Zechariah 4
Amplified Bible
The Golden Lampstand and Olive Trees
4 And the angel who was speaking with me came back and awakened me, like a man who is awakened out of his sleep. 2 He said to me, “What do you see?” I said, “I see, and behold, a [a]lampstand all of gold, with its bowl [for oil] on the top of it and its seven lamps on it with seven spouts belonging to each of the lamps which are on the top of it.(A) 3 And there are two olive trees by it, one on the right side of the bowl and the other on its left side [supplying it continuously with oil].”(B) 4 So I asked the angel who was speaking with me, “What are these, my lord?” 5 Then the angel who was speaking with me answered me, “Do you not know what these are?” And I said, “No, my lord.” 6 Then he said to me, “This [continuous supply of oil] is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel [prince of Judah], saying, ‘Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit [of whom the oil is a symbol],’ says the Lord of hosts. 7 ‘What are you, O great mountain [of obstacles]? Before Zerubbabel [who will rebuild the temple] you will become a plain (insignificant)! And he will bring out the capstone [of the new temple] with loud shouts of “Grace, grace to it!”’”(C)
8 Also the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 9 “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundations of this house, and his hands will finish it. Then you will know (recognize, understand fully) that the Lord of hosts has sent me [as His messenger] to you. 10 Who [with reason] despises the day of small things (beginnings)? For these [b]seven [eyes] shall rejoice when they see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. They are the eyes of the Lord which roam throughout the earth.”(D)
11 Then I said to him [who was speaking with me], “What are these two olive trees on the right side of the lampstand and on its left?” 12 And a second time I said to him, “What are these two olive branches which are beside the two golden pipes by which the golden oil is emptied?” 13 And he answered me, “Do you not know what these are?” And I said, “No, my lord.” 14 Then he said, “These are the two [c]sons of fresh oil [Joshua the high priest and Zerubbabel the prince of Judah] who are standing by the Lord of the whole earth [as His anointed ones].”(E)
Footnotes
- Zechariah 4:2 The lampstand may symbolize Israel as a light to the nations.
- Zechariah 4:10 The seven eyes reflect God’s oversight of the world and its inhabitants, and His pleasure in the construction of the temple.
- Zechariah 4:14 The oil used in anointing symbolizes the Holy Spirit (v 6). The combination of priest and ruler points ultimately to the Messianic Priest-King (Ps 110; Zech 6:13; Heb 7).
Zechariah 4
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 4
Fourth Vision: The Lampstand and the Two Olive Trees. 1 Then the angel who spoke with me returned and aroused me, like one awakened from sleep. 2 He said to me, “What do you see?” I replied, “I see a lampstand[a] all of gold,(A) with a bowl on top of it. There are seven lamps on it, with seven spouts on each of the lamps that are on top of it. 3 And beside it are two olive trees,[b] one on the right of the bowl and one to its left.” 4 Then I said to the angel who spoke with me, “What are these things, my lord?” 5 And the angel who spoke with me replied, “Do you not know what these things are?” I said, “No, my lord.”
An Oracle. 6 Then he said to me: “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might, and not by power, but by my spirit,[c](B) says the Lord of hosts. 7 Who are you, O great mountain?[d] Before Zerubbabel you become a plain. He will bring forth the first stone amid shouts of ‘Favor, favor be upon it!’”
8 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 9 The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundations of this house, and his hands will finish it. Thus you shall know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you. 10 For whoever has scorned such a day of small things will rejoice to see the capstone[e] in the hand of Zerubbabel.
Resumption of the Vision: Explanation of Lamps and Trees. “These seven are the eyes of the Lord that range over the whole earth.”(C) 11 I then asked him, “What are these two olive trees, on the right of the lampstand and on its left?” 12 A second time I asked, “What are the two streams from the olive trees that pour out golden oil through two taps of gold?” 13 He said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” I answered, “No, my lord.” 14 Then he said, “These are the two anointed ones[f] who stand by the Lord of the whole earth.”(D)
Footnotes
- 4:2 Lampstand: receptacle for lamps and one of the furnishings of the main room of the Temple. This visionary object does not correspond to the biblical descriptions of the menorah in either the tabernacle (Ex 25:31–40) or the Solomonic Temple (1 Kgs 7:49) but rather has properties of both. Seven lamps…seven spouts: seven lamps, each with seven pinched wick holes. Such objects were part of the repertoire of cultic vessels throughout the Old Testament period. Here they symbolize God’s eyes, i.e., divine omniscience; see v. 10.
- 4:3 Olive trees: visionary image that picks up the botanical language describing the Israelite cultic lampstands, with the olive trees specifically connoting fertility, permanence, and righteousness.
- 4:6 Not by might…my spirit: one of the most quoted verses from the Old Testament, particularly in Jewish tradition, which connects it with the theme of Hanukkah, sometimes called the Festival of Lights.
- 4:7 Great mountain: part of symbolic imagery for the Temple on Mount Zion, as embodiment of the cosmic mountain where heaven and earth connect. Plain: leveled ground serving as the foundation area for the construction of the Temple, and symbolizing the foundation of the cosmos. First stone: foundation stone of a major public building. Such stones were laid with great ceremony in foundation rituals when monumental buildings were newly built or rebuilt in the biblical world.
- 4:10 Capstone: topmost stone of a structure, which finishes the construction. This translation is based on the context. Other translations read: “stone of distinction,” “plummet,” “tin-stone.”
- 4:14 Two anointed ones: two leadership positions in the ideal restored nation. The concept of a state headed by both priestly and political leaders harks back to premonarchic traditions (Aaron and Moses) and finds an echo in the two messianic figures—a Davidic and a levitical messiah—in the Dead Sea Scrolls and in apocryphal literature. See also the two crowns of 6:11–14.
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