Zechariah 1

1 In the eighth month, in the second year of Darius, a word of YHWH has been to Zechariah, son of Berechiah, son of Iddo the prophet, saying,

In 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, saying:

2 “YHWH was angry against your fathers—wrath!

The Lord has become angry over the resentful anger of your fathers.

3 And you have said to them, Thus said YHWH of Hosts: Return to Me, A declaration of YHWH of Hosts, And I return to you, said YHWH of Hosts.

And 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 hosts.

4 You will not be as your fathers, To whom the former prophets called, Saying, Thus said YHWH of Hosts: Please turn back from your evil ways and from your evil doings, And they did not listen, Nor attend to Me—a declaration of YHWH.

Do 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 Lord.

5 Your fathers—where [are] they? And the prophets—do they live for all time?

Your fathers, where are they? And will the prophets live unceasingly?

6 Only, My words and My statutes, That I commanded My servants the prophets, Have they not overtaken your fathers? And they turn back and say: As YHWH of Hosts designed to do to us, According to our ways, and according to our doings, So He has done to us.”

Yet 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 us.

7 On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month (it [is] the month of Sebat), in the second year of Darius, a word of YHWH has been to Zechariah, son of Berechiah, son of Iddo the prophet. [He was] saying:

On 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, saying:

8 I have seen by night, and behold, one riding on a red horse, and he is standing between the myrtles that [are] in the shade, and behind him [are] horses, red, bay, and white.

I 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 white.

9 And I say, “What [are] these, my lord?” And the messenger who is speaking with me says to me, “I show you what these [are].”

And 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.”

10 And the one who is standing between the myrtles answers and says, “These [are] they whom YHWH has sent to walk up and down in the land.”

And 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.”

11 And they answer the Messenger of YHWH who is standing between the myrtles, and say, “We have walked up and down in the land, and behold, all the land is sitting still, and at rest.”

And 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.”

12 And the Messenger of YHWH answers and says, “YHWH of Hosts! Until when do You not pity Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, that You have abhorred these seventy years?”

And 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.”

13 And YHWH answers the messenger, who is speaking with me, good words, comfortable words.

And the Lord answered the angel, who had been speaking with me, good words, consoling words.

14 And the messenger who is speaking with me, says to me, “Call, saying, Thus said YHWH of Hosts: I have been zealous for Jerusalem, And for Zion [with] great zeal.

And 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 zeal.

15 And [with] great wrath I am angry against the nations who are at ease, For I was a little angry, and they assisted—for evil.

And, with a great anger, I am angry with the wealthy nations. Though I had been angry a little, truly they advanced further in evil.

16 Therefore, thus said YHWH: I have turned to Jerusalem with mercies, My house is built in it, A declaration of YHWH of Hosts, And a line is stretched over Jerusalem.

Because 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 Jerusalem.

17 Again call, saying, Thus said YHWH of Hosts: Again My cities overflow from good, And YHWH has again comforted Zion, And He has fixed again on Jerusalem.”

Until 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 Jerusalem.

18 And I lift up my eyes, and look, and behold, four horns.

And I lifted up my eyes, and I saw. And behold: four horns.

19 And I say to the messenger who is speaking with me, “What [are] these?” And he says to me, “These [are] the horns that have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”

And 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.”

20 And YHWH shows me four artisans.

And the Lord showed me four workmen.

21 And I say, “What [are] these coming to do?” And He speaks, saying, “These [are] the horns that have scattered Judah, so that no one has lifted up his head, and these come to trouble them, to cast down the horns of the nations who are lifting up a horn against the land of Judah—to scatter it.”

And 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.”