The Meaning of Zechariah 2:5 Explained

Zechariah 2:5

KJV: For I, saith the LORD, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and will be the glory in the midst of her.

YLT: And I -- I am to her -- an affirmation of Jehovah, A wall of fire round about, And for honour I am in her midst.

Darby: and I, saith Jehovah, I will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and will be the glory in the midst of her.

ASV: For I, saith Jehovah, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and I will be the glory in the midst of her.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

For I, saith  the LORD,  will be unto her a wall  of fire  round about,  and will be the glory  in the midst  of her. 

What does Zechariah 2:5 Mean?

Verse Meaning

The Lord promised to be Jerusalem"s defense instead of a physical wall and to be the glory in her in contrast to any human glory. Such a promise would have been a great encouragement to the returnees from captivity. Yahweh Himself (emphatic in the Hebrew text) would provide security by His protection and presence (cf. Zechariah 1:16; Psalm 24:7-10). Though God did protect the returnees, His promise has not yet found fulfillment. The wall of fire that Yahweh would be recalls the pillar of cloud and fire by which God visualized His protecting presence at various times throughout her history ( Exodus 13:21-22; Exodus 14:19-20; Exodus 40:34; Isaiah 4:5-6).
"This anticipates the Lord"s personal presence through the Messiah in his kingdom on earth (cf. Zechariah 2:11-12; Zechariah 14:9; Isaiah 60:19; Ezekiel 43:1-5; Ezekiel 48:35). So then the literal kingdom will be very spiritual." [1]
"At a time when others such as Nehemiah were interested in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem and excluding from the community those who had divorced their wives and married young foreign girls ( Ezra 10:2-3), Zechariah sees a vision of the future Jerusalem as a broad, spreading metropolis with the wall of God"s presence around her and the glory of his presence within her." [2]
Both the second and third visions guarantee the future safety of Jerusalem. Since Jerusalem has not been safe for millennia, it seems reasonable to expect a fulfillment in messianic times.

Context Summary

Zechariah 2:1-13 - The Redemption Of Jerusalem
The work of Temple-building had ceased for fifteen years and the new resolve to arise and build might meet with a similar fate. But the four horns met with four carpenters. For Babylon the carpenter was Cyrus; for Persia, Alexander the Great; for Greece, the Roman; for Rome, the Gaul. No weapon that is formed to thwart God's purposes can prosper. The young man with the measuring line embodied the new spirit animating the returned exiles. But God was intending to give more prosperity and increase than could be contained in walls. [source]

Chapter Summary: Zechariah 2

1  God, in the care of Jerusalem, sends to measure it
6  The redemption of Zion
10  The promise of God's presence

What do the individual words in Zechariah 2:5 mean?

for I will be her says Yahweh a wall of fire all around and the glory I will be in her midst -
וַאֲנִ֤י אֶֽהְיֶה־ לָּהּ֙ נְאֻם־ יְהוָ֔ה ח֥וֹמַת אֵ֖שׁ סָבִ֑יב וּלְכָב֖וֹד אֶֽהְיֶ֥ה בְתוֹכָֽהּ פ

וַאֲנִ֤י  for  I 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Pronoun, first person common singular
Root: אֲנִי  
Sense: I (first pers.
אֶֽהְיֶה־  will  be 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, first person common singular
Root: אֶהְיֶה 
Sense: to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out.
לָּהּ֙  her 
Parse: Preposition, third person feminine singular
נְאֻם־  says 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: נְאֻם  
Sense: (Qal) utterance, declaration (of prophet).
יְהוָ֔ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: Jehovah—used primarily in the combination ‘Lord Jehovah’.
ח֥וֹמַת  a  wall 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: חֹומָה  
Sense: wall.
אֵ֖שׁ  of  fire 
Parse: Noun, common singular
Root: אֵשׁ  
Sense: fire.
סָבִ֑יב  all  around 
Parse: Adverb
Root: מוּסָב 
Sense: places round about, circuit, round about adv.
וּלְכָב֖וֹד  and  the  glory 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition-l, Noun, masculine singular
Root: כָּבֹוד  
Sense: glory, honour, glorious, abundance.
אֶֽהְיֶ֥ה  I  will  be 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, first person common singular
Root: אֶהְיֶה 
Sense: to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out.
בְתוֹכָֽהּ  in  her  midst 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct, third person feminine singular
Root: תָּוֶךְ  
Sense: midst, middle.
פ  - 
Parse: Punctuation