Zechariah 1:2 kjv
The LORD hath been sore displeased with your fathers.
Zechariah 1:2 nkjv
"The LORD has been very angry with your fathers.
Zechariah 1:2 niv
"The LORD was very angry with your ancestors.
Zechariah 1:2 esv
"The LORD was very angry with your fathers.
Zechariah 1:2 nlt
"I, the LORD, was very angry with your ancestors.
Zechariah 1 2 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Deut 6:14-15 | "You shall not go after other gods... for the LORD your God... is a jealous God, lest the anger of the LORD... be kindled against you..." | God's jealous anger against idolatry |
| Deut 29:24-28 | "All the nations will say, 'Why has the LORD done thus to this land?..." | Consequences of breaking God's covenant (exile) |
| Judg 2:14-15 | "So the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and He delivered them into the hands of plunderers..." | Cycle of Israel's disobedience and God's anger |
| 2 Kgs 17:18 | "Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel and removed them from His presence..." | Northern Kingdom exiled due to God's wrath |
| 2 Kgs 23:26-27 | "Still the LORD did not turn from the fierce burning of His great anger..." | God's persistent anger despite Josiah's reforms |
| Jer 4:8 | "For the fierce anger of the LORD has not turned back from us." | God's ongoing judgment on Judah |
| Jer 7:18-20 | "...Therefore My anger and My wrath will be poured out..." | God's anger for widespread idolatry |
| Jer 16:11-12 | "It is because your fathers have forsaken Me..." | Reasons for Judah's suffering tied to ancestral sin |
| Jer 25:5-7 | "saying, 'Turn now, everyone from his evil way... lest I bring evil on you...'" | Warning against continuing ancestral disobedience |
| Jer 32:29-32 | "...for they have provoked Me to anger from the day they built it..." | Constant provocation of God to anger |
| Ezek 7:8-9 | "Now I will soon pour out My wrath on you... and judge you according to your ways..." | God's impending wrath and judgment |
| Psa 78:38-41 | "Many times He restrained His anger, and did not stir up all His wrath..." | God's forbearance amidst Israel's rebellion |
| Psa 90:7-8 | "For we have been consumed by Your anger... You have set our iniquities before You..." | Divine judgment experienced due to sin |
| Dan 9:8 | "...to our kings, our princes, our fathers, and all the people of the land, because we have sinned against You." | Confession acknowledging the fathers' sins |
| Neh 9:26-27 | "Nevertheless they were disobedient and rebelled against You... Therefore You delivered them into the hand of their foes..." | History of ancestral rebellion and God's justice |
| Isa 63:10 | "But they rebelled and grieved His Holy Spirit; Therefore He turned Himself into their enemy..." | Rebellion leading to God's opposing them |
| Amos 2:4-5 | "Thus says the LORD: 'For three transgressions of Judah... I will send a fire upon Judah...'" | God's judgment on Judah for rejecting His law |
| Mal 3:7 | "From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from My statutes..." | Historical pattern of straying from God |
| Matt 23:29-36 | "...fill up, then, the measure of your fathers’ guilt." | Accumulation of sin and generational patterns |
| Heb 3:15-19 | "As it is said: 'Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.'" | Warning against hardening hearts like ancestors |
| Rom 1:18 | "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness..." | Universal principle of divine wrath against sin |
| 1 Cor 10:6, 11 | "Now these things happened as examples for us... Now all these things happened to them as examples..." | Old Testament history as a warning for believers |
Zechariah 1 verses
Zechariah 1 2 Meaning
Zechariah 1:2 declares God's intense and justified wrath that was directed towards the preceding generations of Israel. This profound divine anger, rooted in their persistent rebellion, idolatry, and covenant disobedience, resulted in severe historical consequences, most notably the Assyrian and Babylonian exiles. The verse functions as a solemn historical premise for the returning remnant, urging them to recognize the grave reality of forsaking the Lord and serving as a crucial backdrop for the call to repentance in the verses that follow.
Zechariah 1 2 Context
Zechariah began prophesying in the second year of King Darius I Hystaspes (520 BC), about 16 years after the first wave of Jewish exiles returned to Judah from Babylonian captivity. While they had laid the temple foundations, the work had largely stalled due to Samaritan opposition, economic hardship, and a general lack of motivation. The people, discouraged and focused on their own affairs, were living in a land still bearing the scars of God's judgment. This verse, therefore, serves as Zechariah's emphatic opening statement, grounding his immediate call to repentance (Zech 1:3) in the stark historical reality of their ancestors' disobedience. It reminds the remnant why the exile occurred and warns them against repeating the errors that invited such divine wrath, providing the necessary motivation for renewed commitment to God and the rebuilding of the temple.
Zechariah 1 2 Word analysis
The Lord: (YHWH - יהוה). This is the sacred, covenant name of God, emphasizing His eternal, personal, and unchanging nature. His anger is not arbitrary but a righteous response consistent with His holy character and His covenant faithfulness. It underscores that it is the sovereign God of Israel who executes just judgment.
has been: This past tense verb denotes a completed action, yet one whose consequences (like the recent exile and present desolation) are still very much felt. It signifies a definitive historical divine action.
very angry: (קָצַף קֶצֶף - qatsaph qetseph). This is a strong Hebrew idiom, employing both the verb (qatsaph, to be angry) and its cognate noun (qetseph, wrath, indignation) as an infinitive absolute to intensify the meaning. It conveys the highest degree of divine anger—not merely annoyance, but intense, justified wrath leading to severe and far-reaching consequences. This wrath is righteous and punitive, aimed at persistent and grievous sin.
with your fathers: (`al-ʾǎḇôṯêḵem). This specific reference points to the previous generations of Israel, particularly those who lived prior to and during the Assyrian and Babylonian exiles. It highlights a recurring historical pattern of sin, rebellion against God's law, and rejection of His prophets. The direct address to "your fathers" emphasizes inherited lessons from history, implying that the current generation bears the responsibility to learn from their predecessors' failures and break the cycle of disobedience.
Words-group analysis:
- "The Lord has been very angry": This phrase highlights God's attribute of righteous wrath. It asserts that His anger is not a fleeting emotion but a decisive, justified response to profound and persistent sin within the covenant relationship. The emphasis signifies the severity of their historical experience and God's holiness.
- "very angry with your fathers": This powerfully connects past divine judgment to the specific actions and persistent rebellion of the preceding generations of Israel. It functions as a solemn historical warning to the contemporary audience, urging them to understand the roots of their national suffering and to avoid repeating the destructive patterns that invited such divine wrath.
Zechariah 1 2 Bonus section
- This opening establishes Zechariah's authority and the divine origin of his message; it is not merely his opinion but God's perspective on their history.
- The severity of God's wrath implied here is juxtaposed with the call to mercy and grace if the people truly repent (Zech 1:3), emphasizing God's balance of justice and redemptive love.
- It serves as a stark reminder against spiritual complacency, urging immediate and genuine repentance. The consequences of previous generations’ inaction are evident, compelling the present generation to act differently.
Zechariah 1 2 Commentary
Zechariah 1:2 functions as a stern and unequivocal historical preamble to the prophet's message. It starkly asserts that the devastating circumstances from which the post-exilic remnant has just returned were a direct consequence of God’s profound and righteous anger towards their forefathers. The forceful Hebrew idiom "very angry" underscores the severity and unwavering justice of God's punitive response to Israel's chronic disobedience and idolatry. This verse is more than a historical recount; it's a vital theological statement underscoring the gravity of sin and the certainty of divine judgment for those in covenant who break faith. By reminding the people of their painful past, Zechariah validates the exile they endured, removes any room for self-pity or ignorance, and powerfully establishes the absolute necessity and urgency for the present generation to genuinely repent and "return to the Lord," as urged in the very next verse. It serves as a stark warning designed to propel them toward true spiritual reformation and commitment to the task of rebuilding God's house and their lives in obedience to Him, lest they too experience such wrath.