The Daily Audio Bible

6 Again I raised my eyes, and I saw in front of me four chariots coming out from between two mountains, and the mountains were mountains of bronze. ² The first chariot had red horses; the second chariot, black horses; ³ the third chariot, white horses; and the fourth chariot, spotted gray horses. ⁴ I asked the angel speaking with me, “What are these, my Lord?” ⁵ The angel answered me, “These are the four winds of the sky that go out, after presenting themselves before the Lord of all the land. ⁶ The one with the black horses is going out toward the land in the north, the white [horses] have gone out after them, and the spotted have gone out toward the land in the south.” ⁷ Then the gray ones went out and were seeking to go and wander throughout the whole earth, when he said, “Wander throughout the whole earth”; and they did wander throughout the whole earth. ⁸ Then he called out to me and said, “Look! The ones going to the land in the north have given my Spirit rest in the north country.”

⁹ This message from Adonai came to me: ¹⁰ “Take [gifts] from the exiles of Heldai, Toviyah, and Y’da‘yah, who have arrived from Bavel; then you, go to the house of Yoshiyah the son of Tz’fanyah. ¹¹ Take silver and gold; make crowns; put one on the head of Y’hoshua the son of Y’hotzadak, the cohen hagadol; ¹² and tell him, ‘Adonai-Tzva’ot says: “There is coming a man whose name is Tzemach [Sprout]. He will sprout up from his place and rebuild the temple of Adonai. ¹³ Yes, he will rebuild the temple of Adonai; and he will take up royal splendor, sitting and ruling from his throne. There will be a cohen before his throne; and they will accept each other’s advice in complete harmony. ¹⁴ The other crowns will be for Helem, Toviyah, Y’da‘yah and Hen the son of Tz’fanyah; then [they are to be kept] as a memorial in the temple of Adonai. ¹⁵ Those who are now far away will come and help rebuild the temple of Adonai.” Then you will know that it is Adonai-Tzva’ot who sent me to you. And it will all come about, provided you heed carefully what Adonai your God says.’”

7 In the fourth year of King Daryavesh, on the fourth day of the ninth month, Kislev, a message from Adonai came to Z’kharyah. ² He sent Sar’etzer and Regem-Melekh with his men to Beit-El in order to ask Adonai’s favor, ³ as they inquired of the cohanim of the house of Adonai-Tzva’ot and the prophets, “Should we go into mourning and abstain from pleasure during the fifth month, as we have been doing for all these years?” ⁴ It was then that this message came to me from Adonai-Tzva’ot: ⁵ “Speak to all the people of the land and to the cohanim. Tell them, ‘When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months throughout these seventy years, were you really fasting for me? Was it for me? ⁶ Rather, when you eat and drink, it’s just to please yourselves, isn’t it? ⁷ Isn’t this just what Adonai proclaimed through the earlier prophets, when Yerushalayim was inhabited and prosperous, as were the cities around her; and the Negev and the Sh’felah were inhabited?’”

⁸ Then this message from Adonai came to Z’kharyah: ⁹ “In the past Adonai-Tzva’ot said, ‘Administer true justice. Let everyone show mercy and compassion to his brother. ¹⁰ Don’t oppress widows, orphans, foreigners or poor people. Don’t plot evil against each other.’ ¹¹ But they wouldn’t listen, they stubbornly turned their shoulder away and stopped up their ears, so that they wouldn’t have to hear it. ¹² Yes, they made their hearts as hard as a diamond, so that they wouldn’t hear the Torah and the messages that Adonai-Tzva’ot had sent by his Spirit through the earlier prophets. This is why great anger came from Adonai-Tzva’ot; ¹³ and it came about that just as they hadn’t listened when he called, so Adonai-Tzva’ot said, ‘I won’t listen when they call; ¹⁴ but with the power of a whirlwind I will disperse them among all the nations which they have not known.’ Thus the land was left desolate after them, so that no one came or went. They had turned a pleasant land into a desert.”

15 Then I saw another sign in heaven, a great and wonderful one — seven angels with the seven plagues that are the final ones; because with them, God’s fury is finished. ² I saw what looked like a sea of glass mixed with fire. Those defeating the beast, its image and the number of its name were standing by the sea of glass, holding harps which God had given them. ³ They were singing the song of Moshe, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb:

⁵ After this I looked, and the sanctuary (that is, the Tent of Witness in heaven) was opened, ⁶ and out of the sanctuary came the seven angels with the seven plagues. They were dressed in clean bright linen and had gold belts around their chests. ⁷ One of the four living beings gave to the seven angels seven gold bowls filled with the fury of God, who lives forever and ever. ⁸ Then the sanctuary was filled with smoke from God’s Sh’khinah, that is, from his power; and no one could enter the sanctuary until the seven plagues of the seven angels had accomplished their purpose.