¹tn Heb “two mountains, and the mountains [were] mountains of bronze.” This has been simplified in the translation for stylistic reasons.
sn Bronze, a hard, almost impenetrable metal, is an apt figure to speak of the obstacles standing in the way of the accomplishment of God’s purposes for the postexilic Jewish community (cf. 4:7). The cleft between the two might be related to the eschatological triumph of the Lord who will return to the Mount of Olives and divide it into two mountains, one on the north and the other on the south (cf. Zech 14:1-8; Ezek 47:1-12).
²tc For the MT reading <yX!m%a& (’amutsim, “strong”) Aquila and Syriac presuppose <yM!d%a& (’adummim, “red”), thus giving the red horse an assignment and eliminating the problem of a fifth, “spotted” horse. The fourth would be a mottled red horse according to this view. There is, however, no manuscript support for this interpretation.
³tn See the note on the expression “angelic messenger” in 1:9.
⁴tn The Hebrew term translated “spirit” here may also be translated “wind” or “breath” depending on the context (cf. NAB “the four winds of the heavens”).
⁵tn The present translation takes <yX!m%a& (’amutsim, “strong”) to be a descriptive of all the horses—white, black, red, and spotted.
⁶tn Heb “my spirit.” The subject appears to be the Lord who exclaims here that the horsemen have accomplished their task of bringing peace.
⁷sn The immediate referent of peace about the northland is to the peace brought by Persia’s conquest of Babylonia, a peace that allowed the restoration of the Jewish people (cf. 2 Chr 36:22-23; Isa 44:28; 45:1-2). There is also, however, an eschatological dimension, referring to a time when there will be perfect and universal peace.
⁸tn The words “some people” are supplied in the translation. The Hebrew verb translated “choose” (alternatively “take” [NAB, NIV]; “collect” [NRSV]) has no direct object specified in the text. Some translations supply “silver and gold” (NIV, NRSV) or “an offering” (NASB).
⁹sn Except for Joshua (v. 11) none of these individuals is otherwise mentioned and therefore they cannot be further identified.
¹⁰tn Heb “crowns” (also in v. 14). The Hebrew word for “crown” here is tr\f#u& (’ateret), a term never used in the OT for the priestly crown or mitre. Thus, the scene here is the investing of the priest with royal authority.
¹¹tn The epithet “Branch” (jm^x#, tsemakh) derives from the verb used here (jm*x=y], yitsmakh, “will sprout up”) to describe the rise of the Messiah, already referred to in this manner in Zech 3:8 (cf. Isa 11:1; 53:2; Jer 33:15). In the immediate context this refers to Zerubbabel, but the ultimate referent is Jesus.
¹²sn The priest here in the immediate context is Joshua but the fuller and more distant allusion is to the Messiah, a ruling priest. The notion of the ruler as a priest-king was already apparent in David and his successors (Pss 2:2, 6-8; 110:2, 4), and it finds mature expression in David’s greater Son, Jesus Christ, who will combine both offices in his kingship (Heb 5:1-10; 7:1-25).
¹³tn “Helem” is probably the same individual as “Heldai” in v. 10. Since the MT and the major versions leave the apparent conflict unresolved it is probably best to view “Helem” as interchangeable with “Heldai” (cf. “Heled” in 1 Chr 11:30 with “Heleb” [2 Sam 23:29] and “Heldai” [1 Chr 27:15]).
¹⁴tn Since the “son of Zephaniah” in v. 10 is Josiah, it might be best here to understand “Hen” in its meaning “grace” (/j@, khen); that is, “Hen” is a nickname for Josiah— “the gracious one.”
¹⁵sn Those who are far away is probably a reference to later groups of returning exiles under Ezra, Nehemiah, and others.