Then I turned, and lifted up my eyes, and looked, and behold a flying roll.
roll.
Zechariah 5:2 And he said unto me, What seest thou? And I answered, I see a flying roll; the length thereof is twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof ten cubits.
Isaiah 8:1 Moreover the LORD said unto me, Take thee a great roll, and write in it with a man's pen concerning Mahershalalhashbaz.
Jeremiah 36:1-6,20-24,27-32 And it came to pass in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that this word came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, …
Zechariah received another vision in the continuing sequence of night visions given to him for Judah’s restoration and purification. His lifted eyes mark renewed attention to what the Lord reveals, as God confronts not only the nation’s outward enemies but also the sin within His covenant people.
Zec 2:1 Then I lifted up my eyes and saw a man with a measuring line…
Dan 8:3 Then I lifted up my eyes and saw a ram with two horns…
Dan 10:5 I lifted up my eyes, and behold, there was a certain man…
and saw before me
Zechariah personally witnessed what he was commanded to proclaim. The vision came with divine authority and required interpretation, demonstrating that the coming cleansing of Jerusalem would include God’s direct judgment upon unrepentant wrongdoing.
Ezk 1:4 I looked and saw a whirlwind coming from the north,…
Dan 7:2 “In my vision in the night I looked, and suddenly”…
Rev 1:12 Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me.…
a flying scroll.
The large scroll, later described as twenty cubits long and ten cubits wide, carried God’s written curse against thieves and those who swear falsely by His name. Its flight portrays the swift, active, and inescapable reach of divine judgment. God’s word does not remain distant or ineffective; it enters the lives and homes of those who persist in rebellion, exposing sin and removing it from among His people..
Ezk 2:9-10 Then I looked and saw a hand reaching out to me,…
Rev 10:1-2 Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven,…
Rev 5:1 Then I saw a scroll in the right hand of the One…
• “Again” (Zechariah 5:1) signals the next installment in a series of night visions God gave Zechariah (compare 1:7–8; 1:18; 2:1; 4:1).
• The word reminds us that God often teaches in stages, adding light upon light—much like the successive revelations shown to Daniel (Daniel 7:2; 8:1) and John (Revelation 4:1).
• Each fresh vision keeps the prophet—and us—aware that God’s work in history is continuous and purposeful (Psalm 33:11).
• Lifting the eyes suggests intentional focus on what God is unveiling, not on earthly distractions (Colossians 3:1-2).
• The same phrase appears when Abram looked toward the land God promised (Genesis 13:14-15) and when Stephen gazed into heaven before his martyrdom (Acts 7:55).
• It calls believers to spiritual attentiveness—an upward posture of heart that trusts the Lord to reveal His truth (Psalm 121:1-2).
• Zechariah doesn’t report a vague impression; he sees a specific, objective vision set “before” him, reinforcing the reliability of prophetic revelation (2 Peter 1:19).
• Similar wording is used when Moses set the law “before” Israel (Deuteronomy 4:44) and when Jesus set a child “before” the disciples to teach them (Matthew 18:2).
• What God places in view becomes the standard by which His people should measure reality (Psalm 119:105).
• A scroll points to the written Word and covenant terms (Jeremiah 36:2; Ezekiel 2:9-10). In verses 2-4 the scroll’s contents pronounce judgment on thieves and perjurers, echoing the curses of the law (Deuteronomy 27:26; Proverbs 3:33).
• Its flight shows the swiftness and inescapability of God’s Word as it moves through the land accomplishing His purpose (Isaiah 55:11).
• The large dimensions given in verse 2—about thirty by fifteen feet—make the scroll impossible to ignore, much like the large writing on Isaiah’s “Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz” tablet (Isaiah 8:1).
• The image foreshadows future universal judgment when God’s open books will confirm every deed (Revelation 20:12).
Zechariah 5:1 introduces a vivid vision in which God urgently displays His written judgment. The repeated “again” situates the scene within a steady flow of divine revelation. Zechariah’s lifted eyes model our need to look up for truth. The scroll, borne aloft, testifies that God’s Word moves rapidly and visibly, confronting all sin and validating His covenant promises.
Verses 1-4. - § 8. The sixth vision: the flying roll. Verse 1. - Then I turned, and lifted up mine eyes; i.e. I lifted up mine eyes again, and saw the vision that follows. The prophet had seen, in the fourth vision, how in the new theocracy the priesthood should be pure and holy; in the fifth how the Church should be restored; he is now shown that sinners should be cut off, that no transgression should be left in the kingdom of God. A flying roll; volumen volans (Vulgate): comp. Ezekiel 2:9, 10. The Hebrews used parchment and leather scrolls for writing; the writing was divided into columns, and when completed the document was rolled round one or two sticks and kept in a case. In the present vision the scroll is unrolled and exhibited in its full length and breadth, showing that it was to be made known to all. Its flight denotes the speedy arrival of the judgment, and, as it is seen in the heaven, so the punishment proceeds from God. Theodotion and Aquila render the word, διφθέρα, "leather;" the Septuagint, by mistake, δρέπανον, "a sickle."Zechariah 5:1 NIV
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OT Prophets: Zechariah 5:1 Then again I lifted up my eyes (Zech. Zec Zc)