The Meaning of Zechariah 9:9 Explained

Zechariah 9:9

KJV: Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.

YLT: Rejoice exceedingly, O daughter of Zion, Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem, Lo, thy King doth come to thee, Righteous -- and saved is He, Afflicted -- and riding on an ass, And on a colt -- a son of she-asses.

Darby: Rejoice greatly, daughter of Zion; shout, daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, thy King cometh to thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly and rIding upon an ass, even upon a colt the foal of an ass.

ASV: Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy king cometh unto thee; he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, even upon a colt the foal of an ass.

Discover Zechariah 9:9

CONTEXT: What is the Context of Zechariah 9:9?

MEANING: What does Zechariah 9:9 Mean?

WORDS: What do the individual words in Zechariah 9:9 mean?

RELATIONS: What do the major concepts mean in Zechariah 9:9?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Rejoice  greatly,  O daughter  of Zion;  shout,  O daughter  of Jerusalem:  behold, thy King  cometh  unto thee: he [is] just,  and having salvation;  lowly,  and riding  upon an ass,  and upon a colt  the foal  of an ass. 

What does Zechariah 9:9 Mean?

Study Notes

behold, thy King
The events following this manifestation of Christ as King are recorded in the Gospels. The real faith of the multitude who cried, "Hosanna" is given in Matthew 21:11 and so little was Jesus deceived by His apparent reception as King, that He wept over Jerusalem and announced its impending destruction (fulfilled A.D. 70; Luke 19:38-44 . The same multitude soon cried, "Crucify Him."

Verse Meaning

The Israelites should rejoice greatly because their King was coming to them (cf. Zephaniah 3:15). The first part of this verse contains three figures of speech. Zechariah personified Zion and Jerusalem as rejoicing and shouting, he named the city in place of its inhabitants (metonymy), and he used the city to represent the whole nation (synecdoche). Israel"s King would be a just ruler who would bring salvation with Him.
"He is victorious, not in himself or anything that he personally commands, but by the grace, and in the might, of the God of Israel.... His triumph, therefore, is the triumph of the faith of the Servant of Yahweh." [1]
"The world"s peace depends upon a Savior and His salvation." [2]
The king would, therefore, be humble, not proud and boastful. Zechariah pictured this humble king riding on a gentle donkey colt (cf. Genesis 49:11; Matthew 21:1-9; Mark 11:1-10; Luke 19:28-38; John 12:12-15). A donkey"s colt was a purebred donkey, one born of a female donkey rather than of a mule.
"It thus qualified to be a royal mount." [3]
In the ancient Near East rulers commonly rode donkeys if they came in peace ( Judges 5:10; Judges 10:4; Judges 12:14; 2 Samuel 16:2; 1 Kings 1:33), but they rode horses into war. This verse gives one reason the Israelites should rejoice: the coming of the King. Alexander the Great"s coming inspired fear, but Messiah"s coming would inspire joy.

Context Summary

Zechariah 9:9-17 - A Lowly Deliverer Brings Peace
Jesus must be King first, then Savior. He is lowly; His steed is not the richly caparisoned warhorse, but the humble ass; He needs no weapon to overthrow His foes, because as Priest He speaks peace. The peasantry had taken shelter in the rock hewn mountain cisterns; but they might cherish hope, because they had been redeemed by the blood of the covenant, and God would see to it that that redemption was made effective. Before the advent of the King, the prison-doors would open, and at His word the imprisoned should go forth. How great are His goodness and beauty!
In Zechariah 10:1-12 we have a reference to the successful stand made by Judas Maccabaeus and his brethren against Antiochus. They were to tread them down as the mire of the streets; Joseph and Judah would be reunited and after their far-spread sowing over the world, the scattered tribes would ultimately return as bees to the call of the bee-farmer. [source]

Chapter Summary: Zechariah 9

1  God defends his church
9  Zion is exhorted to rejoice for the coming of Christ, and his peaceable kingdom
12  God's promises of victory and defense

What do the individual words in Zechariah 9:9 mean?

Rejoice greatly daughter of Zion Shout daughter of Jerusalem behold your King is coming to you just and having salvation He [is] Lowly and riding on a donkey and a colt the foal of a donkey
גִּילִ֨י מְאֹ֜ד בַּת־ צִיּ֗וֹן הָרִ֙יעִי֙ בַּ֣ת ! יְרוּשָׁלִַ֔ם הִנֵּ֤ה מַלְכֵּךְ֙ יָ֣בוֹא לָ֔ךְ צַדִּ֥יק וְנוֹשָׁ֖ע ה֑וּא עָנִי֙ וְרֹכֵ֣ב עַל־ חֲמ֔וֹר וְעַל־ עַ֖יִר בֶּן־ אֲתֹנֽוֹת

גִּילִ֨י  Rejoice 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, feminine singular
Root: גִּיל  
Sense: to rejoice, exult, be glad.
מְאֹ֜ד  greatly 
Parse: Adverb
Root: מְאֹד  
Sense: exceedingly, much subst.
בַּת־  daughter 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: בַּת  
Sense: daughter.
צִיּ֗וֹן  of  Zion 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: צִיּׄון  
Sense: another name for Jerusalem especially in the prophetic books.
הָרִ֙יעִי֙  Shout 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Imperative, feminine singular
Root: רוּעַ  
Sense: to shout, raise a sound, cry out, give a blast.
בַּ֣ת  daughter 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: בַּת  
Sense: daughter.
! יְרוּשָׁלִַ֔ם  of  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.
הִנֵּ֤ה  behold 
Parse: Interjection
Root: הִנֵּה  
Sense: behold, lo, see, if.
מַלְכֵּךְ֙  your  King 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, second person feminine singular
Root: מֶלֶךְ 
Sense: king.
יָ֣בוֹא  is  coming 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
לָ֔ךְ  to  you 
Parse: Preposition, second person feminine singular
צַדִּ֥יק  just 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular
Root: צַדִּיק  
Sense: just, lawful, righteous.
וְנוֹשָׁ֖ע  and  having  salvation 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Nifal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: יָשַׁע 
Sense: to save, be saved, be delivered.
ה֑וּא  He  [is] 
Parse: Pronoun, third person masculine singular
Root: הוּא 
Sense: he, she, it.
עָנִי֙  Lowly 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular
Root: עָנִי  
Sense: poor, afflicted, humble, wretched.
וְרֹכֵ֣ב  and  riding 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: רָכַב  
Sense: to mount and ride, ride.
חֲמ֔וֹר  a  donkey 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: חֲמֹור 
Sense: (he)ass.
עַ֖יִר  a  colt 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: עִיר 
Sense: he-ass, male ass.
בֶּן־  the  foal 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
אֲתֹנֽוֹת  of  a  donkey 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural
Root: אָתֹון  
Sense: she-ass, she-donkey.

What are the major concepts related to Zechariah 9:9?

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