The Four Chariots

6 Now I raised my eyes again and looked, and behold, ^(A)four chariots were going out from between the two mountains; and the mountains were bronze mountains. ² With the first chariot were ^(B)red horses, with the second chariot ^(C)black horses, ³ with the third chariot ^(D)white horses, and with the fourth chariot strong ^(E)spotted horses. ⁴ So I responded and said to the angel who was speaking with me, “^(F)What are these, my lord?” ⁵ The angel replied to me, “These are the ^(G)four spirits of heaven, going out after taking their stand before the Lord of all the earth, ⁶ with one of which the black horses are going out to the ^(H)north country; and the white ones are to go out after them, while the spotted ones are to go out to the ^(I)south country.” ⁷ When the strong ones went out, they ^[a]were eager to go to ^[b](J)patrol the earth. And He said, “Go, ^[c]patrol the earth.” So they ^[d]patrolled the earth. ⁸ Then He called out to me and spoke to me, saying, “See, those who are going to the land of the north have ^[e](K)appeased My wrath in the land of the north.”

⁹ The ^(L)word of the Lord also came to me, saying, ¹⁰ “^(M)Take an offering from the exiles, from Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah; and you shall go the same day and enter the house of Josiah the son of Zephaniah, where they have arrived from Babylon.

The Symbolic Crowns

¹¹ Also take silver and gold, make an ornate ^(N)crown, and set it on the head of ^(O)Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest. ¹² Then say to him, ‘The Lord of armies says this: “Behold, there is a Man whose name is ^[f](P)Branch, for He will ^[g](Q)branch out from where He is; and He will ^(R)build the temple of the Lord. ¹³ Yes, it is He who will build the temple of the Lord, and He who will ^(S)bear the majesty and sit and ^(T)rule on His throne. So He will be a ^(U)priest on His throne, and the counsel of peace will be between the two ^[h]offices.”’ ¹⁴ Now the ^(V)crown will become a reminder in the temple of the Lord to Helem, Tobijah, Jedaiah, and ^[i]Hen the son of Zephaniah. ^15 (W)Those who are far away will come and ^[j]build the temple of the Lord.” Then you will ^(X)know that the Lord of armies has sent me to you. And it will take place if you completely ^(Y)obey ^[k]the Lord your God.

7 In the fourth year of King Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month, which is ^(A)Chislev. ² Now the town of Bethel had sent Sharezer and Regemmelech and ^[a]their men to ^[b](B)seek the favor of the Lord, ³ speaking to the ^(C)priests who belong to the house of the Lord of armies, and to the prophets, saying, “Shall I weep in the ^(D)fifth month ^[c]and fast, as I have done these many years?” ⁴ Then the word of the Lord of armies came to me, saying, ⁵ “Say to all the people of the land and to the priests, ‘When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months ^[d]these ^(E)seventy years, was it actually for ^(F)Me that you fasted? ⁶ And when you eat and drink, ^[e]do you not eat for yourselves and drink for yourselves? ⁷ Are these not the words which the Lord ^(G)proclaimed by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and ^(H)carefree along with its cities around it, and the ^[f](I)Negev and the ^[g]foothills were inhabited?’”

⁸ Then the word of the Lord came to Zechariah, saying, ⁹ “This is what the Lord of armies has said: ‘^(J)Dispense true justice and practice ^(K)kindness and compassion each to his brother; ¹⁰ and ^(L)do not oppress the widow or the ^[h]orphan, the stranger or the poor; and do ^(M)not devise evil in your hearts against one another.’ ¹¹ But they ^(N)refused to pay attention, and ^[i](O)turned a stubborn shoulder and ^[j](P)plugged their ears from hearing. ¹² They also made their ^(Q)hearts as hard as ^(R)a diamond ^[k]so that they could not hear the Law and the ^(S)words which the Lord of armies had sent by His Spirit through the ^(T)former prophets; therefore great ^(U)wrath came from the Lord of armies. ¹³ And just as ^(V)He called and they would not listen, so ^(W)they called and I would not listen,” says the Lord of armies; ¹⁴ “but I ^[l](X)scattered them with a ^(Y)storm wind among all the nations whom they did not know. So the land was ^(Z)desolated behind them ^[m]so that ^(AA)no one went back and forth, since they ^(AB)made the pleasant land desolate.”

The Coming Peace and Prosperity of Zion

8 Then the word of the Lord of armies came, saying, ² “The Lord of armies says this: ‘I am ^(A)exceedingly jealous for Zion, yes, with great wrath I am jealous for her.’ ³ The Lord says this: ‘I will return to Zion and ^(B)dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Then Jerusalem will be called the City of ^(C)Truth, and the mountain of the Lord of armies will be called the Holy Mountain.’ ⁴ The Lord of armies says this: ‘^(D)Old men and old women will again sit in the public squares of Jerusalem, each person with his staff in his hand because of ^[a]age. ⁵ And the public squares of the city will be filled with ^(E)boys and girls playing in its squares.’ ⁶ The Lord of armies says this: ‘If it is ^(F)too difficult in the sight of the remnant of this people in those days, will it also be ^(G)too difficult in My sight?’ declares the Lord of armies. ⁷ The Lord of armies says this: ‘Behold, I am going to save My people from the land of the ^[b](H)east and from the land of the ^[c]west; ⁸ and I will ^(I)bring them back and they will ^(J)live in the midst of Jerusalem; and they shall be ^(K)My people, and I will be their God in ^[d]truth and righteousness.’

⁹ “The Lord of armies says this: ‘Let your hands be ^(L)strong, you who are listening in these days to these words from the mouth of the ^(M)prophets, those who spoke in the day that the foundation of the house of the Lord of armies was laid, so that the temple might be built. ¹⁰ For before those days there was ^(N)no wage for man nor any wage for animal; and for him who went out or came in there was no ^[e](O)peace because of ^[f]his enemies, and I ^(P)sent all the people against one another. ¹¹ But now I will ^(Q)not ^[g]treat the remnant of this people as in the former days,’ declares the Lord of armies. ¹² ‘For there will be ^(R)the seed of peace: the vine will yield its fruit, the land will yield its produce, and the heavens will provide their ^(S)dew; and I will give to the remnant of this people ^(T)all these things as an inheritance. ¹³ And it will come about that just as you were a ^(U)curse among the nations, house of Judah and house of Israel, so I will save you that you may become a ^(V)blessing. Do not fear; let your ^(W)hands be strong.’

¹⁴ “For this is what the Lord of armies says: ‘Just as I ^(X)determined to do harm to you when your fathers provoked Me to anger,’ says the Lord of armies, ‘and I have not ^(Y)relented, ¹⁵ so I have again determined in these days to ^(Z)do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. ^(AA)Do not fear! ¹⁶ These are the things which you shall do: speak the ^(AB)truth to one another; ^(AC)judge with truth and judgment for peace at your ^[h]gates. ¹⁷ Also let none of you ^(AD)devise evil in your heart against another, and do not love ^[i](AE)perjury; for all these things are what I ^(AF)hate,’ declares the Lord.”

¹⁸ Then the word of the Lord of armies came to me, saying, ¹⁹ “The Lord of armies says this: ‘The fast of the ^(AG)fourth, the fast of the ^(AH)fifth, the fast of the ^(AI)seventh, and the fast of the ^(AJ)tenth months will become ^(AK)joy, jubilation, and ^[j]cheerful festivals for the house of Judah; so ^(AL)love truth and peace.’

²⁰ “The Lord of armies says this: ‘It will yet turn out that ^(AM)peoples will come, that is, the inhabitants of many cities. ²¹ The inhabitants of one city will go to another, saying, “Let’s go at once to ^(AN)plead for the favor of the Lord, and to seek the Lord of armies; ^[k]I also will go.” ²² So ^(AO)many peoples and mighty nations will come to seek the Lord of armies in Jerusalem, and to ^(AP)plead for the favor of the Lord.’ ²³ The Lord of armies says this: ‘In those days ten people from all the ^[l]nations will ^[m](AQ)grasp the ^[n]garment of a Jew, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”’”