Zechariah 8:12

Zec 8:12 For the seed [shall be] prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these [things].

Ver. 12. For the seed shall be prosperous] Or, full and perfect, as the Chaldee hath it; it shall be fruitful and yield a plentiful crop, such as shall every way answer the desire of the husbandman. Instead of your recent scarcity (whereof see Hag 1:9, with the notes) you shall abound with plenty of all things, feeding of the fat, and drinking of the sweet, and having your heart filled with food and gladness, Act 14:17. More particularly:

The vine shall give her fruit] So that ye shall swim in wine.

And the ground shall give her increase] Her full burden of the best; so that your floors shall swell, and your tables sweat with sweetest varieties.

And the heavens shall give their dew] That womb of the morning wherein the fruits are conceived.

And I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things] Whereas people are apt to attribute too much to means and second causes of plenty and prosperity, God assumes the honour of all to himself. Rain and fruitful seasons are his gift, Act 14:17. And, Hos 2:22, he resolveth the genealogy of grain and wine into himself: I will hear the heaven, and the heaven shall hear the earth, &c. And, both here and elsewhere he giveth us to know that the reward of religion is abundance of outward blessings; which yet are not always entailed to godliness (whatever Jesuits tell us of the Church’s prosperity and plenty, fetching her mark from the market), to the end that it may he admired for itself, and not for these transitory trappings.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

8:12 Peace (Hebrew shalom) is an important theme underlying Zechariah’s message (8:10, 12, 16, 19). God’s presence in the rebuilt Temple would bring peace to Judah (see Hag 2:6-9). Zechariah uses the agricultural cycle to represent God’s blessing (see Hag 2:18-19), which would reverse the drought conditions that Haggai described (Hag 1:10). • The small community that returned to Judah from exile was called the remnant. Theologically, the remnant is a bridge between God’s punishment and his promised restoration (see Hag 1:12, 14).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

seed . . . prosperous--that is, shall not fair to yield abundantly (Hos 2:21-22; Hag 2:19). Contrast with this verse Hag 1:6, Hag 1:9-11; Hag 2:16.

dew--especially beneficial in hot countries where rain is rare.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 12. For the seed shall be prosperous] Ye shall be a holy and peaceable people; and God will pour down his blessing on yourselves, your fields, and your vineyards.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Here Zechariah promises the continuance of God’s favor, which the Jews had now begun to taste. God then had in part openly showed that he was a Father to the Jews, by dealing liberally with them: but in order more fully to strengthen them in their perseverance, Zechariah says that this favor would be continued.

And he says first, that there would be the seed of peace. Some think that it is called the seed of peace because the cultivation of the fields, while the assaults of enemies were dreaded, was deserted; no one dared to bring out his oxen or his horses, and then even when the husbandmen sowed their fields, it was not done as in seasons of quietness and security. As then the fields, when badly cultivated in times of war, do not produce a full crop, so they think that it is called the seed of peace, when husbandmen are permitted to employ necessary labor, when they are free from every fear, and devote securely their toils on the cultivation and the sowing of their fields. Others explain the seed of peace to be this — that it is so when neither storms, nor tempests, nor mildew, nor any other evils do any harm to the corn and fruit. But as שלום, shelum, means often in Hebrew prosperity, we may so take it here, that it would be the seed of peace, that is, that the seed would be prosperous; and this interpretation seems to me less strained. It shall then be the seed of peace, that is, it shall prosper according to your labor; what is sown shall produce its proper fruit.

There is added an explanation — The vine shall yield its fruit, and the earth shall yield its increase, and the heaven shall yield its dew. We hence conclude that it was called the seed of peace, because the husbandmen gained their object when the earth, irrigated by the dew of heaven, was not sterile, and when the produce was abundant, when there was plenty of corn and wine, and of other things. There is then peace or prosperity as to the seed, when the corn grows according to our wishes, and comes to maturity, and when heaven responds to the earth, and withholds not its dew, as we have seen in another place. In short, God testifies that the remnant of his people should abound in all good things, for the heaven would not withhold from them its rain, nor the earth shut up its bowels.

But God ever recalls his people to himself, that they may depend on his blessing; for it would be a cold doctrine were we not persuaded of this — that the earth is not otherwise fruitful than as God gives it the power of generating and of bringing forth. We ought therefore ever to regard the blessing of God, and to ask of him to supply us with food, and to pray him every day, as we are taught, to give us our daily bread. But few do this from the heart, and hardly one in a hundred so turns his thoughts to God’s hand as firmly to believe that he daily receives from him his daily food. We now understand what the Prophet means in these words. It now follows —

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

(12) For the seed . . . prosperous.—Comp. the Syriac, “for the seed shall be peace.” Better, as in margin, For the seed of peace—viz., “the vine,” which is so called because it can flourish only in times of peace: so that to sit under the vine and under the fig. tree is a common figure to denote the enjoyment of peace and prosperity. For the word “seed” applied to the vine, comp. Jer_2:21.

Comp. 1Ma_14:8 : “Then did they till their ground in peace, and the earth gave her increase, and the trees of the field their fruit.”

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

12. the seed shall be prosperous] Lit. The seed of peace (there shall be). This gives a very good sense, when we remember that the Hebrew words here used have a wide meaning. Seed is not only that which is sown, but sometimes seed-time, or sowing (Gen_8:22), sometimes produce or harvest (Job_39:12). Peace is prosperity and plenty. So that the words may be paraphrased, The processes of agriculture shall prosper. Another rendering, however, according to which this clause is in apposition with the words immediately following, The seed (or plant) of peace, namely, the vine, shall give, &c., has been strongly supported. The vine is then thought to be called “the seed of peace,” because “it can only flourish in peaceful times, and not when the land is laid waste by enemies.” But one fails to see how this is a peculiarity of the vine. It would seem to be equally true of corn and other products of the earth. Moreover, such an apposition destroys the balance of the three following clauses, which form a threefold expansion of the general statement with which the verse begins. In the Speaker’s Commentary it is said, “The vine is pre-eminently a plant of peace.” But in all the passages referred to in support of the assertion the fig-tree is associated with the vine. It is difficult, therefore, to see how the vine can be singled out as the plant of peace.

to possess] Lit. to inherit. Comp. ὁ νικῶν κληρονμήσει ταῦτα, Rev_21:7.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen,.... Reproached, vilified, and called accursed by them; see Jer 24:9 as true Christians, and real believers in Christ, are by the men of this world, Co1 4:12,

O house of Judah, and house of Israel; both being carried captive at different times, and were typical of the true and Spiritual Israel of God:

so will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing; be blessed in themselves with the above blessings of plenty and prosperity in outward things; see Hag 2:19 and a blessing to others, and blessed by them; and all those who are saved in the Lord with an everlasting salvation are blessed with all spiritual blessings in him:

fear not; neither their enemies, nor the accomplishment of these promises:

but let your hands be strong; as in Zac 8:9.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

For the seed shall be peace - o“Your seed shall be peace and a blessing, so that they will call it ‘a seed of peace.’” The unusual construction is perhaps adopted, in order to suggest a further meaning. It is a reversal of the condition, just spoken of, when there was “no peace to him that went, or to him that returned.”

The vine shall give her fruit and the ground shall give her increase - The old promise in the law on obedience Lev 26:4, as the exact contrary was threatened on disobedience Lev 26:20. It had been revived in the midst of promise of spiritual blessing and of the coming of Christ, in Ezekiel Eze 34:27. Ribera: “By the metaphor of sensible things he explains (as the prophets often do) the abundance of spiritual good in the time of the new law, as did Hosea Hos 2:21-22, Joel Joe 2:23-25; Joe 3:18, Amos Amo 9:13, and many others.” “And I will cause the remnant of the people to inherit.” Ribera: “As if he said, I promised these things not to you who live now, but to the future remnant of your people, that is, those who shall believe in Christ and shall be saved, while the rest perish. These shall possess these spiritual goods, which I promise now, under the image of temporal.” As our Lord said, “He that overcometh shall inherit all things, and I will be his God, and he shall be My son” Rev 21:7.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

For the seed, which before brought nothing, or very little, forth, shall now prosper into a plentiful harvest, such as Mal 3:10.

The vine shall give her fruit: this was very much the wealth and support of that people; this had been blasted, as Hag 1:11, now it shall be blest, and bring forth her expected fruit.

The ground shall give her increase; summarily, the ground you plant shall abundantly bring forth her fruit to your satisfaction.

The heavens shall give their dew; the heavens, which before were as brass, and made your earth as iron, hard, barren, shall now drop down their rain, and make the earth fruitful. Much like that Psa 72:3; Hos 2:18.

I will cause, by my special, singular providence, and blessing on them.

To possess; to enjoy, have the things, and the comfort of them; whereas before, though they ate, they were not satisfied, had not enough, Hag 1:6.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

The seed shall be prosperous; literally, (there shall be) the seed of peace. The crops sown shall be crops of peace, safe and secure, in contradistinction to the threat in Lev_26:16, that the seed should be sown in vain, for it should be devoured by an enemy (Knabenbauer). Or, more generally, all farming labours shall succeed and prosper. Jerome"s paraphrase is, "There shall be universal peace and joy;" Septuagint," But I will show forth peace." Another way of understanding the words which has found much favour with modern commentators is to take the clause in apposition with the words immediately following; thus: "The seed (i.e. growth) of peace, the vine, shall give its fruit." But there is no especial reason why the vine should be called "the seed of peace." It is not peculiar among fruit trees for requiring a time of peace for its cultivation. And the term "seed" is very inappropriate to the vine, which was not raised from seed, but from cuttings and layers. Perowne also points out that such a rendering destroys the balance of the three following clauses, which explain and expand the general statement that agriculture shall prosper. Dr. Alexander takes "the seed of peace" to be that from which peace springs; i.e. that peace should be radically established in the land, and from this fact the results following should ensue. This affords a very good sense; but it is probably a metaphor quite unintended by the prophet. The Syriac reads differently, "The seed shall be safe." The remnant (see on ver. 11). To possess; to inherit; Septuagint, etc. kataklhronomhsw . (Rev_21:7) This promise recalls the blessings in the old Law. (Lev_26:4,de Lev 33:28 Psa_67:6)

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.