A Call to Return to the Lord
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In the eighth month, 1in the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came to the prophet 2Zechariah, the son of 3Berechiah, son of 4Iddo, saying,
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Therefore say to them, Thus declares the LORD of hosts: 6Return to me, says the LORD of hosts, and 7I will return to you, says the LORD of hosts.
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8Do not be like your fathers, 9to whom the former prophets cried out, 'Thus says the LORD of hosts, 10Return from your evil ways and from your evil deeds.' But 11they did not hear or pay attention to me, declares the LORD.
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13But my words and my statutes, which I commanded 14my servants the prophets, did they not 15overtake your fathers? So they repented and said, 16As the LORD of hosts purposed to deal with us for 17our ways and 18deeds, so has he dealt with us."
A Vision of a Horseman
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On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, which is the month of Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came to the prophet 19Zechariah, the son of 20Berechiah, son of 21Iddo, saying,
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"I saw in the night, and behold, 22a man riding on a red horse! He was standing among the myrtle trees in the glen, and behind him were 23red, sorrel, and white horses.
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Then I said, 'What are these, my lord?'24The angel who talked with me said to me, 'I will show you what they are.'
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So 25the man who was standing among the myrtle trees answered, 26'These are they whom the LORD has sent to 27patrol the earth.'
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And they answered 28the angel of the LORD who was standing among the myrtle trees, and said, 29'We have patrolled the earth, and behold, all the earth 30remains at rest.'
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Then 31the angel of the LORD said, 32'O LORD of hosts, 33how long will you 34have no mercy on Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, against which you have been angry these 35seventy years?'
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So 38the angel who talked with me said to me, 'Cry out, Thus says the LORD of hosts: 39I am exceedingly jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion.
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40And I am exceedingly angry with the nations that are 41at ease; 42for while I was angry but a little, 43they furthered the disaster.
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Therefore, thus says the LORD, 44I have returned to Jerusalem with mercy; 45my house shall be built in it, declares the LORD of hosts, and 46the measuring line shall be stretched out over Jerusalem.
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Cry out again, Thus says the LORD of hosts: 47My cities shall again overflow with prosperity, 48and the LORD will again comfort Zion and again 49choose Jerusalem.'"
A Vision of Horns and Craftsmen
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And I said to 51the angel who talked with me, "What are these?" And he said to me, 52"These are the horns that have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem."
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Then the LORD showed me four craftsmen.
The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.
(English Standard Version - The Holy Bible Online)