Zechariah 4

January 25  

Reading: Zechariah 4 

¹ And the angel who talked with me came again and woke me, like a man who is awakened out of his sleep.    

² And he said to me, "What do you see?"    

I said, "I see, and behold, a lampstand all of gold, with a bowl on the top of it, and seven lamps on it, with seven lips on each of the lamps that are on the top of it. ³ And there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left."    

⁴ And I said to the angel who talked with me, "What are these, my lord?"    

⁵ Then the angel who talked with me answered and said to me, "Do you not know what these are?"    

I said, "No, my lord."    

⁶ Then he said to me, "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts. ⁷ Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain. And he shall bring forward the top stone amid shouts of 'Grace, grace to it!'"    

⁸ Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ⁹ "The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also complete it. Then you will know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you. ¹⁰ For whoever has despised the day of small things shall rejoice, and shall see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. These seven are the eyes of the LORD, which range through the whole earth."    

¹¹ Then I said to him, "What are these two olive trees on the right and the left of the lampstand?"    

¹² And a second time I answered and said to him, "What are these two branches of the olive trees, which are beside the two golden pipes from which the golden oil is poured out?"    

¹³ He said to me, "Do you not know what these are?"    

I said, "No, my lord."    

¹⁴ Then he said, "These are the two anointed ones who stand by the Lord of the whole earth." 

In Zechariah 3 we saw God’s grace to Joshua the high priest. Now, in chapter 4 we see the grace of God to Zerubbabel the Judean governor appointed by the Persian King. Zerubbabel is responsible for the reconstruction of the Temple. 

This is the fifth of the eight night visions given to Zechariah the prophet. The Lord shows Zechariah a golden lampstand with seven sprouts and seven lamps. We call this a menorah. It is part of the furnishings in the Temple. Two olive trees stand beside it, one on the right, the other on the left. It seems as if the angel expects that Zechariah should know what these olive trees are. (vss. 4-5) But the angel does not answer Zechariah’s question just yet. 

In verses 6-10 the angel has changed the subject. He has something to say before he tells Zechariah about the olive trees. It is a message to Zerubbabel sandwiched between the vision and its interpretation. The message is an encouragement that the Temple will be completed. But how will it be completed? “Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord of Hosts.” (vs. 6) God will accomplish the building, not by human means, but by the work of the Spirit of God. The seven lights depict seven spirits which are the seven eyes of the Lord that range through the earth. (vs. 10) This picture of the perfect vision and working of the Holy Spirit in God’s people in the world will show up again in the book of Revelation. (Revelation 1:12-20, 3:1, 4:5, 5:6) 

After all this, we learn that the two trees, the olive branches, are “the two anointed ones.” This can be none other than Joshua and Zerubbabel, God’s special servants, “standing by the Lord of the whole earth.” Or, as the whole vision communicates, the Lord is standing by them. 

I think of the words of 2 Chronicles 16:9, “The eyes of the Lord range to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is truly His.”