Context
the angel spoke with me…Zechariah 1:13
Something happened last night at the men’s Bible study that bears repeating. It was the combined effort of men using the Bible to understand the Bible. We were trying to make sense of another vision God gave Zechariah. In this vision, a man is measuring Jerusalem revealing it is immense, towns without walls, chapter 2, verse 4. Now for the interesting insight of the men using their Bible to understand the Bible.
It was pointed out that again, in his vision, Zechariah is a part of conversations involving himself, and angels quoting Angels quoting the LORD. As one man pointed out, there are quotes within quotes within quotes. That is, Zechariah quoting what he was told by angels quoting the LORD. This observation was very helpful.
We used it to review something we had discussed last week; chapter 1, verses 12 thru 17. Here, grammar, especially punctuation, really helped. It begins with the Angel of the LORD speaking. His words are in quotation marks set aside by commas; as it should be. Then verse 13 with the LORD answered the angel speaking to Zechariah, again quotes within quotes. The angel speaks quoting the Lord of hosts, verse 14.
The quotation marks helped us follow the conversation between Zechariah, the Angel of the LORD, The LORD, another angel, and the LORD of hosts. That is five different participants in the conversation!
We noticed again verse 13: The LORD spoke to the angel who was speaking to Zechariah with good and comforting words. Why? Perhaps, because He is answering the question recorded in verse 12: Then the angel of the LORD answered and said, “O LORD of hosts, how long will You not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which You were angry these seventy years?”
The answer begins in verse 14. However, to understand the answer Bible students must follow the punctuation which identifies just who is speaking and to whom. Then something very helpful happened last night. Using this insight, we revisited Zechariah’s first vision of the four horsemen, to better understand his second vision of the four horns and the craftsmen who come against the horns of the nations. Then again to make sense of the next vision, a man with a measuring line, chapter 2. Where again, we encounter several people in a conversation with their words isolated with quotation marks.
This was helpful, because in chapter 3, in another vision, Zechariah sees Joshua standing before the Angel of the LORD and Satan standing at his right hand to oppose him, chapter 3, verse 1. Then more quotation marks help identify who is talking to whom. Add to this the prophetic aspects of the visions and you begin to understand the impact of serious Bible study; iron sharpening iron.
The point is this: when reading and especially when studying your Bible pay attention to grammar and punctuation. If it helps, separate the conversations on your study notes. In the words of one of the men last night, “there are a lot of moving parts here.” That observation helped us take more time to examine each of the parts. Who is speaking; to whom are they speaking; about whom or what are they speaking, and who are they quoting! Because much of what Zechariah reveals has to do with the last days. Depending on who is speaking today, we may be in the last days; but not the last of the last days, understand? The Bible makes sense in context.
