Zechariah 1

1 [I am] Zechariah, a prophet, the son of Berekiah and grandson of Iddo. When Darius [had been the emperor of Persia] for almost two years, during November [of that year], Yahweh gave me this message:

In the eighth month, in the second year of Darius, came the word of Jehovah unto Zechariah the prophet, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, saying,

2 “I was very angry with your ancestors.

Jehovah hath been very wroth with your fathers.

3 So tell this to the people: [I, ] the Commander of the armies of angels, say, ‘Return to me, and [if you do that], I will [help] you again.

And thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Return unto me, saith Jehovah of hosts, and I will return unto you, saith Jehovah of hosts.

4 Do not be like your ancestors. [Other] prophets, who have now died, [continually] proclaimed to your ancestors that they should stop doing the evil things that they were continually doing. But they refused to pay attention to what I said.

Be ye not as your fathers, unto whom the former prophets cried, saying, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Turn ye now from your evil ways, and from your evil doings; but they did not hearken nor attend unto me, saith Jehovah.

5 Your ancestors [have died and are now in their graves] [RHQ]. And the prophets did not [RHQ] live forever, [either].

Your fathers, where are they? and the prophets, do they live for ever?

6 But I punished [IDM] [the people for disobeying] the commands and the decrees which I commanded my servants the prophets [to tell to the people]. Then they (repented/turned away from their evil behavior) and said, ‘The Commander of the armies of angels has done to us what we deserved for our evil behavior, just like he said that he would do.’”

But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not overtake your fathers? And they turned and said, Like as Jehovah of hosts thought to do unto us, according to our ways and according to our doings, so hath he dealt with us.

7 [Three months later], on February 15, Yahweh gave [another] message to me.

Upon the four and twentieth day of the eleventh month, which is the month Shebat, in the second year of Darius, came the word of Jehovah unto Zechariah the prophet, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, saying,

8 During the night [I had a vision. In the vision] I saw an [angel] who was on a red horse. He was in a narrow valley among some myrtle trees. Behind him were [angels on] red, brown, and white horses.

I saw by night, and behold, a man riding upon a red horse, and he stood among the myrtle-trees that were in the low valley; and behind him were red, bay, and white horses.

9 I asked the angel who had been talking to me, “Sir, who are those [angels on the horses]?” He replied, “I will show you who they are.”

And I said, My lord, what are these? And the angel that talked with me said unto me, I will shew thee what these are.

10 Then the [angel] who had been under the myrtle trees explained. [He said, ] “They are the [angels] whom Yahweh sent [to (patrol/see what is happening in)] the [entire] world.”

And the man that stood among the myrtle-trees answered and said, These are they whom Jehovah hath sent to walk to and fro through the earth.

11 Then those angels reported to the angel who was [there] among the myrtle trees, “We have traveled throughout the world, and we have found out that [the army of the emperor of Persia has conquered nations] throughout the world, [and that] those nations are now (helpless/unable to resist his army).”

And they answered the angel of Jehovah that stood among the myrtle-trees, and said, We have walked to and fro through the earth, and behold, all the earth sitteth still and is at rest.

12 Then the angel asked, “Commander of the armies of angels, how long will you continue to not be merciful to Jerusalem and the [other] towns in Judah? You have been angry with them for 70 years!”

And the angel of Jehovah answered and said, Jehovah of hosts, how long wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which thou hast had indignation these seventy years?

13 [So] Yahweh spoke kindly to the angel who had talked to me, saying things that comforted/encouraged him.

And Jehovah answered the angel that talked with me good words, comforting words.

14 Then the angel who had been talking with me said to me, “Proclaim this [to the people of Jerusalem]: The Commander of the armies of angels says that he is very concerned about [the people who live on] Zion [Hill] and [in the other parts of] Jerusalem.

And the angel that talked with me said unto me, Cry, saying, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy,

15 But he is very angry with the nations that are [proud and feel] safe. He was only a little bit angry [with the people of Judah], but [he is very angry with the surrounding nations because] they caused [the people of Judah to experience] complete disaster.

and I am wroth exceedingly with the nations that are at ease; for I was but a little wroth, and they helped forward the affliction.

16 Therefore, this is what he says: ‘I will again be merciful to [the people of] Jerusalem, and they will rebuild my temple. Men will measure [all the land in] the city [before they start rebuilding the houses].’

Therefore thus saith Jehovah: I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies: my house shall be built in it, saith Jehovah of hosts, and the line shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem.

17 The Commander of the armies of angels [also] said this: ‘Tell the people that [the people in] my towns [in Judah] will soon be very prosperous again, and I will encourage [the people of] Jerusalem, and their city will again be my chosen [city].’”

Cry further, saying, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: My cities shall yet overflow with prosperity, and Jehovah shall yet comfort Zion, and shall yet choose Jerusalem.

18 Then I looked up, and I saw in front of me four [animal] horns.

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

19 I asked the angel who had been speaking to me, “What are those [horns]?” He replied, “Those horns [represent the armies that] forced [the people of] Jerusalem and [other places in] Judah and Israel to go [to other countries].”

And I said unto the angel that talked with me, What are these? And he said to me, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.

20 Then Yahweh showed me four (craftsmen/men who make things from metal).

And Jehovah shewed me four craftsmen.

21 I asked, “What are those men coming to do?” He replied, “[The armies represented by] those horns caused [the people of] Judah to be scattered, with the result that they suffered greatly. But the craftsmen have come to cause those who attacked [IDM] Judah to be terrified and crushed.”

And I said, What come these to do? And he spoke, saying, Those are the horns which scattered Judah, so that no man lifted up his head; but these are come to affright them, to cast out the horns of the nations, which lifted up the horn against the land of Judah to scatter it.