The idols(A) speak deceitfully,
    diviners(B) see visions that lie;
they tell dreams(C) that are false,
    they give comfort in vain.(D)
Therefore the people wander like sheep
    oppressed for lack of a shepherd.(E)

“My anger burns against the shepherds,
    and I will punish the leaders;(F)
for the Lord Almighty will care
    for his flock, the people of Judah,
    and make them like a proud horse in battle.(G)

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For the [a](A)household idols speak deception,
And the (B)diviners see [b]an illusion
And tell (C)deceitful dreams;
They comfort in vain.
Therefore the people [c]wander like (D)sheep,
They are wretched because there is no shepherd.
“My (E)anger is kindled against the shepherds,
And I will punish the [d]male goats;
For the Lord of armies has (F)visited His flock, the house of Judah,
And will make them like His majestic horse in battle.

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Footnotes

  1. Zechariah 10:2 Heb teraphim
  2. Zechariah 10:2 Lit a lie
  3. Zechariah 10:2 Lit journey
  4. Zechariah 10:3 I.e., leaders

Household gods give worthless advice,
    fortune-tellers predict only lies,
and interpreters of dreams pronounce
    falsehoods that give no comfort.
So my people are wandering like lost sheep;
    they are attacked because they have no shepherd.

“My anger burns against your shepherds,
    and I will punish these leaders.[a]
For the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has arrived
    to look after Judah, his flock.
He will make them strong and glorious,
    like a proud warhorse in battle.

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Footnotes

  1. 10:3 Or these male goats.

2-3 “Store-bought gods babble gibberish.
    Religious experts spout rubbish.
They pontificate hot air.
    Their prescriptions are nothing but smoke.
And so the people wander like lost sheep,
    poor lost sheep without a shepherd.
I’m furious with the so-called shepherds.
    They’re worse than billy goats, and I’ll treat them like goats.”

* * *

3-5 God-of-the-Angel-Armies will step in
    and take care of his flock, the people of Judah.
He’ll revive their spirits,
    make them proud to be on God’s side.
God will use them in his work of rebuilding,
    use them as foundations and pillars,
Use them as tools and instruments,
    use them to oversee his work.
They’ll be a workforce to be proud of, working as one,
    their heads held high, striding through swamps and mud,
Courageous and vigorous because God is with them,
    undeterred by the world’s thugs.

* * *

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For the idols have spoken vanity, and the diviners have seen a lie, and have told false dreams; they comfort in vain: therefore they went their way as a flock, they were troubled, because there was no shepherd.

Mine anger was kindled against the shepherds, and I punished the goats: for the Lord of hosts hath visited his flock the house of Judah, and hath made them as his goodly horse in the battle.

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