In biblical apocalyptic literature (Daniel, Zechariah, Revelation), a "horn" represents political or military power (derived from the strength of an ox or ram). Zechariah 1:18-21 introduces four horns that scattered Judah. These typically represent the world powers—Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome—that historically dominated Israel.
The "craftsmen" sent to terrify the horns represent God's providential deconstruction of earthly pride. Fulfilled Eschatology recognizes that the final "horn" to be dismantled in the biblical narrative was the persecuting power of the Roman-Jewish alliance in the first century. By AD 70, the horn of apostate Israel was broken, allowing the "Horn of Salvation" (Luke 1:69)—Jesus Christ—to reign supreme without a rival covenantal system.