Go to Related Reading
About this book

Zechariah

About this book
Chapter 6

1 Once more I looked, and this time I saw four chariots emerging from between two mountains of bronze. 2 Harnessed to the first chariot were red horses, to the second black horses, 3 to the third white horses, and to the fourth spotted horses, all of them strong. 4 Then I asked the angelic messenger who was speaking with me, “What are these, sir?” 5 The messenger replied, “These are the four spirits of heaven going out after presenting themselves before the Lord of all the earth. 6 The chariot with the black horses is going to the north country, and the white ones are going after them, but the spotted ones are going to the south country. 7 All these strong ones are scattering; they have sought permission to go and walk about over the earth.” The Lord had said, “Go! Walk about over the earth!” So they are doing so. 8 Then he cried out to me, “Look! The ones going to the northland have brought me peace about the northland.” 9 The Lord’s message came to me as follows: 10 “Choose some people from among the exiles, namely, Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah, all who have come from Babylon, and when you have done so go to the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah. 11 Then take some silver and gold to make a crown and set it on the head of Joshua the high priest, the son of Jehozadak. 12 Then say to him, ‘The Lord of Heaven’s Armies says, “Look—here is the man whose name is Branch, who will sprout up from his place and build the temple of the Lord.⁠ 13 Indeed, he will build the temple of the Lord, and he will be clothed in splendor, sitting as king on his throne. Moreover, there will be a priest with him on his throne and they will see eye to eye on everything. 14 The crown will then be turned over to Helem, Tobijah, Jedaiah, and Hen son of Zephaniah as a memorial in the temple of the Lord. 15 Then those who are far away will come and build the temple of the Lord so that you may know that the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has sent me to you. This will all come to pass if you completely obey the voice of the Lord your God.”’”⁠

Texts in conversation

Compare Zechariah 6:12 and John 2:22

Hebrew Bible · New Testament

Share:

Summary

Zechariah describes a future leader called the “Branch” who grows out of the fallen tree of the Davidic line to rebuild the temple and unite royal and priestly roles. John echoes this when he connects Jesus’ resurrection to the rebuilding of the temple.

Passages

Zechariah 6:12

Hebrew Bible
10 “Choose some people from among the exiles, namely, Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah, all who have come from Babylon, and when you have done so go to the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah. 11 Then take some silver and gold to make a crown and set it on the head of Joshua the high priest, the son of Jehozadak. 12 Then say to him, ‘The Lord of Heaven’s Armies says, “Look—here is the man whose name is Branch, who will sprout up from his place and build the temple of the Lord. 13 Indeed, he will build the temple of the Lord, and he will be clothed in splendor, sitting as king on his throne. Moreover, there will be a priest with him on his throne and they will see eye to eye on everything. 14 The crown will then be turned over to Helem, Tobijah, Jedaiah, and Hen son of Zephaniah as a memorial in the temple of the Lord.
500–401 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Zechariah

John 2:22

New Testament
20 Then the Jewish leaders said to him, “This temple has been under construction for 46 years, and are you going to raise it up in three days?” 21 But Jesus was speaking about the temple of his body. 22 So after he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the scripture and the saying that Jesus had spoken. 23 Now while Jesus was in Jerusalem at the Feast of the Passover, many people believed in his name because they saw the miraculous signs he was doing. 24 But Jesus would not entrust himself to them because he knew all people.
90–110 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in John

References

"... The explicit references to the Scripture (γραϕή) in the Johannine cleansing narrative in 2:22 as well as in the Johannine narrative about the empty tomb in 20:9 were always a perplexing mystery which raised a plethora of scholarly proposals. The article presents an argument in favor of Zech 6:12-13 as a scriptural referent in both these occurrences of γραϕή. The Zechariah prophecy about the future rebuilding of the temple by a Messianic king perfectly dovetails with the Johannine Temple-Christology, which depicts the resurrection of Jesus as the rebuilding of the temple by the Messiah-King ..."
Adam Kubiś, “Zechariah 6:12–13 as the Referent of γραφή in John 2:22 and 20:9: A Contribution to Johannine Temple-Christology,” The Biblical Annals 2 (2012): 153–194.

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

Your feedback

Zechariah 6:12 and John 2:22

Leave a comment

Your questions and comments are welcome!

Comments

Glossary

Search the Library