Zechariah — Chapter 4
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1And the angel that talked with me came again, and waked me, as a man that is wakened out of his sleep,
2And said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof:
3And two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof.
4So I answered and spake to the angel that talked with me, saying, What are these, my lord?
5Then the angel that talked with me answered and said unto me, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.
6Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.
7Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it.
8Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
9The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto you.
10For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth.
11Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof?
12And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves?
13And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.
14Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the LORD of the whole earth.
1And the angel that talked with me came again, and waked me, as a man that is wakened out of his sleep.
2And he said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have seen, and, behold, a candlestick all of gold, with its bowl upon the top of it, and its seven lamps thereon; there are seven pipes to each of the lamps, which are upon the top thereof;
3and two olive-trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof.
4And I answered and spake to the angel that talked with me, saying, What are these, my lord?
5Then the angel that talked with me answered and said unto me, Knowest thou not what these are? And I said, No, my lord.
6Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of Jehovah unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith Jehovah of hosts.
7Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel [thou shalt become] a plain; and he shall bring forth the top stone with shoutings of Grace, grace, unto it.
8Moreover the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,
9The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that Jehovah of hosts hath sent me unto you.
10For who hath despised the day of small things? for these seven shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel; [these are] the eyes of Jehovah, which run to and fro through the whole earth.
11Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive-trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof?
12And I answered the second time, and said unto him, What are these two olive-branches, which are beside the two golden spouts, that empty the golden [oil] out of themselves?
13And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these are? And I said, No, my lord.
14Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth.
1The angelic messenger who had been speaking with me then returned and woke me, as a person is wakened from sleep.
2He asked me, “What do you see?” I replied, “I see a menorah of pure gold with a receptacle at the top. There are seven lamps at the top, with seven pipes going to the lamps.
3There are also two olive trees beside it, one on the right of the receptacle and the other on the left.”
4Then I asked the messenger who spoke with me, “What are these, sir?”
5He replied, “Don’t you know what these are?” So I responded, “No, sir.”
6Therefore he told me, “This is the Lord’s message to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by strength and not by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
7“What are you, you great mountain? Because of Zerubbabel you will become a level plain! And he will bring forth the temple capstone with shoutings of ‘Grace! Grace!’ because of this.”
8Moreover, the Lord’s message came to me as follows:
9“The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundations of this temple, and his hands will complete it. Then you will know that the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has sent me to you.
10For who dares make light of small beginnings? These seven eyes will joyfully look on the tin tablet in Zerubbabel’s hand. These are the eyes of the Lord, which constantly range across the whole earth.”
11Next I asked the messenger, “What are these two olive trees on the right and the left of the menorah?”
12Before he could reply I asked again, “What are these two extensions of the olive trees, which are emptying out the golden oil through the two golden pipes?”
13He replied, “Don’t you know what these are?” And I said, “No, sir.”
14So he said, “These are the two anointed ones who stand by the Lord of the whole earth.”
1The angel who talked with me came again, and wakened me, as a man who is wakened out of his sleep.
2He said to me, “What do you see?” I said, “I have seen, and behold, a lamp stand all of gold, with its bowl on the top of it, and its seven lamps on it; there are seven pipes to each of the lamps, which are on the top of it;
3and two olive trees by it, one on the right side of the bowl, and the other on the left side of it.”
4I answered and spoke to the angel who talked with me, saying, “What are these, my lord?”
5Then the angel who talked with me answered me, “Don’t you know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.”
6Then he answered and spoke to me, saying, “This is Yahweh’s word to Zerubbabel, saying, ‘Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says Yahweh of Armies.
7Who are you, great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you are a plain; and he will bring out the capstone with shouts of ‘Grace, grace, to it!’”
8Moreover Yahweh’s word came to me, saying,
9“The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house. His hands shall also finish it; and you will know that Yahweh of Armies has sent me to you.
10Indeed, who despises the day of small things? For these seven shall rejoice, and shall see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. These are Yahweh’s eyes, which run back and forth through the whole earth.”
11Then I asked him, “What are these two olive trees on the right side of the lamp stand and on the left side of it?”
12I asked him the second time, “What are these two olive branches, which are beside the two golden spouts, that pour the golden oil out of themselves?”
13He answered me, “Don’t you know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.”
14Then he said, “These are the two anointed ones who stand by the Lord of the whole earth.”
Summary
The vision of the golden lampstand and two olive trees teaches that the temple will be rebuilt "not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit" — Zerubbabel's hands laid the foundation and will complete it.
Authorship & Background
- The Vision: A Golden Lampstand with Olive Trees (vv.1-3)
- Zechariah's Question and the Angel's Challenge (vv.4-5)
- "Not by Might... But by My Spirit" (v.6)
- The Mountain Becomes a Plain (v.7)
- Zerubbabel Will Finish the Temple (vv.8-9)
- The Day of Small Things (v.10)
- The Two Olive Trees Explained (vv.11-14)
Map & Geography
- No specific geographic locations are referenced in this chapter.
Videos
The Bible Project — Zechariah Overview (Video)
Animated overview of the book of Zechariah showing the literary structure, key themes, and how this book fits into the larger biblical narrative. Excellent visual introduction.
Reflection
- 1. "Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit" (v.6). This is the death sentence to self-reliance. Your talent, your resources, your strategic plans — none of them accomplish God's purposes. Only His Spirit does. The question is not "How much can I do?" but "How much of the Spirit am I depending on?"
- 2. Your "great mountain" will become a plain (v.7). That insurmountable obstacle — the debt, the addiction, the broken relationship, the impossible task — is addressed to directly: "Who are YOU, O great mountain?" Before God's anointed servant, mountains flatten. Speak to your mountain in faith.
- 3. Don't despise the day of small things (v.10). If your ministry is small, your progress is slow, your resources are limited — do not despise it. God sees the plumb line in your hand. He rejoices over faithfulness in the small. Small + the Spirit = unstoppable.
- 4. The supply is continuous (vv.11-12). The olive trees feed oil CONSTANTLY into the lampstand. You don't need to stockpile anointing — you need to stay CONNECTED to the source. The Spirit flows continuously to those who remain positioned beside the Lord.
- 5. "Grace, grace!" (v.7). The shout at completion is not "Achievement!" or "Finally!" — it is "Grace!" Every finished work of God in your life will be attributed to His grace, not your grit. Live in grace. Finish in grace. Shout grace.