Proclaimer Blog
Reading apocalyptic books – God’s way
Just started reading Zechariah. Immediately floored by the vision of four horsemen (red, sorrel, white, dark red) standing by a myrtle bush. What on earth can it all mean?
It's possible, of course, to spend ages analysing such detail – and plenty of preachers and commentators do exactly that. But Zechariah is liberating because God himself interprets the vision through his angel. "I will show you what they are."
Here's the punchline. The angel makes absolutely no mention of the colours of the horses nor the shrubbery beside which they appear. Did you get that? God's own interpretation of the vision is that the details are pieces of colour and not central (or even essential) to the interpretation. How liberating is that! Not just for Zechariah, but for all this kind of literature.
Iain Duguid is a notable OT scholar, preacher and author and is leading our Senior Ministers Conference next year. Amongst his commentaries, is one on Zechariah. This is what he says about the four horseman and understanding the detail:
"The conversation that follows, which must be understood as giving Zechariah the essential message of the vision sheds no light at all on the significance of the various colours of horse or the particular variety of tree, and that suggests these details are not important. The approach…to interpreting and applying the visions takes its cue from that observation. We shall stand back and enquire after the clear import of each vision as a whole, especially in the light of the interpretative comments and oracles that are interspersed among the visions, rather than seeking significance in every minor detail."
Booking is already open for the Spring conference with Iain. Sadly, in this case, details are important and you can read about them here.