Zacharias 8

1 And the word of the Lord Almighty came, saying,

And the word of the Lord of armies came to me, saying,

2 Thus says the Lord Almighty; I have been jealous for Jerusalem and for Sion with great jealousy, and I have been jealous for her with great fury.

These are the words of the Lord of armies: I am angry about the fate of Zion, I am angry about her with great wrath.

3 Thus says the Lord; I will return to Sion, and dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called a true city, and the mountain of the Lord Almighty a holy mountain.

This is what the Lord has said: I have come back to Zion, and will make my living-place in Jerusalem: and Jerusalem will be named The town of good faith; and the mountain of the Lord of armies The holy mountain.

4 Thus says the Lord Almighty; There shall yet dwell old men and old women in the streets of Jerusalem, every one holding his staff in his hand for age.

This is what the Lord of armies has said: There will again be old men and old women seated in the open spaces of Jerusalem, every man with his stick in his hand because he is so old.

5 And the broad places of the city shall be filled with boys and girls playing in the streets thereof.

And the open spaces of the town will be full of boys and girls playing in its open spaces.

6 Thus says the Lord Almighty; If it shall be impossible in the sight of the remnant of this people in those days, shall it also be impossible in my sight? says the Lord Almighty.

This is what the Lord of armies has said: If this is a wonder to the rest of this people, is it a wonder to me? says the Lord of armies.

7 Thus says the Lord Almighty; Behold, I [will] save my people from the east country, and the west country;

This is what the Lord of armies has said: See, I will be the saviour of my people from the east country, and from the west country;

8 and I will bring them in, and cause [them] to dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and they shall be to me a people, and I will be to them a God, in truth and in righteousness.

And I will make them come and be living in Jerusalem and they will be to me a people and I will be to them a God, in good faith and in righteousness.

9 Thus says the Lord Almighty; Let your hands be strong, [you that] hear in these days these words out of the mouth of the prophets, from the day that the house of the Lord Almighty was founded, and from the time that the temple was built.

This is what the Lord of armies has said: Let your hands be strong, you who are now hearing these words from the mouths of the prophets, that is to say, in the days when the base of the house of the Lord of armies has been put in place for the building of the house, that is the Temple.

10 For before those days the wages of men could not be profitable, and there could be no hire of cattle, and there could be no peace by reason of the affliction to him that went out or to him that came in: for I would have let loose all men, every one against his neighbor.

For before those days there was no payment for a man's work, or for the use of a beast, and there was no peace for him who went out or him who came in, because of the attacker: for I had every man turned against his neighbour.

11 But now I [will] not do to the remnant of this people according to the former days, says the Lord Almighty.

But now I will not be to the rest of this people as I was in the past, says the Lord of armies.

12 But I will show peace: the vine shall yield her fruit, and the land shall yield her produce, and the heaven shall give its dew: and I will give as an inheritance all these things to the remnant of my people.

For I will let the seed of peace be planted; the vine will give her fruit and the land will give her increase and the heavens will give their dew; and I will give to the rest of this people all these things for their heritage.

13 And it shall come to pass, as you were a curse among the nations, O house of Juda, and house of Israel; so will I save you, and you shall be a blessing: be of good courage, and strengthen your hands.

And it will come about that, as you were a curse among the nations, O children of Judah and children of Israel, so I will give you salvation and you will be a blessing: have no fear and let your hands be strong.

14 For thus says the Lord Almighty; As I took counsel to afflict you when your fathers provoked me, says the Lord Almighty, and I repented not:

For this is what the Lord of armies has said: As it was my purpose to do evil to you when your fathers made me angry, says the Lord of armies, and my purpose was not changed:

15 so have I prepared and taken counsel in these days to do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Juda: be you of good courage.

So in these days it is again my purpose to do good to Jerusalem and to the children of Judah: have no fear.

16 These [are] the things which you shall do; speak truth every one with his neighbor; judge truth and peaceful judgment in your gates:

These are the things which you are to do: Let every man say what is true to his neighbour; and let your judging give peace in your towns.

17 and let none of you devise evil in his heart against his neighbor; and love not a false oath: for all these things I hate, says the Lord Almighty.

Let no one have any evil thought in his heart against his neighbour; and have no love for false oaths: for all these things are hated by me, says the Lord.

18 And the word of the Lord Almighty came to me, saying,

And the word of the Lord of armies came to me, saying,

19 Thus says the Lord Almighty, The fourth fast, and the fifth fast, and the seventh fast, and the tenth fast, shall be to the house of Juda for joy and gladness, and for good feasts; and you shall rejoice; and love you the truth and peace.

This is what the Lord of armies has said: The times of going without food in the fourth month and in the fifth and the seventh and the tenth months, will be for the people of Judah times of joy and happy meetings; so be lovers of good faith and of peace.

20 Thus says the Lord Almighty; Yet shall many peoples come, and the inhabitants of many cities;

This is what the Lord of armies has said: It will again come about that when peoples and those living in great towns come,

21 and the inhabitants of five cities shall come together to one city, saying, Let us go to make supplication to the Lord, and to seek the face of the Lord Almighty; I will go also.

And the people of one town go to another and say, Let us certainly go with a request for grace from the Lord, and to give worship to the Lord of armies, then I will go with you.

22 And many peoples and many nations shall come to seek earnestly the face of the Lord Almighty in Jerusalem, and to obtain favor of the Lord.

And great peoples and strong nations will come to give worship to the Lord of armies in Jerusalem and to make requests for grace from the Lord.

23 Thus says the Lord Almighty; In those days [my word shall be fulfilled] if ten men of all the languages of the nations should take hold—even take hold of the hem of a Jew, saying, We will go with you; for we have heard that God is with you.

This is what the Lord of armies has said: In those days, ten men from all the languages of the nations will put out their hands and take a grip of the skirt of him who is a Jew, saying, We will go with you, for it has come to our ears that God is with you.