Zechariah 8

1 And the word of Jehovah of hosts came to me, saying,2 Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: I am jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I am jealous for her with great wrath.3 Thus saith Jehovah: I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called The city of truth; and the mountain of Jehovah of hosts, The holy mountain.4 Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: There shall yet old men and old women dwell in the streets of Jerusalem, every man with his staff in his hand for very age.5 And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof.6 Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in those days, should it also be marvellous in mine eyes? saith Jehovah of hosts.7 Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Behold, I will save my people from the east country, and from the west country;8 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.9 Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Let your hands be strong, ye that hear in these days these words from the mouth of the prophets that were in the day that the foundation of the house of Jehovah of hosts was laid, even the temple, that it might be built.10 For before those 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 adversary: for I set all men every one against his neighbor.11 But now I will not be unto the remnant of this people as in the former days, saith Jehovah of hosts.12 For there shall be the seed of peace; the vine shall give its fruit, and the ground shall give its increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to inherit all these things.13 And it shall come to pass that, as ye were a curse among the nations, 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.14 For thus saith Jehovah of hosts: As I thought to do evil unto you, when your fathers provoked me to wrath, saith Jehovah of hosts, and I repented not;15 so again have I thought in these days to do good unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah: fear ye not.16 These are the things that ye shall do: speak ye every man the truth with his neighbor; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates;17 and let none of you devise evil in your hearts against his neighbor; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith Jehovah.18 And the word of Jehovah of hosts came unto me, saying,19 Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: The fast of the fourth month, and the fast of the fifth, and the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall be to the house of Judah joy and gladness, and cheerful feasts; therefore love truth and peace.20 Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come peoples, and the inhabitants of many cities;21 and the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to entreat the favor of Jehovah, and to seek Jehovah of hosts: I will go also.22 Yea, many peoples and strong nations shall come to seek Jehovah of hosts in Jerusalem, and to entreat the favor of Jehovah.23 Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold, out of all the languages of the nations, they 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.

Zechariah 8

The Blessing of True Fasting

1 Then the word of the Lord who rules over alls came to me as follows:2 “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.’3 The Lord says, ‘I have returned to Zion and will live within Jerusalem.s Now Jerusalem will be called “truthful city,” “mountain of the Lord who rules over all,” “holy mountain.”’4 Moreover, the Lord who rules over all says, ‘Old men and women will once more live in the plazas of Jerusalem, each one leaning on a cane because of advanced age.5 And the streets of the city will be full of boys and girls playing.s

6 And,’ says the Lord who rules over all, ‘though such a thing may seem to be difficult in the opinion of the small community of those days, will it also appear difficult to me?’ asks the Lord who rules over all.
7 “The Lord who rules over all asserts, ‘I am about to save my people from the lands of the east and the west.

8 And I will bring them to settle within Jerusalem. They will be my people, and I will be their God,s in truth and righteousness.’
9 “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,s so that the temple might be built.10 Before that time there was no compensation for man or animal, nor was there any relief from adversity for those who came and went, because I had pitted everybody – each one – against everyone else.11 But I will be different now to this remnant of my people from the way I was in those days,’ says the Lord who rules over all,12 ‘for there will be a peaceful time of sowing, the vine will produce its fruit and the ground its yield, and the skiest will rain down dew. Then I will allow the remnant of my people to possess all these things.

13 And it will come about that just as you (both Judah and Israel) were a curse to the nations, so I will save you and you will be a blessing. Do not be afraid! Instead, be strong!’
14 “For the Lord who rules over all says, ‘As I had planned to hurtt you when your fathers made me angry,’ says the Lord who rules over all, ‘and I was not sorry,15 so, to the contrary, I have planned in these days to do good to Jerusalem and Judah – do not fear!16 These are the things you must do: Speak the truth, each of you, to one another. Practice true and righteous judgment in your courts.s

17 Do not plan evil in your hearts against one another. Do not favor a false oath – these are all things that I hate,’ says the Lord.”
18 The word of the Lord who rules over all came to me as follows:19 “The Lord who rules over all says, ‘The fast of the fourth, fifth, seventh, and tenths months will become joyful and happy, pleasant feasts for the house of Judah, so love truth and peace.’20 The Lord who rules over all says, ‘It will someday come to pass that people – residents of many cities – will come.21 The inhabitants of one will go to another and say, “Let’s go up at once to ask the favor of the Lord, to seek the Lord who rules over all. Indeed, I’ll go with you.”’22 Many peoples and powerful nations will come to Jerusalem to seek the Lord who rules over all and to ask his favor.

23 The Lord who rules over all says, ‘In those days ten people from all languages and nations will grasp hold of – indeed, grab – the robe of one Jew and say, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”’”s