Zechariah 12
Berean Standard Bible · Compare translations · 518 BC – 480 BC · Return & rebuilding · Tap a verse to copy, share or highlight ·
14 verses · 424 words · ~2 min read · ~3 min listen
The Coming Deliverance of Jerusalem
1This is the burden of the word of the Lord concerning Israel.
Thus declares the Lord, who stretches out the heavens and lays the foundation of the earth, who forms the spirit of man within him:
2“Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples. Judah will be besieged, as well as Jerusalem.
3On that day, when all the nations of the earth gather against her, I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who would heave it away will be severely injured.
4On that day, declares the Lord, I will strike every horse with panic, and every rider with madness. I will keep a watchful eye on the house of Judah, but I will strike with blindness all the horses of the nations.
5Then the leaders of Judah will say in their hearts: ‘The people of Jerusalem are my strength, for the Lord of Hosts is their God.’
6On that day I will make the clans of Judah like a firepot in a woodpile, like a flaming torch among the sheaves; they will consume all the peoples around them on the right and on the left, while the people of Jerusalem remain secure there.
7The Lord will save the tents of Judah first, so that the glory of the house of David and of the people of Jerusalem may not be greater than that of Judah. 8On that day the Lord will defend the people of Jerusalem, so that the weakest among them will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of the Lord going before them.
9So on that day I will set out to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.
Mourning the One They Pierced
10Then I will pour out on the house of David and on the people of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and prayer, and they will look on Me, the One they have pierced. They will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for Him as one grieves for a firstborn son.
11On that day the wailing in Jerusalem will be as great as the wailing of Hadad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. 12The land will mourn, each clan on its own: the clan of the house of David and their wives, the clan of the house of Nathan and their wives, 13the clan of the house of Levi and their wives, the clan of Shimei and their wives, 14and all the remaining clans and their wives.
Footnotes (4)
- a v8 Or Angel
- b v10 Or the Spirit
- c v10 Or to Me
- d v10 Cited in John 19:37
Study notes on this chapter · 2
They will look on the one they pierced
Zechariah foretells that the people will look on the one they have pierced and mourn. John quotes this after Jesus' side is pierced with a spear, and Revelation applies it to Christ's return.
When: Zechariah, c. 520–480 BC; John c. AD 85–95.
Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.
Armageddon
At the sixth bowl the kings of the whole world are gathered to the place called in Hebrew 'Armageddon' for the battle of the great day of God. The name probably means 'Mountain of Megiddo', though no such mountain exists. Megiddo was a site of decisive battles in Israel's history.
When: Revelation, c. AD 90s.
Ways people read this (4)
- A literal end-time battle in the valley of Jezreel near Megiddo (many futurist readings).
- A symbolic picture of the final defeat of evil, drawing on Megiddo's history and on Ezekiel 38–39, and not tied to a place.
- 'Har-Magedon' may come from Hebrew 'mo'ed' (assembly) or 'Megiddo' and may refer to Jerusalem or a mountain of assembly.
- The battle has been fulfilled in the victory of Christ at the cross (some idealist readings).
Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.