Zechariah 4

Then the angel who talked with me returned and woke me up, like someone awakened from sleep. Zechariah 4:1

The young prophet was no doubt exhausted by seeing four wonderful visions the same night. The visions may have literally put him to sleep. We see a similar thing as Daniel fell into a deep sleep at seeing a heavenly vision (Dan. 8:18), and as the three disciples also fell asleep during the glorious Transfiguration of Jesus (Lk. 9:32).

We note that the angel guide has returned to help the prophet. Utley points out that such angel guides are quite common in apocalyptic literature (cf. Ezek. 8:2-3; Dan. 7:16; 9:22; 10:18-21). [1] So far as we know, this is the same angel who helped the prophet in his previous visions.

“He asked me, ‘What do you see?’ I answered, ‘I see a solid gold lampstand with a bowl at the top and seven lamps on it, with seven channels to the lamps’” (4:2). This lampstand is very similar to one that stood in the Tabernacle long before. That lampstand was also made of solid gold (Exo. 25:31). Many things in the Tabernacle were made of wood and covered with gold. That included even the Ark of the Covenant. This was undoubtedly a picture of redeemed humanity and even a picture of the incarnate Messiah. The lampstand is different than those other items since there is no human element involved in it. Rather, it is the true light of God and the only light available in the Tabernacle. It is the light that lights every person that comes into the world (Jn. 1:9). It is the light of Messiah.

We note one obvious difference in this lampstand compared to the one in the Tabernacle. This one has a bowl at the top with channels running to the seven lamps. A number of artists have tried their hand at picturing this item but their pictures have ended up being quite complicated and even a little humorous. The inescapable picture here is one of a boundless supply of olive oil to the lamps. There was always a difficulty in keeping the old menorah supplied with oil. That problem is now solved. As Barnes says: “The multiplied conduits imply the large and perfect supply of oil unceasingly supplied, the seven being symbolic of perfection.” [2]

The seven “channels” have caused a good deal of discussion among commentators. The various Bible translations show us some of the diversity of opinion. In the NASB it is rendered “seven spouts;” while it is “seven pipes” in the NKJV and “seven lips” in the NRSV. The Hebrew word is mu-tsa-kot and it is taken from the root ya-tsak meaning to pour out, to flow or to funnel. The whole idea is a perfect flow of the oil or the Spirit of God. The Bible scholars, Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset and David Brown say: “Christ at the head (“on the top”) of the Church is the true fountain, of whose fullness of the Spirit all we receive grace (John 1:16)…” [3] The American Presbyterian theologian Albert Barnes further expounds with the couplet saying that it:

Enables with perpetual light

The dullness of our blinded sight. [4]

“Also there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left” (4:3). The Lord really does not want us to miss the picture of the abundant supply of olive oil, which in the Bible is a picture of the Holy Spirit. Clearly, this picture relates that the olive trees stand on each side of the golden menorah. Later in 4:14, it would be indicated that these two are Joshua and Zerubabbel (cf. Ezr. 3:2; 5:2; Hag. 1:14). We must not think that these two inspired men are actual sources of olive oil. Rather, they are conduits of the olive oil or sources of spiritual inspiration for God’s people.

Many years ago my wife and I lived on the southern edge of Jerusalem. It was my custom to go for prayer to one of the ancient wooded terraces overlooking Bethlehem and Beit Jala. One day while there I was watching some Arab farmers gather olives from their trees. They were on the far side of the very deep valley. It was then that the Lord spoke to me in my inner being. He said, “This is the tree of light.” I have never forgotten this word and it has ministered so much to me over the years.

In Bible times a person did not simply flip a switch to turn on the light. Rather, that person got some olive oil, placed it in a little clay lamp, added a wick and fire and there was light. Olive oil was the main source of light in biblical times and various oils continued to light lamps far into the 20th century. In fact, I can remember clearly when the electric lights came on in our rural area and we finally retired the old kerosene lamps.

We need to probe into the idea of spiritual light and spend a great deal of time meditating on this subject. With light comes revelation. We might argue about what was in a dark room, but when the light is switched on the arguments are over. Proverbs 29:18 says, “Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint…” Today is a day of spiritual stumbling and casting off restraint like never before. Even many Christians are walking in the shadows. Somehow, we must remember that God is light and there is no darkness in him (1 Jn. 1:5). When we walk towards the light the stumbling is over and the shadows are all behind us.

God wants us to walk in the light and stay in the light (Col. 1:12). To this end, we see in scripture that we Christians are now grafted into the old olive tree of Israel (Rom. 11:17-18). We are grafted into the light tree, the revelation tree and the anointing tree. We might ask why the church still lives in the dark ages. Where are the life-changing and world-changing revelations like “Christ in you, the hope of glory…?” (Col. 1:27); or “…if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Cor. 5:17); or “…God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus…” (Eph. 2:6). We do not need new programs in the church today but we need a new revelation of Jesus. It would help us if we learned to pray for each other just as Paul prayed in Ephesians 1:17-18, that our spiritual eyes might be opened and that we might receive that life-giving revelation.

In a very dark and discouraging hour, Joshua and Zerubabbel were bright lights to illumine the way for God’s people. Guthrie says of this picture: “It envisages the Light of the world shining through lesser lights amid the darkness that covers the nations (cf. Isa. 9:2).” [5]

Spiritual Power And Illumination

I asked the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?” He answered, “Do you not know what these are?” “No, my lord,” I replied. So 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 Almighty.” Zechariah 4:4-6

Zerubbabel to this point was trying to do things in his own strength. [6] He started to build the temple, and 15 years later the temple still was not built. No doubt, much of the building sprang from human effort. There was much opposition, so ultimately the very important project was dropped. All the human might, power and political maneuvering could not get the job done.

Now the Lord introduces his plan. This program would not depend upon the might, power and intelligence of man but upon the Spirit of God. [7] It would involve the same people, Zerubbabel the governor and Joshua the high priest, but they would now be anointed with the power of the Holy Spirit.

D. L. Moody was one of America’s greatest evangelists, but he did not begin with his great successes. Two godly women in his church insisted on praying for him that he might have the power of the Spirit in his ministry. Moody initially asked that the women pray for the lost rather than for him. However, he became more and more interested in the power about which the women spoke. In time he began to pray with them that he might receive this power.

Not long after that, Moody was walking in New York when the power of God hit him with such force that he had to beg God to withhold his hand lest he die. From that point, Moody was a changed man. He went on to preach to crowds with tens of thousands and great numbers were converted. He no longer struggled in his own strength. He testified: “The sermons were no different, and I did not present any new truths, and yet hundreds were converted. I would not be placed back where I was before that blessed experience.” [8]

“What are you, mighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become level ground. Then he will bring out the capstone to shouts of ‘God bless it! God bless it!’” (4:7). Utley says, “The mountain is a metaphor for obstacles: physical, personal, and spiritual (e.g., Isa. 40:4; 41:15)…” [9] The NET Bible Commentary adds, “In context, the great mountain here must be viewed as a metaphor for the enormous task of rebuilding the temple and establishing the messianic kingdom…” [10] A few centuries later, Jesus would use a similar metaphor of how such mountains could be removed by simple faith (Mt. 17:20; Mk. 11:23).

This verse has reference to laying the capstone or finishing the building. Baldwin notes that there is no mention made of a top stone laying in ancient Near-Eastern texts. [11] Nevertheless, that seems to be the picture here. The laying of foundation stones was well known, but that rite was always connected with the beginning of a building. What we see here is the finishing of the building. This stone in Hebrew is called even ha-ro-sha or the topmost stone. [12] The laying of this stone is accompanied with shouts of praise and thanksgiving.

Prophecy To Zerubabbel

Then the word of the LORD came to me: “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple; his hands will also complete it. Then you will know that the LORD Almighty has sent me to you.” Zechariah 4:8-9

When Zerubbabel and the people returned to the land in 537 BC, they first built an altar and made sacrifices on it, although there was no temple (Ezra 3:3, 5). Later they laid the foundation for the temple. There seems to be some confusion when we relate the books of Ezra and Zechariah. In Ezra 5:16, Sheshbazzar is mentioned as the one who laid the temple’s foundation. While there are several possible explanations for this problem, the scripture seems to make it plain that the two are one and the same. [13] Since the Hebrew for Zerubbabel means “offspring of Babylon,” it might even be possible that this was some sort of nickname. There was one thing for certain. When the temple was finished it was proof positive that Zechariah was truly a prophet sent from God.

How true it is that all of us believers are begotten in Babylon in a spiritual sense but now through the grace and mercy of God we have an opportunity to build in Zion. How true the words of Isaiah for these last days: “Those the LORD has rescued will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away” (Isa. 51:11). Babylon represents spiritual bondage and the confusion of religion. The Lord simply commands us all to come out of Babylon (Rev. 18:4).

Zechariah continues: “Who dares despise the day of small things, since the seven eyes of the LORD that range throughout the earth will rejoice when they see the chosen capstone in the hand of Zerubbabel?” (4:10). We learn from the Book of Ezra that when many of the older priests and Levites saw the foundation of the new temple they wept aloud in disappointment (Ezr. 3:12; cf. Hag. 2:3). The prophet Haggai quickly corrected them saying: “‘The glory of this present house will be greater than the glory of the former house,’ says the LORD Almighty. ‘And in this place I will grant peace,’ declares the LORD Almighty” (Hag. 2:9). Haggai knew that someday the Messiah, Jesus the Son of God, would stand in that second temple. That made it far greater than the former building.

When we think about it, there are a lot of small things that end up becoming big things. Most notably, the kingdom of God begins like a small mustard seed (Mk.4:30-32), but grows to become a very large plant where birds can alight.

God never sees things as we humans tend to do. The eyes of God did not fail to notice that construction on the new temple had begun. When God’s eyes noted the capstone of the new temple being put in place the Lord rejoiced. [14] In 2 Chronicles 16:9 we read: “For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him…”

The seven eyes that are mentioned no doubt speak of the perfect vision of the Almighty. This was reflected already in the “seven faceted stone” that we saw in 3:9. The same concept will be seen much later in the “seven Spirits of God” (Rev. 1:4; 5:6). [15]

The Two Anointed Ones

Then I asked the angel, “What are these two olive trees on the right and the left of the lampstand?” Zechariah 4:11

The prophet could not get the two olive trees out of his mind. He had asked about them previously in verses 3 and 4, but had not received a direct answer. Without waiting for an answer to his renewed question the prophet further defines his query. He says: “Again I asked him, ‘What are these two olive branches beside the two gold pipes that pour out golden oil?’” (4:12). Jamieson and company remark: “…on closer looking he observes that the ‘branches’ of the trees are the channels through which a continual flow of oil dropped into the bowl of the lamps…” [16] Baldwin comments: “The word translated ‘pipes’ is used nowhere else in the OT, and so it is not possible to be sure of its meaning, but together with the lamps found at Gezer were terracotta tubes which ‘sprout’ into a kind of spout or opening.” [17]

We might note that the very best olive oil is the oil that is cold-pressed or first pressed. This oil is of the highest quality and is also called extra-virgin oil. It has the best texture, flavor, quality and color. [18] Such pure olive oil has a golden color to it as scripture says. I have watched students in Israel pressing olive oil with ancient tools but it was not the first pressing and the color of the oil was more like that of muddy water.

It is important that we keep asking God about his spiritual mysteries. In Deuteronomy 29:29, it is said: “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law.” The eighteenth-century Anglican commentator John Trapp says, “Spiritual learning is infused by degrees; our hearts are as narrow-mouthed vessels…” [19] Coffman feels that this question is asked again because of the great importance of this feature of the prophet’s vision. [20]

“He replied, ‘Do you not know what these are?’ ‘No, my lord,’ I said. So he said, ‘These are the two who are anointed to serve the Lord of all the earth’” (4:13-14). Utley says of these two olive trees: “From the context, both historical and biblical, they represent Zerubbabel and Joshua, who represent the two aspects of the Messiah’s person and work…” [21] The Hebrew expression, bene ha-yitz-har means sons of oil or sons of the fresh oil.

Guzik points out how many people have stood together for the purposes of God. He mentions Moses and Aaron; Joshua and Caleb; Elijah and Elisha; Peter and John; Paul and Barnabas; Whitefield and Wesley; Moody and Sankey; Graham and Barrows. [22] It is interesting how the appointed political governor and the high priest stood together in Zechariah’s day to accomplish the spiritual work that God had in mind.

There is a very interesting account near our time that happened between a civil and religious leader regarding the reestablishment of Zion. The secular leader was Theodore Herzl and the religious leader was a Christian pastor by the name of William H. Hechler (1845-1931). The Rev. Hechler lived in Vienna and according to his calculations, he became certain that God was about to restore the Jews to their land. When this Christian minister heard of Herzl and his new book, The Jewish State, he instantly became an enthusiastic supporter. The two became life-long friends. Hechler became a great supporter and encourager of Herzl. It was through this Christian minister that Herzl was able to secure many contacts with political leaders in Europe, even with the powerful Kaiser of Germany.

Had we known Hechler, we might have looked at this Christian prophet askance. He was a fanatic with all of his time-tables and charts spread out before him. From his judgment he became certain that God would move to restore the Jewish nation in 1897. Unlike so many of his kind, he was absolutely correct. In that very year, the First Zionist Congress was held. After that congress, Herzl noted that he had “founded the Jewish State.” [23]

Footnotes

1. Utley, Free Bible Commentary, v. 4:1.

2. Barnes, Notes On The Whole Bible, Zechariah, v. 4:2

3. Robert D. Jamieson, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, Commentary on Zechariah, 1871-78, v. 4:2. https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/jfb/zechariah-1.html.

4. Barnes, Notes On The Whole Bible, Zechariah, v. 4:2.

5. Guthrie, et al., The New Bible Commentary, p. 792.

6. John Dummelow, John, John Dummelow’s Commentary on the Bible, 1909, vs. 4:4-6, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/dcb/zechariah-1.html.

7. Pfeiffer & Harrison, The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, p. 902.

8. https://fromdeathtolife.wordpress.com/2017/09/22/d-l-moodys-baptism-in-the-holy-spirit/

9. Utley, Free Bible Commentary, v. 4:7.

10. New English Translation, notes on Zech. 4:7, Bible Works 10.

11. Baldwin, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, p. 121.

12. Parunak & Whitaker, WTT Hebrew Text, Zech. 4:7. BibleWorks 10.

13. Utley, Free Bible Commentary, v. 4:9.

14. There has been a lot of discussion among commentators concerning the “plumb line” mentioned in this verse. The Hebrew is ha-even ha-bdil. Even has reference to the stone that apparently had some connection to separation, hence, a plumb line. The NAS and NKJ versions translate plumb line while the NRS have it as plummet. The NET translates it “tin tablet.”

15. Trapp, John Trapp Complete Commentary, v. 4:10.

16. Jamieson, et al., Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, vs. 4:11-12.

17. Baldwin, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, p.123.

18. https://texasoliveranch.com/olive-oil-education/first-cold-pressed-what-does-it-mean/

19. Trapp, John Trapp Complete Commentary, v. 4:11.

20. Coffman, Coffman’s Commentaries on the Bible, v. 4:11.

21. Utley, Free Bible Commentary, v. 4:11.

22. Guzik, Enduring Word, Zechariah, vs. 4:11-14.

23. Gerrish, Does God Play Favorites?, pp. 116, 243.