The Meaning of Zechariah 1:12 Explained

Zechariah 1:12

KJV: Then the angel of the LORD answered and said, O LORD of hosts, how long wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which thou hast had indignation these threescore and ten years?

YLT: And the messenger of Jehovah answereth and saith, 'Jehovah of Hosts! till when dost Thou not pity Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, that Thou hast abhorred these seventy years?'

Darby: And the angel of Jehovah answered and said, Jehovah of hosts, how long wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which thou hast had indignation these seventy years?

ASV: Then the angel of Jehovah answered and said, O Jehovah of hosts, how long wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which thou hast had indignation these threescore and ten years?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Then the angel  of the LORD  answered  and said,  O LORD  of hosts,  how long wilt thou not have mercy  on Jerusalem  and on the cities  of Judah,  against which thou hast had indignation  these threescore and ten  years? 

What does Zechariah 1:12 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Then the angel of the Lord addressed sovereign Yahweh. Clearly they were separate persons. He asked the Lord how long He planned to remain bent on disciplining Jerusalem and the cities of Judah (i.e, the Israelites), which He had done in His indignation for the last70 years (i.e, the Captivity; cf. Jeremiah 25:11-12). That prophesied period was now over, but the Israelites were still oppressed and under foreign domination.

Context Summary

Zechariah 1:1-17 - A Vision Of Pardon And Restoration
Zechariah does not slur over the sins of the past, but lays stress on the divine forgiveness. His only fear is lest God should call in vain, and the people refuse as their fathers did. Notice the repetition of God's title, Lord of Hosts, five times in the first six verses. The enemy's armies were vast, but the protecting hosts, vaster. A glimpse of these hosts is given in the following vision. A green valley, filled with myrtles, the emblem of humility, where the prophet may have been wont to meditate, seemed alive with mysterious figures, who had been patrolling the earth, and announced that it was peace, for these were the days of Cyrus' illustrious reign. Notice the frequent reference to his celestial friend, Zechariah 1:9; Zechariah 1:14; Zechariah 1:19; Zechariah 4:1; Zechariah 4:4-5; Zechariah 5:5; Zechariah 5:10; Zechariah 6:4. The future was bright with promise, Zechariah 1:16-17. [source]

Chapter Summary: Zechariah 1

1  Zechariah exhorts to repentance
7  The vision of the horses
12  At the prayer of the angel comfortable promises are made to Jerusalem
18  The vision of the four horns and the four carpenters

What do the individual words in Zechariah 1:12 mean?

And answered the Angel of Yahweh and said Yahweh of hosts how long You not will have mercy - on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah against which You were angry this [is] seventy years
וַיַּ֣עַן מַלְאַךְ־ יְהוָה֮ וַיֹּאמַר֒ יְהוָ֣ה צְבָא֔וֹת עַד־ מָתַ֗י אַתָּה֙ לֹֽא־ תְרַחֵ֣ם אֶת־ יְרוּשָׁלִַ֔ם וְאֵ֖ת עָרֵ֣י יְהוּדָ֑ה אֲשֶׁ֣ר זָעַ֔מְתָּה זֶ֖ה שִׁבְעִ֥ים ؟ שָׁנָֽה

וַיַּ֣עַן  And  answered 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: לְעַנּׄות 
Sense: to answer, respond, testify, speak, shout.
מַלְאַךְ־  the  Angel 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: מַלְאָךְ  
Sense: messenger, representative.
יְהוָה֮  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
וַיֹּאמַר֒  and  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
יְהוָ֣ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
צְבָא֔וֹת  of  hosts 
Parse: Noun, common plural
Root: צָבָא 
Sense: that which goes forth, army, war, warfare, host.
עַד־  how 
Parse: Preposition
Root: עַד  
Sense: as far as, even to, until, up to, while, as far as.
מָתַ֗י  long 
Parse: Interrogative
Root: מָתַי  
Sense: when?.
תְרַחֵ֣ם  will  have  mercy 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperfect, second person masculine singular
Root: רָחַם  
Sense: to love, love deeply, have mercy, be compassionate, have tender affection, have compassion.
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
יְרוּשָׁלִַ֔ם  on  Jerusalem 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: יְרוּשָׁלַםִ  
Sense: the chief city of Palestine and capital of the united kingdom and the nation of Judah after the split.
עָרֵ֣י  on  the  cities 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural construct
Root: עִיר 
Sense: excitement, anguish.
יְהוּדָ֑ה  of  Judah 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יְהוּדָה  
Sense: the son of Jacob by Leah.
אֲשֶׁ֣ר  against  which 
Parse: Pronoun, relative
Root: אֲשֶׁר 
Sense: (relative part.).
זָעַ֔מְתָּה  You  were  angry 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, second person masculine singular
Root: זָעַם  
Sense: to denounce, express indignation, be indignant.
זֶ֖ה  this  [is] 
Parse: Pronoun, masculine singular
Root: זֶה  
Sense: this, this one, here, which, this … that, the one … the other, another, such.
שִׁבְעִ֥ים  seventy 
Parse: Number, common plural
Root: שִׁבְעִים  
Sense: seventy.
؟ שָׁנָֽה  years 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: שָׁנָה  
Sense: year.