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ZECHAR IAH 8
page 847
5 The angel replied, “These are the four spirits* of heaven who stand before the Lord of all
the earth. They are going out to do his work.
6 The chariot with black horses is going north,
the chariot with white horses is going west,*
and the chariot with dappled-gray horses is
going south.”
7 The powerful horses were eager to set out
to patrol the earth. And the Lord said, “Go and
patrol the earth!” So they left at once on their
patrol.
8 Then the Lord summoned me and said,
“Look, those who went north have vented the
anger of my Spirit* there in the land of the north.”
The Crowning of Jeshua
9 Then I received another message from the Lord:
10 “Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah will bring gifts of
silver and gold from the Jews exiled in Babylon.
As soon as they arrive, meet them at the home of
Josiah son of Zephaniah. 11 Accept their gifts, and
make a crown from the silver and gold. Then put
the crown on the head of Jeshua* son of Jehozadak, the high priest. 12 Tell him, ‘This is what
the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Here is the
man called the Branch. He will branch out from
where he is and build the Temple of the Lord.
13 Yes, he will build the Temple of the Lord. Then
he will receive royal honor and will rule as king
from his throne. He will also serve as priest from
his throne,* and there will be perfect harmony
between his two roles.’
14 “The crown will be a memorial in the
Temple of the Lord to honor those who gave
it—Heldai,* Tobijah, Jedaiah, and Josiah* son
of Zephaniah.”
15 People will come from distant lands to rebuild the Temple of the Lord. And when this
happens, you will know that my messages have
been from the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. All this
will happen if you carefully obey what the Lord
your God says.
A Call to Justice and Mercy
On December 7* of the fourth year of King
Darius’s reign, another message came
to Zechariah from the Lord. 2 The people of
Bethel had sent Sharezer and Regemmelech,*
along with their attendants, to seek the Lord’s
7
6:5 Or the four winds. 6:6 Hebrew is going after them.
6:8 Hebrew have given my Spirit rest. 6:11 Hebrew Joshua,
a variant spelling of Jeshua. 6:13 Or There will be a priest
by his throne. 6:14a As in Syriac version (compare 6:10);
Hebrew reads Helem. 6:14b As in Syriac version (compare
6:10); Hebrew reads Hen. 7:1 Hebrew On the fourth day of the
ninth month, the month of Kislev, of the ancient Hebrew lunar
calendar. This event occurred on December 7, 518 b.c.; also see
note on 1:1. 7:2 Or Bethel-sharezer had sent Regemmelech.
7:3 Hebrew mourn and fast in the fifth month. The Temple had
been destroyed in the fifth month of the ancient Hebrew lunar
calendar (August 586 b.c.); see 2 Kgs 25:8. 7:5 Hebrew fasted
and mourned in the fifth and seventh months. The fifth month
of the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar usually occurs within
the months of July and August. The seventh month usually
occurs within the months of September and October; both the
Day of Atonement and the Festival of Shelters were celebrated
in the seventh month. 7:7 Hebrew the Shephelah.
favor. 3 They were to ask this question of the
prophets and the priests at the Temple of the
Lord of Heaven’s Armies: “Should we continue
to mourn and fast each summer on the anniversary of the Temple’s destruction,* as we have
done for so many years?”
4 The Lord of Heaven’s Armies sent me this
message in reply: 5 “Say to all your people and
your priests, ‘During these seventy years of
exile, when you fasted and mourned in the summer and in early autumn,* was it really for me
that you were fasting? 6 And even now in your
holy festivals, aren’t you eating and drinking
just to please yourselves? 7 Isn’t this the same
message the Lord proclaimed through the
prophets in years past when Jerusalem and the
towns of Judah were bustling with people, and
the Negev and the foothills of Judah* were well
populated?’”
8 Then this message came to Zechariah from
the Lord: 9 “This is what the Lord of Heaven’s
Armies says: Judge fairly, and show mercy and
kindness to one another. 10 Do not oppress widows, orphans, foreigners, and the poor. And do
not scheme against each other.
11 “Your ancestors refused to listen to this
message. They stubbornly turned away and put
their fingers in their ears to keep from hearing.
12 They made their hearts as hard as stone, so
they could not hear the instructions or the messages that the Lord of Heaven’s Armies had sent
them by his Spirit through the earlier prophets.
That is why the Lord of Heaven’s Armies was so
angry with them.
13 “Since they refused to listen when I called
to them, I would not listen when they called
to me, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. 14 As
with a whirlwind, I scattered them among the
distant nations, where they lived as strangers.
Their land became so desolate that no one even
traveled through it. They turned their pleasant
land into a desert.”
Promised Blessings for Jerusalem
Then another message came to me from the
Lord of Heaven’s Armies: 2 “This is what
the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: My love for
Mount Zion is passionate and strong; I am consumed with passion for Jerusalem!
3 “And now the Lord says: I am returning to
Mount Zion, and I will live in Jerusalem. Then
Jerusalem will be called the Faithful City; the
mountain of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will
be called the Holy Mountain.
4 “This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies
says: Once again old men and women will walk
Jerusalem’s streets with their canes and will sit
together in the city squares. 5 And the streets of
the city will be filled with boys and girls at play.
6 “This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies
says: All this may seem impossible to you now,
8