Jerusalem, Holy City of the Future

Again the word of the Lord of hosts came, saying, “Thus says the Lord of hosts:

(A)‘I am [a]zealous for Zion with great [b]zeal;
With great [c]fervor I am zealous for her.’

“Thus says the Lord:

(B)‘I will return to Zion,
And (C)dwell in the midst of Jerusalem.
Jerusalem (D)shall be called the City of Truth,
(E)The Mountain of the Lord of hosts,
(F)The Holy Mountain.’

“Thus says the Lord of hosts:

(G)‘Old men and old women shall again sit
In the streets of Jerusalem,
Each one with his staff in his hand
Because of [d]great age.
The streets of the city
Shall be (H)full of boys and girls
Playing in its streets.’

“Thus says the Lord of hosts:

‘If it is [e]marvelous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days,
(I)Will it also be marvelous in My eyes?’
Says the Lord of hosts.

“Thus says the Lord of hosts:

‘Behold, (J)I will save My people from the land of the [f]east
And from the land of the [g]west;
I will (K)bring them back,
And they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem.
(L)They shall be My people
And I will be their God,
(M)In truth and righteousness.’

“Thus says the Lord of hosts:

(N)‘Let your hands be strong,
You who have been hearing in these days
These words by the mouth of (O)the prophets,
Who spoke in (P)the day the foundation was laid
For the house of the Lord of hosts,
That the temple might be built.
10 For before these days
There were no (Q)wages for man nor any hire for beast;
There was no peace from the enemy for whoever went out or came in;
For I set all men, everyone, against his neighbor.

11 (R)But now I will not treat the remnant of this people as in the former days,’ says the Lord of hosts.

12 ‘For(S) the [h]seed shall be prosperous,
The vine shall give its fruit,
(T)The ground shall give her increase,
And (U)the heavens shall give their dew—
I will cause the remnant of this people
To possess all these.
13 And it shall come to pass
That just as you were (V)a curse among the nations,
O house of Judah and house of Israel,
So I will save you, and (W)you shall be a blessing.
Do not fear,
Let your hands be strong.’

14 “For thus says the Lord of hosts:

(X)‘Just as I determined to [i]punish you
When your fathers provoked Me to wrath,’
Says the Lord of hosts,
(Y)‘And I would not relent,
15 So again in these days
I am determined to do good
To Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.
Do not fear.
16 These are the things you shall (Z)do:
(AA)Speak each man the truth to his neighbor;
Give judgment in your gates for truth, justice, and peace;
17 (AB)Let none of you think evil in [j]your heart against your neighbor;
And do not love a false oath.
For all these are things that I hate,’
Says the Lord.”

18 Then the word of the Lord of hosts came to me, saying, 19 “Thus says the Lord of hosts:

(AC)‘The fast of the fourth month,
(AD)The fast of the fifth,
(AE)The fast of the seventh,
(AF)And the fast of the tenth,
Shall be (AG)joy and gladness and cheerful feasts
For the house of Judah.
(AH)Therefore love truth and peace.’

20 “Thus says the Lord of hosts:

‘Peoples shall yet come,
Inhabitants of many cities;
21 The inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying,
(AI)“Let us continue to go and pray before the Lord,
And seek the Lord of hosts.
I myself will go also.”
22 Yes, (AJ)many peoples and strong nations
Shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem,
And to pray before the Lord.’

23 “Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘In those days ten men (AK)from every language of the nations shall (AL)grasp the [k]sleeve of a Jewish man, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard (AM)that God is with you.” ’ ”

Footnotes

  1. Zechariah 8:2 Or jealous
  2. Zechariah 8:2 Or jealousy
  3. Zechariah 8:2 Lit. heat or rage
  4. Zechariah 8:4 Lit. many days
  5. Zechariah 8:6 Or wonderful
  6. Zechariah 8:7 Lit. rising sun
  7. Zechariah 8:7 Lit. setting sun
  8. Zechariah 8:12 Lit. seed of peace
  9. Zechariah 8:14 Lit. bring calamity to you
  10. Zechariah 8:17 Lit. his
  11. Zechariah 8:23 Lit. wing, corner of a garment

The Coming Peace and Prosperity of Zion

Then the word of the Lord of hosts came [to me], saying, “Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘I am [a]jealous for Zion with great jealousy [demanding what is rightfully and uniquely mine], and I am jealous for her with great wrath [against her enemies].’ Thus says the Lord, ‘I shall return to Zion and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem, and Jerusalem shall be called the [faithful] City of Truth, and the mountain of the Lord of hosts will be called the Holy Mountain.’ Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Old men and old women will again sit in the [b]streets (public places) of Jerusalem, each man with his staff in his hand because of his advanced age. And the streets of the city will be filled with boys and girls playing in its streets.’ Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘If it is difficult in the eyes of the remnant of this people in those days [in which this comes to pass], will it also be difficult in My sight?’ declares the Lord of hosts.(A) Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Behold, I am going to save My people from the east country and from the west,(B) and I will bring them home and they will live in the midst of Jerusalem; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God in truth (faithfulness) and in righteousness.’

“Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Let your hands be strong, you who in these days hear these words from the mouths of the prophets who, on the day that the foundation of the house of the Lord of hosts was laid, foretold that the temple might be rebuilt. 10 For before those days there were no wages for man or animal; nor was there any peace or success for him who went out or came in because of his enemies, for I set all men against one another. 11 But now [in this time since you began to build] I will not treat the remnant of this people as in the former days,’ declares the Lord of hosts. 12 ‘For there the seed will produce peace and prosperity; the vine will yield its fruit, and the ground will produce its increase, and the heavens will give their dew. And I will cause the remnant of this people to inherit and possess all these things. 13 And as you have been a curse among the nations, O house of Judah (Southern Kingdom) and house of Israel (Northern Kingdom), so I will save you, that you may be a blessing. Fear not; let your hands be strong.’(C)

14 “For thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Just as I planned to do harm to you when your fathers provoked Me to wrath,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘and I did not relent, 15 so I have again planned in these days to do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. Do not fear! 16 These are the things which you should do: speak the truth with one another; judge with truth and pronounce the judgment that brings peace in [the courts at] your gates.(D) 17 And let none of you devise or even imagine evil in your heart against another, and do not love lying or half-truths; for all these things I hate,’ declares the Lord.”

18 Then the word of the Lord of hosts came to me (Zechariah), saying, 19 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘The fast of the fourth [month to mourn the breaching of Jerusalem’s walls], the fast of the fifth [month to mourn the temple’s destruction], the fast of the seventh [month to mourn Gedaliah’s assassination], and the fast of the tenth [month to mourn the siege of Jerusalem] will become times of joy and gladness and cheerful feasts for the house of Judah; so [to bring this about] love truth and peace.’(E)

20 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘It will come to pass that peoples and the inhabitants of many cities will come [to Jerusalem]. 21 The inhabitants of one [city] will go to another, saying, “Let us go at once to ask the favor of the Lord and to seek the Lord of hosts. I will go also.” 22 So many peoples and powerful nations will come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem and to ask the Lord for His favor.’ 23 Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘In those days ten men [as representatives] from all the nations will grasp the robe of a Jew, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”’”

Footnotes

  1. Zechariah 8:2 “There is no implication of envy in the ‘jealousy’ of God, but rather the boundless enthusiasm of the Lord which loves holiness, hates sin, brings judgment upon sinners, and intervenes on behalf of His godly ones.” Charles Feinberg, God Remembers.
  2. Zechariah 8:4 The Hebrew word refers to broad, spread-out spaces such as wide streets, squares, plazas, public parks, and so throughout.

The Lord Promises to Bless Jerusalem

The word of the Lord Almighty came to me.

This is what the Lord Almighty says: “I am very jealous(A) for Zion; I am burning with jealousy for her.”

This is what the Lord says: “I will return(B) to Zion(C) and dwell in Jerusalem.(D) Then Jerusalem will be called the Faithful City,(E) and the mountain(F) of the Lord Almighty will be called the Holy Mountain.(G)

This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Once again men and women of ripe old age will sit in the streets of Jerusalem,(H) each of them with cane in hand because of their age. The city streets will be filled with boys and girls playing there.(I)

This is what the Lord Almighty says: “It may seem marvelous to the remnant of this people at that time,(J) but will it seem marvelous to me?(K)” declares the Lord Almighty.

This is what the Lord Almighty says: “I will save my people from the countries of the east and the west.(L) I will bring them back(M) to live(N) in Jerusalem; they will be my people,(O) and I will be faithful and righteous to them as their God.(P)

This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Now hear these words, ‘Let your hands be strong(Q) so that the temple may be built.’ This is also what the prophets(R) said who were present when the foundation(S) was laid for the house of the Lord Almighty. 10 Before that time there were no wages(T) for people or hire for animals. No one could go about their business safely(U) because of their enemies, since I had turned everyone against their neighbor. 11 But now I will not deal with the remnant of this people as I did in the past,”(V) declares the Lord Almighty.

12 “The seed will grow well, the vine will yield its fruit,(W) the ground will produce its crops,(X) and the heavens will drop their dew.(Y) I will give all these things as an inheritance(Z) to the remnant of this people.(AA) 13 Just as you, Judah and Israel, have been a curse[a](AB) among the nations, so I will save(AC) you, and you will be a blessing.[b](AD) Do not be afraid,(AE) but let your hands be strong.(AF)

14 This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Just as I had determined to bring disaster(AG) on you and showed no pity when your ancestors angered me,” says the Lord Almighty, 15 “so now I have determined to do good(AH) again to Jerusalem and Judah.(AI) Do not be afraid. 16 These are the things you are to do: Speak the truth(AJ) to each other, and render true and sound judgment(AK) in your courts;(AL) 17 do not plot evil(AM) against each other, and do not love to swear falsely.(AN) I hate all this,” declares the Lord.

18 The word of the Lord Almighty came to me.

19 This is what the Lord Almighty says: “The fasts of the fourth,(AO) fifth,(AP) seventh(AQ) and tenth(AR) months will become joyful(AS) and glad occasions and happy festivals for Judah. Therefore love truth(AT) and peace.”

20 This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Many peoples and the inhabitants of many cities will yet come, 21 and the inhabitants of one city will go to another and say, ‘Let us go at once to entreat(AU) the Lord and seek(AV) the Lord Almighty. I myself am going.’ 22 And many peoples and powerful nations will come to Jerusalem to seek the Lord Almighty and to entreat him.”(AW)

23 This is what the Lord Almighty says: “In those days ten people from all languages and nations will take firm hold of one Jew by the hem of his robe and say, ‘Let us go with you, because we have heard that God is with you.’”(AX)

Footnotes

  1. Zechariah 8:13 That is, your name has been used in cursing (see Jer. 29:22); or, you have been regarded as under a curse.
  2. Zechariah 8:13 Or and your name will be used in blessings (see Gen. 48:20); or and you will be seen as blessed