zechariah-7:3

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Zechariah 7:1-3

Zechariah 7:1-3. The word of the Lord came unto Zechariah, &c. In this and the next chapter is contained a third and distinct revelation made to Zechariah, about two years after the former; of which the occasion and matter are as follows: A considerable progress having, by this time, been made in the rebuilding of the temple, and affairs going on pretty smoothly, the hopes of the Jewish nation began to revive, and a deputation was sent to inquire of the priests and prophets, whether it... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Zechariah 7:1-14

7:1-8:23 A QUESTION ABOUT CERTAIN FASTSMourning over the past (7:1-14)In captivity the Jews had instituted four fasts to mourn the destruction of Jerusalem. One fast was in the tenth month, which was the month the Babylonians laid siege to the city. One was in the fourth month, to mark the day eighteen months later when the Babylonians broke through the walls and invaded the city. Another was in the fifth month, to mark the destruction of the temple. The other was in the seventh month, to mark... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Zechariah 7:3

speak unto the priests, &c. Reference to Pentateuch (Deuteronomy 17:9 ; Deuteronomy 33:10 ). App-92 . the LORD of hosts. See note on Zechariah 1:3 . in the fifth month. See note on Zechariah 7:5 . as = according as. these so many years = now so many years. Some codices read "seventy years", as in Zechariah 7:5 read more

Thomas Coke

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Zechariah 7:3

Zechariah 7:3. Separating myself, as, &c.— Should I fast as I have done, &c. Houbigant. See Zechariah 7:5. read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Zechariah 7:3

3. Should I weep in the fifth month—"I" represents here the people of God (compare Zechariah 8:21). This rather favors MAURER'S view, taking "the house of God," the congregation, as nominative to "sent." Their hypocrisy appeared because they showed more concern about a ceremony of human institution (not improper in itself) than about moral obedience. If, too, they had trusted God's promise as to the restoration of Church and State, the fast would have now given place to joy, for which there was... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Zechariah 7:1-3

A. The question from the delegation from Bethel 7:1-3 read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Zechariah 7:2-3

Israelites who lived in Bethel, about 10 miles north of Jerusalem (cf. Ezra 2:28; Nehemiah 7:32; Nehemiah 11:31), sent two representatives to ask the priests and prophets in the capital about how they should worship the Lord (cf. Malachi 1:9). The names of the two ambassadors were Babylonian suggesting that they had been born in Babylonia during the Captivity. Another view is that a Jew living in Babylon named Bethel-Sharezar (lit. house of God-protect the king), whose title was Regem-melech... read more

John Dummelow

John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Zechariah 7:1-14

Warnings From the PastChs.7 and 8 go together, and were spoken on a date (fourth day of the ninth month in the fourth year of Darius) two years later than the series of visions described above, viz. in 518 b.c. (On contemporary events see on Zechariah 6:8.) They are Zechariah’s answer to a question put to him by certain visitors to Jerusalem, who asked whether the fast observed by the Jews in the fifth month, in memory of the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, should still be kept.... read more

Charles John Ellicott

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Zechariah 7:3

(3) In.—Better, belonging to. LXX., wrongly, ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ.In the fifth month.—On the tenth of the fifth month (Ab), Nebuzar-adan burnt the Temple and Jerusalem with fire (Jeremiah 52:12-13), but in 2 Kings 25:8-10, the seventh day of the fifth month is given as the date; perhaps it was in flames for three days. Now that the re-building was well in progress, they naturally desired to know whether the fast which had been kept in commemoration of the past calamity should be still held.Separating... read more

William Nicoll

Expositor's Dictionary of Texts - Zechariah 7:1-14

Zechariah 7:9 ; Micah 6:8 Besides various maxims of renunciation and wisdom written from top to bottom of the stele, Confucius has left to this sanctuary certain thoughts on literature which have been engraved in letters of gold in such a way as to form pictures hung on the walls. Here is one which I transcribe for young western scholars who are preoccupied with classification and inquiry. They will find in it a reply twice two thousand years old to one of their favourite questions: The... read more