Texts in Conversation
1 Maccabees echoes Zechariah by describing people living safely under their vine and fig tree, language connected to hope for renewed leadership. This presents Simon’s rule as the fulfillment of that earlier vision of restoration.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Zechariah 3:10
Hebrew Bible
8 Listen now, Joshua the high priest, both you and your colleagues who are sitting before you, all of you are a symbol that I am about to introduce my servant, the Branch. 9 As for the stone I have set before Joshua—on the one stone there are seven eyes. I am about to engrave an inscription on it,’ says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, ‘to the effect that I will remove the iniquity of this land in a single day. 10 In that day,’ says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, ‘everyone will invite his friend to fellowship under his vine and under his fig tree.’”
Date: 500–401 BCE (based on scholarly estimates)
1 Maccabees 14:12
Deuterocanon
10 He provided food for the cities and furnished them with means of defense, until the glory of his name was known to the end of the earth. 11 He made peace in the land, and Israel rejoiced with great joy. 12 Each man sat under his vine and his fig tree, and there was no one to make them afraid. 13 No one was left in the land who fought against them. The kings were defeated in those days. 14 He strengthened all those of his people who were humble. He searched out the law, and every lawless and wicked person he took away.
Date: 134–63 BCE (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... Zechariah 3:10 contains the last canonical and (probably) the last chronological occurrence of the vine and fig tree phrase in the Old Testament. (It also occurs in 1 Maccabees 14:12) Zechariah 3 presents one of two prophetic “sign-act” passages in Zechariah, the other being 6:9–15. In the first half of chapter 3 (verses 1–5), Zechariah sees the divine council and witnesses YHWH rebuking “Satan” (השטן) in defense of Joshua, the high priest. Joshua then has his “filthy garments” replaced with “pure vestments” and a “clean turban.” YHWH assures Joshua that he has taken his iniquity away. In the second half (verses 6–10), Joshua is commanded to perform priestly functions, which will give him access to the divine council should he continue to obey. Joshua is then told that his colleagues are a sign for the coming of צמח. Joshua is given an engraved stone with seven eyes and is promised that the iniquity of the land will be removed in a single day. Verse 10 concludes the passage: “In that day, declares YHWH of hosts, every one of you will invite his neighbor to come under his vine and under his fig tree.” ..."
Peter A. Green, “Vineyards and Wine from Creation to New Creation: A Thematic-Theological Analysis of an Old Testament Motif” (PhD diss., Wheaton College, 2016), 271–272.
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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