When was Zechariah written?

When the Jews returned to the land of Judah after the Babylonian exile, they found it in ruins. Rebuilding life in Judah was difficult, but restoring Jerusalem, especially the temple, was key to Israel’s worship. Zechariah’s ministry encouraged the returned exiles to prioritize its reconstruction. Zechariah wrote chapters 1—8 around 520 BC, during the reign of Darius I, king of Persia. He likely wrote chapters 9—14 of the book later, around 480—470 BC.

Zechariah gives a time marker, which helps determine when he wrote chapters 1—8. The first verse of the book reads, “In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah, the son of Iddo” (Zechariah 1:1). Darius I reigned from 522 to 486 BC, so the second year of his reign would have been 520 BC.

Zechariah ministered at the same time as the prophet Haggai. Both prophets urge the Israelites who had returned from exile to the Lord’s temple. Haggai also dates his prophecy to the second year of Darius’s reign (Haggai 1:1). This confirms that their ministries overlapped and helps establish the timeline of Zechariah’s prophecies.

Further confirmation of Zechariah’s priestly background and ministry timeframe appears in the book of Nehemiah, which mentions a man named Zechariah who was a post-exilic priest: “In the days of Joiakim, these were the heads of the priestly families . . . of Iddo’s family, Zechariah” (Nehemiah 12:12, 16). This Zechariah is likely the same as the prophet Zechariah, who was also a descendant of Iddo, or a later family member. Either way, the passage confirms that the family of Iddo remained active in the priesthood during the late sixth and early fifth centuries BC. This is consistent with the traditional dating of Zechariah’s early ministry, recorded in chapters 1—8, to around 520 BC.

While Zechariah wrote all 14 chapters of the book named for him, chapters 9—14 differ from 1—8. Unlike the first eight chapters, these latter chapters have no specific dates and feature a different writing style, with much of the content being apocalyptic.

One clue to the timing of these latter chapters is the reference to Greece, which may offer insight into when this section was written. Zechariah 9:13 states, “I will bend Judah as I bend my bow and fill it with Ephraim. I will rouse your sons, Zion, against your sons, Greece, and make you like a warrior’s sword.” Some scholars view this as a reflection of Greece’s rising influence in the region, which would place this part of the book near the end of the fifth century BC. Others, however, see the reference to Greece as a prophetic allusion to future events.

God called Zechariah to deliver a message that both convicted and encouraged the Israelites. He urged them to return to Him with renewed devotion. As God said in Zechariah 1:3, “‘Return to me,’ declares the Lord Almighty, ‘and I will return to you.’” The Jews’ obedience in the present was the pathway to God’s promised restoration and future hope.