⁵ Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

7 And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Darius, that the word of the Lord came unto Zechariah in the fourth day of the ninth month, even in Chisleu;

² When they had sent unto the house of God Sherezer and Regemmelech, and their men, to pray before the Lord,

³ And to speak unto the priests which were in the house of the Lord of hosts, and to the prophets, saying, Should I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done these so many years?

⁴ Then came the word of the Lord of hosts unto me, saying,

⁵ Speak unto all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying, When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh month, even those seventy years, did ye at all fast unto me, even to me?

⁶ And when ye did eat, and when ye did drink, did not ye eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves?

⁷ Should ye not hear the words which the Lord hath cried by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, and the cities thereof round about her, when men inhabited the south and the plain?

⁸ And the word of the Lord came unto Zechariah, saying,

⁹ Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Execute true judgment, and shew mercy and compassions every man to his brother:

¹⁰ And oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor; and let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart.

¹¹ But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear.

¹² Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the Lord of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the Lord of hosts.

¹³ Therefore it is come to pass, that as he cried, and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear, saith the Lord of hosts:

¹⁴ But I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations whom they knew not. Thus the land was desolate after them, that no man passed through nor returned: for they laid the pleasant land desolate.

8 Again the word of the Lord of hosts came to me, saying,

² Thus saith the Lord of hosts; I was jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I was jealous for her with great fury.

³ Thus saith the Lord; I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called a city of truth; and the mountain of the Lord of hosts the holy mountain.

⁴ Thus saith the Lord of hosts; There shall yet old men and old women dwell in the streets of Jerusalem, and every man with his staff in his hand for very age.

⁵ And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof.

⁶ Thus saith the Lord of hosts; If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, should it also be marvellous in mine eyes? saith the Lord of hosts.

⁷ Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Behold, I will save my people from the east country, and from the west country;

⁸ And I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness.

⁹ Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Let your hands be strong, ye that hear in these days these words by the mouth of the prophets, which were in the day that the foundation of the house of the Lord of hosts was laid, that the temple might be built.

¹⁰ For before these days there was no hire for man, nor any hire for beast; neither was there any peace to him that went out or came in because of the affliction: for I set all men every one against his neighbour.

¹¹ But now I will not be unto the residue of this people as in the former days, saith the Lord of hosts.

¹² For the seed shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things.

¹³ And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel; so will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing: fear not, but let your hands be strong.

¹⁴ For thus saith the Lord of hosts; As I thought to punish you, when your fathers provoked me to wrath, saith the Lord of hosts, and I repented not:

¹⁵ So again have I thought in these days to do well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah: fear ye not.

¹⁶ These are the things that ye shall do; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates:

¹⁷ And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the Lord.

¹⁸ And the word of the Lord of hosts came unto me, saying,

¹⁹ Thus saith the Lord of hosts; The fast of the fourth month, and the fast of the fifth, and the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall be to the house of Judah joy and gladness, and cheerful feasts; therefore love the truth and peace.

²⁰ Thus saith the Lord of hosts; It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities:

²¹ And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek the Lord of hosts: I will go also.

²² Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord.

²³ Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.

21 But Job answered and said,

² Hear diligently my speech, and let this be your consolations.

³ Suffer me that I may speak; and after that I have spoken, mock on.

⁴ As for me, is my complaint to man? and if it were so, why should not my spirit be troubled?

⁵ Mark me, and be astonished, and lay your hand upon your mouth.

⁶ Even when I remember I am afraid, and trembling taketh hold on my flesh.

⁷ Wherefore do the wicked live, become old, yea, are mighty in power?

⁸ Their seed is established in their sight with them, and their offspring before their eyes.

⁹ Their houses are safe from fear, neither is the rod of God upon them.

¹⁰ Their bull gendereth, and faileth not; their cow calveth, and casteth not her calf.

¹¹ They send forth their little ones like a flock, and their children dance.

¹² They take the timbrel and harp, and rejoice at the sound of the organ.

¹³ They spend their days in wealth, and in a moment go down to the grave.

¹⁴ Therefore they say unto God, Depart from us; for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways.

¹⁵ What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? and what profit should we have, if we pray unto him?

¹⁶ Lo, their good is not in their hand: the counsel of the wicked is far from me.

¹⁷ How oft is the candle of the wicked put out! and how oft cometh their destruction upon them! God distributeth sorrows in his anger.

¹⁸ They are as stubble before the wind, and as chaff that the storm carrieth away.

¹⁹ God layeth up his iniquity for his children: he rewardeth him, and he shall know it.

²⁰ His eyes shall see his destruction, and he shall drink of the wrath of the Almighty.

²¹ For what pleasure hath he in his house after him, when the number of his months is cut off in the midst?

²² Shall any teach God knowledge? seeing he judgeth those that are high.

²³ One dieth in his full strength, being wholly at ease and quiet.

²⁴ His breasts are full of milk, and his bones are moistened with marrow.

²⁵ And another dieth in the bitterness of his soul, and never eateth with pleasure.

²⁶ They shall lie down alike in the dust, and the worms shall cover them.

²⁷ Behold, I know your thoughts, and the devices which ye wrongfully imagine against me.

²⁸ For ye say, Where is the house of the prince? and where are the dwelling places of the wicked?

²⁹ Have ye not asked them that go by the way? and do ye not know their tokens,

³⁰ That the wicked is reserved to the day of destruction? they shall be brought forth to the day of wrath.

³¹ Who shall declare his way to his face? and who shall repay him what he hath done?

³² Yet shall he be brought to the grave, and shall remain in the tomb.

³³ The clods of the valley shall be sweet unto him, and every man shall draw after him, as there are innumerable before him.

³⁴ How then comfort ye me in vain, seeing in your answers there remaineth falsehood?