Books of the Bible

The Book of Zechariah

Old Testament · Minor Prophets · Genre: Prophecy · Author: The prophet Zechariah · Chapters: 14

Zechariah encourages the returned exiles with visions of God's future and remarkable prophecies of the coming Messiah. Rich in imagery and hope, it foretells a humble king riding on a donkey and a shepherd who would be pierced, pointing with unusual clarity to Jesus.

Start reading: Zechariah chapter 1

A key verse

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.Zechariah 9:9 (KJV)

The setting and background of Zechariah

Zechariah is one of the twelve Minor Prophets, prophesying at the same time as Haggai to the same community of returned exiles rebuilding the temple. Where Haggai is brief and practical, Zechariah is expansive and visionary, encouraging the discouraged builders by lifting their eyes from present hardship to God's larger purposes.

The first half of the book is a series of symbolic night visions assuring the people that God is at work and will finish what he has begun. The second half is rich with remarkably specific prophecies of the coming Messiah, a king on a donkey, a shepherd sold for thirty pieces of silver, one pierced and mourned, and the Lord reigning over all the earth.

Zechariah was written to encourage the rebuilding community and to press the hope of the Old Testament forward toward a coming king, priest, and shepherd. In the sweep of Scripture, it is among the most quoted prophetic books in the passion narratives of the Gospels, for its detailed prophecies are fulfilled in the final week of Jesus.

The story and structure of Zechariah

Zechariah prophesied at the same time as Haggai, to the same community of returned exiles struggling to rebuild the temple and their life with God. Where Haggai is brief and practical, Zechariah is expansive and visionary, encouraging the discouraged builders by lifting their eyes from their present hardship to God's larger purposes for his people and the world.

The first half of the book is a series of night visions, rich in symbolism, that assure the people God is at work. He will return to Jerusalem in mercy, cleanse his people, remove their iniquity in a single day, and dwell among them again. The visions promise that though the beginnings are small, God will surely finish what he has started.

Woven through the book are striking glimpses of the coming Messiah, unusually detailed for the Old Testament. Zechariah foretells a king who comes to Jerusalem lowly and riding on a donkey, bringing peace to the nations, and he speaks of a shepherd who is valued at thirty pieces of silver and one who is pierced, whom the people will mourn.

Zechariah also speaks of a figure who is both priest and king, and of a coming Branch who will build the temple of the Lord and bear royal honor. These images gather up the hopes of the Old Testament and press them forward toward a single coming one who will unite the offices of king, priest, and shepherd.

The book ends looking to a day when the Lord will be king over all the earth and there will be one Lord whose name is one. On that day holiness will fill everything, from the temple to the humblest cooking pot and the bells of the horses, as all of life is made holy to the Lord. The whole creation will belong to God.

The great themes of Zechariah

Key passages in Zechariah

Zechariah in the sweep of Scripture

Zechariah is one of the most quoted prophetic books in the passion narratives of the Gospels, for its remarkably specific prophecies are fulfilled in the final week of Jesus. The king on the donkey, the thirty pieces of silver, the struck shepherd, and the pierced one all find their fulfillment in Christ. Its visions of cleansing, of God dwelling with his people, and of the Lord reigning over all the earth run into the New Testament and on to the last chapters of Revelation.

Where Christ is in Zechariah

Zechariah's prophecies of a king coming lowly on a donkey, a shepherd sold for thirty pieces of silver, and one pierced and mourned are fulfilled in detail in the triumphal entry, the betrayal, and the crucifixion of Jesus. The coming Branch who is both priest and king is Christ, who cleanses his people from sin and will reign as Lord over all the earth, when holiness fills the whole creation.

How to read Zechariah well

Read Zechariah for its vivid hope and its striking prophecies of Christ, letting its visions encourage you that God finishes what he begins even when the beginnings seem small. Notice how precisely its words about the king, the shepherd, and the pierced one are fulfilled in Jesus, and let that deepen your trust in the reliability of God's word. Lift your eyes, with the book's closing vision, to the day when the Lord will be king over all the earth.

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