Zakharia 7
1 Pada tanggal empat bulan Kislew, yaitu bulan sembilan, dalam tahun keempat pemerintahan Raja Darius, TUHAN memberi pesan lagi kepadaku.
And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Darius that the word of the Lord came unto Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month, in Kislev;
2 Penduduk Betel telah mengutus Sarezer dan Regem-Melekh serta anak buah mereka ke Rumah TUHAN Yang Mahakuasa untuk memohon berkat-Nya.
When they had sent unto Beth-el Sherezer and Regem-melech, and his men, to make entreaty before the Lord.
3 Mereka juga disuruh bertanya kepada imam-imam dan para nabi, begini, "Masih perlukah kami meratapi kehancuran Rumah TUHAN dengan berpuasa pada tiap bulan kelima seperti yang telah kami lakukan bertahun-tahun lamanya?"
[And] to say unto the priests who were in the house of the Lord of hosts, and to the prophets, saying, Shall I weep in the fifth month with abstinence, as I have done already these many years?
4 Inilah pesan TUHAN yang datang kepadaku.
Then came the word of the Lord of hosts unto me, saying,
5 Kata-Nya, "Sampaikanlah kepada seluruh penduduk negeri ini dan kepada para imam, bahwa puasa dan ratapan yang mereka lakukan pada bulan kelima dan ketujuh selama tujuh puluh tahun ini bukanlah penghormatan bagi-Ku.
Say unto all the people of the land, and to the priests, as followeth, When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and in the seventh [month], already these seventy years, did ye in anywise fast for me, yea, for me?
6 Juga ketika mereka makan dan minum, mereka mencari kepuasan sendiri."
And if ye do eat, and if ye do drink, are ye not yourselves those that eat, and yourselves those that drink?
7 Itulah yang dikatakan TUHAN melalui nabi-nabi di zaman lampau pada waktu Yerusalem masih didiami dan penduduknya makmur. Pada waktu itu orang tidak hanya tinggal di desa-desa di sekitar kota tetapi bahkan di bagian selatan dan di kaki-kaki bukit di sebelah barat.
Are not these the words which the Lord hath proclaimed by means of the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, with her cities round about her, when [men] inhabited the south, and the lowlands?
8 TUHAN Yang Mahakuasa memberikan pesan ini kepadaku,
And the word of the Lord came unto Zechariah, saying,
9 "Bertahun-tahun yang lalu Kuberikan perintah-perintah ini kepada umat-Ku, 'Kamu harus bersikap adil, berbelaskasihan dan baik hati terhadap sesamamu.
Thus hath said the Lord of hosts, saying, Execute true justice, and show kindness and mercy every man to his brother;
10 Janganlah menindas para janda, anak-anak yatim-piatu, orang-orang asing yang menetap di tengah-tengah kamu, atau siapa saja yang dalam keadaan susah. Dan jangan pula merencanakan yang jahat terhadap sesamamu.'
And defraud not the widow, or the fatherless, the stranger, or the poor; and imagine not evil in your heart one against the other.
11 Tetapi umat-Ku keras kepala dan sama sekali tak mau mendengarkan; mereka menyumbat telinga mereka supaya tidak mendengar.
But they refused to listen, and turned away rebelliously the shoulder, and stopped their ears, so as not to hear;
12 Mereka mengeraskan hati mereka sehingga menjadi sekeras batu. Aku marah sekali karena mereka tidak menurut ajaran-ajaran yang telah Kuberikan kepada mereka dengan perantaraan nabi-nabi yang dahulu.
And their heart they rendered as an adamant, so as not to hear the law, and the words which the Lord of hosts had sent through his spirit, by means of the former prophets: wherefore came a great anger from the Lord of hosts.
13 Aku tidak menjawab doa mereka, karena mereka pun tidak mendengarkan ketika Aku berbicara.
And it is come to pass, that as he proclaimed, and they would not hear: so had they to call, and I would not hear, saith the Lord of hosts;
14 Seperti badai, Aku telah menyapu mereka sehingga mereka terpaksa tinggal di negeri-negeri asing. Tanah yang subur ini telah menjadi sunyi sepi tak berpenghuni dan tandus."
And I resolved to scatter them with a storm-wind among all the nations that they had not known; and the land was left desolate after them, without any one to pass through it forward or backward; and the pleasant land have they changed into a desert.
