Zechariah 8:9

8:9-17 Those only who lay their hands to the plough of duty, shall have them strengthened with the promises of mercy: those who avoid their fathers' faults have the curse turned into a blessing. Those who believed the promises, were to show their faith by their works, and to wait the fulfilment. When God is displeased, he can cause trade to decay, and set every man against his neighbour; but when he returns in mercy, all is happy and prosperous. Surely believers in Christ must not trifle with the exhortation to put away lying, and to speak every man peace with his neighbour, to hate what the Lord hates, and to love that wherein he delights.

Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Let your hands be strong,.... In going on with the building of the temple, which was typical of the church of God, since so many great and good things were promised by the Lord, Haggai 2:4 , ye that hear in these days; such as Zerubbabel the ruler, Joshua the high priest, and the rest of the people of the land: these words by the mouth of the prophets; that is, these prophecies of future good things, which were delivered by Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi; who were the prophets, which were in the day that the foundation of the house of the Lord of hosts was laid; which was in the second year of Darius, on the twenty fourth day of the ninth month, Haggai 2:10, that the temple might be built; in order to the rebuilding of it, the foundation was laid; and from that time it was to continue building, till it was finished (m). (m) The true reading of these words, according to the accents, is, "Thus saith the Lord of hosts: let your hands be strong, that hear in those days these words: out of the prophets, I say, ye have heard, that, from the day the house of the Lord of hosts shall be founded, the temple should be continued to be built." So Reinbeck. De Accent. Heb. p. 453.

Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Let your {f} hands be strong, ye that hear in these days these words by the mouth of the prophets, who were in the day when the foundation of the house of the LORD of hosts was laid, that the temple might be built. (f) Let neither respect of your personal benefits, neither counsel of others, nor fear of enemies, discourage you in the going forward with the building of the temple, but be steadfast and obey the Prophets, who encourage you to that.

Zechariah 8:9-10 . Let your hands be strong — Be of good courage, and go on with resolution and perseverance in the work you have begun, the rebuilding of the temple, since you have received such assurances from God’s prophets, even from the very first of your entering upon it, that he would prosper you in it, enable you to finish it, and bless you on account of your labour bestowed on it. Ye that hear these words of the prophets — He refers to the prophecies of Haggai, as well as those of Zechariah; which were in the day, or, who spake in the day, that the foundation of the house was laid — The prophet speaks of the carrying on of the building as if it were the laying a new foundation: see Haggai 2:18 . For before these days there was no hire for man, &c. — Or rather, There was no reward for man, nor any reward for beast: so the word שׂכר , here used, often signifies; that is, the fruits of the earth would not pay for the labour of those who cultivated it: see the margin. For I set all men everyone against his neighbour — I suffered many molestations to be given you. The enemies of the Jews ceased not to molest them from without, Ezra 4:1 , &c.; and civil dissensions, it seems, prevailed within.

Let your hands be strong; be of good courage, and hearten on each other to the expectation of God’s promise, and the doing your duty. Ye, you returned captives, that hear: this is an argument to revive their courage, they hear God by his word very fairly proposing great things. In these days; in these days of Darius Hystaspes, some twelve, or fifteen, or perhaps eighteen years since the time I point at. In these days of hope from Darius favourably helping, but most from God assisting and blessing. These words, promises, exhortations, and counsels, by the mouth of the prophets, Haggai and Zechariah. In the day that the foundation of the house of the Lord of hosts was laid; in the second year of Cyrus, which if reckoned from his succeeding of his father Cambyses in the Persian crown, and his father-in-law Cyaxares in the crown of Media, which happened near about A.M. 3167, unto the second of Darius Hystaspes, A.M. 3485, that is eighteen years ago, will make it likely that Haggai and Zechariah are intended there: but to lay it so that this re-edifying of the temple be in the second of Darius Nothus , is to make these two prophets either to be silent one hundred and twelve years together, or to preach with little success and less complaint, for I do not remember that either of them chargeth this people with this particular fault. That the temple might be built, according to God’s command and your duty.

9 . by the mouth ] Rather, from the mouth. R. V. the prophets, which were , &c.] Remember that “these words” of promise (e.g. Zechariah 8:3-8 supra ) which you are hearing in “these days” are spoken to you by the same prophets who first urged you to the work, and whose earlier promises then made are already being fulfilled to you, Zechariah 8:10-11 ; Haggai 2:15-19 . that the temple might be built ] Rather, even the temple, that it might he built, as R. V. This clause seems to be added to shew that it is not the first laying of the foundation, which was followed by no further progress ( Ezra 3:10-12 ), but the vigorous resumption of the work, a second founding, as it were, with a view to building, in which “the prophets” ( Ezra 5:1-2 ) bore so prominent a part, that is here referred to. 9–13 . These verses, introduced by the phrase, Thus saith the Lord of hosts , and beginning and ending with the same words, Let your hands be strong , form one continuous exhortation to persevere in rebuilding the Temple. The exhortation is grounded upon a comparison of their condition, before and after the time when they began in earnest to build the house of the Lord. The improvement which had already taken place since that time should encourage them to go on building, cheered by fresh prophecies and promises from the mouth of the same prophets who had urged them to begin the work, and of Him whose messengers of good they were.

9-13. All adversities formerly attended them when neglecting to build the temple: but now God promises all blessings, as an encouragement to energy in the work. hands … strong—be of courageous mind (2Sa 16:21), not merely in building, but in general, as having such bright prospects (Zec 8:13, &c.). these days—the time that had elapsed between the prophet's having spoken "these words" and the time (Zec 8:10; compare Hag 2:15-19) when they set about in earnest restoring the temple. the prophets—Haggai and Zechariah himself (Ezr 5:1, 2). The same prophets who promised prosperity at the foundation of the temple, now promised still greater blessings hereafter.

Verses 9-17. - § 5. The people are exhorted to be of good cheer, for god will henceforth give them his blessing, which, however, was conditional on their obedience. Verse 9. - Let your hands be strong (comp. Haggai 2:15-19 ). Be of good courage for the work before you ( Judges 7:11 ; Isaiah 35:3 ; Ezekiel 22:14 ). By ( from ) the mouth of the prophets, which were . Who came forward as prophets. These prophets, who prophesied after the foundations of the temple were laid, were Haggai and Zechariah; they are thus distinguished from the pre-exilian seers mentioned in Zechariah 7:7 . The same prophets who encouraged you in your work at first are they who have spoken to you words of promise in those days. That the temple might be built; Revised Version, even the temple that it might be built. This could not be predicated of the first foundation, which was followed by a long period of inaction ( Ezra 4:24 ), only terminated by the vigorous exhortations of the prophets, which led to a resumption of the work that might be called a second foundation of the temple. Zechariah 8:9

Let your hands be strong - The fulfillment of God's former promises are the earnest of the future; His former providences, of those to come. Having then those great promises for the time to come, they were to be earnest in whatever meantime God gave them to do. He speaks to them, "as hearing in these days," that is, that fourth year of Darius in which they apparently were, "these words from the mouth of the prophets, which were in the day when the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid, the temple, that it might be built." Haggai was now gone to his rest. His voice had been silent for two years. But his words lived on. The fulfillment of what the prophets had then spoken in God's Name, was a ground, why their hands should be strong, now and thereafter, for every work which God gave or should give them to do. Ribera: "Some things are said to Jerusalem, that is, to the Jews, which belong to them only; some relate to what is common to them and the other members of the Church, that is, these who are called from the Gentiles. Now he speaks to the Jews, but not so as to seem to forget what he had said before. He would say, Ye who hear the words, which in those days when the temple was founded, Haggai and Zechariah spake, be strong and proceed to the work which ye began of fulfilling the will of the Lord in the building of the temple, and in keeping from the sins, in which ye were before entangled.

For as, before ye began to build the temple, ye were afflicted with many calamities, but after ye had begun, all things went well with you, as Haggai said, "so, if you cultivate piety and do not depart from God, ye shall enjoy great abundance of spiritual good" Haggai 2:15-19 . Osorius: "The memory of past calamity made the then tranquillity much sweeter, and stirred the mind to greater thanksgiving. He set forth then the grief of those times when he says;"

After these promises the prophet admonishes the people to be of good courage, because the Lord will from henceforth bestow His blessing upon them. Zechariah 8:9 . "Thus saith Jehovah of hosts, Let your hands be strong, ye that hear in these days these words from the mouth of the prophets, on the day that the foundation of the house of Jehovah of hosts was laid, the temple, that it may be built. Zechariah 8:10 . For before those days there were no wages for the men, and no wages of cattle; and whoever went out and in had no peace because of the oppressor: and I drove all men, one against the other. Zechariah 8:11 . But now I am not as in the former days to the remnant of this people, is the saying of Jehovah of hosts. Zechariah 8:12 . But the seed of peace, the vine, shall yield its fruit, and the land shall yield its produce, and the heaven give its dew; and to the remnant of this people will I give all this for an inheritance." Having the hands strong, is the same as taking good courage for any enterprise (thus in Judges 7:11 ; 2 Samuel 2:7 , and Ezekiel 22:14 ). This phrase does not refer specially to their courageous continuation of the building of the temple, but has the more general meaning of taking courage to accomplish what the calling of each required, as Zechariah 8:10-13 show. The persons addressed are those who hear the words of the prophets in these days. This suggests a motive for taking courage.

Because they hear these words, they are to look forward with comfort to the future, and do what their calling requires. The words of the prophets are the promises which Zechariah announced in Zechariah 8:2-8 , and his contemporary Haggai in ch. 2. It will not do to take the plural נביאים in a general sense, as referring to Zechariah alone. For if there had been no prophet at that time beside Zechariah, he could not have spoken in general terms of prophets. By the defining phrase, who are or who rose up at the time when the foundation of the temple was laid, these prophets are distinguished from the earlier ones before the captivity ( Zechariah 7:7 , Zechariah 7:12 ; Zechariah 1:4 ), and their words are thereby limited to what Haggai and Zechariah prophesied from that time downwards. בּיום does not stand for מיּום (Hitzig), but yōm is used in the general sense of the time at which anything does occur or has occurred. As a more precise definition of יום יסּד the word להבּנות is added, to show that the time referred to is that in which the laying of the foundation of the temple in the time of Cyrus became an eventful fact through the continuation of the building. In Zechariah 8:10 . a reason is assigned for the admonition to work with good courage, by an exhibition of the contrast between the present and the former times.