The critical question for the meaning of the last line is how we
should understand the last Hebrew word of the verse, beqirebbo. Does it
modify the verb (i.e., the Lord formed within him the spirit of man),
which might be taken to suggest that God actually created the spirit spatially
within man’s physical body? If so, this would be most consonant with Christian
creationism and would seem inconsistent with a prior existence of that spirit
apart from the body. That reading may be possible, but (particularly given the
word order) I construe the expression with “the spirit of man” (ruach adam)
(the Lord formed the spirit of man, i.e., that which is within him [or in the
midst of him; his inward part]). The basic word here is qereb, “inward
part, midst,” with the preposition be- “in” and the third person
singular masculine pronominal suffix –o, “of him.” To me that word is
definitional. The line says that God created the spirit of man, and then
identifies or defines the spirit as that which is inside him, that is, his
“inward part.” The word does not modify the act of creation; it is simply
descriptive of what the spirit is and where it (normally) resides. If the
underlying conception here is monistic, then the spirit only resides in
the midst of the body; if it is not, then a preexistent existence of the spirit
apart from the body is just as plausible as a post mortem one. (Kevin L.
Barney, “On
Preexistence in the Bible,” p. 20)
The reference to Yahweh shaping the
spirit of the human most likely has in view that principle of life which
Yahweh placed within humanity in Gen. 2:7, after shaping (yāṣar) humanity from the dust of the ground. That principle of
life is called the breath of life (nišmaṯ
ḥayyîm) in Gen. 2:7. Interestingly, Isa. 42:5 speaks of God stretching out (nāṭâ) the heavens, as here in 12:1, but
also links breath (nešāmâ)
with rûaḥ. Possibly 12:1 has in view
Yahweh’s creation of humanity in Genesis 2, seen through the lens of Isa. 42:5.
Thus, the characterization of Yahweh in 12:1 has been influenced heavily by the
Isaianic tradition in Isaiah 40–55. (Mark J. Boda, The Book of Zechariah [The New
International Commentary on the Old Testament; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans,
2016], 694)
The final creation statement, “who forms [yōṣēr] the spirit of man within him,” shifts from the broader
dimensions of creation to the personal dimension of the Lord’s relationship
with humans. Much more personal than the previous two affirmations concerning
the Lord’s creative activities, the participle yōṣēr can also mean “potter” (see Jer 18:4). In Gen 2:7, like a
heavenly potter, the Lord formed mankind out of clay and blew the breath of
life into him. As in the previous examples, Isaiah first employed similar
creation language, illustrating the theological linkage between creation and
salvation. Isaiah wrote, “But now, this is what the Lord says—he who created
you, O Jacob, he who formed [yōṣēr]
you, O Israel: ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name;
for you are mine’ ” (Isa 43:1). (George L. Kein, Zechariah
[The New American Commentary; Nashville: B & H Publishing Group, 2008], 351)
And formed the spirit of man
within him: The Hebrew
word translated formed suggests the
work of a potter in shaping his clay. This word is the same word as that used
in Gen 2:7, which this description refers back to. If translators cannot retain
the metaphor, they may simply state the meaning as “and gave life to human
beings.” (David J. Clark and Howard A. Hatton, A Handbook on
Zechariah [UBS Handbook Series; New York: United Bible Societies, 2002],
309)
fashioned the breath of
humankind within. This
third phrase, in terms of poetic structure, forms the second half of verse 1b
in that it balances perfectly the first half (or first two phrases) with its
ten syllables. It also sustains the cosmic imagery with its reference to the
first creation in language that explicitly evokes the words of Gen 2:7, where
God “fashions” the first human out of the clay of the earth and blows the first
breath of life into that first earthling. Although this verse draws upon the
Eden tale, however, it also diverges significantly. Both Genesis and Zechariah
use the verb “to fashion” (yṣr),
which conjures up the image of a potter working with a lump of clay and
modeling it to suit his or her tastes. But “the breath of humankind” (rûaḥ-ʾādām) of Zechariah 12 differs from
“the breath of life” (nišmat ḥayyîm)
of Gen 2:7. Moreover, the addition of “within” (bĕqirbô, literally, “within him,” with the pronominal suffix
referring to “humankind”) is a departure from the Genesis material. The
Zechariah author perhaps includes it to emphasize the individuality of God’s
relationship with people, in consonance with the trend of postexilic prophecy.
“Within” emphasizes that God breathed the first breath into the very corporeal
existence of the first individual, who is the archetypal representative of all
subsequent human beings (see C. L. Meyers 1988: 80–81) (Carol L.
Meyers and Eric M. Meyers, Zechariah 9-14: A New Translation with
Introduction and Commentary [AYB 25C; New Haven: Yale University Press,
2008], 312)
