Zechariah 12–13

Judah’s Security

12An Oracle

The word of the Lord concerning Israel.

A declaration of the Lord,

who stretched out the heavens, ^a

laid the foundation of the earth, ^b

and formed the spirit of man within him.

²“Look, I will make Jerusalem a cup that causes staggering ^cfor the peoples who surround the city. The siege against Jerusalem will also involve Judah. ^d3On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who try to lift it will injure themselves severely when all the nations of the earth gather against her. ^e4On that day”—this is the Lord’s declaration—“I will strike every horse with panic and its rider with madness. ^fI will keep a watchful eye on ^gthe house of Judah but strike all the horses of the nations with blindness. ⁵Then each of the leaders of Judah will think to himself: The residents of Jerusalem are my strength through the Lord of Hosts, their God. ⁶On that day I will make the leaders of Judah like a firepot in a woodpile, ^hlike a flaming torch among sheaves; they will consume all the peoples around them on the right and the left, while Jerusalem continues to be inhabited on its site, in Jerusalem. ⁷The Lord will save the tents of Judah first, so that the glory of David’s house and the glory of Jerusalem’s residents may not be greater than that of Judah. ⁸On that day the Lord will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem, ⁱso that on that day the one who is weakest among them will be like David on that day, and the house of David will be like God, like the Angel of the Lord, before them. ^j9On that day I will set out to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.

Mourning for the Pierced One

¹⁰“Then I will pour out a spirit ^klof grace and prayer on the house of David and the residents of Jerusalem, and they will look at ^mMe whom they pierced. They will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only child and weep bitterly for Him as one weeps for a firstborn. ⁿ¹¹On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great as the mourning of Hadad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. ¹²The land will mourn, every family by itself: the family of David’s house by itself and their women by themselves; the family of Nathan’s ^ophouse by itself and their women by themselves; ¹³the family of Levi’s house by itself and their women by themselves; the family of Shimei ^qrby itself and their women by themselves; ¹⁴all the remaining families, every family by itself, and their women by themselves.

God’s People Cleansed

13“On that day a fountain ^swill be opened for the house of David and for the residents of Jerusalem, to wash away sin and impurity. ^t2On that day”—this is the declaration of the Lord of Hosts—“I will erase the names of the idols from the land, and they will no longer be remembered. ^uI will remove the prophets ^vand the unclean spirit from the land. ³If a man still prophesies, his father and his mother who bore him will say to him: You cannot remain alive because you have spoken falsely in the name of Yahweh. When he prophesies, his father and his mother who bore him will pierce him through. ^w4On that day every prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies; they will not put on a hairy cloak ^xin order to deceive. ⁵He will say: I am not a prophet; I work the land, for a man purchased ^yme as a servant since my youth. ^z6If someone asks him: What are these wounds ^aon your chest? ^b—then he will answer: I received the wounds in the house of my friends.

⁷Sword, awake against My shepherd,

against the man who is My associate—

this is the declaration of the Lord of Hosts.

Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; ^c

I will also turn My hand against the little ones.

⁸In the whole land—

this is the Lord’s declaration—

two-thirds ^dwill be cut off and die,

but a third will be left in it.

⁹I will put this third through the fire;

I will refine them as silver is refined

and test them as gold is tested. ^e

They will call on My name,

and I will answer them. ^f

I will say: They are My people,

and they will say: Yahweh is our God.” ^g