Zechariah 9:15
in Zechariah 9The LORD of Hosts will shield them. They will destroy and conquer with slingstones; they will drink and roar as with wine. And they will be filled like sprinkling bowls, drenched like the corners of the altar.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Jehovah of hosts will defend them; and they shall devour, and shall tread down the sling-stones; and they shall drink, and make a noise as through wine; and they shall be filled like bowls, like the corners of the altar.
KJV
The Lord of hosts shall defend them; and they shall devour, and subdue with sling stones; and they shall drink, and make a noise as through wine; and they shall be filled like bowls, and as the corners of the altar.
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This verse in Zechariah 9
Commentary
9 notes on this verseThe 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.
This site's exposition
raised up thy sons, O Zion
on Zechariah 9:13-17
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.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 15, 16.) And they shall devour and subject to stones of slings: and drinking, they shall be intoxicated as with wine (Vulgate: with wine), and shall be filled like bowls and like the horns of the altar, and the Lord their God shall save them in that day as the flock of his people, because holy stones shall be lifted up upon his land.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
And, in the fulness of their joy, they shall offer abundance of sacrifices to the honour of God, so that they shall fill both the bowls and the corners of the altar with the fat and blood of their sacrifices. And, when they thus triumph in their successes, their joy shall terminate in God as their God, the God of their salvation.
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.
Shall drink - In their festivals, when they offer sacrifices of thanksgiving for their victories. Make a noise - Shout with shouts of triumph, as men do whose hearts are glad with success, and cheared with wine. Shall fill - With the blood of the sacrifices they offer.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
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)).
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)
1Ch 12:2) [GROTIUS]. noise--the battle shout. through wine-- (Zec 10:7). The Spirit of God fills them with triumph (Eph 5:18). filled--with blood. like bowls--the bowls used to receive the blood of the sacrifices. as . . . corners--or "horns" of the altar, which used to be sprinkled with blood from the bowls (Ex 29:12;
The Lord of hosts shall defend then - He alone is the sure trust of his Church. Subdue with sling-stones - This was an ancient and powerful instrument in the hands of the Hebrews. See the note on Jdg 20:16. They shall drink - After the victory gained as above, thy people shall hold a feast, and drink and be filled with wine. There is no intimation here that they shall drink the blood of their enemies, as some barbarous nations were accustomed to do. When they have gained the victory, they shall banquet abundantly on the spoils taken from the enemy. As the corners of the altar - They shall pour out libations of wine at the foot of the altar, as the priests were accustomed to pour out the blood of the victims.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
And the Lord shall appear over them In the book of Josippon (chap. 18), we find that at that time a sign appeared to the people of Jerusalem.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 2 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
16 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| יְהוָ֣ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| צְבָאוֹת֮ | tzevaot | of hosts | H6635 → | 485 times |
| יָגֵ֣ן | yagen | he will defend | H1598 → | |
| עֲלֵיהֶם֒ | ʾaleihem | <on> them | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| וְאָכְל֗וּ | veakhelu | and they will eat | H398 → | 810 times |
| וְכָֽבְשׁוּ֙ | vekhaveshu | and they will subdue | H3533 → | |
| אַבְנֵי־ | ʾavnei- | stones of | H68 → | 273 times |
| קֶ֔לַע | kela' | a sling | H7050 → | |
| וְשָׁת֥וּ | veshatu | and they will drink | H8354 → | 217 times |
| הָמ֖וּ | hamu | they will be in an uproar | H1993 → | |
| כְּמוֹ־ | kemov- | like | H3644 → | 143 times |
| יָ֑יִן | yayin | wine | H3196 → | |
| וּמָֽלְאוּ֙ | umalu | and they will be full | H4390 → | 249 times |
| כַּמִּזְרָ֔ק | kamizrak | like <the> bowl | H4219 → | |
| כְּזָוִיּ֖וֹת | kezaviyot | like [the] corners of | H2106 → | |
| מִזְבֵּֽחַ׃ | mizbeach | [the] altar | H4196 → |
יְהוָ֣הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
צְבָאוֹת֮of hosts
tzevaotH6635 →485 times
יָגֵ֣ןhe will defend
yagenH1598 →
עֲלֵיהֶם֒<on> them
ʾaleihemH5921 →5755 times
וְאָכְל֗וּand they will eat
veakheluH398 →810 times
וְכָֽבְשׁוּ֙and they will subdue
vekhaveshuH3533 →
אַבְנֵי־stones of
ʾavnei-H68 →273 times
קֶ֔לַעa sling
kela'H7050 →
וְשָׁת֥וּand they will drink
veshatuH8354 →217 times
הָמ֖וּthey will be in an uproar
hamuH1993 →
כְּמוֹ־like
kemov-H3644 →143 times
יָ֑יִןwine
yayinH3196 →
וּמָֽלְאוּ֙and they will be full
umaluH4390 →249 times
כַּמִּזְרָ֔קlike <the> bowl
kamizrakH4219 →
כְּזָוִיּ֖וֹתlike [the] corners of
kezaviyotH2106 →
מִזְבֵּֽחַ׃[the] altar
mizbeachH4196 →
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
Zechariah 10:5They will be like mighty men in battle, trampling the enemy in the mire of the streets. They will fight because the LORD is with them, and they will put the horsemen to shame.
it leads to
- Haggai 2:22
I will overturn royal thrones and destroy the power of the kingdoms of the nations. I will overturn chariots and their riders; horses and their riders will fall, each by the sword of his…
- Zechariah 9:13
For I will bend Judah as My bow and fit it with Ephraim. I will rouse your sons, O Zion, against the sons of Greece. I will make you like the sword of a…
- Romans 8:31–37
What then shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
- Haggai 2:22
Through
Exodus 27:2Make a horn on each of its four corners, so that the horns are of one piece, and overlay it with bronze.
it leads to
- Psalms 118:27
The LORD is God; He has made His light to shine upon us. Bind the festal sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar.
- Psalms 118:27
Through
Zechariah 12:8On that day the LORD will defend the people of Jerusalem, so that the weakest among them will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of…
it leads to
- Micah 5:2–4
But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come forth for Me One to be ruler over Israel—One whose origins are of old, from the days…
- Micah 7:16
Nations will see and be ashamed, deprived of all their might. They will put their hands over their mouths, and their ears will become deaf.
- Micah 7:8
Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will arise; though I sit in darkness, the LORD will be my light.
- Joel 3:10
Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears. Let the weak say, ‘I am strong!’
- Micah 5:2–4
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Zechariah
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Carl Friedrich Keil, The Twelve Minor Prophets; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Zechariah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.