Attributed commentary excerpt
John Gill's Exposition on Zechariah 14:20
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Exposition of the Old and New Testament
John Gill (1697–1771) · 18th-century historical commentary
Source: BibleWord.ai's local reference edition of this named work.
In that day, etc.] After the destruction of antichrist and all the antichristian party, and a new state of things will take place, either the spiritual or personal reign of Christ: shall there be upon the bells of the horses, HOLINESS TO THE LORD; as was upon the mitre of the high priest, (<022836>Exodus 28:36) to which there seems to be an allusion here: or, “upon the trappings of the horses”f318, as the Targum renders it; and this intends either the horses slain in war, whose bells or trappings should be devoted and applied to holy uses; or the horses that carried the people up to Jerusalem to worship there, or horses in common. The Septuagint and Vulgate Latin versions render it, “on the bridle of the horse shall be Holiness to the Lord”; that is, they should be devoted to his service, which sometimes were very richly adorned; yea, were of gold; as those described by Virgilf319; nay, they were adorned with precious stones, with pearls, emeralds, and jacinths, insomuch that the Romans were obliged to restrain this luxury by a lawf320. The conceit of some of the fathers, that this refers to one of the nails in the cross of Christ, which Constantine put into his horse’s bridle, is justly ridiculed and exploded by most commentators. It seems best to render the word as we do, “bells”, as Kimchi and Jarchi interpret it; since it is used of cymbals made of brass, which were to make a sound to be heard, (<131519>1 Chronicles 15:19 <161227>Nehemiah 12:27) and of the same metal were the horses’ bells made; though those which the mules at the funeral of Alexander had at each jaw were made of goldf321; as were those Aaron had at the hem of his robe. The use of these bells on horses, according to Gussetiusf322, in the eastern countries, where they travelled through deserts, and had no beaten track, was to keep them together, and that they might be known where they were when parted; and of like use are they now to horses of burden or packhorses with us; though in common use they seem to serve to give horses a pleasure, and quicken them in their work: but the original of them seems to be for the training of horses for war, and therefore they hung bells to their bridles, to use them to a noise, and to try if they could bear a noise, and the tumult of war, so as not to throw their riders, or expose them to dangerf323; hence one that has not been tried or trained up to anything is called by the Greeks akwdwnistov, one not used to the noise of a bell, by a metaphor taken from horses, that have never been tried by the sound of bells, whether they can bear the noise of war without fearf324: and so it may signify, that these, and all the apparatus of war, all kind of armour, should no more be made use of for such purposes, there being now universal peace in the kingdom of Christ; wherefore these, and the like, should be converted to sacred uses, just as swords, at the same time, shall be beaten into ploughshares, and spears into pruning hooks, for civil uses, (<230204>Isaiah 2:4) or, since Holiness to the Lord is said to be upon them, the sense may be, that holiness will be very general among all men; all professing people will be righteous; it will appear in all their actions, civil as well as religious; it will be as visible as the bells upon the horses, by their frequent going to the house of God; their constant attendance on public worship; their walking in the ways of the Lord, and their love to one another. And the pots in the Lord’s house shall…
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