Zechariah 8
1 And the word of Yahweh of hosts came, saying:
Yahweh gave me [another] message. He said,
2 Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts, I am jealous for Zion with a great jealousy, —Yea, with great wrath, am I jealous for her.
“This is what [I], the Commander of the armies of angels, say: ‘I love [the people of] Jerusalem; I love them very much, and I am very angry with their enemies.’
3 Thus, saith Yahweh, I have returned unto Zion, and will make my habitation in the midst of Jerusalem, —and Jerusalem, shall be called, The city of fidelity, and the mountain of Yahweh of hosts, The mountain of holiness.
So this is what I say: ‘[Some day] I will return to Zion [Hill] and I will live there. [At that time, ] Jerusalem will be called the city [where people] (are faithful to/faithfully obey) me, and [people will say that Zion] Hill [is] holy because it is where the Commander of the armies of angels dwells.’”
4 Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts, Yet shall old men and old women sit in the broadways of Jerusalem, —Yea, each one with his staff in his hand for multitude of days:
The Commander of the armies of angels also says this: “[Some day] old men and old women will again sit along the streets of Jerusalem, each of them holding a cane because of their being very old.
5 And, the broadways of the city, shall be full of boys and girls, —playing in the broadways thereof.
And the city streets with be full of boys and girls playing.”
6 Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts, Because it will be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people, in those days, In mine own eyes also, shall it be marvellous? Demandeth Yahweh of hosts.
The Commander of the armies of angels [also] says this: “[When those things happen, ] it will seem marvelous to the people who are still alive, but it certainly will not [RHQ] seem marvelous to me!”
7 Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts, Behold me! saving my people out of the land of the dawn, —and out of the land of the going in of the sun;
The Commander of the armies of angels [also] says this: “I will rescue my people from countries to the northeast and to the southwest [to which they were forced to go].
8 And I will bring them in, and they shall have their habitation in the midst of Jerusalem, —and shall become my people, and, I, will become their God, In faithfulness and in righteousness.
I will bring them back [to Judah], and they will [again] live in Jerusalem. They will be my people, and I will be their God. I will be faithful [to them] and act righteously [toward them].”
9 Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts, Let your hands be strong, ye who are hearing, in these days, these words, —from the mouth of the prophets who, on the day the house of Yahweh of hosts, was founded, [foretold] that, the temple, should be built: —
The Commander of the armies of angels [also] says this: “When the foundation for my temple was laid, there were prophets there who proclaimed messages [from me]. Some of you heard what those prophets said. [So] be brave/courageous [MTY] [while you are building] the temple, in order that you may [finish] building it.
10 That, before those days, hire for man, could not be obtained, and, hire for beast, was there none, —and, neither to him who went out nor to him who came in, was there success by reason of the danger, Yea I let all men loose, each one against his neighbour.
Before [you started to rebuild the temple], [no one could hire] men or animals [to work for them, because] there was no money to pay for them. And people were afraid to go anywhere because I had caused people to oppose each other, and [they thought that] there were enemies [everywhere].
11 But, now, not as in the former days, am I to this remnant of the people, —Declareth Yahweh of hosts;
But now I will act differently toward [you] people who are still alive, [differently] than I did previously. [That is what I], the Commander of the armies of angels, say.
12 For, the seed, shall be secure—the vine, shall yield her fruit, and the land, yield her increase, and the heavens, yield their dew, —and I will cause this remnant of the people to inherit all these things.
[From now on, ] it will be peaceful when you plant [your seeds], and your grapevines will produce grapes, and good crops will grow in your fields. There will be rain. I will give all those things to [you] people who are still alive.
13 And it shall come to pass that—Just as ye had become a curse among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, So, will I save you, and ye shall become a blessing, —Do not fear, let your hands, be strong.
You [people of] Judah and Israel, [the people of other] nations have cursed you. But I will rescue you, and you will be a blessing [to the people of many nations. So] do not be afraid; work hard [MTY] [to finish building the temple].”
14 For, thus, saith Yahweh of hosts, Just as I planned to bring calamity upon you, when your fathers provoked me, saith Yahweh of hosts, —and I relented not,
The Commander of the armies of angels [also] says this: “When your ancestors caused me to become very angry, I decided to punish them. And I did not change my mind.
15 So, have I again planned, in these days, to do good unto Jerusalem, and unto the house of Judah, —Do not fear!
But now [I will do something different]. I am planning to do good things to [the people of] Jerusalem and [other towns in] Judah. [So] do not be afraid.
16 These, are the things which ye shall do: Speak ye the truth, every man with his neighbour, truth and the sentence of peace, pronounce ye in your gates;
These are the things that you should do: [You should always] tell the truth to each other. In the courts, [your judges must] make decisions according to what is correct and fair.
17 And let, no man, devise, the injury of his neighbour, in your heart, and the oath of falsehood, do not love, —for, all these, are things which I hate, declareth Yahweh.
Do not plan to do evil things to others, and do not falsely promise [to do things that you know that you will not do]. I hate all those things.”
18 And the word of Yahweh of hosts came unto me, saying:
The Commander of the armies of angels spoke to me [again].
19 Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts—The fast of the fourth, and the fast of the fifth, and the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the eleventh, shall become to the house of Judah a gladness and a rejoicing, and pleasant appointed meetings, —But, truth and peace, see that ye love.
This is what he said: “The times when you people of Judah (fast/abstain from food) during the fourth, fifth, seventh, and tenth months [of each year] will become good and very happy/joyful [DOU] festivals. But you must want [to speak] truthfully and [be] peaceful.”
20 Thus, saith Yahweh of hoses, —It shall yet be that there shall come in peoples, and the inhabitants of many cities;
The Commander of the armies of angels [also] says this: “[Some day] people from many [people-groups and foreign] cities will come [here to Jerusalem].
21 And the inhabitants of one city, shall go, unto them of another, saying, Let us be going on to pacify the face of Yahweh, and to seek Yahweh of hosts, —I also, will go!
People from one city will go to [the people in] another [city] and say, ‘Let’s [go together to Jerusalem] to worship Yahweh and ask him to bless us; we [ourselves] are going.’
22 So shall enter many peoples, and strong nations, to seek Yahweh of hosts in Jerusalem, —and to pacify the face of Yahweh.
And [people from] many people-groups and [from] powerful nations will come to Jerusalem to worship Yahweh and ask him to bless them.”
23 Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts, In those days, [it shall be] that ten men out of all the tongues of the nations, shall take hold, —yea take hold of the skirt of every one that is a Jew, saying—We will go with you! For we have heard [that], God, is with you.
The Commander of the armies of angels [also] says this: “At that time, [this is what will happen everywhere]: A group of people from one nation or a group of people who speak another language will grab the fringe/edge of the robe of a Jew and say [to him], ‘We have heard [people say] that God is with you. So allow us to go with you [to Jerusalem to worship him].’”
