Zechariah 6 · Verse 12

Zechariah 6:12

And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord:
Zechariah 6:12, King James Version

Zechariah 6:12 in other translations

BSBAnd you are to tell him that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘Here is a man whose name is the Branch, and He will branch out from His place and build the temple of the LORD.
WEBand speak to him, saying, ‘The LORD of Armies says, “Behold, the man whose name is the Branch! He will grow up out of his place; and he will build the LORD’s temple.
ASVand speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh Jehovah of hosts, saying, Behold, the man whose name is the Branch: and he shall grow up out of his place; and he shall build the temple of Jehovah;
YLTand hast spoken unto him, saying: Thus spake Jehovah of Hosts, saying: Lo, a man! A Shoot-- is his name, And from his place he doth shoot up, And he hath built the temple of Jehovah.
DARBYand speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh Jehovah of hosts, saying, Behold a man whose name is the Branch; and he shall grow up from his own place, and he shall build the temple of Jehovah:
BBEAnd say to him, These are the words of the Lord of armies: See, the man whose name is the Branch, under whom there will be fertile growth.
WebsterAnd speak to him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD;

What does Zechariah 6:12 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
12. Behold, the man--namely, shall arise. Pilate unconsciously spake God's will concerning Him, "Behold the man" (Joh 19:5). The sense here is, "Behold in Joshua a remarkable shadowing forth of Messiah." It is not for his own sake that the crown is placed on him, but as type of Messiah about to be at once king and priest. Joshua could not individually be crowned king, not being of the royal line of David, but only in his representative character. Branch--(See on Zec 3:8; Is 4:2; Jr 23:5; 33:15). he shall grow up out of his place--retaining the image of a "Branch"; "He shall sprout up from His place," that is, the place peculiar to Him: not merely from Beth-lehem or Nazareth, but by His own power, without man's aid, in His miraculous conception [Henderson]; a sense brought out in the original, "from under Himself," or "from (of) Himself" [Calvin]. Moore makes it refer to His growing lowly in His place of obscurity, "as a tender plant and a root out of a dry ground" (Is 53:2), for thirty years unknown except as the son of a carpenter. Maurer translates, "Under Him there shall be growth (in the Church)." English Version accords better with the Hebrew (compare Ex 10:23). The idea in a Branch is that Christ's glory is growing, not yet fully manifested as a full-grown tree. Therefore men reject Him now. build the temple--The promise of the future true building of the spiritual temple by Messiah (Mt 16:18; 1Co 3:17; 2Co 6:16; Ep 2:20-22; He 3:3) is an earnest to assure the Jews, that the material temple will be built by Joshua and Zerubbabel, in spite of all seeming obstacles. It also raises their thoughts beyond the material to the spiritual temple, and also to the future glorious temple, to be reared in Israel under Messiah's superintendence (Eze 40:1-43:27). The repetition of the same clause (Zec 6:13) gives emphasis to the statement as to Messiah's work.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 12 Behold the man whose name is The Branch! - I cannot think that Zerubbabel is here intended; indeed, he is not so much as mentioned in Zac 3:8. Joshua and his companions are called אנשי מופת anshey mopheth, figurative or typical men; the crowning therefore of Joshua in this place, and calling him the Branch, was most probably in reference to that glorious person, the Messiah, of whom he was the type or figure. The Chaldee has, "whose name is my Messiah," or Christ. And he shall grow up out of his place - That is, out of David's root, tribe, and family. And he shall build the temple of the Lord - This cannot refer to the building of the temple then in hand, for Zerubbabel was its builder: but to that temple, the Christian Church, that was typified by it; for Zerubbabel is not named here, and only Joshua or Jesus (the name is the same) is the person who is to be crowned and to build this spiritual temple.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Zechariah 6:9-15

Some Jews from Babylon brought an offering to the house of God. Those who cannot forward a good work by their persons, must, as they are able, forward it by their purses: if some find hands, let others fill them. Crowns are to be made, and put upon the head of Joshua. The sign was used, to make the promise more noticed, that God will, in the fulness of time, raise up a great High Priest, like Joshua, who is but the…

Read the full comment on Zechariah 6:9-15 →

Zechariah 6:12 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וְאָמַרְתָּ֤ve.'a.mar.Taand you will sayH559
אֵלָיו֙'e.Lavto himH413
לֵאמֹ֔רle.Mor<to> sayingH559
כֹּ֥הkohthusH3541
אָמַ֛ר'a.Marhe saysH559
יְהוָ֥הYah.wehYahwehH3068
צְבָא֖וֹתtze.va.'otof hostsH6635
לֵאמֹ֑רle.Mor<to> sayingH559
הִנֵּה\־hi.neh-there!H2009
אִ֞ישׁ'isha manH376
צֶ֤מַחTze.mach[is] BranchH6780
שְׁמוֹ֙she.Moname hisH8034
וּמִתַּחְתָּ֣יוu.mi.tach.Tavand from under himH8478
יִצְמָ֔חyitz.Machhe will sproutH6779
וּבָנָ֖הu.va.Nahand he will buildH1129
אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853
הֵיכַ֥לhei.Khal[the] temple ofH1964
יְהוָֽהּ\׃Yah.wehYahwehH3068

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Zechariah 6:12

  • Jeremiah 33:15

    In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land.

  • Zechariah 3:8

    Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, thou, and thy fellows that sit before thee: for they are men wondered at: for, behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH.

  • Isaiah 4:2

    In that day shall the branch of the Lord be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel.

  • Isaiah 11:1

    And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:

  • Jeremiah 23:5

    Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.

  • Isaiah 53:2

    For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.

  • Zechariah 4:6-9

    Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts. Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it. Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto you.

  • Acts 17:31

    Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.

  • Isaiah 32:1-2

    Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment. And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.

  • Matthew 16:18

    And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

  • Mark 15:29

    And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, and saying, Ah, thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days,

  • Hebrews 7:24

    But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
behold.
13:7; Isa 32:1,2; Mic 5:5; Mr 15:39; Joh 19:5; Ac 13:38; 17:31
Heb 7:4,24; 8:3; 10:12
whose.
3:8; Ps 80:15-17; Isa 4:2; 11:1; 53:2; Jer 23:5; 33:15; Lu 1:78; *marg:
Joh 1:45
grow up out of his place. or, branch up from under him. heshall build.
4:6-9; 8:9; Mt 16:18; 26:61; Mr 14:58; 15:29; Joh 2:19-21; 1Co 3:9
Eph 2:20-22; Heb 3:3,4; 1Pe 2:4,5

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Zechariah 6:11

    Then take silver and gold, and make crowns, and set them upon the head of Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest;

  • Zechariah 6:12

    And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord:

  • Zechariah 6:13

    Even he shall build the temple of the Lord; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both.

Read all of Zechariah 6

Zechariah 6:12 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y le hablarás, diciendo: Así ha hablado Jehová de los ejércitos, diciendo: He aquí el varón cuyo nombre es Pimpollo, el cual germinará de su lugar, y edificará el templo de Jehová:
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		et tu lui parleras, disant: Ainsi parle l’ Éternel des armées, disant: Voici un homme dont le nom est Germe, et il germera de son propre lieu, et il bâtira le temple de l’ Éternel.
German
Elberfelder 1871		und sprich zu ihm und sage: So spricht Jehova der Heerscharen und sagt: Siehe, ein Mann, sein Name ist Sproß; und er wird von seiner Stelle aufsprossen und den Tempel Jehovas bauen.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		et loqueris ad eum, dicens: Hæc ait Dominus exercituum, dicens: Ecce vir, Oriens nomen ejus, et subter eum orietur, et ædificabit templum Domino.