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God Will Bless Judah and Ephraim

10 Ask for rain from the Lord at the time of the spring rain.
It is the Lord who makes the thunder clouds;
And He will give them showers of rain, grass in the field to everyone.

For the teraphim (household idols) speak wickedness (emptiness, worthlessness),
And the diviners see lying visions
And tell false dreams;
They comfort in vain.
Therefore the people wander like sheep,
They are afflicted and suffer because there is no shepherd.

“My anger is kindled against the shepherds [who are not true shepherds],
And I shall punish the male goats (leaders);
For the Lord of hosts has visited His flock, the house of Judah (the Southern Kingdom),
And will make them like His beautiful and majestic horse in the battle.(A)

“From them (Judah) shall come the [a]Cornerstone,
From them the tent peg,
From them the bow of battle,
From them every ruler, all of them together.(B)

“They will be like mighty men
Trampling down their enemies in the mire of the streets in the battle;
And they will fight because the Lord is with them,
And the [enemies’] riders on horses will be shamed.

“I will strengthen the house of Judah [making it superior],
And I will save the house of Joseph.
I will bring them back [and allow them to live securely],
Because I have had compassion on them.
They will be as though I had not rejected them,
For I am the Lord their God, and I will listen and answer them.

“Then [b]Ephraim will be like a mighty warrior,
And their heart will rejoice as if from wine;
Yes, their children will see it and rejoice;
Their heart will rejoice and shout triumphantly in the Lord.

“I will [c]whistle for them and gather them together,
For I have redeemed them;
And they will increase [again] as they have increased before [in Egypt].(C)

“When I scatter them among the nations,
They will remember Me in far countries,
And with their children they will live and come back [to Me and the land I gave them].
10 
“I will bring them (all Israel) back home again from the land of Egypt
And gather them from Assyria,
And I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon [the land on the east and on the west of the Jordan]
Until no room can be found for them.
11 
“And they will pass through the sea of distress and anxiety [with the Lord leading His people, as at the Red Sea]
And He will strike the waves in the sea,
So that all the depths of the Nile will dry up;
And the pride of Assyria will be brought down
And the scepter [of the taskmasters] of Egypt will pass away.
12 
“And I will strengthen Israel in the Lord,
And they will walk [and glory] in His name,” declares the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. Zechariah 10:4 Probably Messianic, see the “Cornerstone” imagery of Ps 118:22, 23; Is 28:16; Matt 21:42; Acts 4:11; Eph 2:19-22; 1 Pet 2:6-8.
  2. Zechariah 10:7 A reference to the Northern Kingdom.
  3. Zechariah 10:8 Or hiss. From this verse a rabbinical tradition was invented that if a vulture settles on the ground and hisses, the Messiah will come immediately. It was reported to have happened once, but instead of the Messiah coming, the story went that a stone fell on the vulture’s head and killed it because it was a liar.

The Lord Will Care for Judah

10 Ask the Lord for rain in the springtime;
    it is the Lord who sends the thunderstorms.
He gives showers of rain(A) to all people,
    and plants of the field(B) to everyone.
The idols(C) speak deceitfully,
    diviners(D) see visions that lie;
they tell dreams(E) that are false,
    they give comfort in vain.(F)
Therefore the people wander like sheep
    oppressed for lack of a shepherd.(G)

“My anger burns against the shepherds,
    and I will punish the leaders;(H)
for the Lord Almighty will care
    for his flock, the people of Judah,
    and make them like a proud horse in battle.(I)
From Judah will come the cornerstone,(J)
    from him the tent peg,(K)
from him the battle bow,(L)
    from him every ruler.
Together they[a] will be like warriors in battle
    trampling their enemy into the mud of the streets.(M)
They will fight because the Lord is with them,
    and they will put the enemy horsemen to shame.(N)

“I will strengthen(O) Judah
    and save the tribes of Joseph.
I will restore them
    because I have compassion(P) on them.(Q)
They will be as though
    I had not rejected them,
for I am the Lord their God
    and I will answer(R) them.
The Ephraimites will become like warriors,
    and their hearts will be glad as with wine.(S)
Their children will see it and be joyful;
    their hearts will rejoice(T) in the Lord.
I will signal(U) for them
    and gather them in.
Surely I will redeem them;
    they will be as numerous(V) as before.
Though I scatter them among the peoples,
    yet in distant lands they will remember me.(W)
They and their children will survive,
    and they will return.
10 I will bring them back from Egypt
    and gather them from Assyria.(X)
I will bring them to Gilead(Y) and Lebanon,
    and there will not be room(Z) enough for them.
11 They will pass through the sea of trouble;
    the surging sea will be subdued
    and all the depths of the Nile will dry up.(AA)
Assyria’s pride(AB) will be brought down
    and Egypt’s scepter(AC) will pass away.(AD)
12 I will strengthen(AE) them in the Lord
    and in his name they will live securely,(AF)
declares the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. Zechariah 10:5 Or ruler, all of them together. / They