Zechariah 6:5
in Zechariah 6And the angel told me, “These are the four spirits of heaven, going forth from their station before the Lord of all the earth.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And the angel answered and said unto me, These are the four winds of heaven, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth.
KJV
And the angel answered and said unto me, These are the four spirits of the heavens, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth.
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This verse in Zechariah 6
Commentary
9 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
These are the four spirits of the heavens - They cannot be literal winds: for spirits, not winds, stand before God, as His servants, as in Job, “the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord” (Job 1:6; Job 2:
This site's exposition
Then I answered and said unto the angel that talked with me
on Zechariah 6:4-5
Zechariah asks again what these are, and the angel answers plainly this time, these are the four spirits of the heavens, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth. Henry reads the chariots as the same watching, active providence the seven eyes of chapter four already named, sent out now under a fuller picture of agents dispatched to the four quarters of the earth.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening5 voices
These are - The angels of heaven, who have a great share in the management of the affairs both of the church and states. Of the heavens - Which reside in heaven, 'till employed, go thence when employed, and having done their work, return thither.
The various providences of God concerning nations and churches are represented by the different colours of horses, Rev. vi. And so we may observe here, 1. That the counsels and decrees of God are the spring and original of all events, and they are immovable, as mountains of brass.
And the angel answered and said unto me,....
He did not look long before he discovered that which was worth seeing, and which would serve very much for the encouraging of himself and his friends in this dark day. We are very much in the dark concerning the meaning of this vision.
Or, rather, These are the angels that go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth, to attend upon him and minister to him, to behold his glory in the upper world, which is their blessedness, and to serve his glory in their blessedness, and to serve his glory in this lower world, which is their business.
2 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
Ps 68:17) to execute them on earth in its four various quarters (Ps 104:4; Heb 1:7, 14) [PEMBELLUS]. Or, the secret impulses of God which emanate from His counsel and providence; the prophet implies that all the revolutions in the world are from the Spirit of God and are as it were, His messengers or spirits [CALVIN].
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
The four spirits of the heavens - Ministers of God’s wrath against the sinful nations of the world.
The words behind it
14 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיַּ֥עַן | vaiyaan | and he answered | H6030 → | 331 times |
| הַמַּלְאָ֖ךְ | hamalakh | the angel | H4397 → | 213 times |
| וַיֹּ֣אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| אֵלָ֑י | ʾelai | to me | H413 → | 5510 times |
| אֵ֗לֶּה | ʾeleh | these | H428 → | 746 times |
| אַרְבַּע֙ | ʾarba' | [are] [the] four | H702 → | 318 times |
| רֻח֣וֹת | ruchot | [the] winds of | H7307 → | 378 times |
| הַשָּׁמַ֔יִם | hashamayim | the heavens | H8064 → | 421 times |
| יוֹצְא֕וֹת | yotzot | going forth | H3318 → | 1067 times |
| מֵֽהִתְיַצֵּ֖ב | mehityatzev | from when presented themselves | H3320 → | |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| אֲד֥וֹן | ʾadon | [the] lord of | H113 → | 333 times |
| כָּל־ | kol- | all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| הָאָֽרֶץ׃ | haaretz | the earth | H776 → | 2504 times |
וַיַּ֥עַןand he answered
vaiyaanH6030 →331 times
הַמַּלְאָ֖ךְthe angel
hamalakhH4397 →213 times
וַיֹּ֣אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
אֵלָ֑יto me
ʾelaiH413 →5510 times
אֵ֗לֶּהthese
ʾelehH428 →746 times
אַרְבַּע֙[are] [the] four
ʾarba'H702 →318 times
רֻח֣וֹת[the] winds of
ruchotH7307 →378 times
הַשָּׁמַ֔יִםthe heavens
hashamayimH8064 →421 times
יוֹצְא֕וֹתgoing forth
yotzotH3318 →1067 times
מֵֽהִתְיַצֵּ֖בfrom when presented themselves
mehityatzevH3320 →
עַל־on
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
אֲד֥וֹן[the] lord of
ʾadonH113 →333 times
כָּל־all
kol-H3605 →5413 times
הָאָֽרֶץ׃the earth
haaretzH776 →2504 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Hebrews 1:7Now about the angels He says: “He makes His angels winds, His servants flames of fire.”
it leads to
- Psalms 104:4
He makes the winds His messengers, flames of fire His servants.
- Hebrews 1:14
Are not the angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?
- Psalms 104:4
Through
Hebrews 1:14Are not the angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?
it leads to
- Psalms 34:7
The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, and he delivers them.
- Psalms 103:20–21
Bless the LORD, all His angels mighty in strength who carry out His word, who hearken to the voice of His command.
- Psalms 91:11–12
For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.
- Daniel 6:22
My God sent His angel and shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, for I was found innocent in His sight, and I have done no wrong against you, O…
- Matthew 18:10
See that you do not look down on any of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of My Father in heaven.
- Psalms 34:7
Through
Ezekiel 37:9Then He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and tell the breath that this is what the Lord GOD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe…
it leads to
- John 3:8
The wind blows where it wishes. You hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
- John 3:8
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies4
About Zechariah
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.