Again,
what seems to be an unconditional prophecy is in fact conditional, and
is more of an appeal than prediction. 'Truth' here really implies
fidelity to God and all the other members of His people, rather than
simply telling the truth as opposed to lying.
8:4 "Thus saith the Lord of Hosts (Angels): there shall yet old men and old women dwell in the midst of Jerusalem, and every man with his staff in his hand for very age". The Angel, v. 3, was to dwell in the midst of Jerusalem, i. e. in the temple. Here in v. 4, old men and women were to do so- showing the Angel's close identification with his charges, such as Anna the prophetess who "departed not from the temple" at the time of Christ. As a result of the Angelic work in restoring Jerusalem, the old people who could remember the temple in its former glory when they were taken captive 70 years previously would return to Jerusalem again.
8:6 "If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, should it also be marvellous in Mine eyes (Angels)? saith the Lord of Hosts". The Angel is saying 'Because you find it hard to believe what I can really do for you, I might not do it in reality; but don't think My Angels (eyes) can't actually do it if they want to!'. Because things may seem difficult to us to achieve, this doesn't mean they are hard for God to achieve. We tend to judge His ability in terms of our own abilities, as if He were merely a super-man.
"I will encamp about mine house because of the army of him that passeth by [the latter-day Sennacherib], and because of him that returneth. . . the Lord of Hosts (Angels) shall defend them" (Zech. 9:8,15) is all the language of Jacob under threat from Esau, being Angelically camped around.
8:7 East... west- Judah had been brought
back from the north, from Babylon, but the idea seems to be that all of
God's scattered people from every other point of the compass could have
returned at that time- but most preferred to stay in the lands of their
dispersion.
8:12 God promises to lift the famine. Zecharaiah and Haggai prophesied
at the beginning of the reign of Darius, urging the Jews to resume
rebuilding the temple despite the law passed by Ataxerxes ordering them
to stop (Ezra 5:1,2). Haggai prophesied his chapter 1 just months
before Zechariah gave his prophecy (Hag. 1:1 cp. Zech. 1:1). In Haggai
1, Haggai laments that the Jews had returned not so much to rebuild the
temple but to get land from which they expected great agricultural
returns, and therefore God had sent a famine upon them. The decree of
Artaxerxes forbidding the rebuilding work was therefore God's way of
confirming them in their own disinterest in that work. But now, just
months later, Zechariah is predicting that the famine will be lifted.
It could be that some hearkened to Haggai's appeal; but it could also
be, in the spirit of Zech. 8:1-4, that God is simply deciding to show
grace. Despite their lack of commitment to Him, He decides to almost
force the way ahead. Such is His grace. Note how He speaks of "again"
thinking to do good for His people.
8:13 So will I endow you with salvation, that you may be a
blessing- If we really believe we will be saved, that we are saved
by status, this is so that we may share that blessing with others. The
more convinced we are of salvation, the more we will naturally share
this with others. This is at the very heart of the promised blessings
to Abraham and his seed.
8:16,17 The precondition for God's renewed efforts with His people
despite their disinterest and indifference to Him was that they were to
love each other and live "in truth" with each other. This could have
brought about the establishment of God's Kingdom on earth at that time,
just as the spirituality amongst God's people will be a precondition
for the Lord's final return and the ultimate reestablishment of His
Kingdom on earth.
9:9- see on Jer. 23:5
9:14 "The Lord shall be over them"- as the Angels went over David beyond the mulberry trees (2 Sam. 5:24) and as the Angel in the cloud was over Israel in the wilderness. "His arrow shall go forth as lightning"- Angel cherubim language. He "shall go with whirlwinds of the South"- the group of Angels sent into "the south" (i. e. Judah) in Zech. 6:6.
9:16 "The Lord their God shall save them in that day as the flock of His people"- the Angel is elsewhere styled a shepherd (Is. 63:9-11; Ps. 80:1). "The lord of Hosts (Angels) hath visited His flock the house of Judah" (10:3). Similarly, Israel "went their way as a flock, they were troubled because there was no shepherd" (10:2)- i. e. the Angel was not with them.
9:10 "I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria" (Babylon- they are frequently used interchangeably). Notice the word "again"- as the Angel brought Israel out of Egypt the first time, so He would do it again in the restoration.
10:5- see on Gen. 49:17
10:12- see on 12:5
To some degree a repentant natural Israel will take over the role of the Angels as God's eyes walking up and down and to and fro in the earth (land?). This follows from Zechariah describing the Angels as walking to and fro in the earth (1:10;6:7) and 10:12 describing Israel doing the same once they have been regathered and start to carry the name of God.
Judges 2:1 "And an Angel of the Lord came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said, I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I sware unto your fathers: and I said, I will never break My covenant with you". The subsequent rebuke of Israel by the Angel makes this passage imply that although the Angel had promised never to break the Covenant, He could and would do so. Later, He did: "And I took my staff, even Beauty, and cut it asunder, that I might break My covenant which I had made with all the people. And it was broken in that day" (Zech. 11:10,11). This 'repentance' must make the "I" refer to God manifest in the Angel. v. 6 gives the context: "I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land, saith the Lord" (cp. Is. 63:9 regarding the wilderness Angel: "in His love and in His pity" He redeemed Israel from Egypt). Although the Angelic covenant was broken, it is to be re-established: "I will even deal with thee as thou hast done, which hast despised the oath in breaking the covenant (i. e. you've broken the covenant, I'll do the same). Nevertheless I will remember My covenant with thee. . . and I will establish unto thee an everlasting covenant. . . thou shalt receive thy sisters. . . and I will give them unto thee for daughters, but not by thy (former) covenant. And I will establish My covenant with thee. . . " (Ez. 16:59-62). This covenant was a marriage covenant. "For the Lord hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God" (Michael the Angel?), Is. 54:6. This is all referring back to the Angel calling Hagar, showing that God's Angel was figuratively 'married' to Israel; thus it was the Angel who divorced and will take back Israel.
The Angel Michael is described as "standing up" for Israel in the last days (Dan. 12:1); and Zech. 12:4 says significantly "In that day, saith the LORD,. . I will open Mine eyes (the Angels responsible for Israel- notice the references to them like this earlier in the prophecy) upon the house of Judah", as if Angelic activity on Israel's behalf revives in the last days. The "hand of God" is associated with causing the latter day revival and repentance of Israel, and this is an Angelic phrase: "I will turn My hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin; and I will rebuke thy judges. . " (Is. 1:25,26). "In that (last) day, the Lord shall set His hand. . . to recover the remnant of His people. . He shall shake His hand over the river. . and make men go over dryshod" (Is. 11:11,15).
12:4 "In that day. . . I will open Mine eyes (Angels) upon the house of Judah"- cp. Michael 'standing up' for Israel in the last days (Dan. 12:1).
12:5 This shows how Angels will be very much in evidence on earth at the time of Jerusalem's surrounding by armies and Armageddon: "The inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be my strength in the Lord of Hosts (Angels) their God". Who this 'God' refers to is defined in v. 8: "He that is feeble amongst them (the "inhabitants of Jerusalem") at that day shall be as David, and the house of David shall be as God, as the Angel of the Lord (which will go) before them". This implies that the inhabitants of Jerusalem will have the same power as the hosts of Angels which will have been seen fighting "before them". Thus the Jews will "walk up and down in His Name" (Zech. 10:12) as the Angels are now said to do (Zech. 1:11; Job 1:7).
Jacob's flight into Syria is set up as typical of Israel going into dispersion as a punishment for their idolatry. But they will return, as Jacob did. Then Israel will not wear a rough garment to deceive any more as Jacob did, then they will have renounced the human side of Jacob and captured his final spirituality for their own (Zech. 13:4).
13:7 "Awake O sword ,against My shepherd. . . smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered". The shepherd here clearly refers to Jesus, but the shepherd elsewhere in Zechariah refers to the Angel- another proof that there was one specific Angel in the Old Testament that foreshadowed Jesus.