Zechariah 9:4
in Zechariah 9Behold, the Lord will impoverish her and cast her wealth into the sea, and she will be consumed by fire.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Behold, the Lord will dispossess her, and he will smite her power in the sea; and she shall be devoured with fire.
KJV
Behold, the Lord will cast her out, and he will smite her power in the sea; and she shall be devoured with fire.
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This verse in Zechariah 9
Commentary
9 notes on this verseBehold, the Lord will cast her out,.... Or "inherit her" (f), or "them", as the Septuagint render the words; when, being converted, she would become the Lord's inheritance and possession, and her riches should be devoted to his service: and he will smite her power in the sea; for Tyre was situated in the sea, at the entry of it, and was strong in it, Eze 26:
This site's exposition
the land of Hadrach
on Zechariah 9:1-4
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.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
(Vers. 2 seqq.) Emath quoque in terminis ejus, et Tyrus et Sidon: assumpserunt quippe sibi sapientiam valde. Et aedificavit Tyrus munitionem suam, et coacervavit argentum quasi humum, et aurum ut lutum platearum. Ecce Dominus possidebit eam, et percutiet in mari fortitudinem ejus, et haec igne devorabitur. LXX: Emath in finibus ejus Tyrus et Sidon: quoniam sapientes fuerunt nimis, et aedificavit Tyrus munitionem suam, et congregavit argentum ut humum, et aurum ut lutum viarum. Therefore the Lord will possess it, and strike its strength in the sea, and it will be consumed by fire.
A commentator
John ChrysostomDISCOURSE AGAINST JUDAIZING CHRISTIANS 1:3 · Written in the 5th century.
proposed
Many, I know, respect the Jews and think that their present way of life is a venerable one. This is why I hasten to uproot and tear out this deadly opinion. I said that the synagogue is no better than a theater, and I bring forward a prophet as my witness. Surely the Jews are not more deserving of belief than their prophets. "You had a harlot's brow; you became shameless before all." Where a harlot has set herself up, that place is a brothel and a theater; it also is a den of robbers and a lodging for wild beasts. Jeremiah said, "Your house has become for me the den of a hyena." He does not simply say "of a wild beast" but "of a filthy wild beast," and again, "I have abandoned my house, I have cast off my inheritance." But when God forsakes a place, that place becomes the dwelling of demons.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
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.
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.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
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.
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
27:27). cast her out--Hebrew, "dispossess her," that is, will cast her inhabitants into exile [GROTIUS].
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Behold - Such were the preparations of Tyre. Over against them, as it were, the prophet sets before our eyes the counsels of God. Theodoret: “Since they had severed themselves from the providence of God, they were now to experience His power.” “The Lord will cast her out” , literally, deprive her of her possessions, give her an heir of what she had amassed, namely: the enemy; “and he will smite her power or wealth” , of which Ezekiel says, “With thy wisdom and with thine understanding thou hast gotten thee riches, and hast gotten gold and silver into thy treasures: by the greediness of thy wisdom and by thy traffic thou hast increased thy riches, and thine heart is lifted up because of thy riches” Eze 28:4-5. All wherein she relied, and so too the stronghold itself, God would smite in the sea. The sea was her confidence and boast. She said “I am a God; I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas” Eze 28:2. The scene of her pride was to be that of her overthrow; the waves, which girt her round, should bury her ruins and wash over her site. Even in the sea the hand of God should find her, and smite her in it, and into it, and so that she should abide in it. “They mocked at the king, as though be thought to prevail against Neptune (the sea).” “Ye despise this land-army, through confidence in the place, that ye dwell in an island,” was the message of Alexander, “but soon will I show you that ye dwell on a continent.” Every device had been put in force in its defense: the versatility by which the inhabitants of an island, some 2 12 miles in circumference, held at bay the conqueror of the battle of Issus with unlimited resources, , “engineers from Cyprus and all Phoenicia,” and , “a fleet of 180 ships from Cyprus,” attests the wisdom in which the prophet says, she would trust. […]
The words behind it
9 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| הִנֵּ֤ה | hineh | there! | H2009 → | 843 times |
| אֲדֹנָי֙ | ʾadonai | [the] Lord | H136 → | |
| יֽוֹרִשֶׁ֔נָּה | yorishenah | he will dispossess it | H3423 → | |
| וְהִכָּ֥ה | vehikah | and he will strike | H5221 → | 499 times |
| בַיָּ֖ם | vaiyam | in the sea | H3220 → | 396 times |
| חֵילָ֑הּ | cheilah | wealth its | H2428 → | 246 times |
| וְהִ֖יא | vehi' | and it | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| בָּאֵ֥שׁ | baesh | by <the> fire | H784 → | 378 times |
| תֵּאָכֵֽל׃ | teakhel | it will be consumed | H398 → | 810 times |
הִנֵּ֤הthere!
hinehH2009 →843 times
אֲדֹנָי֙[the] Lord
ʾadonaiH136 →
יֽוֹרִשֶׁ֔נָּהhe will dispossess it
yorishenahH3423 →
וְהִכָּ֥הand he will strike
vehikahH5221 →499 times
בַיָּ֖םin the sea
vaiyamH3220 →396 times
חֵילָ֑הּwealth its
cheilahH2428 →246 times
וְהִ֖יאand it
vehi'H1931 →1879 times
בָּאֵ֥שׁby <the> fire
baeshH784 →378 times
תֵּאָכֵֽל׃it will be consumed
teakhelH398 →810 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
Proverbs 11:4Riches are worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness brings deliverance from death.
it leads to
- Proverbs 10:2
Ill-gotten treasures profit nothing, but righteousness brings deliverance from death.
- Zephaniah 1:18
Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to deliver them on the Day of the LORD’s wrath. The whole earth will be consumed by the fire of His jealousy.” For indeed, He…
- Genesis 7:1
Then the LORD said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and all your family, because I have found you righteous in this generation.
- Ezekiel 7:19
They will throw their silver into the streets, and their gold will seem unclean. Their silver and gold cannot save them in the day of the wrath of the LORD. They cannot satisfy their…
- 1 Timothy 4:8
For physical exercise is of limited value, but godliness is valuable in every way, holding promise for the present life and for the one to come.
- Proverbs 10:2
Through
Ezekiel 28:18By the multitude of your iniquities and the dishonesty of your trading you have profaned your sanctuaries. So I made fire come from within you, and it consumed you. I reduced you to ashes…
it leads to
- Malachi 4:3
Then you will trample the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day I am preparing,” says the LORD of Hosts.
- Revelation 18:8
Therefore her plagues will come in one day—death and grief and famine—and she will be consumed by fire, for mighty is the Lord God who judges her.”
- Malachi 4:3
Through
Ezekiel 26:17Then they will lament for you, saying, “How you have perished, O city of renown inhabited by seafaring men—she who was powerful on the sea, along with her people, who imposed terror on all…
it leads to
- Isaiah 14:12
How you have fallen from heaven, O day star, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the ground, O destroyer of nations.
- Isaiah 14:12
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; Edward Bouverie Pusey, The Minor Prophets: A Commentary; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Zechariah; John Chrysostom, DISCOURSE AGAINST JUDAIZING CHRISTIANS 1:3; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.