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Zacarias 6

BLIVRE · Chapter 6/14

1E outra vez levantei meus olhos, e vi, e eis que quatro carruagens saíram dentre dois montes, e estes montes eram montes de bronze.

2Na primeira carruagem havia cavalos vermelhos, e na segunda carruagem cavalos pretos,

3E na terceira carruagem cavalos brancos, e na quarto carruagem cavalos malhados. E [os cavalos] eram fortes.

4E perguntei ao anjo que falava comigo: O que é isto, meu senhor?

5E o anjo me respondeu: Estes são os quatro espíritos dos céus, que saem de onde estavam diante do Senhor de toda a terra.

6A [carruagem] em que estão os cavalos pretos vai para a terra do norte; os brancos vão atrás deles, e os malhados vão para a terra do sul.

7E os fortes [cavalos] saíram, e procuraram ir a andarem pela terra. E ele disse: Ide, andai pela terra. E eles andaram pela terra.

8E ele me chamou, e falou comigo, dizendo: Eis que aqueles que foram para a terra do norte fizeram descansar meu Espírito na terra do norte.

9E a palavra do SENHOR veio a mim, dizendo:

10Toma dos que foram levados cativos: Heldai, e de Tobias, e de Jedaías, que voltaram da Babilônia; e naquele mesmo dia vem, e entra na casa de Josias, filho de Sofonias;

11Toma prata e ouro, e faze coroas, e põe sobre a cabeça do sumo sacerdote Josué, filho de Jeozadaque;

12E fala com ele, dizendo: Assim diz o SENHOR dos exércitos: Eis aqui o homem cujo nome é Renovo; ele brotará de seu lugar, e edificará o templo do SENHOR;

13Ele mesmo edificará o templo do SENHOR, e levará sobre si majestade; e se sentará e dominará em seu trono, e será sacerdote em seu trono; e haverá conselho de paz entre ambos.

14E as coroas serão para Helem, Tobias, e Jedaías, e Hem, filho de Sofonias, como memorial no templo do SENHOR.

15E os que estão longe virão e participarão da construção do templo do SENHOR, e vós sabereis que o SENHOR dos exércitos me enviou a vós. Isto acontecerá se verdadeiramente ouvirdes à voz do SENHOR vosso Deus.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

Zechariah sees four chariots pulled by horses of different colors coming out from between two mountains of bronze, representing God's spirits going out across the earth; he is then instructed to crown Joshua as a symbol of the 'Branch' who will build the temple of the LORD.

Explanation

The vision of the four chariots, each with horses of a distinct color heading in different directions, picks up the theme of the 'four winds of heaven' patrolling and bringing rest to the land of the north (where Babylon lay), signaling that God's sovereignty reaches every direction of the earth. The high point of the chapter, however, is a symbolic prophetic act: Zechariah is instructed to make crowns of silver and gold and place them on the head of Joshua, the high priest, symbolically uniting the roles of priest and king in a single figure called 'the Branch,' who 'shall build the temple of the LORD' and will have 'the counsel of peace' upon his throne. This unusual combination of priestly and royal roles points prophetically to Christ, who would unite both offices. The application for today: God's plans often combine roles that humans keep separate, pointing to a more complete and integrated leadership than any purely human system.

Fun facts

  • The symbolic crowning of Joshua as priest-king is one of the few examples in the Old Testament of a fully enacted prophetic act (not merely seen in a vision, but physically carried out), similar to the symbolic actions performed by prophets such as Jeremiah and Ezekiel.
  • The crowns were made from silver and gold brought by exiles returning from Babylon (Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah), symbolically joining the people's practical generosity with the greater prophetic meaning of the act.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Zacarias 6:1Seventh vision: four chariots with horses of different colors coming out from between two mountains of bronze — echoing the book's first vision, now representing the four winds of heaven patrolling the whole earth.
  2. Zacarias 6:2Each chariot is described with horses of a different color: red in the first, black in the second — together the four form the book's seventh vision.
  3. Zacarias 6:3Completing the list: white horses in the third chariot and strong grizzled horses in the fourth — the four colors echo the first vision of chapter 1.
  4. Zacarias 6:4Again the prophet asks the interpreting angel who accompanies him through the visions what the scene means.
  5. Zacarias 6:5The answer reveals that the four chariots represent the four spirits of the heavens, going out from the presence of the Lord to patrol the whole earth.
  6. Zacarias 6:6Each chariot heads in a specific direction: the black horses toward the north, the white ones following them, the grizzled ones toward the south — symbolically covering the known world.
  7. Zacarias 6:7The strong horses press on to range through the whole earth and are given the order to go — a complete and active patrol carried out in God's name.
  8. Zacarias 6:8The chariot that goes to 'the north country' (the direction the Mesopotamian empires, including Babylon, came from) has 'quieted my spirit' there — a sign that judgment against that region had already been carried out.
  9. Zacarias 6:9After the vision, a practical word from God arrives with specific instructions on what the prophet should do next.
  10. Zacarias 6:10Zechariah is told to collect silver and gold brought by Jews who had returned from the Babylonian exile — Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah — resources that support the next part of the scene.
  11. Zacarias 6:11With that gold and silver, the prophet is to make crowns and set them on the head of Joshua the high priest — an unusual symbolic gesture.
  12. Zacarias 6:12Here the title 'the Branch' (already used in chapter 3) reappears, now with crowns placed on the head of the priest Joshua — an unusual scene, since kings (from Judah) and priests (from Levi) were normally separate roles in Israel.
  13. Zacarias 6:13The promise spells out the role of 'the Branch': he will build the temple, rule with glory, and also serve as priest, with peace between the two roles united in a single person.
  14. Zacarias 6:14The crowns used in the ceremony are kept in the temple as a permanent memorial of the names of those who contributed the gold and silver — Helem, Tobijah, Jedaiah, and Hen.
  15. Zacarias 6:15'They that are far off shall come' broadens the promise's reach once more: even distant foreigners would help build the temple, a sign of inclusion reaching beyond Judah's borders.

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