Zechariah 9
New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
Judgment on Israel’s Enemies
9 An Oracle.
The word of the Lord is against the land of Hadrach
and will rest upon Damascus.
For to the Lord belongs the capital[a] of Aram,[b]
as do all the tribes of Israel;
2 Hamath also, which borders on it,
Tyre and Sidon, though they are very wise.
3 Tyre has built itself a rampart,
and heaped up silver like dust,
and gold like the dirt of the streets.
4 But now, the Lord will strip it of its possessions
and hurl its wealth into the sea,
and it shall be devoured by fire.
5 Ashkelon shall see it and be afraid;
Gaza too, and shall writhe in anguish;
Ekron also, because its hopes are withered.
The king shall perish from Gaza;
Ashkelon shall be uninhabited;
6 a mongrel people shall settle in Ashdod,
and I will make an end of the pride of Philistia.
7 I will take away its blood from its mouth,
and its abominations from between its teeth;
it too shall be a remnant for our God;
it shall be like a clan in Judah,
and Ekron shall be like the Jebusites.
8 Then I will encamp at my house as a guard,
so that no one shall march to and fro;
no oppressor shall again overrun them,
for now I have seen with my own eyes.
The Coming Ruler of God’s People
9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion!
Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem!
Lo, your king comes to you;
triumphant and victorious is he,
humble and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
10 He[c] will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
and the war-horse from Jerusalem;
and the battle bow shall be cut off,
and he shall command peace to the nations;
his dominion shall be from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
11 As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you,
I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.
12 Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope;
today I declare that I will restore to you double.
13 For I have bent Judah as my bow;
I have made Ephraim its arrow.
I will arouse your sons, O Zion,
against your sons, O Greece,
and wield you like a warrior’s sword.
14 Then the Lord will appear over them,
and his arrow go forth like lightning;
the Lord God will sound the trumpet
and march forth in the whirlwinds of the south.
15 The Lord of hosts will protect them,
and they shall devour and tread down the slingers;[d]
they shall drink their blood[e] like wine,
and be full like a bowl,
drenched like the corners of the altar.
16 On that day the Lord their God will save them
for they are the flock of his people;
for like the jewels of a crown
they shall shine on his land.
17 For what goodness and beauty are his!
Grain shall make the young men flourish,
and new wine the young women.
Footnotes
- Zechariah 9:1 Heb eye
- Zechariah 9:1 Cn: Heb of Adam (or of humankind)
- Zechariah 9:10 Gk: Heb I
- Zechariah 9:15 Cn: Heb the slingstones
- Zechariah 9:15 Gk: Heb shall drink
Zechariah 9
Contemporary English Version
Israel's Enemies Will Be Punished
9 (A)(B) This is a message
from the Lord:
His eyes are on everyone,
especially the tribes
of Israel.[a]
So he pronounces judgment
against the cities
of Hadrach and Damascus.[b]
2 Judgment will also fall
on the nearby city
of Hamath,
as well as on Tyre and Sidon,[c]
whose people are clever.
3 Tyre has built a fortress
and piled up silver and gold,
as though they were dust
or mud from the streets.
4 Now the Lord will punish Tyre
with poverty;
he will sink its ships
and send it up in flames.
5 (C) Both Ashkelon and Gaza
will tremble with fear;
Ekron will lose all hope.
Gaza's king will be killed,
and Ashkelon emptied
of its people.
6 A mob of half-breeds
will settle in Ashdod,[d]
and the Lord himself
will rob Philistia of pride.
7 No longer will the Philistines
eat meat with blood in it
or any unclean food.[e]
They will become part
of the people of our God
from the tribe of Judah.
And God will accept
the people of Ekron,
as he did the Jebusites.[f]
8 God says, “I will stand guard
to protect my temple from those
who come to attack.
I know what's happening,
and no one will mistreat
my people ever again.”
The Lord Tells about the Coming King
9 (D) Everyone in Jerusalem,
celebrate and shout!
Your king has won a victory,
and he is coming to you.
He is humble
and rides on a donkey;
he comes on the colt
of a donkey.
10 (E) I, the Lord, will take away
war chariots and horses
from Israel[g] and Jerusalem.
Bows that were made for battle
will be broken.
I will bring peace to nations,
and your king will rule
from sea to sea.
His kingdom will reach
from the Euphrates River
across the earth.
The Lord Promises To Rescue Captives
11 (F) When I made a sacred agreement
with you, my people,
we sealed it with blood.[h]
Now some of you are captives
in waterless pits,
but I will come to your rescue
12 and offer you hope.
Return to your fortress,
because today I will reward you
with twice what you had.
13 I will use Judah as my bow
and Israel[i] as my arrow.
I will take the people of Zion
as my sword
and attack the Greeks.
The Lord Will Protect His People
14 Like a cloud, the Lord God
will appear over his people,
and his arrows will flash
like lightning.
God will sound his trumpet
and attack in a whirlwind
from the south.
15 The Lord All-Powerful
will protect his people,
and they will trample down
the sharpshooters
and their slingshots.
They will drink and get rowdy;
they will be as full as a bowl
at the time of sacrifice.
16 The Lord God will save them
on that day,
because they are his people,
and they will shine on his land
like jewels in a crown.
17 How lovely they will be.
Young people will grow there
like grain in a field
or grapes in a vineyard.
Footnotes
- 9.1 His … Israel: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 9.1 Hadrach and Damascus: Hadrach was north of both Damascus (the main city of Syria) and Hamath (verse 2).
- 9.2 Tyre and Sidon: Phoenician cities.
- 9.5,6 Ashkelon and Gaza … Ekron … Ashdod: Philistine cities.
- 9.7 eat … food: The Philistines will become part of Judah and no longer eat meat with blood in it (see Genesis 9.4) or any other forbidden foods (see Leviticus 11.1-23; Deuteronomy 14.3-21).
- 9.7 Jebusites: The original people of Canaan, who lived in Jerusalem before it was captured by David (see 2 Samuel 5.6-10) and were later accepted as part of Israel.
- 9.10 Israel: The Hebrew text has “Ephraim,” the leading tribe of the northern kingdom of Israel, which sometimes stands for the whole kingdom.
- 9.11 agreement … blood: The agreement at Mount Sinai (see Exodus 24.7,8).
- 9.13 Israel: Hebrew “Ephraim” (see the note at 9.10).
Zechariah 9
Authorized (King James) Version
9 The burden of the word of the Lord in the land of Hadrach,
and Damascus shall be the rest thereof:
when the eyes of man, as of all the tribes of Israel, shall be toward the Lord.
2 And Hamath also shall border thereby;
Tyrus, and Zidon, though it be very wise.
3 And Tyrus did build herself a strong hold,
and heaped up silver as the dust,
and fine gold as the mire of the streets.
4 Behold, the Lord will cast her out,
and he will smite her power in the sea;
and she shall be devoured with fire.
5 Ashkelon shall see it, and fear;
Gaza also shall see it, and be very sorrowful,
and Ekron; for her expectation shall be ashamed;
and the king shall perish from Gaza,
and Ashkelon shall not be inhabited.
6 And a bastard shall dwell in Ashdod,
and I will cut off the pride of the Philistines.
7 And I will take away his blood out of his mouth,
and his abominations from between his teeth:
but he that remaineth, even he, shall be for our God,
and he shall be as a governor in Judah,
and Ekron as a Jebusite.
8 And I will encamp about mine house because of the army,
because of him that passeth by,
and because of him that returneth:
and no oppressor shall pass through them any more:
for now have I seen with mine eyes.
9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion;
shout, O daughter of Jerusalem:
behold, thy King cometh unto thee:
he is just, and having salvation;
lowly, and riding upon an ass,
and upon a colt the foal of an ass.
10 And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim,
and the horse from Jerusalem,
and the battle bow shall be cut off:
and he shall speak peace unto the heathen:
and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea,
and from the river even to the ends of the earth.
11 As for thee also, by the blood of thy covenant
I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit wherein is no water.
12 Turn you to the strong hold, ye prisoners of hope:
even to day do I declare that I will render double unto thee;
13 when I have bent Judah for me,
filled the bow with Ephraim,
and raised up thy sons, O Zion, against thy sons, O Greece,
and made thee as the sword of a mighty man.
14 And the Lord shall be seen over them,
and his arrow shall go forth as the lightning:
and the Lord God shall blow the trumpet,
and shall go with whirlwinds of the south.
15 The Lord of hosts shall defend them;
and they shall devour, and subdue with sling stones;
and they shall drink, and make a noise as through wine;
and they shall be filled like bowls,
and as the corners of the altar.
16 And the Lord their God shall save them in that day
as the flock of his people:
for they shall be as the stones of a crown,
lifted up as an ensign upon his land.
17 For how great is his goodness,
and how great is his beauty!
corn shall make the young men cheerful,
and new wine the maids.
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