Zechariah 13

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