Zechariah 9:15 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Zechariah 9:15
The LORD of hosts shall defend them; and they shall devour, and subdue with sling stones; and they shall drink, and make a noise as through wine; and they shall be filled like bowls, and as the corners of the altar.
a mass of persons (or figuratively · noun, common feminine plural absolute
defend
יָגֵ֣ןya.Gen
H1598
to hedge about · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
devour
וְאָכְל֗וּve.'a.khe.Lu
H398
to eat (literally or figuratively) · conjunction + verb, qal sequential perfect, 3rd person common plural
subdue
וְכָֽבְשׁוּ֙ve.kha.ve.Shu
H3533
to tread down · conjunction + verb, qal sequential perfect, 3rd person common plural
sling
קֶ֔לַעKe.la'
H7050
a sling · noun, common masculine singular absolute
stones
אַבְנֵי'av.nei-
H68
a stone · noun, common feminine plural construct
drink
וְשָׁת֥וּve.sha.Tu
H8354
to imbibe (literally or figuratively) · conjunction + verb, qal sequential perfect, 3rd person common plural
noise
הָמ֖וּha.Mu
H1993
to make a loud sound (like English 'hum') · verb, qal perfect, 3rd person common plural
wine
יָ֑יִןYa.yin
H3196
wine (as fermented) · noun, common masculine singular absolute
filled
וּמָֽלְאוּ֙u.mal.'U
H4390
to fill or (intransitively) be full of · conjunction + verb, qal sequential perfect, 3rd person common plural
bowls
כַּמִּזְרָ֔קka.miz.Rak
H4219
a bowl (as if for sprinkling) · preposition with the article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
corners
כְּזָוִיּ֖וֹתke.za.vi.Yot
H2106
an angle (as projecting) · preposition + noun, common feminine plural construct
altar
מִזְבֵּֽחַmiz.Be.ach
H4196
an altar · noun, common masculine singular absolute
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Zechariah 12:6 In that day will I make the governors of Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; and they shall de…
Zechariah 10:7 And they of Ephraim shall be like a mighty man, and their heart shall rejoice as through wine: yea, their children shall see it, and be glad…
Exodus 27:2 And thou shalt make the horns of it upon the four corners thereof: his horns shall be of the same: and thou shalt overlay it with brass.
Psalms 78:65 Then the Lord awaked as one out of sleep, and like a mighty man that shouteth by reason of wine.
Zechariah 10:5 And they shall be as mighty men, which tread down their enemies in the mire of the streets in the battle: and they shall fight, because the…
Zechariah 12:8 In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the hous…
Leviticus 4:18 And he shall put some of the blood upon the horns of the altar which is before the LORD, that is in the tabernacle of the congregation, and…
Leviticus 4:25 And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin offering with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and sh…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Zechariah 9:12–end
The prophet, having taught those that had returned out of captivity to attribute their deliverance to the blood of the covenant and to the promise of the Messiah (for they were so wonderfully helped because that blessing was in them, was yet in the womb of their nation), now comes to encourage them with the prospect of a joyful and happy settlement, and of glorious times before them; and such a happiness they did enjoy, in a great measure, for some time; but these promises have their full accomplishment in the spiritual blessings of the gospel which we enjoy by Jesus Christ.
I. They are invited to look unto Christ, and flee unto him as their city of refuge (Zac 9:12): Turn you to the strong-…
devour--the flesh of their foes.
drink--the blood of their foes; that is, utterly destroy them. Image (as Jer 46:10) from a sacrifice, wherein part of the flesh was eaten, and the blood poured in libation (compare Isa 63:1, &c.).
subdue with sling-stones--or, "tread under foot the sling-stones" hurled by the foe at them; that is, will contemptuously trample on the hostile missiles which shall fall harmless under their feet (compare Job 41:28). Probably, too, it is implied that their foes are as impotent as the common stones used in slinging when they have fallen under foot: in contrast to the people of God (Zac 9:16), "the (precious) stones of a crown" (compare Sa1 25:29) [MAURER]. Engli…
The Lord of hosts shall defend then - He alone is the sure trust of his Church.
Subdue with sling-stones - This was an ancient and powerful instrument in the hands of the Hebrews. See the note on Jdg 20:16.
They shall drink - After the victory gained as above, thy people shall hold a feast, and drink and be filled with wine. There is no intimation here that they shall drink the blood of their enemies, as some barbarous nations were accustomed to do. When they have gained the victory, they shall banquet abundantly on the spoils taken from the enemy.
As the corners of the altar - They shall pour out libations of wine at the foot of the altar, as the priests were accustomed to pour out the bloo…
The Church Fathers
(Verse 15, 16.) And they shall devour and subject to stones of slings: and drinking, they shall be intoxicated as with wine (Vulgate: with wine), and shall be filled like bowls and like the horns of the altar, and the Lord their God shall save them in that day as the flock of his people, because holy stones shall be lifted up upon his land. LXX: And they shall consume them, and bury them in stones of slings, and they shall drink their blood like wine, and they shall be filled like the bowls of the altar, and the Lord shall save them on that day as his flock, because holy stones shall roll on his land. For what we have said, they will be exalted, and it is written in Hebrew, Methnosasoth (), can be interpreted as wandering or fleeing. With the children of Zion protected, and the Lord singing, and going in a whirlwind against their adversaries, the destruction of the Greeks will be so great that I will not say by swords, but they will be crushed by the throwing of stones and the rotations of catapults, so that they will be spoils and food for their enemies. Then they will be drunk as if with wine. Not those who have been killed, but they will be drunk with their own blood; but those who conquer will fight as if drunk with desperation, and they will please the Lord like the horns of the altar, and their libation. For this is understood in the bowls, in which the offerings are poured out on the altar. The Lord will also save them like sheep and the flock of his people: for he will not fight like an armed and trained army against the Macedonians; but he will come like a flock prepared for death, and with the help of the Lord, he will prevail. And the holy stones that were oppressed (for they are called stones, on account of the hardness of trials and the courage of the soul) shall be lifted up from their humility, and they shall be on the land of his glory. Otherwise: his holy stones of the priestly race fleeing in different directions, with him granting them victory, shall attain it, let us say, according to the anagoge, nay, let us explain the prophecy enveloped in many obscurities. The sons of Zion, protected by their Lord, shall devour their adversaries, whom we understand to be the sons of Greece. And they shall subject them to stones of slings, and menaces of Scriptures, making their adversaries subject and humble: for nothing strikes so much as an example…
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Basin — Or Bason. (1.) A trough or laver (Heb. aggan’) for washing (Ex. 24:6); rendered also “goblet” (Cant. 7:2) and “cups” (Isa. 22:24). (2.) A covered dish or urn (Heb. k’for) among the vessels of the…
Wine — The common Hebrew word for wine is yayin, from a root meaning “to boil up,” “to be in a ferment.” Others derive it from a root meaning “to tread out,” and hence the juice of the grape trodden out.…
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
The Lord of hosts shall defend them,.... Against all their enemies; against Satan, and his temptations, and all the opposition made by him; against the world, and all the rage and reproach of men; this was remarkably verified in the apostles, who were preserved by the Lord amidst a thousand snares and dangers; and who was able to do it, being Jehovah, and the Lord of armies in heaven and in earth; he was as a shield unto them, as the word (t) used signifies; and to which he is often compared in Scripture. The Targum renders it,
"the Lord of hosts shall have mercy on them;''
he encompassed them about with his favour as with a shield:
and they shall devour; or "eat" (u); spiritual food; Chr…
Zechariah 9:15
15. The LORD of hosts shall defend them; and they shall devour, and subdue with sling stones; and they shall drink, and make a noise as through wine; and they shall be filled like bowls, and as the corners of the altar.
15. Iehova exercituum proteget eos; et comedent et subjicient lapidibus fundae, (vel, lapides, ut alii vertun,) tanquam a vino, et replebuntur quasi phiala, quasi anguli altaris.
He expresses again the same thing in other words -- that God would be like a shadow to his people, so that he would with an extended hand protect them from their enemies. Since the Jews might have justly felt a distrust in their own strength, the Prophet continually teaches them tha…
This thought is supported in Zac 9:13. by a picture of the glory intended for Israel. Zac 9:13. "For I stretch Judah as my bow, fill it with Ephraim, and stir up thy sons, O Zion, against thy sons, O Javan, and make thee like the sword of a hero. Zac 9:14. And Jehovah will appear above them, and like the lightning will His arrow go forth; and the Lord Jehovah will blow the trumpets, and will pass along in storms of the south. Zac 9:15. Jehovah of hosts will shelter above them, and they will eat and tread down sling-stones, and will drink, make a noise, as if with wine, and become full, like the sacrificial bowls, like the corners of the altar." The double recompense which the Lord will make…
In ancient battles, great stones (literally sling-stones) were hurled at defenders on city walls and catapulted onto the inhabitants inside. The Maccabees’ triumph over the Hellenistic Seleucids in the 100s BC might have partially fulfilled Zechariah’s prophecy of Israel’s defeat of the Greeks (see 1 Maccabees 3:16-24; 4:6-16; 7:40-50). • They will be filled with blood . . . drenched with blood: When the Lord unleashes his armies against the Greeks, the amount of bloodshed will be vast. • like a bowl: Ceremonial sprinkling bowls filled with animal blood were used in the rituals of sacrifice. This image almost suggests that the vanquishing of the Lord’s enemies is in some sense an offering to…
and they shall devour the spoils of their enemies.
and they shall tread under them sling-stones They are the Greeks, who are trained to use the bow and to sling stones.
They shall make a noise like [those who drink] wine They shall make noise with a voice of joy and happiness, as those who have drunk much wine make noise.
and they shall become full Their souls shall become full of all good.
like the basin that is full of blood. before the altar.
like the corners of the altar where wine is libated. The wine would flow upon it, as we learned in tractate Sukkah (49b). This is an expression of satiety, an expression of drunkenness.
