Zechariah 1

Zechariah · Chapter 1

Zechariah 1:10

1In the eighth month, 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,2The LORD hath been sore displeased with your fathers.3Therefore 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.4Be 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.5Your fathers, where are they? and the prophets, do they live for ever?6But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not take hold of your fathers? and they returned and said, Like as the LORD of hosts thought to do unto us, according to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath he dealt with us.7Upon 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,8I 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 behind him were there red horses, speckled, and white.9Then 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.10And the man that stood among the myrtle trees answered and said, These are they whom the LORD hath sent to walk to and fro through the earth.11And they answered the angel of the LORD that stood among the myrtle trees, and said, We have walked to and fro through the earth, and, behold, all the earth sitteth still, and is at rest.12Then 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 threescore and ten years?13And the LORD answered the angel that talked with me with good words and comfortable words.14So the angel that communed with me said unto me, Cry thou, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy.15And I am very sore displeased with the heathen that are at ease: for I was but a little displeased, and they helped forward the affliction.16Therefore thus saith the LORD; 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.17Cry 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.18Then lifted I up mine eyes, and saw, and behold four horns.19And 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.20And the LORD shewed me four carpenters.21Then said I, What come these to do? And he spake, saying, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, so that 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.

King James Version (1769)

Other translations

VerseKJVBSBASV
10And the man that stood among the myrtle trees answered and said, These are they whom the LORD hath sent to walk to and fro through the earth.Then the man standing among the myrtle trees explained, “They are the ones the LORD has sent to patrol the earth.”And the man that stood among the myrtle-trees answered and said, These are they whom Jehovah hath sent to walk to and fro through the earth.

In context

AI-assisted, sourced

In his first night vision, Zechariah asks what the horses and riders are. The man standing among the myrtle trees answers that they are the ones the LORD has sent to walk to and fro through the earth. In the next verse they report back that all the earth sits still and is at rest. Zechariah 1:8Zechariah 1:9Zechariah 1:10Zechariah 1:11

SpeakingThe man riding the red horse who stood among the myrtle trees. Verse 11 calls the one standing among the myrtle trees "the angel of the LORD." Zechariah 1:8Zechariah 1:10Zechariah 1:11

ToZechariah the prophet, who had just asked, "O my lord, what are these?" Zechariah 1:1Zechariah 1:9

Also involvedThe riders on red, speckled and white horses, sent by the LORD to go through the earth. Their report leads to a plea for mercy on Jerusalem and the cities of Judah. Zechariah 1:8Zechariah 1:11Zechariah 1:12

The verse explains part of the vision: the horsemen are ones the LORD has sent to go through the earth. They report that the earth is quiet and at rest, and that report leads to the plea for mercy on Jerusalem. Zechariah 1:10Zechariah 1:11Zechariah 1:12Strong's H7971G

In the vision the man stands among myrtle trees "that were in the bottom." Zechariah himself was among the returned exiles in Jerusalem. Zechariah 1:8Strong's H1918Zechariah overview

JUDAHMediterranean SeaJerusalemTyreSidonDamascusHamath 1GazaAshdodMegiddo

The eventsThe vision came by night on the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, Sebat, in the second year of Darius king of Persia, about 520 BC. Zechariah 1:7Zechariah 1:8Zechariah overview

WrittenTraditional: written by Zechariah, with dated messages from about 520 to 518 BC. Scholarly: most scholars agree that chapters 1-8, including this vision, come from Zechariah in 520-518 BC. Zechariah overview

HereThe riders' report that the earth is quiet and at rest sets up the question of "how long" Jerusalem must wait for mercy after seventy years. The LORD then answers that he is jealous for Jerusalem and has returned to it with mercies. Zechariah 1:11Zechariah 1:12Zechariah 1:14Zechariah 1:16

In the whole of ScriptureThis opens the eight night visions given to the returned exiles, whose book urges them to turn to the LORD and finish rebuilding the temple. Later in the visions, "the four spirits of the heavens" likewise go forth from standing before "the LORD of all the earth." Zechariah overviewZechariah 6:5Zechariah 6:8

For readersThe LORD sends his servants through the whole earth and knows how the nations stand, even while his people ask "how long." Hebrews 1:14 likewise speaks of angels as "ministering spirits, sent forth" for those who shall be heirs of salvation. Zechariah 1:10Zechariah 1:11Zechariah 1:12Hebrews 1:14

Christians read this differently

The text links the man among the myrtle trees with "the angel of the LORD," who prays to the LORD of hosts for Jerusalem, but no cited Scripture says more about who he is. Some Christians read this angel as a created angel serving God. Others read the angel of the LORD as an appearance of the Son of God before his birth. Zechariah 1:8Zechariah 1:10Zechariah 1:11Zechariah 1:12

  • sentשָׁלַח
    Hebrew · sha.lach · H7971G

    The word means to send, send forth or send away. The riders do not roam on their own; the LORD sent them. Strong's H7971GZechariah 1:10

  • walk to and froהוּךְ
    Hebrew · hukh · H1980I

    Glossed "to go, come, walk," here "to go about." The English picture of going to and fro in the earth also appears in Job 1:7 and 2:2, but here the going about is a task given by the LORD. Strong's H1980IJob 1:7Job 2:2Zechariah 1:10

  • earthאֶ֫רֶץ
    Hebrew · e.rets · H0776G

    The word can mean the whole earth or a single land. Verse 11's "all the earth sitteth still" and verse 15's "heathen that are at ease" show the report concerns the nations, not only Judah. Strong's H0776GZechariah 1:11Zechariah 1:15

Takeaway

Zechariah 1:10 tells the prophet that the horsemen are sent by the LORD to go through the whole earth. Their report opens the way for God's promise of mercy to Jerusalem. Zechariah 1:10Zechariah 1:11Zechariah 1:16Zechariah 1:17

Drafted by AI from the Scripture and data shown under “Show sources,” then checked automatically and by a second AI pass. Updated 2026-10-28.

The world around the text

Behind this verse

Riders on patrol
The Persian kings kept mounted messengers stationed along their roads. Herodotus says nothing mortal travels faster. Zechariah sees horsemen sent "to walk to and fro through the earth." Zechariah 1:8-11Zechariah 6:7Herodotus, Histories 8.98

About 520-518 BC. King of Persia: Darius I (522-486 BC). Where Zechariah prophesied. A small, poor community was rebuilding the temple among the ruins of the city Babylon had burned.

Who ruled
  • King of PersiaDarius I522-486 BC

    Zechariah dates his messages by the years of Darius. Darius confirmed Cyrus's decree and ordered the temple work to go on at royal expense. Zechariah 1:1Zechariah 7:1Ezra 6:1-12Haggai 1:1Behistun Inscription

  • Governor of JudahZerubbabelc. 520 BC

    A descendant of David who led the rebuilding. "The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it." Zechariah 4:6-10Haggai 1:1Ezra 3:8

  • High priestJoshua the high priestc. 520 BC

    Called Jeshua in Ezra. He stands in Zechariah's vision clothed in filthy garments, which are taken away, and later receives crowns as a sign. Zechariah 3:1-10Zechariah 6:11Haggai 1:1Ezra 3:2

  • Persian governor "on this side the river"Tattenaic. 520 BC

    The governor of the province west of the Euphrates. He asked who had allowed the building, wrote to Darius, and was told to let the work go on. Ezra 5:3-6Ezra 6:6-13

What was happening, 539 BC to 332 BC
  1. 539 BC
    WarBabylon falls to Cyrus

    Cyrus king of Persia took Babylon, ending the empire that had destroyed Jerusalem. Daniel 5:30-31Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)Cyrus Cylinder

  2. 538 BC
    God's peopleThe first return

    Cyrus let the exiles go home to build the LORD's house. About fifty thousand returned with Zerubbabel and Jeshua. Ezra 1:1-4Ezra 2:1-2Ezra 2:64-65

  3. c. 536 BC
    God's peopleThe foundation is laid, then the work stops

    The returned exiles laid the temple's foundation with shouting and weeping. Opposition from their neighbors stopped the work until the second year of Darius. Ezra 3:10-13Ezra 4:4-5Ezra 4:24

  4. 525 BC
    WarPersia conquers Egypt

    Cyrus's son Cambyses invaded and took Egypt, bringing the whole region from the Nile to the Indus under one king. Herodotus, Histories 3.1-16

  5. 522-521 BC
    WarDarius crushes the revolts

    When Darius took the throne, provinces across the empire rebelled, Babylon twice. By 520 he had put them all down. Compare the riders' report in Zechariah's first vision: "all the earth sitteth still, and is at rest." Behistun InscriptionHerodotus, Histories 3.150-159Zechariah 1:11

  6. 520 BC
    God's peopleHaggai and Zechariah stir the people to build

    In Darius's second year the two prophets urged the people to take up the temple work again, and Zerubbabel and Jeshua began to build. Ezra 5:1-2Haggai 1:1-15Zechariah 1:1

  7. c. 520-519 BC
    RulersDarius confirms Cyrus's decree

    Tattenai questioned the building. A search found Cyrus's decree at Achmetha, and Darius ordered the work to continue and be paid for from royal taxes. Ezra 5:3-6:12

  8. 515 BC
    BuildingThe second temple is finished

    The temple was finished on the third day of Adar in Darius's sixth year and dedicated with joy. Ezra 6:14-18Zechariah 4:9

  9. 490-479 BC
    WarPersia's wars with Greece

    Persia invaded Greece twice and was turned back at Marathon (490), Salamis (480) and Plataea (479). Greece, which Zechariah names in 9:13, was becoming Persia's great rival. Herodotus, Histories 6.102-117Herodotus, Histories 8.40-96Herodotus, Histories 9.1-89Zechariah 9:13

  10. 445 BC
    BuildingNehemiah rebuilds Jerusalem's walls

    Under the Persian king Artaxerxes, Nehemiah came from Shushan and rebuilt the walls in fifty-two days. Nehemiah 2:1-8Nehemiah 6:15

  11. 332 BC
    WarAlexander takes Tyre and Gaza

    Alexander the Great besieged island Tyre for seven months and then Gaza for two, on his way to Egypt. Zechariah 9 speaks of Tyre's "strong hold" and of Gaza, Ashkelon, Ekron and Ashdod. Arrian, Anabasis of Alexander 2.15-27Zechariah 9:3-7

The full picture: places, culture and daily life. Scripture first, then ancient records (the Behistun Inscription, the Cyrus Cylinder, the Babylonian Chronicles) and ancient writers (Herodotus, Arrian, Josephus). Drafted by Claude and not yet reviewed by a person.

Original Hebrew words

EnglishHebrewSay itStrong'sMeaning
and he answeredוַיַּ֗עַןvai-YA-'anH6030B
to answer

עָנָה (a.nah) 1) to answer, respond, testify, speak, shout 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to answer, respond to 1a2) to testify, respond as a witness 1b) (Niphal) 1b1) to make answer 1b2) to be answered, receive answer Aramaic equivalent: a.nah (עֲנָה "to answer" H6032)

the manהָאִ֛ישׁha-'ISHH0376G
man

אִישׁ (ish) : man 1) man 1a) man, male (in contrast to woman, female) 1b) husband 1c) human being, person (in contrast to God) 1d) servant 1e) mankind 1f) champion 1g) great man 2) whosoever 3) each (adjective)

who was standingהָעֹמֵ֥דha-'o-MEDH5975G
to stand: stand

עָמַד (a.mad) : stand/stop/establish 1) to stand, remain, endure, take one's stand 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to stand, take one's stand, be in a standing attitude, stand forth, take a stand, present oneself, attend upon, be or become servant of 1a2) to stand still, stop (moving or doing), cease 1a3) to tarry, delay, remain, continue, abide, endure, persist, be steadfast 1a4) to make a stand, hold one's ground 1a5) to stand upright, remain standing, stand up, rise, be erect, be upright 1a6) to arise, appear, come on the scene, stand forth, appear, rise up or against …

betweenבֵּין־bein-H0996H
between

בַּ֫יִן (ba.yin) : between between, among, in the midst of (with other preps), from between

the myrtle treesהַהַדַסִּ֖יםha-ha-da-SIMH1918
myrtle

הֲדַס (ha.das) myrtle (tree)

and he saidוַיֹּאמַ֑רvai-yo-MARH0559
to say

אָמַר (a.mar) 1) to say, speak, utter 1a) (Qal) to say, to answer, to say in one's heart, to think, to command, to promise, to intend 1b) (Niphal) to be told, to be said, to be called 1c) (Hithpael) to boast, to act proudly 1d) (Hiphil) to avow, to avouch Aramaic equivalent: a.mar (אֲמַר "to say" H0560)

theseאֵ֚לֶּה'E-lehH0428
these

אֵ֫לֶּה (el.leh) 1) these 1a) used before antecedent 1b) used following antecedent Aramaic equivalent: el.leh (אֵלֶּה "these" H0429)

[are those] whomאֲשֶׁ֣ר'a-SHERH0834A
which

אֲשֶׁר (a.sher) A: 1) (relative part.) 1a) which, who 1b) that which 2) (conj) 2a) that (in obj clause) 2b) when 2c) since 2d) as 2e) conditional if B: Beth+ 1) in (that) which 2) (adv) 2a) where 3) (conj) 3a) in that, inasmuch as 3b) on account of C: Mem+ 1) from (or than) that which 2) from (the place) where 3) from (the fact) that, since D: Kaph+ 1) (conj.), according as, as, when 1a) according to that which, according as, as 1b) with a causal force: in so far as, since 1c) with a temporal force: when

he has sentשָׁלַ֣חsha-LACHH7971G
to send: depart

שָׁלַח (sha.lach) : depart/send 1) to send, send away, let go, stretch out 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to send 1a2) to stretch out, extend, direct 1a3) to send away 1a4) to let loose 1b) (Niphal) to be sent 1c) (Piel) 1c1) to send off or away or out or forth, dismiss, give over, cast out 1c2) to let go, set free 1c3) to shoot forth (of branches) 1c4) to let down 1c5) to shoot 1d) (Pual) to be sent off, be put away, be divorced, be impelled 1e) (Hiphil) to send

Yahwehיְהוָ֔הYAH-wehH3068G
Lord

אֲדֹנָי (a.do.nai) Lord - a title, spoken in place of Yahweh in Jewish display of reverence Another name of ye.ho.vah (יהוה "LORD" H3068G)

to go aboutלְהִתְהַלֵּ֖ךְle-hit-ha-LEKHH1980I
to go

הוּךְ (hukh) (P'al) to go, come, walk, be brought Aramaic of ha.lakh (הָלַךְ ": walk" H1980)

on the earthבָּאָֽרֶץ׃ba-'A-retzH0776G
land: country/planet

אֶ֫רֶץ (e.rets) : country/field 1) land, earth 1a) earth 1a1) whole earth (as opposed to a part) 1a2) earth (as opposed to heaven) 1a3) earth (inhabitants) 1b) land 1b1) country, territory 1b2) district, region 1b3) tribal territory 1b4) piece of ground 1b5) land of Canaan, Israel 1b6) inhabitants of land 1b7) Sheol, land without return, (under) world 1b8) city (-state) 1c) ground, surface of the earth 1c1) ground 1c2) soil 1d) (in phrases) 1d1) people of the land 1d2) space or distance of country (in measurements of distance) 1d3) level or plain country 1d4) land of the living 1d5) end(s) of the earth …

Words and meanings from STEPBible data (Tyndale House, Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). The capitalized syllable is the stressed one.