Editing Zechariah (Hebrew prophet)

{{Short description|Biblical prophet}}
{{distinguish|Zechariah (New Testament figure)|Zechariah of Israel}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2023}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Zechariah
| image              = Zacharias (Michelangelo).jpg
| image_size         = 200px
| caption            = Zechariah as depicted on the ceiling of the [[Sistine Chapel]]
| birth_date         =
| birth_place        = 
| death_date         = {{circa|6th century BCE}}
| death_place        = 
| other_names        = 
| known_for          = Author of the [[Book of Zechariah]]
| occupation         = Prophet
| father             = Berechiah (likely)
| mother             = 
| spouse             = 
| children           = 
}}
'''Zechariah'''{{efn|Pronounced {{IPAc-en|z|ɛ|k|ə|ˈ|r|aɪ|.|ə}}; {{Hebrew Name|{{Script/Hebrew|זְכַרְיָה}}|Zəḵarya|Zăḵaryā}}; {{langx|ar|زكريّا}} ''Zakariyā'' or ''Zakariyyā''; {{langx|grc-x-biblical|Ζαχαρίας}} ''Zakharias''; {{langx|la|Zacharias}}.}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=Khan |first=Geoffrey |title=The Tiberian Pronunciation Tradition of Biblical Hebrew, Volume 1. |publisher=Open Book Publishers |year=2020 |isbn=978-1783746767}}</ref> was a person in the [[Hebrew Bible]] traditionally considered the author of the [[Book of Zechariah]], the eleventh of the [[Twelve Minor Prophets]].

== Prophet ==
[[File:Tissot Zechariah.jpg|thumb|upright|Zechariah as depicted by [[James Tissot]]]]
The Book of Zechariah introduces him as the son of [[Berechiah#In scripture|Berechiah]], the son of Iddo.<ref>[[Zechariah 1:1]]</ref> The [[Book of Ezra]] names Zechariah as the son of Iddo,<ref>{{Bibleverse|Ezra|5:1|HE}} and {{Bibleverse|Ezra|6:14|HE}}</ref> but it is likely that Berechiah was Zechariah's father and Iddo his grandfather.<ref name=JE/> [[Targum Lamentations]] 2:20 names this Zechariah son of Iddo, as does the book of [[Matthew 23]]:35. This is not the same person as [[Iddo (prophet)|Iddo the Seer]], who lived during the reigns of [[Solomon|Solomon]], [[Rehoboam]], and [[Abijah of Judah|Abijah]],<ref>[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Chronicles%209%3A29&version=NIV 2nd Chronicles 9:29], [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Chronicles%2012%3A15&version=KJV 12:15], and [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2+Chronicles+13%3A22&version=NIV 13:22]</ref> and is most likely the Iddo mentioned in [[Ezra 8]]:17.<ref>[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ezra+8%3A17&version=NIV Ezra 8:17]</ref> [[Zechariah (given name)|His name]] means "[[Jah|Yah]] remembers".<ref>[https://biblehub.com/hebrew/2148.htm Strong's Lexicon: 2148. Zechariah], accessed on 9 January 2025</ref>

Zechariah's prophetical career probably began in the second year of [[Darius the Great]], king of the [[Achaemenid Empire]] (520&nbsp;BCE).<ref name="JE"/> His greatest concern appears to have been with the building of the [[Second Temple]].<ref name="JE">{{cite book|last1=Hirsch|first1=Emil G.|editor=Cyrus Adler|display-editors=etal|title=[[The Jewish Encyclopedia]] |date=1906|chapter-url=http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/15198-zechariah|chapter=Zechariah |location=New York|publisher=Funk & Wagnalls Co |access-date=11 April 2023 |archive-date=29 May 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180529203023/http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/15198-zechariah|url-status=live}}</ref> He features in chapters 1–8 of the book of Zechariah but he does not appear in the remaining chapters of the book (chapters 9–14).<ref>[[Jerusalem Bible]] (1966), ''Introduction to the Prophets: Zechariah'', p. 1139, London: Darton, Longman & Todd Ltd and Doubleday and Co. Inc.</ref>

==Liturgical commemoration==
On the [[Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar]], his feast day is 8 February. He is commemorated in the [[Calendar of saints (Armenian Apostolic Church)|calendar of saints]] of the [[Armenian Apostolic Church]] on the Tuesday after the fifth Sunday of [[Pentecost]]<ref>''Domar: the calendrical and liturgical cycle of the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church'', Armenian Orthodox Theological Research Institute, 2003</ref> and, with the other Minor Prophets, on 31 July.  The [[Catholic Church]] honors him with a feast day assigned to 6 September.

==See also==
* [[Tomb of the Prophets]]
* [[Zechariah (given name)]] for the derivation and translations of his name
* [[Zechariah (New Testament figure)]], the father of [[John the Baptist]] in the [[New Testament]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

== References ==
=== Footnotes ===
{{reflist}}

=== Bibliography ===
* {{EBD|Zechariah|ref=}}

== External links ==
* {{commons category-inline|Zechariah (prophet)}}

{{Prophets of the Tanakh}}
{{Muslim saints}}
{{Catholic saints}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zechariah}}
[[Category: Book of Ezra people]]
[[category:Book of Zechariah people]]
[[Category:6th-century BCE Jews]]
[[Category:6th-century BC religious leaders]]
[[Category:Ancient apocalypticists]]
[[Category:Angelic visionaries]]
[[Category:Christian saints from the Old Testament]]