Zechariah 3:1-7

Vision Four: The Priest

3:1 Next I saw Joshua the high priest ¹  standing before the angel of the Lord, with Satan ²  standing at his right hand to accuse him. 3:2 The Lord ³  said to Satan, “May the Lord rebuke you, Satan! May the Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem, ⁴  rebuke you! Isn’t this man like a burning stick snatched from the fire?” 3:3 Now Joshua was dressed in filthy clothes ⁵  as he stood there before the angel. 3:4 The angel ⁶  spoke up to those standing all around, “Remove his filthy clothes.” Then he said to Joshua, “I have freely forgiven your iniquity and will dress you ⁷  in fine clothing.” 3:5 Then I spoke up, “Let a clean turban be put on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him, while the angel of the Lord stood nearby. 3:6 Then the angel of the Lord exhorted Joshua solemnly: 3:7 “The Lord who rules over all says, ‘If you live ⁸  and work according to my requirements, you will be able to preside over my temple ⁹  and attend to my courtyards, and I will allow you to come and go among these others who are standing by you.

Zechariah 6:5

6:5 The messenger replied, “These are the four spirits ¹⁰  of heaven that have been presenting themselves before the Lord of all the earth.

Deuteronomy 10:8

10:8 At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi ¹¹  to carry the ark of the Lord’s covenant, to stand before the Lord to serve him, and to formulate blessings ¹²  in his name, as they do to this very day.

Deuteronomy 10:1

The Opportunity to Begin Again

10:1 At that same time the Lord said to me, “Carve out for yourself two stone tablets like the first ones and come up the mountain to me; also make for yourself a wooden ark. ¹³ 

Deuteronomy 17:1

17:1 You must not sacrifice to him ¹⁴  a bull or sheep that has a blemish or any other defect, because that is considered offensive ¹⁵  to the Lord your God.

Jeremiah 49:19

49:19 “A lion coming up from the thick undergrowth along the Jordan ¹⁶ 

scatters the sheep in the pastureland around it. ¹⁷ 

So too I will chase the Edomites off their land. ¹⁸ 

Then I will appoint over it whomever I choose. ¹⁹ 

For there is no one like me, and there is no one who can call me to account. ²⁰ 

There is no ²¹  ruler ²²  who can stand up against me.

Luke 1:19

1:19 The ²³  angel answered him, “I am Gabriel, who stands ²⁴  in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring ²⁵  you this good news.

[3:1]  ¹ sn Joshua the high priest mentioned here is the son of the priest Jehozadak, mentioned also in Hag 1:1 (cf. Ezra 2:2; 3:2, 8; 4:3; 5:2; 10:18; Neh 7:7; 12:1, 7, 10, 26). He also appears to have been the grandfather of the high priest contemporary with Nehemiah ca. 445 b.c. (Neh 12:10).

[3:1]  ² tn The Hebrew term הַשָּׂטָן (hassatan, “the satan”) suggests not so much a personal name (as in almost all English translations) but an epithet, namely, “the adversary.” This evil being is otherwise thus described in Job 1 and 2 and 1 Chr 21:1. In this last passage the article is dropped and “the satan” becomes “Satan,” a personal name.

[3:2]  ³ sn The juxtaposition of the messenger of the Lord in v. 1 and the Lord in v. 2 shows that here, at least, they are one and the same. See Zech 1:11, 12 where they are distinguished from each other.

[3:2]  ⁴ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[3:3]  ⁵ sn The Hebrew word צוֹאִים (tso’im) means “excrement.” This disgusting figure of speech suggests Joshua’s absolute disqualification for priestly service in the flesh, but v. 2 speaks of his having been rescued from that deplorable state by God’s grace. He is like a burning stick pulled out of the fire before it is consumed. This is a picture of cleansing, saving grace.

[3:4]  ⁶ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (the angel, cf. v. 1) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[3:4]  ⁷ tn The occurrence of the infinitive absolute here for an expected imperfect 1st person common singular (or even imperative 2nd person masculine plural or preterite 3rd person masculine plural) is well-attested elsewhere. Most English translations render this as 1st person singular (“and I will clothe”), but cf. NAB “Take off…and clothe him.”

[3:7]  ⁸ tn Heb “walk,” a frequent biblical metaphor for lifestyle or conduct; TEV “If you [+ truly CEV] obey.” To “walk” in the ways of the Lord is to live life as he intends (cf. Deut 8:6; 10:12-22; 28:9).

[3:7]  ⁹ sn The statement you will be able to preside over my temple (Heb “house,” a reference to the Jerusalem temple) is a hint of the increasingly important role the high priest played in the postexilic Jewish community, especially in the absence of a monarchy. It also suggests the messianic character of the eschatological priesthood in which the priest would have royal prerogatives.

[6:5]  ¹⁰ tn The Hebrew term translated “spirit” here may also be translated “wind” or “breath” depending on the context (cf. ASV, NRSV, CEV “the four winds of heaven”; NAB similar).

[10:8]  ¹¹ sn The Lord set apart the tribe of Levi. This was not the initial commissioning of the tribe of Levi to this ministry (cf. Num 3:11-13; 8:12-26), but with Aaron’s death it seemed appropriate to Moses to reiterate Levi’s responsibilities. There is no reference in the Book of Numbers to this having been done, but the account of Eleazar’s succession to the priesthood there (Num 20:25-28) would provide a setting for this to have occurred.

[10:8]  ¹² sn To formulate blessings. The most famous example of this is the priestly “blessing formula” of Num 6:24-26.

[10:1]  ¹³ tn Or “chest” (so NIV, CEV); NLT “sacred chest”; TEV “wooden box.” This chest was made of acacia wood; it is later known as the ark of the covenant.

[17:1]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “to the Lord your God.” See note on “he” in 16:1.

[17:1]  ¹⁵ tn The Hebrew word תּוֹעֵבָה (to’evah, “an abomination”; cf. NAB) describes persons, things, or practices offensive to ritual or moral order. See M. Grisanti, NIDOTTE 4:314-18; see also the note on the word “abhorrent” in Deut 7:25.

[49:19]  ¹⁶ tn See the study note on Jer 12:5 for the rendering of this term.

[49:19]  ¹⁷ tn “The pasture-ground on the everflowing river” according to KBL 42 s.v. I אֵיתָן 1. The “everflowing river” refers to the Jordan.

[49:19]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “Behold, like a lion comes up from the thicket of the Jordan into the pastureland of everflowing water so [reading כֵּן (ken) for כִּי (ki); or “indeed” (reading כִּי as an asseverative particle with J. A. Thompson, Jeremiah [NICOT], 719, n. 6)] I will suddenly chase him [Edom] from upon it [the land].” The sentence has been restructured to better conform with contemporary English style and the significance of the simile drawn from the comparison has been spelled out for the sake of clarity. The form אַרְגִּיעָה (’argi’ah) is functioning here as an adverbial modifier in a verbal hendiadys (cf. GKC 386 §120.g).

[49:19]  ¹⁹ tn For the use of the interrogative מִי (mi) in the sense of “whoever” and functioning like an adjective see BDB 567 s.v. מִי g and compare the usage in Prov 9:4, 16.

[49:19]  ²⁰ tn For the meaning of this verb in the sense of “arraign” or “call before the bar of justice” compare Job 9:19 and see BDB 417 s.v. יָעַד Hiph.

[49:19]  ²¹ tn The interrogative מִי (mi) is rendered “there is no one” in each of the last three occurrences in this verse because it is used in a rhetorical question that expects the answer “no one” or “none” and is according to BDB 566 s.v. מִי f(c) equivalent to a rhetorical negative.

[49:19]  ²² tn The word “shepherd” (רֹעֶה, ro’eh) has been used often in the book of Jeremiah to refer metaphorically to the ruler or leader (cf. BDB 945 s.v. I רָעָה Qal.1.d(2) and compare usage, e.g., in Jer 2:8; 23:1).

[1:19]  ²³ tn Grk “And the.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[1:19]  ²⁴ tn Grk “the one who is standing before God.”

[1:19]  ²⁵ tn Grk “to announce these things of good news to you.”