Once upon a time, in the second year of King Darius’s reign, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah, son of Berechiah, grandson of Iddo, the prophet. The Lord had a message for Zechariah that needed to be communicated to the people.

He said, “I, Jehovah, was deeply displeased with your forefathers. Their disobedience and straying from righteous paths incurred my wrath. Hence, tell my people to return to me, and in turn, I will return to them. Do not repeat the sins of your fathers, who ignored my prophets’ warnings and persisted in their misguided doings. The result? Where are your fathers now? Even though they’re not here, my words, my statues that I entrusted to my prophets, have outlived them. They acknowledged their folly too late and said, ‘As the Lord intended, so has he punished us, according to our misdeeds.'”

On the four and twentieth day of Shebat, the eleventh month, again, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah. In a dream, Zechariah saw a man on a red horse standing among the myrtle trees in the valley, behind him were red, white and sorrel horses.

Curious, Zechariah asked, “My Lord, what are these?” The angel who was speaking to him replied, “I will show you what they are.” The man standing among the myrtle trees elaborated, “These are the ones whom Jehovah has sent to patrol the earth.”

They responded to the angel of the Lord, saying, “We have patrolled the earth, and all is calm and peaceful.” Hearing this, the angel asked Jehovah, “O Lord, how long will you withhold mercy from Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, with which you have been enraged over these seventy years?” Jehovah responded with gracious and calming words.

The angel then turned to Zechariah, instructing him to cry aloud, “This is what Jehovah says: ‘I am intensely protective of Jerusalem and Zion. I am deeply angered by those nations that live in tranquility because, while my anger was minimal, they added to the affliction. I will return to Jerusalem with mercies, my house will be rebuilt, and a surveyor’s line will be stretched over Jerusalem. My cities will again overflow with prosperity, and I will comfort Zion and choose Jerusalem.'”

In another vision, Zechariah saw four horns. He asked the angel what they were, and was told, “These are the horns that scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.” The Lord then revealed four craftsmen. When Zechariah asked about their purpose, the angel explained, “These horns scattered Judah, so much so that no one could lift their head. The craftsmen have arrived to terrify them, to throw down the horns of nations who raised their horns against Judah to scatter it.”

This was the message Zechariah delivered to his people – a message of divine displeasure, mercy, restoration, and deliverance, reinforcing that disobedience brings consequences and repentance brings blessings. Zechariah’s visions instilled hope among the people who longed to return to the Lord and reclaim their rightful place in his favour.