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Zechariah

About this book
Chapter 2

1 I looked again, and there was a man with a measuring line in his hand.⁠ 2 I asked, “Where are you going?” He replied, “To measure Jerusalem in order to determine its width and its length.” 3 At this point the angelic messenger who spoke to me went out, and another messenger came to meet him 4 and said to him, “Hurry, speak to this young man as follows: ‘Jerusalem will no longer be enclosed by walls because of the multitude of people and animals there. 5 But I,’ the Lord says, ‘will be a wall of fire surrounding Jerusalem and the source of glory in her midst.’” 6 “You there! Flee from the northland!” says the Lord, “for like the four winds of heaven I have scattered you,” says the Lord.⁠ 7 “Escape, Zion, you who live among the Babylonians!” 8 For the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: “For his own glory he has sent me to the nations that plundered you—for⁠ anyone who touches you touches the pupil of his eye.⁠ 9 Yes, look here, I am about to punish them so that they will be looted by their own slaves.” Then you will know that the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has sent me. 10 “Sing out and be happy, Zion my daughter! For look, I have come; I will settle in your midst,” says the Lord.⁠ 11 “Many nations will join themselves to the Lord on the day of salvation, and they will also be my people.⁠ Indeed, I will settle in the midst of you all. Then you will know that the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has sent me to you. 12 The Lord will take possession of Judah as his portion in the holy land and he will choose Jerusalem once again. 13 Be silent in the Lord’s presence, all people everywhere, for he is being moved to action in his holy dwelling place.”⁠

Texts in conversation

Compare Zechariah 2:2 and 1 Enoch 61:2

Hebrew Bible · Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses

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Summary

Zechariah describes a divine figure measuring Jerusalem’s dimensions, a symbolic act that depicts its rebuilding. 1 Enoch similarly shows angelic figures with measuring tools, echoing this prophetic imagery and applying it to an apocalyptic tradition.

Passages

Zechariah 2:2

Hebrew Bible
1 I looked again, and there was a man with a measuring line in his hand. 2 I asked, “Where are you going?” He replied, “To measure Jerusalem in order to determine its width and its length.” 3 At this point the angelic messenger who spoke to me went out, and another messenger came to meet him 4 and said to him, “Hurry, speak to this young man as follows: ‘Jerusalem will no longer be enclosed by walls because of the multitude of people and animals there. 5 But I,’ the Lord says, ‘will be a wall of fire surrounding Jerusalem and the source of glory in her midst.’”
500–401 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Zechariah

1 Enoch 61:2

Pseudepigrapha, Apocalypses
1 And I saw in those days how long cords were given to those angels, and they took to themselves wings and flew, heading north. 2 I asked the angel, 'Why have those angels taken these cords and departed?' And he replied, 'They have gone to measure.' 3 The angel who accompanied me said, 'These shall bring the measures of the righteous, and the ropes of the righteous to the righteous, so that they may rely on the name of the Lord of Spirits forever and ever.' 4 The chosen will begin to dwell with the chosen, and these are the measures which shall be given to faith and which shall strengthen righteousness.
300 BCE – 100 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in 1 Enoch

References

"... The city will be rebuilt after having been destroyed by enemies, and there is the promise of ‘holiness’ after a time of enormous defilement because of the proliferation of corpses. The perimeters of Jerusalem will be determined with a measuring line, thus indicating where the new walls will be built. For a similar act, see Ezekiel 40:3, 5; 42:16, 19; Zechariah 2:1–2. The tower of Hananel is situated on the north-east side of the city and is also mentioned in Nehemiah 3:1; 12:39; and Zechariah 14:10. The Corner Gate is probably north-west of the city (see 2 Kings 14:13; 2 Chronicles 26:9; Zechariah 14:10). Gareb and Goa are unknown. The valley is most probably the Valley of Ben Hinnom (see 2 Kings 23:10–14 where the Kidron Valley is also mentioned; see also Jeremiah 7:31–32; 19). The whole area that was so defiled will be holy to the LORD, which is an enormous contrast with the past (compare Zechariah 14:10–11, 20–21) ..."
Hetty Lalleman-de Winkel, Jeremiah and Lamentations: An Introduction and Commentary (Nottingham: Inter-Varsity, 2013), 232.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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Zechariah 2:2 and 1 Enoch 61:2

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