7 On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, which is the month of Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, son of Iddo, saying, 8 “I saw in the night, and behold, a man riding on a red horse! He was standing among the myrtle trees in the glen, and behind him were red, sorrel, and white horses.
9 Then I said, ‘What are these, my lord?’ The angel who talked with me said to me, ‘I will show you what they are.’ 10 So the man who was standing among the myrtle trees answered, ‘These are they whom the Lord has sent to patrol the earth.’ 11 And they answered the angel of the Lord who was standing among the myrtle trees, and said, ‘We have patrolled the earth, and behold, all the earth remains at rest.’
Zechariah 1:7-11 (ESV)
Visions
We now move into the visions of Zechariah that came 2-3 months after Zech 1:1. JFB Commentary offers this introduction to the series of visions: “The general plan of the nine following visions (Zec 1:8-6:15) is first to present the symbol; then [use questions / answers to build the rest of] the interpretation. Though the visions are distinct, they form one grand whole, presented in one night to the prophet’s mind…”
As with any vision / prophecy, it is not always clear how to interpret what is described – what the symbols mean, the timing of fulfilment, etc.
This vision
For example, in this first vision, some think the different horses represent different conditions of Israel – war times, peace, mixed. Maybe. But surely, “Connecting them with the four horsemen of Revelation 6:1-8 doesn’t seem to work, because these seem to be observers and not messengers of judgment as in Revelation 6.” (Enduringword.com)
It’s a bit confusing to me who the characters are but in this vision, Zechariah is talking with an Angel as they observe the main horseman and three behind him. The horsemen report peace on the earth, but is it the right peace? See tomorrow.
Man among myrtles
Who is this man among the myrtles? Verse 11 tells us He is the angel of the Lord; He is God. It happens in other OT passages like Genesis 16:7-13, Genesis 22:11-18, Judges 2:1-4. God in human form must be the preincarnate Jesus.
To me it increases my awe of God and reverence for Jesus – to be reminded again that He is God. The man who saved me and died in my place is the Creator of the world.

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