Zechariah 2:2-4
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
2 Then I asked the angel who spoke with me, “What are those?” He answered, “Those are the horns that scattered[a] Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”(A)
3 Then the Lord showed me four workmen.[b] 4 And I said, “What are these coming to do?” And the Lord said, “Those are the horns that scattered Judah, so that none could raise their heads any more;(B) and these have come to terrify them—to cut down the horns of the nations that raised their horns to scatter the land of Judah.”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 2:2 Scattered: sent part of the population into exile. This was standard imperial policy initiated in the ancient Near East by the Assyrians for dealing with a conquered state.
- 2:3 Four workmen: four agents of God’s power. The imagery follows that of four horns: the workers cut down, or make ineffectual, the horns, i.e., enemy.
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.