Zechariah 7

1 And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Darius, that the word of the Lord came to Zacharias, in the fourth day of the ninth month, which is Casleu.

And it came to pass, in the fourth year of King Darius, that the word of Jehovah came to Zechariah, on the fourth day of the ninth month, even in Chisleu;

2 When Sarasar, and Rogommelech, and the men that were with him, sent to the house of God, to entreat the face of the Lord:

when they had sent to the house of God Sherezer and Regem-melech, and their men, to pray before Jehovah,

3 To speak to the priests of the house of the Lord of hosts, and to the prophets, saying: Must I weep in the fifth month, or must I sanctify myself as I have now done for many years?

and to speak to the priests that were in the house of Jehovah of hosts, and to the prophets, saying, “Shall I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done these so many years?”

4 And the word of the Lord of hosts came to me, saying:

Then came the word of Jehovah of hosts to me, saying,

5 Speak to all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying: When you fasted, and mourned in the fifth and the seventh month for these seventy years: did you keep a fast unto me?

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

6 And when you did eat and drink, did you not eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves?

And when ye eat and drink, is it not ye that eat, and ye that drink?

7 Are not these the words which the Lord spoke by the hand of the former prophets, when Jerusalem as yet was inhabited, and was wealthy, both itself and the cities round about it, and there were inhabitants towards the south, and in the plain?

Are not these the words which Jehovah proclaimed by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, and her cities round about her, and when the South and the Plain were inhabited?

8 And the word of the Lord came to Zacharias, saying:

And the word of Jehovah came to Zechariah, saying,

9 Thus saith the Lord of hosts, saying: Judge ye true judgment, and shew ye mercy and compassion every man to his brother.

Thus spake Jehovah of hosts, saying, Judge true judgment, and show mercy and compassion every man to his brother.

10 And oppress not the widow, and the fatherless, and the stranger, and the poor: and let not a man devise evil in his heart against his brother.

And the widow, and the orphan, and the stranger, and the poor, oppress not, and meditate not evil against one another in your heart.

11 But they would not hearken, and they turned away the shoulder to depart: and they stopped their ears, not to hear.

But they refused to hearken, and showed a refractory shoulder, and made their ears dull, that they might not hear;

12 And they made their heart as the adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the Lord of hosts sent in his spirit by the hand of the former prophets: so a great indignation came from the Lord of hosts.

yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, that they might not hear the law, and the words which Jehovah of hosts sent through his spirit by the former prophets. Therefore came great anger from Jehovah of hosts.

13 And it came to pass that as he spoke, and they heard not: so shall they cry, and I will not hear, saith the Lord of hosts.

And as he called and they would not hear, so they called and I would not hear, saith Jehovah of hosts.

14 And I dispersed them throughout all kingdoms, which they know not: and the land was left desolate behind them, so that no man passed through or returned: and they changed the delightful land into a wilderness.

And I scattered them as with a whirlwind among all the nations, which they knew not. And the land was desolate after them, so that no man passed through, nor returned; and thus the beautiful land was made a desolation.