Zechariah 13

1 “On that day a spring will be opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for their sin and impurity.

On that day a fountain will be opened for the house of David, and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness.

2 On that day—this is the declaration of Yahweh of hosts—I will cut off the names of the idols from the land and they will no longer be remembered. I will remove the prophets and the spirit of impurity from the land.

And it will be on that day, says the Lord of hosts, I will cut off the names of the idols from the land and they will be remembered no more. And the prophets and the unclean spirit I will banish from the land.

3 If any man continues to prophesy, his father and mother who bore him will tell him, 'You will not live, for you speak lies in the name of Yahweh!' Then the father and mother who bore him will pierce him when he prophesies.

If any man prophesy any more, his father and his mother who bore him, will say to him, “You will not live, for you speak falsehood in the name of the Lord.” And his father and his mother who bore him will stab him through when he is seized by the prophetic frenzy.

4 On that day each prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he is about to prophesy. These prophets will no longer wear a hairy cloak, in order to deceive the people.

And it will be in that day that the prophets will be ashamed, each of his vision, and will not wear the hairy mantle in order to deceive.

5 For each will say, 'I am not a prophet! I am a man who works the soil, for the land became my work while I was still a young man!'

Each will say, “I am not a prophet, a tiller of the ground am I, for the ground is my possession from my youth.”

6 But someone will say to him, 'What are these wounds between your arms?' and he will answer, 'I was wounded with those in my friends' house.'”

And they will say to him, “What are these scars on your back?” And he will say, “The scars which I received in the house of my friends.”

7 “Sword! Rouse yourself against my shepherd, the man who stands close to me— this is the declaration of Yahweh of hosts. Strike the shepherd, and the flock will scatter! For I will turn my hand against the lowly ones.

Awake, sword, against my shepherd, against the man who stands near to me, says the Lord of hosts. I will strike the shepherd so that the sheep may be scattered, I will turn my hand against the little ones.

8 Then it will come about that throughout all the land—this is Yahweh's declaration— that two-thirds of it will be cut off! Those people will perish; only one-third will remain there.

In all the land, says the Lord, two-thirds in it will be cut off and die, but a third will be left in it.

9 I will bring that third through the fire and refine them as silver is refined; I will test them as gold is tested. They will call on my name, and I will answer them and say, 'This is my people!' and they will say, 'Yahweh is my God!'”

I will bring the third into the fire, and melt it as one melts silver, and test it as one tests gold. Then they will call on my name, and I myself will answer them. I will say, “They are my people.” They will say, “The Lord is our God.”