Zechariah 1-7

New King James Version

A Call to Repentance^(A)

1 In the eighth month ^(B)of the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came ^(C)to Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of ^(D)Iddo the prophet, saying, ² “The Lord has been very angry with your fathers. ³ Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Return ^(E)to Me,” says the Lord of hosts, “and I will return to you,” says the Lord of hosts. ⁴ “Do not be like your fathers, ^(F)to whom the former prophets preached, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: ^(G)“Turn now from your evil ways and your evil deeds.” ’ But they did not hear nor heed Me,” says the Lord.

“So they returned and said:

Vision of the Horses

⁷ On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, which is the month Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet: ⁸ I saw by night, and behold, ^(J)a man riding on a red horse, and it stood among the myrtle trees in the hollow; and behind him were ^(K)horses: red, sorrel, and white. ⁹ Then I said, ^(L)“My lord, what are these?” So the angel who talked with me said to me, “I will show you what they are.”

¹⁰ And the man who stood among the myrtle trees answered and said, ^(M)“These are the ones whom the Lord has sent to walk to and fro throughout the earth.”

^11 (N)So they answered the Angel of the Lord, who stood among the myrtle trees, and said, “We have walked to and fro throughout the earth, and behold, all the earth is ^[a]resting quietly.”

The Lord Will Comfort Zion

¹² Then the Angel of the Lord answered and said, “O Lord of hosts, ^(O)how long will You not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which You were angry ^(P)these seventy years?”

¹³ And the Lord answered the angel who talked to me, with ^(Q)good and comforting words. ¹⁴ So the angel who spoke with me said to me, ^[b]“Proclaim, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts:

¹⁶ ‘Therefore thus says the Lord:

¹⁷ “Again proclaim, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts:

Vision of the Horns

¹⁸ Then I raised my eyes and looked, and there were four ^(Z)horns. ¹⁹ And I said to the angel who talked with me, “What are these?”

So he answered me, ^(AA)“These are the ^[f]horns that have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”

²⁰ Then the Lord showed me four craftsmen. ²¹ And I said, “What are these coming to do?”

So he said, “These are the ^(AB)horns that scattered Judah, so that no one could lift up his head; but ^[g]the craftsmen are coming to terrify them, to cast out the horns of the nations that ^(AC)lifted up their horn against the land of Judah to scatter it.”

Vision of the Measuring Line

2 Then I raised my eyes and looked, and behold, ^(AD)a man with a measuring line in his hand. ² So I said, “Where are you going?”

And he said to me, ^(AE)“To measure Jerusalem, to see what is its width and what is its length.”

³ And there was the angel who talked with me, going out; and another angel was coming out to meet him, ⁴ who said to him, “Run, speak to this young man, saying: ^(AF)‘Jerusalem shall be inhabited as towns without walls, because of the multitude of men and livestock in it. ⁵ For I,’ says the Lord, ‘will be ^(AG)a wall of fire all around her, ^(AH)and I will be the glory in her midst.’ ”

Future Joy of Zion and Many Nations

⁶ “Up, up! Flee ^(AI)from the land of the north,” says the Lord; “for I have ^(AJ)spread you abroad like the four winds of heaven,” says the Lord. ⁷ “Up, Zion! ^(AK)Escape, you who dwell with the daughter of Babylon.”

⁸ For thus says the Lord of hosts: “He sent Me after glory, to the nations which plunder you; for he who ^(AL)touches you touches the ^[h]apple of His eye. ⁹ For surely I will ^(AM)shake My hand against them, and they shall become ^[i]spoil for their servants. Then ^(AN)you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent Me.

^10 (AO)“Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion! For behold, I am coming and I ^(AP)will dwell in your midst,” says the Lord. ^11 (AQ)“Many nations shall be joined to the Lord ^(AR)in that day, and they shall become ^(AS)My people. And I will dwell in your midst. Then ^(AT)you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent Me to you. ¹² And the Lord will ^(AU)take possession of Judah as His inheritance in the Holy Land, and will again choose Jerusalem. ^13 (AV)Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord, for He is aroused ^(AW)from His holy habitation!”

Vision of the High Priest

3 Then he showed me ^(AX)Joshua the high priest standing before the Angel of the Lord, and ^(AY)Satan^[j] standing at his right hand to oppose him. ² And the Lord said to Satan, ^(AZ)“The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord who ^(BA)has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! ^(BB)Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?”

³ Now Joshua was clothed with ^(BC)filthy garments, and was standing before the Angel.

⁴ Then He answered and spoke to those who stood before Him, saying, “Take away the filthy garments from him.” And to him He said, “See, I have removed your iniquity from you, ^(BD)and I will clothe you with rich robes.”

⁵ And I said, “Let them put a clean ^(BE)turban on his head.”

So they put a clean turban on his head, and they put the clothes on him. And the Angel of the Lord stood by.

The Coming Branch

⁶ Then the Angel of the Lord admonished Joshua, saying, ⁷ “Thus says the Lord of hosts:

Vision of the Lampstand and Olive Trees

4 Now ^(BQ)the angel who talked with me came back and wakened me, ^(BR)as a man who is wakened out of his sleep. ² And he said to me, “What do you see?”

So I said, “I am looking, and there is ^(BS)a lampstand of solid gold with a bowl on top of it, ^(BT)and on the stand seven lamps with seven pipes to the seven lamps. ^3 (BU)Two olive trees are by it, one at the right of the bowl and the other at its left.” ⁴ So I answered and spoke to the angel who talked with me, saying, “What are these, my lord?”

⁵ Then the angel who talked with me answered and said to me, “Do you not know what these are?”

And I said, “No, my lord.”

⁶ So he answered and said to me:

⁸ Moreover the word of the Lord came to me, saying:

¹¹ Then I answered and said to him, “What are these ^(CG)two olive trees—at the right of the lampstand and at its left?” ¹² And I further answered and said to him, “What are these two olive branches that drip ^[n]into the receptacles of the two gold pipes from which the golden oil drains?”

¹³ Then he answered me and said, “Do you not know what these are?”

And I said, “No, my lord.”

¹⁴ So he said, ^(CH)“These are the two ^[o]anointed ones, ^(CI)who stand beside the Lord of the whole earth.”

Vision of the Flying Scroll

5 Then I turned and raised my eyes, and saw there a flying ^(CJ)scroll.

² And he said to me, “What do you see?”

So I answered, “I see a flying scroll. Its length is twenty cubits and its width ten cubits.”

³ Then he said to me, “This is the ^(CK)curse that goes out over the face of the whole earth: ‘Every thief shall be expelled,’ according to this side of the scroll; and, ‘Every perjurer shall be expelled,’ according to that side of it.”

Vision of the Woman in a Basket

⁵ Then the angel who talked with me came out and said to me, “Lift your eyes now, and see what this is that goes forth.”

⁶ So I asked, “What is it?” And he said, “It is a ^[p]basket that is going forth.”

He also said, “This is their resemblance throughout the earth: ⁷ Here is a lead disc lifted up, and this is a woman sitting inside the basket”; ⁸ then he said, “This is Wickedness!” And he thrust her down into the basket, and threw the lead ^[q]cover over its mouth. ⁹ Then I raised my eyes and looked, and there were two women, coming with the wind in their wings; for they had wings like the wings of a ^(CO)stork, and they lifted up the basket between earth and heaven.

¹⁰ So I said to the ^(CP)angel who talked with me, “Where are they carrying the basket?”

¹¹ And he said to me, “To ^(CQ)build a house for it in ^(CR)the land of ^[r]Shinar; when it is ready, the basket will be set there on its base.”

Vision of the Four Chariots

6 Then I turned and raised my eyes and looked, and behold, four chariots were coming from between two mountains, and the mountains were mountains of bronze. ² With the first chariot were ^(CS)red horses, with the second chariot ^(CT)black horses, ³ with the third chariot white horses, and with the fourth chariot dappled horses—strong steeds. ⁴ Then I answered ^(CU)and said to the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?”

⁵ And the angel answered and said to me, ^(CV)“These are four spirits of heaven, who go out from their ^(CW)station before the Lord of all the earth. ^6 [s]The one with the black horses is going to ^(CX)the north country, the white are going after them, and the dappled are going toward the south country.” ⁷ Then the strong steeds went out, eager to go, that they might ^(CY)walk to and fro throughout the earth. And He said, “Go, walk to and fro throughout the earth.” So they walked to and fro throughout the earth. ⁸ And He called to me, and spoke to me, saying, “See, those who go toward the north country have given rest to My ^(CZ)Spirit in the north country.”

The Command to Crown Joshua

⁹ Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying: ¹⁰ “Receive the gift from the captives—from Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah, who have come from Babylon—and go the same day and enter the house of Josiah the son of Zephaniah. ¹¹ Take the silver and gold, make ^(DA)an^[t] elaborate crown, and set it on the head of ^(DB)Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest. ¹² Then speak to him, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, saying:

¹⁴ “Now the ^[w]elaborate crown shall be ^(DH)for a memorial in the temple of the Lord ^[x]for Helem, Tobijah, Jedaiah, and Hen the son of Zephaniah. ¹⁵ Even ^(DI)those from afar shall come and build the temple of the Lord. Then you shall know that the Lord of hosts has sent Me to you. And this shall come to pass if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God.”

Obedience Better than Fasting

7 Now in the fourth year of King Darius it came to pass that the word of the Lord came to Zechariah, on the fourth day of the ninth month, Chislev, ² when ^[y]the people sent ^[z]Sherezer, with Regem-Melech and his men, to ^[aa]the house of God, ^[ab]to pray before the Lord, ³ and to ^(DJ)ask the priests who were in the house of the Lord of hosts, and the prophets, saying, “Should I weep in ^(DK)the fifth month and ^[ac]fast as I have done for so many years?”

⁴ Then the word of the Lord of hosts came to me, saying, ⁵ “Say to all the people of the land, and to the priests: ‘When you ^(DL)fasted and mourned in the fifth ^(DM)and seventh months ^(DN)during those seventy years, did you really fast ^(DO)for Me—for Me? ^6 (DP)When you eat and when you drink, do you not eat and drink for yourselves? ⁷ Should you not have obeyed the words which the Lord proclaimed through the ^(DQ)former prophets when Jerusalem and the cities around it were inhabited and prosperous, and ^(DR)the ^[ad]South and the Lowland were inhabited?’ ”

Disobedience Resulted in Captivity

⁸ Then the word of the Lord came to Zechariah, saying, ⁹ “Thus says the Lord of hosts:

¹¹ “But they refused to heed, ^(DV)shrugged^[af] their shoulders, and ^(DW)stopped^[ag] their ears so that they could not hear. ¹² Yes, they made their ^(DX)hearts like flint, ^(DY)refusing to hear the law and the words which the Lord of hosts had sent by His Spirit through the former prophets. ^(DZ)Thus great wrath came from the Lord of hosts. ¹³ Therefore it happened, that just as He proclaimed and they would not hear, so ^(EA)they called out and I would not listen,” says the Lord of hosts. ¹⁴ “But ^(EB)I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations which they had not known. Thus the land became desolate after them, so that no one passed through or returned; for they made the pleasant land desolate.”