Zechariah 9:12

This verse coheres closely with the verse which precedes it, and a full stop should be printed at the end of it, as in R. V. There is a sharp contrast between the strongholdhere and the pitthere. And the prisoners of hopein this verse are the prisonersto whom, while yet in the pit, the promise and hope of deliverance had been given in that verse.

strong hold There may be a reference to the hill of Zion, or to the rocky fastnesses of Palestine, to which the exiles who had escaped from the pit or dungeon in Babylon were to turn, or return;but it may be merely a figurative expression (comp. Psalms 40:2), and certainly is so in its higher spiritual and Christian application (Luke 4:18-21).

prisoners of hope Comp. ἡ κτίσις ὑπετάγη ἐπ ʼ ἐλπίδι, κ. τ. λ., Romans 8:20-21.

double Comp. Isaiah 61:7. From Exodus 16:22; Job 42:10, it would appear that this means a very large and full measure (lit. twice as much as before) of blessing and prosperity.