What Be These? - Zechariah 1:19

In the book of Zechariah, Zechariah shared how he saw another part of his vision where he said, “then lifted I up my eyes, and saw, and behold four horns”, and in chapter one and verse nineteen of Zechariah, Zechariah asked, “what be these?”where we read,

And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What be these? 

And he answered me, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.

The verse reads, “And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What be these?” Zechariah began with the words, “and I said unto the angel” or “and I, Zechariah, uttered, declared, proclaimed and asked the spiritual messenger and envoy” “that talked with me” which means “who spoke, conversed, and made declarations with me, Zechariah”, “what be these”or “whatsoever are the four horns which Zechariah observed”? Zechariah shared how he asked to the spiritual envoy who spoke to him what the “four horns” he observed were. 

The verse goes on to say, “And he answered me, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”. Zechariah continued with the words, “and he answered me” or “and he, the spiritual envoy and messenger, began to speak and responded”, “these are the horns” which means “the four horns which Zechariah saw existed as the appendages and powers” “which have scattered Judah” or “who cast away, winnowed, spread and dispersed Judah whose name means praised and was the kingdom comprised of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin which occupied the southern part of Canaan after the nation split upon the death of Solomon”, “Israel” whose name means “God prevails” and is “the name of the descendants and the nation of the descendants of Jacob”, “and Jerusalem” whose name means “teaching of peace” and is “the chief city of Palestine and capital of the united kingdom and the nation of Judah after the split”. Zechariah shared how the “angel” responded to his question by declaring the “four horns” to be the “horns or powers” who dispersed the nations of “Judah and Israel” and the city of “Jerusalem”.

When we consider the words in this verse, we learn that Zechariah questioned what the “four horns” were that he beheld, and the “angel” responded that they were the “powers” or “entities” who dispersed the nations of “Israel” and “Judah”as well as the city of “Jerusalem”. God gave these entities their power and ability to rule over “Israel, Judah and Jerusalem” for a time, but He would rescue them soon. God loves people, and He knows they are ruled by their sins and the promoters of them. He sent His Son Jesus to conquer “sin, death, hell and the grave” by dying on the cross for the sins of all mankind. When we believe and trust in Him as our personal “Savior and Lord”, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and show us how He is in control even when it appears that others are ruling over us. (See Revelation1:18)

Next time Zechariah said the LORD, “showed me four carpenters”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".