2:1The man with the measuring line symbolizes the hope of a rebuilt Jerusalem and a restored people. The man wouid be measuring to mark out the boundaries for a foundation (see 1:16; and Jeremiah 31:38-40).
Life Application Study BibleZechariahChapter 2
Zechariah 2
New Living Translation · Life Application Study Bible · Original page: 1504
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2Zechariah 2
Future Prosperity of Jerusalem
12 1*When I looked again, I saw a man with a measuring line in his hand. 2“ Where are you a4 . ” Ezek 40:3-5 going?” I asked. 2:2 He replied, “I am going to measure Jerusalem, to see how wide and how long it is.” Jer 31:39 3Then the angel who was with me went to meet a second angel who was coming toward Rev 24:15-17 him. 4The other angel said, “Hurry, and say to that young man, ‘Jerusalem will someday be so full of people and livestock that there won't be room enough for everyone! Many will live outside the city walls. Then I, myself, will be a protective wall of fire around Jerusalem, says 2:5 the Lor. And I will be the glory inside the city!’” Zech 210-11
The Exiles Are Called Home
56The LORD says, 6Come away! Flee from Babylon in the land of the north, for I have scattered you to the four winds. 7Come away, people of Zion, you who are exiled in Babylon!” 8After a period of glory, the LORD of Heaven's Armies sent me* against the nations who plundered you. For he said, “Anyone who harms you harms my most precious possession.* 9I will raise my fist to crush them, and their own slaves will plunder them.” Then you will know that the LORD of Heaven's Armies has sent me. 10The LORD says, 11Shout and rejoice, O beautiful Jerusalem,* for I am coming to live among you. *!Many nations will join themselves to the LORD on that day, and they, too, will be my people. Iwill live among you, and you will know that the LORD of Heaven's Armies sent me to you. 12The land of Judah will be the LORD’s special possession in the holy land, and he will once again choose Jerusalem to be his own city. 13Be silent before the LORD, all humanity, for he is springing into action from his holy dwelling.”
Cleansing for the High Priest
Then the angel showed me Jeshua* the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD. The Accuser, Satan,* was there at the angel's right hand, making accusations against
Textual footnotes
- 2:1 Verses 2:1-13 are numbered 2:5-17 in Hebrew text.
- 2:8a The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
- 2:8b Hebrew Anyone who touches you touches the pupil of his eye.
- 2:10 Hebrew O daughter of Zion.
Life Application Notes 5 notes
2:6,7Many of the captive Israelites did not return to Jerusalem because they had become accustomed to the security and wealth they had in Babylon. But Zechariah instructed them to leave Babylon quickly. This was an urgent request because Babylon would be destroyed and its decadent culture would cause God's people to forget their spiritual priorities. A vast majority of the Israelites rejected these warnings and remained in Babylon.
2:8Believers are precious to God (Psalm 116:15); they are his very own children (Psalm 103:13). Treating any believer unkindly is the same as treating God that way. As Jesus told his disciples, when we help others we are helping him; when we neglect or abuse them, we are neglecting or abusing him (Matthew 25:34-46). Be careful, therefore, how you treat fellow believers—that is the way you are treating God.
2:9-12Me (2:9) may refer to the Messiah, who, in the end, will judge all who have oppressed God’s people. God promises to live among his people, and he says that many nations will come to know him (John 1:14; Revelation 21:3).
2:11,12God did not forget his words to Abraham, “All the families on earth will be blessed through you” (Genesis 12:3). Abraham, the father of the nation of Israel, was promised that his descendants would bless the whole world. Since the coming of Jesus, the Messiah, this promise is being fulfilled—people from all nations are coming to God through him.