Zechariah 3:8

"Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, thou and thy fellows that sit before thee; for they are men that are a sign: for, Behold, I will bring forth my servant the Branch."

"Men that are a sign ..." Joshua himself was evidently included as being in the company of men that "were for a sign," indicating the typical nature of the Old Testament high priesthood as it pointed toward the Messiah. "The words for they should be omitted. Joshua and his fellow priests are the men" that are a sign.[16]

"O Joshua ..." This name is actually the equivalent of "Jesus"; and, in fact, it appears in the Apocrypha a number of times simply as "Jesus."[17] Therefore we must add to the extensive witness, present throughout the vision, of the coming Christ the significant fact that the principal figure in it actually bore the name of the blessed Messiah. The entry into Canaan also came under another Joshua. "Behold, I will bring forth my servant the Branch ..." The prophets of God identify this character as the Messiah:

"In that day shall the Branch of the Lord be beautiful and glorious for the escaped of Israel (Isaiah 4:2). There shall come forth a rod out of the stump of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots (Isaiah 11:1). Behold the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch; and a king shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth, and this is the name whereby he shall be called, The Lord our Righteousness (Jeremiah 23:5,6). In those days and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David, and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land (Jeremiah 23:15)."

"My servant the Branch ..." The dramatic announcement of the bringing in of the Messiah was the signal that all of the actual cleansing, forgiveness, and righteousness indicated as accruing to Israel (as portrayed by the rich, dean garments for Joshua) actually depended upon the emergence upon the stage of history, of the Branch, God's true servant, who would indeed accomplish the removal of iniquity "in one day" (Zechariah 3:9).

"Branch is a technical term in the prophets to portray the coming Davidic Prince ... who would rise to become the builder of the Temple, and combine in himself the offices of priest and king. Joshua knew that he could not be the Branch because he was not of the Davidic line; and Zerubbabel, the head, was not present, neither was he a priest, so he did not qualify for the office."[18]

In the light of this, how inexplicable is a comment by Mitchell to the effect that, "For Zechariah, the Shoot (Branch) is Zerubbabel."[19] Such a view is impossible to support; because both Zechariah and Joshua understood perfectly the qualifications of the Branch that made it absolutely impossible for Zerubbabel to be eligible as a candidate to fulfill the prophecy.

"My servant ..." The use of this title as descriptive of the Branch identifies him with "The Suffering Servant" of Isaiah's prophecy.[20] "Both Servant and Branch are designations in the Old Testament for the Messiah."[21]