And I said to the angel who talked with me: This is the same angel as mentioned in verses 9, 13, 14. Translators should use the same expression to describe him as they used in the earlier verses (compare Revised Standard Version).
What are these?: If the question is translated as direct speech, it will probably be better to repeat the noun “horns,” as in Good News Translation “What do these horns mean?” In some languages it may sound more natural to use indirect speech, and in this case it may not be necessary to mention the “horns.” Compare “I asked the angel who spoke with me what these were” (New American Bible) and “I asked the angel who talked with me what they were” (New English Bible/ Revised English Bible).
These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem: The angel seems to take it for granted that the prophet knows that the horns stand for nations, and simply explains what nations are intended. Modern readers do not share the prophet’s background with regard to the use of horns as a symbol of strength and power (see the comments on verse 18), and Good News Translation has therefore made the symbolic meaning clear by saying, “They stand for the world powers that….” Most translators will find it best to follow this example. “World powers” is a modern political expression in English. In other languages it could be translated as “strong gentile nations” or “powerful peoples.”
Scattered refers to the dispersion of the people by exile. Scattered in some languages will need to have a causative expression; for example, “caused … to scatter” or “caused … to go in every direction.” The Hebrew mentions only the names of the places, but Good News Translation has made it clear that “the people” of these places are referred to. The order of the names, Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem, is unexpected. Since Jerusalem was in the southern kingdom of Judah rather than in the northern kingdom of Israel, it would be acceptable to put these two names next to each other and say “Israel, Judah, and Jerusalem” if that sounded more natural. “Jerusalem, Judah, and Israel” would also be possible. Some scholars, such as those who translated New English Bible, omit the word Israel, but there is no good reason for this, and Revised English Bible has included it.
Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. & Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Zechariah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2002. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .