Zechariah 5
Expanded Bible
The Vision of the Flying Scroll
5 I ·looked up again [L turned and lifted my eyes] and saw a flying scroll.
2 ·The angel [L He] asked me, “What do you see?”
I answered, “I see a flying scroll, ·thirty feet [L twenty cubits] long and ·fifteen feet [L ten cubits] wide.”
3 And he said to me, “This is the curse that ·will go [or is going out] all over the land. One side says every thief will be ·taken away [banished; purged]. The other side says everyone who ·makes false promises [swears falsely] will be ·taken away [banished; purged]. 4 The Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts] says, ‘I will send it to the houses of thieves and to those who ·use my name to make false promises [swear falsely]. The scroll will stay in that person’s house and destroy it with its wood and stones.’”
The Vision of the Woman
5 Then the ·angel [messenger] who was talking with me came forward and said to me, “·Look up [L Lift up your eyes] and see what is ·going out [or coming; appearing].”
6 “What is it?” I asked.
He answered, “It is a ·measuring basket [L ephah] going out.” He also said, “It is ·a symbol of the people’s sins [L their iniquity; or their appearance; L their eye] in all the land.”
7 Then the lid made of lead was raised, and there was a woman sitting inside the basket. 8 The angel said, “The woman ·stands for [L is] wickedness.” Then he pushed her back into the basket and put the lid back down.
9 Then I ·looked up [L lifted my eyes] and saw two women going out with the wind in their wings. Their wings were like those of a stork, and they lifted up the basket between earth and the ·sky [heaven].
10 I asked the ·angel [messenger] who was talking with me, “Where are they taking the basket?”
11 “They are going to Babylonia to build a ·temple [L house] for it,” he answered. “When ·the temple [L it] is ready, they will set the basket there ·in its place [or on its base/pedestal].”
Zechariah 5
English Standard Version
A Vision of a Flying Scroll
5 Again I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, a flying (A)scroll! 2 And he said to me, “What do you see?” I answered, “I see a flying (B)scroll. Its length is twenty cubits, and its width ten cubits.”[a] 3 Then he said to me, “This is (C)the curse that goes out over the face of the whole land. For everyone who (D)steals shall be cleaned out according to what is on one side, and everyone who (E)swears falsely[b] shall be cleaned out according to what is on the other side. 4 I will send it out, declares the Lord of hosts, and it shall enter the house of the thief, and the house of (F)him who swears falsely by my name. And (G)it shall remain in his house and (H)consume it, both timber and stones.”
A Vision of a Woman in a Basket
5 (I)Then the angel who talked with me came forward and said to me, (J)“Lift your eyes and see what this is that is going out.” 6 And I said, “What is it?” He said, “This is (K)the basket[c] that is going out.” And he said, “This is their iniquity[d] in all the land.” 7 And behold, the leaden cover was lifted, and there was a woman sitting in the basket! 8 And he said, “This is Wickedness.” And he thrust her back into the basket, and thrust down (L)the leaden weight on its opening.
9 Then I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, two women coming forward! (M)The wind was in their wings. They had wings like the wings of a stork, and they lifted up the basket between earth and heaven. 10 Then I said to the angel who talked with me, “Where are they taking the basket?” 11 He said to me, “To the (N)land of Shinar, to build a house for it. And when this is prepared, they will set the basket down there on its base.”
Footnotes
- Zechariah 5:2 A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters
- Zechariah 5:3 Hebrew lacks falsely (supplied from verse 4)
- Zechariah 5:6 Hebrew ephah; also verses 7–11. An ephah was about 3/5 bushel or 22 liters
- Zechariah 5:6 One Hebrew manuscript, Septuagint, Syriac; most Hebrew manuscripts eye
Zechariah 5
New International Reader's Version
A Vision of a Flying Scroll
5 I looked up again and saw a flying scroll.
2 “What do you see?” the angel asked me.
“A scroll flying in the air,” I replied. “It’s 30 feet long and 15 feet wide.”
3 He said to me, “A curse sent by the Lord is written on it. It is going out over the whole land. Every thief will be driven out of the land. That is what it says on one side of the scroll. Everyone who lies when promising to tell the truth will also be driven out. That is what it says on the other side. 4 The Lord who rules over all announces, ‘I will send the curse out. It will enter the house of the thief. It will also enter the house of anyone who lies when making a promise in my name. It will remain in that house and destroy it completely. It will pull down its beams and stones.’ ”
A Vision of a Woman in a Basket
5 Then the angel who was talking with me came forward. He said to me, “Look at what is coming.”
6 “What is it?” I asked.
“A basket,” he replied. “The sins of the people all through the land are in it.”
7 Then the basket’s cover was lifted up. It was made out of lead. A woman was sitting in the basket! 8 The angel said, “She stands for everything that is evil.” Then he pushed her down into the basket. He put the lead cover back over it.
9 I looked up and saw two other women. They had wings like the wings of a stork. A wind sent by the Lord carried them along. They lifted the basket up between heaven and earth.
10 “Where are they taking the basket?” I asked the angel.
11 He replied, “To the country of Babylon. A temple will be built for it. When the temple is ready, the basket will be set there in its place.”
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
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