Zechariah 9:17
For how great is his goodness, and how great is his beauty! corn shall make the young men cheerful, and new wine the maids.
Study Note
Study Note
The exclamation 'For how great is his goodness, and how great is his beauty!' forms the doxological climax of Zechariah 9's vision of a restored and blessed people under the rule of the humble king (verse 9: 'thy king cometh unto thee... lowly, and riding upon an ass'). The connection between the king's arrival and the community's flourishing (grain for young men, new wine for maids) presents messianic restoration as material as well as spiritual abundance. Matthew 21:5 and John 12:15 cite Zechariah 9:9 ('thy king cometh, meek, and sitting upon an ass') to interpret the Triumphal Entry — making the subsequent doxology of 9:17 the telos toward which Palm Sunday pointed. The conjunction of divine goodness (tov) and beauty (yapheh) echoes Psalm 27:4's singular petition 'to behold the beauty of the Lord' — eschatological fulfilment is the unmediated experience of divine beauty.
Other Translations
For how great is his goodness, and how great is his beauty! grain shall make the young men flourish, and new wine the virgins.
For what His goodness! and what His beauty! Corn the young men, And new wine the virgins--make fruitful!
For how good it is and how beautiful! grain will make the young men strong and new wine the virgins.
Cross References
Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, …
Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee; which thou hast wrought …
How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy …
Thou art fairer than the children of men: grace is poured into thy lips: therefore God hath blessed thee for …
Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined.
For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.
But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth.
And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us: and establish thou the work of our hands …
They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall sing of thy righteousness.
My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand.