He was a prophet of the two-tribe kingdom of Judah, and like Ezekiel was of priestly extraction. He describes himself (Zechariah 1:1) as "the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo." In Ezra 5:1 and 6:14 he is called "the son of Iddo," who was properly his grandfather. His prophetical career began in the second year of Darius, king of Persia (B.C. 520), about sixteen years after the return of the first company from their Babylonian exile. He was contemporary with Haggai (Ezra 5:1).