{ "language": "en", "title": "Zechariah", "versionSource": "https://jps.org/books/tanakh-the-holy-scriptures-blue/", "versionTitle": "Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures, published by JPS", "status": "locked", "priority": 2.0, "license": "CC-BY-NC", "shortVersionTitle": "JPS, 1985", "purchaseInformationImage": "https://storage.googleapis.com/sefaria-physical-editions/JPS_1985.png", "purchaseInformationURL": "https://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/jps/9780827602526/", "actualLanguage": "en", "languageFamilyName": "english", "isBaseText": false, "isSource": false, "direction": "ltr", "heTitle": "זכריה", "categories": [ "Tanakh", "Prophets" ], "text": [ [ "In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, this word of the LORD came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berechiah son of Iddo:aA clause like “Say to the people” is here understood; cf. 7.5.", "The LORD was very angry with your fathers.", "Say to them further:
Thus said the LORD of Hosts: Turn back to me—says the LORD of Hosts—and I will turn back to you—said the LORD of Hosts.", "Do not be like your fathers! For when the earlier prophets called to them, “Thus said the LORD of Hosts: Come, turn back from your evil ways and your evil deeds, they did not obey or give heed to Me—declares the LORD.", "Where are your fathers now? And did the prophets live forever?", "But the warnings and the decrees with which I charged My servants the prophets overtook your fathers—did they not?—and in the end they had to admit, ‘The LORD has dealt with us according to our ways and our deeds, just as He purposed.’”
", "On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month of the second year of Darius—the month of Shebat—this word of the LORD came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berechiah son of Iddo:", "In the night, I had a vision. I saw a man, mounted on a bay horse, standing bSeptuagint reads “between the mountains”; cf. 6.1. In 6.1 ff. four teams of horses leave the Lord’s abode to roam the four quarters of the earth; in 1.8 ff. they are about to reenter His abode after such a reconnaissance.among the myrtles-b in the Deep, and behind him were bay,cSeptuagint adds “dappled”; cf. 6.3. sorrel,dMeaning of Heb. uncertain. Emendation yields “black”; cf. 6.2. and white horses.", "I asked, “What are those, my lord?” And the angel who talked with me answered, “I will let you know what they are.”", "Then the man who was standing bSeptuagint reads “between the mountains”; cf. 6.1. In 6.1 ff. four teams of horses leave the Lord’s abode to roam the four quarters of the earth; in 1.8 ff. they are about to reenter His abode after such a reconnaissance.among the myrtles-b spoke up and said, “These were sent out by the LORD to roam the earth.”
", "And in fact, they reported to the angel of the LORD who was standing bSeptuagint reads “between the mountains”; cf. 6.1. In 6.1 ff. four teams of horses leave the Lord’s abode to roam the four quarters of the earth; in 1.8 ff. they are about to reenter His abode after such a reconnaissance.among the myrtles,-b “We have roamed the earth, and have found all the earth dwelling in tranquility.”eUpheavals at the start of Darius’ reign had encouraged hopes of an early restoration of the Davidic dynasty (cf. Hag. 2.21 ff.). Now these hopes were dashed.", "Thereupon the angel of the LORD exclaimed, “O LORD of Hosts! How long will You withhold pardon from Jerusalem and the towns of Judah, which You placed under a curse seventy years ago?”
", "The LORD replied with kind, comforting words to the angel who talked with me.", "Then the angel who talked with me said to me: “Proclaim! Thus said the LORD of Hosts: I am very jealous for Jerusalem—for Zion—", "and I am very angry with those nations that are at ease; for I was only angry a little, but they overdid the punishment.", "Assuredly, thus said the LORD: I graciously return to Jerusalem. My House shall be built in her—declares the LORD of Hosts—the measuring line is being applied to Jerusalem.", "Proclaim further: Thus said the LORD of Hosts: My towns shall yet overflow with bounty. For the LORD will again comfort Zion; He will choose Jerusalem again.”" ], [ "I looked up, and I saw four horns.aThe four horns correspond to the four winds of v. 10.", "I asked the angel who talked with me, “What are those?” “Those,” he replied, “are the horns that tossed Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”aThe four horns correspond to the four winds of v. 10.", "Then the LORD showed me four smiths.", "“What are they coming to do?” I asked. He replied: “Those are the horns that tossed Judah, so that no man could raise his head; and these men have come bMeaning of Heb. uncertain; emendation yields “to sharpen ax heads.”to throw them into a panic,-b to cMeaning of Heb. uncertain.hew down-c the horns of the nations that raise a horn against the land of Judah, to toss it.”", "I looked up, and I saw a man holding a measuring line.", "“Where are you going?” I asked. “To measure Jerusalem,” he replied, “to see how long and wide it is to be.”", "But the angel who talked with me came forward, and another angel came forward to meet him.", "The former said to him, “Run to that young man and tell him:
“Jerusalem shall be peopled as a city without walls, so many shall be the men and cattle it contains.", "And I Myself—declares the LORD—will be a wall of fire all around it, and I will be a glory inside it.", "“Away, away! Flee from the land of the north—says the LORD—though I swept you [there] like the four winds of heaven—declares the LORD.”", "Away, escape, O Zion, you who dwell in Fair Babylon!", "For thus said the LORD of Hosts—He dEmendation yields “whose Presence sent me.”who sent me after glory-d—concerning the nations that have taken you as spoil: “Whoever touches you touches the pupil of eAccording to ancient Jewish tradition, a scribal change for “My.”his own-e eye.", "For I will lift My hand against them, and they shall be spoil for those they enslaved.”—Then you shall know that I was sent by the LORD of Hosts.
", "Shout for joy, Fair Zion! For lo, I come; and I will dwell in your midst—declares the LORD.", "In that day many nations will attach themselves to the LORD and become HisfHeb. “My.” people, and HegHeb. “I.” will dwell in your midst. Then you will know that I was sent to you by the LORD of Hosts.", "The LORD will hEmendation yields “allot to Judah its portion”; cf. Num. 34.17.take Judah to Himself as His portion-h in the Holy Land, and He will choose Jerusalem once more.", "Be silent, all flesh, before the LORD!
For He is roused from His holy habitation." ], [ "He further showed me Joshua, the high priest, standing before the angel of the LORD, and the AccuseraOthers “Satan.” standing at his right to accuse him.", "But [the angel of] the LORD said to the Accuser, “The LORD rebuke you, O Accuser; may the LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! For this is a brand plucked from the fire.”bJoshua’s father (Hag. 1.1; 1 Chron. 5.40–41) was exiled and his grandfather executed (2 Kings 25.18–21) by the Babylonians, but Joshua returned.", "Now Joshua was clothed in filthy garments when he stood before the angel.", "The latter spoke up and said to his attendants, “Take the filthy garments off him!” And he said to him, “See, I have removed your guilt from you, and you shall be clothed in [priestly] robes.”", "Then hecHeb. “I.” gave the order, “Let a puredI.e., ritually pure. diadem be placed on his head.” And they placed the pure diadem on his head and clothed him in [priestly] garments,eJoshua has now been rendered fit to associate with the heavenly beings (v. 7); cf. Isa. 6.6–8. as the angel of the LORD stood by.", "And the angel of the LORD charged Joshua as follows:", "“Thus said the LORD of Hosts: If you walk in My paths and keep My charge, you in turn will rule My House and guard My courts, and I will permit you to move about among these attendants.", "Hearken well, O High Priest Joshua, you and your fellow priests sitting before you! For those men are a sign that I am going to bring My servant the Branch.fI.e., the future king of David’s line. See 6.12; Jer. 23.5–6; 33.15–16; cf. Isa. 11.1.", "For mark well this stone which I place before Joshua, a single stone with seven eyes.gMeaning of Heb. uncertain. The stone apparently symbolizes the God-given power of the future Davidic ruler; see below 4.6–7. I will execute its engraving—declares the LORD of Hosts—and I will remove that country’s guilt in a single day.", "In that day—declares the LORD of Hosts—you will be inviting each other to the shade of vines and fig trees.”" ], [ "The angel who talked with me came back and woke me as a man is wakened from sleep.", "He said to me, “What do you see?” And I answered, “I see a lampstand all of gold, with a bowl above it. The lamps on it are seven in number, and the aEmendation yields “bowl above it has.”lamps above it have-a seven pipes;", "and by it are two olive trees, one on the right of the bowl and one on its left.”", "I, in turn, asked the angel who talked with me, “What do those things mean, my lord?”", "“Do you not know what those things mean?” asked the angel who talked with me; and I said, “No, my lord.”", "Then he explained to me as follows:bThe explanation is given in the last sentence of v. 10.
“This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel:cA grandson of King Jehoiachin (1 Chron. 3.17–19) and the secular head of the repatriated community (Hag. 1.1; etc.). Not by might, nor by power, but by My spiritdI.e., Zerubbabel will succeed by means of spiritual gifts conferred upon him by the Lord; cf. Isa. 11.2. ff.—said the LORD of Hosts.", "Whoever you are, O great mountain in the path of Zerubbabel, turn into level ground! For he shall produce that excellent stone; it shall be greeted with shouts of ‘Beautiful! Beautiful!’”", "And the word of the LORD came to me:", "“Zerubbabel’s hands have founded this House and Zerubbabel’s hands shall complete it. Then you shall know that it was the LORD of Hosts who sent me to you.", "Does anyone scorn a day of small beginnings? When they see eMeaning of Heb. uncertain; others “plummet.”the stone of distinction-e in the hand of Zerubbabel, they shall rejoice.
“Those seven are the eyes of the LORD, ranging over the whole earth.”", "“And what,” I asked him, “are those two olive trees, one on the right and one on the left of the lampstand?”", "And I further asked him, “What are the two topsfMeaning of Heb. uncertain; literally “ears” (as of grain). of the olive trees that feed their goldgEmendation yields “oil”; cf. v. 14. through those two golden tubes?”hOr “funnels”; through them the oil runs from the olive trees into the bowl of vv. 2 and 3.", "He asked me, “Don’t you know what they are?” And I replied, “No, my lord.”", "Then he explained, “They are the two iI.e., the high priest and the king (cf. 3.8–9 with note); lit. “sons of oil.”anointed dignitaries-i who attend the Lord of all the earth.”" ], [ "I looked up again, and I saw a flying scroll.", "“What do you see?” he asked. And I replied, “A flying scroll, twenty cubits long and ten cubits wide.”", "“That,” he explained to me, “is the curse which goes out over the whole land. aMeaning of Heb. uncertain.For everyone who has stolen, as is forbidden on one side [of the scroll], has gone unpunished; and everyone who has sworn [falsely], as is forbidden on the other side of it, has gone unpunished.-a", "[But] I have sent it forth—declares the LORD of Hosts—and [the curse] shall enter the house of the thief and the house of the one who swears falsely by My name, and it shall lodge inside their houses and shall consume them to the last timber and stone.”", "Then the angel who talked with me came forward and said, “Now look up and note this other object that is approaching.”", "I asked, “What is it?” And he said, “This tubbHeb. ephah, a measure of capacity. that is approaching—this,” said he, “is their eyecSeptuagint and Syriac read “guilt.” in all the land.”", "And behold, a disk of lead was lifted, revealing a woman seated inside the tub.", "“That,” he said, “is Wickedness”; and, thrusting her down into the tub, he pressed the leaden weight into its mouth.", "I looked up again and saw two women come soaring with the wind in their wings—they had wings like those of a stork—and carry off the tub between earth and sky.", "“Where are they taking the tub?” I asked the angel who talked with me.", "And he answered, “To build a shrine for it in the land of Shinar;dI.e., Babylonia; cf. Gen. 10.10; 11.2, 9. [a stand] shall be erected for it, and it shall be set down there upon the stand.”" ], [ "I looked up again, and I saw: Four chariots were coming out from between the two mountains; the mountains were of copper.", "The horses of the first chariot were bay, the horses of the second chariot were black;", "the horses of the third chariot were white, and the horses of the fourth chariot were spotted—dappled.", "And I spoke up and asked the angel who talked with me: “What are those, my lord?”", "In reply, the angel said to me, “Those are the four winds of heaven coming out after presenting themselves to the Lord of all the earth.", "The one with the black horses is going out to the region of the north; the white ones aChange of vocalization yields “will go out.”have gone out-a to bCf. ’aḥor, “west,” Isa. 9.11. Emendation yields “the region of the west.”what is to the west of them;-b the spotted ones aChange of vocalization yields “will go out.”have gone out-a to the region of the south;", "and cEmendation yields “the bay ones will go out to the region of the east.”the dappled ones have gone out…”-c They were ready to start out and range the earth, and he gave them the order, “Start out and range the earth!” And they ranged the earth.", "Then he alerted me, and said to me, “Take good note! Those that went out to the region of the north have dCf. postbiblical naḥath ruaḥ, “gratification.” Emendation yields, “done the Lord’s pleasure.”done my pleasure-d in the region of the north.”eI.e., Babylonia, whose communication with Judah was via North Mesopotamia and Syria; cf. 2.10–11.
", "The word of the LORD came to me:", "Receive fromfEmendation yields “the gift of.” the exiled community—from Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah, who have come from Babylon—and you, in turn, proceed the same day to the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah.", "Take silver and gold and make crowns. Place [one] on the head of High Priest Joshua son of Jehozadak,", "and say to him, “Thus said the LORD of Hosts: Behold, a man called the BranchgSee note at 3.8. shall branch out from the place where he is, and he shall build the Temple of the LORD.", "He shall build the Temple of the LORD and shall assume majesty, and he shall sit on his throne and rule. And there shall also be a priest hSeptuagint reads “on his right side.”seated on his throne,-h and harmonious understanding shall prevail between them.”", "The crowns shall remain in the Temple of the LORD as a memorial to Helem,iThe Syriac version reads “Heldai”; cf. v. 10. Tobijah, Jedaiah, and HenjIn v. 10, “Josiah.” son of Zephaniah.", "Men from far away shall come and take part in the building of the Temple of the LORD, and you shall know that I have been sent to you by the LORD of Hosts—if only you will obey the LORD your God!" ], [ "In the fourth year of King Darius, on the fourth day of the ninth month, Kislev, the word of the LORD came to Zechariah—", "when Bethel-sharezer aEmendation yields “sent Regem-melech and his men.”and Regem-melech and his men sent-a to entreat the favor of the LORD,", "[and] to address this inquiry to the priests of the House of the LORD and to the prophets: “Shall I weep and practice abstinence in the fifth month,bBecause of the destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem; cf. 2 Kings 25.8 ff. as I have been doing all these years?”", "Thereupon the word of the LORD of Hosts came to me:", "Say to all the people of the land and to the priests: When you fasted and lamented in the fifth and seventh months all these seventy years, did you fast for my benefit?", "And when you eat and drink, who but you does the eating, and who but you does the drinking?", "Look, this is the message that the LORD proclaimed through the earlier prophets, when Jerusalem and the towns about her were peopled and tranquil, when the Negeb and the Shephelah were peopled.", "And the word of the LORD to Zechariah continued:", "Thus said the LORD of Hosts: Execute true justice; deal loyally and compassionately with one another.", "Do not defraud the widow, the orphan, the stranger, and the poor; and do not plot evil against one another.—", "But they refused to pay heed. They presented a balky back and turned a deaf ear.", "They hardened their hearts like adamant against heeding the instruction and admonition that the LORD of Hosts sent to them by His spirit through the earlier prophets; and a terrible wrath issued from the LORD of Hosts.", "Even as He called and they would not listen, “So,” said the LORD of Hosts, “let them call and I will not listen.”", "I dispersed them among all those nations which they had not known, and the land was left behind them desolate, without any who came and went. They caused a delightful land to be turned into a desolation." ], [ "The word of the LORD of Hosts came [to me]:", "Thus said the LORD of Hosts: I am very jealous for Zion, I am fiercely jealous for her.", "Thus said the LORD: I have returned to Zion, and I will dwell in Jerusalem. Jerusalem will be called the City of Faithfulness, and the mount of the LORD of Hosts the Holy Mount.", "Thus said the LORD of Hosts: There shall yet be old men and women in the squares of Jerusalem, each with staff in hand because of their great age.", "And the squares of the city shall be crowded with boys and girls playing in the squares.", "Thus said the LORD of Hosts: Though it will seem impossible to the remnant of this people in those days, shall it also be impossible to Me?—declares the LORD of Hosts.", "Thus said the LORD of Hosts: I will rescue My people from the lands of the east and from the lands of the west,", "and I will bring them home to dwell in Jerusalem. They shall be My people, and I will be their God—in truth and sincerity.", "Thus said the LORD of Hosts: Take courage, you who now hear these words which the prophets spoke when the foundations were laid for the rebuilding of the Temple, the House of the LORD of Hosts.", "aCf. Hag. 1.6.For before that time, the earnings of men were nil, and profits from beasts were nothing. It was not safe to go about one’s business on account of enemies; and I set all men against one another.", "But now I will not treat the remnant of this people as before—declares the LORD of Hosts—", "but what it sows shall prosper: The vine shall produce its fruit, the ground shall produce its yield, and the skies shall provide their moisture. I will bestow all these things upon the remnant of this people.", "And just as you were a cursebI.e., a standard by which men curse or bless; cf. Gen. 12.2 and note. among the nations, O House of Judah and House of Israel, so, when I vindicate you, you shall become a blessing.-b Have no fear; take courage!", "For thus said the LORD of Hosts: Just as I planned to afflict you and did not relent when your fathers provoked Me to anger—said the LORD of Hosts—", "so, at this time, I have turned and planned to do good to Jerusalem and to the House of Judah. Have no fear!", "These are the things you are to do: Speak the truth to one another, render true and perfect justice in your gates.", "And do not contrive evil against one another, and do not love perjury, because all those are things that I hate—declares the LORD.", "And the word of the LORD of Hosts came to me, saying,", "Thus said the LORD of Hosts: The fast of the fourth month, the fast of the fifth month, the fast of the seventh month, and the fast of the tenth monthcCommemorating, respectively, the events of 2 Kings 25.3 ff. (Jer. 52.6 ff.); 2 Kings 25.8 ff. (Jer. 52.12 ff.); 2 Kings 25.25 ff. (Jer. 41); 2 Kings 25.1 ff. (Jer. 52.4 ). shall become occasions for joy and gladness, happy festivals for the House of Judah; but you must love honesty and integrity.", "Thus said the LORD of Hosts: Peoples and the inhabitants of many cities shall yet come—", "the inhabitants of one shall go to the other and say, “Let us go and entreat the favor of the LORD, let us seek the LORD of Hosts; I will go, too.”", "The many peoples and the multitude of nations shall come to seek the LORD of Hosts in Jerusalem and to entreat the favor of the LORD.", "Thus said the LORD of Hosts: In those days, ten men from nations of every tongue will take hold—they will take hold of every Jew by a corner of his cloak and say, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”" ], [ "A pronouncement: The word of the LORD.

He will reside in the land of Hadrach and Damascus;
For all men’s eyes will turn to the LORD—
Like all the tribes of Israel—", "Including Hamath, which borders on it,aI.e., on the land of Hadrach and Damascus.
And Tyre and Sidon, though they are very wise.", "Tyre has built herself a fortress;
She has amassed silver like dust,
And gold like the mud in the streets.", "But my Lord will impoverish her;
He will defeat her forces at sea,
And she herself shall be consumed by fire.
", "Ashkelon shall see it and be frightened,
Gaza shall tremble violently,
And Ekron, at the collapse of her hopes.
Kingship shall vanish from Gaza,
Ashkelon shall be without inhabitants,", "And bHeb. mamzer; cf. note at Deut. 23.3.a mongrel people-b shall settle in Ashdod.
I will uproot the grandeur of Philistia.
", "But I will clean out the blood from its mouth,
And the detestable things from between its teeth.
Its survivors, too, shall belong to our God:
They shall become like a clan in Judah,
And Ekron shall be like the Jebusites.
", "And I will encamp in My House cChange of vocalization yields “as a garrison.”against armies,-c
Against any that come and go,
And no oppressor shall ever overrun them again;
For I have now taken note dEmendation yields “of their suffering”; cf. 1 Sam. 1.11.with My own eyes.-d
", "Rejoice greatly, Fair Zion;
Raise a shout, Fair Jerusalem!
Lo, your king is coming to you.
He is victorious, triumphant,
Yet humble, riding on an ass,
On a donkey foaled by a she-ass.", "HeeHeb. “I.” shall banish chariots from Ephraim
And horses from Jerusalem;
The warrior’s bow shall be banished.
He shall call on the nations to surrender,fCf. Deut. 20.10–12 and note.
And his rule shall extend from sea to sea
And from ocean to land’s end.
", "gExact meaning and connection of vv. 11–12 uncertain.You, for your part, have releasedhTaking shillaḥti as a second-person singular feminine form, with Septuagint; cf. Judg. 5.7 with note.
Your prisoners from the dry pit,iI.e., a pit that serves as a dungeon rather than a cistern (both are called bor in Heb.).
For the sake of the blood of your covenant,", "[Saying], “Return to Bizzaron,jPerhaps a nickname (“fortress”) for Samaria (Heb. Shomeron).
You prisoners of hope.”
In return [I] announce this day:
I will repay you double.", "For I have drawn Judah taut,
And applied [My hand] to Ephraim as to a bow,
And I will arouse your sons, O Zion,
Against your sons, O Javan,
And make you like a warrior’s sword.
", "And the LORD will manifest Himself to them,kI.e., Judah.
And His arrows shall flash like lightning;
My Lord GOD shall sound the ram’s horn
And advance in a stormy tempest.lLit. “tempests of wind”; for teman in the sense of wind, cf. Job 9.9; 39.26.", "The LORD of Hosts will protect them:
mThe meaning of much of the rest of the chapter is uncertain.[His] slingstones shall devour and conquer;
They shall nSome Septuagint mss. read “drink blood like.”drink, shall rage as with-n wine,
And be filled [with it] like a dashing bowl,
Like the corners of an altar.", "The LORD their God shall prosper them
On that day;
[He shall pasture] His people like sheep.
[They shall be] like crown jewels glittering on His soil.", "How lovely, how beautiful they shall be,
Producing young men like new grain,
Young women like new wine!" ], [ "Ask the LORD for rain
In the aSeptuagint reads “in its season / The early rain and the late.” Cf. Deut. 11.14.season of late rain.-a
It is the LORD who causes storms;bMeaning of Heb. uncertain.
And He will provide rainstorms cEmendation yields “[producing] food for men, / Grass in the fields for cattle.” Cf. Deut. 11.14–15.for them,
Grass in the fields for everyone.-c
", "For the teraphimdIdols consulted for oracles; cf. 1 Sam. 15.23; Ezek. 21.26. spoke delusion,
The augurs predicted falsely;
And dreamers speak lies
And console with illusions.
That is why My people have strayedbMeaning of Heb. uncertain. like a flock,
They sufferbMeaning of Heb. uncertain. for lack of a shepherd.", "My anger is roused against the shepherds,
And I will punish the he-goats.eI.e., oppressive leaders; cf. Ezek. 34.17 ff.

For the LORD of Hosts has taken thought
In behalf of His flock, the House of Judah;
He will make them like majestic chargers in battle.", "From them shall come fEmendation yields “shields and bucklers.”cornerstones,
From them tent pegs,-f
From them bows of combat,
And every captain shall also arise from them.", "And together they shall be like warriors in battle,
Tramping in the dirt of the streets;
They shall fight, for the LORD shall be with them,
And they shall put horsemen to shame.", "I will give victory to the House of Judah,
And triumph to the House of Joseph.
I will restore them, for I have pardoned them,
And they shall be as though I had never disowned them;
For I the LORD am their God,
And I will answer their prayers.", "gEmendation yields “And when Ephraim is victorious, / They…”Ephraim shall be like a warrior,
And they-g shall exult as with wine;
Their children shall see it and rejoice,
They shall exult in the LORD.", "I will whistle to them and gather them,
For I will redeem them;
They shall increase bMeaning of Heb. uncertain.and continue increasing.-b", "For though I sowed them among the nations,
In the distant places they shall remember Me,
They shall escape with their children and shall return.", "I will bring them back from the land of Egypt
And gather them from Assyria;
And I will bring them to the lands of Gilead and Lebanon,
And even they shall not suffice for them.", "bMeaning of Heb. uncertain.A hemmed-in force shall pass over the sea
And shall stir up waves in the sea;-b
And all the deeps of the Nile shall dry up.
Down shall come the pride of Assyria,
And the scepter of Egypt shall pass away.", "But I will make themhI.e., Judah and Ephraim. mighty through the LORD,
And they shall iMeaning of Heb. uncertain. Emendation yields “have glory”; cf. Isa. 45.25.march proudly-i in His name
—declares the LORD." ], [ "Throw open your gates, O Lebanon,
And let fire consume your cedars!", "Howl, cypresses, for cedars have fallen!
How the mighty are ravaged!
Howl, you oaks of Bashan,
For the stately forest is laid low!", "Hark, the wailing of the shepherds,
For their aMeaning of Heb. uncertain.rich pastures-a are ravaged;
Hark, the roaring of the great beasts,
For the jungle of the Jordan is ravaged.
", "Thus said my God the LORD: Tend the sheep meant for slaughter,", "whose buyers will slaughter them with impunity, whose seller will say, “Praised be the LORD! I’ll get rich,” and whose shepherd will not pity them.", "For I will pity the inhabitants of the land no more—declares the LORD—but I will place every man at the mercy of every other man and at the mercy of his king; they shall break the country to bits, and I will not rescue it from their hands.", "So I tended the sheep meant for slaughter, bEmendation yields “for the sheep dealers”; cf. the word rendered “trader” in 14.21.for those poor men of the sheep.-b I got two staffs, one of which I named Favor and the other Unity, and I proceeded to tend the sheep.", "But I lost cEmendation yields “a third of the flock.”the three shepherds-c in one month; then my patience with them was at an end, and they in turn were disgusted with me.", "So I declared, “I am not going to tend you; let the one that is to die die and the one that is to get lost get lost; and let the rest devour each other’s flesh!”", "Taking my staff Favor, I cleft it in two, so as to annul the covenant I had made with all the peoples;dPerhaps alluding to the prediction of 14.1–3.", "and when it was annulled that day, eEmendation yields “the sheep dealers.”the same poor men of the sheep-e who watchedfEmendation yields “hired.” me realized that it was a message from the LORD.", "Then I said to them, “If you are satisfied, pay me my wages; if not, don’t.” So they weighed out my wages, thirty shekels of silver—", "aMeaning of Heb. uncertain.the noble sum that I was worth in their estimation.-a The LORD said to me, “Deposit it in the treasury.”aMeaning of Heb. uncertain. And I took the thirty shekels and deposited it in the treasury in the House of the LORD.", "Then I cleft in two my second staff, Unity, in order to annul the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.gTwo mss. of the Septuagint have “Jerusalem”; cf. 12.2–3; 14.14.", "The LORD said to me further: Get yourself the gear of a foolish shepherd.", "For I am going to raise up in the land a shepherd who will neither miss the lost [sheep], nor seek the strayed,aMeaning of Heb. uncertain. nor heal the injured, nor sustain the frail,-a but will feast on the flesh of the fat ones and aMeaning of Heb. uncertain.tear off their hoofs.-a", "Oh, the worthless shepherd
Who abandons the flock!
Let a sword descend upon his arm
And upon his right eye!
His arm shall shrivel up;
His right eye shall go blind." ], [ "A pronouncement: The word of the LORD concerning Israel.

The utterance of the LORD,
Who stretched out the skies
And made firm the earth,
And created man’s breath within him:
", "Behold, I will make Jerusalem a bowl of reeling for the peoples all around. Judah shall be caught up in the siege upon Jerusalem,", "when all the nations of the earth gather against her. In that day, I will make Jerusalem a stone for all the peoples to lift; all who lift it shall injure themselves.", "In that day—declares the LORD—I will strike every horse with panic and its rider with madness. But I will aEmendation yields “open the eyes of Judah while I strike all.”watch over the House of Judah while I strike every horse of-a the peoples with blindness.", "And the clans of Judah will say to themselves, bEmendation yields “We will save the dwellers of Jerusalem with the help of.”“The dwellers of Jerusalem are a task set for us by-b their God, the LORD of Hosts.”", "In that day, I will make the clans of Judah like a flaming brazier among sticks and like a flaming torch among sheaves. They shall devour all the besieging peoples right and left; and Jerusalem shall continue on its site, in Jerusalem.cEmendation yields “safety.”
", "The LORD will give victory to the tents of Judah first, so that the glory of the House of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem may not be too great for Judah.", "In that day, the LORD will shield the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and the feeblest of them shall be in that day like David, and the House of David like a divine being—like an angel of the LORD—at their head.", "In that day I will dFor the idiom cf. Gen. 43.30; it is also attested in postbiblical Hebrew.all but annihilate-d all the nations that came up against Jerusalem.", "But I will fill the House of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem with a spirit of pity and compassion; and they shall lamenteMeaning of Heb. uncertain. to Me about those who are slain, wailing over them as over a favorite son and showing bitter grief as over a first-born.", "In that day, the wailing in Jerusalem shall be as great as the wailing at Hadad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddon.fUsually “Megiddo.”", "The land shall wail, each family by itself: The family of the House of David by themselves, and their womenfolk by themselves; the family of the House of Nathan by themselves, and their womenfolk by themselves;", "the family of the House of Levi by themselves, and their womenfolk by themselves; the family of the Shimeites by themselves, and their womenfolk by themselves;", "and all the other families, every family by itself, with their womenfolk by themselves.gIn this way, apparently, they will prevail upon the Lord to spare the remnant of the besieging nations; cf. v. 10." ], [ "In that day a fountain shall be open to the House of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem for purging and cleansing.", "In that day, too—declares the LORD of Hosts—I will erase the very names of the idols from the land; they shall not be uttered any more. And I will also make the “prophets” and the aTo which abnormal human behavior was attributed.unclean spirit-a vanish from the land.", "If anyone “prophesies” thereafter, his own father and mother, who brought him into the world, will say to him, “You shall die, for you have lied in the name of the LORD”; and his own father and mother, who brought him into the world, will put him to death when he “prophesies.”", "In that day, every “prophet” will be ashamed of the “visions” [he had] when he “prophesied.” In order to deceive, hebHeb. “They.” will not wear a hairy mantle,cIn imitation of Elijah; cf. 2 Kings 1.8.", "and he will declare, “I am not a ‘prophet’; dI.e., I was addicted to wine like Noah, the tiller of the soil (cf. Gen. 9.20–21), hence my hallucinations and ravings; cf. Prov. 23.33.I am a tiller of the soil;-d you see, eConnecting ’adam with ’adom “red” (cf. Prov. 23.31); but meaning of Heb. uncertain.I was plied with the red stuff-e from my youth on.”", "And if he is asked, “What are those fLit. “sores between your arms”; cf. 2 Kings 9.24. Sores are sometimes symptoms of hysteria.sores on your back?”-f he will reply, “From being beaten in the homes of my friends.”gPresumably for making drunken scenes; cf. Prov. 23.35.
", "hVv. 7–9 would read well after 11.17.O sword!
Rouse yourself against My shepherd,
The man iMeaning of Heb. uncertain.in charge of My flock-i
—says the LORD of Hosts.
Strike down the shepherd
And let the flock scatter;
And I will also turn My hand
Against all the shepherd boys.", "Throughout the land
—declares the LORD—
Two-thirds shall perish, shall die,
And one-third of it shall survive.", "That third I will put into the fire,
And I will smelt them as one smelts silver
And test them as one tests gold.
They will invoke Me by name,
And I will respond to them.
I will declare, “You are My people,”
And they will declare,
“The LORD is our God!”" ], [ "Lo, a day of the LORD is coming when youraJerusalem is addressed. spoil shall be divided in your very midst!", "For I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem for war: The city shall be captured, the houses plundered, and the women violated; and a part of the city shall go into exile. But the rest of the population shall not be uprooted from the city.", "Then the LORD will come forth and make war on those nations as He is wont to make war on a day of battle.", "On that day, He will set His feet on the Mount of Olives, near Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives shall split across from east to west, and one part of the Mount shall shift to the north and the other to the south, a huge gorge.", "bVocalizing [we] nistam with Targum, Septuagint, and an old Heb. ms. Other mss. and printed editions read, “You [pl.] shall flee [to] the Valley in the Hills, for the Valley of the Hills shall reach up to Azal. You shall flee as you fled because of the earthquake…”And the Valley in the Hills shall be stopped up, for the Valley of the Hills shall reach only to Azal; it shall be stopped up as it was stopped up as a result of the earthquake in the days of King Uzziah of Judah.—And the LORD my God, with all the holy beings, will come to you.", "cMeaning of verse uncertain; cf. Job 21.26.In that day, there shall be neither sunlight nor cold moonlight,", "but there shall be a continuous day—only the LORD knows when—of neither day nor night, and there shall be light at eventide.", "In that day, fresh water shall flow from Jerusalem, part of it to the Eastern SeadI.e., the Dead Sea; cf. Joel 2.20. and part to the Western Sea,eI.e., the Mediterranean Sea; cf. Joel 2.20. throughout the summer and winter.", "And the LORD shall be king over all the earth; in that day there shall be one LORD with one name.fI.e., the Lord alone shall be worshiped and shall be invoked by His true name.", "Then the whole country shall become like the Arabah,gI.e., shall be depressed like the Jordan Valley. hI.e., from the northern border of the Kingdom of Judah (1 Kings 15.22; 2 Kings 23.8) to the southern border (Josh. 15.32; 19.7).from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem.-h The latter, however, shall perch high up where it is, and -ishall be inhabited-i from the Gate of Benjamin to the site of the Old Gate, down to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the king’s winepresses.", "Never again shall destruction be decreed, and Jerusalem shall dwell secure.", "As for those peoples that warred against Jerusalem, the LORD will smite them with this plague: Their flesh shall rot away while they stand on their feet; their eyes shall rot away in their sockets; and their tongues shall rot away in their mouths.", "In that day, a great panic from the LORD shall fall upon them, and everyone shall snatch at the hand of another, and everyone shall raise his hand against everyone else’s hand.", "Judah shall join the fighting in Jerusalem, and the wealth of all the nations round about—vast quantities of gold, silver, and clothing—shall be gathered in.", "The same plague shall strike the horses, the mules, the camels, and the asses; the plague shall affect all the animals in those camps.", "All who survive of all those nations that came up against Jerusalem shall make a pilgrimage year by year to bow low to the King LORD of Hosts and to observe the Feast of Booths.", "Any of the earth’s communities that does not make the pilgrimage to Jerusalem to bow low to the King LORD of Hosts shall receive no rain.", "However, if the community of Egypt does not make this pilgrimage, it shall not be visited by the same affliction with which the LORD will strike the other nations that do not come up to observe the Feast of Booths.jBecause Egypt is not dependent on rain, it will suffer some other punishment, presumably that described in v. 12.", "Such shall be the punishment of Egypt and of all other nations that do not come up to observe the Feast of Booths.", "In that day, even the bells on the horses shall be inscribed “Holy to the LORD.” The metal pots in the House of the LORD shall be like the basins before the altar;", "indeed, every metal pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holy to the LORD of Hosts. And all those who sacrifice shall come and take of these to boil [their sacrificial meat] in; in that day there shall be no more traderskTo sell ritually pure vessels. in the House of the LORD of Hosts." ] ], "sectionNames": [ "Chapter", "Verse" ] }