Zechariahchapter 9
17 verses · Zechariah · 520 to 518 BC · The Twelve
Key verse
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.
It stands in Your King comes, lowly, riding on a donkey, verses 9 to 10.
The chapter
Chapter summary
The word marches down through Hadrach, Damascus, Hamath, Tyre (who heaped up silver as the dust and will be devoured with fire) and the Philistine cities, until God encamps about his own house 'for now have I seen with mine eyes.' Then the coronation verse: 'Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion… behold, thy king cometh unto thee; he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, even upon a colt the foal of an ass' (9:9), quoted at the triumphal entry in Matthew 21 and John 12. He cuts off chariot and battle bow and speaks peace to the nations, his dominion from sea to sea. 'Turn you to the stronghold, ye prisoners of hope.'
Context
Prophecy · Zechariah · Zechariah overview
The world behind this chapter
Zechariah 9The history
The oracle sweeps down the map: Hadrach and Damascus in Syria, then Hamath, then the Phoenician ports of Tyre and Sidon, then the Philistine cities of Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and Ashdod. That is the invasion route, and it names the towns in the order an army coming from the north would reach them.
The rest of the history, and what it meant to them
Tyre gets special attention because Tyre was famous. Its main city sat on an island offshore, protected by water, and it had survived long sieges, a thirteen-year effort by Nebuchadnezzar among them. "Tyrus did build herself a strong hold, and heaped up silver as the dust" is a fair description of a merchant power that thought it could buy or outlast anything. The text says her wealth will go into the sea.
Many readers have connected this sequence to Alexander of Macedon's march down the coast in 332 BC, when Tyre's island was taken by building a causeway out to it and Gaza fell after a hard siege, while Jerusalem was not sacked. That is a reading, offered by interpreters ancient and modern; the text itself names no conqueror.
Then the tone changes completely. "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion… behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass."
A donkey was not a humiliation, kings and judges in Israel rode them, but it was pointedly not a warhorse, and the next lines say the chariot and the battle bow will be cut off and He will speak peace to the nations. The Gospels record Jesus entering Jerusalem exactly this way.
What it meant to them
For a small unwalled province, the first half said the great powers on the coast road were on God's docket, and that He would camp around His own house.
The second half told them what kind of king to expect. Not another conqueror riding through with cavalry, but one who comes lowly and whose dominion reaches from sea to sea, and who releases prisoners out of the pit "by the blood of thy covenant."
Sources cited
- Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews (Whiston translation)
- John Calvin, Commentaries on the Twelve Minor Prophets
Where the chapter sits
Zechariah 9 falls in Two burdens (chapters 9–14). ‘Thy King cometh … riding upon an ass’ (9:9); the thirty pieces of silver (11); ‘they shall look upon me whom they have pierced’ (12:10); ‘one LORD, and his name one’ (14:9).
Thy King cometh. Riding on an ass; dominion from sea to sea.
Before it: Fasts and future, chapters 7–8.
The whole shape of Zechariah→The structure of this chapter
The heads below are this chapter's scenes. The numbered points under each are its verses.
A. The word against Hadrach, Tyre, and the Philistine cities
1. (vv. 1-4)
Zechariah 9:1
“The burden - o of the word of the Lord in (or, upon) the land of Hadrach The foreground of this prophecy is the course of the Victories of Alexander, which circled round the holy land without hurting it, and ended in the overthrow of the Persian empire. The surrender of Damascus followed first, immediately on his great victory at the Issus; then Sidon yielded itself and received its ruler from the conqueror, Tyre he utterly destroyed; Gaza, we know, perished; he passed harmless by Jerusalem. Samaria, on his return from Egypt, he chastised.”
2 more voices on this verseWhat preachers and commentators have said about this verse, in their own words.
Zechariah 9:1
“Hadrach - This is the name of a city in Celosyria, and here signifies the country also. It was not far from Damascus. The rest thereof - This burden shall lie long as well as heavy on Damascus.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)evangelical
Zechariah 9:1
“Typical of the effect of God's judgments hereafter on all men, and especially on the Jews in turning them to Him. MAURER, PEMBELLUS and others, less probably translate, "The eyes of the Lord are upon man, as they are upon all Israel," namely, to punish the ungodly and to protect His people. He, who has chastised His people, will not fail to punish men for their sins severely.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Zechariah 9:2
“And Hamath also shall border thereby - Hamath on the river Orontes; and Tyre and Sidon, notwithstanding their political wisdom, address, and cunning, shall have a part in the punishment. These prophecies are more suitable to the days of Jeremiah than to those of Zechariah; for there is no evidence - although Alexander did take Damascus, but without bloodshed - that it was destroyed from the times of Zechariah to the advent of our Lord. And as Tyre and Sidon were lately destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar, it is not likely that they could soon undergo another devastation.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Zechariah 9:2
“Tyrus flourishing, thinking herself very safe, and ready to set God's judgments, not only at a distance, but at defiance: for, (1.) She is very wise. It is spoken ironically; she thinks herself very wise, and able to outwit even the wisdom of God. It is granted that her king is a great politician, and that her statesmen are so, Ezek. xxviii.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Zechariah 9:3
“And Tyre did build herself a stronghold - She built it for herself, not for God, and trusted to it, not to God, and so its strength brought her the greater fall.”
1 more voice on this verse
Zechariah 9:3
“As Isaiah's and Ezekiel's (Eze 27:1-36) prophecies were directed against Old Tyre on the mainland and were fulfilled by Nebuchadnezzar, so Zechariah's are against New Tyre, which was made seemingly impregnable by a double wall one hundred fifty feet high, as well as the sea on all sides.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Zechariah 9:4
“Will smite her power in the sea - See Eze 26:17. Though Alexander did take Tyre, Sidon, Gaza, etc.; yet it seems that the prediction relative to their destruction was fulfilled by Nebuchadnezzar. See Amo 1:6-8; Zep 2:4, Zep 2:7.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Zechariah 9:4
“Tyrus, being seated in the midst of the water, was, one would have thought, in danger of being some time or other overflowed or washed away by that; yet God chooses to destroy it by the contrary element. Sometimes he brings ruin upon his enemies by those means which they least suspect.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
the land of Hadrach: The burden moves down the map like a campaign: Hadrach and Damascus, Hamath, then Tyrus with her strong hold and silver heaped as the dust, and the sentence, the Lord will cast her out, and he will smite her power in the sea. The commentators set Alexander's march behind the itinerary, the siege that took island Tyre by causeway after centuries of failed attempts, and present it as the striking correspondence it is while the oracle's own claim stays larger than any one army. The eyes of man toward the Lord at verse 1 governs the whole: the campaign is watched from above.
2. (vv. 5-8)
Zechariah 9:5
“Ashkelon shall see and fear - The words express that to see and fear shall be as one. The mightiest and wealthiest, Tyre, having fallen, the neighbor cities of Philistia who had hoped that her might should be their stay, shall stand in fear and shame. Tyre, being a merchant-city, the mother-city of the cities of the African coast and in Spain, its desolation caused the more terror Isa 23:5-11. And the - (a) king shall perish from Gaza - that is it shall have no more kings.”
2 more voices on this verse
Zechariah 9:5
“Gaza also shall see it, and be very sorrowful, and Ekron, concluding that their own turns come next, now that the cup of trembling goes round. What will become of their house when their neighbour's is on fire?”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Zechariah 9:5
“In literal fulfilment of this prophecy, after a two month's siege, Gaza was taken by Alexander, ten thousand of its inhabitants slain, and the rest sold as slaves. Betis the satrap, or petty "king," was bound to a chariot by thongs thrust through the soles of his feet, and dragged round the city.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Zechariah 9:6
“A bastard shall dwell in Ashdod - This character would suit Alexander very well, who most certainly was a bastard; for his mother Olympia said that Jupiter Ammon entered her apartment in the shape of a dragon, and begat Alexander! Could her husband Philip believe this? The word signifies a stranger.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Zechariah 9:7
“Take away his blood - Though proud and warlike nations have delighted to shed blood, and, as it were, to eat the blood of their enemies, yet God will overthrow their power, and take the prey out of their mouth. Abominations - Their abominable sacrifices which they offered and feasted on.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Zechariah 9:7
“And I will take away his blood out of his mouth,.... The Septuagint, Syriac, and Arabic versions, read "their blood"; not the blood of the bastard, but of the Philistines.”
Zechariah 9:8
“I will encamp about mine house - This may apply to the conquests in Palestine by Alexander, who, coming with great wrath against Jerusalem, was met by Jaddua the high priest and his fellows in their sacred robes, who made intercession for the city and the temple; and, in consequence, Alexander spared both, which he had previously purposed to destroy. He showed the Jews also much favor, and remitted the tax every seventh year, because the law on that year forbade them to cultivate their ground. See this extraordinary account in Josephus Antiq. lib. xi., c. 8, s.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Zechariah 9:8
“I will encamp - To defend it from all its enemies. Mine house - This temple, but as it is an emblem of the church. The army - Of the Persian and the Grecian army, whose march lay through Judea.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)evangelical
Ashkelon shall see it: Philistia watches Tyre fall and fears in order, Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, Ashdod, the old four cities with their pride cut off. Then the oracle does what the conquest chapters never did: the blood taken out of the Philistine's mouth, his abominations from between his teeth, and he that remaineth shall be for our God, as a governor in Judah, and Ekron as a Jebusite, the ancient enemy cleansed and absorbed the way Jebusite Jerusalem once was, which the bench reads as grace written into a judgment oracle. I will encamp about mine house closes the sweep: the armies pass and repass, and no oppressor passes through, for now have I seen with mine eyes.
B. Your King comes, lowly, riding on a donkey
1. (v. 9)
Zechariah 9:9
“He is just - The righteous one, who cometh to fulfil all righteousness. Having salvation - To bestow on all that believe in him.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)evangelical
3 more voices on this verse
Zechariah 9:9
“From the protection, which God promised to His people and to His House, the prophet passes on to Him who was ever in his thoughts, and for whose sake that people and temple were preserved. He had described the great conqueror of this world, sweeping along in his course of victory. In contrast with such as he, he now exhibits to his people the character and procession of their king. “Rejoice greatly.” Not with this world’s joy. God never exhorts man to “rejoice greatly” in this world’s fleeting joys.”
Zechariah 9:9
“The Hebrew is reflexive in sense, "showing Himself a Saviour; . . . having salvation in Himself" for us. Endowed with a salvation which He bestows as a king. Compare Margin, "saving Himself." Compare Mt 1:21, in the Greek, "Himself shall save His people"; that is, not by any other, but by Himself shall He save [PEARSON On the Creed].”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Zechariah 9:9
“He is a righteous ruler; all his acts of government will be exactly according to the rules of equity, for he is just. He is a powerful protector to all those that bear faith and true allegiance to him, for he has salvation; he has it in his power; he has it to bestow upon all his subjects. He is the God of salvation; treasures of salvation are in him.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Zechariah 9:9
- Quoted inJohn 12:15“Do not be afraid, O Daughter of Zion. See, your King is coming, seated on the colt of a donkey.”
'Fear not... behold, thy King cometh, sitting on an ass's colt'
- Quoted inMatthew 21:4“This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:”
touto de gegonen hina plerothe to rhethen, triumphal-entry fulfillment frame
- Quoted inMatthew 21:5“Say to the Daughter of Zion, ‘See, your King comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”
'thy King cometh unto thee... upon an ass', triumphal-entry fulfillment formula (w/ Isa 62:11)
behold, thy King cometh: Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion... behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. Matthew 21:5 and John 12:15 quote the verse of Palm Sunday, verified at both ends, and the Gospels record that the disciples understood the connection only afterward (John 12:16), which the notes state as John states it. Every word is weighed by the bench: just, the King on the side of right; having salvation, saved and saving in the Hebrew's reach, the readings named; lowly, on the animal of peace rather than the war-horse the next verse abolishes, a King whose entry is his manifesto.
2. (v. 10)
Zechariah 9:10
“I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem - No wars shall be employed to spread the kingdom of the Messiah; for it shall be founded and established, “not by might nor by power, but by the Spirit of the Lord of hosts,” Zec 4:6.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Zechariah 9:10
“I will cut off - When the Messiah comes and sets up his kingdom, he will need no external force. Neither chariot, bow nor sword, brought salvation to him, neither shall they be mentioned in the day of his conquest.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)evangelical
Zechariah 9:10-12
I will cut off the chariot: The King's program: chariot cut off from Ephraim, horse from Jerusalem, the battle bow broken, and he shall speak peace unto the heathen, with dominion from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth, Psalm 72's measure quoted almost word for word, which the bench names. By the blood of thy covenant the prisoners are sent out of the waterless pit, the phrase the Lord's own cup-words stand near (this is my blood of the new testament), a nearness the older writers preach and the note assigns to them by name. Turn you to the strong hold, ye prisoners of hope is the oracle's coined title for the exiles, hope itself their chain and their fortress, and double rendered for all the trouble.
C. Prisoners of hope released by the blood of the covenant
1. (vv. 11-12)
Zechariah 9:11
“As for thee - Oh Jerusalem; these words are Christ's words to her. By the blood - By my blood, in which thy covenant as confirmed; 'tis God's covenant as made by him, 'tis Zion's covenant as made for her, 'tis Christ's also as made in him.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Zechariah 9:11
“As for thee also - The prophet turns from the deliverance of the whole world to the former people, the sorrows which they should have in the way, and the protection which God would bestow upon them for the sake of Him, who, according to the flesh, was to be born of them. “Thou too;” he had spoken of the glories of the Church, such as her king, when He should come, should extend it, embracing earth’s remotest bounds: he turns to her, Israel after the flesh, and assures her of the continued protection of God, even in her lowest estate.”
Zechariah 9:11
“It was by the blood of that covenant, typifying the blood of Christ, in whom all God's covenants with man are yea and amen, that they were released out of captivity; and this was but a shadow of the great salvation wrought out by thy King, O daughter of Zion!”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Zechariah 9:12
“Turn you to the strong hold - Ye who feel your sins, and are shut up under a sense of your guilt, look up to him who was delivered for your offenses, and rose again for your justification. Ye have hope, let that hope lead you to faith, and that faith to the blood of the covenant; and, through that blood, to God, the Father of all. I will render double unto thee - Give thee an abundance of peace and salvation.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Zechariah 9:12
“Turn ye - The prophet exhorts the Jews to hasten to Christ, who is the salvation and high tower of the church. Prisoners of hope - Captives, yet not without hope.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)evangelical
2. (v. 13)
Zechariah 9:13
“When - or For I have bent Judah for me As a mighty bow which is only drawn at full human strength, the foot being placed to steady it. It becomes a strong instrument, but only at God’s Will. God Himself bends it. It cannot bend itself. “And filled the bow with Ephraim.” The bow is filled, when the arrow is laid upon it.”
1 more voice on this verse
Zechariah 9:13
“O Greece - Against the Grecians or Ionians, who had oppressed the Jews, and bought them for slaves, against whom the Jews took arms, under the conduct of the Maccabees, to whom Christ made good much of this promise.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)evangelical
Zechariah 9:13-17
raised up thy sons, O Zion: Judah bent as the bow and Ephraim as its arrow, and thy sons, O Zion, against thy sons, O Greece: the readings are named, the Maccabean victories over the Seleucid Greeks as the near horizon most of the bench gives, and the wider day-of-the-Lord horizon others hear, positions with holders and no verdict. The Lord seen over them, the arrow as lightning, the trumpet blown: the theophany fights for the sons it armed. The close turns from war to harvest, the flock saved in that day as the stones of a crown lifted as an ensign, and the last line is pure delight, for how great is his goodness, and how great is his beauty, corn and new wine cheering the young, the oracle ending at a table rather than a battlefield.
D. The LORD seen over them, his people like jewels of a crownvv. 14-17
Zechariah 9:14
“The Lord shall be seen over them - Shadowing and refreshing them, as the cloud did the camp in the wilderness. His arrow shall go forth as the lightning - They shall be conquered in a way that will show that God fights for his followers. The description here is very sublime; we have a good imitation of it in Nonnus: - Και τοτε γαιαν ἁπασαν επεκλυσεν ὑετιος Ζευς, Πυκνωσας νεφεεσσιν ὁλον πολον· ουρανιη γαρ Βρονταιοις παταγοισι Διος μυκησατο σαλπιγξ. Nonn. Dionys., lib.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Zechariah 9:15
“Goliath was subdued with a sling-stone. Having subdued, they shall devour, shall drink the blood of their enemies, as it were, and, as conquerors are wont to do, they shall make a noise as through wine. It is usual for conquerors with loud huzzas and acclamations to glory in their victories and proclaim them.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
2 more voices on this verse
Zechariah 9:15
“The Lord of hosts, shall defend them - As God says, “I will defend this city to save it, for Mine own sake and for My servant David’s sake” . The word is used by Isaiah only before Zechariah, and of the protection of Almighty God. The image of the complete protection on all sides stands first in God’s words to Abraham, “I am thy shield” Gen 15:1; David thence says to God, “Thou, O Lord, art a shield around me” (Psa 3:4, (Psa 3:3 in English)).”
Zechariah 9:15
“The Lord of hosts shall defend them,.... Against all their enemies; against Satan, and his temptations, and all the opposition made by him; against the world, and all the rage and reproach of men; this was remarkably verified in the apostles, who were preserved by the Lord amidst a thousand snares and dangers; and who was able to do it, being Jehovah, and the Lord of armies in heaven and in earth; he was as a shield unto them, as the word (t) used signifies; and to which he is often compared in Scripture.”
Zechariah 9:16
“Shall save them in that day - They are his flock, and he is their Shepherd; and, as his own, he shall save and defend them. As the stones of a crown - אבני נזר מתנוססות abney nezer mithnosesoth, “crowned stones erecting themselves;” i.e., being set up by themselves, as monuments of some deliverance, they seem to be lifting themselves up; offering themselves to the attention of every passenger. It may however refer to stones anointed with oil; a sort of temporary altars set up to the Lord for a victory gained.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Zechariah 9:17
“Note, What good gifts God bestows upon us we must serve him cheerfully with, and must race the streams up to the fountain, and, when we are refreshed with corn and wine, must say, How great is his goodness!”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
2 more voices on this verse
Zechariah 9:17
“For how great is His goodness - For it is unutterable! As the Psalmist said, “O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is Thy Name in all the earth!” Psa 8:1, and Jacob, “How awful is this place!” Gen 28:17, and the Psalmist, “How awful are Thy doings!” The goodness and the beauty are the goodness and beauty of God, whose great doings had been his theme throughout before. Of the goodness the sacred writers often speak , since of this we have extremest need.”
Zechariah 9:17
“His goodness - Infinite goodness is the fountain of all the good done for this people. His beauty - How wonderful the beauty of Divine Providence in Israel's deliverance and salvation?”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)evangelical
This page carries no textual note on Zechariah 9. Where this site has examined a place the manuscripts differ, the examination is in the manuscripts room. Every place this site examines →
Sources for this chapter
The summary
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory; John Calvin, Commentaries; John Wesley, Notes on the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Complete Commentary.
The exposition
Carl Friedrich Keil, The Twelve Minor Prophets; Edward Bouverie Pusey, The Minor Prophets: A Commentary; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
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