Chapter 1

1:1 - According to this verse, Zechariah was Iddo's grandson. But Ezra (5:1, 6:14) says he was the son of Iddo.

* This Hebrew word for "son" simply means descendant.  "Grandson" is included in its meaning.

1:8 - God's horeseman patrols the earth on red colored horses.

* The horseman was likely Jesus.  The red horse symbolizes bloodshed.

1:9 - Beginning with this verse, Zechariah is "Touched By An Angel" for much of the first few chapters.

* The angel spoke to Zechariah.

Chapter 2

2:9 - God plans to get revenge on those that plundered Jerusalem by having their slaves rebel.

* The word here is "servants" and not "slaves."

* This passage talks about God's judgment and how these servants would no longer be subject to their masters.  They would actually plunder their masters.

2:13 - Quiet everyone! God's trying to sleep! Now you've done it. He's awake.

* This Hebrew word is translated "aroused" or "raised up."  Nothing indicates that God is sleeping.

Chapter 3

3:2 - So, God says, "God rebuke thee, O Satan?" Don't you hate it when people refer to themselves in the third person?

* There is no contradiction or problem here.

Chapter 4

4:10 - God has eyes that "run to and fro through the whole earth."

* This statement is simply revealing that God sees everything.

Chapter 5

5:1-5 - Zechariah sees a 30 foot flying scroll that burns down the houses of thieves and liars.

* This was a vision that Zechariah was given.  The flying scroll symbolizes a scroll of the law like the Pentateuch.  The wicked were judged by the law.

Chapter 7

7:10 - How should strangers be treated? Be kind to them.

* In this verse, God told Zechariah to avoid oppressing strangers.

Chapter 8

8:2 - God gets jealous with great jealousy and fury. But God's not supposed to get furious (See Is.27:4)

* This passage in Isaiah indicates that God was not furious at that time.  Verses 1 and 2 say, "In that day . . ."  By reading the Bible, one can clearly understand that God has a multi-faceted character.  He is not one dimensional.  His character includes love, mercy, kindness, justice, judgment, wrath, etc.

8:10 - God "set all men one against his neighbor."

* This verse describes God's judgment.  However, the next verses tell about the success and relief that would come from God.

Chapter 9

9:4 - God says he will strip and burn the rich and wise land of Hadrach because he prefers Jerusalem.

* Verse 4 doesn't mention Hadrach, but verse 1 does.  Several people were included in this judgment.  At any rate, God is judging these pagans because of their wickedness.

9:9 - The gospels (especially Mt.21:4-5 and Jn.12:14-15) claim that Jesus fulfils the prophecy of Zech.9:9. But the next few verses (9:10-13) show that the person referred to in this verse is a military king that would rule "from sea to sea". Since Jesus had neither an army or a kingdom, he could not have fulfilled this prophecy.

* Verse 10 includes His dominion being "to the ends of the Earth," too.  This is absolutely true of Jesus' spiritual kingdom.  He clearly said that His kingdom is not of this world.  Therefore, He didn't come to set up an earthly kingdom.

9:13 - The Jews never conquered the Greeks.

* This prophecy is either referring to the Macabbean period and when the Jews overthrew Antiochus IV Epiphanes or it remains to be fulfilled.

Chapter 10

10:8 - God says that he'll hiss for them.

* This Hebrew word for "hiss" also means "whistle" or "call."

10:11 - The river of Egypt (identified as the Nile in NIV, NASB, and RSV) shall dry up. This has never occurred.

* As far as I know, this prophecy has not been fulfilled, yet.

Chapter 11

11:6-7 - God will mercilessly "feed the flock of slaughter" by making every one kill his neighbor.

* God didn't say that He would make everyone kill their neighbors.  However, He did say that He wouldn't deliver them from their judgment.  God promises to remove His hand of protection from them.

11:9 - God wants everyone to eat "the flesh of another."

* God is not encouraging people to eat others.  God is saying that He will judge these people and they will destroy each other.

11:12-13 - Matthew (27:9) quotes this verse, but incorrectly attributes it to Jeremiah.

* In Matthew 27:9, he quotes Jeremiah 32:6-9 for part of this quote.  The other part isn't mentioned in Jeremiah.  Therefore, it was either known to Matthew that Jeremiah spoke or wrote this or Matthew simply omitted that Zechariah had been part of this recorded quotation.

* Note that Matthew 27:9 merely states that Jeremiah "spoke" this prophecy: “And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the value of Him who was priced, whom they of the children of Israel priced, and gave them for the potter’s field, as the LORD directed me.”  It does not necessarily say that it was in the book of Jeremiah.

11:17 - God wants this shepherd, whom he himself raised, to be hacked up and blinded.

* This is referring to God's judgment on wickedness.

Chapter 12

12:4 - God will open his eyes and smite "every rider with madness ... and every horse ... with blindness."

* This part of this prophecy has yet to be fulfilled.

Chapter 13

13:2 - God plans to expel the prophets and unclean spirits. Sounds like a good plan to me.

* This is what God has said.

13:3 - A prophet must be killed by his own parents by "thrusting him through when he prophesieth."

* God hates false prophets.  He is saying how these liars should be put to death for pretending to be the mouthpiece of God.

Chapter 14

14:2 - God will see to it that Jerusalem "shall be taken ... and the women ravished."

* God is prophesying about the future judgment of Jerusalem.  God would rather have the Jews obey Him and live abundantly.  However, they were rejecting Him, so they were going to pay the consequences.  In this verse, He told them some ways that people would abuse them.

14:3-4 - God will "go forth and fight" with "his feet" on the mount of Olives.

* On this mountain, Jesus predicted the destruction of Jerusalem.  This mountain is also where He ascended to Heaven.  The prophecy in this verse has not been fulfilled, yet.

14:12 - God will smite the people with plagues that will cause their flesh, eyes, and tongues to rot away.

* This is part of God's judgment.

14:13 - God will make everyone fight and kill his neighbor.

* This is part of God's judgment.

14:15 - God sends his plagues on animals too.

* This is part of God's judgment.

14:16 - In his never-ending quest to satisfy his ego's thirst, God decrees that anyone who survives all these plagues and slaughters must worship God. And after all of that, who wouldn't?

* God wants people to obey Him.  Those that choose Him will live.  Those that reject God will die.

14:18 - God will "smite the heathen" with a plague.

* This is part of God's judgment.