Zechariah 4
King James Version (1769) · Tap a verse to see it in context
About this chapter
AI-assisted, sourcedThe angel wakes Zechariah, who sees "a candlestick all of gold" with seven lamps and two olive trees beside it. The word to Zerubbabel is "Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts": the hands that laid the temple's foundation "shall also finish it." The seven are "the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth," and when Zechariah asks about the two olive trees and their branches, he is told, "These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the LORD of the whole earth." Zechariah 4:1Zechariah 4:2Zechariah 4:3Zechariah 4:6Zechariah 4:9Zechariah 4:10Zechariah 4:11Zechariah 4:12Zechariah 4:14
Who, where, when, and the key verses
Who
Zechariah; "the angel that talked with me"; and Zerubbabel, whose hands "have laid the foundation of this house." Zechariah 4:1Zechariah 4:6Zechariah 4:9
Where
The vision concerns "this house," the temple whose foundation Zerubbabel had laid, among the people who had returned to Jerusalem. Zechariah 4:9Zechariah overview
When
No new date is given in this chapter. Ezra 6:15 records that the house was finished "in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king." Most scholars agree that chapters 1-8 come from Zechariah in 520-518 BC, under Darius king of Persia. Ezra 6:15Zechariah overview
How it fits
Chapter 3 spoke to Joshua the high priest; this chapter speaks to Zerubbabel, and the "two anointed ones" stand beside the LORD. Chapter 5 brings the vision of the flying roll. Zechariah 3:8Zechariah 4:6Zechariah 4:14Zechariah 5:1
Key verses
- Verse 6
"Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts." The rebuilding would be finished by God's Spirit, not by human strength. Zechariah 4:6Zechariah 4:9
- Verse 10
"Who hath despised the day of small things." The rebuilding looked small, but "his hands shall also finish it." Zechariah 4:9Zechariah 4:10
- Verse 14
Asked about the two olive trees, "the angel that talked with me" answers, "These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the LORD of the whole earth." Revelation 11:4 also speaks of "the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth." Zechariah 4:5Zechariah 4:11Zechariah 4:13Zechariah 4:14Revelation 11:4
Takeaway
Do not despise small beginnings: what God starts by his Spirit, he finishes, not by might or power. Zechariah 4:6Zechariah 4:9Zechariah 4:10
Drafted by AI from the Scripture and data shown under “Show sources,” then checked automatically and by a separate AI reader. Updated 2026-10-29.
The golden candlestick and two olive trees
1And the angel that talked with me came again, and waked me, as a man that is wakened out of his sleep, 2And said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof: 3And two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof. 4So I answered and spake to the angel that talked with me, saying, What are these, my lord? 5Then the angel that talked with me answered and said unto me, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.
Not by might, nor by power
6Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts. 7Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it. 8Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, 9The 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. 10For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth.
The two anointed ones
11Then 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? 12And 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? 13And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord. 14Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the LORD of the whole earth.