The book Of The Bible Zechariah

The book Of The Bible Zechariah

Zechariah was a contemporary of Haggai and, like him, promoted the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem following the return of the exiles from Babylon. The first eight chapters of Zechariah are from the prophet himself, while the remaining part (chs. 9-14) is from other editors and sources more difficult to identify and from a much later period. The first eight chapters of the book present oracles and symbolic visions about the restoration and purification of Jerusalem. The second part of Zechariah presents oracles concluding with a messianic vision of the coming of the prince of peace.

The passage about the messianic vision of the coming of the humble king riding on a donkey is referenced in the four Gospels of the NT to describe the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. Also, the text from Zechariah that speaks of the one whom they have pierced (12.10-11; 13.6-7), which is interpreted by John’s Gospel as fulfilled in the piercing of Christ’s side (Jn 19.37), is offered as a choice for the first reading at the Votive Mass of the Triumph of the Cross and at the liturgy on the Twelfth Sunday of Year C..