J ; 111! j ill Hi II 23S I t>L5 .LA! 3 /^Ott v THE \ >. HEBBEW STUDENT'S COMMENTAEY ox ZECHAEIAH HEBREW AND LXX. WITH EXCURSUS ON SYLLABLE-DIVIDING, METHEG, INITIAL DAGESH, AND SIMAN RAPHEH. By W. H. LOWE, M.A. HEBREW LECTURER AT CHRIST'S COLLEGE. Uonfcon : MACMILLAN AND CO. 1882 [The Bight of Translation and Reproduction is reserved.] (Cambri&ge : PBINTED BY C. J. CLAY, M.A. & SON, AT THE UNIVERSITY TRESS. PREFACE. Since the founding of the Theological Tripos Examiners have frequently complained, that the Candidates for it do not, as a rule, take pains to acquire an accurate knowledge of even the Elements of the Sacred Tongue. This has been, doubtless, in great measure the fault of the Curriculum, to the requirements of which they have been obliged to conform their studies. It need, however, be a matter of surprise to none, that the Regulations for a Tripos Examination in the chief subjects of a field of learning so wide as that of Theology, should not at the first have been perfect: for rYlfc^p fYpnnn 73, i.e. II n'y a que le premier pas qui coute. We have every reason to hope that from the inauguration of the New Regu- lations for that Tripos will date a new era in the Hebrew scholarship of the University, and that the Theological Tripos will thenceforth send forth into the world scholars as sound in their knowledge of the Elements of Hebrew as did the 'Voluntary Examination' which it superseded. This Student's Commentary has been written with a view to aiding this New Scheme of Theological Studies. The plan of it is as follows : Words and sentences are treated from a purely grammatical point of view, and in so doing no difficulties have been wit- tingly avoided, but, rather, some have at times been inten- tionally raised, when by so doing an opportunity has been afforded of explaining some of the minutice of Hebrew Syntax. Unpointed Hebrew, and Transliteration, have been freely used from considerations of economy. But, if the student will PREFACE. point for himself the unpointed Hebrew words, and afterwards correct his own vowel-points from a pointed Text, this ap- parent incompleteness in the Notes will thus be transformed into a distinct advantage. The Hebrew Text quoted in refer- ence to matters of punctuation is that of Baer, in the Books Genesis, Isaiah, Job, Proverbs, Psalms, and The Minor Prophets ; in the case of the other Books various editions have at times been consulted. The ' Remarks ' (on the interpretation of the prophecies) are looked upon as of secondary importance, and are conse- quently printed in smaller type. Enough has, we hope, been given in them, to enable the Student (who is supposed to be studying the Book chiefly with a view to learning the language) to read the prophecies with an intelligent notion of their contents. But, if he should wish to see such questions dis- cussed at much greater length, he may refer to Wright's Bampton Lectures. The Excursus treat of matters, which may perhaps be of some interest to riper Scholars than those, for whom the bulk of the book is intended. I am much indebted to Rev. A. T. Chapman, Fellow and formerly Tutor of Emmanuel College, for reading the proof- sheets, and for several valuable suggestions, which he has made to me in the course of so doing'. W. H. L. Cambridge, May, 1882. INTBODUCTION. PROLEGOMENA TO CHAPTERS I.— VIII. Personal to the Prophet. Of the personal history of the Prophet Zechariah hardly anything is recorded. He styles himself " Zechariah, son of Berechiah, son of Iddo, the prophet," which certainly implies that he was the grand- son of Iddo. But in Ezra v. 1, vi. 14 he is spoken of as "son of Iddo." This, however, presents no difficulty, for similarly Jehu is mentioned as son of Jehoshaphat son of Nimshi (2 Kings ix. 14), while (ver. 20) he is called merely son of Nimshi. The father of Zechariah, and the father of Jehu, seem to have been (to use an illustration from modern times) somewhat in the position of Abraham Mendelssohn1, they could both boast of being the father and the son of a man of reputation. Knobel's supposition, then, that "son of Berechiah" (Zech. i. 1, 7) is an interpolation from Is. viii. 2, where Zechariah son of Jeberechiah is mentioned, is unnecessary. In Ezra v. 1, 2 "Zechariah son of Iddo" is mentioned as prophesying in conjunction with " Haggai the prophet," and being instrumental in bringing about the resumption of the work of rebuilding the Temple. We know nothing further for certain about him, except that he prophesied up to the month of Cislev in the 4th year of Darius. Something may, however, be deduced from circumstantial evidence. Among the Priests and Levites who came up with Zerubbabel is mentioned "Iddo" (Neh. xii. 4), as one of heads of the priestly families 1 Son of the philosopher Moses Men- and father of Felix Mendelssohn Bar- delssohn, from whose Biblical Commen- tliohhj the musician, tary we quote the opinions of Arnswald, 1XT110DUCTIUX. (rashe huco'/k nim) in the days of Jeshua (see p. 32) the High Priest. Again in the clays of Joiakiin, the son of Jeshua (the High Priest), a Zeehariah son of Iddo is mentioned (ver. 10, 12, 1G) as one of the heads of families (rashi ha'aJ)h6th), and that evidently among the Priests. From these facts it is deduced by many (and not unreasonably), that Zeehariah (like Jeremiah and Ezekiel) was a priest as well as a prophet : and that (supposing the Iddo of Neh. xii. 4, 1G to be the same person that is mentioned in Zech. i. 1), while Zeehariah began his ministry during the High-priesthood of Joshua, he was head of his family in the days of Joiakim the son of Joshua. Thus Zechariah's father, probably, died early and never became the head of his family, and Zeehariah was a young man at the time of the return from the Captivity. The times of the Prophet, and occasion of his Mission. In the first year of his reign in Babylon B.C. 538 (Rawlinson) Cyrus the Great made a decree for the return of the Jewish exiles to Jerusalem, and for the rebuilding of the House of the Lokd God of Israel, which was in Jerusalem (Ezr. i. 3). The sum total of the "Congregation" (qahdl) which came up on this occasion was 42,3G0 (fathers of families, probably, i.e. about 200,000 free men, women and children), besides male and female slaves to the number of 7,337 (Ezr. ii. G4, 65, Neh. vii. GG, G7). These came up under Zerubbabel (or Sheshbaggar comp. Ezr. iii. 8, v. 16, Zech. iv. 8), the Head of the Captivity (Rish Galtlthd) son of Shealtiel (Ezr. iii. 2, 8, v. 2 &c, Hagg. i. 1, 12 &c., Matt. i. 12, Luke iii. 27), and Joshua the son of Josedech the High Priest. Zerubbabel is called (1 Chron. iii. 19) son of Pedaiah (son of Jeconiah, son of Jehoiakim), Shealtiel having probably died without male issue, and his brother Pedaiah having (in accordance with Deut. xxv. 5 — 10) taken his deceased brother's wife. Zerubbabel was thus legal heir of Jchoiachim, king of Judah. Feeble indeed was the people's response to the Persian king's invitation to return to their own country, and remarkably so with those who ought to have been most eager to avail themselves of it, viz. the priesthood. Of them but 4 out of the 24 orders, and of the Levites only 74 (households, probably) returned. After the returned exiles had arrived at their respective cities, as tin1 seventh month was INTRODUCTION. approaching they were assembled, as one man, to Jerusalem, and rebuilt the altar of burnt offerings, and from the 1st day of Tishri (see page 10) reestablished the daily sacrifices. They kept also in that month the Feast of Tabernacles1 (Ezra iii. 1 — 6) "according to the scripture" (viz. from the 15th to the 22nd2 of the 7th month, Lev. xxiii. 33 — 42). Then in the second month (Iyy&r) of the second year of their return (whether this was the second or third year of Darius cannot be decided) energetic measures began to be taken for the building of the Temple, and the foundation thereof was shortly laid amid the blasts of trumpets, the clashing of cymbals, and songs and praises to the Lord " for His mercy (endureth) for ever upon Israel," while some shouted for joy, and the ancient men, who had seen the Former House, wept, when the founda- tion of this House was laid before their eyes (Ezr. iii. 8 — 13). But the building was not destined to be completed at this time. When the Samaritans heard that the community, which had returned from the Captivity, were beginning to rebuild the Temple, they came to Zerub- babel, and to the chiefs of the people, and desired to take part in the work. On their cooperation being declined they set themselves to hinder the Jews in their work, and bribed some of the favourites at the Court of Persia so effectually, that they frustrated the purpose of the people of Judah during the rest of " the reign of Cyrus, even up to the reign of Darius" (Ezra iv. 1 — 5) ; — i.e. from about B.C. 536 to B.C. 529 when Cyrus died, and during the reign of Cambyses, son of Cyrus (b.c. 529 — 522), and the 10 months (or less) of the reign of the pseudo-Smerdis (or Bardes) B.C. 522 — 1, and during one year of the reign of Darius, who succeeded Bardes in 521 — in all about 15 years3. In the second year of Darius, God raised up Haggai the prophet, and Zechariah the son of Iddo (Ezr. v. 1, 2) to prophesy to the Jews which were in Judah and Jerusalem, so that Zerubbabel and Joshua the High Priest and the rest of the people " came and worked at the House of the Lord of Hosts in the 24th day of the 6th month of the second year of Darius," (Hag. 1 The fact that this was the first - The 22nd called Sh'mirih 'agereth Festival, which they kept on their return, is looked on as a separate Festival, rigel may be an additional reason for the pro- biph'ne 'agmo (T. B. Succah 47b-48a). minence given to it in Zech. xiv. 16, 18. 3 For further particulars with regard There does not appear to be any sufficient to the events of this interval see the ground for doubting the genuineness of book of Ezra. Ezr. iii. 4— G\ 6 2 INTRODUCTIOX. i. 15). Although it is true that the enemies of Judah and Benjamin were a chief cause of this long neglect of the work of rebuilding, still such neglect seems to have been in great measure caused by remissness on the part of Zerubbabel and Joshua, and the heads of the people. For Haggai on the 1st of the 6th month (i. 1 — 11) administered to them a scathing rebuke, when he said to them " Is it time for you, you indeed, to dwell in your houses all ceiled, while this House lieth waste1?" He calls on them too to " consider their ways," to call to mind, why it was that they " sowed much, and brought in little," it is (says he) because " My House is waste, and ye run every one to his own house." In the 7th month the word of the Lord came again to Haggai, and he foretells the " shaking of the heavens and the earth and the sea," encourages the people by the promise that " the choicest things of the nations should come" to glorify God's House (ii. 7. 8), and assures them that " the glory of that House will in later times be greater than at the first" (ver. 9). At this juncture it was, that the first recorded revelation came to Zechariah, in the 8th month, and he is commanded to exhort the people to repentance, and to warn them against neglecting the words of the prophets as their fathers had done before them, if they would not experience their chastisements (i. 1 — 6). Contents of Chap. i. — viii. After the (1) introductory verses (Chap. i. 1 — 6), Chapters i. 7 — viii. 23 fall into two divisions, divided from each other, and from the intro- duction, by the mention of the exact date of each revelation. They comprise (2) Chap. i. 7 — vi. 15, and (3) Chap. vii. and viii. (2) Chap. i. 7 — vi. 15 con&ists of a series of seven visions, with two appendices ■ — chaps, ii. 6 — 13 — vi. 9 — 15. First Vision (chap. i. 7 — 17). — The horsemen between the myrtles. This vision was intended to convey to the prophet the truth that, though as yet there may be little sign of God's "overthrowing the kingdoms" (Haggai ii. 22), yet He, with His all-watchful eye, was scanning the horizon, and preparing to fulfil His word. Second Vision (chap. i. 18 — 21).— The four horns and four workmen indicate that God would continue to remove the hostility of the Persians, even as He bad already broken the power of the Assyrians, Egyptians, and Babylonians. Third Vision (chap. ii. 1 — 5). — The man with tin' measuring line. The enlarge- ment and perfect security of the people of God. An appendix (chap. ii. G — 13), prophetic of the ingathering of the nations in the days of Branch, the Messiah. Fourth Vision (chap, iii.) — Joshua, the high priest, arraigned before the angel of INTRODUCTION the Lord. The forgiveness of the sins of the priesthood and people, whose repre- sentative he was. Fifth Vision (chap. iv.). — The candlestick with the tico olive-trees. The diffusion of God's grace hy means of His two channels — the priesthood and civil power. It contains a promise (ver. 9) that Zerubbabel's hands should finish the building of the Temple. Sixth Vision (chap. v. 1 — 11). — The flying roll, and the woman in the cphah, denoting the curse on sinners, and the banishment of sin. Seventh Vision (chap. vi. 1 — 8). — The four chariots. God's judgments on the nations. An appendix (chap. vi. 9 — 15) describing the crowning of Joshua, which foreshadows the twofold office of Branch, as king and priest. A probable lacuna in the text. (3) Chaps, vii. , viii. — The inquiry concerning the fasts. The prophet's rebuke of the people for their formalism. The answer to their inquiry, in the form of a promise that their fasts should be turned into feasts. PROLEGOMENA TO CHAPTERS IX.— XIV. Integrity, Date and Authorship. The first to call in question the genuineness of these chapters was Mecle (the great English writer on Prophecy, who died 1638). He was led to do so in defence of the correctness of the Text of the New Testa- ment. Observing that in Matt, xxvii. 9 a passage, which is evidently a quotation from Zech. xi. 12, 13, is ascribed to Jeremiah, he felt bound to support this authoritative statement of the Evangelist (as he con- sidered it), and in endeavouring so to do he came to the conclusion that there is much in these Chapters which argues their pre-exilian origin. Since his time the question has been repeatedly discussed, with such inconsistent results, that while Hitzig places chaps, ix. — xiv. as early as B.C. 772, in the reign of Uzziah, Eichhorn refers them to "after the battle of Issus, B.C. 333," and Bottcher "after B.C. 330" (see Pusey's " Table of Dates &c"). We now proceed to review the arguments which have been brought forward by the impugners of the genuineness of these chapters, bearing in mind Pusey's weighty remark " It is obvious that there must be some mistake either in the tests applied, or in their application, which admits of a variation of at least 450 years." I. A difference has been alleged between chaps, i. — viii., and chaps, ix. — xiv., (1) with regard to Style, (2) with regard to Historical Standpoint. IXTRODUCTIOX. ( 1 ) With regard to style it has been urged : (a) That the style of chaps, i. — viii. is utterly different to that of chaps, ix. — xiv. This (speaking generally) we are free to admit. But we cannot admit it as a valid argument against the Unity of Authorship. For, upon the argument of mere style it might be maintained that the same author could not have written Zech. i. 1 — 6, vii. and viii., and i. 7 — vi. 15 ; the first-mentioned passages consist chiefly of rebuke, and in them there is no mention of Qemach, while in the other passage there is nothing but a series of visions, with passages of encourage- ment and promise interspersed (ii. 10 — 17, iii. 7 — 10, vi. 9 — 15). As for the heading of chap. vii. 1, which ascribes it to Zechariah, it might be put out of the argument for one side or the other, since such critics are in the habit of rejecting such verses as spurious, when they are subversive of their preconceived conclusions. Again, we may adduce cases in which the argument from style has no weight with these critics : e.g. the style of Hos. i. — iii. is utterly different to that of iv. — xiv. and that of Ezek. iv. v. to that of vi. vii. or of xxvii. xxviii. and yet the general integrity of these books is universally admitted. (/3) That in i. 7 — vi. 15 there is nothing but visions, lohile in ix. — xiv. there are none. But, there can surely be no reason why a prophet should not relate visions when he sees them, while there is every reason why he should not relate them when he does not see them ; neither can there be any reason in the nature of things why a prophet, who once in his life saw a series of visions in one night, should be expected to have all revelations made to him in that particular manner. Zech. i. 1 — G, vii. viii. contains no visions, and yet the genuineness of those passages is not doubted. Similarly, Amos vii. — ix. consists wholly of visions, while in i. — -vi. there are none ; Isaiah, too, and Ezekiel related such visions as they saw, but when they saw none they delivered their message in a different manner. If the thoughtful reader will compare this objection with that which we have said might be brought against the uuity of authorship of chap. i. 1 — G, vii., viii., and chap. i. 7 — vi. 15, he will probably come to the conclusion, that one is of as little weight as the other. (y) That fhr angel interpreter, and Salon, and the vt n Eyes disappear from chaps, ix. — xiv. This is quite natural. They were INTRODUCTION. part of the visions, and when the visions disappear, they disappear also. It might as reasonably be argued that the Prophet was bound in the latter portion of his prophecies to refer continually to Horses, Chariots, Candlesticks, Horns &c, because, forsooth, he had seen such in his visions ! (8) That (a) Exact dates are given in the former chapters, but none in the latter. So, too, are dates prefixed to Is. vi. 1, Ezek. i. 1 — 3, viii. 1, xl. 1, &c. — That (b) in chaps, i. — viii. introductory formulas constantly occur, which are ivanting in the latter chapters. Similarly Hosea uses introduc- tory formulas in the first five chapters, but none in the last nine. And yet (as we have said) no doubt is entertained of the integrity of that book. Finally the argument from style must always be a doubtful one. Pusey has given an instance of the precarious nature of such arguments in the following. The Laws of Plato an acute German critic imagined to have proved from their style to be not the work of Plato. And yet Jowett (Transl. Plato Dialog, iv. p. 1) has shown their genuineness by 20 citations in Aristotle (who must have been intimate with Plato for some 17 years), by allusions of Isocrates (writing a year after Plato's death), by references of the comic poet Alexis (a younger contempo- rary), besides the unanimous voice of later antiquity. Further, critics of similar tendencies do not agree on points of style : e. g. Rosenmiiller speaks of the first eight chapters as being "prosaic, feeble, poor," and of the remaining six as "poetic, weighty, concise, glowing," (comp. Maurer and Hitzig). Bottcher on the other hand says " In comparison with the lifeless language of these chapters (ix. — xiv.), as to which we cannot at all understand how any can have removed them into so early pre-exile times, the Psalms attributed to the time of the Maccabees are amazingly fresh." When critics so disagree as to the respective merits of the styles of the two sections, it seems hardly worth while to consider the argument. We will merely remark, that neither sweeping statement is correct. In the first chapters when Zechariah is describing his visions, he uses the natural language of narrative, viz. prose. When (ii. 10 — 17, vi. 12, 13) he looks forward to the distant future, he speaks in glowing language such as will bear com- parison with anything contained in the latter chapters. (2) A difference with regard to the Historical Standpoint has been urged (a) in particular passages, (ft) in the two sections generally. INTRODUCTIOX. (a) We have shown in the Commentary that the arguments of those who see in certain passages of chap. ix. — xiv. positive indica- tions of the pre-exilian origin of these chapters are inconclusive. See especially "Remarks" on ix. 1—8, pp. 82—84; ix. 9—17, p 00; x. 2, p. 91; x. 3—12, pp. 95, 9G; xi. 1—3, p. 97, 8, p. 101; xi. 14, p. 104; xii. 1—9, p. 110, 111; xii. 11, p. 1G; xiv. 5, p. 124; xiv. 1—21, p. 131, 132. (/?) With regard to the historical standpoint generally, it has been alleged that in chap. i. — viii. the prophet is continually men- . tioning the rebuilding of the Temple, and the re-inhabiting of Jeru- salem ; ivhile in chap. ix. — xiv. he is occupied ivith quite different matters. In the former he mentions his contemporaries, such as Zerubbabel and Joshua, but not so in the latter portion. As regards the Temple and the prophet's contemporaries this is perfectly true, but it is no argument for the pre-exilian authorship of chap. ix. — xiv., nor against their contents having been delivered by Zecha- riah. For, if our theory as to the date of these chapters be correct, they were written at a time when the rebuilding of the Temple had been long completed, and when those abuses of the Temple- service, which occupy so much of the attention of the Px'ophet Malachi, had not as yet crept in. The Prophet is occupied in the latter chapters with matters quite different from those with which he is con- cerned in the former chapters, hence the frequent recurrence in the latter section of the expression "in that day" (ix. 16, xii., xiii., xiv. p>assim). But, that in the latter section there is no mention of the re-inhabiting of Jerusalem is certainly untrue, see (ix. 16, 17), x. 6, 7, xii. 6, xiv. 10. The arguments, however, against the pre-exilian origin of these chapters are not merely of a negative kind. II. We now proceed to adduce from (a) parallel passages, (/3) notes of time, &c, what we consider to be Internal Evidence in favour of the hypothesis of the Post-exilian Origin of Chap. ix. — xiv. (a) The writer of chap. ix. — xiv. shows such a familiarity with the writings of the later prophets as seems to some reconcileable only with IXTRODUCTIOX. the supposition that he wrote at a date posterior to them : thus with the so-called D eutero- Isaiah1 . Compare Zech. ix. 12a with Is. xlii. 7, xlix. 9, Ixi. 1. Zech. ix. 12b with Is. Ixi. 7. — x. 10 „ — xlix. 19, 20. — xi. 15, 16 — lvi. 11. Zephaniah. Compare Zech. ix. 5, 6 with Zeph. ii. 4, 5. Zech. xii. 1 with Is. Ii. 13. 2 „ — Ii. 22, 23. — xiii. 9 ,, — xlviii. 10. 16 „ — Ix. 6—9, lxvi. 23, 17 „ — Ix. 12. Jeremiah. Compare Zech. ix. 12 with Jer. xvi. 18. — xi. 3 ,, — xxv. 34—36. — ,, — xii. 5, xlix. 19, 1. 41. (The only passages in which Gk)n hay Tardea occurs). Zech. xi. 5 with Jer. ii. 3, 1. 7. Obadiah. Compare Zech. xii. 6 with Obad. ver. 18. Ezekiel. Compare Zech. ix. 2 — 4 with Ezek.xxviii. 1 — 23. — x. 2 ,, — xxxiv. 5, 8. — x. 3 ,, — xxxiv. 12, 17, 20, 22, 31. — xi. „ — ■ xxxiv. especially verr. 4, 5, 16 with verr. 3, 4, and ver. 9 with ver. 16. — xi. 7, 14 ,, — xxxvii. 16— 22 — xii. 10 ,, — xxxix. 29. Zech. xi. 6 with Jer. xxvi. 29 — 33. — xiii. 9 — — xxx. 22. (Comp. also with these Zech. viii. and Hos. ii. 23.) Zech. xiv. 7 with Jer. xxx. 7, 8. — — 10 ,, — xxxi. 38— 40. — — 20, 21 — xxxi. 40. Zech. xiv. 9 with Obad. ver. 9. Zech. xiii. 1, 2 with Ezek. xxxvi. 25, xxxvii. 23. — xiii.8,9,, — v. 2,12;xi.20. — xiv. 2 (xii. 2 — 9) xxxviii. 14 — 18. _ _ 4 with Ezek. — 19, 20. — — 8 ,, — xlvii. 1. — — 13 ,, — xxxviii. 21. — — 14 ,, — xxxix. 10. — — 21 ,, — xliv. 9. Haggai. Compare Zech. xiv. 13 with Hag. ii. 21, 22. Similarly chap. i. — viii., which are of undeniable post-exilian authorship, show a thorough acquaintance with the later prophets. Compare, for example : chap. ii. 6 (E.V.) with Isa. xlviii. 20, or with Isa. lii. 11 and Jer. Ii. 6, 9 ; chap. ii. 9, 11 (E.V.), and chap. iv. 9, with Ezek. vi. 7, 10, xxxix. 10, &c. ; chaps, iii. 8, vi. 12, with Jer. xxiii. 5, xxxiii. 15 (Isa. iv. 2) ; chap. vi. 15 with Jer. xvii. 24 ; 1 The date of Is. xl. — lxvi. need not come under consideration here, since most critics who regard Zech. ix. — xiv. as pre-exilian, consider Is. xl. — lxvi. as contemporary with the later prophets. INTRODUCTION. chap. vii. 5 — 10 with Isa. lviii. 3 — 7 ; chap. vii. 9 with Ezek. xviii. 8, and Jer. vii. 5 — 7, xxii. 3 ; chap. vii. 12 with Ezek. xi. 19 ; chap. viii. 4 with Isa. Ixv. 20; chap. vii. 13 with Jer. xi. 11 ; chap. viii. 6 with Jer. xxxii. 17, 27 ; chap. vii. 14 with Jer. xvi. 13, &c. ; chap. viii. 7 with Isa. xliii. 6 ; chap. viii. 3 with Jer. xxxi. 23 ; chap. vii. 8 with Isa. xlviii. 1. This argument seemed so convincing to de Wette that, after having in the first three editions of his Einleitung declared for two authors, he felt compelled to change his mind, and in his fourth edition admitted the post-exilian origin of Chap. ix. — xiv., and even the possibility of their having been written by Zechariah. "We are not, however, pre- pared to regard this argument as conclusive. We own the difficulty that there is in computing the exact weight due to the argument derived from the consideration of parallel passages, and concur with Cheyne's pertinent remarks on the subject {The Prophecies of Isaiah, II. p. 210) : " The argument from parallel passages is sometimes much overrated. How prone we are to fancy an imitation where there is none, has been strikingly shown by Munro's parallel between the plays of Shakspeare and Seneca (Journal of Philology, Vol. vi. Camb. 187G, pp. 70 — 72), and even when an imitation on one side or the other must be supposed, how difficult it is to choose between the alternatives !... A recent revolution of opinion among patristic students may be a warning to us not to be too premature in deciding such questions. It has been the custom to argue from the occurrence of almost identical sentences in the Octavius of Minucius Felix and the Apologeticum of Tertullian, that Minucius must have written later than the beginning of the third century, on the ground that a brilliant genius like Tertullian's cannot have been such a servile imitator as the hypothesis of the priority of Minucius would imply. But Adolf Ebert (Tertullians VerhaWnisa zu Minucius Felix) seems to have definitely proved that Tertullian not only made use of Minucius, but did not even understand his author rightly." (/?) There are certain notes of time, &c. in chaps, ix. — xiv. which seem to compel us to admit their post-exilian origin. 1. No mention is made of any king of Israel or Judah, except the Messiah (ix. 9). For chap. xi. G evidently refers to the different nations of the world (i.e. hh'dd&m means "mankind," and hd'® "the world"). The expression " from their hand" indicates that several kings are referred to: and so, if "his king" meant an Israelite king, the expression "(and each) into the hand of his king" would imply that each Israelite had a separate king. But the meaning is INTRODUCTION, " I will deliver mankind into the hand of one another and (each people) into the hand of its king." 2. The manner in which Greece is named (ix. 13) as the chief enemy of Zion (quite different from that of Joel iv. 6, Is. Ixvi. 19), besides other historical references, which we have pointed out in our "Remarks," leave us no choice but to understand chap. ix. — xi. as descriptive of the Macedonian and Maccabean periods. While the prophecies of chap. xii. — xiv., which manifestly form one section, would be simply untrue if uttered in reference to any pre-exilian epoch. 3. Except in Mai. i. 1 the expression Massd debhdr YIIVII occui's only in chap. ix. 1 and xii. 1. 4. In xii. 11 a place in the tribe of Issachar is called by an Assyrian name. The reader will perceive that the arguments adduced in II. (a) and ((3) answer from the positive side of the argument those objections which in I. (a) and (/?) we treated merely from the negative side. We conclude, therefore, that chap. ix. — xiv. are, ecpially with chap. i. — viii., of post-exilian origin. III. The Integrity of Chap. ix. — xiv. The theory, which Bunsen has called one of the triumphs of modern criticism, that chap. ix. — xi. and chap. xii. — xiv. are the work of two different prophets : viz. chap. ix. — xi. that of a contemporary of Isaiah, perhaps Zechariah son of Jeberechiah (Is. viii. 2), and chap. xii. — xiv. possibly that of Urijah son of Shemaiah (Jer. xxvi. 20 — 23), falls to the ground with the establishment of the post-exilian origin of the whole section. Archbishop Newcombe, who originated this theory, concluded that chap. ix. — xi. were written much earlier than the time of Jeremiah, and before the captivity of the tribes ; but was not so positive as his followers with regard to the pre-exilian authorship of chap. xii. — xiv., though he thinks the mention of idols (xiii. 2) to be in favour of that supposition. We must, therefore, discuss a little more fully what have been termed the grounds for separating chap. xii. — xiv. from chap. (1) Chap. xi. has a distinct introductory formula. But since this formula is the same as that of chap. ix. 1, and that a formula which recurs only in Mai. i. 1, this xvi IXTRODUCTIOX. argument tends rather in the other direction. — (2) The former chapters speak of Israel and Judah, but the latter do not mention "Israel." On the contrary chap. xii. 1 states that the whole of the following prophecy is concerning " Israel." — (3) In the former Syrians, Phoenicians, Philistines, and Greeks are mentioned, but Assyrians and Egyptians described as the most powerful. These chapters belong therefore to early times. We have already shown that the manner in which the Greeks are here described as enemies of Israel fixes the date of these chapters to the post-exilian period. Egypt and Assyria are spoken of (x. 10) as the nations who had carried off the people, and whence they were to be brought back, while in ver. 11 the stereo- typed language of former prophets is evidently used in a figurative sense. — (1) The anticipations of the tico prophets arc different. The first trembles for Ephraim, but for Judah he has no fear. On the contrary, Ephraim and Judah are included equally in the promised protection. The second prophet does not mention the northern king- dom, but is full of alarm for Judah, and sees the enemy laying siege to Jerusalem. "Ephraim" does not denote " ihe northern kingdom" in chap. ix. — xi. (see Ke- marks). If Jerusalem was to be besieged at any time after its rebuilding (but see Eemarks, p. 132), there is no reason why the same prophet who spoke before in general terms of wars, should not afterwards speak more particularly of a siege. In prophesying concerning a siege of Jerusalem it is only natural that Judah, in which tribe it partly stood, should be especially mentioned. Moreover, as we remarked above, the section is expressly addressed to all " Israel." — (5) Difference of style : "And it shall come to pass" does not occur in ix. — xi., "in that day" which occurs so often in xii. — xiv. occurs only once in ix. — xi., and " n"um YHVH," occurs only twice in ix. — xi. There are also favourite expressions in xii. — xiv., such as " all peoples," " all nations round about," "family of Egypt," &c. This is true, but chap. xii. — xiv. are admitted by all to be a separate section, delivered probably on a different occasion to the former section, and pointing on the whole to a much further distant future. These facts are quite sufficient to account for such very blight differences of style. IV. The Integrity of the whole Booh. With regard to the integrity of the book we must premise, that the fact that a passage occurs in a certain book is not to be regarded as a proof that it was looked upon by those who drew up the Canon as neces- sarily an integral portion of that book. For, the principle was to insert short compositions into longer ones lest from their lack of bulk they should be lost (DDTJD IDin *Y*K fiaba Bathra 14b). Tims ( Vwyyiqra Rabba xv. 2) the two verses Is. viii. 19, 20 are ascribed to Beeri (father of Amos), and are said to have been placed there because they were not long enough to form a book by themselves. Again, in T. B. Maccoth 2 1 " the verse Mic. iii. 12 is ascribed, without remark, to CJrijah the priest, the co-witness with Zechariah son of Jeberechiah (Is. viii. 2). If therefore INTRODUCTION. it should be thought that Zech. xi. 1 — 3, and xiii. 7 — 9 have no ap- parent connection with the context in the places in which they stand, it would be quite admissible to suppose them to be fragments, say of Ezekiel, and Jeremiah respectively, which had not been included in those books, and which were now inserted in the prophecies of Zecha- riah to prevent their being lost. There is no doubt, that we are aware of, expressed in Talmudim or Midrashim as to the genuineness of the last six chapters of Zechariah. On the contrary, chap. xi. 1 is distinctly ascribed to "Zechariah son of Iddo" (T. B. Yoma 39a). While, on the other hand, Rabbi Akivah, in a remarkable piece of exegesis (JIaccoth ibid.), identifies Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah with the author of Zech. viii. 4, although he is perfectly aware, that Zechariah prophesied during the time of the Second Temple. (See further Intro- duction to Zechariah in Bishop Ellicott's " Old Testament Commentary for English Readers.") We have given reasons for assigning the whole of chap. ix. — xiv. to the post-captivity period : we have shown, too, that there is nothing in the style or contents of the two sections of this division (ix. — xi. and xii.— xiv.) to cast any serious doubt on the unity of authorship. We now proceed to adduce some arguments to prove that there is sufficient correspondence between chap. i. — viii. and ix. — xiv. to justify us, in default of any positive evidence to the contrary, in regarding the whole book as the work of one prophet. (1) Both portions exhibit, as we have shown, an extensive ac- quaintance with the writings of the later prophets. (2) They both exhibit also an extensive acquaintance with the earlier books, thus : in chap. i. 4 — 6, chap. vii. 12, reference is made to " the former prophets" generally; chap. ii. 12 (E.V. 8) recalls the thought, though not the phraseology, of Ps. xvii. 8 ; chaps, iii. 8, vi. 12, allude to Isai. iv. 2, as well as to Jer. xxiii. 5, and xxxiii. 15 ; chap. iii. 10 is from Mic. iv. 4; chap. vi. 13 evidently refers to Ps. ex. 4; chap. viii. 8 recalls Hos. ii. 21 (E. V. 19) ; chap. viii. 20 — 22, in substance may be compared with Mic. iv. 1, 2, Isa. ii. 2, 3. And in the second part, chap. ix. 1 — 8 bears some resemblance to Amos i. 3, ii. 6 ; INTRODUCTION. chap. ix. 10 (first half) is borrowed from Mic. v. 10, and (second half) from Ts. lxxii. 8 ; chap. xiii. 2 is a quotation from Hos. ii. 17, or Mic. v. 12, 13 (comp. 1-^. ii. 18, 20) ; and verse 9 from Hos. ii. 20 (E.V. 23); comp. also chap. ix. 16 with Is. xi. 12 ; chap. x. 12 with Mic. iv. 5 ; chap. x. 10—12 with Is. xi. 15, xiv. 25, x. 24—27, xxx. 31, &c. ; chap. xii. 8 with Joel iv. 10 ; chap. xii. 10 with Joel hi. 1, 2. chap. xiv. 3 with Is. xxxiv. 1— 4 ; chap. xiv. 6, 7 with Amos v. 18, 20, Joel iv. (E.V. iii.) 15, Is. xxx. 2G ; chap. xiv. 8 with Is. xi. 9, ii. 3, Mic. iv. 2 ; chap. xiv. 11 with Amos ix. 13 — 15 ; chap. xiv. 20 with Is. xxiii. 18 ; chap. xiv. 21 with Is. iv. 3, xxxv. 8, Joel iv. (E. V. iii.) 17 : etc. But we cannot lay much stress on this argument, since prophets, belonging as they did in most cases to a school, were in all probability acquainted with the works of their predecessors. (3) In both divisions there are similar if not identical expressions to represent the whole people such as "the house of Israel, and the house of Judah" (viii. 13), "the house of Judah, and the house of Joseph" (x. G). See further on pp. 90, 110. (4) Chap. xi. 11 is very similar to ii. 9, 11 [13, 15 Hebr.]. And the promise of x. 1 to that of viii. 12. In both portions Jerusalem is bid rejoice (ii. 10 Hebr. ver. 14, ix. 9), and in both the only king of Israel mentioned is the Messiah. (5) In both portions there are promises of the bringing back of the exiles (comp. ii. 10 — 17, viii. G — 8 with ix. 11, 12 and x. 10 — 12). (G) In both thei'e is the habit of dwelling on the same thought or word (e.g. ii. 14, 15, vi. 10, vi. 12, 13, viii. 4, 5, viii. 23, xi. 7, xiv. 10, 11 xiv. 4, xiv. 5). In both the whole and its part are mentioned together for emphasis as v. 4, x. 4, and in xii. 11 we have "every family apart," and then in ver. 12, 13 the specification. In both parts we have the unusual number oifive sections to a verse, e.g. vi. 13, ix. 5, 7. (7) Both divisions are written in Hebrew free from Aramaisms. In both the expression me'ubhfr umishshdbh occurs (vii. 14, ix. 8), an expression which occurs elsewhere only in Ezek. xxxv. 7. (8) The highly pontic language ami deep prophetic insight of chap. INTRODUCTION ix. — xiv. we consider as an additional argument in favour of the unity of authorship of the whole book. For the man, to whom in his youth such mystic visions as those of chap. i. — vi. were vouchsafed, is just such an one to whom we should not be surprised to find, that in his later years such profound revelations as those contained in chap. ix. — xiv. were revealed, and who from his poetic and imaginative temperament would be likely to find suitable poetic language and metaphors, where- with to clothe them when revealed to him. The internal evidence being favourable to the hypothesis of the post- exilian origin of chap. ix. — xiv., as well as of chap. i. — viii., and to that of unity of authorship, rather than adverse to it, and there being no positive external evidence to the contrary, we conclude that it is probable that the whole of the so-called book of Zechariah (except perhaps xi. 1 — 3, and xiii. 7 — 9) is the work of Zechariah, grandson of Iddo. V. Probable date of Zech. ix. — xiv. Holding the view that by divine inspiration prophets are able to predict events, we cannot agree with those who assert that they must always have written after the events which they describe. Further, in the case before us, while chap. ix. — xiii. are a sufficiently accurate description of the chief features of the Macedonian and Maccabean periods to be interpreted as 'prophetic thereof, they are so vague in detail, and of such an imaginative and idealistic character as to render the supposition that they are descriptive of events which had already taken place extremely improbable. We conclude, therefore (apart from any consideration of authorship), that they were written before Alex- ander's victorious march through Palestine (b. c. 333). But, though a prophet could foretell events, he would not speak of matters, which could be of no interest to his contemporaries. Zechariah would not, therefore, prophesy concerning the wars of the sons of Zion with the sons of Greece before the Greeks had begun to attract attention in the East (comp. p. 132). Now the first event in connection with the Greeks, which would become notorious in the East, is the burning of Sardis by the Ionians (b.c. 499). These chapters must, then, have been composed after that date (viz. between 499 — 333 B.C.). Now INTRODUCTION. Zechariah was, as we have shown, in all probability a young man when lie came from Babylon. Suppose he was 25 years of age in the second year of Darius (520), he would have been but 46 in the year of the burning of Sardis, or 55 in the year of the battle of Marathon (490), or 65 in the year of the battle of Salamis (480). Now, this last great victory, being a naval one, was likely to attract the most attention among the Jews. For, the fleets of the Phoenicians had been requi- sitioned by the Persians for the subjugation of the Ionians, and the Jews might well have feared that the Greeks, confounding them with the Phoenicians, would wreak a speedy and bitter vengeance on them. We consider therefore that about 479 B.C. (the year after the battle of Salamis) is the date to which the last six chapters of Zechariah may most reasonably be assigned. Contents of Chap. ix. — xiv. These chapters consist of two sections: (1) Chap. ix. — xi., (2) Chap, xii. — xiv., each of which commences with the formula Massd d'bhdr Adondy. (1) Chap, ix., x. Doom of adjacent nations. The struggles, but eventual triumph and security, of Israel. The coming of the King (chap. ix. 9, seqq.). ,, xi. [xiii. 7 — 9 (?) ]. The storm threatens the shepherds (?). Eejection of the Good Shepherd. Doom of the foolish shepherd. (2) Chap. xii. 1 — 9. Struggles of Israel with the nations. ,, xiii. 1 — 4. Zeal against prophets in general. ,, xii. 10 — 14. Mourning over him whom they pierced. ,, xiii. 5, 6. General disclaiming of prophetic powers, [chap. xiii. 7—9 (?) ]. ,, xiv. " The last things," as seen in the light of the old dispensation. ZECHAEIAH. CHAPTER I. IN tlie eighth month, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the Lord unto Zecha- riah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet, saying, "Came," lit. was (and so elsewhere): LXX. eyeVero. "Iddo the prophet," this is, in part, the meaning of the Hebr. accord- verse 1. ing to the traditional accentuation ; but the words " the prophet" were originally intended, doubtless, to apply to Zechariah, not to Iddo1. D*W' is the fern, of &)$ "two": it (with its constr. *ft$) is the only word which has a nS^JD letter with dagesli after a moving sheva. The dagesli is forte, representing the lost J. The full form of the word would be either (Gesen.) D^fO^ (which, however, • — t ; is used as the dual of f!^ " a year''), or rather D*£)J£JJ. The Arabic has a prosthetic Alef2, being masc. ithndni, fern, ithnatdni (or dropping Words. 1 The tradition is: "When a pro- phet's name is mentioned and that of his father, then he is a prophet, and the father also. When only the pro- phet's name is mentioned, then his father was not a prophet." pnV TK Bnarw k»:m 'pdi ,wd pi u*aj ,vn« »dv i nvi -ituSk '"i wax wk vn&o ,P fiiw) tnn p rb »n«» niot p .kwu kiii; in nnar-.-iaanm (,f> ,?3i fnp»i .«»;u p k»:u n*ne> 0) ,1 TD")?. But, there is no reason on account of this to saddle Tradition '> with the anachronism of supposing the grandfather (or father) of Zechariah to have been " Iddo the prophet" (2 Chron. xiii. 22), who lived more than four cen- turies earlier, for the name was an old one in the Priesthood (see 1 Chron. vi. 6, E.V. v. 21). At any rate, according to common sense (not to mention that it is in accordance with the usual custom of other Semitic languages), the title, which comes at the end of a genealogical string like this, belongs naturally to that person of whom the writer is es- pecially speaking. 2 E. David Qimchi in his Grammar (Sha'ar diqduq hash-shemoth, sha'ar 1 ZECHARIAII I. 1. the prefix and retaining the Nun) thintdni, which is exactly C'tt^ since Arab. Th often corresponds to Hebr. £^, as *])$ " an ox," Arab. Tliour. L^VTl " Darius," lias a metheg under the first letter, to indicate vt : |TJ that the sli'ca under the resli is moving1. The pointing ^'V"H2 ni Tregelles' English edition of Gesenius (181G) is contrary to the authority of MSS., neither is the word so pointed in Gcsen. Thesaurus. [By a remarkable coincidence the sum of the numerical values of the con- sonants of gtyTl (4 + 200 + 10 + 6 + 300 = 520) gives the date b. c. of the second reign- of Darius, when the prophecies of Haggai and those of the first six chapters of Zechariah were delivered.] HWj the- Jews always read this word as ^"]^ "The Lord," with the vowels of which it is furnished ; unless it is preceded or followed by the word *J"7^ itself, when it is read as u^fl/X (smd pointed fJV"J*)- Consequently the prefixes 2; 5, 7, (')&, when placed before this word, are pointed as though actually prefixed to 'O"!^ or Q^Ji /X as the case may be. — fT""!^ is compounded of the stem *^J and ,*"p, the latter t : - : half of the Sacred Name HTT- The Sacred Name as a termination of Proper names occurs in various forms, e.g. Vl* — -liT IT ancl even simply *. Thus !)JT|T72C, VlW* HW\ and ^ (2 Kin-S xviii- 2) hash-sh'va) bears witness to the fact (5), (0) and (7) point clearly to a long that the orientals (PIITD *33) read the a after the yud. The Hebrew was pie- Hebrew words as eshtaim, eshte. vented from representing properly the 1 The cuneiform contract-tablets of « or u of the ultimate before the I". the time of Nebuchadnezzar all point by the fact that two vowels cannot fall to a moving sh'va under the resh, for a together in Hebrew. It could only have moving sh'va before a yud, even if the been done by inserting an awkward N yiid be pointed with quite a different after the \ thus B^J/fJ. vowel, should always incline towards an 2 But, for all that, the Persic inscrip- i sound (Qimchi, ibidem), and in them tion of Behistan points to a short (fi), the syllable is always ri. The forms There we read, over and over again, are (1) Da-ri-ya-us, (2) Da-ri-ah-us, (3) a-d-m D-a-r-y-w-u-sh "I Darius," in Da-ri-ya-mu-us, (1) Da-ri-ya-a-mu-us, which the first letter of a-d-m is the (5) Da-ri-ah-u-su, (G) Da-ri-ya-a-uts, same as the second of the name. Now (7) Ta-ri-ah-mu-su (Budge). All of theso Adm is the Sanscrit Hharn, Zend ft em, exhibit in the second syllable what could, whence I conclude (but I am open to at the least, be represented in Hebrew correction) that the first « of Darius was only by a moving slrvrt. Nos. (2), (-1), originally short. ZECIIARIAn I. 1. for n"ltt (2 Chron. xxix. 1).— n*3*"Q~J3. The construct of n unlike that of Qt^ (which is but six times ~d£^') is generally joined to its consequent by a hyphen (maqqeph), which has the effect of making the two words into one (which seems to be the effect also of mah/pac in f jv>H Gen. xvii. 17) : and then, since a long vowel cannot stand in a closed syllable unless it have the accent or metheg (see Excurs. i. 8), the long e is changed into e or ? as T?/b~f 3 j^'j 3 . The first vowel of n*D*n]3 has metlieg or rather munach. (See Excurs. II. A. 1 and 9 N.B.) — t : vjv ")/bX/ " saying," though sometimes it means "to say." The infinitive construct is *)J2H when 7 is prefixed to it the vowel of 7 is e and the 5$ becomes quiescent ; but this is not the case with the prefixes ^ and 5, thus *lJbK3 (Deut. iv. 10), "lbfrO (Josh. vi. 8). With the v:,v v:,,. word DV"I7X, however, the change takes place with all three suffixes, thus, tfrihxz, wfbtft, vfbtib. ^ftfc^n tyin^l means simply "in. the eighth month," without stating the day of the month. Some have maintained that .. Constructions. the word ^"111 (which means 'new-moon" and then " month ") is used here in a constructio praegnans to denote " the first day of the month." In 1 Sam. xx. 5 fc^lH does mean "new moon" ; comp. 2 Kings iv. 23; Is. i. 13. But, never does the word when used with the def. art. and followed by an ordinal have this meaning. It is true that the *fej^72?n EHrQ °f Ex. xix. 1 is by Jewish Tradition said to mean the 1st of Sivan, but the Tradition is hung on the words which come after HTM DV3 (see Mecilta, T. B. Shabbath 86b and Bashi), and not on any such special meaning of t^lH (the Pentateuchal expression for "new moons" being D^IH ^fc$*l> Numb. x. 10, &c). Moreover Haggai (Zechariah's contemporary), when wishing to express the 1st day of the month distinctly, adds the words ^Hf!/ IVM DV3 0- !)• Comp. Gen. viii. 5, 13; Ex. xl. 2, 17 ; Numb. i. 1 ; xxix. 1 ; xxxiii. 38, &c. It would be possible to make the words of our text denote "the 1st day of the 8th month" only by altering the pointing to £H}"l3 T/b^'n which would mean " on the new moon of the eighth [scil. month]." — '7 QTltJf flJBJO. This is the regular way of expressing a date 1—2 ZECIIAFJAII I. 2. 3. 2 The Lord hath been sore dis- pleased with your fathers. 3 Therefore say thou unto them, Thus saith the Lord of hosts : Turn ye unto me, saith the Lord of hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the Lord of hosts. from (or rather ivl/h respect to) a certain starting point: viz. ^ is pre- fixed to the constr. of 1~\%&, which is followed by the fern, numeral in the absolute, and that again by 7 : e. g. (2 Kings xxiv. 12) n)b& H^3 "DaD/, lit. "In the year eight with respect to his reigning." N.B. The Hebr. construct-form simply denotes a close relation (or annexa- tion) to the following word. " Of " is only one of the meanings ex- pressed by the construct. This version seems to make Addo identical with Barachias : -n-pos Za^apcav toV tov Hapa^iov vlov 'A88co tov TrpofrqTTjv. But, possibly, vlov is a corruption of vlov caused by the colloca- tion. In any case toV 7rpocpi]Tr)v must refer to Za^aplav. Verse 2. Constructions, , 111 point of time this prophecy in the 8th month, comes in between Hag. ii. 1 — 9, in the 7th month, and Hag. ii. 10 — 23, in the 9th month. : fl^p---£|^p- fc]¥p (the pausal form of t|¥p) is the ace. of the cognate subst. following the verb fc)¥p. Even intransitive verbs can take such an ace. (the case-ending being, how- ever, almost lost in Hebr.), e.g. (Ps. xiv. 5) *7rl3 ^HltiS. The use of the absolute infinitive (which is but a subst.) before a finite verb, to intensify its meaning, is only another form of this construction. In Arabic, also, both transitive and intransitive verbs take this cognate ace. (with the case-ending retained), e. g. daraba darabaro " he struck a blow," and intrans. nama nouniff/j "he slept a sleep"; the Hebr. Hl/bn )&5>W|3 "lest I sleep death" (Ps. xiii. 4) is but a slight extension of this construction (comp. for the idea ^Tftl 13 " when he slept," i.e. died — Talm. Jerush. ; ov yap diridave. tov Kopucrtov, dXXd KaOtvSei, Matt. ix. 24 ; and the Syr. d'mec he slept, died). The student may here observe that DfHX is written first without a s after the 7, and afterwards (as usually) with the *, thus DHvX- It is convenient to say that 7X and 7^ take the plural pron.-suff. ; but as a matter of fact the * which appears before the suffixes is part of the word itself, as the poetic forms ^7^ (Job iii. 22, \ 1 1 e 3. Words. ZECIIARIAII I. 3. &c-)> w^ (Ps- 1- 5, &c), and the Arab, forms distinctly show. Q{^J is a subst. (of the form of 7^3 " boundary ") from a verb, which only occurs once, and then followed by Q^J as the cognate accusative (Jer. xxiii. 31) £iO ^X^l "and say God saith." Such nouns are the same in the absol. and in the constr. state. N.B. the u of tbis word is only !) written defective, and is no more a short vowel, than is the .. of {kit vX jnttfcO" When ) is prefixed to the perfect tense, 2nd pers. - •• jt :- |t : : sing, masc.f or 1st sing, com., if the accent remains in its proper place (viz. on the second root-letter) the perfect retains its ordinary meaning; if, however, the verb is to have the force of a future, subjunctive, imperative, &c. the accent1 is (as a rule) i thrown on the last syllable, e.g. (Dent, iv. 30) ft^l, (Numb. xiv. 15) T nitam, (Gen. vi. 18) ^hpH), (PS. lxxxix. 24) Tltol, (Gen. xvii. 6) I TH^nV I11 such a case, if the vowel of the first letter be not sup- ported by a sh'va, or dagesh forte, that vowel will require metheg (Excurs. II. A. 1): thus we have EJ"| /tf J"n^5'$'| "therefore say unto them." But ■» i there are certain cases in which the accent is not thrown on the last syllable : (1) "When such a perfect is immediately followed (without a distinctive accent) by the £o;ie-syllable of the succeeding word, as (Deut. xiv. 26) fl$ ftS^NI "and thou shalt eat there." This is in order to t t : j- t : avoid the concurrence of two fo«e-syllables. (On the dagesh in the ffl see Excurs. in.) : (2) With a disjunctive as (Deut. viii. 10) ]"I/5X1 V I J^V^t^l " and thou shalt eat and be satisfied " : (3) In the Qal only of t 'at t : verbs quiescent ,^"7 and {$"7, thus (2 Kings xxi. 13) WflDI " anc^ I Wlil wipe out," (Gen. xvii. 19) H^lpl "and thou shalt call." A Perfect thus changed, as Vamartd2 is here, into an Imperative has usually 1 Unless we wish to indicate the kind bearing the tone-vowel, of accent used, we shall mark the tone- 2 In transliteration metheg will in syllable (i.e. the accentuated syllable) by future be represented by\ and the tone- a vertical line placed over the consonant accent by '. G ZECHARIAII I. 4, 4 Be ye not as your fathers, unto whom the former prophets have cried, saying, Thus saith the Lord of hosts ; Turn ye now from your evil ways, and from, your evil doings : but they did not hear, nor hearken unto me, saith the Lord. some other verb preceding it. But sometimes, as here, it stands alone, comp. (2 Sam. xiv. 10) ^ inS^HI T^K WEH "Anyone that saith [ought] unto thee bring him unto me." — Adunay C'baoth. Since neither the Name YHVHt nor its substitute Adunay, has a constr. form, some Jewish grammarians say that between The Name and Q'babth the word ^H/X i« to be understood (though not read). Thus the expression means " The Lord (God of) Hosts." — tidbit y&H)- The E. V. " and I will turn, etc." is admissible ; but it would, perhaps, be better to render the words " that I may return unto you." The ordinary form to express " and I will return " is with the final ,1t-, e.g. Mai. iii. 7 D^7N fDI^V In speaking of the Hebr. j Imperfect, we must always remember that Arabic, which retains dis- tinctive terminations, and their distinctive meanings, more than any Semitic language, has four (or five) forms of the Imperfect : (1) the Indicative ending in u, (2) Subj. in a, (3) Jussive without final vowel (like the Hebr. and colloquial Arab. Imperf.), (I and 5) the Energetic in anna and an. Now, while we maintain that the Hebr. Imperf. in ah is often used, merely for the sake of variation of sound, in the same sense as the ordinary Imperf, still it seems to us evident that the final ah sometimes represents the a of the Arab. Subj. and sometimes the anna of the Energetic. But as the case-endings (where found) have in Hebrew (for the most part) lost their distinctive meaning, so too the mood-endings. Remarks. repentance. Though God had declared (Hag. i. 13, ii. 4) that He was "with them," Hag. ii. 14, 17 shows how much need the people still had of Q^fc^fcOrj- Baer (with Leusden) has the metheg incorrectly under i the H (Excurs. ir. A. 1). But he places it correctly in vii. Verse 1 I I words. 7, 12, viii. 11, &c— DDv,7^ with the note * TJV, which means that the * between 7 and 7 is superfluous. In such a case the vowels given above are to he read with the consonants which ZECHARIAH I. 4. is s no the note declares are to be read. Thus here we are to read CDv7V/!2V Since there is not, elsewhere, such a word as 7 vVJb while the word 7 /VD (hi the plur. form only) is very common, it is natural that the t ^: — traditional reading should be dD /V^/^. But, there is a way in which the letters as they stand 03*7V^/b1 might be read, and that d^VvJ^Mi the objection, however, to this reading is that ther known plur. d V vj^, the plur. of iT?*/]} being always Jli/V^ But, there is yet another difference of reading, viz. that, while the Western Jews read d^OT^I, the Oriental Jews read wS(*)^SW (but the Codex Petropolitanus, a.d. 91G, inferior in age only to the Camb. MS. Mm. 5. 27, a.d. 856, and that only with respect to the consonants, while it has the Oriental reading in the margin marked as the " correct reading," has in its text the Western variant). The Oriental may be the correct reading, but the prefixed fo is quite unnecessary, as it might well be supplied from the preceding Q^OT^* as (Hag. i. 10) fa may be supplied before j"| /li* from the 7t3fo which precedes ; compare Zech. xiv. 10. But, on the whole, it appears that D^*v /tJfo) is a reading which cannot be improved on, the prefix fo being naturally understood after d-^DT^j and the more easily omitted since the word already begins with a J2- The student need hardly be reminded that since dlD^Tl/ft is defined by the pron. suff. (D^D) the adjective which follows it (being simply an epithet) takes the definite article. When on the contrary the article is omitted the adj. becomes a tertiary predi- cate, thus Hag. i. 4 should be rendered "Is it time for you, you [I say], to dwell in your houses ceiled as they are (D'O'lSD D^rQ)3)> while this House is in ruins ? " ol 7rpo4>rJTaL ep.7rpoo-6ev is a very free rendering of the Hebr. It ought to have been rather ol ep.7rpoo-$£v 7rpocprJTcu, or ol irpoTtpoi TrpocfiTJTai. — d v7VD is generally rendered correctly (as here) by €TnT7]S€vfxaTa (comp. i. 6, Hos. ix. 15, xi. 3, Mich. iii. 4, vii. 13).— HI? vV is also similarly rendered in Zeph. iii. 4 (but in v. 7 by eVi- or> they may have read fc^/H as hellu, and thought that it was equivalent to the Aram. )yO = Hebr. jl /X : the former supposition is, perhaps, the more probable. For vayyashubhu they give kcu aTreKplOrjcrav, read- ing vayyasl&bhu, and understanding it in the uncommon biblical (with- out an ace. of the thing answered) but later Hebr. sense of replying, comp. Syr. panrti, aud Arab, radda. The Prophet quotes an historical case (from Jeremiah) in proof of what he says; D»T "1CK *"* TWV (Lam. ii. 17). The first prophecy Remarks, ends here. The Vision of the Horseman among the Myrtles (w. 7 — 17). There are two expressions in Hebr. for the numeral eleven, viz., niry ir\o (masc), mfry nn« (fem.) ; and nb>v w*y t r - - ...'..-- T rr .. . r- yerse T_ (masc), H*lbj sWy_- Iii Assyrian the numeral one in Words- the masc. is expressed by istin (jp]^V) : the Hebr. seems to have retained this old numeral in the second form of the compound numeral eleven (comp. ev-StKa, &c.) in the fem. as well as in the masc. "Sebat": the names of the months as found in the books of Zech., Esth., and Neh., are most of them of Assyrio-Babylonian origin : they are in use among the Jews to this day. The following is a table of the months : 10 Z EC II A EI AH I. 6. to a jj CO ft 3 p,o 1 >> cS n Pi 1-3 to 3 CD CO o > o ft H? 3 CD P4 p 2 o o 03 < 1 1 0) 3 1-3 1 ►"B CO sb < 1 CD CO o o O CD 55 ft 1. i-s 3 CD Rdri C ~ *-> o OS © OS O CS O CS O CS O CS o c 2 >> CO CN re !M CO (M CO CN CO CM CO CM CO 6 - ^ c3 o 0) -a o O 0) ■§ o CD m 3 a •"# "" CD a a a j-H S-c ,g ^ £ iP" CD P CD rH~ d :d :3 3 CO e3 3 cd O CD >• to 0 o 3 o w to _^. ^L. 73 w *T °J -i. i-H 73 r N o~ _^ 73 r-i" 3 0) 73 CD OS 3 CD CD CO CD CD CD ^ co ca 43 rr i-l p" t- 3 -1 3 3 a o g. 3 a o 3 H to" B ~3 I § •3 55 3 3 = o r" 3 -2 a? to n CD CD 3 CO o 55. Of- D. a c pi CD CD CO '3 sj,- n n;- r n r Si* 3 CD a '3 3 O 03 o a ,a J? 3 3* ■s •> 09 9 ts] a 1 s cj ^a 6 F a 03 fl I r3 3 3 _tp *CD > > c3 03 03 3 «co 31 03 3 ft 3 ,43 < *co 03 EH CD H Vj 3 M EH- 1 CO 3 &D K ^ 5 'P5 r-T so SO CO 5 PJ CO CO CO H a 2 o Q O C to 3 o o o o fTh n- . a 3 rH CD 03 a O lt>- V. c- i-H CD £ s cS a o h *=" 55 a _r^ 5< , c5 S5 B -■ - r-I oi CO •»# >o O t^ oo Cs O i-H ■m' CO -t3 3 i-H i-l y.^ '•« ' ' CD ZECHARIAH I. 7, 8. 11 7 Upon the four and twentieth day of the eleventh month, which is the month Sebat, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the Lord unto Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet, saying, 8 I saw by night, and behold a man riding upon a red horse, and he stood among the myrtle trees that were in the bottom ; and be- hind him ivere there red horses, speckled, and white. The name "Iddo" is here (as in Ezr. v. 1, vi. 14, Neh. xii. 4, 16) spelt with a final J$ ; but in i. 1 and in Chronicles it is without the final }$• In mentioning the months, if the numeral required have an ordinal form, that form is used as (i. 1) *ykfc5M VITfo ; hut, if the numeral be higher than ten it has no ordinal form, and therefore there is no choice but to use the cardinal : hence we get EHH I^V^WV " tue eleventh month." (On the metheg see Excurs. ii. A. 1.) n / v has the accent on the penultimate because it is a masc. nom. "Verse 8 llOUnS Words.' (7 V and 77) with an additional final j"|. But all f em. (subst., adj., and part.) which end in ("| have the ace. on the last syll.1 : thus vA I* H /Hi is ^fem. noun meaning inheritance, but /"PftJ (^s- exxiv. 4) is a t -:|- t : - masc. noun =7HJ "a valley." The additional <"] is a remnant of the - — T ending of the accusative case, though in many instances the force of the case is lost, and n? v is simply the nominative. The Semitic case- endings were Nom. um, Oblique im, Ace. am, in Arab, they are still un, in, an, and after the def. article simply u, i, a. In Hebr. traces of these cases are found, e.g. of Nom. in 0 as the final ) of iJVPl (Gen. i. 24), )^ (Numb. xxiv. 3) : the Oblique is *, as the final *> of W2*l and -*37fi (Ps. ex. 4), and of ^1 (Gen. xlix. 11), &c. : the Ace. in um used adverbially as ft^HS " suddenly," or in dm as Q^H "in vain," DpH» &c- : or in "^ as n?w "ty nignfc " (Ps- i- 2), and in the final j-| denoting " motion to " as 'fa H /HJ " to the river of Egypt " t : 1- (Numb. xxxiv. 5). The nom. and oblique case terminations have quite lost their force, it is only the accusatival ending which has (and that in 1 Such fern, forms as Piny'lty (Ps. hi. 3) have the additional i"l. Z ECU ARIA II I. 6. the majority of cases) retained its force. — The word DIH (Is. xb. 19> lv. 13, Neh. viii. 15) "a myrtle," by the absorption of the d and the change of H mto X> becomes in Talmudic (Traditional Pronunciation) asset, in Aram, am, and in Arab. as. — JT/¥!2 nas the slmCm rdpheh (see Excurs. iv.) over the 7, to show that the 7 is not to be doubled after the qibbug (see on verse 13), and that it is therefore from the Root V\*£> and means "depth," "hollow"; and not from Eoot 77^*, and mean- ing "shady place." The qibbug (•-.) is only shuriq (!)) written defectively (compare note on QJO in verse 3). — d^^TX (plur. of ullX)- Observe the dagesh in third root letter, similarly in the next word, aud in Q',te!H^ "naked" (Gen. ii. 25), only that there the shilriq is anoma- lously written instead of qibbug before dagesh forte. — D^p^b*- It is impossible to speak with any certainty about this word, as it does not occur elsewhere as an adj. of colour. There is, however, a Persian word surch "red," "dun," used of the hair of camels (?]*&, Zend gulln-a, Sanscrit gukhrd "red," "bright"), which the Prophet might have brought from Persia, only that (if Justi be correct) the form of the word in Persian must at that time have been thuhhra. Again, there is an Arabic word with the *\ and p transposed *lp£y, from which comes the adj. ashqar "red," used of men or horses, with which most com- mentators are inclined to identify our word. But, we cannot with some connect it with Talmudic pl^ , pID and pp*V£^ " red paint " or " rouge," because that is probably the Greek avpiKov. While, however, p*l£y does not occur elsewhere in Bibl.-Hebr. as an adj. of colour, it does occur, viz. in (Is. xvi. 8) H^p^C (another instance of dagesh forte after shilriq), as "its [the vine's] branches " or "clusters." Comp. p*lj}> (Is. v. 2, Jer. ii. 21), and Mp*!^ (Gen. xlix. 11), a choice kind of vine, which Abu-l-Walld (Hebr.-Arab. Diet. ed. Neubauei', col. 751) calls sherlq, and says that it is the choicest kind grown in Syria. Also nipHb* " combs " is used with reference to working " flax " (Is. xix. 9). Twh would mean "by night," but /T7*?n (comp. Q")\*j "to-day") means properly "to-night" (Gen. xix. 5, 34, xxx. 15), and here "on this night" (the night of the 24th) is equivalent to ,in n?w2 (Ex. xii. 12). For, though it is true that the Jews count from the evening, so that the evening of the 21th is regarded as Z EC HAWAII I. 9, 10. 13 9 Then said I, O my lord, what are these? And the angel that talked with me said unto me, I will shew thee what these be. 10 And the man that stood among the myrtle trees answered and said, These are the;/ whom the Lord hath sent to walk to and fro through the earth. the 25 th, yet, when a particular day is mentioned, and then such an expression occurs as "in the evening," &c. (Ex. xii. 18), it denotes the evening of that day. — H/^^S " in a certain hollow" : the article is used in the (practically) indefinite sense, as in tO vSH " a certain fugitive " (Gen. xiv. 13), see my Fragment of T. B. P'sacltim, p. 94, note 36. Halldfldh, rrjv vvkto.. Ben hdadassim asher bamm"gul&h, dvap,i a plur. of *")n " mountain," which occurs often T in the constr. (e.g. Ps. 1. 10), and also with suffixes (e.g. Deut. viii. 9). Some have supposed that they may have read D^T'Tj which they translate oprj in Is. xlv. 2. Either solution supposes *) to have been read for D- Others have suggested that the LXX. merely translated conjecturally, and imagined that "mountains" must be the meaning here, because of the mention of "the two mountains" in vi. 1. For the colours of the horses we have (1) adumm$m Tvvppoi; (2) seruqqim ipapdi " starnng-grey " Kai 7tolkl\ol ; (3) Vbhdnim Xcvkoi. la chap. vi. they are as follows : (1) as here, both in Hebr. and LXX. ; (2) sh'chorim " black " LXX. jui/Wes ; (3) as here, both in Hebr. and LXX. ; and then there is (4) D^fttf D^^D LXX. ttolklXol ij/apoi. Whence it would appear that the LXX., being unable to understand seruqqim, rendered it if/apo! kclI 7tolkl\oi in order to give four colours as in chap. vi. We may note here that the colours in Rev. vi. are Xcukos (labhdn) ; -rrvppos (adorn) ; fieXas (shdchor) ; and x^wP°s "pale" (the equivalent, probably, oibdrod). For hdhadassim Aq. and Symm. give correctly twv /xupcnvecoiw. Stron» Vdv with the Imperfect has the power of drawing back the accent from the ultimate to the penultimate, when no qui- Verge 9 escent sheva or dagesh forte intervenes between the two Words- syllables. Consequently (since we cannot have a long vowel in a closed i . syllable) the last vowel must be shortened. Thus *TDtf» becomes *"lDX*V But in the case of a pausal accent it remains in its original place, thus: IftX"'! (ver. 10) \ In the 1st pers. sing, the accent is not A" 1 See farther in notes on ch. v. 5. 14 ZEC HAWAII J. 11. 11 And they answered the angel i walked to and fro through the of the Lord that stood among the earth, and, hehold, all the earth myrtle trees, and said, We have | sitteth still, and is at rest. drawn hack, even when not in pause : thus we have HJVliS *TpX1 i t t : M—T (Jer. xiii. 7), but the verbs quiescent n"7 are an exception1, e.g. the form fcnSfl (»• 1), **<* |JNJ (iv. 4) ; so JfiKj, ^tf}, and b'V^V — tali'TT) the pres. partic. is the only part of the Qal of this verb that is commonly used in the sense of "speaking" (hut we find the past partic. ^Dl in Prov. xxv. 11, and the infin. with suff. *7p^n Ps- li- G). — ^IJOX happens never to occur except with a disjunctive accent, therefore it is always "liOX (Gen. xii. 1, Judg. iv. 22) with segul under the second X? and dagesh forte in the "T|. The pausal form of the suffix when it is 2)ossessive (not objective) is *7|- without dagesh : thus t?|p"7^ " thy righteousness " (Job viii. G). Out of pause such a verb would take simply "TT as tj^T^ (Gen. xii. 2). — On the meiheg of leh\thhalUc see Excurs. n. B. 4. Haddobhfr hi (LXX. 6 XaXtZv iv ijxoi). The verb dibb&r is found generally construed with 7X, /, or QV of the person spoken to. But, in the case of God's speaking by revelation, the pi-eposition ^ is often used, perhaps on account of the subjective nature of revelation (comp. Numb. xii. G, 8, Jer. xxxi. 30, Hab. ii. 1). Mqh-himmdh elleh, the pronoun H^H discharges the office of the verb "are": "I [emphatic] will show thee what these are" (LXX. n Icttl ravTa). But above the emphasis is on these : mdh-Uleh " what (are) these 1 " (LXX. rt ovtoi). Observe the same constructions in iv. 4 and 5 ; and comp. Ps. xxiv. 8 and 10. On the first meiheg on Vcbyyaianu see Excurs. 11. B. 3. — Haish Verse 11 ha'dmid, "the man who was standing," i.e. who has already Words. been mentioned as standing, and therefore, necessarily, to be identified with the man " riding on a bay horse " of verse 8, and also, doubtless, with "The Angel of the Lord" of ver. 11. — Toshebheth ifshoqdteth is, hardly, a hendiadys for "dwelling at ease" (HD^ fl^t/'V 1 Sec further in notes on iv. 4. ZECUARIAII I. 12, 13. 15 12 Then the angel of the Lord answered and said, O Lord of hosts, how long wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which thou hast had indignation these three- score and ten years 1 13 And the Lord answered the angel that talked with me with fjood words and comfortable words. Judg. xviii. 7), since ^JfcJ^ sometimes (as in Mich. v. 3) has that meaning when standing alone; but, rather, J"Q£}^ means "dwelling at ease," and riDp£J0 " ancl that, in a state of insolent assumption of security " (comp. nt>m T\Z& vii. 7, and nf?&) MtppH l Chron. vi. 40). LXX. for Yoshebheth has KarotKetTat, as in ii. 5 (Hebr. 9) KaroiKvOyaeTaL (correctly there) for Teshibh. Since the Name YHVH cannot take the article, and the article cannot be put before a noun in construct., it might have been difficult to say whether '** *?[{<57^ meant " an angel of the Lord," or " the Angel of the Lord." But, considering that eth is prefixed (which is, as a rule, the case only with defined nouns), and the participle ha'dmed occurs afterwards (with the clef, article), and that MaVac Adondy occurs so frequently to denote a particular Angel, it must needs be so here. He is, of course, to be identified with " the man" of verses 8, 10. For, had he been a fresh person introduced here, the construction in the next clause must have been *lftV %s\T\ DJ1- Constructions. EI"!*) "he pitied" is usually construed (as here) with a direct object, or absolutely (as Jer. xxi. 7). But sometimes (e.g. Ps. ciii. i Verse 12. 13) with 7^. The construction of tDJft is exactly similar Constructions. (the only passage in which it is construed with 7^ is Dan. xi. 30). <13^ D^^ty jit, this is just the construction in the English : "this seventy years," compare vii. 3, and D^D^S HT " this twice " (Gen. xxvii. 36). ZcVamtah vVepeTSes, translating euphemistically. For zeh shibh'lm shdnah tovto e/38o/x.?//"D*7 (as there is in the preceding clause); for, see the first words of the chapter \^ftt?n WT\1, where hashsti 'mini agrees with cliodesh, and yet C"lFl is furnished with a disjunctive accent pashtd (which is always placed on the last letter of the word : while, if the tone-syllable be the penultimate, an additional accent of the same form is placed on the consonant which bears the vowel of that syllable). But niclnunim is, as we have said, a substan- tive : we must therefore either take it as in apposition with d'bhdrim meaning "words [viz.] comfort," or understand D^HJ D"1*!^"! as standing for D^fO [^^l] DHH*! " words [viz. words of] comfort," like JV"1in I'nXn (Josh. iii. 14), which may be taken as equivalent to JVDH [jn^] Vnttn " the ark [viz. ark of] the covenant." But see note on iv. 7. — By LXX. Nichumim is rendered as an adj. TrapaK\r]TiKov<;. ^nXDp is the perfect used to denote the immediate past, the action being continued in the present : it is best translated by the Wordsand English present1. "Thus saith the Lord " in this verse is the same use of the tense. This verb XJp when construed with 7 (as here, Numb. xxv. 13, &c.) denotes "to be jealous, or zealous, for," but with the ace. (Numb. v. 14), or ^ (Gen. xxx. 1), "to be jealous against." On qiri&h g'doldh compare note on ver. 2. The adj. pX£? is of the same form as p^l "green" (which latter Verse 15. has no fern, or plur. in use). The doubling of the last letter, substituting a pathach followed by dagesh forte for qamag, before the plur. termination occurs also in such forms as the 1 Driver (Hebrew Tenses §10) compares, rightly, the so-called "aorist of imme- diate past" in Greek, as iof^afxyjv "I welcome." Z EC II AM A II I. 15. with the heathen that are at ease : I and they helped forward the afflic- for I was but a little displeased, | tion. following; D^D/p (Gen. xxvii. 4), JliJSgfcpJb (Prov. xxiii. 3, 6); com- pare also 7^3 plur. Q^ 7/tD;l, |£Dp plur. D*;)L3p &c-> and our n°te on "diimmlm (verse 8). On £WD the Massoreth says tlpT^ ]*^p> *■ e* the pathach of the word is turned into qdmdc, although the disjunctive accent on the syllable (viz. zaqef) is not strong enough to have such an effect in most cases. Ani qog?f is the Present Tense. It seems to be used here, in prefer- ence to the Perfect (compare qinnethi ver. 14), because the ..,., ,. -•, Constructions. very word TlS^p 1S required m the second section of the verse to be used as an actual Perfect, and it would have been extremely awkward to use the same tense of the same verb in two different ways in the same verse. — Asher means here "for," "because" (= *1^X f$T or ^3 |tT)> comp. Gen. xxx. 18, xxxiv. 13, 27, &c. — Vliemmdh "and they " is emphatic ; but not the ani above (except in so far as there is a contrast between "I" and "they") because the pronoun is, as a rule, required with the participle, when it represents the Pres. Tense ; for a case in which the pronoun of the First Person is supplied with a partic. from a verb in the First Person, which comes in the next verse, see chap. ix. ver. 12. — TVOw V")TV- Some would render this "helped the evil," after the analogy of such passages as ^iJ7"nf"H *lTy? "to help Hadadezer" (2 Sam. viii. 5). But it seems better to understand Hyi / (as in Jer. xliv. 11) in the sense of "for evil," the prefix 7 being used as it is after 'hz'rU in 2 Chron. xx. 23, nWftS V^TE GP*K ^ " they helped, each against other, for destruction," i. e. " they helped to destroy each other." In this example the verb *)T^ is construed with 2 " against," and the substantive with 7 is merely complementary. The verb, here, we take as used absolutely, as in Is. xxx. 7, "And as for Egypt, utterly in vain, do they help." So that we should render ny"l? 11TV nft/Tl "But they helped for evil," meaning "And they cooperated [with me, but] for evil." z. 2 18 Z EC II ARIA II I. 16, 17. 1 G Therefore thus saith the Lokd ; I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies : my house shall be built in it, saith the Lord of hosts, and a line shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem. 17 Cry yet, saying, Thus saith the Lord of hosts ; My cities through prosperity shall yet be spread abroad ; and the Lord shall yet comfort Zion, and shall yet choose Jerusalem. D^JXDM t« o"wt7riTi0e/xera. The }} seems to have been read as Jl, so that they read D^n^L^/l, partic. of JYE^ ; comp. the form tDfcsp 3rd perf. (Hos. x. 14). For this meaning of shith comp. (Ps. iii. 7) ty !)fi&? y^Q "]{?& For y^ty they give avveTrtdevro. The TV written close together might give £}>, and *"] seems to have been read as J"|, giving ^figf. Observe that {&&)*$ (except in Jer. xxvi. 18, Esth. ii. G, 1 Chr. Verse 16. **i. &> 2 Chr. xxv. 1, xxxii. 9) is always spelt defectively, Words. j e without yud in the last syllable. — On the accent of HJS*) siwl the dagesh in ,*"J3> see Excurs. in. The K'thib ,*"flp (which form occurs only as k'thib, and that only again in 1 Kings vii. 23, Jer. xxxi. 39) must be read Hlp> after the analogy of H¥p (Gen. xix. 4). The K'rl is )p (or, rather, )p, ed. Baer) ; comp. )%. Either word would mean "a line;." Slinlildi should be rendered "I am returned," as the Present com- plete, rather than as the Prophetic Perfect "1 will return" Constructions. (which grammatically would be equally admissible). P0¥-1£)fi stands for nWlSfi '> Baer correctly edits it JTO13J1 with t v : t v : \ , | . ,. 17 the simdn rapteh over the J, as he does also nJ^\iri (Mich. Words. tv • : ii. 12); see Excurs. iv. In chap. xiii. 7 the same word is used of "being scattered," in a bad sense, and such is the ordinary use of the verb. lint in Gen. x. 18 the Niph. (it is exactly equivalent to the Qal in this verb) is used of "being spread," not in a bad sense. And so the Qal is, undoubtedly, used here. The corresponding A.rab. judo, yaftdn means "to be abundant," in which sense 1*^£) is, however, the common word in llebr. See note on ii. 10. — The |ft of ^'£3^ denotes "on account of," as in ^""l^ "on account of the multitude of" (ii. 8). I. XX. has en &uixyOij(Ti)VTui...Zv uyaOols. ZECHARIA1I I. 17. 19 dPlJ (Qal Ndqdm unused) may, as far as grammatical form is con- cerned, be either the Perf. Niphal or Pi'el. But the Niph. constructions, means "to pity," and is construed with 7V, 7^, or 7, or Yfo (see Dictionaries) ; while in the Pi'el it means " to comfort," and is construed with the direct object as in Gen. 1. 21, Job ii. 11, and here (and sometimes with a complementary 7V or YQ of the thing con- cerning which the comfort is given, as in Is. xxii. 4, Gen. v. 29). — "iHi "to choose" is (normally) construed with ^ of the thing chosen. Except 'od for hi there is nothing in the Hebr. to correspond with the words Kal el-ire Trpos /xe 6 ayyeAos o AaAcoV iv ifnol en. The translators seem to have borrowed the words from ver. 14 (such is the common practice of the LXX., comp. p. 9). Between the first revelation to Zechariah (i. 1 — 6), and the series of visions, &c. contained in Zech. i. 7 — vi. 15, Haggai had received the revelations Verses 8— 17. °f Hag. ii. 10 — 23. Therein God had foretold "I will shake the heavens, and the earth : and I will overthrow the throne of king- doms, &c." The people were, no doubt, in eager expectation, waiting for this promised overthrow of their enemies. The object of this vision was to assure the prophet (and through him the people) that, though this overthrow had not yet commenced, God's eyes were open, and He was (as it were) sending forth His angel- scouts to reconnoitre, and that, consequently, He was preparing to perform His word. From the grammatical considerations mentioned above it is certain that "the man who stood among the myrtles," and "the Angel of the Lord" are identical. We need not, therefore, enter into the controversies, which have arisen on the subject. With regard to the colours of the horses, since "bay" is first mentioned, it is hardly probable that s'ruqqim means another shade of "red." I should, there- fore, either render it conjecturally "starling-grey," following the LXX., or suggest that it is a corruption of s'chorim, " black." Since the angel-interpreter gives us no clue to any symbolical meaning of tbe colours, and therefore all interpretations of this kind must needs be merely conjectural, it seems best to suppose that these colours were mentioned, as those most commonly found among horses, fcr the purpose of making the picture more realistic (or, because they so appeared to the prophet in the vision). The variety of the opinions of those, who attach symbolical meanings to the colours, is in itself sufficient to show how little dependence can be placed on such interpretations. The following are specimens of such interpre- tation, (1) that of Keil : The riders on red horses are to cause war and bloodshed, those on pale-grey (s'ruqqin) to cause hunger, famine and pestilence, those on white go to conquest. But this explanation takes no account of the single horseman on the red (bay) horse. Moreover victory implies bloodshed, as much as does war, so that there is no practical distinction made between the red and the white horses. (2) Ewald deprives "the man standing among the myrtles" of his horse, then he renders the colours of the horses bright-red, brown, grey, and supplies dark-red (from his interpretation of vi. 3). Having thus arranged the colours to his fancy, he compares this vision with that of the chariots in chap, vi., and sees in the 2—2 20 ZECIIAR1AH IT. 1. colours the mission of the riders to the four quarters of heaven. The red denotes the East, the brown (=black of chap, vi.) the North, the grey (i.e. labhdn) the West, the dark red the South! (3) Vitringa interprets the three colours as follows: red times of war, varicoloured times of varying distress and prosperity, white times of complete prosperity, which were sent on the Jewish people. (4) Kliefoth con- siders the colours to denote the different lands in which the riders discharge their mission, viz. Babylon, Medo Persia, and the Graeco-Macedonian empire. (5) Rabbi Mosheh Alshekh, the cahbalist, interprets red of the company of Gabriel which inclines to Strict Justice, s'ruqnim of that of Raphael (who is the angel of healing after smiting, that is Justice tempered with Mercy), white of that of Michael who inclines to Free Grace. But enough has surely been said to show the futility of such methods of interpretation. "We will only add that, while the author of the Revelation undoubtedly borrows the idea of the different coloured horses from Zech. and gives them such meanings as suit his purpose, it would be most uncritical to interpret Zechariah by means of the book of Revelation. The mystical inter- pretation of the words myrtles and the hollow are equally fantastic. By some the myrtles are said to represent the Pious, by others the Theocracy, or the Land of Judah ; and the hollow is said to symbolize Babylon, or the Degradation into which the Theocracy, or Judah, had fallen. But what need of such far-fetched ideas? A hollow place where there would be water, and shade of trees, is, of course, a most natural place for a troop to be represented as halting at. Whether there was actually such a place near " The Horse-Gate," well known at that time, we cannot say. (CHAPTER II. in the Hebrew.) E. V. Chap. I. 18—2], and Chap. II. (Hebr. n. 1) 18 Then lifted I up mine eyes, and saw, and behold four horns. Second Vision. The four Horns and the four Smiths. On the form JOX1 see on i. 9. pp "a horn," like the name of Verse l. most things which usually are found in pairs, is ordinarily Words. ° ' ■ . used in the dual instead of the plural. In this case there are two forms, viz. CO^p (Amos vi. 13, Hab. iii. 4), and Q^lp (Daniel viii. 3, 6, 20). The construct of both is 'O'lp; if from the former the sh'va under the *■) is quiescent, if from the latter it is moving; but since J is n°t a BeGaDCeFaTh letter there is no means of discover- ing which is the case here. The plur. HlJlp (constr. qa-r'nuth) is used only of the a It a r-homn, or (Ezek. xxvii. 23) other artificial horns (compare nV-V3 the artificial feet YjX. xxv. 12, 1 Kings vii. 30) ; or figuratively as in Ps. Ixxv. 1 1, and hore. ZECIIARIAII II. 2—4. 21 (Hebr. n. 2) 19 And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What be these 1 And he answered me, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem. (Hebr. II. 3) 20 And the Lord shewed me four carpenters. (Hebr. ii. 4) 21 Then said T, What come these to do 1 And he spake, saying, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, so that !)*"|T (accentuated, of course, on the last syllable, viz. under the *l) is the Pi'el of HIT. Verse 2. AVords. Verse 3. Words. Observe that J"|X is prefixed to Y'huddh and to Yisrael, but not to Y'rushaldim. In Post-captivity language (comp. Mai. ii. 11) _.., iti t 1 t i Constructions. 4 Judah, and lsrael-ct/m-Jerusalem, seem to have been an exhaustive expression for "the whole nation." LXX. [i. 19] sup- plies Kvpte from ver. 9. 2^*1)1 is a substantive of the form ^-Jil a thief (not of the form "Q*l, T T T " T T plur. Q^^T). The qdmdc under the cheth stands for pathach followed by dagesh forte, and is therefore immove- . i able; thus the constr. is ffl^Tl, as in |^&$ Wltl (Ex. xxviii. 12) "au - T I V V ~ T engraver of precious-stones," 7T")3 ty^lFl (Is. xliv, 12) "a worker in iron," Q*W fcJHH (ibid. 13) " a carpenter": and the plur. is D^IPl, .'." "T constr. *£JHH (Is. xlv. 16), with metheg under the cheth. (Excurs. n. A. 1.) "And the Lord showed me," sometimes, as in iii. 1, it is not said who was the person who showed. Perhaps this verse may afford the correct clue. Remark. &*fcO should be without a dagesh in the ^ (see Excurs. in.). — Jlfav is infin. constr. Pi'el of ^XV . The verb only occurs once in the Qal, viz. Jer. 1. 14, J"| *7fc$ !)*]* "shoot ye at her." In the Pi'el it always, elsewhere, means to cast a lot, 7*]ij) (Joel iv. 3, Obad. 11, Nali. iii. 10), or in the form ptf- W\ (for )1»)) "and they cast a stone (or stones)," in Lam. iii. 53. — HHi*!!/ is, of course, the t |t : infin. Pi'el of the word )*]] (above), with the pron. suff. 3rd fern. objectiAre. Verse 4. Words. 22 ZECIIARIAH II. 4. no man did lift up his head : but these are come to fray them, to cast out the horns of the Gentiles, which lifted up their horn over the land of Judah to scatter it. I'll must be taken as an actual Past, and not as a Prophetic Perfect, because the Perf. Tense ffly J, in the subordinate clause, thus limits its meaning. — The expressions *£)3, *£)7, *£) 7V> "in proportion to," are, in any but Post-captivity books, only used with a noun (or pronominal suffix as in Job xxxiii. 6) following. In Lev. xxvii. 8 VOH T JlWl "18W ^ 7$?, "in proportion to what (= that which) the ability of the vower may be able to compass," is no exception ; for, the relative ^'X (or the antecedent understood in it) is the noun after ^ 7W. But in Malachi iii. 9 we do find V^3 govern- ing a relative clause Entity D^tf 11^ *%3 " because that (or since) ye do not keep," like the more modern Hebr. £> ^7- Now, i^ in the passage before us is put for 1^^ *£)3 (comP- fJT aiK^ l^tf |JT> ^c-)> only not in the sense in which it is used in Malachi, but as meaning "so that," Fr. cle sorte que, modern Hebr. ty J^lwO- Thus, in the only two biblical passages in which we have (11^) ''fi^ as a relative par- ticle it means " because that" (introducing the cause), and "so that" (the effect).— D^^JH "which lifted up," not "which do lift up": since the tense of the participle depends on the context, and it is here already settled by the Perfect fc$£JO. [i. 21.] After the words rd hiao-Kopiri.o-a.vTa. tov 'iou'Sa follow ko.1 tov 'laparjX. Karea^av, because in ver. 2 (i. 19 LXX.) Isi'ael, as well as Judah, was mentioned. — ^^ simply km. — Lehach"rld otham Vijadduth tov o^vvai avra ets xcVas o.vto>v, reading nnnri7 as ynnrb (as mPh. of ^n) and taking niT1? as nn;S= 0*1 V- They insert TeWapa before Kepara, and read ft*TVT as HVT> K up 60 V. The first vision had revealed to the Prophet, that God was ahout to fuliil His Kemarks on promise of breaking up the self-complacent security of the Gentile ii. 1—4. world. The second vision is intended to givo him additional assurance, by showing how God had already destroyed some of those, who had in time past scattered His people, and by declaring that Ho would continue to do so. We have already shown in our note on the expression "so that no man did lift up his head," that the scattering of Israel referred to must be that of the past. We must, therefore, at once reject the interpretation, which would make the four horns refer to the Assyrian, Babylonian, Mcdo-Pcrsian, and Graeco-Maccdonian ZECIIARIAII II. 5, 6. 23 (E. V. II. 1, Hebr. II. 5) I lifted I ing line in Lis hand. np mine eyes again, and looked, (Hebr. n. 6) 2 Then said I, and behold a man with a nieasnr- Whither goest thou ? And he said Empires, because the latter had not yet come into existence. For the same reason we must, still more emphatically, repudiate the notion that they refer to the four Empires of the prophecies of Daniel, viz. the Babylonian, Medo-Persian, Grecian, and Roman. Ewald, and Hitzig, again have recourse to the four quarters of the heavens, ancPinterpret the hordes of Edom and Egypt (S.), Philistines (W.), Moabites and Ammonites (E.), and Syrians, Assyrians, and especially the Chaldeans (N.). But an objection to this view is that the greater number of these nations had no real hand in the dispersion of Israel and Judah. Having disposed of these theories, we have little hesitation in interpreting the four Jiorses as symbolizing the Assyrian, Babylonian, Egyptian, and Medo-Persian Empires. For, though it is true that it was under the patronage of this last-mentioned Empire, that they were carrying on the rebuilding of the Temple, and that it was Cyrus who first passed a decree for the return of the Jews, yet the intervening kings had listened to the accusations of their adversaries, and had decreed the cessation of the work of restoration, and may well be reckoned among the oppressors of the Nation. This vision, therefore, assures the Prophet that, as the horn of the power and hostility of Assyria, Babylonia, and Egypt had been broken, so should that of Persia be cast down, that nothing might be left which could hinder the people from consummating the work of restoration. With regard to the four workmen Weight goes so far as to identify them with Nebuchadnezzar who shattered the power of Assyria, Cyrus who broke down the pride of Babylon, C'ambyscs who finally subdued Egypt (which had been but humbled by Nebuchadnezzar) and Alexander the Great who in his turn levelled the might of Persia in the dust. But Koehler supposes that they merely refer to the means in general, whereby God's Providence overthrows the enemies of His people. Third Vision. The Man with a Measuring- line. n5&> " whither? " is compounded of ffc$ = f^ "where," and ,*"J (nnac- centuated) a remnant of the ace. case-ending denoting " to- Verse 6 wards" (see above, note on ldyelah, i. 8). The J has the slman ^ ords' rdpheh (see Excurs. in. and ii. A. 5). — ^\'u7 is the infin. constr. of T]£5 " to measure," with 7 prefixed. When 7 is prefixed to a monosyllabic infin., or to one from ^"£ or }"£) verb (not in construction), it takes qamac, thus J"llH 7 to know, fOS^/ to sit, *"|b 7 to measure (but this < T ... T T is not the case with the prefixes ^ and ^). As far as form is concerned ihb might be the infin. absol. of *l£7 "to learn."— H^D^ denotes T "how much?" of quantity, length, time, &c, either in the oratio recta 24 Z EC HA HI AH II. 7, 8. unto me, To measure Jerusalem, to see what is the breadth thereof, and what is the length thereof. (Hebr. n. 7) 3 And, behold, the angel that talked with me went forth, and another angel went out to meet him, (Hebr. n. 8) 4 And said unto or obliqua (as here) ; or " how much ! " i. e. ever so much, or many, as in vii. 3 ; or (in accordance with the custom, so common in languages, of using a question to imply a negation) it is used (Job xxi. 17) in the sense of " How often [how seldom ! if ever] is the lamp of the wicked extinguished1?" All infinitives are nouns substantive. Most of them in Hebrew are of a masc. form, as Hp3 ■> constr. *]p3 • But some (especi- ally from verbs ^"£ and J'S, e.g. rf7/> and H T7> "to bring forth," Yfttf) "to sit") are fern, in form: thus D^'fi^ ftJR *"* "to love the name of the Lord" (from SHK), lfiK MXT^ "and Verse 7. Words. to fear Him" (from X^V). And so from JTlp> "to meet," we have an infin. of a fern, (but always of a construct) form, viz. '>"'> J"lX*1p 7 " to meet the Lord," dDfttOp? "to meet you," ifiN*lp7 (ver- <0 " to meet him " ; in which it will be noticed that (1) an X is introduced, as though the root were X""lp, (2) the vowel is always thrown back on the *), and the fc$ is quiescent, thus H^lp? is f°r flXlp 7 (compare iWxSlb "his work" for ifl^tf^Jb), (3) before another noun, or the heavy suffixes £D and Y2, the form is nX*lp> but before the other suff. it is rwyj. [ii. 3.] o ayyeAos d XaXwv iv ifxol ctoTi/Kci, either reading ^-^ for lxx. ^5f, or giving what they conceived to be the general meaning. The u of 1**") is l°ne> it is merely shuriq written defective, so too the verse 8. u of ^Q^] (ver. 10); see note on i. 3. *1VJ denotes a male, Words and •.. ; ' fi-om infancy (as Moses in the ark of bulrushes, Ex. ii. G) to the prime of life (as Isaac, when his father was about to sacrifice him at the age of thirty, Gen. xxii. 5 — 15). — The full form of y}T\ is ZECIIARIAII II 9. 25 him, Run, speak to this young man, I (Hebr. n. 9) 5 For I, saith the saying, Jerusalem shall be inhabited J Lord, will be unto her a wall of as towns without walls for the mul- I fire round about, and will be the titude of men and cattle therein : | glory in the midst of her. r M?n> which latter is always masculine, while the former is used once as fern. (2 Kings iv. 25). A fern, form }J9/"I occurs once (Ezk. xxxvi. 35). The word HT7H is compounded of the def. article -T\, an inten- sive demonstrative element 7, and the ordinary demonstrative pronoun ,*"JTj thus ha-lla-zeh exactly corresponds with the Arabic al-la-dhl, which, from being originally a demonstrative, has passed into a relative pro- noun "who," "which"; comp. Engl, "that," Germ. " der, die, das." — riiH3 "plains," then " unwalled-towns," "suburbs" (comp. Arab. t ; farz, "a plain"). The word may be taken as used adverbially, or as the accusative of limitation (these being but two different ways of speaking of one and the same construction) ; compare notes on i. 2. — The verb ^^ means not only to "sit," "dwell," "remain," "inhabit,'' but also " to be inhabited" as here (comp. Is. xiii. 20) ; such is also the case with the verb V^tf (ibid.). LXX. — [ii. 4] KaTaKapTrw;, freely, for j/rdzSth. On the dagesh in the 7 of eh"yeh-llah see Excurs. ill. — Sabhibh is a substantive meaning " circuit," it is used here (comp. Ps. iii. 7) in the accusative (but without any distinctive termi- wrords and nation) as an adverb " round about." — In the first half of the verse the verb " to be " is followed by the ace. chomdth esh. We may assume that this is the ace. (and not the nominative as it would be in Latin) from the fact that in Arabic the verb kdna "to be" (together with the verbs of like meaning) takes the ace. after it. In the second half of the verse the same verb is followed by 7, as by the Dative in the Latin example " Exitio est avidis mare nautis." The former con- struction may be illustrated by such a passage as ver. 13, or Gen. xii. 2 n^*l2 PJVtl "And be thou (i.e. and thou shalt be) a blessing"; and the latter by Zech. ii. 15, or Ex. iv. 16 ^ H^H fiJTW TlSJb *]S TTTX1 Clt^X/ : both constructions are very common. — HlDirfi comes from *?|1ft "midst," constr. ^t)p\ (there is also a word *nh) Ps. x. 7, lv. 12, lxxii. 14, compare O^^tt Prov. xxix. 13, meaning "deceit," "oppres- 26 Z EC II ARIA II II. 10. (Hebr. II. 10) G Ho, ho, come forth, and flee from the land of the north, saith the Lord : for I have spread you abroad as the four winds of the heaven, saith the Lord. sion," from an unused verb *p)"l)- There are two other common words of the form ^Ifl, viz. jltf "emptiness," "iniquity" (e.g. EJiX Ps. xciv. 23), and J-fift "death," constr. T\)l2- V T ^1,1 lii often equivalent to ^fc$ " woe ! " " alas ! " as in Is. i. 4 N&n *")J *Vl " woe to (or alas for) a sinful nation ! " AVordsand But here (as in Is. xviii. 1, 2 ...d^3 ^xStf TIN *Vl constructions. ■ r x : - ; • I M&&& ^S, and Is. lv. 1 U^h "dS N»X ^ W it is simply a particle of exhortation and calling. Thus *•),*] ^Jl may be correctly rendered " Ho ! come ye ! " It is practically equivalent to an Impert. There is, consequently, no need to understand a verb !)Xi3> or !)X¥ (as E. V. come forth) before J|DJV— The u in the middle of ^DJI '& long and accentuated, it is merely written defectively (eomp. note on i. 3).— yXlfcO. A few MSS. have JJIHXS, but this reading is of no importance (there is no reading V^lX/)- The form tt^nX is absl. and constr. fern. Either the absol. or the constr. may precede its noun. — The Pi'el £Hj"J occurs in all nine times in the Hebrew Scriptures. Once (Ps. lxviii. 15 Uslhp sl& BH33) it seems to mean "to scatter." Seven times it is used of stretching forth the hands (Is. i. 15, xxv. 11 bis, lxv. 2, Jer. iv. 31, Ezek. xvii. 21, Ps. cxliii. G) : here it seems to be used in the sense of "spreading abroad," i.e. "multiplying greatly," in which sense V^ft) with T* is used, intransitively however (Gen. xxx. 30, Hos. iv. 10, Job i. 10). The verb must be rendered as the Prophetic Perfect "I will spread you abroad as the four winds of heaven." [ii. G.] They seem to have understood pcrdstl in a bad sense "I will scatter"; then, feeling the difficulty of such an expression being made use of to the people on their return from captivity, they deliberately altered the passage into e/c twv Tccrcrapcoi/ aye/xcov tou ovpavov crvva£,w v/Aois. The man with the measuring-lino seems to be simply a figure in the drama, and Remarks on *s D0* *° De regarded as an angel (as in i. 8) : for, he has no message ii. 5— lu. to deliver, and is implicitly rebuked for his folly in endeavouring to measure the city. There is little need to discuss the question whether "is" or ZECI1ARIAH II. 11. 27 (Hebr. n. 11) 7 Deliver thyself, | O Zion, that dwellest with the I daughter of Babylon. "should be" or "shall be" is to be supplied with the expression "how great its width, &-c." The Vision refers, no doubt, to the future of Jerusalem, beginning from the time then present. The Interpreting Angel "goes forth," i. e. leaves the Prophet's side, and another angel "comes forth," i.e. appears on the scene, and goes to meet him. In ver. 8 the speaker must be the " other angel," otherwise he appears for no object or jrarpose. "This young man" is by many commentators understood of the Prophet; but, to us it ajipears much more probable that it refers to the "man with the measuring-line." He is forbidden to measure the city, not because it was to become too great to be measured, but because it was to extend beyond its boundaries, whatever they might be, on account of the multitude of its inhabitants, &c. This promise was literally fulfilled : for Josephus (Bell. Jucl. v. 4 § 2) speaking of Jerusalem in the time of Herod Agrippa says : ir\r)6ei yap v-rrepxeo- fxivr] Kara punpov e^elpire twc irepifiokwv, koX rod iepov to. TrpoadpKTia irpbs Tip \6(pu) ovp.iro\'i£ovTes €7r' ovk 6\lyov TrporjXdov, Ktzl reraprov TrepiOLKTjOTJvat. \6V 'DOTY) ^fcfi fVX TEH— " Daughter of Babylon " means inhabitants of Babylon, like " Daughter of Zion" in ver. 14. — 7^3 means "gate of God," and is a contraction of 7X 33 (comp. J")33 of the next verse), the old Assyrian name being T — T Bab ilu, which is a Semitic translation of the still older Accadian ca-dimirra-ci "Place of the Gate of God" (Sayce). — FQt^V means i "dwelling with," and is here construed with the ace, as (Ps. v. 5) ^HJ* means *&£ *Y|J|\ The instances J-fiSnn 32?V (ps. xxii. 4), ^T 1 Other 2ndpers. Impert. Niph. which occur are : nD-IH n»B>n. *SDKiT Win r *■ x • : it . > • : |t • J • : it •• j • : it" ) only once apiece : and, as it so happens, not one of them in pause. 28 ZECI1AR1AII II. 12, 13. (Hebr. n. 12) 8 For thus saith toucheth you touclietli the apple of the Lord of hosts; After the glory \ his eye. hath he sent me unto the nations (Hebr. II. 13) 9 For, behold, I which spoiled you: for he that ] will shake mine baud upon them, A'erse 12. Words. D^DH (2 Sam. vi. 2) or Q^Htf 1WV (Gen. xxv. 27), &c, which are sometimes cited as parallels, are not suitable : for, in them the ace. denotes the thing inhabited, while here it denotes the people with ichum the dwelling takes place. [ii. 7.] H6y Qiyyon they transl. €is 2twi/ : somewhat similarly in Ezek. xxi. 15 (ver. 10 LXX.) ^ is translated ds. For EWSX the Cod. Petropol. reads -^.— W$ H!33 is an expression peculiar to this passage. Elsewhere it is [p£/*fc$] pV J")3- It seems probable that rO!3 is a fem- form of ^3 (the masc. of which is common in Arab, and Aram.) in the sense of T "gate," "opening," which would be very suitably applied to the "pupil of the eye." (But see the Dictionaries.) "IPIX is sometimes used as an adverb of place, as (Gen. Constructions. [ xxii. 13) ^Hltf aX ("Dm "and lo ! a ram behind"; or as an adverb of time before a verb, as (Gen. xviii. 5) "H^H HnX " after- wards ye shall pass on," or, if before a substantive, with a extinctive accent, as (Ps. lxxiii. 24) ^HiTl TOS 'lHXI "and, afterward, Thou wilt gloriously receive me." When, however, it is put before a substan- tive with a conjunctive accent it is a preposition, meaning "after," as (Gen. ix. 28) S^DH Tltt "after the flood"; (Ps. lxviii. 2G) ^p|tf DOJJ "after the players on stringed instruments." So, here, ^IPIX *0Pl /& *TQ!D means " after glory hath he sent me," i. e. posterior to some glory which had already been manifested ; or, preferably, " after, i i. e. in quest of, glory," comp. (Lev. xxvi. 33) ^n M*TlK TYfi^Vfl " and I will draw the sword after you," i. e. to find you out, reach you. MIT When two of the same letters come together in the middle of a word, and the first of them be with s/t'va, if this sh'ca be a Verse 13. ' ' Words. compound shevd, the preceding vowel will (Excurs. II. B. 6) take fixed-metheg, e.g. J"\ 7 7* (x'- 3), but if the sh'vd be a simple moving Z EC HAM AH II. U— 16. 29 and they shall be a spoil to their servants : and ye shall know that the Loud of hosts hath sent me. (Hebr. ii. 11) 10 Sing and re- joice, O daughter of Zion: for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the Lord. (Hebr. n. 15) 11 And many na- tions shall be joined to the Lord in that day, and shall be my people: and I will dwell in the midst of thee, and thon shalt know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto thee. (Hebr. u. 16) 12 And the Lord shall inherit Judah his portion in the holy land, and shall choose Jerusalem again. sh'vd as in. \3Jn no m&theg is placed. The student will observe that Baer points ^JH without metheg, while less correct editions have it with a metheg. — The reading of the old editions, and by far the majority of MSS., is Qn'Hiy? "to their servants," not leibbh'dehem "to those who serve them." — Sh'ldchdnl, the student is reminded that with the 2nd and 3rd sing. perf. of the verb, while the suffix of 1st pers. plur. is always dnu (in or out of pause), that of the 1st per. sing, is dnl out of pause (ver. 15), and dnl in pause: thus we always have the forms tfjCp and WlSbp; but rfbp, "DfiSbp out of pause, and l#ttp, ttftep in pause. Ronni is the pronunciation of the first word of this verse, for the ~r~ being in a closed syllable without accent or metheg (Excurs. II. A. 5) is 6 not a ; comp. the Infin. Constr. with maqqeph w«rds. (Job xxxviii. 7) *\p1 *0313 "7iT~p3 " When the morning stars sang together." — On the accentuation of v'shacawti see notes on i. 3. When the third root-letter of a verb is a guttural, then in the second pers. sing, perfect instead of sheva (as J^HpiS), pathach is : :'~ T Verse 15. placed under this letter as ftV^ yadd'at. This -pathach is w"rds. : - -t (not furtive, i.e. to be read before the ty as in V**71H hodia', but) merely a helping-vowel, and is to be read after the W, comp. the pathach after the n of "^11*1 vaijijichad (from Hill) "and he rejoiced." [ii. 11.] V'nilvil, /cat Kara^ev^ovraL, a free translation ; similarly Jer. 1. 5 (xxvii. 5, LXX.). For li they read 16 o.vt£>; and for ifshacanti they read ifshac'nu kgu Kaxao-K^vajcroucru'. The expression ad'mdth haqqnrfpsh, " The Holy Land," . . Verse 16. occurs only in this passage. 30 Z ECU AR1 A II II. 17. (Hebr. II. 17) 13 Be silent, O all I raised up out of his holy habita- flesh, before the Lord : for he is tion. Has, "hush!" This is probably the imperative Pi'el of JlDTl (cf- 7H> /PI, 1^), since we have, not only the plur. ^|D,1 Verse 17. - : - w"rds- (Neh. viii. 11), but also the Hiph. (Numb. xiii. 30) DJT} "and he stilled." Some grammarians maintain that it is an interjection, which afterwards became conjugated, like the Arab, haluma (Hebr. tJ/fl "hither"), plur. haluma " come ye hither!" At any rate it is an onomatopoetic ; the Arab, is gah "sh... !" — *))V^ is an anomalous form of Niph. participle from "flM. The normal form of such participles is with qdmag in the first syllable, as 31DJ- ^ne Participle T^JSJ . T • "circumcised" probably comes from 7^, but some take it from 77ft. Such participles seem to follow the analogy of the Imperf. Eip)\ In Jer. xlviii. 11 we have the Perf. Niph. *■)£} from "Vl^, the root being |TT confounded with "H^. [ii. 13.] lids, cvXafidadu). For |iy^£ they give ck vecfreXuv. Else- where the LXX. seem to understand the meaning of Moftn. LXX. ° Here they seem to have read jjy£tt> and to have under- stood pVft as a derivative of fW 'diuin "cloud." It seems more natural to regard this prophetic exhortation as the words of the Remarks. Prophet, than as those of the Interpreting Angel. The land of the ii. 10-17. North is Babylonia (Jer. i. 14, &c). Those, who had not yet re- turned, are exhorted to fl.ee from the evils which are impending over Babylon, such as the rebellions of this period and consequent vengeance of Darius (see Records of the Past, 1. pp. 118 — 125). Observe the continual change of Person; the Prophet speaks in the first person when he gives the very words of God, and in the third when he merely conveys their general meaning; or (as especially in ver. 15) the per- sonality of the Sent is at times merged in that of the Sender. Verr. 11 — 17 arc dis- tinctly Messianic, and were fulfilled in the Birth of Jesus. But we must not look for the literal fulfilment of the mere details of the prophecy, which are but the back- ground of the picture. The Prophet foresaw the Messianic times from an Old Testament standpoint, and expected the literal choosing-again of Jerusalem ; while, as a matter of fact, the fulfilment of the prophecy was the commencement of the rejection of Israel. At the same time we may believe, on the authority of S. Paul, that God hath not cast off His own people, and that a time will come when all Israel shall bo saved. Z EC II ARIA II III 1. 31 CHAPTER III. AND lie shewed me Joshua the J~\ high priest standing before the an-QV W*$ ,-Oft HMD &*$ KT1 "And he saw ^XLi T-i • • • tt ir* • constructions. an Egyptian man smiling a Hebrew man. (Comp. i. 18, and see notes on iv. 7.) — The second 'omed stands for ^f^ (TH "was standing." — Ilasmtan lit. " The Adversary." The word is used, as a Proper Name, with def. art, here and in Job i. ii., without the art. in Ps. cix. 6, 1 Chron. xxi. 1. — *0£2bv lesi-ten6 "to act as adversary towards him." This verb occurs nowhere else in the Inf., so that from it we can deduce no rules as to the use of i instead of o in the first syllable. But, the following facts will show how incorrect is the remark of Gesenius (§ 61), "The Inf. of the form ^^£J becomes with suffix HjD^-" Even as far as this one vei'b is concerned, he is in eiTor : for t ; • though the constr. infin. is always ^^£2% there is only one passage (Gen. xix. 33, 35) in which it takes i in the first syllable with suffixes, while in Deut. vi. 7, xi. 19, Prov. vi. 22 ("?J32^'3) and in Ruth iii. 4 (11^3) it has 6. Then again, from JHX> (Jon. ii. 1), which is the only form of the Infin. of this verb, we get *t/73 (Job vii. 19). Similarly the verb p^ (and |Du^), which has only the Infin. in o (Gen. xxxv. 22) pi/'S (comp. Numb. ix. 22, 1 Kings viii. 12, Job xxx. 6, Ps. lxviii. 19, lxxxv. 10, 2 Chr. vi. 1), in the only two passages in which it occurs with suffix, takes in one 6 sy2"3/ I'sho-c'ni (Ex. xxix. 46), and in the other i )^&/ lcshi-c'no (Deut. xii. 5). 32 Z EC II A III A II III. 2—4. 2 And the Lord said unto Satan, The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan ; even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee : is not this a brand plucked out of the tire] 3 Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel. 4 And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saving, Take away the filthy gar- ments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment. The name ypTV became Jfly'V and y)W (Mishn. Jer. 38a. 13 Ac), lxx. then Jftg^ (Ezr. ii. 2), then *01, which in Greek was written Irjcrov : then, by adding the nominative-ending 5, it became '1770-ous. Other corruptions of the name are ,,D',5,s (T. B. Shahb. 6b), NDW (T. Y. Trumoth, Hal. 1, ed. Krot. 40c), Arab. (M T The ) of veyiglar means "yea," as (Ps. xxvii. 14) nipV-'/Tlp (comp. verse 2. Zech. vi. 10); sometimes ) may be rendered "even" (e.g. Constructions. Ex xxy 9> Zech yii_ g^ Qr « namely » (Ex> xxxy. 12). The usual construction of ^Jl ia the sense of "rebuking" is with ^ ; contrast Mai. iii. 11, in the sense of "destroying," with the ace. (ibid. ii. 3) ; at least, this is the distinction made by R. David Qimchi (Ps. ix. 6). — Habbocter is, of course, to be referred to Y II VII. Labhush is merely written defective (comp. i. 3). — tD^lik occurs only v - in this chap, as an adj. "filthy." Elsewhere we have nSi* Words and constructions, and j"|K¥ as a substantive "filth," "stercus." Verbs which T " take a double accusative in the active, are able to retain one in the passive, so that it is not necessary to put labhush into the constr. ; but that construction is also admissible, e.g. (Ezk. ix. 11) D^SH E^'w? " who was clothed in fine linen." The Qal labfsh, and labhush, means to "put on," "be clothed with," with ace. of the thing put on (once with ^}, Esth. vi. 8). In the Hiph. it denotes "to clothe another," and is generally used with two ace. e.g. (Ex. xxviii. 41) ~J1X QDX Di&lJiVl T flJlX "And thou shalt clothe Aaron with them." V'halbesh is the Infin. Absl. Hiph. used emphatically, with the omission of the finite verb (comp. ^J")X firO*) tJen. xli. 43), Verse 4. I t ; Words and . 1 constructions. i]ie fu]\ construct ion WOUld be ''fiLJ'j?/! £• J?l"!l- Marh"hlcf>th "a change of garments" (only again in is. iii. 22): it is ZECIIARIAH III. 5. 33 5 And I said, Let them set a fair mitre upon his head. So they set a fair mitre upon his head, and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the Lord stood by. iii. 1—5. Remarks. \xsed in the plural, probably, because it consisted of several different articles of dress (comp. note on vi. 11). Vhalbesh otli'cd maehalagoth koI evoWare avrov iroSrfpr], reading the verb in the Imperative plur. , and for oth'cd reading otho. lxx. Vaomdr, the first person is mileral, but the third person vayyomer (ver. 4, iv. 14, v. G) is mil"£l (see note on i. 9). — Ydsimu verses, "let them place."— Qaniph "turban," but the technical term Words- ** for the High Priest's turban is HiD3¥ft (Ex- xxviii. 4, &c. ) ; both words, and also three consecutive words in Is. xxii. 18, are from the same root which means to "fold," "wind." The article in haggdniph hattdlwr is definite, denoting " the clean turban" requested above. — The participle 'dmed here denotes "kept standing (where he was)." There is a great variety of opinion among commentators with respect to the capacity, in which Joshua is represented as standing before the Angel of the Lord. Theodoret, among early expositors, and Hengsten- beeg, among moderns, maintain that Joshua is seen in the Sanctuary engaged in the work of his priestly office before the Angel of the Lord. Against this view may be urged, that, however high may be the' dignity of the Angel of the Lord, it is hardly in accordance with the spirit of the Old Testament to represent the high priest as ministering before him, as if before God. Observe, too, how in i. 12, 13 the Personality of the Angel of the Lord is distinct from that of the Lord Himself. Ewald imagines that at this time the high priest was actually accused, or was dreading an accusation, at the Persian court, and that a defamation and persecution of this kind may be discerned as underlying this vision. But there is no historical trace of any such personal accusation, nor could Joshua be looked upon as tbe people's representative before the Persian Court, since Zerubbabel was their civil representative. Koehler regards Joshua as standing before the judgment-seat of the Angel, while Satan stands at his right hand (Ps. cix. 6) to accuse him. But, while this interpretation is in the main correct, it must be remembered that no formal judicial process is described in the vision, nor is there any mention of a judgment-seat. Wright's explanation seems to us the best : " The high priest was probably seen in the vision, busied about some part of his priestly duties. While thus engaged, he discovered that he was actually standing as a criminal before the angel, and while the great Adversary accused him, the truth of that accusation was but too clearly seen by the filthy garments with which he then perceived that he was attired." — The filthy garments denote sin (Is.lxiv. 5, comp. iv. 4, Prov. xxx. 9). This sin cannot have been that of marrying strange wives (Ezr. x. 18) as Targ., Qimchi, &c. suppose, for those marriages took place some sixty years later. Nor is Koehler right in referring it to the neglect to rebuild the Temple. For, as Keil z. 3 34 ZECHARIAII 111. 6, 7. 6 And the angel of the Lord pro- I 7 Thus saith the Lord of hosts ; tested unto Joshua, saying, | If thou wilt walk in my ways, and remarks, had this been the accusation, it would have been rather late, since the active resumption of the work of rebuilding had taken place five months previously (comp. Hag. i. 15 with Zech. i. 7). The view of Weight is almost correct : " The fourth vision (chap, iii.) is connected with the coming of the Lord recorded in chap. ii., in a way similar to that in which the purification of the sons of Levi, spoken of by Malachi, stands related to the prophecy of the coming of the Angel of the Cove- nant predicted by that prophet (Mai. iii. 1 — 4).... The high priest was the repre- sentative of the priesthood, and the priests representatives of the people of Israel, who were ' a kingdom of priests, &c.' (Ex. xix. 6). Joshua's sin is therefore spoken of in ver. 9 as ' the sin of the land,' whereby the whole people was defiled." It is true, that the priesthood had fallen under special condemnation, " Her priests have violated my law, and have profaned my holy things " (Ezek. xxii. 26), so that the sins of the priesthood may well be especially referred to here. But, at the same time Joshua, as the people's representative before God, may be looked on as, in a sense, laden with their sins, as well as with his own and those of the priest- hood in particular. We do not, therefore, entirely agree with the last remark we quoted from C. H. H. Wright. — For instances of "standing before " being used of the defendant see Numb. xxxv. 12, Deut. xix. 17, Josh. xx. 6. — With ver. 2 comp. Jude 9. — The persons referred to in ver. 4 are, doubtless, the angels of grade inferior to that of the Angel of the Lord. In this verse the Prophet is assured that the ini- quity of Joshua is taken away. He seems to have feared that this might be only a personal absolution, hence his anxiety about the " mitre " (ver. 5). Upon the Mirnrphheth was the Q'ig, on which was inscribed Qodesh VAdonay, and it was to be always on the forehead of the high priest, " that he might bear the iniquity of the holy things" (Ex. xxviii. 36 — 38). By the granting of his request, that a clean mitre might be placed on the head of Joshua, he is assured that the high priest is not pardoned only personally, but also in his official capacity. — There is nothing in the word l6med to justify Ewald's statement that the angel, " having risen from the judgment- seat," now lingers, &c. Vayya'ad is the apoc. Irnperf. Hiph. of *7W. The pathach in the last syllable is on account of the V ; the normal form of this Verse 6. J , ? ' Words, &.c. tense from verbs with medial vav quiescent, is Cp*l with segol. This verb, when construed with ^, denotes to " call another to witness against" (Deut. iv. 20), but also "to testify to," as here; see Jennings and Lowe on Ps. 1. 7 (for other meanings and constructions consult the Dictionaries). Observe that ve,im-eih-mishmai-ti takes no ga'yd because it is with a conjunctive accent (Excurs. n. B. 4). On the form mish- Wordsand marti see note on xi. 3. — The apodosis to im "if," is constructions. . 1 introduced by Qj) "then indeed. ' bimple ) would have been sufficient to introduce the apodosis (e.g. xiv. 18), but QJ) is added Z EC II ARIA II III. 8. 35 if thou wilt keep my charge, then thou sbalt also judge my house, and shalt also keep my courts, and I will give thee places to walk among these that stand by. 8 Hear now, O Joshua the high to intensify the declaration, as in a simple sentence like (Job xviii. 5) "TOT D^BJH TIN DJ "the liglit of the wicked shall indeed be ex- tinguished": conip. (Gen. xlii. 22) £*HU flSTl )til DJ1 "therefore his blood ifec. ": also observe, that QJ introduces an interrogative apodosis in Zech. viii. 6. nHN 1S aiso emphatic. The second QJfl is used in quite a diffei'ent sense, it means merely "and also." Had EjJV--DJH meant " also... and," we should have expected the following collocation, nHNI *1^£yn d^V-Tin DJ- Some commentatoi's consider the second tDJll to be a mere repetition of the former one, for greater emphasis. In this case there is no " and " before the second clause : and so we must render, "Then shalt...: then shalt..." — Chdger "a court" has two plurals, D^H (e.g. Lev. xxv. 31), and T\VMU (e.g. Ezk. xlvi. 22): this latter takes the suffixes in two different ways, viz. (Ps. xcvi. 8) V]"Vn¥n> and (Ps. c. 4) Vm^P! (comp. 1 Chron. xxviii. 6). — V'nathatti (on the accentuation see note on i. 3) is dependent on the futures of the preceding clause. — D^/("l/!3 1S a plur. subst. meaning " places to walk in." There is a substantive which occurs only in the sing, constr. *?hrp (Ezk. xlii. 4, Jon. iii. 3, 4) and with suff. "wSrp (Nah. ii. G). Had our word been the plur. of this, we should have expected D*j?n£5- It appears, therefore, that it must be from an unused word *ZC)f]}2, and that its plur. is formed like JD^IftDft (Is. xli. 7), from an imaginary IttDD, and like the plurals of PI3TD antl ibjjp which are JT)n!lT£ and ftVlEW/E}- The supposition of Ewald, that it is a Hiph. Partic. (of what he calls Aram, form) for d^Slfi = D'^Slfi "leaders," would require |*3£) instead of p^ to follow. Mahlfcim avao-rpe^o/xe'voi;?, reading probably QO xHfi- lxx. D£})& is from the Rt. H3S$> Wltn which some comp. Arab, 'ift "a sign," comp. DrVnnDift (Ps. ii. 3) from 10$.—. An'sM y^^ Words, &c. mophith'lit. "men of sign (pox-tent)," i.e. not men to be won- dered at (E.V.), or men standing by as witnesses of the promise (Ewald); 3—2 36 Z EC II ARIA II III. 9. priest, thou, and thy fellows that sit before thee : for they are men wondered at: for, behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH. 9 For behold the stone that I have laid before Joshua ; upon one stone shall be seven eyes : behold, but rather, either men for whom miracles are wrought, or men used to interpret prophetic portents. LXX. has avSpts TeparocrKOTroi. — " They " probably includes Joshua. For such a change of person comp. Zeph. ii. 12, " Also ye Cushim slain by my sword are they." — The Ci before hin'ni is not to be translated, it merely introduces the oratio recta, like on in the New Test. &c. (comp. Gen. xxix. 33). — Mebht can only be taken as a Prophetic Participle, denoting the Future (and so too mephatteach in the next verse, which is followed by the Perfect with strong vav umashii "and I will remove"), comp. xii. 2, hinnih anoci stim. In such cases there is nothing but the context to guide us to decide, whether the time referred to is near at hand, or distant. Thus, the last-cited passage appears to refer to a distant future ; while Tip 7 *JJn (Ezk. xxiv. 17) is shown by the next verse to be the im- minent future (comp. Hag. ii. 6). Cimach 'AvaToXrfv. Syr. Dencho " sunrise," the word CJemcho in Syr. denoting " shining of the sun." In Is. iv. 2 Yih'yeh Cemach YII VII is rendered by LXX. €7rtXayx(^et o 0eos. / There is a difficulty in this verse which is so obvious, that one would have thought that it would have occurred to any chance V erse 9. o J Constructions. reac|er 0f ft, whether in the Hebr., or in a translation. And yet it has not been generally mentioned by commentators ; indeed we have, as far as we have observed, found it touched on byArnswald1 only. It is this: if the Prophet meant by hd'ebhen " the stone," i.e. some particular stone, why does he afterwards say, " on one stone [shall be seven] eyes," and not rather, "on that stone," or "on this stone" ] Arnswald evades the difficulty by paraphrasing ebhen 'achdth by pXi"I JlX!/*! ; but this is surely not admissible. Accordingly we propose to render hd'ebhen " the stones," viz. the materials for rebuilding the Temple. It is true that, while pX ebhen is commonly used for " [pre- cious] stones" (e.g. Ex. xxviii. 17, xxxix. 10), Q^X is generally used for "building stones" (e.g. Zech. v. 4), still we do find ebhen in this latter sense, e.g. (Gen. xi. 3) pX1? POSTI DJlS Wl Uso tllry 1,:ul LXX. &c •x"y nn by nito ZECIIARIAII III. 9. 37 I will engrave the graving thereof, I remove the iniquity of that land saith the Lord of hosts, and I will | in one day. bricks instead of stones." But the question still remains : how are we to take ]-|P!fc$ pfrs /V> can it mean " on each stone " 1 It is quite pos- sible that it may, for the Prophet could not have written Q^*W flV^t^ D*0*y /"jyiSty (the ordinary distributive phrase1), since that would have denoted seven different eyes on each stone. But, why did he not use another form of distributive, which would have avoided the repetition, viz. tf>y>y T\y$& ptfl pK ^ ">y, which would have been quite admissible (comp. Esth. ii. 11, iii. 14, iv. 3, viii. 11, 1 Chron. xxviii. 14 — 18)? This objection can only be answered by calling attention to the fact, that in iv. 2, xii. 12 he does not use the more ordinary dis- tributives. Bub, should it be thought that this interpretation is not satisfactorily supported by usage2, we propose anothei", and render : " Behold the stones, which I have laid before Jehoshua, upon one particular stone [are] seven eyes." For this use of the numeral "one" comp. xiv. 7. Practically this latter is much the same interpretation, as that adopted by most commentators, viz. that the Prophet speaks of some particular stone (be it the foundation stone which had been laid in the time of Cyrus, or the stone on which the Ark had formerly stood, or the head-stone, or chief corner- stone) ; but, we have, we think, explained to our readers the reason why he said " on one stone " instead of "on this stone," while others have evaded the difficulty. — Observe that here (as in iv. 10) £\3*V is construed with a masc. numeral. — The expression patte"ch is used of engraving precious stones (Ex. xxviii 9), gold (ibid. ver. 36), and of carved work (Ps. lxxiv. 6), or sculpture (2 Chron. ii. 13). — On the accentuation of umashti see note on i. 3, on the absence of metheg see Excurs. n. 1, note. It is impossible to take " And I will remove, -rj(Tw, confounding fc^lft "to remove" (generally "to give way") with &)ti = Wft " to grope after." The verb qdrcV in the sense of " calling a person to one," is very frequently followed by 7 of the person called, e.g. Ex. xii 31 "Verse 10. vayyiqra I'mosheh n¥aharun " and he called Moses and Aaron." On ish lere'shil see note on vii. 10. — El-tdchath "founder" is a constructio prcegnans, denoting " to come and sit under." The Angel of the Lord now proclaims to Joshua a fourfold promise : (a) the confir- mation of his official authority, and the elevation of his own spiritual 111. 6— 10. nature ; (ft) the mission of the Saviour ; (7) God's providential care for the House, which was being rebuilt ; (5) the peace and prosperity of the nation. — Observe in ver. 7 the introverted parallelism " if thou wilt icalk. ..and keep," "then shalt thou... keep... places to walk." "Walk in my ways" refers to per- sonal holiness, "keep my charge" to the faithful discharge of his official duties. So, on the other hand, " judge my house " and " keep my courts" refers to his spiritual authority as high priest, and " walks among those that stand by " denotes spiritual access among the angels of God's supernal courts. — Though Zerubbabel is certainly called "my servant" (Hag. ii. 23), the use of the participle, "behold I bring" renders it impossible to interpret the expression " my servant Branch " of him. It can only be referred to the promised Saviour of Israel, or "Branch of the Lord " (Is. iv. 2), a " Bighteous Branch," "Branch of Bighteousness " (Jer. xxiii. 5), "a Bighteous-one my servant" (Is. liii. 12), "my servant David " (Ezek. xxxiv. 23). See further Eemarks on chap. vi. 11 — 15, and comp. Bemarks on ii. 14 — 17. — On ver. 9 refer back to the notes. Ewald supposes the " seven eyes " to have been engraved on the stone, and thinks that they represent the seven Spirits (Bev. i. 4). But, it Beems in every way best to understand the seven eyes as denoting God's special, yet all-embracing Providence, which is being directed towards the stone to watch and protect it. Various symbolical meanings have been given to the stones. The only one of them, which is at all reasonable, is this, that it typified the Messiah (comp. Ps. cxviii. 22, Is. xxviii. 16). But, we prefer the interpretation which we gave above in the notes. — " In one day" cannot refer to " the day of Golgotha " (Hengs- tenberg), for how could ver. 10 be applied to that day? How could xii. 10 sqq., and ii. 9, 10, be possibly referred to the same event ? The meaning seems to be simply this, that the completion of the work of rebuilding would be the seal of the people's forgiveness, and restoration to favour. — The wording of ver. 10 is a reminiscence of 1 Kings iv. 25, Mic. iv. 4, &c. It is a renewal of the promise con- tained in Jcr. xxxiii. 6, and a declaration of its speedy fulfilment. A* ZECHARIAH IV. 1. 39 CHAPTER IV. ND the angel that talked with j me, as a man that is wakened out me came again, and waked l of his sleep, Fourth Vision. The Golden Candlestick. On the form vayydshobh see notes on iii. 5. The simplest rule for deciding the vocalization of a word with a suffix, like . Verse 1. \3Ty^> is the following: when by the addition of a suffix Words.' (or accentuated syllable) the accent is drawn towards the end of a word, count back three vowels from this new accentuated syllable (both inclusive), and remove (a) the third vowel if it can be removed ; if it cannot, remove (/?) the second ; (y) in some cases none of the vowels i can be removed. E. g. (a) The Imperf. Hiph. of *fiW is *VV* ycVir, when the suffix is added the accent falls on ...renl: now yd is the third syllable from rs, therefore remove the qdmag and put sh'va, and you get \2"TV\ similarly ^SH chaphig plur. Q^SM chaphegim. (ft) Y^ft fnappig " thou wilt break in pieces," when it takes the suffix em, cannot lose the third vowel from the accent, viz. pathach, because it is supported by dagesh, therefore remove the second vowel gere, and you get Q¥£) 3n, an, it loses its first vowel when it takes a suffix, comp. n*7V "congregation," im^? while ,1*7J^ "testimony" (which comes from *T]y) retains its vowel, thus irH^- Consequently there is no difference between sh'ndthS "his sleep" from shendh, and shendth6 "his year" from shdn&h. 40 Z ECU ARIA II IV. 2. 2 And said unto me, What seest I and behold a candlestick all of thou? And I said, I have looked, | gold, with a bowl upon the top of The Cethibh ^foW} seems to have arisen from the fact that the words, which follow, ra'itJii v'hi/ineh, which generally mean Word* and " I looked, and behold ! " are more appropriate to narration, constructions. . than as the answer to the question : What seest thou ? As answer we should have expected TPN*"] ilJH "1° ! I see>" or tltkl \3X (v. 1) "I see." The "vayyftm&r" of the Cthibh must be looked on as parenthetical, thus; "I looked (said he) and behold," «fec, comp. v. 6, 8, and the common introduction in Arabic of qala " said he " in narration. Taking the Q'ri " and I said," we must understand raitJu v'ldnneh in the sense of "I see, and lo," &c. — TY?% "its bowl" might be explained as from a air. A.cyo. 7^ , or as standing for HH 7.2 (from gulldh ver. 3), as DJ^QrD (Hos. xiii. 2) is for DfiJ'DrD- But, apart from considera- tions of the difficulty of explaining jTf^J, I regard J") xil (with the He T \ T •. r'phuydh) as the right reading. For, it will be observed that things which must of necessity belong to a candlestick such as " top," or which belonged to the Candlestick of the Tabernacle, viz. " the seven lamps," are marked by the pronon. suff. to denote that they were proper to it, "its top," "its seven lamps," but, when other points are men- tioned which would not naturally have been expected, such as the "pipes," the "olive-trees," the "spouts," they are without the pron. suff. Now this " bowl " was not a thing to have been expected : not a thing, in fact, which could be called "its bowl." Therefore, in accord- ance with some MSS., we read n?J1 "and a bowl." For the absol. t •.. ; form of numeral before a defined substantive comp. (Josh. vi. 4) bzvn imw njw ; for the const.-. (Numb. vhi. 2) nn:n nyns>. — /Shibh'ah v'shibh'dh mhcdqOth lanneroth, it has been disputed whether two numerals joined by ) can be distributive, i.e. whether these words can denote " seven pipes apiece to the lamps." It is certain that this is not the usual construction, we should rather have expected shibh'dh miicaqOth shibh'dh mhcaquth lanneroth (or I'nf-r echdd), comp. Is. vi. 2. But 2 Sam. xxi. 20 has been aptly cited to the contrary, the passage runs: &*&$ v&) && vhn mjnrai vt r5Dxw...B>»K *m *"l3D/tD V^lfcO which should be rendered "and there was a man who had six fingers to each hand, and six toes to each foot, twenty-four in all." ZEC1IARIAII IV. 2. 41 it, and his seven lamps thereon, I which are upon the top thereof : and seven pipes to the seven lamps, I In 1 Chron. xx. 6 the same passage occurs, but with the following variation, that the words "hands and feet" are not mentioned, it simply says ymxi D^fcyy wrw vnynm Now, those who dispute the distributive sense of &&) && say, that " six and six " means that his hands had 6 + 6 = 12, and his feet had 6+6 = 12, total 24. That is to say, they divide the 24 fingers and toes into two groups of 12 fingers, and 12 toes, each of which groups is represented by &&) &&. But in giving this explanation they overlook the fact that they take $?$) &&, which means 6 + 6, as equivalent to "6 + 6 apiece," viz. to hands and feet 12 apiece. They do, in fact, read &&) £*>£*> as equivalent to W] WW W) W (see notes on iii. 9). Kalisch and C. H. H. Wright apply this theory to the fl^D^l Hy^fc? before us, and say that it means that the seven lamps had two pipes apiece, viz. 14 in all. But their application of the theory is illogical. The seven lamps are already mentioned, as in the other case were (according to that theory) the two groups, viz. of fingers, and of toes. Distributing 12 to each of the two groups gives 24. Similarly, distributing 7 + 7 pipes to each of the seven lamps gives 98 pipes, not 14. To have expressed (according to their theory) two pipes to each lamp, we must have had after the men- tion of seven lamps (-|SD&) 1B^ HjDnX, Tftfl TPlK DmpXl&l i.e. "and their pipes were 1+1 (=2 apiece), 14 in number." Koehler1 avoids this blunder by saying that the number is "seven and seven," not 14, because one group of seven pipes was for supplying the lamps from the reservoir, and the other group of seven to connect the seven lamps. But, unless the two outer ones are to be connected, it takes only six pipes to connect seven lamps. — Finally, we have not the slightest hesi- tation in interpreting nj^CJH tlV^W as "seven apiece" (so too Arnswald). For rcTithl LXX. gives ewpaKa, while for ani ro'eh (v. 2) it has eyw opw. — LXX. does not express a suffix with gulldh, but says versions and simply kcu to Xafxird&iov e7rcivw auY/79, but this is no proof emendatl0US- that they did not read the word with a suffix, since for H vV K<" cirrd iirapvcrTpi8e w^tn ^na* clause> an^ renders thus, "and its lamps upon it were seven." This construction is natural enough in Ex. xxv. 37, xxxvii. 23, where the candelabrum is first described, but here "and its seven lamps upon it " is the collocation we should expect. (See above.) Pressel has made a clever suggestion, viz. that " seven " is repeated on account of its importance as corresponding to " the seven eyes of the Lord." He would render : "seven (was) the number of its lamps above the same — seven — and seven the number of its pipes." But, our ob- jection to Hitzig's translation applies also to this : and, moreover, had this been the meaning of the prophet, it is hardly likely that he would have written nV^^ in such an equivocal collocation, but would rather have written "lSDft fltfSW " seven in number. " — UTir is correctly construed with a viasc. numeral (comp. Pro v. xx. 27, xxiv. 20, and my Fragment of P'sachim, p. 40, note). — fiipX^ in the sense of "pipes" is a air. Xeyo. Gesen. and Fuerst are wrong in calling it a fern, sub- stantive as the numeral here shows. It is to be considered as a subst. formed from the Hiph. of p)P (p2fl) viz. mavqtiq = maucdq — mocdq and then =muqdq (comp. 1D1&, and HD^ft "foundation"). The inter- T T change of o and u is not uncommon, thus we have M^l^ (Esth. iii. 15), t ; and D^ij (Ex. xiv. 3) ; \2ltp, usually Qorbdn, is in Neh. x. 35, xiii. 31 qurbdn ; the Biblical Jy? makes in Rabb. the plur. pjj!)7 ; Rabb. v'OT'nS is pronounced Pruzbid, and Prozbol ; in old Jewish epitaphs we find nepvs for nepos, apostvli for apostoli, maivres for majores, and A0CTINI for Faustini1. 'dleha "by its side," as QVl 7^ "by the sea'' (Ex. xiv. 2), comp. '«/- s'moldh " at its left hand." LXX. has lyrdvii) aur^s. — The student should observe that when Yft is prefixed to a word beginning with *, the yud quiesces in the chiriq, and no compen- sation is made for the loss of the J, therefore we have f^ft ; for this use of \J2 see n°tc on v. 3, and comp. Ik tou e/MirpocrOev crr^vai (Xen. Cyr. 2. 2). The construction is different in ver. 11. 1 "Atti del iv congresso internazionale dcgli orientalisti," Fircnzc 1880, 8vo. Vol. i. pp. 290—293. ZECIIARIAH IV. 4—7. 43 4 So I answered, and spake to the angel that talked with me, saying, What are these, my lord 1 5 Then the angel that talked with me answered and said unto me, Knowest thou not what these be 1 And I said, No, my lord. 6 Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, say- ing, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts. 7 Who art thou, O great moun- *"l£JO- Ia illustration of our remarks on i. 9 we will now give - it several instances of the first person imperf. of verbs, Verse 4. • - iii i Words. which, with strong vav, would throw the accent on the penultimate in the 3rd masc. and fern., or 2nd per. masc. in the singular, but which retain, according to rule, the accent on the ultimate in the 1st person (they all take metheg under the 1): T^lXI "and I |T ' -"|T knew," 2nifl "I loved," fPlfcl "I seized," TTflfl "I stayed," tfTtf) "I feared," ™OJ0 (and vaocSl in pause) "I ate," ]?#,) "I gave birth," "H/fcO (and va'eldc in pause) " I went," *VD50 " I removed," *T^X1 (and va'a'id) " I testified," V*SX1 " I scattered," hpW " I was despised," CtipKI (and DpJO) "I arose," pjjjfl "I abhorred," y^\ "I went down," XW "I sat," y0tf[ "I returned" (v. 1), y&$) "I re- turned (answer)," Q^N") "I placed."— Here, and in ver. 12, LXX. render, well enough quoad sensum, fVfcO by kclI lir-qp^T-qa-a. It is necessary that the student should observe that the accent on ("IT, being placed before the word, is c&'sjunctive, and there- v< Verse 6. fore the *!\ of d'bhar retains the dagesh lene (see Excurs. in. 1). This accent is called YHhibh. But when it is placed on the tone-syllable as 7TD J^7 it is conjunctive, and, therefore, the • — : <■ B'GaDCFaTh letter following is r*phuytih. This accent is called Makpac (comp. p. 3). — The addition of [xeydXrj by LXX. is merely a free rendering. There is no difficulty in the use of ^ " who 1 " (not HJB " what 1 ") even if we do not regard "the great mountain" as a personal Verse7. adversary, or as a personification of oppositions generally. onstruo Ions- For *£) is often used where in English we require " what % " Thus (1 Sam. xviii. 18) "H *l&1 *3JN */b "who am I, and who (what) is my 44 Z EC II ARIA II IV. 7 tain ? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it. life?" (comp. Ex. x. 8, Judg. xiii. 17, Mich. i. 5). — Har-haggad6l " 0 great mountain " ; with the omission of the article before the substan- tive. " A great mountain " would be liar gcidol ; " the great mountain " or " O great mountain " would properly be 71*1^1 "THH > mit the article is sometimes omitted with the noun, e. g. ^t^H QV "the sixth day" (Gen. i. 31), Hlf! TH£)X W8 "this Ephrathite " (1 Sam. xvii. 12), for hd'fsh ha'ephrdthi hazzeh (comp. Zech. xiv. 10). — *\)W*u? is most graphic ; by one single word is expressed "thou shalt become a plain ! " For this use of 7 with the verb " to be" omitted comp. (Lam. iv. 3) 713^/ */bV HO j an(l f°r the omission of other verbs for the sake of terseness comp. (Hos. viii. 1) *"* JTl'Sy 1D03 ^EW "I^ItSN-— 5^2fim " ne shall bring out." The perfect with strong vdv is often used, independently of any foregoing verb, to express a future, the expectation of which is rendered reasonable by the statement of the preceding clause, as (1 Sam. xvii. 36) " Both the lion and the bear thy servant slew, this uncircumcised Philistine shall be (n\T)) like one of them." So here, the statement " Who art thou O great mountain, before Zerubbabel ? " " [Thou shalt become] a plain ! " prepares the way for the promise " he shall bring out." The ) is better, as in many cases, left untranslated in English. — H^iOn is a «7r- ^eyo- (on the soman rapMh see Excurs. TV.), it can only be regarded as a fem. formation from £^X") denoting "head," and must be in apposition with *^Xn> and the two words together must be rendered "the head-stone." Substantives are sometimes in Hebrew (with or without def. art.) put in apposition, where in Aryan languages we should have a Tat-purusha compound genitively dependent as birth-place, brick-house: thus (ver. 10) we have v'H^n l^XH "the lead-weight," or "plumb-line," (2 Kings xvi. 14) TWRlEl fDTDn "the brass-altar," flEWl "Ij^H "the brass-oxen" (ver. 17), fi^fipl p^H ffiHffi "the corpse-and-ashes- valley " (Jer. xxi. 40), ^HTH flhhyn "the gold-wreaths" (Exod. xxxix. 17), yp-\ D^t^X' "seven-year- famine" (2 Sam. xxiv. 13), 1*177 tisfo " affliction- water " (1 Kings xxii. 27). The same construction is found in Arabic (with the art.) e.g. ac^anam udh-dhahab?« "the gold-image," a^-rulbftn ul-khashbw "the ZECIIARIA1I IV. 8, 9. 45 8 Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saving, 9 The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto you. wood-crosses." — niX^T! "with shoutings," it is the ace. of nearer definition, comp. ^JlX H3 "with one mouth" (1 Kings xxii. 13). But one cannot state definitely, whether it is in the absol. or the constr. state, because (1) such substantives are of the same form in both states, (2) either construction is admissible, viz. apposition, " With shouts, ' Grace ! Grace ! to it ' " (see above in this note) ; or annexation, "With shouts of 'Grace, Grace! to it,'" as (Ps. lxxxi. 5) yftEW ^ftJJT tib fiSb> "the saying of 'I know not [the Lord, Ex. v. 2] ' I will take cognizance of." — Chen, see xii. 10. It is by no means unusual to find the LXX. treating Hebr. words, as though they were Aramaic : rov KaropOdcrai I Versions. is an instance of this. They have taken *\W TV/Dft from !"! y5- (This noun in Aram, is generally used of the thing smoothed, e.g. pavement, pillow, bed.) Aq. has e^iowa ^aptros, and Syr. and Vulg. refer the word to the same root. The note attached to H^y^D means that it has paihach although with ethndch. This form (when from verbs third root-letter _ n \ \ erse ». V or H) always takes paihach in this syllable, e. g. nJVp3H Words- (2 Kings ii. 24), rtin^Sn (Job xxxix. 3), rtinWr) (ibidem) and even other verbs, which would otherwise have cere (like POIS"!]-]} t ; •■ - : rO"T3BVt, nJVJfcM) take paihach in pause, as ; HlS^On (Hob. iv. 46 Z ECU Alii All IV. 10. 10 For who hath despised the j those seven; they are the eyes of day of small things 1 for they shall | the Lord, which run to and fro rejoice, and shall see the plummet through the whole earth, in the hand of Zerubbabel with \ 13, 14), Hytrin (Is. xiii. 18), tnXspn (Is- iii. 16). On the accentuation of v'i/adu'td see note on i. 3. For the change from the 2nd pers. sing, to 2nd plu/r. comp. Lev. xxv. 14, Mich. i. 11. The LXX. has here deliberately put both in the sing. T3 is the 3rd pers. perf. (instead of J^ from J1]^) formed as if from T TD> comp. HD (f°1' HD) Is- xnv- 18 (on confusion of Rts. see p. Verse 10. t 30). Since there is no neuter gender in Hebr. the fern, is often used to supply its place either in the sing, as (Numb. xxii. 18) q'tannah 6 g'duldh " any thing great or small," or in the plur. as here (comp. qashoth Gen. xlii. 7, 30). LXX. gives wrongly rnxipas fxiKpas. On hd'ebhen habb'dil see note on ver. 7. — Bunsen translates this verse " For they who have despised the day of small things, Constructions. ..... . . , . , « they will rejoice and see the lead-stone in the hand ot Zerubbabel ; these seven are the eyes of Yhvh roaming through the whole earth." This rendering is grammatically defensible, comp. Gen. xliv. 9 (quoted in note on xiv. 17), Vj} being used (comp. Ex. xxiv. 14, Judg. vii. 3) indefinitely " whosoever " as equivalent to "lL^X \!D (Fx. xxxii. 33). But it would be a strange thing for the Prophet to promise joy to mockers. Kohler renders ifs&m'chu, &c. "while these seven see with joy," itc. ; but this is an impossible translation, since in a clause descrip- tive of the state or circumstance beginning with vav, the vav is usually prefixed to the subject, e.g. flLD!2 i~I\"7 HinDiD "the camp being in confident security" (1 Kings i. 40), but never to the Perfect. — The first clause " For, who hath despised the day of small things ? " denotes : "surely none (who hopes to achieve great things) ever despised the day of small things ! ", and so is practically equivalent to a prohibition : "Let none despise the day of small things." After such a clause the perfect with vav denotes the result of compliance with the prohibition, "Then shall they see with joy the plummet in the hands of Zerubbabel, [viz.] these seven." Of the two verbs "!X*Y) !"IDl^1 the former is best rendered by the adverbial expression "with joy," comp. (v. 1) ^L^NI NL^Xl "and I lifted up again," ""I^Nl i^Xl might similarly be rendered "and I said in reply.'' The last half of the verse should be rendered "The eyes of Yimi, they are scouring the whole earth " ; or, neglect- ZECHAEIAH IV. 12. 47 11 Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof? 12 And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves ? ing the interpunctuation, we might render the words " The eyes of Yhvh are they, scouring the whole world" (for this constr. of the partic. see iii. 1), comp. LXX. Ittto. ovtol ocjiOaX/xoL elaiv Kvptov ol cVi^A-cVovtcs. They ought, however, to have omitted the art. before the partic, comp. LXX. of vi. 1. In either case the last half of the verse is a farther description of "these seven." It need hardly be said that shibh'clh- elleh 'cue YHVH cannot mean "these seven eyes of Yhvh," which would have been nSsM Y"> *?$ (01' iT$DB>) njDB>, or H^H *"' \^ Dn^Dty (comp. Dan. i. 17). *ftfc?"7JjJ3, see Excurs. iv. — The sing. " a stream " (Ps. Ixix. 16), "ear of corn" (Job xxiv. 24), makes plur. Verse 12. , ' Words and t3*732jJ (comp. y\%¥ plur. EPTBX)- The construct (which constructions. • t: • • T' . J occurs here only) is pointed ,)~Dt^ (not *OS&) by one of those irregu- larities of traditional pronunciation, for which no reason can be assigned. The word seems to mean here "pendent bunches of olives." — It is impossible (with C. H. H. Wright) to render the next clause " which by means of the two channels of gold are pouring forth, &c," for in that case we should have had DpHft, not D^pHDTTi siace the clause is introduced by TG?fc$.— fiVTljtiX is a a- \eyo. meaning probably "spouts" (see Dictionaries); it is masc, as is shown by the numeral. This clause we render : " which are resting in the two golden spouts." — ■ T3 must mean " in the hand of," i.e. resting in ; but see note on vii. 7. It can hardly mean " by the side of," for the figurative expression VTD I'D} "nigh at hand" (Job xv. 23) will not justify the rendering. To express this it would have been rather ~>y (ver. 14), *p7 (1 Sam. xix. 3), T 7p$ (1 Sam. iv. 18), T ^ (2 Sam. xiv. 30), Y ^ (Josh. xv. 46), or »*p ^y (Jndg. xi. 26). — IHTH is a <*tt. XeY°- iu tlie sense of " tlie gold[en oil]." The clause should be rendered "which pour the golden oil out from themselves," grammatically it refers to tlie spouts, not to tlie olive-clusters (which are /em.). 48 ZEGHARIAH IV. 13, 14. 13 And he answered me and said, Kuowest thon not what these be ? And I said, No, my lord. 14 Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth. Beydd, ev Tens x€Pa^ — -^or tue "7r< ^■ey°'- Canfroth they give [xv£iD-n'/pon>. — ^r\lil DrP/^/b D^pHftn they render ru>v eVt^eovTtav koi a7rai'ayovTOJV Tas iTrapvcn pi&as raq xpuo"ds* to tliem, as to US, hazzah&bh is a difficulty : we solve it by supposing "the gold" to mean "the golden oil"; they by understanding it as "golden pipes (or funnels)" (comp. vei\ 2). kou aTravayovTwv evidently corresponds to Dnvyft. which they seem to have read as D^/V^l the Hiph. Partic. of 'aldh "to go up." "")i"!^ is a substantive of the same form as the proper name pfi2£* ,. ,, "Isaac." This word is nowhere else used of oil-for-anoint- \ crse 14. Words. jjjg^ jt js uge(j t0 denote oil as the juice of the olive, the produce of the ground, just as tlrosh is used of wine as the produce of the vine. But ydin is used of wine fermented for drinking, and shemen of oil prepared for burning (*flXE>7 !&£?)> or f°r anointing (rffltSTSn X&W)- On the metheg of h(Vb?n"dim see Excurs. n. A. 9.— 7V denotes " by," see on ver. 3. Remarks. It can scarcely be doubted, that the prototype of this golden candlestick is the candlestick, which was placed in the holy place of the former Sanc- tuaries "before the Lord, as an everlasting statute for their generations on behalf of the children of Israel" (Ex. xxvii. 21). This Candlestick is not men- tioned among the vessels of the Sanctuary brought back from the Captivity. It may be that it was the very lack of this important article of the Temple furniture, that impressed the form of it on the Prophet's mind. Be this as it may, the form of Candlestick of the Vision is evidently based on that of the Temple, and Tabernacle. But, at the same time, that of the Vision differs in several points from the other. In the Candlestick of old the lamps had need to be trimmed every evening, by the Priests, while in this the oil pourel itself spontaneously from two olive-clusters, and was communicated to the lamps by such a number of pipes, as in an actual lamp would seem almost impossible. The angel-interpreter declares that the significance of the Vision is this: that all difficulties should subside before Zerubbabel, and that he should complete the building of the Temple, and bring forth the head-stone thereof with shouts of " Grace, grace to it!" But, this was to take place by no human power (such as was used for keeping the lamps of the Candlestick alight in former times), but by the Unction from the Holy One: "Not by might, or by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts." "Do not tben," says the direct revelation of the Lord, " despise the small beginnings of the work, and then the eyes of God's all-embracing Providence, which are specially directed on this ZECHARIAH V. 1, 2. 49 work of rebuilding (iii. 9), will yet view with benign satisfaction the completion of this material building by the hand of Zerubbabel." But, as though the Lord looked with pity on the weakness of human faith, and to explain the meaning of the two olive-clusters, He deigns to reveal to the Prophet the two human instruments by which this work was to be consummated, saying " These (the two olive-clusters) are the two anointed ones," i.e. Zerubbabel the Prince of the House of David, the civil head, and Joshua, the High-Priest, the religious head. Thus should this Building be completed. And, as the Candlestick of old had been a symbol of the diffusion of the light of Divine Truth by the Congregation of Israel, whose duty it was (and ever is) to be witnesses to the Truth of the Unity of God, so should this new Building become the centre, whence should go forth the Light to lighten the Gentiles, and to be the Glory of His People Israel. (Comp. the close connection in ch. iii. between the assurance of God's providential care of the work of building, and the promise of the mission of the Messiah.) CHAPTER V. THEN" I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a flying roll. 2 And he said unto me, What seest thou 1 And I answered, I see a flying roll ; the length thereof is twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof ten cubits. Sixth Vision. — a. The Flying Scroll, /?. The Woman in the Ephah. y. The Two Women with Storks' Wings. Translate " and I lifted up mine eyes again," see note on iv. 10. — nSy (which we know to be a participle from its being accen- lT H Verse 1. tuated milera', see note on ver. i, and on xiv. 18) may be taken as merely an epithet, "a flying scroll," or better, perhaps, as denoting the circumstance or state, "a scroll, flying" (comp. iii. 1, vi. 1, 5). LXX. for M'gilldh have opeVavov, understanding the word in the sense of 7,3ft "a sickle." Aquila and Theodotion 8i6epa. Gr. Versions. T _ Symm. K€<£aAi' surely, only be taken as contrasted one to the other. In Ex. xi. 1, where mizzeh . . .mizzeh occurs, the construction is so utterly different, that it affords no parallel. For the expression used in the sense of "on this side and on that" coinp. Ex. xxxii. 15, Num. xxii. 24, Ezk. xlviii. 7. Arnswald says that mizzeh .. .mizzeh cannot mean "on this and that side of the roll," because zeh is masc. Avhile m'gillah is fern. But (Ex. xxv. 19) nfiK-j.™ HT& rMpfc 1)18 2T0 7W$\ •••rniDjT? \ti HTu flXpiC) shows that this reason for rejecting that translation is invalid. We reject it on different grounds, viz. that the words do not express that meaning : to have done so they should have been fi^ ^H J" J • • • S j! HpJ HTfc JT^ nVlM-.^l ilp^ HI/J- The explanation of Koehler, &c., that mizzeh in both cases means "from hence," viz. from the land (coinp. Gen. xxxvii. 17, Ex. xi. 1, Deut. xi. 12), is precluded by the evident contrast between mizzeh and mizzeh implied by the collocation. LXX. rightly for ha'akih rj dpd. — Symm. ot opKoi. — Aq. ojo-cu'tws, reading, apparently, H/JO- The last half of the verse is versions. V " T rendered as follows by LXX. : Sioti 7ms 6 kXItttt]'; Zk tovtov ews Oavarov iKSiKrjOrjaeTaL, kclI 7rus 6 iiriopKOS zk tovtov eo>s 9a.va.TOV eKtHKT^/ycreTcu (Cod. Vat. incorrectly omits ecus 6o.va.Tov in the second case). They, no doubt, read JTl/j' as J"n£j> as ni Is. liii. 8 they read the )fo °f idmo '• T us ]"Y]£j- They may have rendered j" as «w?> comp. 1 Sam. xv, 7 (LXX. Bacr. a'. 15. 7, Tisch. reads ws), Ps. lx. 7 )£% (c°^- Kenn. 15. G *ft^), LXX. Gl. 7 eojs rjfxipa<;. Or they may have read Hl/JJ' as J-fl/U . (see note on LXX. ch. x. 12). With regard to HpJ it must be observed that it is not elsewhere used (in the Niph.) of a person being destroyed, ZECIIARIAH V. 4. 51 iuto the house of the thief, and into the house of him that swearetk falsely by my name: and it shall remain in the midst of his house, and shall consume it with the timber thereof and the stones thereof. though it is found (Is. iii. 25 nnpTl, LXX. KaraXecfjiOrja-r] fxovrj) of a .' : L city being laid waste. The Targ. gives *p7 (vapulans) "being judicially- smitten," giving practically the right meaning, and preserving to a certain extent, if not the original word, at any rate the sound of it. They may have taken ,^pj as a Niph. partic. ; or as an Imperf. (see Fragment of T. B. P'sachim, pp. 1 — 8) ; or as equivalent to np7> cf. ("!^£/? an(l rDfeJOj even in Bibl. Hebr. There is no reason for sup- posing (with Gesen.) that they read the word as H2J- The LXX. give T ■ essentially the same rendering, either from the Targum or collateral tradition, or translating in accordance with the context. Symm. ScK-qv Swcret. . ni/V'-nXiV These words are both accentuated milfiel (see note on page 16), consequently they are the 3rd pers. fern. Perfect, words. not the Pres. Partic. (see note on xiv. 18). Hj7 stands for i"lJ/> and this is the only instance of final ah becoming eh in the T T Perfect; but, in the Imperf. we have HfcOpX (1 Sam. xxviii. 15), v t| ; ••• I r0&^"7* (Ps. xx. 3); in a fern, partic. pass. ,TV|T (Is- xxxix. 5). The i. case of the substantive H2¥ (Ps. viii. 7) is not parallel : for, in the first place, if this stood for H3N¥ we should have expected it to have been T accentuated on the first syllable (see note on Idy'lah i. 8) ; secondly, the i. i . form D3&02C (Numb, xxxii. 24) points to a collateral form JO^ or HJif • Note that while in Arab. daVin (pfc$¥) means "a single sheep," and the plur. dan (fo^)1 means "sheep," there is also a verb dana-a (iO¥), one meaning of which is (according to Freytag) " multa fuerunt (pecora)." — Since Bdyith "house" is masc, the suffix of Cilldttu (3rd fem. Perf. Pi'el of ri/i) is masc. to agree with it. The only instances of the 1 It is quite within the bounds of we call "collectives" are in reality possibility that many Hebr. nouns which " broken plurals."' 4—2 52 Z EC II A It I All V. 5. 5 Then the angel that talked j me, Lift up now thine eyes, and with me went forth, and said unto | see what is this that goeth forth. 3rd masc. suffix with the 3rd fern. Perfect of verbs quiescent H"? are this )p$2, and ^fl Hiph. of fi&J (Prov. vii. 21). The (usual) form of the 3rd fern. Perfect, with 3rd masc. suffix, in the Qal, Hiph. and Polel, is in dth-hu, e.g. tflJrftj! (Prov. xxxi. 12), WDtJin (Jer. 1. 43), !)nj"|fc&h (Ezk. xxxi. 4), but with the Pi'el it is always : AT -; | dttu, as !)nnp; (Prov. xxxi. 1), WlSD} (1 Sam. xvi. 14), ^HT (Job xxxiii. 20). The full form of the 3rd fern. Perfect is that which occurs in Pause, viz. gam&ldh, when this takes the suffix it reverts to its older form in t, viz. gamdlat. Now observe how, in accordance with the rule given in note on iv. 1, when the accent leaves m& and falls on Idt, the vowel third from the accentuated syllable goes away, and we get g°mdldthu. The next example cited, viz. hech'ziqdth-hul, is an in- stance of a word in which both the second and third vowels from the accent are immoveable. In all the other cases the third vowel (from the accent) is immoveable, but the second has been removed. i: j: XVI, contrast the position of the tone in UJJ^l (iv- !)■ The reason •• ••" T T- Verse5 °^ ^**s difference is, that all verbs, whose last roof-letter is 5$, retain the tone on the ultimate even with vdv conversive, and are, therefore, an exception to the general rule given in our note . i on i. 9. Thus all such forms from KlU are mWra1, e.g. JO*1) (Gen. vii. 7), SOFfl (viii. 11), and Hiph. tfy) (Neh. viii. 2), &%*) (Ezk. xl. 3), but commonly tfH*1 ; and so tfp»1 (Jon. ii. 11) from N*p. "T- |"T- I And thus also X"V*1 (Gen. xxviii. 17) from XT, and from tftfV Qal T ' - "T ^i**|, tfXfii) (Gen. iv. and xxx. 1G), Hiph. xi*1 (Gen. xv. 5), tfi»1 i . (Judg. xix. 15), X5fm (Gen. i. 12). — But forms, which end in fc$ on i account of the apoc. of the final H, are mileie~l according to rule, e.g. fc$Tl 1 A sh'va, be it quiescent or moving, 6ign to show that there is no vowel bc- simple or compound, is not a vowel, or longing to the consonant under which it a semivowel, nor does it ever count in is placed, grammar as a syllable. It is merely a ZEC II Alii All V. 6, 7. 53 6 And I said, What is it 1 And he said, This is an ephah that goeth forth. He said moreover, This is their resemblance through all the earth. 7 And, behold, there was lifted (Ps. xviii. 11) from nXT, ttSttl (Job iv. 5) from J-JSO 5 a]so Kfi*1 (Deut. xxxiii. 21), an anomalous form from HH^ or fctflX- — "What is this that goeth forth?" would be properly mah-zz6th hayyogith, our text fiXTH HXXVn lift denotes "what is this goer-forth ? " in which two sentences there is a distinction of phraseology, but hardly a difference of meaning. " What is this going forth]" would be mah-zzoth yogeth. LXX. kcli t8e to eK-n-opevofxevov tovto, taking Hft as indefinite (comp. p. 46, and LXX. ix. 17), which is impossible in this collocation. "And I said: 'What is it]' And he said: 'This is an ephah which is going forth : this (continued he) is their appearance in all the earth.'" The use of the def. art. with ephah is Translation and i i-i • i -kt m n 7< rni Construction. that which writers on the New Test, call monadic, lhe def. art. in such a case denotes merely a chance specimen of the known class. Thus ha? ephah here denotes "a specimen of the thing, you know so well, viz. the ephah-class." This is a distinct Hebraism. It is common in the Mishnah (see my Fragment of T. B. I*sachim, p. 95, note 36), as well as in Bibl. Hebr. In the Talmudim and Midrashim the idiom becomes still more marked, and we have not "the" but "that" to denote tis. Thus, while J03J fcsVTl maJ mean "that man" (in which sense it is often used to denote " I " (or " thou"), like dvrjp oSe, and oS' dv-qp, as ecpiivalent to eyoj), it very generally stands merely for dvrjp tis. — For vayyomer used parenthetically comp. ver. 8, and note on iv. 2 C'thibh. — For |*W in the sense of "appearance" comp. (Numb. xi. 7) H/T^n ry5 )^V) "and its appearance was like that of bdellium" (comp. Lev. xiii. 55). For £W LXX. has aSi/aa avr£>v, reading D^. Jerome observes t -; that if the Hebr. word had vav instead of yod "recte lege- versions retur onam ut LXX. putavei-unt." He seems to have thought that |W was of the form of f|X, and made constr. |W (see note on ^iin P- 25). Symm. paraphrases Trpos tovto a7ro/3A€7rowi. Ciccdr is the constr. of Ciccdr (which is a contraction of the unused Circdr, comp. ^1^3 which stands for ^33D)- The word is Verse . fern, see (2 Kings v. 5) &D3 ^tt 1&)}- It has two and Transi. plurals t3^33 in the sense of " talents," 'and DflS 711133 "cakes of 54 Z EC II ARIA II V. 8. up a talent of lead: and this is a woman that sitteth in the midst of the ephah. 8 And he said, This is wicked- ness. And he cast it into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof. bread" (Judg. viii. 5). — HXb^ must be taken as the Niph. Partic. fern, like fiX /33 (Deut. xxx. 11) : and so too must it be in flXl^} *5 ini^7^ ilbyzb (I Chron. xiv. 2) ; unless we point the word fiXBO after the form fiN^ (Ps. cxviii. 23), comp. fl^BO (Is. xxiii. 15), nnxsnr (Jer. n. 9 Qr% r\r\lbsfi (2 sam. 1 26).— nan ^y ^ t t : • t - : : • easily explained, if only we follow the context and the rules of grammar. It cannot be taken as equivalent to H^Hj " [and I looked] and behold one woman," because (1) J1XT is never so used, (2) throughout the visions j"}?? flXT) n,X always introduce an explanation of the angel interpreter. This verse, and the first clause of the next one, are merely a continuation of the angel's words. In verse 7 he points out to the Prophet the scene that was passing before his eyes, and in the beginning of verse 8 he explains its import. The angel says, " And behold (i. e. and you may see) a disc of lead being lifted up, and this [which you now see on the removal of the disc] is a woman sitting in the midst of the ephah, and this (continued he) is Wickedness." — Isshdh achdth might be rendered "a certain woman" as *7PlX CJ^X (1 Sam. i. 1) "a certain man" (tis) ; but such a translation woidd be unsuitable here. Or it may be taken as " one woman." Or achdth i i i may be used merely as the indef. article, as (Dan. viii. 3) "IPIX 7*X TV • - "a ram." nyWin as a very personification of Wickedness, so (2 Chron. xxiv. 7) nytthftH is applied to Athaliah.— "pB^b the Verse 8. - - : • - I ■• singl. imperf. of the Hiph. with vdv convers. (as a general rule) takes e instead of 7 in the second syllable, comp. 7^1^!,,1 (Gen. i. 4), but not so the plur. (usually), thus <17>1^,,T (Ezek. xxxix. 14). The angel- interpreter seems to be the agent. — The use of the def. art. identifies the JTl^tyn P^ wi*n tne rnSy ^OD mentioned above : ebhen denotes 1 The Cthibh should be read nriEfO of the Q'ri with the consonants of the from riD"l = SD"l. Stade, Gramm. i. p. C'thihh. 241, gives, strangely enough, the vowels ZEG 11 Alii All V. 9—11. 55 9 Then lifted I up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came out two women, and the wind was in their wings ; for they had wings like the wings of a stork : and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heaven. 10 Then said I to the angel that talked with me, Whither do these bear the ephah '? * 1 1 And he said unto me, To build it an house in the land of Shinar: and it shall be established, and set there upon her own base. here "a weight" as in Deut. xxv. 13, Prov. xvi. 11. — The prepositions 75< and 7^ are, in many of their meanings, interchangeable, comp. e.g. Is. xxix. 11, 12; 2 Sam. xx. 23, 1 Sam. xiv. 32, 33, 34.— Pika denotes " its mouth," viz. of the ephah, comp. IfcGUl *3 (Gen. xxix- 2)- DPP531D2 HIT) a nominal clause introducing a further fact "and the wind was in their wings," comp. vi. 1. The phrase ■ seems to be the Hebr. equivalent of the English nautical expression "bore down on," i.e. approached sailing before the wind. Observe the masc. suffix; comp. HDH £or HUH (ver- 10)3 and Ruth i. 8, 9.—Cnaphdim is the dual (see note on p. 20), HiT? for the usual fH7, so we have (Jer. xix. 16) JlfifTv for the usual Opp : the form for I ... T T •• T v r 2nd pers. fern, is ,7337, apparently to distinguish it from p7 "there- T V T I •• T fore." — JTYDn is "a stork"; in later times to distinguish the fern, of TDPI "pious" from clfsldah "a stork," the form JTf\UH was use(Ir e.g. (T. B. C'tlmbboth 17") miDPf) PRti M75-— JWWl for fOWWYF (on the slmdn rdpheh see Excurs. IV.). — Bin...ubhm (Gen. i. 4) or bin. ..I (i 6) "between... and." p|7 is softened for pp and therefore the ^ of the following word is T T without dagesh lene (see Excurs. ill. and IV.). — p1p| is the VergeU Hoph. Perf. 3rd Pers. masc. (from 1)2) though it agrees with a, fern, subject (comp. xiii. 8). — From JTD we have two Hiph. forms JTJPT " he gave rest " (Is. xiv. 3), and PP-H " he placed " (ver. 1). The Hoph. Partic. from the latter is p|}ft (Ezek. xli. 9). Now the Hoph. Perf. T \ 3rd fern, ought to be Hlt-H) this being pronounced lumrfchtih might t : \ have passed into hunnlchdh (for instances of the common use of * in non-biblical MSS. for moving sheva see my Fragment of T. B. P'sachim, p. 8, note 2), and then, on account of the following tonic syllable sham, 56 Z EC II ARIA II VI. 1. became hunnicliah. On the other hand we find in Biblical Chaldee i such a Hophal as Htt^pn " she was set up " (Dan. vii. 4), so that those - I- t: have some ground to stand on who call this a Chaldaism1. But I prefer my own explanation, since the Hebrew of the Post-captivity Prophets is especially (and intentionally) free from Chaldaisms. lxx Ka' zTV'P-u-o-ai, either reading j^VT) as the Hiph. j3j"fl ; or else taking ]"l f°r H (as ^n ver- 3), and reading pHl, which Root they render in 1 Sam. ii. 3, 2 Kings xii. 12 by the verb eroi/Aa£a>. This is but one vision in three dissolving views, (a) The flying scroll denotes the curse upon sinners against the "Words of the Two Tables (Exod. xx.). The dimensions of the scroll are those of the Tabernacle in the wilderness, and of the porch of Solomon's Temple. Some commentators con- sider its measurement to be symbolical, If so, it is best to understand it as meaning, that transgression is not to be measured by man's standard of right and wrong, but by that of the Lord, who deigned to give a special sign of His Presence in the Sanctuary. With verse 4 may be compared the well-known story of Glaucus, and the Delphic oracle concerning Oath, who " hath a son nameless, handless, foot- less, but swift he pursues until he seize and destroy the whole race and house " (Herod, vi. 86). (p) Next a woman, who is Wickedness personified, appears sitting in an ephah. A leaden disc is cast on the mouth of the ephah to prevent her emerging; then (7) two women, with strong ample wings (the like of which the prophet may have seen in the grotesque figures of Babylon), bear down on the ephah, and carry it off to the land of Shinar, where it is to be finally deposited. This vision appears to be, not only a confirmation of ch. iii. 9, but also an implicit exhortation to the people to leave in the land of their Captivity (the land where mankind first organized a rebellion against God, Gen. xi. 2) the sins, which had caused their deportation thither, CHAPTER YI, ND I turned, and lifted up I behold, there came four chariots mine eyes, and looked, and, | out from between two mountains; A* Seventh Vision. — The Four Chariots. In the singl. we have ^2*1^, and n^Dlfi (V('r- 2), but in the plur. t : v Verse 1. always fYl^D""!/^ > by the common interchange of a and e Constructions. ^ ^^ Qn [x 5^ x gx_ rjj^j. ^ ^.j,.,,^ fe not causc,l by the heavy termination of the plur. (as C. H. H. Wright, quoting 1 Ewald's (§ 131) word CHH (Dan. consonants of the C'tliibh; the word is viii. 11) is imaginary on his part, he has " JUj or ^"H. read the vowels of the Q'ri with the Z EC II AM All VI. 2—4. 57 and the mountains were mountains of brass. 2 In the first chariot were red horses; and in the second chariot black horses; 3 And in the third chariot white horses; and in the fourth chariot grisled and bay horses. 4 Then I answered and said unto the angel that talked with me, What are these, my lord ? Koehler, supposes) is shown by the fact, that the plur. of ^JD^'tf is ni/^t^ (Song of Songs vii. 8, comp. Gen. lx. 10) while the constr. is equally ftfo^K (Deut. xxii. 32) and fife^ (Song of Songs vii. 9) : similarly we have nHpSft (Numb. iv. 9) and ,Tnp7/b (Ex. t v I t : - t v | t : v xxv. 38), comp. the common Rabbinic form of substantive fcy^fpn "that which is devoted to sacred purposes," which is derived from the Hiph. Infin. Ey^fpn (comp. note on LXX. xiv. 17). — V'hekdrim hare n'cho- sheth is a nominal clause, comp. v. 9. The last-mentioned horses have two epithets applied to them, D^'ftX DHI^. The latter of these cannot possibly be ••..-: ••-.:' Verses 2, 3. understood as applying to all the four different coloured horses, since in that case the prophet could only have written ft^^X D /5- It is strange that two epithets should be applied to one set of T \ horses here, and only one to each of the other sets, both here, and in chap. i. But the greatest difficulties in this passage are (a) that, while in this verse the B'ruddim are identified with the "mucqim, in verses 7 and 8 the two are most unmistakably distinguished : and (/?) that no mission of the D^DI^ is mentioned. The Syr., either having a more correct Hebr. text in this passage, or more probably making a conjec- tural emendation, omits the word "mucqim in this verse, and in ver. 7 substitutes D^IXni for E^DtfnV And this reading we are com- polled to follow, for the present text commits our Prophet to writing in a meaningless style, such as would not be tolerated for a moment in any secular writer. For LXX. see p. 13. For B'ruddim Symm. and Theodotion give TreXtSvoi. For "mitcqim (ver. 3) Aq. has Kaprepot, but in ver. 7 he has -n-vppoi as though i-eading, with Syr., v'ha,adummfim ; in ver. 7 Symm. has crwveo-^iy/xtvot, and Theod. lo-\vpoL. In the sense of "strong" D*2W?tf would be a **"■ X€y°-> but r^5* (and P?**) is common in this sense (it. would, of course, be possible to point D^'ftfcs 58 ZECIIARIAII VI. 5—7 5 And the angel answered and said unto me, These are the four spirits of the heavens, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth. 6 The black horses which are therein go forth into the north country; and the white go forth after them; and the grisled go forth toward the south country. 7 And the bay went forth, and sought to go that they might walk ammigim). If taken in the sense of "red" it is still a utt. Xeyo., and must be taken as equivalent to Q^ftHj comp. QH.13 ]*)i2tl (Is. lxiii. 1), so Abu-1-Walid (col. 57), Qimchi (Sefer hashshdrashim), Ewald, &c. Comp. pXH (1 Chron. viii. 35) for jnnfi (ix. 41). In both verses the Targ. renders amuccim "ash-coloured"; Rashi says that he does not know the meaning of the word ; Ibn Ezra on ver. 7 remarks that the "amuccim are the adummtm" which is certainly the case, by whatever means the result be arrived at. Arbd' rilchoth hashshdmdim " the four winds of heaven," denoting verse 5. God's agents working in all the four quarters, i.e. over all &c ' the earth. — Ybce,6th, as in ver. 1, describes the state or cir- cumstance.— Uttmri/b (on the met/teg see Excurs. n. A. 2) "from standing"; but LXX. give l^iroptvovro 7rapaorr/vat. — 7M (comp. iv. II). Observe that ybc^im " are going forth " agrees by attraction with hassusim, instead of with the real subject of the sentence which is nH^lpj understood in the f)% *l^fX> comp. Jll^'p 1 D*ftn d>ta)33 (1 Sam. ii. 4). — The reason why we have !)X¥* twice in Verse 6. this verse and once in the next, instead of Q^VV is this : that the scene passed so vividly before the mind's eye of the Prophet, that he passes unconsciously from an account of the Angel's explanation of the vision to his own narration of it. LXX. avoid the difficulty by rendering ybge,im, as well as yac^u, by i^e-n-opevovTo. — For the expression ^PlX /X with verbs of motion, comp. 2 Sam. v. 23, and ^PlX~7X ^b " turn thou behind me" (2 Kings ix. 18).— pTl (from )fr) denotes the " south," it is found here only with the def. art. (By the Jews Tenia n is understood to denote especially that part of Arabia called Yemen.) 1£J,p^'l>) (on the metheg see Excurs. II. B. 3), LXX. ku\ iTrifiXiirov toi) irontvtfrOai, var. led. kou c&'tow kcu iTriB\e7rov tou k.t.A. \ erse 7. ' L — On the metheg on nJD.nnni see Excurs. II. B. 4. Z EC H ARIA II VI. 8. 59 to and fro through the earth : and he said, Get you hence, walk to and fro through the earth. So they walked to and fro through the earth. 8 Then cried he upon me, and spake unto me, saying, Behold, these that go toward the north country have quieted my spirit in the north country. " Then cried he upon me," this is an old English expression for Verse 8. "calling by name," " calling out for," " summoning " (comp. "who calls on Hamlet?" Shakespear, Hamlet, iv. 2. 3; "to cry on, or upon" he uses, however, in a different sense, see As iv. 3. 150, Rom. in. 3. 101); it is as much stronger than "he called me," as vayyaz'eq othi is than vayyiqrti It p^P") (on the form see note on v. 8) is used of "summoning," "calling together," in Judg. iv. 10, 13, and other forms of the Hiph. in the same sense in 2 Sam. xx. 4. 5. — IITJn " have given rest to," E. V. rightly "have quieted" (see note on v. 11). f"|yi "spirit" is here used, as in Judg. viii. 3, in the sense of "wrath." For the phrase "to quiet anger" see Ezek. v. 12, xvi. 42, xxiv.^13. LXX. seem to have read irPJiT)* or perhaps rather VT^l. since they give /ecu dveiravo-av. There is no absolute need, on account of the use of the def. art., to understand the "two mountains" as two mountains well known (see notes on i. 8). Since they are spoken of as being " of copper " it is evident tbat Remarks, they are ideal, rather than real mountains. Hengstenberg supposes that they represent the power of God, which shields His people ; Baumgarten thinks that they symbolize the two central points of the world-power. But, though they are ideal, they had probably their prototype in reality. Thus Pressel takes them as Zion and Moriah ; Wright as Zion and the Mount of Olives. This last seems the more probable, because the Mount of Olives is spoken of in Zech. xiv. 4, and Mount Zion is represented as the place from which God executes His judgments (Joel hi. 16), and because between them lay the valley of Jehosbaphat, which Joel describes as the judgment-place of the world (iii. 2). — The four chariots are said to be ' ' the four winds of heaven, " that is probably, as E wald says, ' ' they went forth as swiftly as tbe four winds of heaven into the four parts of the world, driven along, as it were, by the wind-angels as charioteers " (comp. Ps. civ. 4). From ver. 8 we know that, whatever else they were, they were God's agents in executing His just wrath on the nations. — With regard to the difficulties concerning the colours of the horses, which we have mentioned above, Hitzig ascribes them to the carelessness of the writer. But we agree, rather, with Maurer, who suggests that the use of amuechn in ver. 7 (whence probably it crept into ver. 3) is due to a blunder of an early copyist. Wright tries to get over the difficulty by supposing that the "dummim signify the Babylonian Empire, and that they were introduced into the vision for completeness' sake, but that they were most suitably (Jerome) passed over in the interpretation, because the day of the real power of Babylon had passed away. He maintains that the b'ruddim (ver. 6) are identical with the "inura'm (ver. 7), as GO ZECIIARIAII VI. 9, 10. 9 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, 10 Take of them of the captivity, even of Hehlai, of Tobijah, and of Jedaiah, which are come from Babylon, and come thou the same day, and go into the house of Josiah the son of Zephaniah; they are in ver. 3, as the text now stands. He supposes that the b'ruddim are repre- sented as going forth as directed to the land of the south, and then because they were "min'cnn, "strong," as asking for further permission to traverse the whole world. But the text will not bear any such interpretation. The b'ruddim (ver. 6) are evi- dently distinct from the muggim (ver. 7). The text is hopelessly corrupt, and can be made intelligible only by adopting the reading (or emendation) of the Syriac. The horses in the chariots are bay, black, white, and iron-grey. These colours have no symbolical significance. They are used merely as the common colours of horses, and to distinguish one chariot from another. Tho chariots may denote kingdoms, but certainly not those of Daniel. They are at all events God's instruments of vengeance. Two are sent to the North (viz. black, and white) because there were two powers there to be overcome, the remnant of the old Asshur-Babylonian, and the Medo-Persian. The grey go to the South, i.e. to Egypt, which country revolted from Darius, and was reconquered by Xerxes : then after a series of revolts was finally subdued to the Persian power by Ochos. and was afterwards wrested from the hands of Persia by Alexander the Great. The bay seek, and obtain, per- mission to go through all the earth, signifying probably that Israel's Protector would defend them, not only against their ancient enemies, but also against any who should rise up against them from any quarter whatsoever. The Symbolical Crowning of Joshua. Ldqffch is the Infill. Absol. used emphatically, and stands for the „ 10 Iniin. followed by the Jussive, or Imperative (comp. iii. 4). Constructions, , — j-^£ and ft (of mechelday) are identical in meaning (see examples in note on xiv. 17). — Tw]^ is properly the fern, of the partic. (T/iil (2 Sam. xv. 19), and so is here rightly used of "exiles" ; but it is often used for the abstract "exile," e.g. (Ezra iv. 1) flTUM MJ. On the other hand Tw?^ is properly abstract, meaning " exile " (see note on T ix. 15), but is often used for the concrete "exiles," e.g. Jer. xxiv. 5. — Vbhdthd atttih bayyOm hahit " and enter thou thyself that very day." Ubhathti (inil'ra1) is the Pei'f. with vav convers. (see note on v'^lnwrtd p. 5), it follows naturally after the Imperative implied in flip/ (see pp. 5, G). The "thou" and "on that day" are emphatic. — HXill is, equally with the ubhathti above, the Perfect with vav convers., but it is accentuated on the penultimate on account of the conjunctive accent, Ji'b/d"' (see (2) in the note on p. 5). The ubltdthd is repeated, because ZECHARIAH FT. 11. 61 11 Then take silver and gold, I upon the head of Joshua the son and make crowns, and set them \ of Josedech, the high priest; the insertion of the words attdh bayyOm haiku' has separated the word too far from ]"V^- I'1 such a case, if we are to translate the idiom of one language into that of the other, the vav would be best rendered into English by "I say": thus, "and thou thyself shalt enter that same day, thou shalt enter (I say) into the house of, &c." (comp. vii. 3, viii. 23, 2 Sam. xiv. 4). — On the dagesh in JV5 see Excurs. III. 1. — On the construction of J"V^ with the verb X123 &c- see n°te on xi. 13. Gram- matically it would be possible to render IfcO'l^fcS " into which they have entered," viz. the house. But, since "from Babylon" follows, such a rendering would be harsh. It would perhaps be better, there- fore, to refer this relative sentence to the persons mentioned in the first half of the verse, and to translate it " who are come from Babylon." But this construction is, also, inelegant. Me'etli haggolcdi. . .y'da' i/Cdi, LXX. tu Ik ttJs at^yitaXwo-ias 7rapa tv avrrjv, translating the names. ^I/H they took as a plur. (comp. xi. 17); but why they should have given it the meaning of apxovrwi/ it is difficult to imagine. Tobhiyy&h they read as H^ILD an(l T referred the suffix to gol&h : and y'da'ydh as n*V*i*. Field (Hexapla) notes that some copies give the words as proper names; but this, no doubt, is to be accounted for ■ as a later attempt to correct the LXX. text from the Hebr. — Aquila gives them as proper names. — asher bctii LXX. read in the sing!., and make it agree with Yoshiyy&h, to{) tjkovtos. Might bail, perhaps, have been intended to refer to Yoshiyy&h, and have been attracted into the plural by the number of the names which precede ? On the tone of iflaqachtd, if'dsitha, v'samtd see p. 5. — On the metheg on ceseph-v'zalidbh see Excurs. II. A. 2.— On the sh'va under Verse n the vav of vezahdbh see note on xiv. 4. — Since the Prophet ^Vor s' has used no pronoun after v"sa?)itd it is impossible to say for certain whether fYl""!^ means "crowns," or a "composite-crown" (comp. t -; mctchHagoth iii. 4). The latter seems the more probable conjecture, because (a) but one head is mentioned, on which latar6th should be placed, (/3) the word is construed (ver. 14) with a singular verb follow- ing it, and moreover, in Job xxxi. 36 *7 T\Ttty ^TPJK "I would G2 Z EC II ART All VI. 12, 13. 12 And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord ; 13 Even he shall build the temple of the Lord ; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both. bind it me as a crown," it seems to be used of a single crown, or fillet. This word (in the singl.) is sometimes used of a royal crown, e.g. (2 Sam. xii. 30) D37/£~rniDy "their king's crown" (on the metheg see Excurs. II. A. 2). LXX. have here o-re^a'vovs. EJ^fcS not "the man," but "a man of distinction" (comp. Is. xxxii. 12, Verse 12 Zech. viii. 23), avrip (but see note on xiii. 5). — !) is placed a\ ords, &c. kefore niittachtdv because the preceding clause includes the idea of some such word as ^!l " is coming" (see note on ii. 10). — Vnnri/D denotes " from his place," the expression is found again only in Ex. x. 23, comp. tachteha "in her place" (Zech. xii. 6, xiv. 10). — Observe the intentional use of the verb yigm&ch with the name Cenmch. — The verb j"JJ2 is used figuratively, comp. (Gen. xvi. 2) H32X V^lX V T • — n^Jbft "perhaps I shall be built up of her." The expression hecdl Y II VII is also used figuratively (see Remarks below), as are also '>"'' JV3 (Hos. viii. 1), and VV^ (Hos. ix. 15, Numb. xii. 7), viz. of the spiritual community of Israel (comp. oIkos ©eou Heb. iii. 6, 1 Tim. iii. 15). The ffiT]) is in both cases emphatic, and is used to distinguish Cemach from the crowned High-Priest, who merely pre- Verse 13. * words and figured him. The verse should be rendered: "Yea He Constructions. _. .-,, , , will build the temple of ill VII [l. e. He will be the true builder], and He will bear majesty, and will sit and rule upon His Throne, and will be a Priest upon His Throne, and a Counsel of Peace will be between Them twain." The expression OHO^ p^ is difficult. We see no way of interpreting it, except of the only two Persons men- tioned in the verse, viz. YIIVII and the Priest-King (but see Versions and Remarks). We should rather have expected the expression )y>^ Vri/X Til "between Him and His God": as the words stand they must have sounded most enigmatical to the Prophet's hearers. — *lin> while it is employed in a variety of other significations, is especially used of royal majesty (Ps. xxi. 6, Jer. xxii. 18, Dan. xi. 21). — It seems more natural to take the suff. of n^n "His throne" as referring to ZECHARIAH VI. 14. G3 14 And the crowns shall be to Zephaniah, for a memorial in the Helem, and to Tobijah, and to Jedaiah, and to Hen the son of temple of the Lord. the Subject of the whole sentence, than to refer it to YHYII. fcsD.3 (which seems to have been originally a quadrilateral, comp. Arab. cursiy, Syr. cursyo) means an ordinary seat (1 Sam. i. 9, iv. 13), where it is accidental that it was a High-Priest who is mentioned as sitting on it. But the word is used chiefly of a royal throne, e.g. XD3i"l (Gen. xli. 40), iroSSD KD3 (Deut. xvii. 18), &c— p3 sometimes means " a prince " (as in 2 Sam. viii. 8), but the expression " High- Priest" (ver. 11) precludes that interpretation here. — Another rendering of the last half of the verse is gi-ammatically admissible, viz. " And there shall be a priest near his throne, and a counsel of peace shall be between them twain" (comp. LXX.). For this use of 7^ comp. iv. 14. This rendering has one advantage over the other, viz. that the interpre- tation of bin stiiiehem is rendered easier, by supposing the King and the Priest to be different persons. But, on the other hand, since the construction of ifhay&h is exactly the same as that of ifydshdbh and umdshdl, it seems much more natural to suppose that the subject of vehdyah is the same as that of the other verbs (see Remarks). Targuni paraphrases ver. 12 thus: " Lo the man, The Messiah His name, is destined to be revealed and anointed [comp. versesi2,i3. Tcvrg. Y., Lev. iv. 3, oTe'pojv, substituting )Ti2^ ?V for 1XM /Vj and regarding 'AvaroA?; and tcpeus as two different persons. Q7)"| seems to be simply a corruption of ^T?HJ (ver. 10). One of David's heroes was called Chelddy (1 Chron. xxvii. 15), and verse 14. I I Words and this name is written T7PI (1 Chron. xi. 30), and ^/PJ LXX- (2 Sam. xxiii. 29). Here the same name has become E7PI : f°1' ^ae G4 ZEGHARIAH VI. 15. 1 5 And they that are far off shall come and build in the temple of the Loud, and ye shall know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto you. And this shall come to pass, if ye will diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God. interchange of ^ and ft comp. p^ (Is. xv. 2) and fift^ (ver. 9) ; TTNh3 (2 Kings xx. 12) and IHlft (Jer. 1. 2); and the explanation of the name ^X?3 (2 Sam. iii. 3), as meaning d^Dft "causing shame," t : " • ; - given in Talm. Babl. Jfracoth 4". — LXX. render the name by tois virofxivovcri, reading it as D7PI pres. partic. of 7*|n, in the sense of d^jTft, comp. 7n*1 (Gen. viii. 10).— p? may be rendered, as by LXX., £is x^PLTa' ov "for Chen" another name for Yhshiyydh (ver. 10), so Targ. But Syr. reads as in ver. 10. — For lrziccar6n LXX. eh xl/aX/xov, either translating conjecturally, or reading fp^f as JVlftT; similarly the two readings ,1Jfc? WftW) d^X^'p (2 Kings viii. 20) and ffi& d Wl d^n^-p (2 Chron. xxii. 2) are supposed to have arisen from a confusion between '^ 20, and 'ft 40. In spite of the contrary opinion being expressed by such Hebr. Verse 15. commentators as Eashi, Qimchi, etc. we maintain that to constructions. ren(jer ^^ ag equivalent to Q^7 iTflfi HXD " and this shall happen unto you " is contrary to the usage of the language. The expression v'hay&h im shdmo"' lishm'luii seems to be borrowed directly from Jer. xxxi. 24, where (as in every other passage where a similar expression occurs, viz. Dent. xi. 13, xxviii. 1, Ex. xv. 26, xix. 5, xxiii. 22) there is an apodosis. Consequently, unless with Hengsten- berg we look on this verse as an abrupt aposiopesis, we have no choice but to regard it as a case of a lacuna in the text (D1D3 ^VftX^ NpD3, see Josh. iv. 1, &c), the existence of which has not been handed down by Tradition. Zecliariah is now commanded to go to the house of Josiah son of Zepbaniah, who was entertaining certain Jews, who seem to have come from Remarks. Babylon with gifts and offerings for the House of the Lord. From these men he was to take gold and silver, and to cause to be made thereof a composite diadem, with which he was to crown Joshua the High-Priest. We cannot, of course, venture with Ewald to insert the words " and upon the head of Zerubbabel " after the words ' ' upon the head of Joshua" ; and to insert the name " Joshua" in the clause " and will be a priest upon his throne." Even if such an arbitrary alteration of the text were admissible, it would be most inappropriate. ZECIIARIAII VI. G5 For, as Pusey has well remarked, had a crown been placed on the head of Zerub- babel, such an act would have aroused false hopes in the minds of the people of a restoration of the temporal kingdom, which had already been finally abolished (Jer. xxii. 30, Ezek. xxi. 31, 32). The crown was removed " until he should come whose right it is," viz. " the lung who shall reign in righteousness " (Is. xxxii. 1) " and prosper," as " a Branch of righteousness" (Jer. xxiii. 5). Since Zerubbabel is not even mentioned in this passage, Joshua himself must have felt that the Prophet's words referred to One greater than himself, and that the building spoken of was a spiritual one, to symbolize which the material building was alle- gorically introduced. — The interpretations of ver. 13 are various — we will note the cbief of them. Hitzig holds that the Messiah and an ideal priest are referred to in the clause " counsel of peace shall be between them both." But we cannot see how the thought of some ideal priest and king, who would coincide in some unity of purpose, could have occurred to the minds of the Prophet's hearers. There would be, moreover, no special reason for speaking of unity as existing between a king and a priest : for, as a matter of history, the priests and kings were seldom at vari- ance, though the prophets and kings were frequently so. Rosenmueller con- siders that the offices of priest and king are alluded to. But "a counsel of peace" could not be spoken of as existing between two abstracts. Keil takes the words as referring to the two characters of ruler and priest combined in the person of the Messiah. But in this case the clause would be superfluous. Why should there not be unity between two such characters combined in one such person? Koehler thinks that the reference is to the two offices of the Messiah, and that the prophecy speaks of a plan devised by the Messiah in His double character, whereby peace and salvation should be secured to His people. But this is in accord with the modes of thought of neither Old nor New Testament. Such an idea would have been incom- prehensible to the Prophet's hearers ; and in the N. T. any such unity of design for the salvation of mankind is spoken of as existing between the Father and the Messiah (not between two of the offices of the Latter), e.g. John vi. 38, x. 15 — 18, iii. 16, 17, Col. i. 19, 20. The opinion of Jerome, Vitkinga, Pusey, Wright, &c, is that which we have adopted above in our notes. Seeing that the regal dignity of the Messiah must have been generally recognised in the Prophet's time (see Jer. xxiii. 5, &c), and that, from Ps. ex. the combination of the priestly with the kingly office in the person of the Messiah must have been expected by his contemporaries, it seems to us that they would have understood the Prophet to have referred to the same person as " sitting and ruling upon his throne," and as " being a priest upon his throne": and that, however they may have taken the words of Isaiah ix. 6, " Wonder Counsellor, El gibbor, Abhi Olavi, Prince of Peace," such words must have somewhat prepared them for the statement, ' ' the Counsel of Peace shall be between Them twain." To us, who have the advantage of later revelation, there is a fitness apparent in the phraseology, which would have been hidden from them. G6 Z ECU All 1 A II VII. 1—3. CHAPTER VII. A ND it came to pass in the J\ fourth year of king Darius, that the word of the Lord came unto Zechariah in the fourth day of the ninth month, even'm Chisleu; 2 When they had sent unto the house of God Sherezer and Regem- melech, and their men, to pray before the Lord, 3 And to speak unto the priests The Bethel Deputation (chaps, vii. via.). viz. in Cislev." The usual constr. is that of i £2^£y " that is the month Sh'bhdt." B' cislev is in apposi- 1?DD3 " viz. in Cistiv" The usual constr. is that of i. 7 EHPl NVl Words and tion with W^Tw, comp. such a construction as SDlv V)u7 Constructions. (Gen. xlvii. 29), where the noun in apposition is repeated with the same preposition that is prefixed to the noun with which it is in apposition. But since the 7 of lachodesh is used only because it is preceded by the number of the day of the month, Cislev takes ^ ''in," avoiding the somewhat awkward construction with 7 "of." — rj7^,|,| "then there sent" seems to denote an event subsequent to the revelation spoken of in ver. 1. Comp. 1 Kings xiv. 5, where the pro- phet Ahijah receives warning of the coming of the wife of Jeroboam. — BetMl seems to stand for "the inhabitants of Bethel," just as "Jeru- salem" often means "the inhabitants of Jerusalem." ^l^'X"!^ Baer edits correctly with \y (not ^') ; it is mentioned as a name of one of the sons of Sennacherib (Is. xxxvii. 38), and Nergal-Sarezer occurs (Jer. xxxix. 3). The name is Assyrian [Xifgal~\-sar-us ur "May [Nergal] protect the king" (Sehrader). Ewald and Koehler take the clause " Sarezer, and Regem-melec and his men" as in apposition with Bethel, and look on these persons as being some of the chief inhabitants of Bethel, who sent the deputation. Keil, on the other hand, takes the clause as the ace. after the verb vayyishldch, and regards these names as those of the deputation sent. It is true that in the very similar passage (jer. xxvi. 22), [n^s-nx tnxa d'WN tfpw *f$2n rben •■•inX DWNl TD^JTpi tne particle fltf is prefixed to the names of the people sent ; but it is not absolutely necessary that it should have been expressed, though certainly the presence of the particle makes the sentence much clearer. — Vayyishldch is in the masc. sing, agreeing with the Bubject nearest to it, comp. JWIX! W~\i2 I^ID) (Numb. xii. 1). — P8WM comp. (2 Sam. ii. 3) )fcy X'K "IHSOKV— On the whole we pre- ZECIIARIAII VII. 4. G7 which ivere in the house of the Lord of hosts, and to the prophets, saying, Should I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done these so many years ] 4 Then came the word of the Lord of hosts unto me, saying, fer the rendering " The [people of] Bethel, [such as] Sarezer, and Regem-melec and his men, sent to entreat the Lord." — It would be possible grammatically to render Bethel " to Bethel," comp. CH^D in Jer. xxvi. 22 cited above. But no reason can be assigned for such a deputation being sent to Bethel, for we have no reason for supposing that " the priests belonging to the House of the Lord C'bhd'oth" (ver. 3) dwelt specially at Bethel. — Bethel, though it means lit. "House of God," is never used to denote the Temple, which is called *"* H*3> or bVTT&n JVi- — The phrase »"» 05--7nv) occursasearlyasEx.xxxii.il. — The first *l£X/ should be rendered "to say," it is repeated because of the length of the clause which follows it (see note on vi. 10). — "fVj? means "belonging to the house of," not "in &c." — fD^Xrii the interrog. r n is pointed with a pathach before a guttural or a consonant with sh'va. It has metheg in accordance with Excurs. II. B. 2 ; but it is unnecessary to place the metheg to the right of the vowel, since this ha could scarcely be mistaken for the def. art. — For the 1st pers. sing, used by a people speaking comp. Numb. xx. 19 nn^-QXV-^^ 03 vStf VT&&W 2*Dfo TirOI Op/bl OX • — As far as form is concerned ^OH might be either Niph. Infin constr. as UHlytl? (Ex. xvii. 25, &c), or Infin. absol. as H15n m,Sn (Numb. xv. 31). But it is evidently the absol here, since that is the form used (without 7) to express what in Latin would be the gerund in do, and in Engl, the pres. partie. "separating myself": comp. Gen. xxi. 16 pITTl. --PP S^HI T?JPI1 "an-d she went and sat down, removing herself." — Zeh comp. i. 12. — On H/M see note on ii. 6. Baer points it here cammeh, and in ii. 6 cammdh ; Cod. Petrop. has in both passages cammdh. B'cisliv, os ecru XacreXeu, following the ordinary construction. — For Regem melee 'Ap/^co-ecp d /3ao-tXcv?, it seems probable that Ap/?ecreep represents the numeral " fourteen " nW2*)X *l6J^, Aram. Arbesar. The V3*)fcs is easily accounted for from Hl^^iO above, and the "l^tt was perhaps deduced from the ^^ of *)^X")t^. The whole runs thus in LXX. : kou c^aTreWeiAcv cts Bai^A. ^apaadp ko.1 5—2 GS Z EC II AM All VII. 5-7. 5 Speak unto all the people of the land, and to the priests, say- ing, AVhen ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh month, even those seventy years, did ye at all fast unto me, even to me 1 6 And when ye did eat, and when ye did drink, did not ye eat for yourselves, and drink for your- selves ? 7 Should ye not hear the words which the Lord hath cried by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, and the cities thereof round about her, when men inhabited the south and the plain 1 Verses 5—7. Words and Constructions. 'Ap/3eo"£ep o (3aj\v9ev (LSc.to aytacrpa, reading *)T;J,'-|...rO {"OH- Some copies (Field) add r/ vrjarevcrw, another instance of correction in accordance with the Hebr. In Numb. vi. 11, 12 S^lp") is rendered kcu dyidcra, and TIiT) • • • ?7 ■tjyidaOr]. — Zeh cammeh sluiuim 7)877 '<-Kavd IV77. Ci "when," comp. (Ps. xxxii. 3) *J"|£JHl"n *3 "when I kept silence." — TliDDl may be taken in two ways, either as the absol. Infin. emphatic for DHISD "713D1 "and did mourn" (comp. note on iii. 4), or saphod means " mourning," see note on hinndzer (ver. 3), and the ) denotes "even," or "yea," as in ft]) which follows (see note on iii. 2) ; according to the latter explanation we should render v'sdphod "yea mourning": comp. (Hag. i. G) CnV^T Dyft XSffl mVl-— OX OHM UCSn * very well rendered by •• t : the E. V.— With Oflft¥ comp. (Ezek. xxix. 3) OfiW 0X1 " and / made it for myself," (Is. xliv. 21) OGJOH X7 "thou shalt not be forgotten by me" (eal being for 11; on 7 denoting the agent after a passive see on Ps. cxi. 2); 0/7J1 (Job xxxi. 18) "grew up toith me" should rather be compared with Ps. v. 5 (see p. 27, last line). For the emphatic repetition of the pronoun in the separate form after a datival suff. compare ftHX Dj? (Hag. i. 4), and with gam XVl DJ T\Vs? (Gen. x. 21). — V'ci thoe'lu "and when ye eat," comp. (Ps. viii. 4) CDL^ nX*"lX "O "when I look at the heavens." — 1IH6 attem htibc'lim "are ye not the eaters," if attem hashshothtm "and yourselves the drinkers 1 " i. e. do ye not eat, and drink unto youi*selves 1 (For the opposite principle comp. 1 Cor. x. 31, crre ovv laOUrf. ctre 7r(vert tire ti 7rotciT£ TrdvTa. cU So£av ®€ov Troiure). — d^^nn HX- There is no need to supply a verb here such as "should ye not hear]" "should ye not do?" or "do ye not know1?" For, in view of (2 Kings vi. 5) Z EC II All! A II VII. 8—10. G9 8 And the word of the Lord came unto Zechariah, saying, 9 Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Execute true judg- ment, and shew mercy and com- passions every man to his brother : 10 And oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor ; and let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart. D^fiJT/K ?£3 7n^n-nX1 there can be no doubt about J"lX being used for emphasis before the subject of a verb (even when not a passive) : moreover in viii. 17 we have an exact parallel. In the verse before us we have (hal6) eth-hadd'bharim " (are not they) the very tilings 1 ", and then follows the relative governed directly by a verb asher qdra! "which He proclaimed." So in viii. 17 we have (ci) eth-col-elleh "(for) all these very-things (are they)," and then follows asher sdnethl "which I hate."— Beydd "by means of," as (Is. xx. 2) Yl^* T2 V's 13H---' Two renderings, both of which are equally admissible, have been proposed for the following clauses, viz. " when Jerusalem was inhabited, and at peace, and her cities round about her : and the South, and the Lowland was inhabited " : and " when Jerusalem was dwelling in security, and her cities round about her : and the South, and the Lowland dwelling (similarly)"; but see p. 15. V'hannegebh stands for ^JJH fiVHIlV— Observe that the predicate yoshibh is in the masc. sing.; comp. (Pro v. xxvii. 9) ^b'TlW* ft-pP1! \12& "oil ancl Perfume rejoice the heart."— The Negebh is the southern district of Judah extending to Beersheba (Josh. xv. 21 sqq.). — The Stiphelah (%ecj>r}\a. 1 Mace. xxii. 38) is the Lowland district of Judah, towards the west (Josh. xv. 33 sqq.). C'bhaoth tQv Suva^ewi/. — V'zeh shibhiim koX iSov IfiSofx-qKovra. There is also in ver. 3 a reading ISov for yjSrj (Field). — Hal6 eth- haddebhdrim ou^ ovtoi ol Xoyot ; — Hanrifbhtlm hdrlshunlm rightly here tujv 7rpocf>r]Tiov twv efXTrpocrdev (see p. 7). LXX. Mishpdt "meth "true judgment": in viii. 16 we have "meth umishpdt shdlom " truth, and justice which tends to peace," comp. iagdth shdlom (vi-13). — Sh'phStu is the correct pausalform of shiph'tu (viii. 16). — ish eth dchiv "with one another" (see next verse). al-tdiashoqu on the methegs see Excurs. n. B. 3 and A. I. 6. — The expression ^^nD"?^ VHX fc^tf fl^HI requires some v = I Verse 10. explanation. — dchiv is in apposition with ish, and ish means " each" and so ish dchiv in Gen. ix. 3 means " each his brother," that 70 Z EC II ARIA II VII. 11—13. 1 1 But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear. 12 Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should liear the law, and the words which the Lord of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the former pro- phets : therefore came a great wrath from the Loud of hosts. 13 Therefore it is come to pass, is "each other." But here it does not mean "each his brother," but "each your brother," i.e. ''one another"; because, seeing that no such formula as (njp or) ^TlX-.-C^N is used, the expression VTJH— -Btyt (or ynX) comes to be used for the second as well as the third person e.g. (iii. 10) in$H7 E^X IJODH- Now, ish achiv is the objective gen. after rd'dth, and so the whole expression rd'dth ish achiv means " evil against one another." In this collocation it is impossible to take ish as the nom. (LXX.) /ecu kolkiclv e/caoros tou aScX^oD avrov \vtj /xvr](rLKaK€LTO). But in the more simple and ordinary construction (viii. 17) C^XI "D^nrrSw* in5n nymtt, ^ is tlie nominative. We need not lay more stress on the expression each his brother (either here or in Gen. ix. 3), than to remember that this Hebrew expression, and others like it, arose from the ethical truth of the brotherhood of all mankind, which is an essential principle of the Hebrew Scriptures. The idiom was afterwards applied to the brute creation and to things inanimate. The verb ?^^ is, in prose, usually construed with 7 and the Infin. ,, ,„ constr. — The normal form of the Hiph. Infin. constr. is with Verses 11, 12. L i as I'haqshibh, and of the absol. in e as ifhalbssh (iii. 4). — The expression JVHD flHD 1JJT1 recurs only in Xeh. ix. 29, it means "and offered a recusant shoulder," like an animal refusing the yoke. — The jft of mishsh'mo'" denotes " so as not to," or " in order not to," in both verses, comp. (Gen. xxvii. 1, &c.) HIX^- When, as here, min with the Infin. follows a verb denoting a deliberate act, it is equivalent to ?£) with the Subj. (comp. Is. vi. 10). — Sdmu, comp. ix. 13. VayyitVnu Cdthiph sordrcth kcu eSooKav vwtov 7rapapo- vovvra, — Shamir, explaining the metaphor, curci^r;. LXX. In the sing, we have always Vfo& , but the plural in Pause is always 1 . . . !|Wb£P : so too always flfti^ and ^nfcW (e. g. x. 7) ; but, , 14. r .. T - T •• t Verses 13, Words while the partic. of the one is always yfoU from shdmd', that of the other is always T\1$& from sam^ch. — D"lVDX1 (on the ZEC1IARIAU VII. U. 71 that as he cried, and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear, saith the Lord of hosts : 1-4 But I scattered them with a whirlwind anions' all the nations whom they knew not. Thus the land was desolate after them, that no man passed through nor re- turned: for they laid the pleasant land desolate. munach, to which the note Q^ytO 'H = '" two accents " refers, see Excurs. ii. B. 9. N.B.) is the Pi'el and stands for QI^DXI, the ft being pointed with a full cere, comp. J]3i$ (for unused !)Si"s) "bake ye" (only in Ex. xvi. 23), VHK (for unused >thu) "come ye" (Is. xxi. 12, &c). This is merely a variation in vocalization, but no Aramaism, though it is true that in Syr. an initial X (when pronounced) has always a vowel. — i . HD^J is the 3rd pers. perf. from Q£5£^, the fern, partic. would be T — T I . n^L^J- — Shammdh is a subst. meaning "a desolation." t — : The \*V| of ver. 13 and the nashdmmah of ver. 1-4 show that WW, Vft^X and D^DiO are j^sts. They should be ' ' Constructions. •rendered " So they kept calling " (comp. note on i. 5) " and I would not hear... but I scattered them (on several occasions)." — 7W is used, and not p^J, because the countries of the nations are especially thought of here, comp. (Jer. xvi. 13) fi^TH pXfi S^ft dSHK '{fell T*1^n 7^ " and I will cast you out of this land into a land," &c. — tDljH''"^ 7 ^lt^ may be either " whom they knew not," or " who knew not them." — Me'obhsr umishshdbh. In Ex. xxxii. 27 we find the Imperatives !)^t^1 ^H^V "pass ye up and down" (through the camp) : in Ezek. xxxv. 7 the participles ^&) *\2$ denote "all inhabitants." T T " This latter is the meaning here, " so that there were no inhabitants," the fft being privative, comp. (Jer.xlviii. 2) ^Jft. In ix. 8 we have exactly the same expression i^'ft} *nV£, but there the fft is used in the sense of "on account of," and the expression denotes "on account of him [or the army] that passeth up and down [the country]." — n""!/!2n T**1X is a reminiscence of Jer. iii. 19, and is now looked on as a sort of proper name, hence the omission of the art., comp. Qemach (iii. 8, vi. 12). — ■ The ordinary constr. in prose of £$&1 (which may be taken as Hiph., or as Qal like |^}') is, as here, with the ace. of the thing made, and 7 of 72 Z EC H ARIA II VIII. 1—4. that into which it is made, as (Gen. xxi. 18) IJJb^X bl*TJ ')& "I wil1 make him into a great nation." For vaiflbi kol Iotou, reading V"H, and consequently the LXX. other verbs also are put incorrectly in the future. CHAPTER VIII. A GAIN the word of the Lord A of hosts came to me, say- ing, 2 Thus saith the Lord of hosts ; I was jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I was jealous for her with great fury. 3 Thus saith the Lord; I am re- turned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem : and Jerusalem shall be called a city of truth ; and the mountain of the Lord of hosts the holy mountain. 4 Thus saith the Lord of hosts ; On qinnethl with 7 comp. i. 14. — On the accusatives qiridh cfdoldh and chemdh g'doldh see note on i. 2. — Shdbhti...v'sJihcanti Verses 2 3 Constructions "I am returned ... and will dwell," comp. ii. 14 — 16 (E. V. 10 — 12). — emeth "truth" and qudesh "holiness" being abstracts have, as is often the case, the def. art. prefixed. Thus *V^ JllbXn means " City of Truth," &*]pn VI " Mountain of Holiness." There is no word in Bibl. Hebr. for "true" (though there is fO£XJ "faithful," cf. nJftiO PHD Is. i. 26), so that if the prophet had wished to say "the true city" he could only have used the expression which he has here. But, on the other hand, there is an adj. "holy," so that had he meant to say " the true city, the holy mountain," he might have written instead of hdr haqqodesh t^ili^n ^inil- — LXX. 7ro'Xis It - t t d\r]$ kvr] . . .opos ayiov. )Zffli *fo " there shall yet dwell." In ver. 20 we have a slight verses 4 5 variation of construction IXl^ *")£W *7J? "it (shall yet be) constructions. ^.^ tliere ^^i come#» — gf^ means "each" (see note on vii. 10), and the ) introduces the clause descriptive of additional cir- cumstances, comp. v. 9, vi. 1. — ^rn is a fem- noun (Dan. ix. 25), but with the plur. the masc. verb is here used (hardly because the fern, is here used as a neut, BiJttcher, C. H. H. Wright, but) because the Imperf. 3rd and 2nd fern. plur. is but sparingly used in Hebrew, comp. (Ps. cxlv. 15) V"Q^ T7N 73 *3y, and on the other hand "X71 ZECI1ARIAII VIII. 5—9. 73 There shall yet old men and old women dwell in the streets of Jerusalem, and every man with his staff in his hand for very age. 5 And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls play- ing in the streets thereof. 6 Thus saith the Lord of hosts ; If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, should it also be marvellous in mine eyes ? saith the Lord of hosts. 7 Thus saith the Lord of hosts • Behold, I will save my people from the east country, and from the west country ; 8 And I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem : and they shall be my people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness. 9 Thus saith the Lord of hosts : yyy n^N*iri (2 Kings xxii. 20, &c. and comp. Zech. viii. 9).— On the vocalization of mish'antd see note on xi. 3. — The predicate C'pHlfc/^D is masc, as is commonly the case when a masc. and fern, noun precede, as (Gen. xviii. 11) Q^pT rWl D/TDK- ♦3 denotes "if" as in (2 Kings iv. 29) t5Mtf"tf¥lBfl ^ "if thou meet any one." But the expression bayyamim liahem " in those davs" (viz. when the House was first founded), not Constructions J v ' and LXX. "in these days" (E. V.), shows that we cannot render the first yippali "it be (or shall be) too marvellous" (LXX. et d$vva.Tij ?ys i]/xepa<; Te^efteAiorrai. ..Kat o vaos a ov wKoSo/ATjrat. There is no need to suppose that they read rVDlDD («ee P- 3, last line). Sdcdr "hire" is masc, and with it nlh'y&h agrees; but H^X is attracted into the gender of nfiH!3fi (see no^e ou vu 6). — Words and NVt'yali is the 3rd sing, Perf. masc. of H^H (on the maar~tc Constructions. . see Excurs. n. A. t), Ihe Tsiph. of this verb occui's only in the Perf. and Partic. It generally means " happened " (Judg. xix. 30), "was caused" (1 Kings xii. 24), "was undone," i.e. "went off" (of sleep, Dan. ii. 1), or (into a swoon, Dan. viii. 27). In Joel ii. 2 HTD fc>$7 means "was not," and so here. Observe that the tense of px is decided by the context. — j£ "on account of" (comp. ix. 8). — "li'H "the enemy," from *■)¥ (Is. v. 30), Rt, yitf (comp. » from nj, }H from VV^l)) the qamdg is on account of the disjunctive accent. — M/I^N! is the correct reading (not 'CfcO). Some of these cases, in which we ~:it have va when we should have expected vet, may be explained as being the Imperf. of repeated action, as CJH.3X1 (Judg. vi. 9) "and I kept driving them," nrpL^l (xx- 6) "and kept sending her" (comp. Zech. vii. 14). But others can only be explained as instances of anomalous vocalization as nnrOXl (Judg. xx. 6) "and I cut her in pieces," tfinfibXI (3 Sam. i. 10) ''and I slew him." Vcf'shaUdch... b'rc'fhu render "and I kept letting loose all men against one another." Z EC II ARI All VIII. 11—14. 75 11 But now I will not be unto the residue of this people as in the former days, saith the Lord of hosts. 12 For the seed shall be prosper- ous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her in- crease, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things. 13 And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel; so will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing : fear not, but let your hands be strong. 14 For thus saith the Lord of hosts; As I thought to punish you, when your fathers provoked me to wrath, saith the Lord of hosts, and I repented not: 6 /jii(rOo<;...ovK cotou €is ovtj from the Rabb. and Aram. H-D/l "to enjoy," but they have taken the initial J as the Eabb. or Aram, prefix of the Fut. (comp. p. 51); Min haggdr . . .aVd rijs 0\iij/eu)<; KOil i^OLTTOCTTeXw. Cayyamim hdrlshonim denotes "as in the former days," since after ^ a preposition is often understood, e.g. (Is. ix. 3) EjV.3 jH/53 "as in the day of Midian."— »Jtf "I am," or as E. V. KSSStoS . . and Versions. "I will be' ; there is no need with LXX. to supply any such verb as 7rou3. — ^ " for " introduces an assurance in proof of the statement of ver. 11. Zera' hashshdlom "the seed [which flourishes only in times] of peace," viz. haggephen "the vine.'"' In Jei\ ii. 21 the word zera1 "seed "is used of p^lit^ (see p. 12) in the expression J"lttX VII "genuine seed" (the kclXov cnrepfxa of Matt. xiii. 24). For ci zera1 shalom Syr. gives "for the seed shall be in peace." LXX. aXA.' i) Setfco elpyjv-qv, ci might possibly stand for []{$ ^ (as in Gen. xxxi. 1G after a negative sentence) ; but here there is hardly sufficient contrast betsveen the two sentences to justify this rendering. For y~\1 they read possibly V*7&, Hiph. of VT, which they render by Sclkw/xl in Gen. xli. 39, &c. ^nfo&T (comp. i. 6) in the 1st pers. Perf. this verb occurs here only in its uncontracted form, and only in Jer. iv. 28 contracted ^"l^T- — V'lo nichdmtl "and I repented not," LXX. koi ov Words, Con- - structions and fxerevorjaa, see p. 19. — VlfoftT ^fD^ "I have again pur- posed," comp. (Hos. v. 11) ^Sl /^IH "ne went willingly," (Gen. xxx. 31) njTlX HWtf "I will again feed" (comp. p. 46). LXX. 7raparcrayjuat kgu ScavevoTj/JiaL (in i. G they render Qftf by 7ra/}aT€raKTai), 76 ZECIIARIAII VIII. 15—21. 15 So again have I thought in these days to do well unto Jeru- salem and to the house of Judah : fear ye not. 16 These are the things that ye shall do ; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates : 17 And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour ; and love no false oath : for all these are thiwjs that I hate, saith the Lord. 18 And the word of the Lord of hosts came unto me, saying, 19 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; The fast of the fourth month, and the fast of the fifth, and the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall be to the house of Judah joy and gladness, and cheer- ful feasts ; therefore love the truth and peace. 20 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; It shall yet come to jxiss, that there shall come people, and the inhabit- ants of many cities : 21 And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Verse 19. LXX. and Constructions. here they may have read TQ£TI "I thought," "I intended," for TO^ ; or, pei'haps, taking shdbhtl as " again," they paraphrased the expression by two words of cognate meaning. — intH" J"lX (yer. 16) eth here means "with." — V'ish eth-ra(dth re'ehu see note on vii. 10. — Ci etlv-col-elleh asher sanethl see note on vii. 7, and add as an example of this con- struction (Hag. ii. 5) Qn^Sk Q3nX¥!l MJ1K TTD IBM ITTJTm LXX. simply Sio'n raura TrdvTa i/xLO-rjaa. yy\n E15f " the fast of the fourth [month]." LXX., after the analogy of ^£71 DV (Gen. i. 31) vrjo-Tcta. rj irlinrrti, and so also with the others. After eis xaP°-v ^s inserted kol evcf>po- (Tvvrjv, and after kol els copras dyaOds is inserted kcu (.xx^pav- OijcreaOe. — The ) of v'ha'ineth, like the Arab, fa, denotes u therefore," comp. (Ezek. xviii. 32) "For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth... Jpj-fl EPB'ffl therefore repent ye and live." (The ) of : i" • t ; v'amarld (i. 3) might be so taken, as indeed it is by the E.V.) In such a case the ) is usually prefixed to the verb ; but here the objects ha/meth v'hashshdloni are put first for the sake of emphasis. 1£>X 1$ (comp. ver. 4) stands for ^tf ftft *iy, as in ver. 23 n\T is understood before *)&$. In both cases "Il^X is Verse 20. ' * ** " C anULxx'3 e(lu^va^ent to ^ "that," comp. (Eccles. v. 4) ^X ^Ift. — After Xaol LXX. insert iroAAol from ver. 22. For the expression dchath el-dchath "one to another" comp. Ex. cE£& xxxvi. 10, 12, 13.— nJ?J and H^K (with final ft) arc and lxx. certainly "energetics," or " voluntatives" here (see p. 6). — The absol. InGn. hdloc, though put after the verb is used for the sake of ZECITARIAn VIII. 22, 23. 77 Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek the Lord of hosts : I will go also. 22 Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord. 23 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come to p>ass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you : for we have heard that God is with you. emphasis, comp. n^H ""[Sri (2 Sam. iii. 24), Jflfcgf ^fcP "listen attentively" (Jobxiii. 17). — Lechall6th see vii. 2. — The other city answers "I also will go." On this usage of the 1st pers. sing, see note on vii. 3. Gam-am see note on vii. 5. — LXX. kcu aweXeva-ovrat KaroiKoiWes 7revT€ TroAas els [iiav ttoXiv, borrowing the word " five" possibly from Is. xix. 18 "In that day there shall he Jive cities..., one shall be called..." — D^XV LXX. TroWd, and so in Gen. xviii. 18 'dgwn ttoXv, but the word means " numerous," " strong," not " many." We find firm 0^2 (Gen. vi. 4, &c), and also nSHH D*D*H as here (comp. Joel iii. 2, iv. 2), see also H^hS (Zech. v. 9).— Verse 23- On the construction of *lfc^fc$ see note on ver. 20 ; LXX. idv, taking asher as equivalent to ci "if" (ver. 6), and ) as introducing the apodosis. Gn ^p,|TnnV--,!p,,TrT see n°te on vi. 10. — The number ten is used for an indefinitely large number (e.g. Gen. xxxi. 7). In the passage (Is. iv.. 1), which our Prophet seems to have had in mind, the number seven is used in this sense. — The expression I'shonoth haggoyim " languages of the nations" is formed after ni^/ill d^H " the nations and the lan- guages" (Is. lxvi. 18), comp. Dan. iii. 29, vii. 14, &c. — Cdndph (constr. c'ndph) is the name of the corner of the long flowing garment then worn by the Jews. To each of these Q^J3 V^n^ the jyg^ was attached (Numb. xv. 38) : this was the distinctive visible sign of an J*7VT D*'X- Ci "that" is omitted after shamd'nu probably because ci "for" imme- diately precedes it ; on the other hand we have (2 Kings xix. 8, Is. xxxvii. 8) GJ>Wb V^ ^ V®y *3 " For he had heard that he wa3 departed from Lachish." This mission took place B.C. 518, in the second year after the resumption of the work of rebuilding the Temple (Hag. i. 15), and about two years before its completion (Ezr. vi. 15).—" Two hundred and twenty-three ^K^ris!'"' men of Bethel and Ai " had returned "to Jerusalem and Judah, every one to his own city " (Ezr. ii. 1, 28). The four fasts referred to in viii. 19 are of (17th) Tammuz when a breach was made in the walls of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar in 78 Z EC IT ART A II IX. 1. the eleventh year of Zedekiah (Jer. Hi. 5 — 7) : (9th) Abh, when the Temple was destroyed by Nebuzar-adan in the 19th year of Nebuchadnezzar (Jer. lii. 12, 13, 2 Kings xxv. 8 — 10): (3rd) Tishri when Gedaliah was assassinated (2 Kings xxv. 25, Jer. xli. 2 — 6) B.C. 587 : 10th Tebheth, when Nebuchadnezzar began to lay siege to Jerusalem (2 Kings xxv. 1, Jer. xxxix.) in the ninth year of Zedekiah. (The number of the day of the month is placed in brackets, where from the Biblical account there is some doubt as to the exact day. ) — The people of Bethel seem to have been the representatives of all the people, at all events the reply is given to the whole nation (vii. 5). Though the mission came in the ninth month, no question was asked about the fast of the tenth month, but only about that of the fifth month. The reason of this appears to be, that the fast in Abh being in mourning for the destruc- tion of the Temple, it was natural that, now the rebuilding of it had progressed so far, they should inquire whether that particular fast should be kept. The Prophet in his first reply mentions also the fast of the seventh month, which was kept in memory of the assassination of Zedekiah, which took place soon after the destruc- tion of the Temple. The 70 years to which he refers are those between the 7th month b.c. 587 and the 9th month b.c. 518. He does not, even in viii. 19, give a definite answer to their question, but warns them against the sins which brought about the deportation of the nation, and promises that their land shall once more be fruitful and prosperous, and their fasts be turned into feasts, if only they will "love Truth and Peace." — Chap. viii. closes (ver. 20 — 23) with the promise of a glorious future for Israel, in many nations uniting themselves to them to serve the One Only God ; comp. Mic. iv. 2, Is. ii. 2, 3, xlv. 1-1, and Zech. ii. 10—12, xiv. 16— 19. Ver. 23 must not be taken as a direct prophecy of the coming of our Lord, for the expression "a man a Jew" is used in the singular merely for the sake of con- trast with the "ten men from all languages of the nations," and in reality denotes not an individual Jew, but the whole Jewish nation (see Is. xlv. 14). At the same time the adoption of Christianity (the true development of Judaism) by the Gen- tiles was a distinct fulfilment of this prophecy. CHAPTER IX. THE burden of the word of the | thereof: when the eyes of man, as Lord in the land of Hadrach, | of all the tribes of Israel, shall be and Damascus shall be the rest ! toward the Loud. fc^ft> which first of all means "a burden," comes afterwards to be T _ Verse l very commonly used of "an oracle" or "prophecy " (comp. especially Jer. xxiii. 33 — 40), and that, generally, of a threatening character. The Root is fr^bO '' to take; up "; as a man takes up a burden, so a prophet is said in Hebrew to " take up" his speech, compare (Numb, xxiii. 18) VX^ft £<&,!,1 "and he took up his parable." T : t • - It is only in the post-exilian prophets (Zech. ix. 1, xii. 1, and Mai. i. 1) Z EC II ARIA II IX. 2. 2 And Haraath also shall border l thereby ; Tyrus, and Zidon, though ] it be veiy wise. that fc^ft is followed by *l!2"7- Li Arabic the conjugation, correspond- ing to the Hebrew Hiphil, of the verb itasha-a means "to lift np," (Hebr. fc$£^J) and from it is derived a substantive inshd, which means "composing," ''reciting," or "composition." — 'JH'in (some MSS. read *!H*7Pl) is the town and district Ila-ta-ri-ka, near Damascus and Hamath, which is mentioned in several Assyrian inscriptions (Schrader). — In inn^ the u is long, and merely written defectively (see note on i. 13) ; the metheg is placed in accordance with Excurs. n. A. 1. The word denotes "its (i.e. of the oracle of the Lord) resting-place or goal." — ■ ED"T5$ denotes "mankind"; there is no need (with J. D. Michaelis) to read £HX "Syria," in which case Q1X p^ would mean "the whole face of Syria"; comp. Ex. xx. 15, Numb. xxii. 5, 11. (Baer has accidently pW). The 2 0I" ffereg denotes "against," as (Is. xxi. 13) Ultf^ Wyfc "the prophecy against Arabia " ; but usually massd is put in con- struction with the noun following, e.g. 7^ Wfc (Is. Constructions- xiii. 1). — D*1J^ pV ^7" *0 seems simply to mean "for to the Lord shall the eye of men be directed," comp. (Ps. cxxiii. 2) "As the eyes of servants are unto the hand of their masters... so are our eyes unto the Lord (*"* 7^)"; only there it is in expectation and here in amaze- ment, &c. It is true that " eye " is here in the singular ; but that is an unimportant difference, comp. (Ps. xxxiii. 18) Vfc$T/X *"* PV with lxxxiv. 1G) ^pHX'^K *"* tt*y.— hi) stands for 7^ W). Massd LXX. \rjnixa., comp. 4 Kings ix. 25. Aq. appa. LXX. usually opao-is (Is. xiii. 1), opapa (xxi. 1), or prjjxa (xiv. 28). Chadrdc LXX. ^aSpa^. AapacrKou the locative " in Damascus." For me nuchatho Ovaia, reading (since the u is written defective) inPl^D- — Stort K. e'cpopa dvOpwnovs k.t.X. taking Q*7J$ as the t : • obj. gen. "To the Lord is an eye on man, &c"; so too Koehler, comp. Jer. xxxii. 19. Observe that HI" AUlfi (as also &M"*"0¥rf| in the next verse) has ga'yd (Excurs. II. B. 7). — ^ is a particle which is capable _ „ of various significations (see Dictionaries) : here it seems Words. best to take it in the sense of "although," as (Ex. xiii. 17) X1H ^ 80 Z EC II ART All IX. 3—5. 3 And Tyrus did build herself a strong hold, and heaped up silver as the dust, and fine gold as the mire of the streets. 4 Behold, the Lord will cast her out, and he will smite her power in the sea: and she shall be de- voured with fire. 5 Ashkelon shall see it, and fear; Gaza also shall see it, and be very sorrowful, and Ekron; for her ex- pectation shall be ashamed ; and the king shall perish from Gaza, and Ashkelon shall not be inhabited. y]"]1^ "although it was the nearest." — nftiFl is the 3rd pers. fern. Perf. I VT ; |T (see Excurs. II. A. 4). With this passage comp. Ezek. xxviii. 12sqq. This verse is somewhat elliptical, the style of this passage being highly poetical. The meaning is that " also against Hamath Tyre and Sidon is the prophecy " ; or that " also Hamath Tyre and Sidon shall be its resting-place." Before tlgbol-bdh the relative must be understood, thus : " Hamath which borders thereon (viz. on Damascus)," as (Gen. xxxix. 4) hwbl = b'tiP X'fcT^O (of the next verse). — Chac'mah LXX. plur. e, and would properly mean "he has made to dry up," as in Josh. ii. 10, or "is dried up," as in x. 11, Joel i. 10. And in this latter sense it may be here used "her hope is dried up." But it is better to suppose the root to be used in the sense of £J^3 " to be put to shame," " be disappointed " (Joel L 11, &c), since such interchange of roots with one weak letter is one of the commonest phenomena of the Hebr. language (and indeed of Semitic languages generally, even as early as Assyrian), see pp. 30, 46. Z EC II ARIA II IX. G—8. 81 6 And a bastard shall dwell in Ashdod, and I will cut off the pride of the Philistines. 7 And I will take away his blood out of his mouth, and his abomi- nations from between his teeth : but he that remaineth, even he, shall be for our God, and he shall be as a governor in Judah, and Ekron as a Jebusite. 8 And I will encamp about mine house because of the army, because ' — Pl£D3£ "her hope (or expectation)," comp. Dft^D (Is. xx. 5), Root T T V T T — L3^J- The pathach of the first syllable is here lightened into segol, as we find fi^y (not MY), 1JVSK (not ^JV^N) Abiathar. Comp. notes on vi. 1, x. 9. — ^t^n is? "shall not be inhabited" (comp. vii. 7); or "shall not endure" (comp. Gen. xlix. 24). Mebbattih wrongly TrapairTOifxaTL aui-17? "her transgression"; perhaps they took hibblt in the sense of 7rapopa see on Q^nJ (i. 13). — Vi£^ is the dual, from W, W2&.— 18&y\ is the perfect (with ) consecutive), the participle would be "Itf^O. — &?X3 "as a leader," this is the only place in which &1/X is written defectively in the singular, the u is, of course, long (see on EJO i- 3). On the tone of v'chaulthl seep. 5. — *JYj? means "for the pi-otection of my house," comp. (Ps. cxxiv. 1) )fr HM^ *"* ^h "if it had not been the Lord, who was on our side." — H^ft T T • " on account of an army," on this use of fft see on ii. 8. fO¥ stands z. G A'erse 7. Words. Verse 8. Words. 82 ZECH Am All IX. 8. of him that passeth by, and be- cause of him that returneth : anil no oppressor shall pass through them any more : for now have I seen with mine eyes. for fc{^¥ (which is in fact the reading of some MSS.), as j"]DJ (Ps. iv. 7) T T t . stands for N^O- Some would point the word ,""D¥/b " as a garrison," t : T T - in accordance with 1 Sam. xix. 12, which is, however, the only passage in which the word occurs in the fern, form, elsewhere it is always 3¥ft. T - — The £ of the next two words means also "on account of." — For the expression %&) 12V compare note on vii. 11. For n^\\!3 LXX. has dvdarr)[xa, reading, probably, H^¥ft "a column."- — tou /at} . . . /r>?Se, giving to fo the privative sense it LXX. has in vii. 14. Possibly they read the words ^^ft!) *Q^\t3- (Cod. Alex, avacrrc/xa, comp. dvdOrjixa and dvdOepxi, owt^/ao, and (TV(XT€fXa, &c.) It is impossible to discuss all the theories which have been propounded with • regard to the time of the composition of different parts of Zech. ix. — xiv. We will content ourselves with mentioning here the chief arguments, which have been adduced to prove the pre-exilian authorship of ix. 1 — 8. (1) It has been argued, that Zech. ix. 1 — 8 is so like to Amos i. — ii. 6 (delivered in the early part of Uzziah's reign, i.e. a few years after b.c 810), that it seems impossible that two prophecies so similar should have been uttered at periods so wide apart. Now, the only similarity between these two passages is, that in both Damas- cus, Tyre, Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, andEkron are threatened. The dissimilarity, however, is much greater, (a) In Amos we find the Ammonites, Edomites, and Moabites also mentioned, but not so in Zechariah. And this is most natural, for, while in the time of Uzziah these were still powerful nations, on the return from the captivity they were so weak, that when in the time of Nehemiah " Sanballat and Tobiah, and the Arabians and the Ammonites and the Ashdodites " all conspired to hinder the Jews from rebuilding the Wall of Jerusalem, it was found sufficient to repel them that half of the returned exiles should stand to arms, while the other half went on with the work of building. (/3) Amos expressly states that Aram-Damascus should be carried away to Kir, while there is no such intimation in Zech. ix. (7) Amos speaks of Judah and Israel as separate kingdoms, to be subjected to the same judgments as the other nations, while in Zech. Israel is but one nation (comp. ver. 13 and Remarks there), and is assured of God's protection. (5) The style of the two passages is not similar. That of Amos i. — ii. 6 is of a marked character, but we find no echo of that stylo in Zech. ix. 1 — 8. (e) It has been urged that tits oracle speaks of several cities and kingdoms as independent, which had lost their in- dependence, before the period of the return from exile. Tims Damascus lost its independence when Tiglath-Pileser overthrew Syria in the beginning of the reign of Aha/, and Bamath was subdued to the Assyrians in the time of Hezekiah. (The ZECIIARIAII IX. 83 reference to Tyre and Sidon is admitted by the objectors to afford no clear indi- cation of the early date of the prophecy.) We may reply simply, that Jeremiah prophesied against Damascus and Hamath even after Nebuchadnezzar had over- run their territories (Jer. xlix. 23 — 37), and Jeremiah (xxv. 20) and Ezekiel (xxv. 15 — 17) denounced judgments on the Philistines, so that it is not strange that a post-exilian prophet should speak in general terms of the disasters, which would overtake these nations, when the Medo-Persian empire should be overthrown by the Greeks. — (2) The prophecy has been supposed to allude to the immunity experienced by Jerusalem during the irruption of Ilezin king of Syria and Pekah king of Israel into the territories of Jndah (2 Kings xvi. 5), as well as during the ivars toith the Philistines tohich occurred during that period (2 Chron. xxviii. 18), and it is further argued that ch. xi. 14 slioios that the struggle between Judah and Israel is looked on as already begun, at this time when the Prophet threatens Damascus (ix. 1). The denunciations against Tyre are to be viewed as naturally arising out of the sale of the Israelite captives at that period by Phoenician merchants (Joel hi. 4 — 6). But (a) if this were the case it would be most difficult to account for the omission of any notice of the far more important enemies of Judah at that period, viz. Amnion (2 Chron. xxvi. 8, xxvii. 5), Edom and Moab (Amos i. 11 — 15, ii. 1 — 3), and Arabia (2 Chron. xxvi. 7). (/3) The dissolution of the brotherhood between Israel and Judah is in xi. 14 (see Remarks) distinctly spoken of as in the future. If, then, that passage refers to the revolt under Jeroboam, it must have been written at a time prior even to 975 b.c, when Damascus was still included in the kingdom of Solomon, and such threats against Syria would have been meaningless. — But the strongest argument against such theories is, that to no period of history does this prophecy (ix. 1 — 8) apply so exactly, as to the conquests of Alexander the Great in 333 B.C. The chief points of the prophecy are, judgments on Syria and Philistia, and the burning of Tyre ; the removal of the king from Gaza, the desolation of Ashkelon, the introduction of a mixed race into Ashdod, and the eventual fusion of the Philistines with the Jews ; the protection of Israel amid their confusion. Now, when Alexander had completely shattered the might of Persia, in the battle of Issus, he marched into Syria. He sent a strong detachment under Parmenio to operate against Damascus, and him- self with the main body marched against Tyre. And this mighty stronghold, which had stood a five years' siege from the Assyrians, and a thirteen years' siege from the Chakbeans, was taken by Alexander in seven months, and then (as Q. Curtius says) " having slain all save those who fled to the temples, he ordered the houses to be set on fire." No special mention, it is true, is made of Ashkelon and Ekron in the ac- counts of the march of Alexander, but Gaza fell after a siege of five months, and Hegesias (a contemporary of Alexander) especially mentions that " the king of Gaza was brought alive to Alexander. The breaking up of petty nationalities and the fusion of races was part of the policy of Alexander." But no mention is made of any great conversion of the Philistines to the Jewish religion at this period. While, as late as 1 Mace. x. 83, we hear of a temple of Dagon at Ashdod being destroyed by Jonathan, after that time the Philistines disappear as a separate people, and the name of their country " Palestine " became used as the designation of the whole land. It seems best, therefore, to adopt the view of Koehler, that "the prophecy does not merely delineate the events connected with the triumphal progress of Alexander, but predicts the general events which followed the Greek con- quest of Palestine, inclusive of the various wars which occurred in the latter days of G— 2 84 ZECIIARIAII IX. 9. 9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of* j salvation; lowly, and riding upon Zion; shout, O daughter of Jeru- an ass, and upon a colt the foal of salem: behold, thy King cometh an ass. unto thee: he is just, and having | the Grecian supremacy " (comp. Eemarks on ver. 9 — 17). The word Y'bhusi seems to be parallel with alluph, and not contrasted with it : therefore, one would suppose it to mean either " Jebusite," in reference to the fact that "they dwelt with the children of Judah in Jerusalem" (Josh. xv. 63) ; or "Jerusalem itself," in which sense the word is also used (Josh, xviii. 63) ; and not as equivalent to " Gibeonites" or " Nethinim " who held a servile position (Josh, ix., Neh. x. 28, 29, Ezr. viii. 20, &c). The promise of protection to Israel given in ver. 8 was signally fulfilled, when Alexander, according to the well-known story (see my Memorlook of Niirnberg,]). 20), spared Jerusalem, and granted the Jews special favours. The meaning of the words " no oppressor (task-master) shall pass through (or over) them any more " is, that the nation would not be again reduced to the position of slaves, as they were by the Babylonians and Persians. And such was the case, for God's protecting care was over them, in fulfilment of the assurance "now have I seen with mine eyes": so that neither did Alexander, nor any of the Seleucian dynasty, ever succeed in enslaving them. ^aJI (the 2nd pers. fem. of imperative Qal of 7^ J)) would according Verse 9. to ru^e De accentuated on the first syllable. But there are many exceptions to the rule (caused perhaps by considera- tions of euphony), thus Is. li. 9 we have ^W **)W lur4 'url, and so too in the first sentences of Judg. v. 12 'ilri 'fni, and Is. xxi. 2 ^))i guri; while in the second sentence of Judg. v. 12 the accentuation is regular hirl lt1n, as also in shtibhu (ver. 12). — yHH is "to cry aloud," *y*Vl "to do harm." — V£HJ, the Niph. partic. of V£?\ can only mean "saved." — Ti^n is a " he-ass," pHX a " she-ass." The ) of 7y) does not mean " and " as though he were to come riding on two animals; but "even," "namely," "yea," as Ex. xxv. 9 )&yft pi "even so shall ye do."— niJDX'p means lit. "son of she-asses," i.e. such a foal as she-asses in general are in the habit of bearing, comp. JlV""^ TiD3 "cub of lions" (Judg. xiv. 5). Kr/f>v(Tft (bosh-Vctm) MfifcJ>3 JinD " instead of your shame, double." KaOijaeade, reading shubhu (from ^\\9), as &'hcbhti (from ^2£^). — Instead of " hope " LXX. has t^s crwaywyrys, reading rtlpb miqveh or miqvdh "a gathering together" (1 Kings x. 28, &c, Is. xxii. 11), instead of rflpJ"l- — Instead of maggid we have (by interchange of * and ), and of 1 and *]) magur 7rapoiK-ecrias. l"H*7 is the ordinary verb used of " bending " a bow. But the ex- pression C1SX ^)1X yb lfi very difficult. In the connection Verse 13. ~: '*' " t one naturally thinks of the phrase fit^pi IT &\7b (2 Kings ix. 24) "he filled his hand with a bow," i.e. he took a bow in his hand; but the phrases are nob parallel. In the absence of any parallel we must be guided by the sense, and take the verb frs/b as denoting "filling" the bow with an arrow (as we speak of loading a gun), i. e. setting an arrow on the string (for which the proper expression is ^JV 7^ T*n pi3 Ps. xi. 2), and render the verse : " For I will bend me Judah as a bow, and set Ephraim in it [as an arrow]." The verbs here (as also shilldchtl in ver. 11) are in the Prophetic Perfect. For sdmti " I have placed, i.e. rendered, made," reading mtishti (in transposed order) we have ipi]Xa(}>7]a-w, corup. Gen. xxvii. 12 *0£^b* yr invahshhii if/r)\ayu^ since i£ ) (i^ Ezek. xxviii. 7) "beauty" is never attributed to God, it is better to take the suffix of tilbhu and yophyf) as referring to "His people." ^)£3 denotes here "goodliness." Hft is here an exclamation of admiration, as (Gen. xxviii. 17) NTHrnfi "how terrible!", (Numb. xxiv. 5) *Qb~nft *"|vnfc$ "how goodly are thy tents"; on the dagesh after r*7ft see Excurs. in.— DHin3 is tllG Plur- of ^pfi "a youth"; while QHVlSl is |- t • : the plur. of "fillS "chosen" (and also means the "age of youth" like DVSpT "old age," Dnijtf "childhood," D*fi6g "youth," Arc). The change of the first qamac into pathach is remarkable, the nearest parallel that we can adduce is J"|X "brother" plur. DTlX (comp. also T • _ Jobxxxi. 24 Tlft^D (Baer, not VMft); H£)* Ps. cix. 13): observe ZECHARIAII IX. 89 that iu all the cases, it is before )"| that the shortening takes place. — ^2)y (oiuy here is the Polel) " shall make to grow (or increase)," comp. 2)¥ ^J ?TI "wealth, if it increase" (Ps. lxii. 11, comp. xcii. 15). HD is taken in the indefinite sense "whatever" (comp. 2 Sam. xviii. 22, and p. 46), and so the translation runs ort ei ti dyaOov ' , ' LXX. avrov kolI €i tl kolXov olvtov. Y'nobhebh is rendered cucuSia^w. This passage is now generally admitted to be Messianic. It falls naturally into two sections. The coming of the King (ver. 9, 10) ; and the return of the exiles, their glorious victories over the Greeks, and their ^"^{j' consequent peace and prosperity (ver. 11 — 17). Zion is now called on to rejoice in the approaching advent of her long-promised King. And what are His characteristics ? He is Righteous (comp. Is. xxxii. 1, liii. 11, Jer. xxiii. 5, 6, &c), but He is also <: afflicted" (comp. Is. lii. 14 — liii. 11, Ps. ex. 7), and yet "saved" (see Is. liii. 12, and comp. Ps. ex. 7 with Phil. ii. 7 — 9, comp. also Acts ii. 23, 24, Eph. i. 19 — 23, Rom. i. 4). He comes with no military pomp, with neither chariots nor horses, but unostentatiously riding upon a colt of an ass ; for, this avoidance of vain display is a mark of the " Servant of YHVH," who "shall not cry, nor lift up nor cause his voice to be heard in the .streets " (Is. xlii. 2, comp. Matt. xii. 15 — 21). At that time the chariot shall be cut off from Ephrairn and the horse from Jerusalem (comp. Mich. v. 9, rather than iv. 3 and Is. ii. 4), which seems to imply that the military power of the nation should have ceased, for He is to be a Prince of Peace, speaking peace to the nations, and establishing His spiritual kingdom (in description of which the old terms used of the territory promised to Israel, Ex. xxiii. 31, comp. Ps. lxxii. 8, Ecclus. xliv. 21 are applied) even to the ends of the earth. The prophecy was, doubtless, fulfilled by our Lord, when He rode into Jerusalem on (the day now called) Palm-Sunday. But He fulfilled it more in spirit than to the letter. That He did not fulfil it literally is sufficiently shown by the fact, that the King is here described as already " saved and afflicted," whereas, in the case of our Lord, His entry into Jerusalem took place before His Passion and before He was " saved" by being " raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father" (Rom. vi. 4). But in spirit He most truly fulfilled it, generally by His whole life of humility, and in particular on that day by illustrating, both to friends and foes, by His symbolical act of riding into Jerusalem on an ass, that His kingdom is not of this world. But this prophecy was not to be immediately fulfilled. The nation had yet severe sufferings to endure and triumphs to achieve, viz. in those struggles with the " sons of Greece," which render the Maccabean 2)eriod (b.c. 167 — 130) one of the most noble pages in Jewish history. Those, who still remained in the land of their exile, are exhorted to come forth (comp. ii. 7 — 13), confident in the help of the Lord of Hosts, who would wield the reunited Judah and Ephrairn (comp. Is. xi. 13) as His weapons of war (comp. Jer. Ii. 20) : He Himself will appear as their champion, with the rolling of the thunder as His war-trumpet, the forked lightning as His arrows, "the wild storm blowing from the southern desert, the resistless fury of His might." And then, when they had fought the good fight, and not before, God promises " the flock His people" the blessings of peace (ver. 16, 17). 90 ZECHARIA1I X. 1. [It has been urged as an objection against the post-exilic authorship of this passage that "Ephraim" and "Jerusalem" are mentioned, as though Israel were still separated from Judah. But, on the contrary, Ephraim and Jerusalem are here strictly parallel terms, as are also "Judah" and "Ephraim" (ver. 13), where both are represented as equally opposed to the sons of Javan. The nation was now one (Ezek. xxvii. 22) and known by the names of "Israel" (xii. 1, Mai. i. 1, 5), " all tbe tribes of Israel" (ix. 1), also the "house of Judah" (x. 3, 6), "house of Joseph" and "E2)hrairn" (x. 6, 7), besides by those terms mentioned on p. 21. For, now that the "dead bones of the whole house of Israel" were revived (Ezek. xxvii. 11), and "my servant David" was about to be "King over them" (ver. 2-1), the prophecy of Ezekiel (ver. 16 — 22) was fulfilled, and the staves (tribes, shibh'te) of Joseph and of Judah had become one in God's hand. Hence the interchangeable terms.] CHAPTER X. A SK ye of the Lord rain in _X~\_ the time of the latter rain ; eo the Lord shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain, to every one grass in the field. !)7X^, pathach (not chiriq) is the proper vowel for the first syllable to the 2nd fern, sing., 2nd masc. plur. of the Imperative "Verse 1 of verbs medial guttural, as IVlS, Ip^T, IJDgb, 1VJT1, )1V$ '> but ^n^> because of the initial X, comp. ^H^- — QTTP! nieans <: |- v:|v v:|v "lightnings" (Job xxviii. 27, xxxviii. 25) which pi'ecede the rain. — In icm€tar-geshem, Geshem the consequent, as is usual -with two nouns in construction, qualifies the antecedent. Thus mctar-geshem denotes "a pouring rain," so |Vi1 tD^tD (Ps. xl. 3) means "the clayey mud"; in Job xxxvii. G we have *]£& D£*0, and then fay ftYpQ D^J- — Instead of QH? one would have expected C3/ " to you " ; but a sudden change of person is most common in Hebrew, e.g. in Mai. ii. 15. — J^X? means "for each one," i.e. "for every one" (comp. Gen. xlii. 45 and Zech. vii. 10, viii. 4, 17). ]?'eth is taken as the absolute, Kadi* wpav : and 7rpon/xov koX is intro- duced before mcdqdsh "latter rain," borrowing, probably, from Deut. xi. 14, Jer. v. 24. — Ch"~i:Jui is rendered $av- i.xx. raatas. ZEGIIARIAII X. 2. 91 2 For tlie idols have spoken vanity, and the diviners have seen a lie, and have told false dreams ; they comfort in vain : therefore they went their way as a flock, they were troubled, because there teas no shepherd. ^Ip^ )in, the 3rd plur. perl Ifi"! being from niPl (see note on ix. 15) ought to have been accentuated on the last syllable, but it Vorse 2 has been drawn back because the next word is accentuated with a great disjunctive accent of the first syllable. Observe in this verse the interchange of the Perfect and Imperf., merely for the sake of variety of sound. — p^rD'1 the Piel imperf. 3rd pers. plur. The ordinary i form is ^H^ , iir pause !)£)1^ '> hut, since here the verb ends in J and the last syllable thus becomes closed, and having a long vowel must needs take the accent (Excurs. i. 8), we get ftft)"]^ with metheg under the J in accordance with Excurs. II. A. 1. The form ending in tin is shown by a comparison with the kindred languages to be older than the shortened form in u. Hence it is incorrect to call this an additional nun (ppdi: ]"u). — T\ty nx the Qab Niph'al, Pu'al and Hithpa'el is used in the sense of "to be afflicted." Teraphim is variously rendered by LXX., here ot a7ro<£#eyyo/xevoi, in Gen. xxxi. 19, 34, 35 by ci'SaAa. — For naseiu l^r]pav6riaav ; but ed. Gorrvpl. reads l^rfiria-av, which would represent the Hebr. well enough. For "shepherd' (ro'eh) 'laais, reading ropheh (1S*1 " healer." The first two verses of this chapter seem to be closely connected with the last two of the preceding chapter. Iu x. 17 it is promised that corn and wine should make the youth of Israel to flourish. Here the people ^f%. ' are exhorted to pray to the Lord to send the latter rain. It is pro- bable, since the prophet mentions only the latter rain, that he was prophesying between the times of the former rains (Marcheshvan and Cislev), and the latter rains (Nisan). (For the months see p. 10.) Against the post-exilic origin of this passage, and of xiii. 2, it has been objected that, the mention of idols and false prophets harmonizes only with a time prior to the captivity. It is perfectly true that after the captivity idolatry was not, as it had been before, the crying sin of the nation. Still, even if the Prophet be not here reverting to sins of the past which had caused the exile, a reference to Ezr. ix. 1, 2, Neh. vi. 10 — 14, xiii. 23, 24, Mai. iii. 5, 2 Mace. xii. 40, Acts v. 36, 37, xiii. 6, Josephus, Bell. Jud. vi. 5, § 2, 3, will clearly show how suitable warnings against idolatry and witchcraft might be, even after the return from captivity. With this passage comp. Jer. xiv. 22. — "Because they had no shepherd " might mean "for want of a good monarch" (comp. Ezek. xxiv. 5, 8) ; LXX. 92 Z ECU Alii All X. 3—3. 3 Mine anger was kindled against the shepherds, and I punished the goats : for the Lord of hosts hath visited his flock the house of Judah, and hath made them as his goodly horse in the battle. 4 Out of him came forth the corner, out of him the nail, out of him the battle bow, out of him every oppressor together. 5 And they shall be as mighty men, which tread down their ene- but it cannot mean "because tbey had no native king"; for they did not go into captivity because they had no king, but on the contrary, they lost their king be- cause they went into captivity. We think, therefore, that the paraphrase of the LXX. " because they had no healer," ije. because the True Shepherd of Israel had ceased to guide and protect them, might possibly be defended. Observe the change of tense from chdr&h to ephqSd, which is simply, as we hold, for the sake of variety (comp. uote on ver. 2). Constructions, ^he difference between pdqdd 'dl " he punished," and pdqdd followed by the ace. (as in Ex. iii. 1G), is here very decidedly marked. y^\T\s iy an adverb, " altogether." It occurs also in the simple form i Verse i. "UTS but when it has the suffix it is always ) , or \> . Pos- T T sibly in an earlier stage of the language it was regularly declined. In support of this theory of original declension, wre may remark that such words as "Jj? "alone" are actually declined ^1^7, pof?i t'Tto? ' fal?* Tl^?" Similar]y in Arabic dha means "this" and dhaka "this-there." This latter in old classical Arabic is declined, in speaking to one man, dhaka; to one woman, dhaki; to two j)ersons, dhakumd ; to several men, dhdkum ; to several ivomen, dhdkunna. But as a rule the simple undeclined form dhaka is used. Pinntih "corner" is read as pdn&h "he turned," and rendered eVe- /3A£K3 "as though I had never been"; more usually it means "as" " sicut," or "when" " qvwni" " post- qtiam." Q^n^n"! tfyaTrrjcra. avrovs, comp. dyaTryjcru) ttjv ovk yya-- Trn]fxivqv (Hos. ii. 23 [25]) ; but Hos. i. 6 ovk yXerj/JLevr]. From T]tity and JlPlbD' we may observe that there are two forms of — T " T the Perfect of this verb, ftfofct and )-|ftb> (comp. p. 70). v«-se7. — T — .. T In pause all forms from strong verbs take the accent on the second root-letter, unless a long vowel in a closed syllable at the end of the word draw it away (see on ver. 2). Dj7 7 J* " let their heart rejoice." Comp. the exclamation (Ps. xxii. 27) Hy? E3!3J7 *M* On the form Hpl^^ see p. 6 and note on viii. 21. For this use of the vex-b comp. Is. v. 2G, vii. 18. — )%*) )fc2 *Q*l1 may mean " and they shall multiply as they did multiply [formerly]," see Ex. i. 12. Or, better, it is to be taken as an idiomatic expression 94 Z EC II ARIA II X. 9, 10. them; for I have redeemed them: and they shall increase as they have increased. 9 And I will sow them among the people : and they shall remem- ber me in far countries; and they shall live with their children, and turn again. 10 I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria ; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon ; and place shall not be found for them. "they shall increase as they increase" — i.e. "they shall increase to any extent"; this latter is certainly the meaning of the expression in more modern Hebrew. For the promise comp. Jer\ xxiii. 3, Ezek. xxxvi. 11. Imperfects, which have pathach in the second syllable, change it into verse 9. qamac before a suffix, as V*lTX, QyiTX- — Observe the doubling of the last root-letter in the plur. O^pPTlft " distant places" (see note on i. 15). The sing, of our word is always pH*")^ with e in first syllable; but the plur. has also pathach in Is. xxxiii. 17, Jer. viii. 9 (see notes on vi. 1, ix. 5). — "HX ITll "and shall live with." )2tJ), the \ is pointed with qamac to prevent the concurrence of two accentuated syllables. This takes place here although Item has a disjunctive accent (TijJicha), comp. (Job iv. 16) ♦ W£CJ>tf Slpl iltiti!, while more com- monly a preceding disjunctive prevents the vav from taking qamdg, as .~m) -m \-n (Ex. ix. 2i). LXX. IxOptyovcri Ta tcki'ol oivtw, reading instead of chaya, !)*n chiyyti, the Pi'el. fcs^^"^/ lit. "shall not be found," meaning "there shall not be Verse 10. l'oom enough," comp. Josh. xvii. 10, where, however, "Wl T T is the subject of the verb. Some take the verb here as itnpers., others understand Dlpft- Tl1 Q;ll h N¥ft means "to reach to" (Is. x. 10), then "to suffice" (Numb. xi. 22), comp. iKvlofiai and lkcivos. (See also note on xi. G.) viroXtLLcjiOf} taking yimmdgi somewhat in the sense of ^J^'J* or lxx. inti "be left," or of 1p5] (Numb. xxxi. 49), or T^ (2 Sam. xvii. 22) " be missing," or " Lefi behind." ZECIIARIAII X. 11, 12. 95 11 And lie shall pass through the sea with affliction, and shall smite the waves in the sea, and all the deeps of the river shall dry np : and the pride of Assy- ria shall be brought down, and the sceptre of Egypt shall depart away. 12 And I will strengthen them in the Loud ; and they shall walk up and down in his name, saith the Lord. As far as the form of Q^ is concerned, it might be the construct, T e-S- J*n:).3"D* (Numb, xxxiv. 11), in fact the construct is Vewe 1L more commonly "C than Q\ But the def. art. here prefixed to it precludes this interpretation. We must, consequently, translate /"H^ as in apposition with Q*1 " through the trouble-sea" (comp. p. 44), the pas- sage of the Red Sea being referred to as a symbol of other sufferings and deliverances. — H3n is very usually construed with ^. — QvJ must be T " taken as a second object, or " ace. of limitation."— ^^Hl is intrans. see note on ix. 5. For iv OaXdcro-r] crTevrj to be correct the Hebrew should be I^H C3*3> T - T ~ For hurdd these translators give a^aipe^o-ercu, and so (Ex. Lxx. xxxiii. 5) dfaXeaOe stands for hored. On the metheg of yithhcdlacu see Excurs. n. B. 4. Observe that Hiikpa'eh and Hithpolels take qdmdg in pause, not gere, 11 . Verse 12. e.g. jypnnfi (Prov. xxxi. 30), l^ftm (n.o ga'ya Excurs. IT - : |- at : • ii. B. 4. 3). If the second root- letter be Pl> the preceding vowel becomes segol, as OrOTV (Dent, xxxii. 36). Atv : |- Ka.Ta.Kav)(7](TovTaL for yltlbhalldcu, which they read yithJiallollu, 7 being misread for ^, as in Hos. xiii. 13 5^7 f^ is rendered o vio's a-ov, as though it were XS13, i.e. H20!} f01* ^3- " The shepherds " (ver. 3) are the native rulers and spiritual guides (as in Jer. ii. 8, xvii. 16, xxiii. 1 — 4 ; Ezek. xxxiv. 2, &c.) ; and not foreign rulers and oppressors (as in Jer. vi. 3, 4, xxv. 34 — 38, xlix. 19). " The he- Uxli—12' goats" are to be identified with " the shepherds," or perhaps rather to be regarded as leaders subordinate to them (comp. Ezek. xxxiv.) "Out of him " means probably "from Judah,"i.e. the nation in general, or from Judah as the royal tribe ; the latter supposition is hardly probable, however, since the Macca- beans were not of the tribe of Judah, but of Levi. Thus, apparently, " shepherd " is used here in a different sense to that in which it is used in the preceding verse. Similarly, noges is not used here in the same sense as in ix. 8. It can here mean 9G ZECHARIAH XL 1—3. only a "native ruler," or "one who will oppress" [or subdue] "the heathen." — "Corner-stone" denotes "a chieftain" (1 Sam. xiv. 38, Is. xix. 13, and so too " nail " (Is. xxii. 23). — The whole of this passage is closely connected with ix. 11 — 15, the verses ix. 16, 17, x. 1,2 being only a slight digression. — Vers. 5 — 7 are parallel with ix. 13 — 15. — The expression "as though I had not rejected them" seems clearly to point to a time when the captivity had already taken place. — Ver. 8 — 12 have been looked on as decided evidence in favour of the pre-exilian origin of the passage. But, (1) the reference in ver. 11 to the passage of the Red Sea shows that, if we please, we may regard the other expressions as figurative, viz., that Egypt is mentioned merely as tbe typical oppressor of Israel (Hos. viii. 13, ix. 3), as the Exodus is ever looked on as the typical deliverance (e.g. Is. xi. 16) ; (2) Assyria may be mentioned rather than Babylon or Persia, because thither the ten tribes (Ephraiin) had been carried away ; or Assyria may actually mean Persia, as in post- captivity times the king of Persia is also often called the king of Babylon (e.g. Ezra vi. 22, 2 Kings xxiii. 29: Judith i. 7, ii. 1, Herod, i. 178-188) ; (3) it must not be forgotten that but a small portion of the nation had as yet returned under Zerub- babel, and that viii. 8 (not to mention ii. 10 — 17) is quite as expressive of a restora- tion in the future as this passage, and yet the genuineness of neither ii. 10 — 17 nor of viii. 8 has ever been called in question (see Introduction). CHAPTER XI. OPEN thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour thy cedars. 2 Howl, fir tree ; for the cedar is fallen; because the mighty are spoiled : howl, 0 ye oaks of Baslian ; for the forest of the vintage is come down. 77TI imperative of 77* (see the substantive in next verse). The Verso "2. Words, singular imperative only occurs once again, viz. Jer. xlvii. 2, where it is 7 7 VJ. — On the names of the trees consult the Dictionaries. — ^I^X is here (as in Hos. xiv. 4, &c.) equivalent to *^ "for"; in the latter part of the verse and in verse 3 we actually have ^ (comp. note on viii. 20). — T¥3/"J *W* ((?>') means "forest of the vintage," which does not give good sense. *V|¥3n **1JT (Ce(hib/i), taking bagtir as a pass, partic, Avith the article exceptionally prefixed to the epithet only (see note on iv. 7), would mean "the inaccessible forest.'' Or, we might consider ^2?3 as a substantive (like *n^3), in which T T case the construction would be more regular, and the meaning the same; but the word bdgor does not occur elsewhere. ZECIIARIAH XI. 3, 4. 97 3 There is a voice of the howling of the shepherds; for their glory is spoiled: a voice of the roaring of young lions ; for the pride of Jordan is spoiled. 4 Thus saith the Lord my God; Feed the flock of the slaughter; M77* constr. of H77* (Zeph. i. 10), as np"f¥ from MpTO, the - -. |. T T . . I- : • It t; chiriq is "light." On the metheg and 7 see note on ii. 13 "! Verse 3. (p. 28).— dflTlK, fem. nouns like Jl&TPO, T\tii\ mWf, t : t x ; • v v - — *—t which have one syllable followed by HxT, fl^ or H—j harden the p in taking the suffixes, as i^^H 7^ : anc^ a^so nouns which consist only of two such syllables as the two last mentioned, as J"D£^> i^Dt^ ', nyi, )F\yi_; rta, ifi^ (2 Kings xii. 10)— instead of the 'Q'H T|h^ (Is. xxvi. 20), one would prefer the C'thibh, and read, as here (ver. 1), *Tpn/^- — "The Jordan" is never called the river Jordan, but simply pn77 "the descender" (on account of its physical peculiarities; comp. Stanley, Sinai and Palestine, London, 1875, p. 284). LXX. for Ya'ar hahbdgor gives 6 SpvfAos 6 vTo" (Lev. ix. 12); (2) and also " to cause to come to," " to deliver up" into the hand (*"p^), as here and in 2 Sam. iii. 8. — ViyVTO £^*X "into the hands of one another"; similarly in the fern, we have (ver. 9) ~J~lX HCX /"O^OXn nmyi "IKO "they (fern.) shall eat each other's flesh." (Comp pp. 69, 70.) ZECIIARIAII XL 7. 99 7 And I will feed the flock of j staves; the one I called Beauty, slaughter, even you, O poor of the and the other I called Bands ; and flock. And I took unto me two I I fed the flock. |X¥n ,S3V p7, the Idcen "therefore" cannot refer to the command of ver. 4, since the consequence of that command is already Verse 7- expressed by the ) at the beginning of the sentence (see note on viii. 19). The Lesser Massoreth says that p7 stands for \yj (E.Y., see also p. 55) i.e. "for you O...," viz. for your protection (comp. ix. 3). Or it would be possible to take p7 as for pH? "to establish" as ni"l/b? (Is. iii. 8) for rmtirb, -lixS (Job xxxiii. 30) for 1)Xrb Niph.,' and KpS (Jer. xxxix. 7, 2 Chron. xxxi. 10) for X^l?- If lacin is here to • t : have the sense of "therefore," it can refer only to the preceding clause; the meanings "truly" (Qimchi), or "yea verily" (Ewald) assigned to it are questionable. Now, |5<^n ^\DV might well after the analogy of jX¥H *TJ?X (Jer. xlix. 20, 1. 45) mean, not "the afflicted ones of the flock," but "miserable flock." In this case lacin would i*efer back to the words "flock of the slaughter." Thus, we might understand the clause : " Therefore ()) I fed the flock destined for slaughter, (therefore a most miserable flock)." — But I am in- clined (seeing that cen ianiyye haccun recurs in ver. 11) to suppose that the words have been accidentally introduced here from that later passage ; but before the time of the LXX., see below. On the metheg under ^"Hp^l see Excurs. n. A. 2, and B. 4 Exception. — fil/pft maqloth (for maq-q'loth) is the ordinary plural of 7p/S (see Excurs. iv.) : the qilph (as in many words) loses its dajesh on losing its vowel ; but when it retains the vowel, it does not : as Q^pft (Ex. xii. 11). — Here i m r we have IH^ the constr. form instead of 7HX the absol., comp. (Gen. xlviii. 22) ^HK OSEy, and 2 Sam. xvii. 22; but it may be a rare form of absol. For |N¥H »0J7 p7 ets rrjv Xavaaviriv, reading HOjfJ37 and omit- ting |X¥- In ver. 11 they seem to have read Jfc<¥n \3VJD7- 1 ' • -:- : * LXX., &c. No'am KaAAos; Aq. and Symm. euTrpeVcta. — Glbbbh'lim o-^ot- viafj-a. The verbs are rendered by futures. 7—2 00 ZKCIIARIAH XI. 8 11. 8 Three shepherds also I cut off in one month ; and my soul lothed them, and their soul also abhorred me. 9 Then said T, I will not feed you: that that dieth, let it die; and that that is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let the rest eat every one the flesh of another. 10 And I took my staff, even Beauty, and cut it asunder, that 1 might break my covenant which I had made with all the people. 11 And it was broken in that day : and so the poor of the flock that waited upon me knew that it ivas the word of the Lord. The Loud Himself is the Shepherd of Israel (Is. xl. 11, Ezek. xxxiv. 11 — 16), and the ideal shepherd " my servant David " the Messiah (Ezek. Remarks xxxiy- 23, 24) is His representative. The Prophet is now commanded to personate God in this His office of Shepherd, and to feed (i.e. to pro- tect and take care of His flock) the house of Israel-, whom their foreign rulers (their owners, sellers, and shepherds) were grinding down, " for," saith the Lorb, " I will not pity the inhabitants of the world, but will set mankind one against the other (comp. Ezek. xxvi. 30, 33), and deliver each into the hand of his king, &c," i.e. He would cause the world to be smitten and broken up with wars and civil tumults : this flock, then, which was " in the world," if it were not to be " taken out of the world," would require special protection to "keep it from the evil" (John xvii. 15). Therefore the Prophet takes two staves "Favour" and "Binders" to symbolize God's gracious protection of His people, and the union which would exist between Judah and Ephraim (Ezek. xxxvii. 16 — 22). *7fOXl is only shortened in appearance, the long chlr'tq is merely ■ : -it written defective. — Q^yiH Jlt^.^ HX may mean "the Words, Con- three shepherds." and especially so, since I"lfc$ is prefixed ; structions and l F J > ' '" I LXX or simply "three shepherds," as Q^HH W?C5> (1 Sam. ■ • r xx. 21); or "three of the shepherds," as fl^TH ^ftfl "five of the curtains" (Ex. xxvi. 3). — ^H^ occurs only here, and in the C'thibh of Prov. xx. 21 (in the Pu'al), it seems here to mean '■' to loathe," /TlS in Syr. means "afflicted with nausea." For BhchH&h I. XX. give eVw- jivovTo " roared." Verse 9. rYl/!Dn r\T\Q means moribunda moriatur. LXX. to airoQvrjvKov aicoBvr)O'MT0i. '3— P 1J7T1 "And they knew that it was so [viz.] that, &c" Comp. p yy 'ON "my father knmveth [that it is] so" Verse ( onstructions (1 Sam. xxiii. 17). The rendering "and so (i.e. thus) Z EC II AM All XL 101 they knew," would have required the collocation !)V*V |DV — Mniyyt hagqon see note on ver. 7. On ol Xavamtoi see on ver. 7. Here they do not omit fX¥i~l- Hashshomerim othi, rd cf>v\acrcr6fJLevd /xoi, they seem to have read \fitf t^p^H- m This is one of the passages which by certain commentators have been looked on as conclusive proof of the pre-exilian origin of these chapters. We pro- ceed to give a short resume of the opinions which have been held with Remarks regard to it. " One month " has by (a) Maorer been held to be a literal month ; (/3) Qimchi takes it to mean an indefinitely short period ; (y) Von Hoffmann thinks that each day stands for seven years, 210 years in all ; (5) Wright takes "each day for a year" (Ezek. iv. 6), and so understands a period of 30 years to be signified by " one month." — -The meaning of the expression " the three shepherds " will, of course, depend on the view taken of the meaning of " one month." Thus (1) Cyril considers that kings, priests, and pro- phets are meant, and Pusey " priests, judges and lawyers,'' who having "delivered to the cross the Saviour were all taken away (a) in one month, Nisan, a.d. 33." But the rejection of the good shepherd is spoken of by the Prophet as posterior to the cutting off of the shepherds. (2) Maurer woald interpret the three shepherds of Zechariah (son of Jeroboam II.), his murderer Shallum who reigned but a month, and a third unknown usurper whose downfall speedily took place. But Shallum was certainly murdered by Menahem (2 Kings xv. 10 — 14), and there is no room for a third unknown usurper. (3) Hitzig would avoid the difficulty by rendering " I re- moved the three shepherds which were in one month" (in support of which construc- tion he refers, and rightly, to such passages as Ex. xxxiv. 31, Is. xxiii. 17, Ezek. xxvi. 20), and takes them to be the kings Zechariah, Shallum and Menahem, who in about the space of one month sat upon the throne of Israel. But the difficulty is really so obviated. Shallum reigned actually " a month of days " (2 Kings xv. I'd), and the events referred to occupied much longer. (3) Von Hoffmann interprets them of the three empires, Babylonian, Medo-Persian and Macedonian, which lasted 215 years from the captivity to Babylon to the death of Alexander the Great. But it cannot be shown that "a day" is ever used to represent " seven years"; nor can the death of Alexander be said to have put an end to the Macedonian empire. (1) Qimchi explains them as Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim and Zedekiah: (5), Abarbanel as the three Maccabees, Judas, Jonathan and Simonv but, since the cutting off of the shepherds seems to be looked on by the Prophet as an act of kindness to the flock, which only made their ingratitude the more abominable, it seems better with Wright to understand the 30 years [according to (5) the "one month"] as those between B.C. 172 when Antiochus Epiphanes desecrated the Temple, and B.C. Ill when the three alien shepherds, Antiochus Epiphanes, Antiochus Eupator, and Demetrius I., were cut off, and the last trace of Syrian supremacy was removed by the expulsion of the Syrian garrison from its fortress in Jerusalem. — But the flock were not giate- ful for this protection, therefore the Prophet cuts asunder the staff "favour," to in- dicate that God would annul the covenant He had made with the nations in behalf of His people (Ezek. xxiv. 25— 28). This was fulfilled in the troubles which over- took the nation, when they became corrupted, at the close of the Maccabeaii period. 102 ZEC1IA1UAU XL 12, 13. 12 And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price ; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver. 13 And the Lord said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the Lord. torij plur- Imperative masc. from ^jy. This verb is altogether T anomalous in its conjugation and accentuation. It occurs erse "' only in the Imperative. We have ^H "give thou" (Prov. xxx. 15), and with final f]T frequently, and accentuated mfflel thus HJU i"QH "come (age!) let us build" (Gen. xi. 4), Q*ftfi H3H T T • T T T "give a perfect [lot]" (1 Sam. xiv. 41). The fern, occurs only once (Ruth iii. 15), *2H {mil' el), but the plur. is (as here) milra', !QH D^Jpft (Gen. xlvii. 16). — ^HIl is the proper Pausal form of an I at --■ Imperative which takes pathach under the second root-letter, as ^5n*l (Prov. viii. 33). — After numerals higher than ten, singular nouns are generally used, therefore we have &D3 "pieces of silver," but not always, e.g. fc^p^ whv t|M (Ex. xxi. 32). "IVV must mean "potter" (as in Is. xxix. 16, Ps. ii. 9). When verse 13 followed by an ace. (as Zech. xii. 2) it retains its participial words. meaning of "former of." — *1¥V<1 may mean "the potter" or " a potter" (see note on i. 8). — ^15$ occurs only here, and in Amos ii. 8 : in the latter passage it is equivalent to rmX (xiii. 4, Josh. vii. 21, &c.) "a cloak." Here in accordance with the ordinary meaning of the Root (xi. 2, 3), it seems to signify "glory" "magnificence." — *")p* elsewhere means "costliness," "honour," "magnificence," here it undoubtedly means "price." The verb ^\p*> elsewhere means " to be precious" originally "to be heavy"; here to "be priced" or "apprized." — 0n*7y^> this is the only instance we can cite of the use of 7^/p to signify the agent after a passive; but fft is not uncommon in this sense, e.g. (Ps. xxxvii. 23) !)Hi3- ••*"*£• Ml'dl generally means "from upon" {anglice "from off"), or "from near." For this modification of its meaning, when applied to denote "by" of the agent, compare Latin (lj} ^c. — J-jnpXI. (l11 the termination j"| see p. 6, and on the Bvman ZEGHARIAU XL 14. 103 14 Then I cut asunder mine other staff, even Bands, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel. rapheh, see Excurs. iv. 1 (e) — othu in the singular, referring to the sum of thirty pieces of silver. *lp\*l TT^ might be rendered "magnificence of the price!"; or taking the antecedent as qualifying the consequent, as in . Constructions. QH}$ {OS (Gen. xvi. 12) "a man as untameable as an onager," we may render it "the magnificent pi*ice !" — In either case the expression is ironical. — J"V3 means "into the House of" (without any need of a preposition), as is frequently the case, e.g. (Gen. xii. 15) ajna rv3 nwxn njawi, comP. xim. is, &c. "Cast it to the potter... by them." LXX. has KaOes avrovs cis to X(tiV€VT7)pLOV, KOL (TKixf/OfJiai (.1 &OKL[JLOV e since (1 Kings vii. 15) readings. I I *12?*1 ( = tal^v',,l) is rendered kcu c^wveucre, it is evident that the LXX. had our reading, but that they took yoger to mean, not the workman, but the vessel in which the metal is fused, as we say a " boiler," "wine-cooler," &.C. Kod o-Kct^o/xai el Sokl/xov iartv, reading ^Ip^H X1XV Itt-: •• v : For Hay yoger Symm. also has to xm'evTVPL0V '> Du^ Aq. o' 7rAucm?s ; Syr. " the treasury," for in Aram, an initial y is sometimes read as frs, so that (without any alteration of the consonants) they may have read ogdr *")¥iX. (For an instance of the converse viz. of fr$ read as * see LXX. of xiv. 5.) Three MSS. of Kennicott read ^l^n^X, and five ^IXIVI JTO /5^j both readings being, doubtless, derived from the LXX. Since maqli is defined by the pron. suff. i, sheni, which agrees with it, takes by rule the definite article (see note on v. 6). — versei4. i niritf "brotherhood" is a aVa^ Xeyo/xevov. ^K and HX are not from monosyl. roots, their third radicals become apparent in certain circum- stances. Thus their constr. is OK > Tltf* an(i in Aram, the plur. of ^&$ is |n^X with the third root-letter H (which is always interchangeable with ) and *>) clearly indicated. In the case before us the third root- letter becomes ), and we get ,T)Pltf- The fern. ftiflX "a sister" stands for fiirttf, and in the plur. (with suff.) the third root-letter appears — :|t 104 ZECHARIAH XI. 15, 16. 15 And the Lord said uutu nie, Take unto thee yet the instruments of a foolish shepherd. 1 G For, lo, I will raise up a shep- sonietimes as y, e.g. (Job i. 4) CTrVriX- The same letters furnish another air. Xeyofx. '•niH^ "my declaration" (Job xiii. 17), which is formed from ^-IH by means of a prosthetic &$. — .^V--[3 as in Gen. i. 7, another construction is /...f^ (ibid. ver. G). Ya'egdd' kcu aTrepfjixj/a (as in ver. 10). Hd,dchavrfh rrjv KaTacr-^criv reading nirtSH- Cod. Alex, has hiaOrjK-qv, which appears T__ to be a correction from the Hebrew. The Prophet, still as God's representative, demands his hire of the flock. He receives the miserable sum of 30 pieces of silver (the price of a foreign Kenitrks." slave (Ex- xxi- 32)- Tnis ne is commanded to " cast to the potter." No satisfactory explanation of this phrase can be given. It may be that " to the potter with it " was a proverbial expression for throwing away anything worthless, but it cannot be proved that such was the case. Weight holds that it was thrown to a potter as one of the lowest of the labouring classes. Grotius ex- plains it as indicating that God did not value the 30 pieces more than broken pot- sherds. Hengstenberg, trying to show that this prophecy is a renewal of Jer. xviii. 1, xix. 4, in order to justify S. Matthew's quotation of it as from Jeremiah, main- tains that " to the potter " means to an unclean place, since the potter of Jeremiah, he holds, had his pottery in the valley of ben Hinnom, which had been made an unclean place by Josiah. Kliefoth regards God as the Potter, comp. Jer. xviii. 6 sqq. — The citation in S. Matt, xxvii. 9 is evidently from memory, and a free ]>a,ia- phrase of the original. Though this prophecy may be said to have been fulfilled on every occasion of Israel's ingratitude towards their Protector, it was most signally fulfilled, when the chief priests offered the price of a slave for the betrayal of Him, in whose rejection the ingratitude of the nation culminated. — The breaking of the bond of brotherhood between Judah and Israel is represented as succeeding the rejection of the Good Shepherd. But, as that rejection was not one single act, but the sum of many such acts, so this disseverment of the union between Judah and Israel, while it had its commencement in the confusion which followed the cutting asunder of the staff "Binders" (see above), did not reach its climax until the time of those frightful civil contests, which marked the last winter of Jerusalem before it was taken by Titus (see Joseph. Bel. Jud. v.; Mihnan, Hist. Jews, Bk. xvi.) ; Maurer, Hitzig and Ewald consider the prophecy to refer to the rupture which took place between Israel and Judah, when Pekah (king of Israel) made an alliance withllezin (king of Syria) and invaded Judah. But history gives no indication of any bond of union existing between Israel and Judah at that period. \ ei'M 16. Words. vlX lS a oiir. Acyo'., elsewhere we have VlX "foolish " : comp. ni!3N (Lam. iv. 3) and 'HT^X (Prow v. 0). ZEC1IARIA1I XL 17. 105 herd in the land, which shall not visit those that be cut off, neither shall seek the young one, nor heal that that is broken, nor feed that that standeth still : but he shall eat the flesh of the fat, and tear their claws in pieces. 1 7 Woe to the idol shepherd that leaveth the flock ! the sword shall, be upon his ami, and upon his right eye : his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened. ^IVJiT N&'ar means a "youth," "young man," but is never used of the young of animals. Moreover the mention of the Versei6 "young" of the flock would not be suitable here, since w°rds. there would be no need to " seek them," for they would remain with their dams. Hitzig proposes to read 7VJ (for *)VJJ) Niph. partic. of ^WJ " to shake out, scatter." The only objection to this is, that all the other participles are in the fern., and this would be masc. Perhaps the explanation of Gesenius is the best, viz. that *1^J is an abstract sub- stantive meaning " scattering," and used for the concrete " that which is scattered" (comp. note on vi. 10). — f"D5W the fern, partic. Niph. denotes "standing firmly," comp. *y$% tH^/l 73 /Sfl (^s- xxxix. 6). — Y'calcil, the Pilpel of 7*0, denotes here (as in Gen. xlv. 11) to "provide with sustenance." — Upha^sehen is fern., the sing, being /"[D^liDj elsewhere the plur. is niD73j whence we conclude that the a under the ftj is a " Light vowel " (Excurs. i. 5), and the shevd under ") conse- quently moving. — Y'phdriq "tear off" or "in pieces." Hannd'ar rightly to eo-Kop7no-/xe'i'or. Y'calcel KarevOwr}, somewhat similarly it is rendered Ps. cxi. 6 (Heb. cxii. 5) oiKovo/x^crei, " will guide his words with discretion " (Prayer-Book Ver- sion). LXX. On hoy see note on ii. 11. — ^") must mean "my shepherd," if we take 7vfcJ as an adi. "useless" : because the latter has the versei7. ' ' J , . Words and definite article (see note on ver. 13). But if we take yfy$ constructions. as a substantive " uselessness " (comp. Job xiii. 4, 7 vtf ^£Tl " phy- sicians of uselessness"), it will be the constr., with the old case ending (see p. 11). From the consideration that the expression "my shep- herd " recurs in xiii. 7, we prefer the former interpretation. On the form ^yiy see p. 11. — f^ |*W (1 Sam. xi. 2) means "eye of the right 106 Z EC II AM AH XII. 1, 2. (side)," i.e. "right eye": 'en ifnuno, consequently, means "his right eye." oi Troi/xaiVovTes taking the i of ro'i as equivalent to the plur. termi- nation tm, comp. p. 61, and Obad. ver. 12, where, reading nocri for nocero, they render aAAoi-piW. The "foolish shepherd" seems to denote all the misrulers of Israel from the decline of the glories of the Maccabean period to the time when they Remarks. * J willingly proclaimed "we have no king but Cjesar." According to Ewald's theory, chap. xiii. 7 — 9 is misplaced, and should come after xi. 17. The passage would then run : " Woe to my useless shepherd, that forsakcth the flock! A sword [shall descend] upon his arm, and upon Ms right eye. His arm slut]} utterly wither, and his right eye shall he utterly dimmed. Sword! awake ! against my shepherd, and against a man, my fellow ('tis the utter- ance of YHYH Cebhd'dtlt). Smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall he scattered (8) And it shall be in all the land (9) ... And they shall say : YHVH is my God." If this be the true connection, the " third part," which was to be tried and refined, can only be referred to those Jews who embraced the pure religion of Christ, and to those who, laying aside for ever the idolatry of their ancestors, devoted themselves thenceforth to the study of the Law. CHAPTER XII. THE burden of the word of the Lord for Israel, saith the Lord, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him. 2 Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the Massd d'bhdr Adoudy (see ix. 1). — 7^ "concerning," not here, Verso 1. "against" like the ^ °f *x- L — Shdmdyim is the object Words and : constructions. after tke actjve partic. ndteh, and therefore noteh is in the absol. form (not in the constr. HlOJ)- In such a case we are at liberty to use the definite article before the partic. e.g. Qfoty p*7^ HtD:)n (Is. xl. 22), even if the object take the form of a pron. suff. as ib^Vl (Job xl. 19) " He who made him." — Togir (see notes on xi. 13). Himn'Ii tuinr', is more emphatic than simple OJ/T Sdm the present partic. used as a prophetic tense, parallel with G*L^'J^ (ver. 3), see p. 36. — Sdph "a bowl" (Ex. .\ii. 22) makes in plur. D^D (Jer. Hi. 19), JllSD (1 Kings vii. 50), comp. "T¥ "side," ZECIIARIAII XII. 3. 107 people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. 3 And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden them- selves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it. plur. Q>1¥- With sdph rd'al comp. nSyi^H D13 (Is. li. 17, 22).— Several interpretations of fTTlfT/y have been proposed. On the whole it seems best to refer the expression to the word ra'al in the former clause, and to render the second clause : "And also on Judah [shall fall this reeling] during the siege [which is to take place] against Jerusalem." Others would refer to the opening words of the chapter, and explain " And also concerning Judah [is this burden of the word of the Lord]." The rendering of the E. V. cannot be supported; that of the margin "and also against Judah [shall he be which] shall be in siege against Jerusalem," requires too much to be supplied. The expla- nation of Ewald "And also upon Judah shall it be [incumbent to be occupied] in the siege against Jerusalem," is grammatically correct, as he shows from the expression H^X/D^ EfT/V (1 Chron. ix. 33) "upon them it was incumbent to be occupied in the work." And, if we could understand by it that Judah was to be co-operating with (not against) Jerusalem in the siege (see ver. 5), this translation would have much to recommend it. No infin. 7Y|\ i?> or t2T\yil/i ™ required, any more than an infin. is wanted in the passage cited from Chronicles. The word sdph besides the meaning of "bowl," has that of "thresh- old" (e.g. Judg. xix. 27), hence the rendering of the LXX. //, , p LXX. &c. cos irpoOv/JLa traA.euo/x.eva, and of the Syr. " a gate of fear. In the last half-verse they understand lal as eV, a certain support for which rendering might be found in such expressions as that of vii. 4 (see notes). The ^ of Bammdgor they seem to take as the so-called Beth essentice ; ko! Iv ry 'iovStua corai 7repLo^rj ori lepovaaXijp.. nD/SVft DX, air. Xeyo. either "a burdensome stone," or "a stone for lifting." fTD/W/3 denotes here, "every one that t v : | lifteth it up," comp. Is. xlvi. 3 (where the pass, partic. of 'dmds is parallel with X20)> a^so Gen. x^v- i:^ "eacn lifted tip [his \ T load] on his ass." — t2H& is the verb used for "cutting the flesh," a custom forbidden to the Israelites by Lev. xxi. 5. Sdrot yissaritu, Verse 3. Words and Constructions. 108 Z EC 11 Alii AH XII. 4, 5. 4 In that day, saith the Lord, I smite every horse of the people will smite every horse with aston- with blindness, ishment, and his rider with mad- 5 And the governors of Judah ness : and 1 will open mine eyes shall say in their heart, The in- npon the house of Judah, and will habitants of Jerusalem shall be my observe that the Infin. absol. Qal is often used to emphasize a finite verb in a different voice, e.g. Niph. here and (Ex. xxL 28) 7pD^ 7pD comp. Job vi. 2; Pu'al, Gen. xxxvii. 33; Hoph. (Lev. xx. 9, 10, &c). XlOov Kara7raToi;/xevov...7ra5 6 Ka.Ta.iro.Twv, since there is a great simi- larity between the pronunciation of W and "")'> it seems that the LXX. took the stem DDV as equivalent to DDT — For sdrot yissdret they give ifXTral^uiv ifnrait,€Tai, it is possible that they may have read p"l£J>, which is used of "hissing in mockery," Zeph. ii. ">, (LXX. iii. 1 crvpiei). Timmdkon "astonishment," "terror" occurs only here and once in the constr. (Deut. xxviii. 28) ^7 jVlDrQ^ the verb is Verse 4. I : • : elDD) hence the retention of the H, while from nT*l (with quiescent H/) we have jVTT and contracted "•p"!/'! "thy conception" (Gen. iii. 16). There are two forms of such words in 6n, one disyllabic as jiS^ri) and the other, like those of this verse, trisyllabic, comp. jViST These latter, in construct and with suffix, seem usually to revert to the other (disyllabic) form, thus we have (Is. lvii. 8) "-pil^T zic-ro-nec, (Lam. iii. 02) 03VJH heg-yondm, and constr. ?VTH chez-yon, t : v I ; v jiKTl, dir-on. But from \)2^ we have TTjJIl^y (Gen. iii. 16) 'iq-c'bliunFc (comp. Excurs. II. infin.). H¥DX is a fern, substantive of the form of H/IV. nC03, &c. Li is t : — t r— t : - Constructions, tne ' da>t. comm- comp. I'bhethi (ix. 8). One of Baer's MSS. Versions. '"' ' reads <,9-n^^X Imperative Pi'el, this seems to have been * t : ~ the reading of Aquila who renders Kaplpqoov fxoi. One MS. gives "•^"HikDX ;>"'<1 fern. perf. Qal; but there is no fern, substantive in the t : |t sentence with which it could agree. LXX. rendering evpijo-ofitv cai-Tots 1 Comp.. fo] instance. Pifqe Rabbi EUezer lli.). where for Dv31? we havi the variant C^n. Z EC II ARIA II XII. 6, 7. 10!) strength in the Lord of hosts their God. 6 In that day will I make the governors of Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; and they shall devour all the people round about, on the right hand and on the left: and Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place, even in Jerusalem. 7 The Lord also shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusa- lem do not magnify themselves against Judah. tovs kcxtoik. k.t.X. seems to have understood n^/bi^ as equivalent to N¥fttf > and the singular as used for the plural. Three MSS. do give tf¥!DX- The Targum seems (as frequently) to combine two meanings, viz. that of Rt. X¥D, and of Rt. 1'fotf, and paraphrases " salvation hath been found for the inhabitants of Jerusalem" (reading ^2^V/ for ^Jfc^V v)- Syr. paraphrases " the inhabitants of Jerusalem have been stronger than we." Arab. "We shall find for us," after LXX. On the metheg of *1V23 see Excurs. n. B. 9. — yty} (Jer. ix. 21, Amos ii. 13, Mic. iv. 12) = ^^ "sheaf." The qadmd v ' Verse 6. over the ^ of acelu stands for metheg (Excurs. n. A. 9, N.B.). Since the 5 of fmal is read with the m, the ) is not read, but retained (sometimes) merely because an older form of the word was sam-ol. — y2D adv. "round about" as in Gen. xxiii. 17, such adverbs were originally substantives in the ace. — Tachtehd, lit. "under herself," i.e. "in her place" (comp. note on vi. 12). In translating *")VD D7 SaAov (which is their rendering of *"|!)fr$ in iii. 2), some suppose the LXX. to have taken the Hebr. word LXX as used by metonymy for the wood burnt therein. But the rend, may be due to a confusion of letters. — Tachtiha is rendered Ka.0' kavTTjV. On the metheg under lb thigddl see Excurs. n. A. 1, and for that under beth-David see Excurs. n. A. 5. David is usually / • i -ii Verse 7. spelt *XF\ (without yud) in the earlier books. Words. • T Barlshonah KaOws air ap^s. Five MSS. are said to read itSID'X^Q.S' t : but none of Baer's MSS. give this reading. The LXX. LXX rendering is, probably, quoad sensnm, and the prefix ^ a later gloss. 110 ZECIIARIAII XII, 8, 9. 8 In that clay shall the Lord de- [ the angel of the Lord before them, fend the inhabitants of Jerusalem ; 9 And it shall come to pass in and he that is feeble among them at that day, that I will seek to destroy that day shall be as David; and the J all the nations that come against house of David shall be as God, as Jerusalem. 1V^ without prefix or affix is pointed *]V2l ; but with prefix *lMft> and with suffix ^1^3, £3*7^3; f°r construction com p. Ps. Verse 8. •-:-•••: iii. 4. — Yosh&v is used collectively, as may be seen from the bahem which follows. — Nicshidim means "the weak" as ?HTJ< d vBSOJl 7TI (1 Sam, ii. 4), and the ^ of bahem means "among" as in Is. v. 27 13 Sfc?i3~PXl (autl not " against" as in Nah. iii. 3). The expression "as God," or "as Gods," being thought too strong, LXX. paraphrased it by ws ol proceeding in ver. 10 and xiii. 3. LXX. paraphrased it by ws oIkos Qeov, comp. a similar The verb £^D3 baqqish is used of God only here, and in Verse 0. . | Ex. iv. 24. These chapters xii. — xiv. are marked off as a distinct section by the recurrence of the expression " Burden of the word of the Lord " (comp. ix. 1, Remarks. ^^1- i- !)• No argument against the post-exilian origin of these chap- ters can be based on the frequent use of the terms " Judah and Jerusalem," neither is it true that the author of these last chapters " nowhere men- tions Israel," as verse 1 is distinctly addressed to "Israel." "Israel" (Zech. xii. 1, Mai. i. 1, 5, ii. 11, 16, Ezr. ix. 1, 4, 15, xi. 10, &c.) is a term constantly used in post-exilian times for the Jewish nation, and as parallel with "Judah and Jeru- salem " (Zech. xii. — xiv. passim, Mai. ii. 11, iii. 4) : so too " all the tribes of Israel " (Zech. ix. 1). Comp. "Ephraim" ix. 10, 13, x. 7, "Joseph " (x. 6), and " Judah" (ix. 8, 13, x. 3, 6), and " Jacob " (Mai. iii. 6, ii. 12) and see p. 21. All these were to a certain extent interchangeable terms in post-exilian times ; but " Jerusalem " or " inhabitants of Jerusalem" is used especially of the inhabitants of the metropolis, as distinguished from the rest of the nation, just as a Parisian is distinguished from a Frenchman. Pressel considers the prophecy to refer to the repulse of Senna- cherib from the walls of Jerusalem. Against tins theory it has been rightly urged, that in the days of HezeMah, when the royal house was foremost in the ranks of religious reformation, it would be strange that a prophet should speak of the house of David as concerned in the martyrdom of one of God's prophets. Maurer places the date of chap. xii. — xiv. between the death of Josiah (xii. 11), and the capture of Jerusalem by the Chaldseans. Chap. xii. — xiii. 6 he supposes to have been written in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, when the prophet expected that the enemy would be driven from the gates of Jerusalem; xiii. 7— xiv. 21, after the ZECHARIAH XII. 10. Ill 10 And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the in- habitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications : and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for Ms only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. battle of Carchemish, when darker fears intruded themselves upon his mind. — But there is a very strong objection against referring xii. 1 — xiii. 6 to a time prior to the captivity. For how can we imagine a prophet at the time, when the house of David was the reigning dynasty, making use of such an expres- sion as " that the glory of the house of David and of the inhabitants of Jeru- salem may not he magnified over Judah"? We agree, therefore, with Weight in supposing (at any rate) xii. 1 — 9 to refer to the period between the restoration from the captivity, and the coming of our Lord, when many nations, •' Idumaeans, Philistines, Arabians, Ammonites, Tyrians, Syrians, and Greeks made various attempts against the Jewish people and against Jerusalem. They are sometimes successful for a short time, but never for any lengthened period. Their attempts were always foiled, often with great loss to themselves, sometimes to their utter ruin." It must be remembered, too, that after the time of Zerubbabel the house of David fell into comparative obscurity, and that the great leaders the Maccabees were of the tribe of Levi, and nof^f the house of David. LXX. /cat €7rt/3A.ei^oi/Tai 7rpos /ue avO because, not the actual words, but merely the sense of the passage seems to be given in those two places. The reading V/tf has, however, been supported by Kennicott, Ewald, Geiger, Bunsen. For hayydchid LXX. ayaTT^rw, either translating ad sensum, or reading THT]. Remarks. If we are to interpret this verse as it stands, we must certainly understand " the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem" as the subject of the verbs v'hibbitu "and they shall look," and daqaru "they pierced," or rather "thrust-through." So we cannot with Eashi understand the verse to mean, that Israel will look [unto God] in mourning for those slain by the Chaldeans ; nor with Ibn Ezra, that all the nations will look unto God to see what He will do to them on account of their having slain the Messiah, son of Joseph (comp. T. B. Succah 52a): for (apart from the question of the subject of the verbs), as Qiucni most sensibly remarks, if Messiah son of Joseph be referred to here (and we may add, in Ezek. xxxviii. xxxix. also) why is he not mentioned? Retaining the reading of the Text elay " unto me," some interpret the verb daqaru figuratively "they pierced," i.e. "contemned." The Person might be God Himself, or the Prophet (who seems to have personified the Rejected Shepherd in ch. xi.) looked on as identified (Hitzig) for the moment with Him that sent him. But surely, such a rendering of daqaru (even supposing it to be admissible, which we do not think to be the case) is too weak to account for the strong expressions which follow7, ' ' and they shall mourn over him as with the mourning for an only son, &c," which can only refer to the case of some one actually slain. We must therefore reject this interpretation of daqaru. If, on the other hand, wTe take it as meaning "they thrust-through," the first person "unto me" presents great difficulties. For it cannot be referred to God Himself, as that would, as Ewald says, "introduce into the Old Testament the absurd notion that persons will bitterly lament over YarrWJ {YHVII) as over one that is dead." Nor can it be explained, primarily, of the two- fold nature of Christ, as that is a notion which could never have suggested itself to a Jew of Zechariah's time. Nor can it be interpreted of the Prophet as repre- senting Him who sent him, for no mention is made of the slaying of such a person, nor is any hint dropped of such a thing even in xi. 13. Ewald would read elav " unto him," and says " we can only say, that at that time a distinguished martyr in the cause of Jerusalem and the house of David and the true religion may have fallen shortly before without receiving the just acknowledgment of the capital, and there mavbe here reference to him." P>nt this " distinguished martyr" exists only in ZECHARIAH XIII. 1. 113 13 The family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart ; the family of Shiuiei apart, and their wives apart ; 14 All the families that remain, every family apart, and their wives apart. the imagination of the commentator. As we see no way of interpreting this pas- sage in its present context, so, at least, as to have been understood by the prophet's hearers, we propose to place it after xiii. 3. See Eemarks, p. 114 — 117. CHAPTER XIII. IN" that day there shall be a , Jerusalem for sin and for unclean- fountain opened to the house j ness. of David and to the inhabitants of | 2 And it shall come to pass in Verse 1. Words. Desertion op Idolatry. Zeal not according to Knowledge. Slaying of the Prophet. Consequent Mourning. There is, no doubt, a reference here to Numb. xix. 9 fJ^J ^7 t • •• : Kin riKtSn "for water of purification, a means of removing T _ sin is it." Chattdth means "sin," "offering for sin," "means of removing sin " (comp. the use of the verb ^Kfcsnfi Ps. li« 9, " thou shalt cleanse me," and Kt3nJ"V Numb. xix. 12, "he shall cleanse him- self"). Similarly nidddh, while it means especially that sort of cere- monial uncleanness, which requires separation (Lev. xii. 2, &c), denotes also "the removal of this uncleanness." So we may here correctly render the words le chattdth ulenidddh "for the removal of sin and uncleanness." Elsewhere the word is Jlfc^n in the absol., and JlXtSPl T _ - - in the constr. ; but here all authorities read fi&SfcSn- Mdqor 7ras to7tos, reading £3lpD> and taking, apparently, the unde- fined substantive as meaning " every place." — In rendering l" chattdth by ets rrjv ixtTaKLvrjcnv, they appear to have taken fitful"!/ as the Infin. Hiph. of J"|D3 (HUSh?)- — Nidddh xupio-^oV, reverting to the primary meaning of the root. z. 8 114 ZECHARIAH XIII. 2, 3. that day, saith the Lord of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered : and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land. 3 And it shall come to pass, that when any shall yet prophesy, then his father and his mother that begat him shall say unto him, Thou shal c not live ; for thou speakest lies in the name of the Lord : and his father and his mother that begat him shall thrust him through when he prophesieth. D*3¥V occurs in the plur. only, the form is that of 7ft3 > D*1 vl2& } • - - : t t • ~ : Verse2 the singl., if it occurred, would be ldgdbh. As a singular in Wordswid the seme of «idol» we llaye ygp in use (Is. xMii- 5y i^j; and ^^ "trouble" make in plur. '"qabMm, e.g. D^V^H dPlS (Ps. cxxvii. 2) "bread earned by much toil." The expression ruach hattunidh " the unclean spirit," which occurs here only, is the origin, doubtless, of the common N.T. expression to m'tv^a to duaOaprov. — Tliyn in ^ne sense of "removing," comp. (2 Chron. xv. 8) "Dy1] D*2PlpESVl "and he removed the abominations." LXX. understand " The prophets " correctly as if/ev8o7rpo(py]Tx<;. \3 "if," or "when" (comp. note on p. 73).— TlftXl "then shall say unto him his father and his mother" : ybl'dh&v Words6 and " even they who bare him," is added for emphasis. constructions. _^«| udeqdrflhlJ} the rif is long> merely defectively *•. I t *. written (comp. xi. 5) ; the word means " and they shall thrust him through," comp. ftT^'ftX IDYI "and he thrust them both through" (Numb. xxv. 8). — JB'hinnabh" 6 might mean "in his act of prophesying," but " because of his prophesying " is better, comp. tpV$n)3 " because of thy leaning on " (2 Chron. xvi. 7). tid'qdriilm kcu o-vfnroSiovo-Lv olvtov, translating euphemistically, as in lxx. X1i- 1^ they give for the same verb KaTojpv^o-avTo. Here we propose to read chap. xii. 10 — 14. "We admit that we have no authority for so doing either of MKS., versions, or Remarks. .... commentators. Two considerations have suggested to us this rearrangement of the text: (1) We are unable to discover any ZECHARIAH XIII. 3. 115 intelligible meaning which the words " and they shall look on me (or him) whom they thrust through," in the place in which they now stand in the Hebrew Text, could have conveyed to the Prophet's hearers, and even to us of the present day they seem enigmatical words suddenly introduced without the idea of "thrusting thi-ough" having been sup- plied by the context : (2) If we place them after ch. xiii. 3, in which the " thrusting through " of a son is distinctly mentioned, the words which commentators have taxed their ingenuity in vain to explain, will convey the simplest and most obvious sense. In a section, in which the phrase " on that day," " and it shall come to pass on that day," occurs so often, it is easy to imagine that a confusion of order may have arisen in early times. If our conjecture (and it is but a conjecture) be cor- rect, the whole passage will run as follows : (iii. 1) In that day shall be a fountain opened, for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for [removal of] sin and of uncleanness.— (2) And it shall be in that day ('tis the utterance of YHVH g'bd'oth) I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, and they shall not be remembered any more ; and the [false] prophets and the unclean spirit will I cause to pass away from the land. (3) And it shall be, when a man shall prophesy, then they shall say to him, his father and his mother, they that bare him, " Thou shalt not live, because thou hast spoken lies in the name of YHVH;" and they shall thrust him through, his father and his mother, they that bare him, on account of his prophesying, (xii. 10) Then will I pour out upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and supplication, and they shall look on him, even him whom they thrust through, and they shall mourn over him, as the mourning for an only son, and they shall make bitter mourning over him, as one mourneth bitterly for a first- born. In that day... (14)... and their wives apart. When, in the blindness of fanaticism, these people should have been led to commit such a crime, as that mentioned xiii. 3, then God would have pity on them, and pour out on them the spirit of grace and suppli- cation, &c. The reader will perceive, that the application of the ex- pression " and they shall look on him whom they thrust through " to our Lord (John xix. 34, 37, Rev. i. 7) is even more appropriate, if the words be taken as we have proposed, than if they were left in their present context. For the passage, as we propose to read it, depicts a Prophet, and a true Prophet, rejected by his own people as a false prophet, and slain by them. What more appropriate passage could be .cited relative to our Lord? We must not, however, any more than in xi. 12, 13, confine the application of the prophecy to this single fulfilment, though it is certainly by far the most remarkable and im- portant one. 8—2 116 ZEdHAMAH XITT. On the accentuation of v'shaphactd see notes on i. 3. Chin seems to denote here " Divine favour," i. c. "grace." Td,chaniinim Words and' "earnest supplication" as the result of chin (but LXX. constructions. ; olKTipjxov). — *7X 1£D*Um " And they shall look on me "; but we prefer to read V?X "on him " (see pp. 112, 115). — 7tf EO^M, among other meanings, has that of " to contemplate " as (Ps. cii. 20) Q^t^H ]D Mn pa to, (is. ixvi. 2) rm rm ^ bx mx nt Sxv The nature of the feelings of the contemplator is decided by the context. Here they are, evidently, those of compunction. For the con- struction 'HpTlfc/'K Dtf 0)vX "unto me (or him), viz. him whom they thrust through," compare (Jer. xxxviii. 9) N^H ¥WV7 TDiTTM Wv&iYl&H flX " to Jeremiah the prophet, him whom they cast into the pit." — Hayydchid, the article is generic, and may be best rendered into English by "a" ; in Amos viii. 10 we have TIT TOfcO (where also the next clause contains a derivative of *)*")/£)■ — Vehamir is the Infin. Absol. Hiph. and may be taken as used emphatically, for TV12P Ititl) (but see note on vii. 5). In the Hiph. this verb is no- where else used of "mourning bitterly," but in the Pi'el is so used (Is. xxii. 4) '033 Tlfttf. — C'hdmer is the Infin. Construct lit. "as the mourning bitterly for." — We can hardly take v°saph'dh4 'dlav to mean they shall mourn over it (ea cle re), viz. the crime committed, as that would materially weaken the force of the expressions which follow, "over an only son," "over a first-born." Hadadrimmon "is a city," says Jerome, " near Jezreel, now called Maximiano- polis, in the field of Mageddon, where the good king Josiah was (nior- Reinarks. ' tally) wounded in battle (2 Chron. xxxv. 22 — 25) with Pharaoh-necho." According to Assyriologists, Hadar-Ramman is the proper pronuncia- tion of this word. The fact that a place in the tribe of Issachar was at the time of these prophecies known by an Assyrian name is an additional link in the chain of evidence, which proves them to be of post-exilian origin. The mourning for Josiah became, no doubt, proverbial for a great national mourning. Hadadrimm6n is l'endered poQvos "of a plantation of pomegranates," by way of conjecture (ritnmUn means pomegranate). APgiddon is rendered Ikkotttoix£vov, by reverting to the meaning of the root T]Jl, convp. (Dan. iv. 11) yoddii, eKKoij/are. Mislipachuth mishpdehoth "each family"; for the repetition of the substantive to denote "each single," compare Tltt "HV Chap. xiL 12. I v* *Hj? "each flock by itself" (Gen. xxxii. 17); the plur. however is not generally used in this manner, but comp. Ezek. \xiv. 6 ZECHARIAH XIII. 4. 117 4 And it shall come to pass in I when he hath prophesied ; neither that day, that the prophets shall shall they wear a rough garment be ashamed every one of his vision, | to deceive : (2 Kings iii. 16, Joel iv. 14, Ex. viii. 10, Gen. xiv. 10 are instances of quite a different use of the repetition of substantives). — Ifbhad is often used without suffix (e. g. Ex. xxvi. 9). Comp. note on x. 4. " Nathan," not the prophet, but the son of David (2 Sam. v. 14). Remarks He represents a subordinate branch of the house of Judah. The patronymic from Simeon is ^£2571 (Numb. xxv. 14, Josh, xxi. 4), while that from ^fitf {Shemei) is ytS&fl (Numb. ii. 12). With the construction *yj&fe577 nitS^ft comp. Words,etc- ^Tljl 'ft, &c. (Numb. xxvi. 5, 6, 12, 13, &c). This Shemei seems to be of the house of Gershon (Numb. iii. 17) a subordinate house of Levi ; not the Benjaminite (2 Sam. xvi. 5). Observe the particularization of ver. 12, 13, and the generalization of ver. 14. This seems to point to the general, and yet particular nature of the mourning. For the fulfilment in reference to the Crucifixion see Luke xxiii. 48, Acts ii. 37 — 41. False Prophets disclaim the gift of Prophecy. The Imperf. of ^3 is feJOS with which may be compared "fij^ Imperf. *\)W (unless this latter is to be regarded as a Chap ^ 4 Words and Niph.). — The me of mechezyonS denotes "on account of," constructi°ns- comp. ii. 8. For the verb Bosh construed with min, of the thing to be ashamed of, comp. Ezek. xxxvi. 32. With regard to the form of C hizzdy 6 n with suffixes see note on xii. 4. — Behinndbhe,oth6 = behinnabhe'6 of ver. 3. This form with final fi is formed after the analogy of such Infinitives as Jltf/ft ,n&«3H ,TWV ,T\itifr fFfcfofr This is the only instance of a Niph. Infin. in J") from a verb quiescent ^"7. — On the construction of labhdsh see note on iii. 3. — On addereth see note on ii. 13. — Dmd'an construed with the Infin. construct, is common, compare Amos ii. 7 jyT\ \Vu7, Deut. xxix. 18, Jer. vii. 10, &c. /ecu ivSvo-ovrat Se'ppiv Tpiyivqv, omitting ^7. dv& tav £\j/evo-avTo is simply a mistranslation. 118 Z EC 11 AM All XIII. 5, 6. 5 But he shall say, I am no pro- phet, I am an husbandman; for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth. 6 And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands '. Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends. Verse 5. It must be observed that fc^tf is here, by no means, used to denote a man of importance, as it is when opposed to Q*7X (Ps. xlix. 3). It simply means "an individual:" for, though ddam occurs in the next clause, it cannot be said to be opposed to ish. Similarly our Prophet uses *\^ gcbher, with no special significance, in ver. 7. 'obhed add?nah "an agriculturist," as in Gen. iv. 2. — ^JpH (on the simdm rdpheh see Excurs. IV.). The verb j"|Jp in the Qal means to "originate," "acquire," "possess," but since it occurs no- where else in the Hiph., there is great difficulty in determining its exact force in this passage. Some take it as a stronger Qal " to purchase " ; others " to sell " (as Hi? *n Qa^ Is " to borrow," in Hiph. " to lend," and Aram, sfbdn " to buy," Pa'el zabben " to sell "). Others, taking it as a denominative from miqneh "possession," deduce the same meaning "to buy." Qimchi makes it a denominative from miqneh in the sense of "a flock," and understands it as "made me a herdsman." Whatever be the exact meaning of the word (LXX. iyevvrjo-e /xe), it is clear that the person accused of assuming prophetic powers disavows all such assumption, and claims to be looked on as a simple rustic. Aq. eVafe /xe, Symm. e/xe'pto-e /xe, Theod. e'8ei£e fie. On nelurim see note on ix. 17. *VT T^ "between thy hands" is an expression which presents great difficulty. Rosenmiiller, comparing rYDrTVl P^ Verse 6. (Prov. xxvi. 13) with JTQm ^pHS (**"• 13), would render it in manibus tuis. Possibly this may be the meaning. But, since V5HT Pi (2 Kings ix. 24) certainly means "in the body," our expression may be taken here to denote "on the chest." (Comp. Ben (enecd Deut. vi. 8, and my Fragment of T. B. P'sachim, p. 74, note 4. The expression "between thy hands" in Arab, means simply "before thee," "l^S? ; but that meaning is not suitable here; neither is it a Hebrew usage.) Beth denotes "in the house of," comp. Gen. xxiv. 23. — V'dmdr "and one will say," i.e. the other will reply, is wrongly rendered by the LXX. nal epu>. ZECHARIAH XIII. 7. 119 7 Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the Lord of hosts : smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered : and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones. The " rough garment " was the ordinary dress of the prophets. If one who was not a prophet wore it, it caused him to he taken for such, and was therefore worn " to deceive." The words of ver. 5 are very similar to chapfxHL i- 6. those of Amos vii. 14, 15 ; but the purport of the two passages is very different. Amos declares that though he was a herdsman and had never been brought up as a prophet, still he had received a divine mission, which he intended to perform in spite of Jeroboam II., and Amaziah priest of Bethel. But here the false prophet, when accused of exercising the functions of a prophet, utterly denies the charge. The wounds which he is accused of having inflicted on himself (in idolatrous worship 1 Kings sviii. 28, Jer. xlvii. 5, xlviii. 37), he asserts to have been inflicted on him by others "in the house of his friends." Bosenmuller understands that he confesses to have been punished in his parents' house for false prophecies. Hengstenberg thinks that he acknowledges, with shame, that he had been so wounded in the house of his friends, i. e. in the idol temples. Weight says that perhaps he may have suggested that these wounds were received by him on the occasion of some carousal with boon companions. Shepherd smitten. Flock scattered. On the accentuation of luri see notes on ix. 9, p. 84. — iamlthi " my fellow" is a word which occurs only here, and in Leviticus. verSe7 There it occurs only with the suffixes 'TT and ). It seems to Words' etc- be a subst. of the form of rWil> TV)1 (^- 15, in plur.) &c, and to denote "fellowship" "neighbourship" in the abstract, and then to be used (as in Lev.) for the concrete (comp. notes on vi. 10, xi. 16). According to the first meaning gebher would be here the constr. and the expression would mean "the man of my fellowship." According to the second (and current use of the word) iamithi would be in apposition with gebher, and we should render "a man my fellow." — Hdc "smite thou" is in the masc, although 'ilri agrees correctly with cherebh in the fern. — P^ISri") "that may be scattered." (On this verb see note on i. 17.) The forms of the 3rd pers. fern. plur. Imperf. in j, instead of r0, are common; e.g. pfcf]?| (Ezek. xvi. 55), JKTft (Ex. i. 17), r|fc«&ljl (Deut- xxi- 21)> T|K>!pPl (^mb. xxv. 2),tP|X^ (Gen. xix. 33). — On the accentuation of vahashibhothi see note on i. 3. — The participle D^y¥ does not occur elsewhere : it can scarcely be taken as equivalent 120 ZECHARIAH XIII. 8, 9. 8 And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off and die ; but the third shall be left therein. 9 And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried : they shall call on my name, and I will hear them : I will say, It is my people : and they shall say, The Lord is my God. to Q^M? "little ones" (Judg. vi. 15, Ps. cxix. 141): it seems rather to denote "those who make themselves small," "the humble ones." The expression "to turn the hand back upon" is often used to denote anger (Amos i. 8, Ps. lxxxi. 15) ; but sometimes it signifies loving chastisement (Is. i. 25), and such appears to be its meaning here. To arrive at tovs 7rotfieVas fxov LXX. must have read ro'dy instead of ro'i. For iam~ithi they give ttoXlt^v fxov. The verb Vplmqhxa they considered as active, and rendered iis /u/cpous. Verse 9. D\3^"^3 (on the metheg see Excurs. u. A. 3) denotes "a double verses. portion" (Gen. xliii. 34), comp. \y>£$ fifi^ H3ft (1 Sam. Words. ' " ~ ' . T T i. 5) : here by the expression hashstilishith, in the second half-verse, it is shown to mean "two thirds." — Bdh "in it," the flock (c^).— The verb W^ "to die," like -flU (♦ ^IT Is. xxix. 22), has the *-v |tv:iv medial ) as a strong consonant, and not quiescent as in Q!)p. Vhebhethi should be so accentuated, as Baer edits; not v'hebhethi (see note on i. 3). With the latter accentuation the verb must be looked on as the Prophetic Perfect. — The verb Qdrd' is construed with ^ in the sense of "calling upon" the Name of God &c. (Gen. iv. 26), or of Baal (1 Kings xviii. 26). — amdrtl (on the placing of the accent fxtshtd see page 16) is the Perfect, which preceded, and followed by Futures, may be used as a Future even without vdv convers. comp. (Is. xiii. 10) Q*)1X pH*1 is? DiTTD^! t nix rcxmb m inwa mwn *\wr\ lxx. Ka\ iPs. Wright objects to Ewald's theory that these verses form a sequel to chap, xi., that " the removal of foolish shepherds could only be a blessing to Remarks^ ^q flock, while the removal of the shepherd is here represented as utterly disastrous." But since in xiii. 7 — 9, the figure of tbe shepherd and his flock is evidently intended to suggest the notion of a leader and his army, ZECIIARIAH XIV. 1—3. 121 and the death of the leader, even when incompetent, would involve the scattering of the army (this very figure is used by Micaiah in foretelling the death of the wicked Ahab, 1 Kings xxii. 17), this objection does not seem to us conclusive. But, if we are to reject this suggestion of Ewald, or if we are not to regard this passage as a distinct prophecy by itself (see Introduction), " the shepherd" can only mean some prophet of the Lord, who on account of the sins of the people should be taken away by a violent death. After his death a remnant were to be purified and saved. Ver. 7 is quoted by our Lord (Matt. xxvi. 31, Mark xiv. 27). CHAPTER XIV. BEHOLD, the day of the Lord cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. 2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ra- vished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. 3 Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. One Day, it is known by YHVH. Hinneh yum bd lAdonay " behold a day cometh for the Lord " : the expression is exactly equivalent to that of Is. ii. 12, Tom lAdonay " [there is] a day [coming] for the Lord." — words' and ( constructions. JO *''* 7 DV (cornp. Is. xiii. 6, 9) would mean "a day of the Lord's cometh," while ^ *>'"> QV might mean " a day of the Lord," or "the day of the Lord cometh" (comp. p. 15). LXX. has the plur. iSou Tjfxtpai epxpvTai. Nashdssu is the Xiph. Perf. of DDt^j the Xiph. occurs only once again (also with habbatim), viz. (Is. xiii. 16) !|E)C^. P°r Verse2. n^Alt^n1 we have in the Qeri the more modest expression tishsha- cdbhndh, the four instances of the same substitution are Deut. xxviii. 30, Is. xiii. 16, Jer. iii. 2, and this passage. Similar euphemisms are to be found in the Qeri of 2 Kings xviii. 27, Is. xxxvi. 12, Deut. xxviii. 27, 1 Sam. v. 6, 9, 12, vi. 4, 5. The LXX. has for roSjBTl fioXwOj- o-ovtcu (there is also a version of the Qeri KOiTao-Orjaovrai) : and for " the people " totj \o.ov [XOV. Cey6m must be regarded as an a'cc. "as at the time of" (see notes on i. 8, viii. 9, 11). With the expression yom hilldchamo comp. (Ezek. xxxix. 13) HS-SH DV- On the first metheg of Ml- Words, etc. • : |t • ldcham6 see Excurs. n. B. 3. 1 The vowels in the Text belong, of course, to the Q'ri. 122 ZECHARTAH XIV. 4. 4 And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley ; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. 'Al-p'ne " over against," as (Judg. xvi. 3) lal-p'nE ChebhrUn " opposite Hebron." — Miqqedem "towards (or in) the East," and so, "Vers 6 4 words and probably, Gen. ii. 8: comp. note on iv. 3, and the expression constructions. v7 , n-1(.n /-.7 • mechecyu, which follows. — thecyo denotes here, not "half (Ex. xxiv. 1G, and in the second half of our verse), but "middle" (Judg. xvi. 3) H/vH >%£TX2 "at midnight": thus mechecyo denotes "in its midst." — fl/b^ ilPllT/b the vdv is pointed with qdmdc, because the latter word is accentuated on the first syllable (without intervening disjunctive accent) : comp. (Gen. xiii. 14) ; H/^1 tltild) n^JDI i"03¥ : > -\ (see also xxviii. 14); similarly 1,1^1 1/171 (Gen. i. 2) and SD^I 2HT (1 Kings x. 22), which rule 7- follows in Gen. i. 6 { ^£7 Q*£ f^. I But, if the second word be mil'ra1, the vav takes sh'vd as iJ1fl"ftD,3 (vi. 11). On the final fjv" of these words see p. 11. — fc^ is the absolute form. The form fc^jl as the absolute occurs in Numb. xxi. 20, Deut. iii. 29, iv. 46, 1 Sam. xvii. 3, Jer. ii. 23, Neh. ii. 13, 15, iii. 13, 1 Chron. iv. 39, 2 Chron. xxvi. 9 ; and, dropping the X> m the form ^ Deut. xxxiv. 6, Josh. xiii. 11, Mic. i. 4; and even J^Jl Is- xl. 4. And here only as Absolute in the form X\3\ which (collaterally with ^) is the ordinary form of the construct (as in the next verse). This form of the absolute is not without parallel : thus we have 7*7 distinctly absol. at the end of Is. xxi. 1 1 ; 1^3 7Tl3 " with a great host " •• t " : (2 Kings xviii. 17)2. — The expression "the Mount of Olives" occurs 1 This seems to be merely a variation of pronunciation. In illustration of the tendency of ay to be pronounced as e (a) observe that Arab bayna (fO) is pro- nounced bt'na, and the Syr. suffix ayca as eca, and that in modern Greek at is pronounced e al/ia ema (with a very slight aspiration). 2 hrti JV3 (2 Kings xxv. 9) is not included, since it might mean "great- man's house." The expression Dpn H2"! (absol. DOn) in Amos vi. 2 is not sufficient ground on which to found a statement that the constr. can be used with an epithet, since the word is a proper name, and the expression may be parallel with nilW nipn (2 Chron. viii. 3). ZECHARIAH XIV. 5. 123 5 And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains ; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal : yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah : and the Lord my God shall come, and all the saints with thee. here only in the 0. T. ; for other designations of that hill see 2 Sam. xv. 30, 1 Kings xi. 7, 2 Kings xxiii. 13, Ezek. xi. 23. Ge' g'dolah ma6d yaos /tieya 'tOJ (1 Sam. LXX. iv. 2). N4s followed by the ace. can only mean " to flee to" ; the translation of Luther vor solchem Thai is inadmissible. For an instance of the construction found here comp. (Ps. xi. 1) "■)!£ ¥ D-3T7 1*11 J The expression 7¥K~7X is difficult. In 1 Chron. viii. 38 we find 7¥tf — TV — T as the Pausal form of 7¥fc$ (as pathach is found often in Pause for qere, •• T e.g. Tj/'1'] Gen. ,xxiv. 61 &c). Supposing, then, that the preposition /¥S$ is the constr. of 7¥X (as *s probable, comp. 7^, Ezek. xviii. 18, as the constr. of 7TJI), el-dcdl would mean "to nigh," "to very near." Agdl would in this case be used independently (as an adverb), as we have shown (ii. 12) that achdr is used. The Prophet turns abruptly from speaking of God liubhd../ldhdy," to addressing Him " Hmmdc" : for a similar abrupt transition compare (Song of Songs i. 1) "yish- shdqeni . . .cl-tobhim dodecd miyyain." DHD^ occurs three times in this verse. According to the Western punctuation it is read EftDJ (see above), but the Oriental reading is 0F1D31 " and the valley of my mountains shall be closed up" in the first case, and QftD} in the two other cases : so, too, the Targum and Rashi, and Ibn Ezra. LXX. in all three cases (Symm. and Hex. -Syr. in the first two) read nistdm, and render the passage : /cat cppa^OrjcreraL rq cfxxpayi; twv opewv fxov, kou iyKoWrjBrjcreTai (papay£ opeojv ews 'IacroS, kou. i/xcfipa^BtjcreTaL Ka#a3s ive(f>payr] iv tolls 77/xepcus tov o-vao-eiapLov k.t.X. — The word IA20A is merely a corruption of IA20A (*7¥K) ; some copies of the Hex.-Syr. give 'Ao-a^A.. Observe that the transliteration of 7^{< by Iao-oA. (reading fc$ as ya) is just the converse Variants and Versions. 124 ZECHARIAH XIV. 6. 6 And it shall come to pass in I that day, that the light shall not | be clear, nor dark : of the process by which the Syr. gets *!¥&$ out of *l¥V (xi. 13). 'Ev rats T vJ/Ae'/Jcus is merely a free translation of mipp'ni. — ol ayioi /act avrov, for cfddsliim 'imm&c. One of Baer's MSS. notes that some correct MSS. read ^^ Vt^lp > Dut, the Massureth states that V^*7p occurs only in Deut. xxxiii. 3, Ps. xxxiv. 10, and, therefore, q'doshdv must be looked on as only an emendation. As for Iftty, it is easy to see how )fo]} might have been written jfty, aud that read as "l^V ', but still, the transition from the third to the second Person is so thoroughly in accordance with usage, that one cannot see any reason for doubting the correctness of the reading "Tfty. The earthquake iu the days of Uzziah is nowhere mentioned by the sacred historians, and the account given of it by Josephus (Aiitiq. ix. 10 § 4) Cliap! xiv?'5. mus* De looked on as apocryphal. Still, so great and lasting was the impression made by that event on the popular mind, that it formed an era from which events were dated (Amos i. 1), and is here referred to as a well- known catastrophe. It has been argued that this reference to the earthquake fixes the date of this prophecy to a time shortly after that event. But, as reasonably might it be argued, that an author who used the expression " they fell to a man, as they did at Thermopyla?," had written shortly after B.C. 480 ! The C'thibh is ft&^p* ni*lp't (f°r there is no occasion, with Gesen., to invent a Niph. of XSh). The verb is in the Verse 6. I Words, etc. masc. although its nominative is fern. comp. Ht^p TWT\ L • • • ^-•■^n (Is. xxi. 2). In Job xxxi. 26 yaqdr is applied to the Moon, "T^n 1|T IT")* "the moon, sailing resplendent." So here y'qdroth seems to denote " the resplendent heavenly bodies." The definite article is omitted before y'qdroth (as it is before Q^^^i^ "the stars" ten times, against nine times in which it is expressed). The verb is that found in Ex. xv. 8 tD*~!l72 fib/"!]"! 'lXSp " the depths became con- solidated in the midst of the sea." The meaning, then, of y'qdruth yiqpa'&n seems to be "the splendid (heavenly bodies) will contract their splendour," i.e. will wane. — The Q"ri gives the air. Aeyo'. jiNSpl (of the form of timmahdn &c. xii. 4) "and consolidation," "coagulation." And the meaning of y'qarSth ifqippd'Sn is perhaps "[there will be] intense- ZECHABTAH XIV. 7, 8. 125 7 But it shall be one day which shall be known to the Lord, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light. 8 And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem ; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea : in summer and in winter shall it be. brightness, and then waning," comp. (Job iv. 16) Vft&'&S /\p) H^^l "[there was] silence, and then a voice I heard." But the first word would perhaps be better pointed fYHp* "cold" (of the form of nTT7(3 "darkness" Is. 1. 3), Rt. Ip"1 being taken as equivalent to Rt. *T")p "to be cold." Some would read a vdv instead of the first yiid thus tlS^pl J"Vnp^ and render " but cold and coagulation," making the first vdv adversative. The Cihibh appears to us the better reading. LXX. take intf DV /THI \)$£p) DUp* as one clause, and render /cat. i^u^os (Cod. Alex.) /cat 7rayos terra i [xiav tf/JLepav. The reading \px>xq (Cod. Vat.) is a manifest error. On the rendering i//i;'yos see above. — 7rayos (both Targ. and Syr. agree with LXX. in the rendering i/^'yos kcu 7rayos) is given as the translation of f|i$5p from two considerations, (1) it is parallel with the assumed meaning of fiVlpS (-) £$3p is used (see above) of the consolidation of water : since then, the only natural mode of consolidating water, is by frost, it was surmised that qippd'&n meant "frost." Ybm-echdd denotes " a unique day," comp. (Ezek. vii. 5) Verse 7. TUtQ fill! H$H nntf n$H " an evil, a unique evil, lo ! is Words, etc. coming." — fc^H is emphatic. — L'dth "at the time of" (Gen. viii. 11, &c), on the metheg with I'eih-'erebh see Excurs. n. A. 5. fc^Jl is expanded into kcu rj 77/xepa Ikclvyj. For vehdyah . . . LXX. l*(etk-l6rebh simply kcu. 7rpos e DJTj from verbs with the second root- Verse 10. • • I • letter doubled, are to be regarded as Qal, or Niph. — Baer, here and in Is. xxxiii. 9, edits rQ*!^ without the def. ai-ticle ; but the Cod. Petropol. reads 3. We prefer this latter reading "like the plain," viz. that now called Al-Ghor, which extends with some interruptions from the slopes of Hermon to the Elamitic gulf of the Red Sea. If we read 5> we must suppose that (Arabdh was already regaixled as a proper name (comp. note on vii. 14). Ncgebh "to the south of" as (Josh. xi. 2) I ni1J3 H33 " io the south of Cln'roth." — n^&O1) is an anomalous : |- vv t -: |t: 3rd pers. fern. sing. Qal from QJ|*1- A variant is n£XTl, which is after the analogy of QNp) (Joel ii. G), comp. gjtf^ "poor" (Prov. x. 4, xiii. 23). — L'mish-shd'ar, the prefix Ify? denotes " from," of place as here (comp. Job xxxvi. 3), or of time as (2 Sam. vii. 19). — Shd'ar ha-rishun on the article see p. 44. — Migddl stands for mi 'mmhjddl, or I'mimnrigddl, the min, or lemin, being understood from *^^u?> or VllJlbj which precede. Some MSS. read 7*7J|ft£5 (comp. i. 4). — Yiq'bM, the constr. plur. occurs here only, but it is regularly formed from ^3pV kvk\o)v agreeing, one would suppose, with Kupios of the preceding lxx verse. This rendering of ^itD*1 is defensible (though inap- propriate). For an imperfect is often used to describe the state or condition of a person (like the participle, see notes on iii. 1, v. 1), especially for the sake of variety, e.g. (Is. xl. 30) V'tity) J"D f|$? v jfij H!1T nlSXy DW (compare the use of PRO after fiSyn jdv. 18). kolI ttjv (.prjjxov, as a free translation, " compassing all the earth, as (it will) the desert," i.e. "all the earth and the desert." — 'Papa, taking fl^iO as a Proper Name, which however is always spelt HD*1- — Kat cols toS irvpyov, they carry on Uid from cad shd'ar happinnim, instead of min, as we do. ZEGHARTAH XIV. 11—13. 127 11 And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction ; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited. 12 And this shall be the plague wherewith the Lord will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall con- sume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall con- sume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth. 13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the Lord shall be among them ; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour. Baer edits (not Q7f7 but) Q7n> this is the pointing of the word in every other passage, whether in the sense of " net," or of Verse n "ban." Some MSS. read TVt " sword " (comp. p. 64). The Words- rendering of the Targ. fcs/bp cannot be said to be conclusively in favour of this latter reading : since " slaughter " may be only a para- phrase of " ban " ; LXX. has correctly dvddefia. 7]} X^ comp. Numb. xxxi. 7, &c. — HftpJ is tne Infin. of ppti, it may be taken as the Infin. Absol. used emphatically with Verse 12. the omission of the finite verb (comp. xii. 11); or it may be construct, and be explanatory "and this shall be the plague, &c." viz. "the rotting of," comp. the second IftH in xii. 11. — The suffix of b'sdro is distribu- tive, and refers to each of " all the nations," or to each individual of them. The clause v'hu 'omecl 'al-ragldv denotes the state in which he shall be, when overtaken by the plague (comp. p. 46). Jl^pJElfl is the Fut. Niph. 3rclpers. plur. for n^p^f!. comP- NiPn- of 77¥ !"075ttl t|v- • r:--. (2 Kings xxi. 13, Jer. xix. 3); the form Jtl'pSMl (1 Sam. iii. 11) is Hiphil. For Vehu lomed ia-rrjKOTm', this is correct enough quoad sensum : the participle agrees with the persons understood in the preceding auiw. injH T B>*X Ip^nm "And they shall seize each other by the hand," to grapple together. Hectiziq is generally construed with 1 before Tj but compare np*THn K7---\3;TT Constructions- (Ezek. xvi. 49). Some MSS. read here it is masc. as here, but the sing, is fern, in Gen. xxxii. 9, Ps. xxvii. 3. l/yV-n^m "and it shall be... that they shall go up," comp. (Lev. v. 15) rninm ... fiVfl "and it shall be. ..that he shall con- verse 16. fess"; similarly in the past (1 Sam. xi. 11) D^X^'JH \T1 !)¥S*1 "and it came to pass that those who were left were scattered." — Middi shdn&h bh'slmndh "every year" comp. (1 Sam. vii. 16) /IJt^ **Tft ZECIIARIAII XIV. 17, 18. 129 1 7 And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain. 18 And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain ; there shall be the plague, wherewith the Lord will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles. Verse 17. Constructions. r0£O (comp. also Is. lxvi. 23). — On the first metheg of lehishtachav6th see Excurs. ii. B. 3. — Melee is, doubtless, the absol., and in apposition to THVH Cebha'6th: so LXX. correctly ™ /foo-iAei Kuptw. The reason why the Feast of Tabernacles is specified seems to be as follows. Passover is indeed the chief festival (see Memorbook of Nurriberg, _ , x . Remarks, p. 20), but then it is a distinctly Jewish festival in comrnemoration of the Exodus. The Feast of Weeks again, as the festival of the Giving of the Law, is distinctly Jewish. But the Feast of Tabernacles, being the " Feast of Ingathering," when they rejoice over those things which are provided for the animal nature of man, would be a Festival in which the Nations of the World could rejoice and praise the Giver, as well as the Israelite (see also Introduction). *)$$ means "whosoever." The ) of via introduces the apodosis, comp. (Gen. xliv. 9) T\J2) ^H^ft IHiS* WW l^tf " with whomsoever of thy servants it shall be found, he shall die." nxft "out of" as (Josh. xxi. 16) rbsn D^ET) *JB> HXft JOT "nine [cities] out of these two tribes." For WT\ H\T lDHv^ X7l LXX. give km ovtol envois TrpocTTiOtj- ctovtcu : Kohler supposes they read V/T* Qi"P /V H y8) v " : LXX. Dfc^iD J but, seeing that the Septuagint translators were somewhat accpiainted with more modern Hebrew, I should say that they read D^H fT/T DfT^ nSxi (or more probably simple DJT^l) lit. " and to them shall be the-making-to-approach-of-the-others " : liegghh would be an Hiphilic substantive of the form of heqqesh "comparison." 1 DfcO is the pres. partic. fern. Qal of Xl^, as (Gen. xxix. 6) ...fliTl T T PlgSl IMS " behold his daughter...coming " ; but HK| is the cJs7rsuec?fons. 3rd pers. fern. sing. Perf. Qal, as (ver. 9) JTfeQ btH] " and Rachel came." t t •• t: The words can only be rendered "And if the family of Egypt go not up, and cometh not," the participle being used instead of fc^ri merely for the sake of variety of sound. We cannot see that there can be any z. 0 130 ZECI1ARIAII XIV. 19, 20. 19 This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not \ip to keep the feast of tabernacles. 20 In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses, HO- greater objection to this construction, than to the following (Ezek. xxxix. 8) nrVrOI j"l^!3 rOH "Lo ! it cometh, and shall certainly take tt : |- : t t < place." (The E. V. of Ezek. takes bd'&h, as bd'ah the perfect, in which case it would have been accentuated H&O (see Page 16). LXX. understands the phrase correctly iav...firj dvafifj /x^Se z\6rj. Yon Hof- mann has suggested the reading n^is?^ " then it shall thirst," from the expression JYQJOn T*15^ (IIos. xiii. 5). — D/T/V is?)} some would supply yih'yeh hagg&shem from the preceding verse, and render " then upon them shall not be rain." The objection to this interpretation is, that in this case we should require zoth (as iu the next verse) before tWyeh; "This shall be the plague, and four Versions and / o »"" > . variants. omit ^y We tilink it quite possible that the JO may have crept into the text from the &*?) which precedes, or from the Dtlby tib) °^ the preceding verse. Certainly " Then upon them shall be the plague, with which, &c." is the simplest construction, and affords the best sense. — Some MSS. and many Edd. read col between eth and haggoyim, but it seems to have crept in from t^Wl /!3~nS$ (ver. 12), comp. xii. 2. 3. Chattdth is the constr. of chattdth (see note on xiii. 1). It may mean here " sin," or " punishment" (comp. the frequent use vcrse19' ofjij;). niWp "hells" is a air. Aeyo'. but comp. QTOti (1 Chron. xiii. 18) : Verso 20. LXX. to inl toV YaAivoV, which is well enough quoad sens" m. Both words come from the root of HTT^'ft " shall tingle," see note ou ZECIIARIAII XIV. 21. 131 LINESS UNTO THE LORD; and the pots in the Lord's house shall be like the bowls before the altar. 21 Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the Lord of hosts; and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein: and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the Lord of hosts. ver. 12 [thus, whatever may be the case in English, in Hebr. the words tingle and tinkle are the same, viz. 77^]. — Observe hat/ah in the sing. masc. (comp. note on ver. 15) ; but here, since the vei'b precedes its nominative, it has no need to agree with it : e.g. (Is. xviii. 5) H^J /"JTIN T • (Gen. i. 14) Jn'lK/tD \T- — Sir in the sing, denotes "a pot" (masc. Jer. i. 13, fern. Ezek. xxiv. 6), its plur. is ^VH^D (Ex. xxxviii. 3); in Amos iv. 2 slroth perhaps means "hooks." But ED^TD means "thorns," e.g. (Eccles. vii. 6) ^DH MHH Q^DH Sm "like the crackling of thorns under a pot" (comp. Ps. lviii. 10). Mehem " of them," i.e. " some of them," as many as may be required : comp. (Gen. xxviii. 11) DWl ^SNJb W) "and he took I ..;-.. I Verse 21_ some of the stones of the place." — \}V3J is used in the sig- nification of "merchant" (Job xl. 30, Prov. xxxi. 24), and so the word is understood here by Aquila, and the Chaldee Paraphrase (Targum), followed by Hitzig, Maurer &c. If this be the meaning, the reference must be to traders who sold pots, cattle, &c, for the sacrifices (comp. John ii. 14 — 16, Matt. xxi. 12, 13). _ ' v L ' Remarks. But, though there probably were such in the Temple at this time, it cannot be actually proved that there were. Von Hofmann understands by Canaanite the Gibeonites and Nethinim, who were employed in the menial services of the Temple. Theodoret, Luther, Ewald take it as denoting notorious sinners, devoted to destruction, as were the Canaanites of old. Pgessel, combining two in- terpretations, understands by Canaanite, those who traffic in holy things, and the ungodly and profane. But, it seems best on the whole, to suppose that the prophet, having referred above to the Egyptians, fell naturally into the use of the word " Canaanite" (since they were also the enemies of Israel in days of old), and that he meant by it nothing more than "heathen," "infidel." We almost agree with de Wette that this chapter defies all his- torical explanation. If we attempt to interpret it of the ii Concluding taking of Jerusalem by the Chaldpeans, we are met by the Remarks on following difficulties. (1) Though ver. 1, 2 were only too literally fulfilled on that, and on other occasions, ver. 3 — .5 were certainly 9—2 132 Z EC II ARIA II XIV. not fulfilled, for God made no demonstration at that time on behalf of his people. (2) "While other pre-exilian prophets foretell clearly the deportation, and subsequent return of the people, our prophet mentions neither deportation nor return, but merely speaks of Jerusalem being inhabited in safety (ver. 10 — 11). But, if it refer to events after the Captivity, what can those events be 1 It might perhaps refer to the taking of Jerusalem by Ptolemy, a successor of Alexander, in B.C. 321; or more probably to its pillage by Antiochus Epiphanes in b. c. 167. In this latter case, the language of ver. 3 — 5 might be looked on as pro- phetic, in a highly figurative manner, of the deliverance of Israel by God through the instrumentality of the Maccabees : ver. 8, 9 might represent the revival of pure and undefiled religion in those days, and ver. 10 and 11 the peaceful prosperity of that period; but still, we could not in reference to the Maccabean era give any satisfactory account of ver. 16 — 21. We cannot possibly with Eusebius, Cyril, and Theodoret refer the prophecy directly to the destruction of Jeru- salem by the Romans (a. d. 70). For, admitting the truth of Eichhorn's remark "prophets threaten with no people, and promise nothing of any, till the people itself is come on the scene and into relation with their people," one cannot imagine that at a time when the Greeks were only just come into prominence in connection with the East, the Prophet should speak of the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, when Rome was but as yet only an insignificant city, gradually asserting its superiority over the Latin peoples, and still troubled with the dissensions between Patricians and Plebeians. Further, the description of what took place on that occasion, as given by Josephus (Bel. Jud. VI. 9 § 2), which is a direct contradiction of the promises ver. 2 — 6, 12 — 15, precludes such an interpretation. The above considerations are inde- pendent of any hypothesis as to the authorship of the chapter. — We are compelled therefore to interpi'et the chapter wholly in a figurative and Messianic sense. The Prophet, to whom were known the traditions of the prophetic schools concerning the times which were to precede the Messianic era, foretells the grievous troubles of "that day." Speaking in the language of the Psalms of the Thcophany (xevi— xcix) he repre- sents God as revealing Himself for the protection of His people. The day of the Messiah is to be one of great Spiritual Knowledge: Jerusa- lem is to be inhabited in security: not only is the wealth of all nations to flow thereunto, but the nations themselves are come and do homage to The King, the Lord of Hosts, in Jerusalem. As for those that come not up, on them will fall (lie direst punishments. In "that day" (he ZECHARIAH XIV. 133 does not imply that the Law of Moses shall be literally re-established, still less that it shall be abrogated, but) there shall be such a diffusion of the knowledge of God, that there shall be a general elevation of everything in sanctity £JHp^ ^^ iTS^D, so that the very bells of the horses shall be engraven with the significant inscription of the Cig of the High Priest ^7 fcJHp (Qodesh lAdondy), and idolatry and un- belief shall all but entirely pass away. — The whole scene, which he depicts, is ideal. To some extent it may be said to have been fulfilled in the Christian Church. But the full consummation of "that day" will not take place, until (1 Cor. xv. 28) "God shall be all in all," and the voice of the Angel shall proclaim (Rev. xi. 15) : ErENONTO AI BA2IAEIA1 TOY KOSMOY TOY KYPIOY HMfiN KAI TOY XPI2TOY AYTOY KAI BA2IAEY5EI EIS TOYS AlflNAS TON AK2NQN. EXCURSUS I. Rules for Syllable-dividing in Biblical Hebrew. 1. Every vowelless consonant has a sh'va* either expressed or understood. If a word end in a single vowelless consonant the sicca is not written, thus 73, or before maqqeph TV/TaD- If such a vowel- less consonant be preceded by a quiescent consonant some editors give it without a sh'va, others (as Baer) with sh'va, thus H&OI or J"l&01 T ; T (Mic. iv. 10), rtjTjiTl or r\)pir\) (ver. 13). 2. A sh'va must be either moving or quiescent. The sh'va under a letter which begins a syllable is called moving, all others are quiescent. 3. Every compound sheva (~, TT, tt) is moving. Every simple sheva (t ) under any of the letters ^PlilX lfi quiescent ; except the sh'va of H and f| iQ verbs JlVl anc^ (TH* which is always moving • ; T T T T as in fiVn / (see Excurs. II. A. 7). : r 4. (a) When two shevas fall together in the midst of a word, the first is quiescent, and the second moving, as Ip^D^ yiq-flu. ((3) A dagesh forte in a vowelless consonant always produces tv)o shevas [the one quiescent and the other moving, in accordance with (a)]. Thus the dagesh forte in the £3 of D3^3D produces a quiescent sheva under the first p, and a moving shcva under the second, so that the syllables are mip-p'ne-cvm (standing for min-p'm-cem). 5. (a) It would be impossible to pronounce two successive con- sonants both bearing moving sh'va, ('Diiscquently, if in t lie process of altering the vocalization of a word, as it passes from one grammatical form to another, two muring Bh'vas would fall together, the first is 1 See footnote p. 52. EXCURSUS I. 5 £—6 j8. 135 changed into a short vowel. Such a vowel is called a Light (by others a SligJit vowel), in Hebr. H?p njr^fi- E.g. if the prefix ^ be put to t I- t : : a word beginning with a consonant bearing simple, moving sheva, the sh'va of ^ becomes a Light chiriq1. (/3) It follows, of course, from this rule, that a sheva after a Light vowel is always moving. N.B. When the conjunction ) becomes -1 it is but a Light vowel (though, when it occurs before a labial bearing a vowel, we use that term in a somewhat extended sense). For grammatical purposes this -1 is not looked on as a long vowel (see Excurs. n. A. 1 note). In prosody (which is not native to Hebrew, but borrowed from the Arabic) it is at times looked on as a sheva, so that NI1-1 may have the same value in metre as Dpi.. The case of the conjunction -1 is the only one in which a word can begin with a vowel in Hebrew. But the exception is more apparent than real, for u merely stands for wa, va, or vi. 6. (a) A syllable that ends in a consonant with sh'va either expressed, or understood (see rules 1 and 4), is called closed. A syllable that does not end in a consonant with sh'va (expressed or understood) is called open. (/?) When a consonant is quiescent2, no sh'va is understood with it. Consequently an open syllable may end, either in a simple vowel long, or short (see rule 9), or in a vowel with quiescent consonant (or consonants), such as : K^r, ft— ; tf— , ft^- (in -H^) ; K~, W~, n— , *— ; «— , n-, *t-j **-, a*— *— ; a— *ti— > '), rt— j 1 In order to avoid the frequent use verbs which ought to be called verbs iYv of the words " long" and " short," I vo- are those which end in PI, in which this calize most of the names of the vowels h is a strong consonant retained (but, of in such a manner as to indicate the course, without the mappiq) when fol- sounds which they represent. Thus qa- lowed by another letter, thus from F1J3 mac («); pathach (a); cere (e) ; but segol "shone" (Is. ix. 1), we have DH33 nog- (e); shiiruq («); but qibbug (s"phatMim) hum "their light" (Joel ii. 10). Verbs which means " gathering together of the -, • , -, . . . _,., -L, , u ° ° which end m quiescent n like "i, should lips" (?/) ; chiriq (i); chiriq (i) ; cholem , , , V. , , „ . ., , be termed (as they are by Jewish gram- (o) ; qomoc{o). Some of these words are L barbarous in form, but the system has marians) fl"? »fl3 "with quiescent he as the virtue of being practical. the 3rd root-letter." It must be remem- 2 The beginner may need to be re- bered, too, that *~=~ *^r ay ay at the end minded that JJ and PI are never quiescent, of a word is always a closed syllable but always strong gutturals. The only (but see Excurs. in. 1, p. 149). 136 EXCURSUS I. 7—9. 7. (a) If a B"GaDCePhaTh letter Lave a dagesh lene, then it is certain that this letter begins a syllable, as ^/ft nial-cl "my king." Except (1) in the 2nd pers. sing. fern. Perf. of verbs with three strong consonants, such as Hp3, which gives JT1J23 pa-qddt, this is but a shortened form of JiHPS pd-qdd-ti. (2) In the apoc. Iinperf. of certain verbs quiescent T\"b, of which the second root-letter is a B'GaDC'PhaTh, as 'jp'l vayyebhc "and he wept," "|inM vayyichad "and he rejoiced." The full forms of these Imperfects would be i"l3T and !"I;jn* with the second root-letter hard, conse- quently in the apoc. form the hard pronunciation of the letter is retained. (j3) But the converse is not true (viz. that if a BeGaDCePh>&6 (u- 4), fiilTrnM -T| tt| t:t|t- (ii. 1). 2. (a) If the third syllable from the tone be disqualified from taking this metheg, but the fourth be not disqualified, then this fourth syllable takes the ordinary metheg, as D^Z^ft (Zech. i. 4), V^-TOXfi (Deut. xvi. 3). (R) If the fourth be also disqualified, then the fifth may take it, as rnihnrnft (Ezk. xm. 5j, n&rDia (Est- 1 18)- (y) If both the third and fifth be qualified, they will both take it, as fyfflfaNn (Numb. xxvi. 31). • •• |- : - |t (8) The fourth and fifth may also both take ordinary metheg, as t : *r . i (c) If both the third and fourth be qualified, only the third takes it, as tifysfalh (Zech. i. 14, 10). •- T | • 3, If a word ending in accentuated »— N^, '), or ft — , be joined by maqqeph to a word beginning with a consonant with sh'va and accentuated on the first syllable, the consonant bearing the said l, or t>, will take metheg: as iTdS"^ (2 Kings xii. 8), Tp"\& (Gen. xix. 12), wiwilb5) (1 Kings i. 19), TDl-IX (Numb, xviii. 17), ^HEW (1 Chron. xxviii. 9). EXCURSUS II. A. 4 a— y. 139 A. II. Fixed Metheg. Fixed metheg is so called, because nothing short of a change in the form of the word can move it from its place. Thus in rule 9 it will be seen, that Fixed metheg interferes with Ordinal'}/ metheg, but that the reverse is not the case. 4. Fixed metheg is used, (a) To distinguish a long vowel from a short one (in cases where the orthographic sign renders the case doubtful) before a con- sonant bearing a sh'va in the syllable next before the tone, and to ensure that the said sh'va be read moving. (1) To distinguish qtimag from qomoc, as H/^X ac'ldh "she t : it ate," but n~OX oc'idh "eat thou" (Gen. xxvii. 29), or "to eat" (1 Sam. i. 9). (Comp. also, with metheg Lam. i. 7, Zech. ix. 22, Deut. xv. 9, and without metheg 2 Chron. vi. 42, Ps. lxix. 19, Ex. xxxvi. 2.) *u?ftn himmcd"ti (Zech. ii. 11), TiftD^ Bafmdth not Bosmath (Gen. • : ,T • _ - : |T xxxvi. 3), tH* yad'cd, EJOin harecmh (xiv. 21). I :|t \ ;|t (2) Chiriq written defective from short chiriq, as 1fc<"V yire,u "they fear" (2 Kings xviL 28) = ItfT* (Ps. xxxiii. 8), distinguished from 5|fc$T yif-u (Ex. xvi. 32) " they see " (without metheg) ; so too JpJJf* y\shenu "they sleep" (Prov. iv. 16), but 1)32^ yishnu "they will change"; and again jSpX (Josh. xv. 31)=oHT¥ (1 Chron. xii. 1. 20), and TpD" tffim'ca (Gen. xlviii. 20). i (3) Qibbuc written defective for shuruq as VD33 (Gen. xxxi. 19), 4jSn^ (Deut. xii. 20), mrT-DiO (Zech. i. 4). (/?) To ensure a sheva being read moving after an evidently long vowel, as in ^H^ beth'cd, TTHft mhticd, IJtfT* {supra), )tfRFi tifu, JlTnJ ner-dhdh, ^l^X*) rbsh'cd, PTT^ ofchdth, ^n^N*") vayybm'ru, t :r I : i - : i : r DlGJhil Ger'shom, QW yhdHm. :i- * : i (y) When a word ends in a syllable with cere and the accent is drawn back to the preceding syllable, but it is still wished to retain 1-10 EXCURSUS II. A. 4 Note. the girl in the last syllable, a Fixed Metheg (called in this case HI/tDyn IIalamdddh, i.e. Conservative Metheg) is used, as ]%'') (Hos. xiv. 10), XV* 1 (Gen. iv. 1G). Note. Had the use of this metkey been confined to such cases it would have been of inestimable value. But unfortunately it is sometimes used with pretonic short qomog. Thus we have ^Hfty ia>nodh"ca (Obad. ver. 11), where the grammatical considera- tion that the word comes from iamod, taken with the fact that the Cod. Petrop. reads o, proves that -y is here certainly qomog not 1 qdmdg. So "0")^^ shorn'rim (Ps. xvi. 1) compared with 0*l/t2£^' ■ .. : jt - •• : t: (xxv. 20) and \3tDfi£^ (xxvi. 1), and so too p^pn haqqdfbh&n . .. . T. I T .||T_ (Ezek. xl. 43), Cod. Petrop. haqqorban. Again, Ordinary metheg (in the place third from the tone, i Rule 1) is as compatible with qomog, as with qdTnag, thus *^1p (Ezek. xliv. 13) is qdddshdy (not qaddshdy), as may be seen from the pointing of D^*7p in the same verse, and the vocaliza- • t|t; tion of Cod. Petrop., which is qodashdy. While on the other hand VfcJHfc? (which is from shoresh, as qodashdy is from qodesh) is given T T |T by Cod. Petrop. (Jer. xvii. 8, Hos. xiv. (3) as shdrdshdv, and DrP/HX (Jer- xlix- 29) as dholekdm, and even vHX (Zech. xii. 7) ... .. T. | .. T.lT as dhole, and ^t 7VS ( flab. iii. 2) as pdlolecti. With these variations of pronunciation we may compare f^^*l rush plur. E^D*fcO rdshim ; T the Ashkenazic pronunciation of qdmdg as aw or 0, and the Sephardic as a ; the pronunciation of X^V by Western Syrians as 'amo, and by Easterns as 'annua. Taking these phenomena in conjunction with the fact that both systems of vocalization use the qdmdg-sigD. with slifva to represent qomog, we come to the conclu- sion that, at the time (or times) of the stereotyping of a traditional pronunciation by the writing of vowel-signs, qdmdg and qomog were much alike in sound Thus qdmdg would appear to have had the sound, not of the a in father, nor of that in call, nor yet of the oa in coal, but rather an intermediate sound such as of tho 0 in EXCURSUS II. A. 5, 6. HI the Fr. mode, or in the Romaic yeyovoTwv yeghonoton. The qomog would represent the same sound, only short1. 5, Fixed metheg is also used to enable a long vowel to remain in a closed syllable, when it has not the tone, as ^XE^'tD/^j !3n~rV> - : : I- I t- I i» ^y-JlV/. To this place belongs that much-disputed word Q*ri5? i tD^^G- The use of metheg in this case would of itself not be sufficient to guarantee the pronunciation of the — as a (see Note on the preceding page). But, the fact that the ~y must have arisen from 'i^r as in ?X for Vtf, and pj-pj (Gen. xxxvii. 17) and jlVT (2 Kings vi. 13), would predispose one to conclude that the ~ means a. While the fact that Cod. JPetrop. distinctly reads it as qdmdg is decisive (see in Is. iii. 14, v. 9). Three important facts are to be learnt from the Cod. Petrop. punctuation of the word, (1) the T" is qdmdg, (2) the J"| is hard, (3) the ]"\ is not doubled (in other words the dagesh in it is lene), thus the word is not battim or botttm, but bdtfm (conrp. the Syr. bate). This case of an unaccentuated qdmdg before a BeGaDCcFaTh letter with dagesh lene is, I believe, unique. Another case of the use of this metheg is in fcOX o/rmd "01 pray," the Cod. Petrop. however does not double the t ir nun but reads and (Is. xxxviii. 3). [According to Codex Petropolitanus the word is mil" el in Jon. iv. 2 &nah.] 6. Fixed metheg is always placed with the vowel preceding the consonant which bears a confound sheva, whether the vowel agree with that in the compound sh"va as "iby*; or not, as pjVfi2JJ (Ps. ■ r tt;|- 1 If the student think it strange that as the Swedish a without the guttural there should be a difference of opinion element, and so is more like the English about the pronunciation of a vowel in o. The Icelandic equivalent is a, pro- Hebrew, he is reminded that we have nounced almost like ow in now. Let similar difficulties in English : thus us take a few examples showing how "cough" is by some pronounced hawf, these sounds tend at times to a, and at and by others k off; " coffee," kawfy and others to 6. Thus Germ, mahl (mal), kdffy ; "laugh," laf and luff. With re- Ice. mal (mowl), Dan. maal (mol), Swed. gard to the vowel a we will here give mat (mawl).— Ice. dr (owr), Dan. aare a few facts (kindly communicated to us (ore), Swed. ar (awr), Engl. oar. — Germ. by Mr Eirikr MagnUsson). Swedish a Thor (tor), Dan. daare (dore), Swed. is sounded like English aw but deeply dare (dawre), Ice. ddri (dowry). — Germ. guttural. The etymol. equivalent in Lohn (Ion), Dan. laan (Ion), Swed. Ian Danish is aa, which has the same sound (lawn), Ice. Ian (lown). 142 EXCURSUS II. A. 6—9 /?• xxxix. 19), D^T-^VJtDl (Job xvii. 9), comp. Gen. xxi. 6, ii. 12, • -T Tt;| xxvii. 25. Note. Sometimes we have a syllable which, according to Rule 1, would take Ordinary metheg, and, according to Rule G, would take Fixed metheg ; in such a case the Metheg is Fixed metheg, e.g. lyfryn (Gen. viii. 5), NKYTlN (xviii 21). • • *;lx t T-;|" • I • In Zech. xiii. 4 we have the anomalous formation IJlfcOiinS : it • : in which the Ordinary metheg is used in accordance with Rule 1 ; . i but the regular form ^{03/13 (ver. 3) has Fixed metheg, in accord- : \* • : ance with Rule 4. (1). In such a form as Q*pV¥ the Fixed metheg is placed in accord- ance with both 4. (3. and 6. When such a form as ^Jft^ becomes !)*7/^^* the metheg becomes the Ordinary metheg (Rule 1), or when //Vfo becomes fa^ 77V£5 t-;|- v .. . «*,_ the Ordinary metheg is placed in accordance with Rule 2. 7. All forms of the verbs htiyah " he was," and chdydh " he lived," which have f"| or H» take Fixed metheg with the preceding letter : thus nVn?> TVT\\ "and live thou" (Gen. xx. 7), so ylh'yeh (Gen. i. 29), nih'yitha (Deut. xxvii. 9), veh'yih "and be thou" (Gen. xii. 12), vlctiyu, "and live ye" (xlii. 18). 8. (a) Two Fixed metheg s may be placed on a word without any intervening vowel, as n5*1iX1 (Gen. xii. 3), 'TinSl/l (Deut. xxvi. 19). t-:|t-;|- I ; | : |- ; (/?) A Fixed metheg may be placed immediately before an i . if Ordinary metheg, as ^Dpni, D/TJ"1K7- • ii—.r ■■■ ■■ ru- 9. (a) An Ordinary metheg may precede a Fixed metheg, if at least one syllable intervene, thus niPlJ^^XV v-:|-: v |r (/3) If no syllable intervene the Ordinary metheg is omitted, thus £3v2Xn (not Itabc'lim), !)}£X^ H^aiitnd (not yh~'amr)iri). Similarly • : i t : |t- nmy-X1? (Nah. iii. 19), mxn (ZecL xi. 14), pTUST! (adv. 8), t; fr T-;|- T I -:|-T EXCURSUS II. A. 9 N.B.—B 2. H3 nW"fcO (ver- 6) ^vitli no Ordinary nietheg with the first syllable, because the next syllable has Fixed nietheg. N.B. Light metheg (Ordinary, or Fixed) may sometimes become a conjunctive accent. Hence the syllable which bears a light metheg may be called the semi-tone-sy liable. This change may take place if the word bearing the metheg has a disjunctive accent, and be immediately preceded by a word with a disjunctive accent. E.g. Di^ill (Gen. iv- 1)> comp. Zech. i. 1, 6, 7, vii. 6, 14, xii. 6, 10, xiv. 2, 21, Hos. xi. 6, Joel i. 17, ii. 2, Obad. 20, Jon. i. 4, &c. Some of the effects to this semi-tonic value of Light metheg will be seen by a reference to B. 2. (/?) and 3", and III. B. 5. B. Heavy Metheg. 1, Heavy metheg stands with the Article H (or the prefixes 2> 3> 7), when it stands before a consonant with stiva from which the dagesh forte has been omitted : e. g. J"lT?*i5n (Gen. xxxviii. 28) : and that '1 1 even before a Fixed metheg, as £j*iVftbn (Mic. iii. 9), tWfi&PDTl • -.\- : r ■ :it : r (1 Chr. xxvii. 1). Exceptions, (a) When the said initial consonant of the word is *, then metheg does not stand with the ,""| of the deft, art., as Dnitfn (Ex. viii. i). 1 _ (/3) Nor on the syllable immediately before the tone, as tO^DH (Numb. xxxv. 8). (y) Immediately after ordinary metheg, heavy metheg can- not stand, e.g. ^HfcJ^rrfcO (2 Kings ix. 11 in correct copies), where J"] has no heavy metheg because it is immediately preceded by the ordinary metheg, which stands in accordance with A. 1. 2. (a), 2, Heavy metheg is placed, as a rule, with ,"-} interrogative (when pointed with full pathach). It is (in the prose books) usually to the 144 EXCURSUS II. B. % 3. right, instead of the left of the vowel (chiefly for the purpose of dis- tinguishing the interrogative he from the definite article). Thus flMfifl (Gen. xviii. 17), 4y^ (Ex. ii. 7). ... _ . _, iv .. -, Exceptions. This meiheg is not placed (a) when the letter after the H is \ e. g. dpyTn (Gen. xxix. 5). (/3) Nor on the syllable immediately preceding the tone, or the semi-tone (see A. II. 9, N.B.), e.g. h^H (Gen. xviii. 24), DWijPn (Ps. Ixxvii. 8). N.B. In JlftXH (Gen. xlii. 16) the meiheg is of course Fixed metheg (A. G). (y) Nor if a dagesh be put in the letter which follows H» as fifipyXSM (Gen. xviii. 21), Hfc'*/! (Lev. x. 19) ; comp. Numb. xiii. 19, 20, Is. xxvii. 7, Job xxiii. 5; or, as it is sometimes, even in -|, as DHWn (1 Sam. x. 24, 2 Kings vi. 32). 3 — 4. Cases dependent on the Presence of a Disjunctive Accent. 3. If a word have a disjunctive accent, and the tone-syllable begin with a consonant bearing moving sh'va, and the third syllable from the tone contain a, e, t, u or !) " and " followed by a consonant with sh'va, ex- pressed or understood (see Excurs. I. 1 and 4. /3), then this vowel third from the tone will take Heavy metheg : e.g. W£^*1 (Gen. iii. 8), nflPlu?V '::•!- - -:r f- (Lev. vi. 14). Exception. If the pre-tonic syllable have a long vowel with Fixed metheg (according to A. 4. a (1), or f3 (1)), and is not followed by a consonant with a compound shera, then the said short third vowel from the tone does not take metheg; e.g. *Tp,3£/D (Ex. vii. 28), m\iv) (Gen. xi. 3), MJimS ^ev. xix. 5). : i - w : | : • If this long vowel be o, then even when it is followed by a consonant with compound sli'va, the said third vowel from the tone does not take meiheg, as fihxtrn (Gen, xxiv. 11), T]Xb"*iy (xix. 22). EXCURSUS II B. 3—4". 145 But if, in this last case, the compound sh'va be under the first of two like consonants, then the original rule holds good, as WXfirfl (Hab. iii. 6). -: | : I — 3a. Since the Light metheg has a certain accent value (see A. 9, N.B.), if the word have a d injunctive accent, and the third syllable from the one bearing light metheg conform with all the above conditions, it wil1 take Heavy metheg, e. g. ♦ WTVQ^'nftft (Is- iv- 9)- Comp. Ps. xviii. 45, |v •• i : : - i- 2 Kings v. 18. N.B. Of course all the conditions must be fulfilled or the metheg will not be placed in the case of 3 and 3a. Thus, if the word have a conjunctive accent, or if the tone (or semi-tone) syllable do not begin with a moving sheva, or if the third syllable therefrom do not contain a, e, i, it, or u " and," the Heavy metheg is not placed. 4. If a word with a disjunctive accent, have in the pre-tonic syllable a or e, and the third syllable before the tone-syllable have e, % u, or !) " and " followed by sh'va expressed or understood, this last men- tioned syllable will take Heavy metheg: e.g. ]"l33nn£n (Gen. iii. 24), X^rtmp, (iv- 16). "pTpra (Job xxvi. 4), tjDJ-njB^ (Gen. xliii. 15), B^-TlD5! (Is- xlv. 14), DOglS-^K (Obad. ver. 20). See further under C. 3. N.B. As in 3 and 3a, all three conditions must be simul- taneously observed or the Heavy metheg will not be placed. Exception. Although miqrd'-qudesh has a, not a, in the pre- tonic syllable, it always takes Heavy metheg, when accentuated with Pashta, e.g. BHprtfTpO (Lev. xxiii. 21, 27). 4a. If, in words which would otherwise come under rules 3 or 4, the syllable fourth from the tone-syllable take Ordinary Light metheg (in accordance with A. 2. a) then the Heavy metheg is dropped from the following syllable, e.g. JTjTW^^Gen. xxiv. 48), nJ?3XflN\ (Neh. i- 4), \X\m\ (Deut. iii. 23). z. 10 146 EXCURSUS II. B. 5—8. 5. With a (injunctive accent the words ^V^lT d2V")T take heavy metheg under the f, e.g. TftHT (Gen. iii. 15), tD^JHT (Lev. xxvi. 16). — But not with a conjunctive accent, e.g. ^ly^TI (Gen. xvii. 9). Or if the woi'd have such a prefix as will take Heavy metheg (according to mile 3) then the J takes none, e.g. TjyiT'Tl&'S (xxvi. 4). 6. The word Wl if accentuated with Pashtd, or if joined to the next word by maqqeph, or *FH if joined to the next word by maqqeph, takes Heavy metheg under the ), thus Vp*] (Gen. iv. 8), V?~\T^ (xii. 15), nvh*m (v. 6). 7. (a) If the Imperf. singl. Qal of a regular verb be joined to the next word by maqqeph, and the o of the last syllable be changed into o, then the first syllable of the Imperf. takes Heavy metheg, as O^'/tOp* (Job xxiv. 14); comp. Is. xlii. 1, Ps. cxxi. 8, Prov. iv. 4, Job iii. 5, Zech. ix. 2, 3. But the rule is not always observed, e.g. Gen. iii. 16, iv. 7, xli. 12 (ed. Baer). (/3) The rule holds good also with the Infin., with prefix 7, as 72S"*l3t^7 (Gen. xliii. 22) ; but neither is it consistently observed in T : '* this case, comp. Joel ii. 17. (y) When the long 0 is retained, it takes, of course, Fixed metheg (A. 5) and there is no Heavy metheg, as JYT'TViri (Mia vi. 15). [N.B. The metheg of ; p^nrifc/Tl of that verse is in accordance I-|t v ; |- with B. 4.] Note. A few words take an anomalous metheg, e.g. Meyishmdl,el (Gen. xvii. 20), mhi-hassddeh (xxx. 16), 'al-hammizb(f'ch (Ex. xxix. 21), eth-yisrd'zl (Numb. xxi. 23), eth-hd'dy (Josh. x. 1), el-hassddch (2 Kings iv. 39), niiccol-ltamm'qomoth (Ezr. i. 4), umigddlim (2 Chron. xiv. 6), all accentuated with Zarqd ; comp. min-haggoyim (Ps. cvi. 47) with 'olehifyored (Baer). Heavy Metheg with Sh"va. 8. If a word begin with a consonant hearing simple stiva, and be accentuated with Gershayim ("), or Pazer (v), without a conjunctive accent immediately preceding, and there be at least two vowels between the 1 and the tour syllable, then, it' the firsi syllable have not already EXCURSUS II. B. 8— C. 1. 147 Ordinary light metheg the ) will take Heavy nietheg, e.g. CD*Vfi~nNl (Gen. x. 14), D^TT^M (Deut- ix- 10)- • t : - t i: But in Jer. xxxv. 1 the ve of vecol-chelo does not take Heavy metheg, because the preceding word is accentuated with munaeh, comp. Ezek. xx. 40. And the ve of Vamarta (Ezek. xvi. 3) does not take Heavy metheg, because the 'd has already ordinary nietheg. 9. This sh'va-ga'yd1 also stands on words beginning with a eon- sonant with simple sheva, (a) when accentuated with Dargd (~) as a duplicate conjunctive before Rebiai (— ) as )^T\H DH W,U?& (Gen. j r •• i: xxxiv. 21); ((3) with Qadmd (JL) as duplicate conjunctive before Pashm (JL) or Tblr (t) as JVIK HXti T&n) (Numb. vi. 19), flfft) \i2ty tin? (Ex. xxix. 23) ; (y) with Munaeh (~r) as triplicate con- junctive before T'l'tshd gedoldh (J!_ on the first letter), or T'l'tshd cftannali (JL on the last letter) e.g. *{? TVTO M IT}J"D (Deut. xxv. 19), I I j i -j- t i: ♦s& mnr^K rtafta nfcnpi (Jer. xxxvi. 6). N.B. In all these cases given in' 9 there must be at least one vowel between the sheva and the tone-syllable : also the syllable beginning with the consonant with sh'va must not carry the Ordinary Light-metheg, or the shera- ga'ya will fall away, e.g. Deut. xxiv. 9; but the Fixed Light-metheg does not prevent the presence of sh'va-ga'yd, e.g. Numb. iv. 14. c. Orthophonic Metheg. 1. (a) If a word, accentuated with a conjunctive accent, end in paihach 'Ayin and be mffl'el, or end in ' Ay in with furtive-pathach and be milelra, and the following syllable be accentuated, then the final y takes orthophonic metheg, to prevent its being slurred over in pro- nunciation: as &$Hh «S» (Prov. xx. 25), *S Vb^'S (Lev. xxvi. 21). (/?) Or, if a word ending in pathach 'Ayin be joined by maqqeph to a word beginning with 'Ayin, as jl^b^-y^fi (Gen. xi. 25). 1 There are several additional rules system of accentuation is different) ; but for placing sh'va-ga'yd in the books of they need not be mentioned here. Job, Proverbs and Psalms (in which the 148 EXCURSUS II. C. 2—4. 2, If a word, accentuated with a conjunctive accent, end in (a) pathach and a guttural, or (/3) pathach and resh, or (y) in ilh, and be ?uile'el ; or (8) end in a guttural with furtive pathach and be mileira ; then, if the second word begins with a similar (not necessarily a like) letter, the final letter of the first word will take orthophonic metheg : as (a) D^S^H f"Q? (Lev. iv. 26), (/?) HD Ttt (Hob. iv. 19), (y) SIX n^S (Gen. xxviii. 2), (8) &D11 $T^ (xUv. 2). T-: | tj'.- I - |-j • : 3, If a word ending in a guttural preceded by pathach be joined by maqqeph to the next word in such a way as to come under Rule B. 4, then in addition to the Heavy metheg, the guttural will take orthophonic metheg: as ^"HM (Gen. xxxiv. 1G), Vtf320 (x*iv. 7). at i |-|- * - : f 4, Orthophonic metheg is sometimes used with a pre-tonic short vowel, to ensure the sheva, which follows, being read moving either (a) regularly, or (/?) irregularly, or (y) in a pronunciation altogether anoma- lous; e.g. (a) T*|£>5$ (in some Codd. even ,tal^X) ash' rf, *,3^D slb/ifce ... |- ..,. ,_ .. . ,. (Is. x. 34), fihlV 'dr"bh6th (Numb. xxxi. 12), flU^n char'bhoth (Josh. ■■r : i- v. 2), !£$!& mlsh'cti (Ex. xii. 21), HDH chas'dhe, *5*H dar'cM (Is. lxiii. 7, Jer. xii. 1G), SfcOIK ar'bhel (Hos. x. 14), H^JTl vayyilh-yd- tdhii (Numb. i. 18), fey] rUh'phu (Ps. lxxi. 11).— (p) |^W 'dti'vtin (Gen. xxxvi. 23), HpW 'dfo;aA (ver. 40), VlTlB^H hteh'chtthu, "lOTMH hUheiibhu (Ps. xiv. 1), pTllil hlr'chiq (ciii. 2), ^IPQ^ eb'chdr (Job I • : 1- - : |v xxix. 25, cp. Ps. lxv. 5, lxviii. 24, Prov. xxx. 17, Job xxxix. 18), XKHfi tadh'she' (Gen. i. 11) [HD^ Stbh'indh, Numb, xxxii. 38, Is. xvi. 8, 9 : this word ought, perhaps, rather to come under the rule A. 4, a. 2], JTD^S Ushec6th.—(y) p{fl!h& &hb,i*shfah (Ex. xxviii. 22) for : I" : r rhCSht? (ver. 14), nbhD Sdl'cah (Dent. iii. 10), l'5l5 cddh'codh : :- T : |- :|- (Is. liv. 12). Note. — In the instances given under (/?) the meting seems to perform the duty of the so-called dagesh dirimens, as in i^S^'H hacqrphin6, or hag'pMno (Ex. ii. 3), C^*lp/!3 niiqq'ddsh, or miq'ddsh (xv. 17). It would 1)0 perhaps better to call ii Ictrrophotlic metheg. EXCURSUS III. A. 1—3. 149 EXCURSUS III. Daqesh in the First Letter of a Word. A. BeGaDCePhaTh Letters. 1. If a word beginning with a B"GaDCcPhaTh letter be preceded by a word ending in a non-quiescent consonant, tlie BcGaDC"PhaTh letter takes dageshlene, as ^fj t*W. Exceptions. To this rule there are only three exceptions, viz. Q3 ^""IX (Ps. lxviii. 18), where, perhaps, the word is exceptionally pronounced Aclonai, instead of Adontiy ; ^f\T\~\\) (Is. xxxiv. 11) where the word is, perhaps, pronounced qau (cow), not qav ; and Hi ) 7$ (Ezek. xxiii. 42) where the word is, perhaps, pronounced T "X shaleu not shdlev. 2. But if a word beginning with a B'GaDCePhaTh letter be pre- ceded by a word ending in a long vowel, or quiescent letter, and bear- ing a conjunctive accent, the BeGaDC" PhaTh letter is r*phuy&h (with- out dagesh), thus (Hos. ii. 5) TTflM fTJWl, (iv. 4) ft-ft ^£3. Exceptions. If the second word begin with 32> ^35 £5, 33, or 23, the 2 or 3 takes dagesh lene, as (Jud. i. 14) flXIM \1^, comp. Gen. xlvi. 27, Is. lix. 21, Josh. viii. 24. But if the first of these letters have a full vowel, rule 2 still holds good, thus mi&n *jrD (1 Kings xiii. 33). T J" N.B. Rule A. 2 gives way before B. 4 (a), except in the cases of the prefixes 3 an(l D j it also yields to B. 4 (/3), and B. 4 (y) EXCEPTIONS. 3. (a) Also if such a word be preceded by a word ending in a long vowel, or quiescent letter, and bearing a disjunctive accent, the initial 150 EXCURSUS III. A. 3—2?. 4. Ji'UaDt ' PliuTh letter still takes dagesh lene, as IJS'CTl iinXI (Wen. iii. 15). (/3) Or if the accent be conjunctive, but P'siq be placed between the two words, as J")3 1 !)*7"|!) (Amos vi. 2, cf. viii. 9, &c). B. Dagesh Conjunctionis. 1, If a word ending in n~ be joined by maqqeph to a word accen- tuated on the first syllable, the first letter of the latter word takes dagesh conjunctionis, as (Hos. vi. 4) Tjy"nb,^X) (viii- 7) ftfcp'H&y > (2 Sam, vii. 13) Mja-njy, (Prov. xv. 1)'^-^^- 2, When |"|| or J"|J£ is prefixed to a word by maqqeph, the first letter of the word takes dagesh conjunctionis, wherever the accent may fall, as nxrntt (Gen. xii. 18), fcnfrTti? (xxviii. 16), nat^-nr) (1 Chr. xxii. 1). 3, If a word end in ft..., and its last syllable begin with a consonant T bearing moving sh'va and it be joined by maqqeph to a word accentuated on the first syllable, the first letter of the second word takes dagesh conjunctionis, as '•pTlPfiTX (Jon- "• 10)j TwSTTXi^ (2 Kings vii. 1), 'h-rWJiti (Ezek. xvii. 6). N.B. But if the last syllable do not begin with a consonant bearing moving sh'va, there is no dagesh conjunctionis, e.g. """OS1) TH (Mai. iii. 1), WTri^l (Ps- cxvi- 18)- Neither is there after an Infin. or Import. Qal with final he, e.g. iQT!p2,77:) (Deut. xi. 22), J?-nyp& (Job xxxii. 10). 4, The first letter of a word accentuated on the first syllable takes dagesh conjunctionis under the following conditions : (a) If it be preceded by a word ending in — , ft— or ft~, accentuated with a conjunctive accent on the penultimate, provided the pen ultimate be the proper tone-syllable of the word, as flXT JY^ EXCURSUS III. B. 4, 5. 151 (Gen. iii. 14), J£g? fllttl (xlvi. 1), &&[ H^gS (Ear. ix. 6), ^ nks* (Gen. xxxiii. 5), )£& F\bW) (Neh. ix. 7)." Exceptions. The prefixes /!D' "D with simple slifva do not take this dagesh, e.g. Q^l W)ST. (Ex> xxxiiil 12>' &?*? 0"^ (Deut. xxvii. 9). But 'TJ7 always takes this dagesh, thus t[j5 Ha/H (Gen. xv iii. 25) : and after the analogy of lecd we have in Ps. xix. 3 (/?) If the accent of the former word be drawn back to the penultimate, which would otherwise have had Fixed metheg (in ac- cordance with Excurs. n. A. 4), as p TT\y (Gen. xix. 38), )j?-f]$y>} >■• t;jt t t ; r (Ps. lxxxiii. 13). (y) But if the accent thus drawn back be on a syllable which could not take metheg, no dagesh conjunctionis is used, as ^D TF\\& V iT (Ezek. xvii. 8), *^j fllH (Gen. iv. 6). I T TJT Exceptions. Imperfects and Participles of verbs quiescent n"7 are an exception to (y), thus *\p& JTlifi!) (Hab. ii. 18), jn rrpjj* (Prov. xi. 21), ns h^'j; (GeQ.\ n> (8) If it be joined by maqqeph to a preceding word ending in n~r~ or H~ with metheg on the preceding syllable (in accordance with Excurs. ii. A. 1, note) as ^"llT (Gen. xxi. 3), ^"fDp (Numb. xx. 11), fWflta (2 Chron. ii. 3), nS-J*fy (Gen. i. 12). 5. Rule 4 (a) holds good when the second word has not the tone, but merely the semi-tone (see Excurs. II. A. 9, N.B.) on the first syllable, as ms r\m (Gen. XXiX. 31), vrhD nwi (Ex- xxvii- 3)> MP n^« ;||T T JT T |- T <• J t.,- ... a.. (Is. xliv. 21). Exception. But a B'GaDC'PhaTh letter does not take dagesh in these circumstances, thus JlH^iri n?8 (Gen. ii. 4), ?]%& 152 EXCURSUS III. B. 5— C. 2. nityh (xxiv. 31), d-T^5 nSy3 (Ps. xliv. 2). [Except two, -:i- ••• •• i- t ; ,—r e&sa rd&s (Ex. xv. 11), dSiybn nwn (Job vm. 29).] N.B. From the foregoing rules it will be understood that if the latter of two words have neither the tone nor semi-tone on the first syllable, or if the former end in any open syllable except a, alt, or eh, 1 _ then the dagesh conjunction^ is not used, e.g. TH3 n^*^ (Numb. xxiii. 11), xS3 fifety (Ezek. xv. 11), ^ ^^'(ver. 21), }5 *JWtf (Neh. v. 15). 6. But, if the first word be mil'el and end in u, and the next word begin with a sibilant or liquid, and an accentuated syllable, dagesh conjunction^ is used, as !)X¥ ^'lp (Gen. xix. 14), tOVS ^IvTH (Hos. viii. 10). Also )y and fc$7 take dagesh after ^H^X*1) in Gen. xix. 2, Judg. xviii. 19, 1 Sam. viii. 19, Esth. \-i. 13. Delitzsch1 gives 17 exceptions to the above rules, confirmed by the Massoreth, viz. Ex. xv. 1, 21, xv. 11, 13, lfi, Deut. xxxii. 6, 15, Is. liv. 12, Jer. xx. 9, Ps. lxxvii. 16, xciv. 12, cxviii. 5, 18, Job v. 27, Dan. iii. 2, 3, v. 11. C. Orlhophonic Dagesh. 1, When a word ending with a liquid, is joined by maqqeph or a conjunctive accent to a word beginning with the same liquid, the initial liquid of the latter word should take orthophonic dagesh, as L^H^TtDX (Gen. xiv. 23), n1?"^ (xxxiv. 3), ftf-p (Ex. xxxiii. 11), \£fa CP^I (Lev. v. 2), hl& byn) (Ezr. vi. 5). 2. (a) When y? ^ come together (as Gen. xxxviii. 9, Hab. i. 6, ii. 6, Prov. xxv. 17), or fc$7 p (as Deut. xxxii. 5), X7 takes dagesh. (/?) Whenever ^ftX v is preceded by the word jlt^b witn a conjunctive accent, the 7 takes dagesh (e.g. Ex. vi. 10, 29, xiii. 1, xiv. 1). 1 This Excursus is (with a few modi- gessationc, in his Preface to Baer's edi- fications) merely an epitome of Delitzsch tion of the Text of Proverbs. j><> primarum vocabulomm literarum da- EXCURSUS IV. 1. 153 EXCURSUS IV. Some of the uses of Siman Rapheh. Siman rapheh (a small horizontal line placed over a letter to show that it has no dagesh) is abundantly used in some MSS. and Edd., and in others hardly at all. In none is it used uniformly. 1. It is used to indicate the intentional omission of a grammatical dagesh foete, (a) after the clef, art as D*|p\1 (Gen. vii. 4) — but Baer omits it in ver. 23 — to show that the yud is not dageshed as it is in nXIJTn (Is- *iy- 26): so t0° frequently with ft, as Hp^bH (Is. xxiii. 12), 05? (Ixv. 11).— (Ji) After he interrog. as Q^PDTn (Amos v. 25). — (y) After min as ,1¥p/b (Gen. xlvii. 21), comp. vi. 16, xxv. 23. — (8) In the middle of Pi'elistic (or dageshed) forms, as 1XJp<,1 (Gen. xxvi. 14), DH$ (Is. xlii. 16), so Wpi (Hos. vii. 10), but l^pll (v. 15), JTPpftn from maqqU, but on the contrary ifc$D3ft (Jon. iii. 6), comp. Is. xiv. 10, &c, from cisse\ — (e) With other dageshed forms such as finpifl (Gen. xviii. 5), !|prH (Job xix. 24), J|XJ-|fl (Is. xxii. 10); HJftXfi for te'dmdn-nah (Is. lx. 4), HX^ft^ (Amos v. 11), and Itf^l (Jon. i. 15). — (£) To avoid the doubling of a letter before an anomalous dagesh lene as "D^lfc^ft (Jon. iv. 11), comp. Zech. iv. 12. — [rj) To show, in cases where a quiescent yud or aleph is omitted after segol, that the following letter is not to be doubled, as HJ 7^fi (J°D xvii. 5), comp. Mic. iii. 12, Zech. i. 17, v. 9. — (0) To mark the omission of the dagesh forte in the objective suffix ecd, as "THV (Is. xxxviii. 19), comp. lviii. 8, Job v. 19, Obad. ver. 3, Pro v. iii. 3, xxix. 17. z. 11 154 EXCURSUS IV. 2, 3. 2. Siman Rapheh is also used : (a) to mark the anomalous omission of dagesh lene after a quiescent shcva, as Tj^331' (Gen. xxxii. 18), SrOSy (xlviii. 13), "Mp* yiq-bheca (Deut, xv. 4), but xvi. 13 without the siman rapheh, and so too )"\)j} big-dho (Hag. ii. 12, Prov. xx. 16), but XJ~n^Jli neg-dhah-nd (Ps. cxvi. 18), where the omission of dagesh T T ; V conjunct, in the nun shows that in such cases the sheva is quiescent (see in. B. 3, KB.), D,^Dta],p mar-bhaddim (Prov. vii. 1G, xxxi. 22). — (/3) Or after a moving sheva as fiJPDi see also examples in n. C. 4. — (y) To emphasize the correct omission of a dagesh lene, as "HDIl (Is- lv. 3), as contrasted with the anomalous ^D!"l (which in our present texts is found in Lam. iii. 22, 2 Chron. vi. 42), comp. Gen. xix. 33, Ps. xviii. 13, xlv. 9, Ixxvi. 4, ^ffh (ex. 3), ^Sft (Job iv. 13), VnhLTp (Is- v. 28), qashHhothdv (see close of Excurs. II.), not qashtothdv, ''Jt/'^n (xvii. 11). 3. Siman Rapheh is often used (a) to show that the letter after shilrfiq written defective ('■■) is not to be doubled, as ^7X (Gen. xxiv. 39), J-I^p (xx. 3), niJj; (xviii. 1G), p£fc (Job xi. 15); comp. Is. xv. 4, xlix. 20, Mic. iv. 3, Zech. i. 13, Gen. xxxi. 2G, &c. ; WHft (Is. xxi. 10), D^n (Gen. xlvi. 22), and so often to distinguish between roots of the form of CfiD and 2^D J such is the case also in IDt? I T (Ps. xliv. 11), fjbfo 0X- 4). Gr> to prevent the doubling of a letter after chvnq written defective, as JTSJD (Is- xvii. G), *fc?£)Vl (Zech. vii. 3). (/3) To distinguish between conjugations, as fi5*1 (Gen. vii. 23) to show that it is Qal, not Niphal, ))£2p (Joel ii- 16), Ih^fc? (Gen. xlii. 1G), IpTPl (Is. xxxv. 1) as being Impert. Qal, not Perf. Pi'el. (y) To distinguish between like words, e.g. fOX X ' ' T JT "whither" (Zech. xvi. 8) and even HJK d^- exxxix. 7) as differ EXCURSUS IV. 3—5. 155 ing from fcOtf, " I pray " ; between Ho? riiil'ra, and fife/ mil' el "why"; to distinguish *JJH3 (Ps. xxvi. 2) as being from lit. bdchdn, • •• t : and not the infin. of chan&n ; the subst. nV/btf amcdh (Zech. xii. 5) from the Imperative Pi'el ; ft 7Jft (Job xv. 29) to show that ft is not t ; • the prep. fft; ^JV (Hos. viii. 10) to show that the root is not ndthdn. (8) To prevent the involuntary doubling of a consonant after an accen- tuated short vowel, as ^fiftPl (Job vii. 14); Zech. xiii. 5, Ps. xxx. 4, xxxi. 9, cxxxix. 1, Job ix. 19, xli. 3; ## (ver. 8), *&$ (Is. li. 13), nlilp (Gen. xli. 21); ^H]p\ "thy dove" (Ps. lxxiv. 19) as dis- tinguished from *?ni£l "she will teach thee"; or even after a long vowel as J"0n^ (xxxi. 6). — In Gen. i. 6 D*/J7 to show that the T •• T qamdg is merely euphonic. 4. Siman Rapheh is also used with final he, (a) to show that though soft it is equivalent to |TJ as jTJUl (1-315? (Numb. xv. 31) ; (/?) to show t t -; that the lie is really quiescent (and not equivalent to JT|) Zech. iv. 7, or to show that it is equivalent to frj, Zech. ix. 8. Comp. Is. xviii. 5, xxi. 3, xxii. 17, 18, xxx. 32, lxv. 18, Job xxxi. 22, xxxix. 13, Hos. ii. 13, ix. 10, Amos i. 11, Hab. iii. 11, Zeph. ii. 14, Prov. xii. 28, xxi. 22, &c. 5. To indicate that the initial letter of a word is purposely without dagesh, and that the rules given in Excurs. in. have not been over- looked. From the foregoing examples it will be seen that (as in the case of metlieg, and the sign for qamag) the utility of Siman rapheh is much impaired by its being used for diametrically opposite purposes. CAMBRIDGE: PRINTED BY C. -I. CLAY, 31. A. & SON, AT THE UNIVERSITY PRESS. Date Due ^ JA28'53 *ftfr 1-1995- : ttHffl IIP