Zechariah 3:2-10

2 And the LORD said to Satan, 1"The LORD rebuke you, O Satan! The LORD who has 2chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this 3a brand[a] plucked from the fire?"
3 Now 4Joshua was standing before the angel, 5clothed with filthy garments.
4 And the angel said to 6those who were standing before him, 7"Remove the filthy garments from him." And to him he said, "Behold, 8I have taken your iniquity away from you, and 9I will clothe you with pure vestments."
5 And I said, 10"Let them put a clean turban on his head." So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the LORD was standing by.
6 And the angel of the LORD solemnly assured 11Joshua,
7 "Thus says the LORD of hosts: If you will walk in my ways and 12keep my charge, then you shall 13rule my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you the right of access among 14those who are standing here.
8 Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, you and your friends who sit before you, for 15they are men who are a sign: behold, I will bring 16my servant 17the Branch.
9 For behold, on 18the stone that I have set before Joshua, on a single stone with 19seven eyes,[b] I will 20engrave its inscription, declares the LORD of hosts, and 21I will remove the iniquity of this land in a single day.
10 In that day, declares the LORD of hosts, every one of you will invite his neighbor to come 22under his vine and under his fig tree."

Zechariah 3:2-10 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO ZECHARIAH 3

In this chapter, under the type of Joshua the high priest, is showed the state and condition of the priesthood, and of the church of God, in his times; and in it are various promises concerning the true High Priest, Christ, and of the efficacy and permanency of his priesthood. The vision of Joshua is in the form of a judicial process: Joshua is the person accused, and is described by his situation, standing before the Angel of the Lord; and by the filthy garments he had on, which were the ground of the charge against him, Zec 3:1,3 The accuser of him is Satan, who stood at his right hand; and his Judge is the Angel of the Lord, before whom he was, Zec 3:1. The sentence given against his accuser is by way of rebuke, enforced by the Lord's choice of Jerusalem, and merciful deliverance of this person; and, as given in his favour, is an order to take his filthy garments from him, and clothe him with change of raiment, and to put a fair mitre on his head; which were accordingly done, Zec 3:2,4,5 and a promise is made him, by way of protestation, that if he would walk in his ways, and keep his charge, he should judge his house, and keep his courts, and should have a walking place among those that stood by, Zec 3:6,7 and next Joshua, and those that were with him, are addressed as men wondered at; and are called upon to hearken to a promise of the Messiah, under the character of the Branch, Zec 3:8 and under that of a stone with seven eyes on it, and engravings in it, by whom the iniquity of God's people is removed, Zec 3:9 and the chapter is closed with an account of the prosperity, peace, and safety of the saints under the Gospel dispensation, Zec 3:10.

Cross References 22

  • 1. Jude 9
  • 2. Zechariah 1:17; [Romans 8:33]
  • 3. Amos 4:11
  • 4. [See ver. 1 above]
  • 5. [Isaiah 64:6; Jude 23]
  • 6. [ver. 7; Luke 1:19]
  • 7. Revelation 7:14
  • 8. [ver. 9; Isaiah 6:7]
  • 9. Isaiah 61:10; Luke 15:22; Revelation 19:8
  • 10. Job 29:14; [Zechariah 6:11]
  • 11. [See ver. 1 above]
  • 12. Genesis 26:5; Malachi 3:14; See Leviticus 8:35
  • 13. [Deuteronomy 17:9; Malachi 2:7]
  • 14. [ver. 4]
  • 15. [Ezekiel 12:11]
  • 16. See Isaiah 42:1
  • 17. Zechariah 6:12; Isaiah 11:1; See Jeremiah 23:5
  • 18. Psalms 118:22; Isaiah 28:16; [Zechariah 4:7]; See Ezra 3:9-11
  • 19. Zechariah 4:10; Revelation 5:6
  • 20. [2 Timothy 2:19]
  • 21. [ver. 4]
  • 22. See 1 Kings 4:25

Footnotes 2

The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.