Zechariah 1:1

The LORD Wants His People to Return to Him

1 A message came to the prophet Zechariah from the Lord. It was the eighth month of the second year that Darius was king of Persia. Zechariah was the son of Berekiah. Berekiah was the son of Iddo. Here is what Zechariah said.

Zechariah 1:1 Meaning and Commentary

Zechariah 1:1

In the eighth month
The month Marchesvan, called the month Bul, in ( 1 Kings 6:38 ) which answers to part of our October, and part of November: this was but two months from the first prophecy of Haggai, ( Haggai 1:1 ) and but a few days after his second, ( Haggai 2:1 ) so near were the prophecies of these two prophets together: in the second year of Darius:
king of Persia; not Darius the Mede, but Darius the son of Hystaspes: came the word of the Lord unto Zechariah;
that is, "the word of prophecy from before the Lord", as the Targum paraphrases it; which came to him, either in a dream, or in a vision, or by an impulse on his mind; who is described by his descent, the son of Barachias; mention is made of this name in ( Matthew 23:35 ) . It signifies "the blessed of the Lord", and is the same with Eulogius or Benedictus: the son of Iddo the prophet:
the word "prophet", as Kimchi observes, belongs to Zechariah; not but that his grandfather Iddo might be a prophet too; and the same writer takes notice, that in the Midrash mention is made of Iddo the prophet; and so there is an Iddo that is called the seer and the prophet in ( 2 Chronicles 9:29 ) ( 12:15 ) ( 13:22 ) but whether the same with this is not certain. The name is by some thought to be the same with Firmicus, Statius, Robertus: saying;
as follows:

Zechariah 1:1 In-Context

1 A message came to the prophet Zechariah from the Lord. It was the eighth month of the second year that Darius was king of Persia. Zechariah was the son of Berekiah. Berekiah was the son of Iddo. Here is what Zechariah said.

2 The LORD who rules over all was very angry with our people years ago.

3 And now he says to us, "Return to me. Then I will return to you," announces the Lord.

4 "Do not be like your people years ago. The earlier prophets gave them my message. I said, 'Stop doing what is evil. Turn away from your sinful practices.' But they would not listen to me. They would not pay any attention," announces the Lord.

5 "Where are those people now? And what about my prophets? Do they live forever?