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Zechariah 10
New King James Version
Zechariah 10
New King James Version
Restoration of Judah and Israel
10 Ask (A)the Lord for (B)rain
In (C)the time of the [a]latter rain.
The Lord will make [b]flashing clouds;
He will give them showers of rain,
Grass in the field for everyone.
2 For the (D)idols[c] speak delusion;
The diviners envision (E)lies,
And tell false dreams;
They (F)comfort in vain.
Therefore the people wend their way like (G)sheep;
They are [d]in trouble (H)because there is no shepherd.
3 “My anger is kindled against the (I)shepherds,
(J)And I will punish the [e]goatherds.
For the Lord of hosts (K)will visit His flock,
The house of Judah,
And (L)will make them as His royal horse in the battle.
4 From him comes (M)the cornerstone,
From him (N)the tent peg,
From him the battle bow,
From him every [f]ruler together.
5 They shall be like mighty men,
Who (O)tread down their enemies
In the mire of the streets in the battle.
They shall fight because the Lord is with them,
And the riders on horses shall be put to shame.
6 “I will strengthen the house of Judah,
And I will save the house of Joseph.
(P)I will bring them back,
Because I (Q)have mercy on them.
They shall be as though I had not cast them aside;
For I am the Lord their God,
And I (R)will hear them.
7 Those of Ephraim shall be like a mighty man,
And their (S)heart shall rejoice as if with wine.
Yes, their children shall see it and be glad;
Their heart shall rejoice in the Lord.
8 I will (T)whistle for them and gather them,
For I will redeem them;
(U)And they shall increase as they once increased.
9 “I(V) will [g]sow them among the peoples,
And they shall (W)remember Me in far countries;
They shall live, together with their children,
And they shall return.
10 (X)I will also bring them back from the land of Egypt,
And gather them from Assyria.
I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon,
(Y)Until no more room is found for them.
11 (Z)He shall pass through the sea with affliction,
And strike the waves of the sea:
All the depths of [h]the River shall dry up.
Then (AA)the pride of Assyria shall be brought down,
And (AB)the scepter of Egypt shall depart.
12 “So I will strengthen them in the Lord,
And (AC)they shall walk up and down in His name,”
Says the Lord.
Footnotes
- Zechariah 10:1 Spring rain
- Zechariah 10:1 Or lightning flashes
- Zechariah 10:2 Heb. teraphim
- Zechariah 10:2 afflicted
- Zechariah 10:3 Leaders
- Zechariah 10:4 Or despot
- Zechariah 10:9 Or scatter
- Zechariah 10:11 The Nile
Zechariah 10
Amplified Bible
Zechariah 10
Amplified Bible
God Will Bless Judah and Ephraim
10 Ask for rain from the Lord at the time of the spring rain.
It is the Lord who makes the thunder clouds;
And He will give them showers of rain, grass in the field to everyone.
2
For the teraphim (household idols) speak wickedness (emptiness, worthlessness),
And the diviners see lying visions
And tell false dreams;
They comfort in vain.
Therefore the people wander like sheep,
They are afflicted and suffer because there is no shepherd.
3
“My anger is kindled against the shepherds [who are not true shepherds],
And I shall punish the male goats (leaders);
For the Lord of hosts has visited His flock, the house of Judah (the Southern Kingdom),
And will make them like His beautiful and majestic horse in the battle.(A)
4
“From them (Judah) shall come the [a]Cornerstone,
From them the tent peg,
From them the bow of battle,
From them every ruler, all of them together.(B)
5
“They will be like mighty men
Trampling down their enemies in the mire of the streets in the battle;
And they will fight because the Lord is with them,
And the [enemies’] riders on horses will be shamed.
6
“I will strengthen the house of Judah [making it superior],
And I will save the house of Joseph.
I will bring them back [and allow them to live securely],
Because I have had compassion on them.
They will be as though I had not rejected them,
For I am the Lord their God, and I will listen and answer them.
7
“Then [b]Ephraim will be like a mighty warrior,
And their heart will rejoice as if from wine;
Yes, their children will see it and rejoice;
Their heart will rejoice and shout triumphantly in the Lord.
8
“I will [c]whistle for them and gather them together,
For I have redeemed them;
And they will increase [again] as they have increased before [in Egypt].(C)
9
“When I scatter them among the nations,
They will remember Me in far countries,
And with their children they will live and come back [to Me and the land I gave them].
10
“I will bring them (all Israel) back home again from the land of Egypt
And gather them from Assyria,
And I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon [the land on the east and on the west of the Jordan]
Until no room can be found for them.
11
“And they will pass through the sea of distress and anxiety [with the Lord leading His people, as at the Red Sea]
And He will strike the waves in the sea,
So that all the depths of the Nile will dry up;
And the pride of Assyria will be brought down
And the scepter [of the taskmasters] of Egypt will pass away.
12
“And I will strengthen Israel in the Lord,
And they will walk [and glory] in His name,” declares the Lord.
Footnotes
- Zechariah 10:4 Probably Messianic, see the “Cornerstone” imagery of Ps 118:22, 23; Is 28:16; Matt 21:42; Acts 4:11; Eph 2:19-22; 1 Pet 2:6-8.
- Zechariah 10:7 A reference to the Northern Kingdom.
- Zechariah 10:8 Or hiss. From this verse a rabbinical tradition was invented that if a vulture settles on the ground and hisses, the Messiah will come immediately. It was reported to have happened once, but instead of the Messiah coming, the story went that a stone fell on the vulture’s head and killed it because it was a liar.
Zechariah 10
New International Version
Zechariah 10
New International Version
The Lord Will Care for Judah
10 Ask the Lord for rain in the springtime;
it is the Lord who sends the thunderstorms.
He gives showers of rain(A) to all people,
and plants of the field(B) to everyone.
2 The idols(C) speak deceitfully,
diviners(D) see visions that lie;
they tell dreams(E) that are false,
they give comfort in vain.(F)
Therefore the people wander like sheep
oppressed for lack of a shepherd.(G)
3 “My anger burns against the shepherds,
and I will punish the leaders;(H)
for the Lord Almighty will care
for his flock, the people of Judah,
and make them like a proud horse in battle.(I)
4 From Judah will come the cornerstone,(J)
from him the tent peg,(K)
from him the battle bow,(L)
from him every ruler.
5 Together they[a] will be like warriors in battle
trampling their enemy into the mud of the streets.(M)
They will fight because the Lord is with them,
and they will put the enemy horsemen to shame.(N)
6 “I will strengthen(O) Judah
and save the tribes of Joseph.
I will restore them
because I have compassion(P) on them.(Q)
They will be as though
I had not rejected them,
for I am the Lord their God
and I will answer(R) them.
7 The Ephraimites will become like warriors,
and their hearts will be glad as with wine.(S)
Their children will see it and be joyful;
their hearts will rejoice(T) in the Lord.
8 I will signal(U) for them
and gather them in.
Surely I will redeem them;
they will be as numerous(V) as before.
9 Though I scatter them among the peoples,
yet in distant lands they will remember me.(W)
They and their children will survive,
and they will return.
10 I will bring them back from Egypt
and gather them from Assyria.(X)
I will bring them to Gilead(Y) and Lebanon,
and there will not be room(Z) enough for them.
11 They will pass through the sea of trouble;
the surging sea will be subdued
and all the depths of the Nile will dry up.(AA)
Assyria’s pride(AB) will be brought down
and Egypt’s scepter(AC) will pass away.(AD)
12 I will strengthen(AE) them in the Lord
and in his name they will live securely,(AF)”
declares the Lord.
Footnotes
- Zechariah 10:5 Or ruler, all of them together. / 5 They
Zechariah 10
The Message
Zechariah 10
The Message
God’s Work of Rebuilding
10 Pray to God for rain—it’s time for the spring rain—
to God, the rainmaker,
Spring thunderstorm maker,
maker of grain and barley.
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.
* * *
6-12 “I’ll put muscle in the people of Judah;
I’ll save the people of Joseph.
I know their pain and will make them good as new.
They’ll get a fresh start, as if nothing had ever happened.
And why? Because I am their very own God,
I’ll do what needs to be done for them.
The people of Ephraim will be famous,
their lives brimming with joy.
Their children will get in on it, too—
oh, let them feel blessed by God!
I’ll whistle and they’ll all come running.
I’ve set them free—oh, how they’ll flourish!
Even though I scattered them to the far corners of earth,
they’ll remember me in the faraway places.
They’ll keep the story alive in their children,
and they will come back.
I’ll bring them back from the Egyptian west
and round them up from the Assyrian east.
I’ll bring them back to sweet Gilead,
back to leafy Lebanon.
Every square foot of land
will be marked by homecoming.
They’ll sail through troubled seas, brush aside brash ocean waves.
Roaring rivers will turn to a trickle.
Gaudy Assyria will be stripped bare,
bully Egypt exposed as a fraud.
But my people—oh, I’ll make them strong, God-strong!
and they’ll live my way.” God says so!
* * *
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Amplified Bible (AMP) 
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson