Oct 7 - Zechariah 1-7

¹In the eighth month, in the second year of king Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, the prophet, saying²The Lord has become angry over the resentful anger of your fathers³And you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord of hosts: Turn to me, says the Lord of hosts, and I will turn to you, says the Lord of hosts⁴Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets cried out, saying: Thus says the Lord of hosts: Turn from your evil ways and from your wicked thoughts. But they did not heed, and neither did they pay attention to me, says the Lord⁵Your fathers, where are they? And will the prophets live unceasingly⁶Yet truly my words and my lawfulness, which I entrusted to my servants the prophets, were indeed comprehended by your fathers, and so they were converted, and they said: Just as the Lord of hosts decided to do to us, according to our ways and according to our inventions, so has he done to us⁷On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, which is called Shevat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, the prophet, saying⁸I saw by night, and behold, a man riding on a red horse, and he stood among the myrtle trees, which were in the chasm. And behind him were horses: red, speckled, and white⁹And I said, "What are these, my lord?" And the angel, who was speaking with me, said to me, "I will reveal to you what these are.¹⁰And the man that stood among the myrtle trees answered and said, "These are they, whom the Lord has sent in order to walk through the earth.¹¹And those who stood among the myrtle trees answered the angel of the Lord, and they said, "We have walked through the earth, and behold, all the earth is inhabited and is at rest.¹²And the angel of the Lord answered and said, "Lord of hosts, how long will you not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, with which you have been angry? This is now the seventieth year.¹³And the Lord answered the angel, who had been speaking with me, good words, consoling words¹⁴And the angel, who was speaking with me, said to me: Cry out, saying: Thus says the Lord of hosts: I have been zealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great zeal¹⁵And, with a great anger, I am angry with the wealthy nations. Though I had been angry a little, truly they advanced further in evil¹⁶Because of this, thus says the Lord: I will be turned back, towards Jerusalem, with mercies; and my house will be built upon this, says the Lord of hosts. And the building line will be extended over Jerusalem¹⁷Until then, cry out saying: Thus says the Lord of hosts: Until then, my cities will flow with good things, and, until then, the Lord will comfort Zion, and, until then, he will single out Jerusalem¹⁸And I lifted up my eyes, and I saw. And behold: four horns¹⁹And I said to the angel, who was speaking with me, "What are these?" And he said to me, "These are the horns that have winnowed Judah and Israel and Jerusalem.²⁰And the Lord showed me four workmen²¹And I said, "What have these come to do?" He spoke, saying, "These are the horns that have winnowed Judah, through every single man, and none of them lifted up his head. And these have come to frighten them away, so as to cast down the horns of the Gentiles, which have lifted up a horn over the land of Judah, so as to scatter it.

Chapter 2

¹And I lifted up my eyes, and I saw, and behold, a man, and in his hand was a measuring line²And I said, "Where are you going?" And he said to me, "To measure Jerusalem, so that I may see how great its width and how great its length may be.³And behold, the angel, who had been speaking with me, departed, and another angel went out to meet him⁴And he said to him: Hurry, speak to this young man, saying: Jerusalem will be inhabited without walls, because of the multitude of men and beasts of burden in its midst⁵And I will be to it, says the Lord, a wall of fire all around. And in glory, I will be in its midst⁶O, O flee from the land of the North, says the Lord, for I have scattered you into the four winds of heaven, says the Lord⁷O Zion, flee, you who dwell with the daughter of Babylon⁸For thus says the Lord of hosts: After the glory, he has sent me to the Gentiles, which have despoiled you. For he who touches you, touches the pupil of my eye⁹For behold, I lift up my hand over them, and they will be a prey to those who had served them. And you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me¹⁰Sing praise and rejoice, daughter of Zion. For behold, I approach, and I will dwell in your midst, says the Lord¹¹And many nations will be joined to the Lord in that day, and they will be my people, and I will dwell in your midst. And you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you¹²And the Lord will possess his portion, Judah, in the sanctified land, and still he will single out Jerusalem¹³Let all flesh be silent before the face of the Lord: for he has arisen from his holy dwelling place

Chapter 3

¹And the Lord revealed to me: Jesus the high priest, standing in the sight of the angel of the Lord. And Satan stood before his right hand, so as to be his adversary²And the Lord said to Satan, "May the Lord rebuke you, Satan! And may the Lord, who chose Jerusalem, rebuke you! Are you not a firebrand plucked from the fire?³And Jesus was clothed with filthy garments. And he stood before the face of an angel⁴He answered and spoke to those who stood before him, saying, "Take away the filthy garments from him." And he said to him, "Behold, I have taken away from you your iniquity, and I have clothed you with a change of clothing.⁵And he said, "Place a clean diadem on his head." And they placed a clean diadem on his head, and they clothed him with garments. And the angel of the Lord remained standing⁶And the angel of the Lord contested with Jesus, saying⁷Thus says the Lord of hosts: If you will walk in my ways and keep my charge, you likewise will judge my house and will keep my courts, and I will give you some of those who now attend here to walk with you⁸Listen, Jesus the high priest, you and your friends, who dwell before you, who have been portending to men. For behold, I will lead my servant to the East⁹For behold, the stone that I have bestowed before Jesus. Upon one stone, there are seven eyes. Behold, I will carve its engraving, says the Lord of hosts. And I will take away the iniquity of that land in one day¹⁰On that day, says the Lord of hosts, every man will call his friend from under the vine and from under the fig tree

Chapter 4

¹And the angel who had been speaking with me returned, and he awakened me, like a man who is awakened from his sleep²And he said to me, "What do you see?" And I said, "I looked, and behold, a candlestick entirely in gold, and its lamp was at its top, and seven oil lamps of it were upon it, and there were seven funnels for the oil lamps that were at its top³And there were two olive trees upon it: one to the right of the lamp, and one to its left.⁴And I answered and spoke to the angel who was speaking with me, saying, "What are these, my lord?⁵And the angel who was speaking with me answered, and he said to me, "Do you not know what these are?" And I said, "No, my lord.⁶And he answered and spoke to me, saying: This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel, saying: Not by an army, nor by might, but in my spirit, says the Lord of hosts⁷What are you, great mountain, in the sight of Zerubbabel? You are among the plains. And he will lead out the primary stone, and he will give equal grace to its grace⁸And the word of the Lord came to me, saying⁹The hand of Zerubbabel has founded this house, and his hands will complete it. And you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you¹⁰For who has despised the little days? And they will rejoice and will see the silver and lead stone in the hand of Zerubbabel. These are the seven eyes of the Lord, which roam quickly through all the earth¹¹And I responded and said to him, "What are these two olive trees to the right of the candlestick, and to its left?¹²And I responded a second time and said to him, "What are the two olive branches, which are next to the two golden ridges, in which are the pouring spouts of gold?¹³And he spoke to me, saying, "Do you not know what these are?" And I said, "No, my lord.¹⁴And he said, "These are the two sons of oil, who attend before the Sovereign of all the earth.

Chapter 5

¹And I turned and lifted up my eyes. And I saw, and behold, a book flying²And he said to me, "What do you see?" And I said, "I see a book flying. Its length is twenty cubits, and its width is ten cubits.³And he said to me, "This is the curse that goes forth over the face of the whole earth. For every thief will be judged, just as it has been written there, and everyone who swears by this, will be judged in like manner.⁴I will bring it forth, says the Lord of hosts, and it will approach to the house of the thief, and to the house of him who swears falsely by my name, and it will remain in the midst of his house and will consume it, with its wood and its stones⁵And the angel had departed, who was speaking with me. And he said to me, "Lift up your eyes, and see what this is, that goes forth.⁶And I said, "What, then, is it?" And he said, "This is a container going forth." And he said, "This is their eye in all the earth.⁷And behold, a talent of lead was being carried; and behold, one woman sitting in the middle of the container⁸And he said, "This is impiety." And he cast her into the middle of the container, and he sent the weight of lead into its mouth⁹And I lifted up my eyes and I saw. And behold, two women were departing, and a spirit was in their wings, and they had wings like the wings of a kite, and they lifted up the container between earth and heaven¹⁰And I said to the angel who was speaking with me, "Where are they taking the container?¹¹And he said to me, "To a house that may be built for it in the land of Shinar, and so that it may be established and set there upon its own base.

Chapter 6

¹And I turned, and I lifted up my eyes and I saw. And behold, four four-horse chariots went out from the middle of two mountains. And the mountains were mountains of brass²In the first chariot were red horses, and in the second chariot were black horses³and in the third chariot were white horses, and in the fourth chariot were speckled horses, and they were strong⁴And I responded and said to the angel who was speaking with me, "What are these, my lord?⁵And the angel answered and said to me, "These are the four winds of heaven, which go forth to stand in the presence of the Sovereign of all the earth.⁶The one with the black horses was departing into the land of the North, and the white went forth after them, and the speckled went forth towards the land of the South⁷Yet those who were the most strong, went out, and sought to go and to roam quickly through all the earth. And he said, "Go, walk throughout the earth." And they walked throughout the earth⁸And he called me and spoke with me, saying, "Behold, those who go forth to the land of the North, have quieted my spirit in the land of the North.⁹And the word of the Lord came to me, saying¹⁰From those of the captivity, take from Heldai, and from Tobijah, and from Jedaiah. You will approach in that day, and you will go into the house of Josiah, the son of Zephaniah, who came from Babylon¹¹And you will take gold and silver; and you will make crowns, and you will set them on the head of Jesus the son of Jehozadak, the high priest¹²And you will speak to him, saying: Thus says the Lord of hosts, saying: Behold, a man; the Rising is his name. And under him, he will rise up, and he will build a temple to the Lord¹³And he will raise a temple to the Lord. And he will carry the glory, and he will sit and rule upon his throne. And he will be a priest upon his throne, and a counsel of peace will be between the two of them¹⁴And the crowns will be to Heldai, and Tobijah, and Jedaiah, as well as to Hem, the son of Zephaniah, as a memorial in the temple of the Lord¹⁵And those who are far away, will approach, and will build in the temple of the Lord. And you will know that the Lord of hosts sent me to you. Yet this shall be only if, when hearing, you will have heeded the voice of the Lord your God

Chapter 7

¹And it happened, in the fourth year of king Darius, that the word of the Lord came to Zechariah, on the fourth day of the ninth month, which is Kislev²And Sharezer and Regemmelech, and the men who were with them, sent to the house of God, to entreat the face of the Lord³to speak to the priests of the house of the Lord of hosts and to the prophets, saying: "Must there be weeping with me in the fifth month, and must I sanctify myself, as I have now done for many years?⁴And the word of the Lord of hosts came to me, saying⁵Speak to all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying: Although you may have fasted and mourned in the fifth and the seventh month for these seventy years, did you indeed keep a fast unto me⁶And when you did eat and drink, did you not eat for yourselves, and drink only for yourselves⁷Are not these the words that the Lord has spoken by the hand of the former prophets, when Jerusalem was still inhabited, so that it would prosper, itself and the cities around it, and those inhabitants towards the South and in the plains⁸And the word of the Lord came to Zechariah, saying⁹Thus says the Lord of hosts, saying: Judge with true judgment, and act with mercy and compassion, each and every one with his brother¹⁰And do not find fault with the widow, and the orphan, and the newcomer, and the poor. And let not a man consider evil in his heart towards his brother¹¹But they were not willing to pay attention, and they turned aside their shoulder to depart, and they pressed upon their ears, so that they would not hear¹²And they set their heart like the hardest stone, so that they would not hear the law and the words that the Lord of hosts has sent with his Spirit by the hand of the former prophets. And so a great indignation came from Lord of hosts¹³And it happened, just as he had spoken, and they did not pay attention. So then, they shall cry out, and I will not heed, says the Lord of hosts¹⁴And I dispersed them throughout all the kingdoms that they did not know. And the land was left desolate behind them, so that no one was passing through or returning. And they made the desirable land into a deserted place