Commento su Zaccaria 1:8

I saw tonight Our Sages explained [this phrase as] they explained [it] in the Aggadah of the chapter entitled “Helek” (Sanh. 93a), but the sequence of the chapter and the language do not fit it.

"I saw by night." The visions of Zechariah are very obscure, like those of Daniel, but the visions of the other prophets are not so ; the reason is, that the power of prophecy had been gradually exhausting from the days of the captivity ; therefore, they did not make their words clear, and did not understand the visions as they were. He says, " I saw by night," i. e., in the visions of the night I saw this vision, in which I beheld -

and behold! A man an angel.

"a man riding upon a red horse." We have found in the words of our rabbis of blessed memory, the following exposition of this verse : " I saw in the night, that the Holy One, blessed be He, sought to turn the whole world into night, and behold a man riding. This man is no other than the Holy One, blessed be He, for it is said, "The Lord is a man of war." "Upon a red horse.' The Holy One, blessed be He, sought to turn the whole world into blood, but when he looked upon Hannaniah, Mishael, and Azariah, his anger was cooled, for it is said, "And he stood among the myrtle-trees (hadassim.)" The myrtle- trees can mean nothing else but the righteous, for it is said, ' He brought up Hadassah.' (Esther 2:7) In like manner, "In the bottom,' means nothing else but Babylon, for it is said, "That saith to the deep, be dry." (Isaiah 44:27.) Immediately the black horses became speckled, and the red horses white, for it is said, ( And behind him red horses, speckled and white.' (Verse 8.)" But we shall endeavour to interpret the vision as well as we can. "

on a red horse This is an allusion that He would exact retribution upon the Chaldeans, Media, and Persia with the sword and with blood, as He says (verse 15 below): “And I was very wroth with the nations.”

A man." That is, the angel of the Lord, as in Daniel 9:21 , " The man Gabriel; " and so we read further on, " The angel of the Lord that stood between the myrtle- trees." He saw him riding upon a horse, to denote his speed in embassy. As to the meaning of the word " red,'* and the other colours, it may be that some definite meaning was intended by them ; and my lord my father, of blessed memory, has written, that the red horse is typical of Nebuchadnezzar, who is called the head of gold, and gold is red; for this prophecy refers to the four king- doms, like the dream of Nebuchadnezzar, and the visions of Daniel. And although the horses figuratively re- present the angels the messengers of God, there is, ne- vertheless, a reference to the four kingdoms. The vision of " a man riding," signifies that the angels rule over the lower world, and that all the work of God on earth is done by them and through their mediation. The object of the man's mission was to root up the kingdom of Babylon ; and although at the time of this vision the Babylonian monarchy had been already rooted out, the vision was exhibited to him complete, as it had been, on account of the three kingdoms that were still future. The vision happened in the time of the Persian monarchy, as is said, " In the second year of Darius."

and after him were red, etc., horses prepared for the mission of the Omnipresent. That there were among them [horses of] many sorts of colors was a [means of] praise for him. black do not know what color this is. Jonathan rendered קְוָחִין.

" And he stood amongst the myrtle-trees that were in the bottom." These signify Israel, and he compares them to myrtle-trees ; for as these have a good odour, so the Israelites in Babylon had the good odour of the com- mandments. He is represented as standing among them to help them, and deliver them from captivity. "

among the myrtles that were in the pool Among the myrtle trees of Babylon.

"In the bottom" This is Babylon.

" And behind him red horses, specified and white." " Speckled," a species of colour, but what colour is not clear to us. There are some who say, that it means, coloured with colouring stuff, but this is nonsense. The speckled horses in this vision, are instead of the black horses in the other vision of the four chariots. (Chap, vi.) The Targum of Jonathan renders " speckled" by JVinD, and according to another reading, ^rmp> " bay." * So far as appears, these horses had no riders upon them : he that was riding was the prince or captain over the other angels, and therefore he saw him riding. " And behind him red horses." If we interpret " a red horse," of Nebuchadnezzar, then we should interpret the " red horses," of his son and grandson ; and, behold ! these answer to the first chariot (in chap. vi.). " Speckled and white.'" As if he had said. Behind them were speckled horses, and behind them again white. And, behold ! he does not mention any thing to answer to the fourth chariot, for he did not see it in this vision, on account of its distance, but in the other vision he did see it.