500 years before Jesus was born, a prophet wrote down the price of His betrayal. He named the animal Jesus would ride into Jerusalem. He said God’s Shepherd would be struck and His friends would run away. He even said people would look on the God they’d pierced.
That prophet was Zechariah. Many readers skip his book because of its strange visions—flying scrolls, coloured horses, a woman in a basket. Early Bible translator Jerome called it one of the hardest books in the Bible. But inside those visions is one of the clearest pictures of Jesus in the Old Testament.
Here are 8 places where Zechariah points to Jesus, plus answers to common objections. By the end, we think you’ll agree: only one person in history fits Zechariah’s picture.
Jesus in the Old Testament — Book 38 of 39
This post is the 38th instalment in our series tracing Christ through every book of the Old Testament. See the full series index.
Who Was Zechariah?
Zechariah was a priest and a prophet. A prophet is someone who speaks God’s message to people. His name means “the LORD remembers”. That name was a sermon in itself, because his people felt forgotten.
Timeline: The World Zechariah Lived In
- 586 BC: Babylon destroys Jerusalem and Solomon’s temple. Many Jews are taken away. This is called the exile.
- 539–538 BC: King Cyrus of Persia conquers Babylon and lets the Jews go home (Ezra 1:1–4).
- 536 BC: They lay the new temple’s foundation, but enemies stop the work for about 16 years.
- 520 BC: God sends Haggai and Zechariah to get the people building again (Ezra 5:1–2).
- 515 BC: The new temple is finished (Ezra 6:15).
The people who came back were poor and tired. Persia ruled them, so they had no king. Their new temple looked small next to Solomon’s. Into this sad moment, God’s message came: a greater King and a greater Temple are coming.
How Do We Find Jesus in Zechariah?
Some say Christians “force” Jesus into the Old Testament. But Jesus Himself taught us to read it this way. After He rose, “beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself” (Luke 24:27).
Peter adds that “the Spirit of Christ” was in the prophets when they “predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories” (1 Peter 1:11). So when Zechariah wrote, Christ’s own Spirit was guiding him.
But not every verse is a direct prediction. Zechariah shows us Jesus in three ways:
Table: Three Ways Zechariah Shows Us Jesus
| WAY | WHAT IT MEANS | EXAMPLE IN ZECHARIAH |
|---|---|---|
| Appearance (theophany) | God the Son appears in a visible form before He was born as a man | The Angel of the LORD (1:12; 3:1–6) |
| Prediction (prophecy) | A clear promise about the future that the New Testament says came true in Jesus | The King riding a donkey (9:9) |
| Picture (type) | A real person or event in Zechariah’s day that works like a preview of Jesus | Joshua the high priest wearing a crown (6:11) |
1. The LORD Who Is Sent by the LORD
In his visions, Zechariah meets “the angel of the LORD”. Angel simply means “messenger”. But this Messenger is no ordinary angel.
He prays for Jerusalem: “O LORD of hosts, how long will you have no mercy on Jerusalem?” (1:12). Then in chapter 2, the LORD Himself speaks, yet says, “the LORD of hosts has sent me to you” (2:11). The LORD sends the LORD!
In chapter 3 it happens again: “the LORD said to Satan, ‘The LORD rebuke you'” (3:2). Two persons, both called LORD.
How can this be? The New Testament answers: there is one God in three persons—Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We call this the Trinity. The French Reformer John Calvin believed this Angel was Christ Himself, already standing between God and His people long before He became a man.
Notice His promise too: “I will dwell in your midst” (2:10). Five hundred years later, John wrote, “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14).
2. Dirty Clothes and a Clean Robe
Chapter 3 is like a courtroom. Joshua the high priest stands before the Angel of the LORD. But he is wearing filthy clothes—the Hebrew word means clothes covered in human waste. Satan, whose name means “accuser”, stands ready to condemn him.
Joshua cannot defend himself. Then the Angel speaks: “Remove the filthy garments from him… Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments” (3:4). This is the gospel in a picture. God does two things:
- He takes away sin. Joshua’s dirt is removed. He did nothing to earn it.
- He gives righteousness. Joshua is dressed in clean clothes that he did not make.
Then God makes an amazing promise: “I will remove the iniquity of this land in a single day” (3:9). Which day? The day Jesus died, when He “offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins” (Hebrews 10:12).
KEY TERM: JUSTIFICATION
Justification means God declares a guilty sinner “righteous”—not because of what we have done, but because of what Jesus has done. The Westminster Shorter Catechism (1647) says God “accepteth us as righteous in his sight, only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us”.
Imputed means “counted” or “put on our account”. Like Joshua, we wear clothes we did not make.
3. The Branch: One Man, Two Crowns
Twice Zechariah speaks of “the Branch” (3:8; 6:12). This is a name for the Messiah, which means “anointed one”—the promised King from David’s family (Jeremiah 23:5). David’s family tree had been cut down to a stump, but a new shoot would grow.
Then something shocking happens. God tells Zechariah to put a crown on the head of Joshua—the high priest! And God says:
“Behold, the man whose name is the Branch… It is he who shall build the temple of the LORD and shall bear royal honour, and shall sit and rule on his throne. And there shall be a priest on his throne.” (Zechariah 6:12–13)
Why is this shocking? In Israel, kings came from the tribe of Judah and priests from Levi. When King Uzziah tried to act as a priest, God struck him with a skin disease (2 Chronicles 26:16–21).
But the Branch will be both. Jesus is from Judah and David’s family, so He is the true King. And God calls Him “a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek” (Hebrews 7:17)—a priest-king older than Levi.
Table: Jesus’ Three Offices, Pictured in Zechariah
| OFFICE | WHAT IT MEANS | IN ZECHARIAH | IN JESUS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prophet | Brings God’s word to people | Zechariah speaks God’s message | Jesus is God’s final Word (Hebrews 1:1–2) |
| Priest | Offers sacrifice and prays for people | Joshua is cleansed, then crowned | Jesus offered Himself and prays for us (Hebrews 7:25–27) |
| King | Rules and protects God’s people | The Branch rules on His throne | Jesus reigns at God’s right hand (Acts 2:33–36) |
The Branch will also “build the temple of the LORD”. Jesus called His body a temple He would raise in three days (John 2:19–21). Today He builds His church into God’s living temple (Ephesians 2:21–22). The American scholar Meredith G. Kline saw Zechariah’s visions as a heavenly view of this very project.
Was the Branch simply Zerubbabel, the governor from David’s line (Matthew 1:12)? No. Zerubbabel never became king, and the crown went on Joshua’s head, then was kept in the temple as a reminder (6:14)—waiting for the true King.
DID YOU KNOW? ANCIENT JEWISH READERS SAW THE MESSIAH HERE
The Targum is an ancient Jewish paraphrase of the Bible in Aramaic, the language many Jews spoke after the exile. In Zechariah 3:8 and 6:12, it replaces “the Branch” with “the Messiah”. This reading is not a Christian invention.
4. The Humble King on a Donkey
“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” (Zechariah 9:9)
Kings rode war horses. This King rides a young donkey, an animal of peace. On Palm Sunday, Jesus did exactly this (Matthew 21:4–5; John 12:14–15).
Zechariah adds: “because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will set your prisoners free” (9:11). A covenant is a binding promise from God, sealed with blood. At the Last Supper, Jesus called the cup “my blood of the covenant” (Matthew 26:28). The Australian Bible teacher Barry G. Webb shows that Zechariah’s King wins not by force, but through humility and suffering.
5. The Shepherd Sold for Thirty Pieces of Silver
In chapter 11, Zechariah acts out a drama. He plays a good shepherd caring for God’s flock, but the people reject him. When he asks for his wages, they pay him “thirty pieces of silver” (11:12).
That was an insult. Thirty shekels was the price paid when an ox killed a slave (Exodus 21:32). God bitterly calls it “the lordly price at which I was priced by them” (11:13). God Himself is being valued. To reject His Shepherd is to reject God.
Zechariah threw the silver “into the house of the LORD, to the potter”. Now compare Matthew’s Gospel:
- The price: Judas is paid thirty pieces of silver (Matthew 26:15).
- The temple: Judas throws the money into the temple (Matthew 27:5).
- The potter: The priests use it to buy “the potter’s field” (Matthew 27:7).
Three details, five centuries apart—fulfilled by priests who hated Jesus and had no wish to prove Him the Messiah!
6. The God Who Was Pierced
“And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child.” (Zechariah 12:10)
Who is speaking? The LORD. So who was pierced? “Me”—the LORD Himself. Yet He also says “him”, as if speaking of another person. And how can God be pierced? Only if God becomes a man with a body.
John saw it happen. After a soldier’s spear went into Jesus’ side, he wrote: “They will look on him whom they have pierced” (John 19:37). Calvin argued that God is rightly said to be pierced, because Christ is God come in the flesh.
Next comes “a fountain opened… to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness” (13:1). Blood and water flowed from Jesus’ side (John 19:34). His death is the fountain that washes sinners clean.
DID YOU KNOW? THE TALMUD LINKS THIS VERSE TO A SLAIN MESSIAH
The Talmud is a large collection of ancient Jewish teaching. In one passage (Sukkah 52a), the rabbis ask why the people mourn in Zechariah 12. One answer: they mourn for a Messiah who has been killed.
7. The Shepherd Struck by God
“Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, against the man who stands next to me,” declares the LORD of hosts. “Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.” (Zechariah 13:7)
Two things stand out. First, God Himself holds the sword. Second, He calls this Shepherd “the man who stands next to me”. The Hebrew word (amit) means “my equal” or “my companion”. The 19th-century German scholar Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg argued that no mere man could be called God’s equal. This Shepherd must share God’s own nature.
On the night of His arrest, Jesus quoted this verse about Himself (Matthew 26:31). Hours later, His disciples fled.
KEY TERM: PENAL SUBSTITUTION
Penal means “to do with punishment”. Substitution means “one taking another’s place”. So penal substitution means Jesus took the punishment sinners deserved.
Zechariah 13:7 shows this was God’s own plan: “it was the will of the LORD to crush him” (Isaiah 53:10). The sword fell on the Shepherd so the sheep could go free.
8. The King Who Is Coming Back
Zechariah’s last chapter looks to the end of history: “On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives” (14:4). Jesus left this earth from that very hill. Angels then promised He “will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11–12).
Then “the LORD will be king over all the earth” (14:9). There will be no more night, and living waters will flow (14:7–8; Revelation 22:1–5).
Holy Week in Zechariah
Timeline: Jesus’ Last Week, Foretold by Zechariah
- Sunday: Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey (9:9; Matthew 21:5).
- Monday: He drives the traders out of the temple (14:21; Mark 11:15–17).
- Midweek: Judas agrees to betray Him for thirty pieces of silver (11:12; Matthew 26:15).
- Thursday night: Jesus is arrested and His disciples scatter (13:7; Matthew 26:56).
- Friday morning: The priests buy the potter’s field with Judas’ silver (11:13; Matthew 27:7).
- Friday afternoon: A spear pierces His side; blood and water flow (12:10; 13:1; John 19:34–37).
- Forty days later: He ascends from the Mount of Olives (14:4; Acts 1:11–12).
Answering the Sceptics
- “Matthew got it wrong—he says Jeremiah.“ Matthew 27:9 blends Zechariah with Jeremiah, who also spoke of a potter and bought a field (Jeremiah 18–19; 32). Writers then often named only the better-known prophet. Mark does the same, naming Isaiah while also quoting Malachi (Mark 1:2–3).
- “Chapters 9–14 were written later.“ Even if they were, they still come from centuries before Jesus. Copies of Zechariah older than Jesus were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls. And the British scholar Joyce G. Baldwin showed how both halves of the book share the same themes.
- “Jesus just acted out the prophecies.“ He could choose a donkey. He could not control the betrayal price, the priests’ purchase, the soldier’s spear or His friends running away.
- “Zechariah 12:10 should say ‘him’, not ‘me’.“ A few late Hebrew copies say “to him”. Almost all Hebrew manuscripts, and the ancient Greek translation, say “to me”. A copyist probably changed it because a pierced God seemed impossible. That’s exactly the point.
Why This Matters Today
- Small beginnings are not failures. Zechariah’s hearers were disappointed by their small temple, but God said, “whoever has despised the day of small things shall rejoice” (4:10). Christ still builds His church from weak beginnings.
- The nations are welcome. “Many nations shall join themselves to the LORD” (2:11), saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you” (8:23). Jesus is “Immanuel”—”God with us” (Matthew 1:23).
- Look and live. At Pentecost, thousands looked to the pierced One and were “cut to the heart” (Acts 2:37). Saving faith begins by looking to the crucified Christ.
Conclusion: Behold the Man
Zechariah wrote to tired people waiting for a king. God gave them a bigger promise than they imagined: a King who is also a Priest; a Shepherd struck by God’s sword; the LORD Himself pierced for His people, and one day ruling the earth.
Centuries later, Pilate brought Jesus out wearing a crown of thorns and said, “Behold the man!” (John 19:5). Pilate did not know it, but he was echoing Zechariah: “Behold, the man whose name is the Branch.” The Priest-King had come. Look on Him—and live.
Tough Questions, Honest Answers
Is the Zechariah in Luke 1 the same as the prophet Zechariah?
No. The Zechariah in Luke 1 was a priest who lived about 500 years later. He was the father of John the Baptist. Zechariah was a very common name in Israel—the Old Testament mentions around 30 men who carried it. The name means “the LORD remembers”. Fittingly, Luke’s Zechariah praised God for remembering “his holy covenant” just before the Messiah was born (Luke 1:72). Both men carried a name that pointed to the same faithful God.
Who is “Zechariah the son of Barachiah” in Matthew 23:35?
Jesus warned the religious leaders that they would answer for the blood of the prophets, “from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah”. This man is most likely the priest Zechariah who was stoned in the temple courtyard (2 Chronicles 24:20–22). Chronicles is the last book in the Hebrew Bible, so Jesus was naming the first and last martyrs of the Old Testament—from A to Z. His father is called Jehoiada in Chronicles. Jehoiada may have been his grandfather, since “son” can mean “descendant” in the Bible, or the family may have had two names. Jesus’ main point is clear: God’s people had rejected His messengers again and again, and would soon reject His Son.
What does “Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit” mean?
God spoke these words to Zerubbabel, the governor leading the temple rebuilding (Zechariah 4:6). In the vision, a golden lampstand burns with oil that flows straight from two olive trees—no human hands are needed to fill it. The message was simple: the temple would be finished, not by soldiers or money, but by the power of God’s Holy Spirit. This is still true for the church today. Christ builds His church by His Word and Spirit, not by clever marketing or human strength. But this verse is no excuse for laziness—Zerubbabel still had to build! We work hard, and we trust God for the results.
What does “the apple of his eye” mean in Zechariah 2:8?
“The apple of the eye” is an old English phrase for the pupil—the dark centre of the eye. It is one of the most sensitive and carefully protected parts of the body. God says, “he who touches you touches the apple of his eye” (Zechariah 2:8). In other words, whoever harms God’s people is poking God in the eye. Jesus showed the same love when He asked Saul, who was attacking Christians, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” (Acts 9:4). Christ is so closely joined to His people that their pain is His pain.
Who are the two olive trees in Zechariah 4? Are they the two witnesses of Revelation 11?
In Zechariah 4, the two olive trees are “the two anointed ones” (4:14). They are most likely Joshua the high priest and Zerubbabel the governor, standing for the priestly and royal leaders of God’s people. Revelation 11:4 borrows this picture to describe “the two witnesses”. Many interpreters, including the American New Testament scholar Gregory K. Beale, understand these witnesses as a picture of the whole church telling the world about Christ, rather than two individual people. The church shares in Christ’s roles as priest and king (1 Peter 2:9). And the oil that keeps the lamp burning is still the Holy Spirit.
Are the horses in Zechariah the same as the four horsemen of Revelation?
They are related, but they are not the same. In Zechariah 1 and 6, horses and chariots of different colours patrol the earth and go out to “the four winds of heaven” (6:5). They show that God’s servants watch over every part of the world. In Revelation 6, John borrows these colours to describe four horsemen who bring war, hunger and death. Both books teach the same comforting truth: nothing happens in world history outside God’s control. Even hard times are held in the hands of the King who loves His people.
Does Zechariah 14 teach a literal 1,000-year kingdom on earth?
Some Christians, especially dispensationalists, read Zechariah 14 very literally. They expect Jesus to rule from earthly Jerusalem for 1,000 years, with a rebuilt temple and nations travelling there for the Feast of Booths. We believe a better reading sees Zechariah describing God’s final victory in the picture language of his own day—Jerusalem, temple and feasts. The New Testament shows these pictures fulfilled in Christ and His church, since believers have already “come to Mount Zion… the heavenly Jerusalem” (Hebrews 12:22). Their final fulfilment is the new creation of Revelation 21–22, where the whole city becomes God’s temple. Going back to animal sacrifices would deny Christ’s once-for-all sacrifice (Hebrews 10:12–14).
Related Reads
- Jesus in the Old Testament: Where He Appears In All 39 Books
- Jesus in Haggai: How a Rebuilt Temple Points to the Coming King
- Jesus in the Book of Malachi: The Old Testament’s Final Promise
- Christophany Unveiled: Who is The Angel in Zechariah 3?
- The Mysterious Two: Who Are the Anointed Ones in Zechariah?
- Why Did Jesus Ride on a Donkey?
