Therefore say thou unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn ye unto me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the LORD of hosts.

"Do not be like your ancestors, to whom the former prophets called out, saying, 'The Lord who rules over all says, "Turn now from your evil wickedness,"' but they would by no means obey me," says the Lord.

But have my words and statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, not outlived your fathers? Then they paid attention and confessed, 'The Lord who rules over all has indeed done what he said he would do to us, because of our sinful ways.'"

Then said I, O my lord, what are these? And the angel that talked with me said unto me, I will shew thee what these be.

And the man standing between the myrtles will answer and say, These which Jehovah sent to go about in the earth.

And they answered the angel of the LORD that stood among the myrtle trees, and said, We have walked to and fro through the earth, and, behold, all the earth sitteth still, and is at rest.

Then the Angel of the Lord said, “O Lord of hosts, how long will You withhold mercy and compassion from Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, against which You have had indignation and anger these seventy years [of the Babylonian captivity]?”

And Jehovah will answer the messenger speaking with me good words, consoling words.

Turning to me, the messenger then said, "Cry out that the Lord who rules over all says, 'I am very much moved for Jerusalem and for Zion.

But I am very angry with the nations who are at ease and feel secure; for while I was only a little angry, they furthered the disaster [against the people of Israel].”

Therefore, thus says Yahweh: "I have returned to Jerusalem with compassion. My temple will be built in it," {declares} Yahweh of hosts, "and a measuring line will be stretched out over Jerusalem." '

Proclaim again, saying, 'Thus says Yahweh of hosts: "My cities shall again overflow from prosperity, and Yahweh will comfort Zion again, and he will choose Jerusalem again." '"

And saying to the messenger speaking with me, What these? And he will say to me, These the horns which scattered Judah, and Israel, and Jerusalem.

Then said I, 'What will these do?' He answered, and said, 'Those are the horns, which have so strawed Judah abroad, that no man durst lift up his head: But these are come to fray them away, and to cast out the horns of the Gentiles, which lift up their horn over the land of Judah, to scatter it abroad.'

And saying, Whither goest thou? And he will say to me, To measure Jerusalem, to see according to what its breadth, and according to what its length.

He said to him, “Run and tell this young man: Jerusalem will be inhabited without walls because of the number of people and livestock in it.”

For I, saith the LORD, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and will be the glory in the midst of her.

For the Lord who rules over all says to me that for his own glory he has sent me to the nations that plundered you -- for anyone who touches you touches the pupil of his eye.

For, behold, I will shake mine hand upon them, and they shall be a spoil to their servants: and ye shall know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me.

Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion: for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the LORD.

And many nations shall be joined to the LORD in that day, and shall be my people: and I will dwell in the midst of thee, and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto thee.

And Yahweh will inherit Judah [as] his portion {in the holy land}, and he will again choose Jerusalem.

Be silent, O all flesh, before the LORD: for he is raised up out of his holy habitation.

And he will cause me to see Joshua the great priest standing before the messenger of Jehovah, and the adversary standing upon his right hand for his adversary.

And Jehovah will say to the adversary, And Jehovah will rebuke in thee, thou adversary: and Jehovah having chosen in Jerusalem will rebuke in thee: is not this a fire-brand snatched from the fire?

And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment.

Then I said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.” So a clean turban was placed on his head, and they clothed him in garments while the Angel of the Lord was standing nearby.

And the messenger of Jehovah will protest to Joshua, saying,

Thus saith the LORD of hosts; If thou wilt walk in my ways, and if thou wilt keep my charge, then thou shalt also judge my house, and shalt also keep my courts, and I will give thee places to walk among these that stand by.

Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, thou, and thy fellows that sit before thee: for they are men wondered at: for, behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH.

For behold the stone that I have laid before Joshua; upon one stone shall be seven eyes: behold, I will engrave the graving thereof, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.

On that day,' {declares} Yahweh of hosts, 'you will invite {one another} under [the] vine and under [the] fig tree.'"

And the messenger speaking with me will turn back and rouse me up as a man that will be roused from his sleep.

And said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof:

And there are two olive trees by it, one on the right side of the bowl and the other on its left side [supplying it continuously with oil].”

And the messenger speaking with me will answer and say to me, Knewest thou not what these are? And saying, No, my lord.

Then he said to me, “This [continuous supply of oil] is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel [prince of Judah], saying, ‘Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit [of whom the oil is a symbol],’ says the Lord of hosts.

'Who [are] you O great mountain? {Before} Zerubbabel [you will become] level ground, and he will bring out the top stone amid the shouts of "Grace, grace to it!" '"

And the word of Jehovah will be to me, saying,

"The hands of Zerubbabel have founded this house, and his hands will finish it. And you will know that Yahweh of hosts has sent me to you.

For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth.

And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves?

And he will say to me, saying, Knewest thou not what these are? And saying, No, my lord.

Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth.

And he will say to me, What seest thou? And saying, I see a roll flying; its length twenty by the cubit, and its breadth, ten by the cubit

Then said he unto me, This is the curse that goeth forth over the face of the whole earth: for every one that stealeth shall be cut off as on this side according to it; and every one that sweareth shall be cut off as on that side according to it.

I will bring it forth, saith the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him that sweareth falsely by my name: and it shall remain in the midst of his house, and shall consume it with the timber thereof and the stones thereof.

And the messenger speaking with me will go forth and say to me, Lift up now thine eyes and see what this going forth.

And I said, What is it? And he said, This is an ephah that goeth forth. He said moreover, This is their resemblance through all the earth.

And he will say, This injustice. And he will cast her into the midst of the ephah; and he will cast a stone of lead upon its mouth.

And I shall lift up mine eyes and see, and behold, two women will come forth, and the wind in their wings; and to them wings as the wings of the stork; and they shall lift up the ephah between the earth and between the heavens.

Then spake I to the angel that talked with me, 'Whither will these bear the measure?'

And he said to me, "To build for it a house in the land of Shinar, and [when] it is put in place, it will be placed there on its site."

the third chariot white horses, and the fourth chariot dappled horses—all strong horses.

And the angel answered and said unto me, These are the four spirits of the heavens, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth.

{The one with} the black horses [is] going out to [the] north country, and the white [horses] go after them, while the dappled [ones] go to the south country."

All these strong ones are scattering; they have sought permission to go and walk about over the earth." The Lord had said, "Go! Walk about over the earth!" So they are doing so.

And he will cry out with me, and speak to me, saying, See them going forth to the land of the north; they caused my spirit to rest in the land of the north.

And the word of Jehovah will be to me, saying,

"Collect from the exiles--from Heldai, Tobijah, and from Jedaiah, [all of] whom came from Babylon--and go on that day, go [to the] house of Josiah son of Zephaniah.

And say to him, 'Thus says Yahweh of hosts: "Look, [here is] a man whose name [is] Branch, and from his place he will sprout, and he will build the temple of Yahweh.

And he will build the temple of Yahweh, and he will bear majesty and will sit and rule on his throne. And he shall be a priest on his throne, and the counsel of peace will be between the two of them." '

And the crown will be for Helem, for Tobijah, for Jedaiah, and for Hen son of Zephaniah, as a memorial in the temple of Yahweh.

And they that are far off shall come and build in the temple of the LORD, and ye shall know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto you. And this shall come to pass, if ye will diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God.

And it will be in the fourth year to Darius the king, the word of Jehovah was to Zechariah in the fourth to the ninth month, in Chisleu;

Now they of Beth-el had sent Sharezer and Regem-melech, and their men, to entreat the favor of Jehovah,

by asking the priests who were at the house of the Lord of Hosts as well as the prophets, “Should we mourn and fast in the fifth month as we have done these many years?”

The word of the Lord who rules over all then came to me,

Speak unto all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying, When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh month, even those seventy years, did ye at all fast unto me, even to me?

Should ye not have been doing the things which Yahweh, had proclaimed, by the hand of the former prophets, while yet Jerusalem was inhabited and in peace, with her cities round about her, - and the South and the Lowland were inhabited?

And the word of Jehovah will be to Zechariah, saying,

"The Lord who rules over all said, 'Exercise true judgment and show brotherhood and compassion to each other.

And they will refuse to attend, and they will give a stubborn shoulder, and their ears they made heavy from hearing.

Indeed, they made their heart as hard as diamond, so that they could not obey the Torah and the other words the Lord who rules over all had sent by his Spirit through the former prophets. Therefore, the Lord who rules over all had poured out great wrath.

And it is come to pass that, as he cried, and they would not hear, so they shall cry, and I will not hear, said Jehovah of hosts;

But I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations whom they knew not. Thus the land was desolate after them, that no man passed through nor returned: for they laid the pleasant land desolate.

Then the word of the Lord who rules over all came to me as follows:

"The Lord who rules over all says, 'I am very much concerned for Zion; indeed, I am so concerned for her that my rage will fall on those who hurt her.'

Thus saith the LORD; I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called a city of truth; and the mountain of the LORD of hosts the holy mountain.

The Lord of Hosts says this: “Old men and women will again sit along the streets of Jerusalem, each with a staff in hand because of advanced age.

And the public squares of the city will be filled [with] boys and girls playing in its public squares.'

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.

Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will save my people from the east country, and from the west country;

And I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness.

"The Lord who rules over all also says, 'Gather strength, you who are listening to these words today from the mouths of the prophets who were there at the founding of the house of the Lord who rules over all, so that the temple might be built.

For before these days there was no hire for man, nor any hire for beast; neither was there any peace to him that went out or came in because of the affliction: for I set all men every one against his neighbour.

But now I will not be unto the residue of this people as in the former days, saith the LORD of hosts.

For the seed shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things.

And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel; so will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing: fear not, but let your hands be strong.

"For the Lord who rules over all says, 'As I had planned to hurt you when your fathers made me angry,' says the Lord who rules over all, 'and I was not sorry,

So again have I thought in these days to do well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah: fear ye not.

And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the LORD.

The word of the Lord who rules over all came to me as follows:

"Thus says Yahweh of hosts: 'The fast of the fourth [month], the fifth [month], the seventh [month], and the tenth [month] will be for the house of Judah jubilation and joy and merry festivals; therefore love truth and peace.'

Thus says Yahweh of hosts: '[It will happen] again that nations and the inhabitants of many cities will come.

And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the LORD, and to seek the LORD of hosts: I will go also.

And many peoples and powerful nations will come to seek Yahweh of hosts in Jerusalem, and to entreat {the favor of} Yahweh.'

Thus saith the LORD of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.

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.

and also against Hamath, which borders it,
as well as Tyre and Sidon,
though they are very shrewd.