meet the supposed difficulty, would interpolate the words " and upon the head of Zerubabbel " in the I ith verse, as if one crown was to be put upon the head of Zerubbabel and the other upon Joshua; but there is no justification what ever for such a free-and-easy method of handling the sacred text, and the interpretation based upon their " reconstruc tion " only obscures the rich significance and spiritual beauty of the truth set forth in this symbolical transaction.
There is no mention whatever of Zerubbabel in this passage, neither was a silver crown, or indeed any crown, ever worn by the high priest the priestly mitre being never so designated.[1] In fact, the whole significance of the incident lies in the fact that these crowns, or crown, was placed upon the head of Joshua. The plural " ataroth" is used in Job xxi. 36 for one crown, and what most probably is meant is a single " splendid royal crown," consisting of a number of gold and silver twists or circlets woven together.
The Verbal Prophecy
Having placed this crown upon the head of Joshua, the prophet was, by the Lord's command, to deliver to him the following message: " Thus speaketh Jehovah of hosts, saying, Behold the Man whose name is the Branch, and He shall grow up out of His place, and He shall build the Temple of the Lord: even He shall build the Temple of the Lord: and He shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon His throne; and He shall be a priest upon His throne; and the counsel of peace shall be between them both"
This is one of the most remarkable and precious Messianic prophecies, and there is no plainer prophetic utterance in the whole Old Testament as to the Person of the promised Redeemer, the offices He was to fill, and the
- ↑ " The silver might have formed a circlet in the crown of gold, as in modern times the iron crown of Lombardy was called iron because it had a plate of iron in its summit, being else of gold and most precious." Pusey.
In Rev. xix. our Lord Jesus is spoken of as wearing many crowns (dtaS^^ara TroXXd); but what is probably meant is a diadem composed of, or encircled with, manv crowns.
