Zakharia 12:11

12:11 On that day the lamentation in Jerusalem will be as great as the lamentation at Hadad-Rimmon ¹  in the plain of Megiddo. ² 

Zakharia 14:5

14:5 Then you will escape ³  through my mountain valley, for the mountains will extend to Azal. ⁴  Indeed, you will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of King Uzziah ⁵  of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come with all his holy ones with him.

Zakharia 14:4

14:4 On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives which lies to the east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in half from east to west, leaving a great valley. Half the mountain will move northward and the other half southward. ⁶ 

Zakharia 11:3

11:3 Listen to the howling of shepherds,

because their magnificence has been destroyed.

Listen to the roaring of young lions,

because the thickets of the Jordan have been devastated.

Zakharia 1:8

The Content of the First Vision

1:8 I was attentive that night and saw a man seated ⁷  on a red horse that stood among some myrtle trees ⁸  in the ravine. Behind him were red, sorrel, ⁹  and white horses.

[12:11]  ¹ tn “Hadad-Rimmon” is a compound of the names of two Canaanite deities, the gods of storm and thunder respectively. The grammar (a subjective genitive) allows, and the problem of comparing Israel’s grief at God’s “wounding” with pagan mourning seems to demand, that this be viewed as a place name, perhaps where Judah lamented the death of good king Josiah (cf. 2 Chr 35:25). However, some translations render this as “for” (NRSV, NCV, TEV, CEV), suggesting a person, while others translate as “of” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NLT) which is ambiguous.

[12:11]  ² map For location see Map1 D4; Map2 C1; Map4 C2; Map5 F2; Map7 B1.

[14:5]  ³ tc For the MT reading נַסְתֶּם (nastem, “you will escape”) the LXX presupposes נִסְתַּם (nistam, “will be stopped up”; this reading is followed by NAB). This appears to derive from a perceived need to eliminate the unexpected “you” as subject. This not only is unnecessary to Hebrew discourse (see “you” in the next clause), but it contradicts the statement in the previous verse that the mountain will be split open, not stopped up.

[14:5]  ⁴ sn Azal is a place otherwise unknown.

[14:5]  ⁵ sn The earthquake in the days of King Uzziah, also mentioned in Amos 1:1, is apparently the one attested to at Hazor in 760 b.c.

[14:4]  ⁶ sn This seismic activity provides a means of escape from Jerusalem so that the Messiah (the Lord), whose feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, may destroy the wicked nations in the Kidron Valley (the v. of Jehoshaphat, or of “judgment of the Lord”) without harming the inhabitants of the city.

[1:8]  ⁷ tn Heb “riding,” but since this verb in English is usually associated with horses in motion rather than standing still, the translation uses “seated.” Cf. NAB “the driver of a red horse.”

[1:8]  ⁸ tc The LXX presupposes הֶהָרִים (heharim, “mountains”) rather than the MT הַהֲדַסִּים (hahadassim, “myrtles”), probably because of reference to the ravine. The MT reading is preferred and is followed by most English versions.

[1:8]  ⁹ sn The Hebrew שְׂרֻקִּים (sÿruqqim) means “red” (cf. NIV, NCV, NLT “brown”). English translations such as “speckled” (KJV) or “dappled” (TEV) are based on the reading of the LXX (ψαροί) that attempts to bring the color of this horse into conformity with those described in Zech 6:2-3. However, since these are two different and unrelated visions, this is a methodological fallacy.