Zechariah 7:5

"Then the word of the LORD of Armies came to me, saying,"

Key Reflection

The phrase "Then the word of the LORD of Armies came to me, saying," introduces a prophetic message from God through Zechariah. In first-century Israel, this formula would immediately signal to the audience that they were about to hear divine revelation. The context suggests that the previous verses had laid out a historical narrative or questioning of past fasting practices. This transition marks the moment when the prophet receives specific instructions or warnings directly from God regarding the current religious observances and their true meaning.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

Speak unto all the people of the land -They of Bethel had spoken as one man, as Edom said to Israel, “Thou shalt not pass by me”Numbers 20:18; and “the men of Israel said to the Hivite; Perhaps thou dwellest in the midst of me, and how shall I make a league with thee?”Joshua 9:7. God gives the answer not to them only, but to all like-minded with them, “all the people of the land,” the whole population (in our language); as Jeremiah says, “ye and your fathers, your kings and your princes and all the people of the land”Jeremiah 44:21, and, “the scribe who mustered the people of the land.”Jeremiah 52:25.

Related Verses

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