The Lampstand, the Olive Trees, and Zerubbabel's Task
Zechariah 4:1-14
Zec.4.1 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- וישב: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- המלאך: NOUN,m,sg,def
- הדבר: NOUN,m,sg,def
- בי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- ויעירני: VERB,hiphil,impf,3,m,sg
- כאיש: PREP
- אשר: PRON,rel
- יעור: VERB,qal,imperf,3,m,sg
- משנתו: NOUN,f,sg,abs+3ms
Parallels
- Daniel 8:18 (verbal): Both scenes depict the seer in a sleep-like state during a vision; Daniel speaks of being in a deep sleep/overwhelmed as the vision came, paralleling Zechariah’s being roused from sleep by the angel.
- Daniel 10:10–11 (verbal): An angelic being touches and awakens the prophet—'a hand touched me' and the messenger speaks to Daniel—closely paralleling the angel’s returning and rousing Zechariah.
- 1 Kings 19:5–7 (verbal): Elijah lies down and is awakened by an angel (‘arise and eat’), a direct motif of an angel touching or rousing a sleeping prophet like Zechariah’s waking.
- Ezekiel 3:12–14 (thematic): The Spirit/angelic agency seizes and transports Ezekiel and rouses him for prophetic commission; thematically similar to the angel returning and awakening Zechariah for further revelation.
- Zechariah 1:8 (structural): Earlier in the same book Zechariah sees visions 'by night' and receives angelic communication—shows the recurring pattern of nocturnal visions and the prophet being roused for revelation within Zechariah.
Alternative generated candidates
- The angel who had been speaking with me returned and roused me, as a man is roused from his sleep.
- Then the angel who was speaking with me returned and roused me, as one is roused from sleep.
Zec.4.2 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אלי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- מה: PRON,int
- אתה: PRON,2,m,sg
- ראה: VERB,qal,imperat,2,m,sg
- ואמר: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- ראיתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,_,sg
- והנה: ADV
- מנורת: NOUN,f,sg,cons
- זהב: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- כלה: ADV
- וגלה: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- על: PREP
- ראשה: NOUN,m,sg,abs,3,f,sg
- ושבעה: NUM,m,pl,abs
- נרתיה: NOUN,m,pl,abs+PRON,3,f,sg
- עליה: PREP,3,f,sg
- שבעה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ושבעה: NUM,m,pl,abs
- מוצקות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- לנרות: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- אשר: PRON,rel
- על: PREP
- ראשה: NOUN,m,sg,abs,3,f,sg
Parallels
- Exodus 25:31-37 (verbal): Description of the golden lampstand (menorah) with its seven lamps, cups, knobs and flowers — close verbal and iconographic parallel to Zechariah’s golden lampstand with seven lamps.
- Exodus 37:17-24 (structural): Account of Bezalel’s actual construction of the lampstand for the tabernacle, reiterating the design elements that Zechariah’s vision evokes.
- Numbers 8:1-4 (verbal): Divine instruction to set up the lampstand and make its lamps burn continually — echoes the cultic function and lamp imagery of Zechariah’s vision.
- Revelation 1:12-13 (allusion): John sees seven golden lampstands and ‘one like a son of man’ standing among them — an apocalyptic reworking of the seven‑lamp motif first prominent in Zechariah’s vision.
- Revelation 4:5 (thematic): Visionary image of seven lamps/lamps of fire before God’s throne (identified with the seven Spirits) — thematically linked to the symbolic use of seven lamps as divine presence and mediation in Zechariah.
Alternative generated candidates
- He said to me, "What do you see?" I answered, "I see—and behold, a lampstand all of gold, with a bowl on its crown; its seven lamps are on it, and seven channels to the seven lamps that are on its crown."
- He said to me, “What do you see?” I answered, “I see, and behold—a lampstand of refined gold, with a bowl on its head; there are seven lamps on it, and seven channels for the lamps that are on its head.”
Zec.4.3 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ושנים: CONJ+NUM,m,pl,abs
- זיתים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- עליה: PREP,3,f,sg
- אחד: NUM,card,m,sg
- מימין: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- הגלה: VERB,hifil,perf,3,m,sg
- ואחד: CONJ+NUM,m,sg
- על: PREP
- שמאלה: ADV
Parallels
- Zechariah 4:2 (structural): Immediate context: describes the golden lampstand with its seven lamps and the bowl atop it—the setting beside which the two olive trees stand.
- Zechariah 4:6 (thematic): Explains the significance of the oil produced by the trees: 'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' linking the olive oil to God's enabling Spirit.
- Zechariah 4:11-14 (verbal): Directly expands the image: identifies the two olive trees/branches as the two 'anointed ones' who stand by the Lord and supply oil to the lampstand, explaining the function of the trees in v.3.
- Revelation 11:4 (quotation): The two witnesses are called 'the two olive trees and the two lampstands, which stand before the God of the earth,' an explicit New Testament quotation/allusion to Zechariah's imagery.
Alternative generated candidates
- And there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and one on its left.
- There are also two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and one on its left.
Zec.4.4 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ואען: VERB,qal,impf,1,_,sg
- ואמר: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- אל: NEG
- המלאך: NOUN,m,sg,def
- הדבר: NOUN,m,sg,def
- בי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
- מה: PRON,int
- אלה: DEM,pl,abs
- אדני: NOUN,m,sg,abs,1,sg
Parallels
- Zech.1.9 (verbal): Same formula: the prophet addresses the angel with “O my lord, what are these?”—a near-verbatim question asking for identification/interpretation of elements in a vision.
- Zech.4.6 (structural): Immediate narrative parallel: the angel's explanatory reply follows the question here (’Not by might…’), showing the common question–answer pattern in Zechariah’s visions.
- Dan.12.8 (verbal): Daniel directly addresses the angel with a question about the vision’s outcome (“O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things?”), mirroring the prophet-to-angel interrogative formula.
- Dan.8.15-16 (thematic): Daniel seeks the meaning of a troubling vision and an angelic messenger comes to explain—parallels the motif of a prophet questioning an angel and receiving interpretation.
- Luke.1.18 (thematic): Zechariah (the priest) questions the angel Gabriel for clarification/sign (“How shall I know this?”), a New Testament instance of a human asking an angel about a revelation.
Alternative generated candidates
- I answered and said to the angel who spoke with me, "What are these, my lord?"
- I answered the angel who was speaking with me, “What are these, my lord?”
Zec.4.5 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ויען: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- המלאך: NOUN,m,sg,def
- הדבר: NOUN,m,sg,def
- בי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אלי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- הלוא: PART
- ידעת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- מה: PRON,int
- המה: PRON,3,m,pl
- אלה: DEM,pl,abs
- ואמר: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- לא: PART_NEG
- אדני: NOUN,m,sg,abs,1,sg
Parallels
- Zech.4.1-4 (structural): Immediate context: the vision of the lampstand and two olive trees is presented and the prophet asks about them (v.4), which leads directly to the angel's question in v.5.
- Zech.4.6-10 (verbal): Direct continuation: the angel answers the question posed in v.5 by explaining the vision's meaning (e.g., 'Not by might...'), so these verses provide the intended interpretation.
- Dan.8.15-17 (verbal): Daniel encounters an angelic interpreter (Gabriel) who responds to his seeking for understanding and explains the vision—parallel in function and Q&A pattern between seer and angel.
- Dan.10.10-14 (thematic): An angelic being engages with the prophet after a vision, touches and strengthens him and conveys understanding—similar dynamics of angelic revelation and explanation.
- Job.38.4-7 (thematic): God's rhetorical questions to Job ('Where were you when I laid the foundations...') mirror the device of an exalted speaker asking a human about the meaning or knowledge of cosmic/significant things.
Alternative generated candidates
- The angel who spoke with me answered and said to me, "Do you not know what these are?" I said, "No, my lord."
- The angel who was speaking with me replied, “Do you not know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.”
Zec.4.6 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ויען: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אלי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
- זה: PRON,dem,m,sg
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אל: NEG
- זרבבל: NOUN,prop,m,sg
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
- לא: PART_NEG
- בחיל: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ולא: CONJ
- בכח: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- כי: CONJ
- אם: CONJ
- ברוחי: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON,1,sg
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- צבאות: NOUN,m,pl,abs
Parallels
- 1 Corinthians 2:4-5 (verbal): Paul contrasts human wisdom/words with a demonstration “of the Spirit and of power,” echoing Zechariah’s emphasis that success comes by God’s Spirit rather than human might or strength.
- Acts 1:8 (thematic): Jesus promises believers will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes—linking missional effectiveness to the Spirit’s work rather than human ability, paralleling Zech. 4:6.
- Psalm 33:16-17 (thematic): The psalm asserts that a king is not saved by large armies or great strength, aligning with Zechariah’s rejection of reliance on might or power and dependence on the LORD’s help.
- Judges 7:2,7-8 (structural): God reduces Gideon’s force and assures him of victory, a narrative instance where deliverance comes by divine initiative and strategy rather than human numbers or strength, resonating with Zech. 4:6’s point.
- Isaiah 40:29-31 (thematic): God renews the faint and gives strength to the powerless; those who wait on the LORD gain renewed power—the broader theological theme that God supplies power beyond human strength parallels Zechariah’s statement.
Alternative generated candidates
- And he answered, "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts.
- And he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts.
Zec.4.7 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- מי: PRON,interr,sg
- אתה: PRON,2,m,sg
- הר: NOUN,m,sg,cons
- הגדול: ADJ,m,sg,def
- לפני: PREP
- זרבבל: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- למישר: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- והוציא: VERB,hif,impf,3,m,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- האבן: NOUN,f,sg,def
- הראשה: NOUN,m,sg,def
- תשאות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- חן: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- חן: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- לה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
Parallels
- Isaiah 40:4-5 (thematic): Both passages depict the leveling of mountains and filling of valleys as imagery for God's action to remove obstacles and prepare a way—Zech.4:7's 'mountain... become a plain' echoes Isaiah's proclamation that every valley shall be exalted and every mountain made low.
- Psalm 118:22 (thematic): Psalm's motif of a rejected stone becoming the chief or capstone parallels Zech.4:7's image of the capstone being brought forth—both use the stone/capstone to signify vindication and the establishment of God's work.
- Haggai 2:21-23 (structural): Haggai likewise speaks of Zerubbabel's future role and exaltation by God (calling him 'signet ring'), continuing the same prophetic program that Zech.4:7 places Zerubbabel at the center of God's restorative action.
- Zechariah 4:6 (verbal): The immediate context: 'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit' explains how the mountain will become a plain and the capstone be brought forth—linking the miraculous outcome in v.7 directly to divine empowerment in v.6.
Alternative generated candidates
- Who are you, O great mountain, before Zerubbabel? You shall become a plain; and he will bring forth the capstone with shouts—'Grace, grace to it!'
- Who are you, O great mountain, before Zerubbabel? You shall become a plain. And he will bring forth the capstone with shouts—'Grace, grace to it!'
Zec.4.8 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ויהי: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
Parallels
- Jeremiah 1:4 (verbal): Uses the identical prophetic formula 'The word of the LORD came to me, saying,' introducing a divine revelation to the prophet (Jeremiah's commissioning).
- Ezekiel 2:1 (verbal): Ezekiel repeatedly begins messages with the same wording ('The word of the LORD came to me, saying'), showing the standard prophetic reception formula present in Zechariah 4:8.
- Haggai 1:1 (structural): Haggai opens several oracles with a similar formula ('the word of the LORD came by Haggai the prophet' / 'the word of the LORD came to Haggai'), performing the same structural role of marking a divine communication to a prophet.
- Amos 3:7 (thematic): While not the same wording, this verse thematically connects to Zechariah 4:8 by articulating the principle that the LORD reveals his purposes to prophets—underlying the significance of the introductory formula 'The word of the LORD came to me.'
Alternative generated candidates
- And the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
- And the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
Zec.4.9 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ידי: NOUN,f,pl,cons
- זרבבל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יסדו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- הבית: NOUN,m,sg,def
- הזה: DEM,m,sg
- וידיו: CONJ+NOUN,f,pl,poss3,m,sg
- תבצענה: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,pl
- וידעת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- כי: CONJ
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- צבאות: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- שלחני: VERB,qal,imp,2,m,sg
- אליכם: PREP+PRON,2,pl
Parallels
- Zechariah 4:6 (verbal): Same prophetic context: the work will be finished not by human might but by God’s Spirit — explains how Zerubbabel’s hands will finish the house.
- Zechariah 4:7 (structural): Immediate context in the vision: the mountain becoming a plain before Zerubbabel underscores God’s enabling of his work and anticipates the foundation and completion motif.
- Haggai 2:4 (thematic): Haggai likewise addresses Zerubbabel with an exhortation to be strong and assurance that the LORD of hosts is with him, echoing the claim that God has sent the prophet and empowered the leader.
- Haggai 2:21-23 (thematic): God’s promise to take Zerubbabel, make him like a signet ring, and display his chosen status parallels the declaration that Zerubbabel’s work will prove the LORD has sent the prophet.
- Ezra 3:8-11 (thematic): Narrative account of Zerubbabel and Jeshua laying the temple foundation after the exile — historical parallel to the prophetic statement that Zerubbabel’s hands laid and will finish the house.
Alternative generated candidates
- "The hands of Zerubbabel laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it. You shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you.
- “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it. You will know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you.
Zec.4.10 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- כי: CONJ
- מי: PRON,interr,sg
- בז: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ליום: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- קטנות: ADJ,f,pl,abs
- ושמחו: CONJ+VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- וראו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- את: PRT,acc
- האבן: NOUN,f,sg,def
- הבדיל: VERB,hiph,perf,3,m,sg
- ביד: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- זרבבל: NOUN,prop,m,sg
- שבעה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אלה: DEM,pl,abs
- עיני: NOUN,f,pl,cons+1s
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- המה: PRON,3,m,pl
- משוטטים: VERB,piel,part,-,m,pl,-
- בכל: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- הארץ: NOUN,f,sg,def
Parallels
- Haggai 2:3 (thematic): Both passages address discouragement over the diminished present compared with former glory—Haggai asks who saw the first temple and regards the current work as nothing, echoing 'who has despised the day of small things.'
- Haggai 2:9 (thematic): Haggai's promise that the latter house's glory will exceed the former parallels Zechariah's assurance that small beginnings under Zerubbabel will lead to God‑given completion and glory.
- Zechariah 4:6 (verbal): Immediate chapter parallel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit' explains how Zerubbabel will accomplish the work despite its 'small' beginnings—same context and theological point.
- Revelation 5:6 (allusion): Rev 5:6 speaks of 'seven eyes... which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth,' directly echoing Zech 4:10's 'seven eyes of the LORD... they run to and fro through all the earth.'
- Psalm 118:22 (thematic): The imagery of a decisive stone/headstone (cornerstone) that vindicates God's work resonates with Zechariah's stone/headstone motif associated with Zerubbabel's rebuilding.
Alternative generated candidates
- For who has despised the day of small things? They shall rejoice and shall see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. These seven are the eyes of the LORD, which range throughout the whole earth."
- Who despises the day of small things? They will rejoice and behold the plumbline in the hand of Zerubbabel. These seven are the eyes of the LORD, which range to and fro through the whole earth.”
Zec.4.11 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ואען: VERB,qal,impf,1,_,sg
- ואמר: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- אליו: PREP+PRON,3,m,sg
- מה: PRON,int
- שני: NUM,m,pl,construct
- הזיתים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- האלה: DEM,pl
- על: PREP
- ימין: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- המנורה: NOUN,f,sg,def
- ועל: CONJ+PREP
- שמאולה: NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON,3,f,sg
Parallels
- Zechariah 4:12 (verbal): Repeats the image of the "two olive trees" and explicitly describes the "two golden pipes" through which the oil is poured, elaborating the same visual elements questioned in v.11.
- Zechariah 4:14 (thematic): Gives the interpretation of the two olive trees as "the two anointed ones" who stand by the Lord of the whole earth, providing the theological meaning behind the objects in v.11.
- Zechariah 4:6–7 (thematic): Explains the purpose of the vision (completion of the temple) and the source of empowerment—"not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit"—connecting the lampstand/olive imagery with divine enabling.
- Revelation 11:4 (allusion): Describes the two witnesses as "the two olive trees and the two lampstands," clearly echoing Zechariah's imagery and applying it to end-time figures.
- Exodus 25:31–40 (structural): Gives the original description and craft details of the golden lampstand (menorah) for the sanctuary, providing the cultic and visual background for Zechariah's symbolic lampstand.
Alternative generated candidates
- I answered and said to him, "What are the two olive trees on the right of the lampstand and on its left?"
- I then asked him, “What are these two olive trees on the right of the lampstand and on its left?”
Zec.4.12 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ואען: VERB,qal,impf,1,_,sg
- שנית: ADV
- ואמר: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- אליו: PREP+PRON,3,m,sg
- מה: PRON,int
- שתי: NUM,card,f,du
- שבלי: NOUN,m,pl,const
- הזיתים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- אשר: PRON,rel
- ביד: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- שני: NUM,m,pl,construct
- צנתרות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- הזהב: NOUN,m,sg,def
- המריקים: VERB,qal,ptcp,-,m,pl
- מעליהם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
- הזהב: NOUN,m,sg,def
Parallels
- Zechariah 4:3 (verbal): Same vision detail: two olive trees beside two gold pipes that pour out gold, a near-verbatim verbal parallel to 4:12’s imagery.
- Zechariah 4:11 (verbal): The prophet repeats his question about the two olive trees (at the right and left of the lampstand), echoing the wording and focus of 4:12.
- Zechariah 4:14 (thematic): Provides the interpretive identification of the olive trees as the two anointed ones (or 'sons of oil'), linking the olive/oil imagery to anointing and divine agents.
- Psalm 52:8 (thematic): Uses the image of a green olive tree to symbolize a person sustained by God—parallels the olive as a symbol of divine blessing, stability, and provision.
- Romans 11:17-24 (thematic): Paul’s olive-tree metaphor for Israel and the Gentiles develops the biblical symbolism of the olive as representing God’s people and their nourishment from God, resonant with Zechariah’s olive imagery as source of oil/anointing.
Alternative generated candidates
- I answered a second time and said to him, "What are the two olive shoots beside the two gold spouts that pour out the golden oil?"
- And I asked again, “What are the two olive shoots by the two gold spouts, which pour out golden oil from them?”
Zec.4.13 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אלי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
- הלוא: PART
- ידעת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- מה: PRON,int
- אלה: DEM,pl,abs
- ואמר: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- לא: PART_NEG
- אדני: NOUN,m,sg,abs,1,sg
Parallels
- Dan.12.8 (verbal): Daniel: “I heard, but I did not understand” — a direct expression of the prophet’s inability to comprehend a revelation, paralleling Zechariah’s ‘No, my lord.’
- Dan.8.15-17 (thematic): Daniel sees a vision and seeks its meaning; an angelic figure appears to explain — parallels the pattern of an angelic question and the prophet’s admission of not knowing.
- Acts 10:17-20 (thematic): Peter is perplexed by a heavenly vision and is instructed by a divine messenger — similar narrative dynamic of initial confusion followed by angelic explanation.
- 1 Cor.3.16 (verbal): Paul’s rhetorical formula “Do you not know…?” mirrors the angel’s opening question in Zechariah, using the same interrogative device to prompt instruction.
Alternative generated candidates
- He answered me, "Do you not know what these are?" I said, "No, my lord."
- He said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.”
Zec.4.14 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ויאמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אלה: DEM,pl,abs
- שני: NUM,m,pl,construct
- בני: NOUN,m,pl,construct
- היצהר: NOUN,m,sg,def
- העמדים: VERB,qal,ptc,0,m,pl
- על: PREP
- אדון: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- כל: DET
- הארץ: NOUN,f,sg,def
Parallels
- Zechariah 4:6 (structural): Immediate context of the vision: 'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit' explains how the work of the two 'sons of oil' will be accomplished and is tightly bound to verse 4:14's identification of the anointed ones.
- Zechariah 3:8 (allusion): Earlier vision names God's servants (Joshua the priest and Zerubbabel the governor); these figures are commonly identified as the 'two anointed ones' who stand by the Lord, linking the visions thematically and personologically.
- Zechariah 6:12–13 (thematic): Speaks of the 'Branch' and a figure combining priestly and royal roles—parallels the function and hoped-for restoration connected with the two anointed leaders named in 4:14.
- Psalm 105:15 (verbal): Uses the language of 'my anointed' (lit. 'my anointed ones'); echoes the special status implied by 'sons of oil'/'anointed ones' in Zech 4:14 and underscores divine protection/commission of those anointed.
Alternative generated candidates
- And he said, "These are the two anointed ones who stand beside the Lord of all the earth."
- And he said, “These are the two anointed ones who stand by the Lord of all the earth.”
The angel who had been speaking with me returned and roused me, as a man is roused from his sleep.
He said to me, “What do you see?” I answered, “I see, and behold a lampstand of solid gold, with a bowl on its top; and seven lamps on it, and seven channels for the lamps that are on its top.”
There were also two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and one on its left.
I answered and said to the angel who was speaking with me, “What are these, my lord?”
The angel who was speaking with me replied, “Do you not know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.” And he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts.
Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain. And he will bring forth the capstone with shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’” And the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
“The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it. And you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you.
For who has despised the day of small things? They shall rejoice and shall see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. These seven are the eyes of the LORD, which range through all the earth.”
Then I said to him, “What are these two olive branches, one at the right of the lampstand and one at its left?” And I again said to him, “What are the two olive shoots that pour out golden oil through the two gold pipes?”
He said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.” And he said, “These are the two anointed ones who stand by the Lord of all the earth.”