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Friday, August 8th, 2025
the Week of Proper 13 / Ordinary 18
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The Holy Bible, Berean Study Bible

Zechariah 6:11

This verse is not available in the BSB!

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Crown;   Gold;   Jehozadak;   Jeshua;   Joshua;   Scofield Reference Index - Christ;   Melchizedek;   Parables;   Thompson Chain Reference - Jehozadak;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Jeshua;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Branch;   Joshua the son of jehozadak;   Zerubbabel;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Building;   Messiah;   Zechariah, Theology of;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Jeshua;   Melchizedek;   Tobiah, the Children of;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Aaron;   High Priest;   Jehozadak;   Tobiah;   Zadok;   Zechariah, Book of;   Zerubbabel;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Colours;   Jehozadak;   Jeshua;   Priests and Levites;   Zerubbabel;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Josedech ;   Joshua ;   Zechariah, Prophecy of;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - Shadow;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Jesh'ua;   Jos'edech;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Chariot;   Crown;   Jehozadak;   Joshua (3);   Messiah;   Priest, High;   Zechariah, Book of;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Heldai;   Joshua (Jehoshua);   Symbol;  

Contextual Overview

9The word of the LORD also came to me, saying, 10"Take an offering from the exiles-from Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah, who have arrived from Babylon-and go that same day to the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah. 11Take silver and gold, make an ornate crown, and set it on the head of the high priest, Joshua son of Jehozadak.12And you are to tell him that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: 'Behold, a man whose name is the Branch, and He will branch out from His place and build the temple of the LORD. 13Yes, He will build the temple of the LORD; He will be clothed in splendor and will sit on His throne and rule. There will also be a priest on His throne, and the counsel of peace will be between the two of them.' 14The crown will reside in the temple of the LORD as a memorial to Heldai, Tobijah, Jedaiah, and Hen son of Zephaniah. 15Even those far away will come and build the temple of the LORD, and you will know that the LORD of Hosts has sent Me to you. This will happen if you diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

make: Zechariah 3:5, Exodus 28:36-38, Exodus 29:6, Exodus 39:30, Leviticus 8:9, Psalms 21:3, Song of Solomon 3:11, Hebrews 2:9, Revelation 19:12

Joshua: Zechariah 3:1, Haggai 1:1, Haggai 1:14, Haggai 2:4

Reciprocal: 1 Chronicles 6:14 - Seraiah Ezra 3:2 - Jeshua Ezra 5:2 - Jeshua Nehemiah 12:1 - Jeshua Zechariah 6:13 - a priest Revelation 6:2 - and a

Cross-References

Genesis 6:1
Now when men began to multiply on the face of the earth and daughters were born to them,
Genesis 6:2
the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they took as wives whomever they chose.
Genesis 7:1
Then the LORD said to Noah, "Go into the ark, you and all your family, because I have found you righteous in this generation.
Genesis 10:9
He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; so it is said, "Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the LORD."
Genesis 13:13
But the men of Sodom were wicked, sinning greatly against the LORD.
2 Chronicles 34:27
because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before God when you heard His words against this place and against its people, and because you have humbled yourself before Me and you have torn your clothes and wept before Me, I have heard you,' declares the LORD.
Psalms 11:5
The LORD tests the righteous and the wicked; His soul hates the lover of violence.
Psalms 55:9
O Lord, confuse and confound their speech, for I see violence and strife in the city.
Psalms 140:11
May no slanderer be established in the land. May calamity hunt down the man of violence.
Isaiah 60:18
No longer will violence be heard in your land, nor ruin or destruction within your borders. But you will name your walls Salvation and your gates Praise.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Then take silver and gold, c. Which the Jewish writers suppose were brought by the above men from their brethren in Babylon, as a free will offering towards the building of the temple:

and make crowns two at least, one of silver, and another of gold; the one to be put upon the head of Joshua the high priest; the other upon the head of Zerubbabel, as Kimchi conjectures; though, according to the text, they seem to be both, or all of them, be they as many as they will, to be put upon the head of Joshua; and may signify the different states of the priesthood in the present time, and when in its pristine glory; or that both the crown of the priesthood and the crown of the kingdom should meet in his antitype Christ, who is said to have on his head many crowns, Revelation 19:12. The Targum renders it, "thou shalt make a great crown"; as if only one crown was to be made of gold and silver mixed together; and so the Arabic version renders it; but more are certainly meant, for it follows:

and set [them] upon the head of Joshua the son of Josedech the high priest; on whose head a fair mitre was set; see Zechariah 3:5 and with the mitre was wore by the high priest the holy crown, made of pure gold; and which was no other than the plate or "flower" of gold, on which was engraved "Holiness to the Lord", Exodus 28:36 and this, according to the Jewish writers b, was a plate of gold two fingers broad, and reached from ear to ear; though Josephus c seems to give a different account of it; he says,

"the golden crown surrounds (either the mitre, or perhaps rather the forehead or temples); and on it were three rows of cups or flowers, like those of the herb we call "saccharus"; and the Grecian botanists "hyosciamus";''

or henbane; and after describing the herb, and the figure of the buds, cups, or flowers of it, he adds,

"like to these is made a crown reaching from the hinder part of the head unto both temples; for the flowers do not encompass the forehead; but there is a golden plate, which has the name of God engraved in sacred letters;''

which seems to disagree with the accounts of other Jewish writers; unless, as Braunius d observes, they may be thus reconciled, that the crown was nothing else but the plate that was two fingers broad, and was in length from ear to ear; so that about the temples it was ornamented with three rows of henbane flowers on each side: and these three rows may give occasion for the use of the word in the plural number; and some have called it a triple crown e; and Popish writers fail not to improve it in favour of the crown their pontiff wears; and Lyra f speaks of little crowns or coronets, even in the mitres of the common priests; which (he says) were circles in the lower part of them so called; wherefore the rows of flowers in the high priest's crown, from whence it might be called ציץ, a flower, might with more propriety bear that name. Philo the Jew g, speaking of the golden plate, says it was like a crown engraven with four letters of the name (Jehovah); and further observes, that

"the mitre under it kept the plate from touching the head, on which the "cidaris" or diadem was put; for it was like the cidaris which the eastern kings used for a diadem:''

and indeed this crown, and the three rows of flowers in it, were a hieroglyphic or emblem of the threefold office of Christ, whom the high priest represented, kingly, priestly, and prophetic; and so may be fitly signified here by crowns in the plural number; and it is usual with the Jewish writers to speak of three crowns, the crown of the law, the crown of the kingdom, and the crown of the priesthood h; and very probably from the high priest among the Jews wearing crowns it was that the priests among the Heathens had the same ornaments on their heads; and to be crowned was with them the same as to exercise the office of priesthood i, and who was an eminent type of the Messiah, and in this of having crowns put upon his head, as the following words show.

b Maimon. Cele Hamikdash, c. 9. sect. 1. Jarchi in Exod. xxviii. 36. c Antiqu. l. 3. c. 7. sect. 7. d De Vestitu Sacerdot. Hebr. l. 2. c. 28. sect. 18. p. 807. e Fortunatus Scacchus in Myrothec. l. 3. c. 40. p. 1000. Solerius de Pileo, sect. 13. p. 266. f In Exod. xxxix. 27. g De Vita Mosis, l. 3. p. 670, 671. h Pirke Abot, c. 4. sect. 13. i Paschalius de Coronis, l. 4. c. 13.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And make crowns - Or a “crown” , as in Job, “I would bind it as a crown unto me,” and our Lord is seen in the Revelation, “on His Head were many crowns” . The singular is used of “a royal crown” , apparently of a festive crown ; and figuratively; (Job 19:9, (plur. Job 31:36) Proverbs 4:9; Proverbs 12:4; Proverbs 14:24; Proverbs 16:31.Proverbs 17:6; Proverbs 17:6); even of Almighty God Himself as a crown ; but no where of the mitre of the high priest.

The characteristic of the act is, that “the crown” or crowns (it is not in the context said, which) were placed on the head of the one high priest, Joshua; “and thou shall place” (it or them, it is not said which) “upon the head of Joshua son of Josedech the high priest, and shalt say unto him.” If crowns were made of each material, there were two crowns. But this is not said, and the silver might have formed a circlet in the crown of gold, as, in modern times, the iron crown of Lombardy, was called iron, because it had “a plate of iron in its summit, being else of gold and most precious” . In any case the symbolical act was completed by the placing of a royal crown upon the head of the high priest. This, in itself, represented that He, whom he and all other priests represented, would be also our King. It is all one then, whether the word designate one single crown, so entitled for its greatness, or one united royal crown, that is, one crown uniting many crowns, symbolizing the many kingdoms of the earth, over which our High Priest and King should rule.

Either symbol, of separate crowns “the golden at Rome.” Du Cang. Otto of Frisingen said that Frederic received 5 crowns; the first at Aix for the kingdom of the Franks; a second at Ratisban for that of Germany; a third at Pavia for the kingdom of Lombardy; the fourth at Rome for the Roman empire from Adrian iv; the fifth of Monza for the kingdom of Italy.” In our own memory, Napoleon I. having been crowned in France, was crowned with the iron crown at Monza), or an united crown , has been used in the same meaning, to symbolize as many empires, as there were crowns.

On Zerubbabel no crown was placed. It would have been confusing; a seeming restoration of the kingdom, when it was not to be restored; an encouragement of the temporal hopes, which were the bane of Israel. God had foretold, that none of the race of Jehoiakim should prosper, “sitting on the throne of David, or ruling any more in Israel.” Nehemiah rejects the imputation of Sanballat, “Thou hast also appointed prophets to preach of thee at Jerusalem,” There is “a king in Judah.” He answers, “There are no such things done as thou sayest; and thou feignest them out of thine own heart” Nehemiah 6:6-8. But Isaiah had foretold much of the king who should reign: Zechariah, by placing the royal crown on the head of Joshua, foreshowed that the kingdom was not to be of this world. The royal crown had been taken away in the time of Zedekiah, “Thus saith the Lord God, Remove the diadem and take away the crown; this shall not be this; exalt the low and abase the high; an overthrow, overthrow, overthrow will I make it; this too is not; until he come whose the right is, and I will give it” (Ezekiel 21:31-32 (Ezekiel 21:26-27 in English)).

But the Messiah, it was foretold, was to be both priest and king; “a priest after the order of Melchizedec” Psalms 110:4, and a king, set by the Lord “upon His holy hill of Zion” Psalms 2:6. The act of placing the crown on the head of Joshua the high priest, pictured not only the union of the offices of priest and king in the person of Christ, but that He should be King, being first our High Priest. Joshua was already high priest; being such, the kingly crown was added to him. It says in act, what Paul says, that “Christ Jesus, being found in fashion as a man, humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the Cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him” Philippians 2:8-9.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Zechariah 6:11. Make crowns — עטרות ataroth; but seven MSS. of Kennicott's and De Rossi's, and one ancient of my own, with the Syriac and Chaldee, have עטרת atereth, a crown, or tiara. And as Joshua the high priest is alone concerned here, I think one crown only is intended.


 
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