Zechariah 3:5
King James Version (1769)
Other translations
| Verse | KJV | BSB | ASV |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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. | Then I said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.” So a clean turban was placed on his head, and they clothed him, as the angel of the LORD stood by. | And I said, Let them set a clean mitre upon his head. So they set a clean mitre upon his head, and clothed him with garments; and the angel of Jehovah was standing by. |
In context
AI-assisted, sourcedIn a vision, Zechariah sees Joshua the high priest standing in filthy garments, accused by Satan, until the LORD orders the filthy clothes removed and says his iniquity has been taken away. Here the prophet himself speaks up and asks that a clean turban be set on Joshua's head. It is done, he is clothed, and the angel of the LORD stands by as witness. Zechariah 3:1Zechariah 3:3Zechariah 3:4Zechariah 3:5
SpeakingZechariah the prophet speaks ("And I said"), and he reports what the attendants then did. Zechariah 3:5Strong's H0559Zechariah overview
ToThe words are spoken within the vision to those standing before the angel. The account is written for the people of Judah who had returned from exile. Zechariah 3:4Zechariah 3:5Zechariah overview
Also involvedJoshua the high priest, who is cleansed and dressed again for his office. Through him the land is also in view, since the LORD promises to remove its iniquity. Zechariah 3:1Zechariah 3:5Zechariah 3:9
Joshua receives a clean turban and fresh garments after his filthy garments are taken away. The turban recalls the high priest's mitre that Moses placed on Aaron's head at his ordination. The scene shows God restoring a cleansed priest to his service, followed by the charge to walk in God's ways. Zechariah 3:4Zechariah 3:5Zechariah 3:7Exodus 29:6Leviticus 8:9
The scene takes place in a vision, before the angel of the LORD. The prophet wrote from Jerusalem, among the people who had come back from exile. Zechariah 3:1Zechariah 3:5Zechariah overview
The eventsThis is one of Zechariah's night visions. They came during the rebuilding of the temple after the return from Babylon. Zechariah overview
WrittenTraditional: written by Zechariah, with dated messages from about 520 to 518 BC. Scholarly: most scholars agree chapters 1-8, which include this vision, come from Zechariah in 520-518 BC. Zechariah overview
HereThe vision assures the returned people that God has cleansed their high priest and restored him to serve. The clean turban marks him as fit for his office again. Zechariah 3:2Zechariah 3:4Zechariah 3:5Zechariah 3:7
In the whole of ScriptureJoshua's cleansing points ahead to God's servant the BRANCH and to the day when the LORD will remove the iniquity of the land in one day. Later Joshua is crowned in a sign about the man called the BRANCH. Zechariah 3:8Zechariah 3:9Zechariah 6:11Zechariah overview
For readersGod does not only remove what is filthy; he also clothes and restores. Job speaks in a similar picture: "I put on righteousness, and it clothed me" (Job 29:14). Zechariah 3:4Zechariah 3:5Job 29:14
- fair (clean)טָהוֹר
The word means pure or clean, including ceremonially and morally clean. So the "fair" mitre is a clean one, matching the removal of the filthy garments and iniquity. Strong's H2889Zechariah 3:3Zechariah 3:4
- mitre (turban)צָנִיף
The word means a turban or headdress. Here it is the headgear of the high priest, like the mitre put on Aaron at his ordination. Strong's H6797Exodus 29:6Leviticus 8:9
- stood byעָמַד
The word means to stand or attend upon. The angel of the LORD stands present as the cleansing is carried out, and then speaks the LORD's charge. Strong's H5975GZechariah 3:5Zechariah 3:6
Takeaway
Zechariah 3:5 shows God finishing what he began: the high priest stripped of filthy clothes is given a clean turban and garments. It is restoration to service, followed at once by the call to walk in God's ways. Zechariah 3:4Zechariah 3:5Zechariah 3:7
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
- The high priest's mitre
- The high priest wore a mitre with a gold plate engraved "HOLINESS TO THE LORD." Zechariah sees a clean mitre set on Joshua's head, and later the same words on the bells of the horses. Exodus 28:36-38Zechariah 3:5Zechariah 14:20
- Joshua the high priest, high priest
- 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
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
- 539 BCWarBabylon 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
- 538 BCGod'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
- c. 536 BCGod'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
- 525 BCWarPersia 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
- 522-521 BCWarDarius 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
- 520 BCGod'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
- c. 520-519 BCRulersDarius 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
- 515 BCBuildingThe 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
- 490-479 BCWarPersia'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
- 445 BCBuildingNehemiah 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
- 332 BCWarAlexander 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
| English | Hebrew | Say it | Strong's | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| and I said | וָאֹמַ֕ר | va-'o-MAR | H0559 | to sayאָמַר (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) |
| let them put | יָשִׂ֛ימוּ | ya-SI-mu | H7760H | No entry |
| a turban | צָנִ֥יף | tza-NIF | H6797 | turbanצָנִיף (tsa.niph) turban, headdress |
| clean | טָה֖וֹר | ta-HOR | H2889 | pureטָהוֹר (ta.hor) 1) pure, clean 1a) clean (ceremonially-of animals) 1b) pure (physically) 1c) pure, clean (morally, ethically) |
| on | עַל־ | 'al- | H5921A | uponעַל (al) prep 1) upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against 1a) upon, on the ground of, on the basis of, on account of, because of, therefore, on behalf of, for the sake of, for, with, in spite of, notwithstanding, concerning, in the matter of, as regards 1b) above, beyond, over (of excess) 1c) above, over (of elevation or pre-eminence) 1d) upon, to, over to, unto, in addition to, together with, with (of addition) 1e) over (of suspension or extension) … |
| head his | רֹאשׁ֑וֹ | ro-SHO | H7218A | headרֵאשׁ (resh) 1) chief, head 1a) head (of man) 1b) head (as seat of visions) 1c) chief 1d) sum (essential content) |
| and they put | וַיָּשִׂימוּ֩ | vai-ya-si-MU | H7760H | No entry |
| the turban | הַצָּנִ֨יף | ha-tza-NIF | H6797 | turbanצָנִיף (tsa.niph) turban, headdress |
| the clean | הַטָּה֜וֹר | ha-ta-HOR | H2889 | pureטָהוֹר (ta.hor) 1) pure, clean 1a) clean (ceremonially-of animals) 1b) pure (physically) 1c) pure, clean (morally, ethically) |
| on | עַל־ | 'al- | H5921A | uponעַל (al) prep 1) upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against 1a) upon, on the ground of, on the basis of, on account of, because of, therefore, on behalf of, for the sake of, for, with, in spite of, notwithstanding, concerning, in the matter of, as regards 1b) above, beyond, over (of excess) 1c) above, over (of elevation or pre-eminence) 1d) upon, to, over to, unto, in addition to, together with, with (of addition) 1e) over (of suspension or extension) … |
| head his | רֹאשׁ֗וֹ | ro-SHO | H7218A | headרֵאשׁ (resh) 1) chief, head 1a) head (of man) 1b) head (as seat of visions) 1c) chief 1d) sum (essential content) |
| and they clothed him | וַיַּלְבִּשֻׁ֙הוּ֙ | vai-yal-bi-SHU-hu | H3847 | to clotheלָבֵשׁ (la.vash) 1) to dress, wear, clothe, put on clothing, be clothed 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to put on clothes, be clothed, wear 1a2) to put on, be clothed with (fig.) 1b) (Pual) to be fully clothed 1c) (Hiphil) to clothe, array with, dress Aramaic equivalent: le.vash (לְבֵשׁ "to clothe" H3848) |
| garments | בְּגָדִ֔ים | be-ga-DIM | H0899B | garmentבֶּ֫גֶד (be.ged) (CLBL) garment, clothing (used indiscriminately) |
| and [the] angel of | וּמַלְאַ֥ךְ | u-mal-'AKH | H4397H | messengerמַלְאָךְ (ma.le.akh) : messenger 1) messenger, representative 1a) messenger 1b) angel 1c) the theophanic angel |
| Yahweh | יְהוָ֖ה | YAH-weh | H3068G | Lordאֲדֹנָי (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) |
| [was] standing | עֹמֵֽד׃ | 'o-MED | H5975G | to stand: standעָמַד (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 … |
Words and meanings from STEPBible data (Tyndale House, Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). The capitalized syllable is the stressed one.