Ezekiel 28:25-26

28:25 “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: When I regather the house of Israel from the peoples where they are dispersed, I will reveal my sovereign power ¹  over them in the sight of the nations, and they will live in their land that I gave to my servant Jacob. 28:26 They will live securely in it; they will build houses and plant vineyards. They will live securely ²  when I execute my judgments on all those who scorn them and surround them. Then they will know that I am the Lord their God.’”

Ezekiel 39:7

39:7 “‘I will make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; I will not let my holy name be profaned anymore. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord, the Holy One of Israel. ³ 

Ezekiel 39:25-29

39:25 “Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: Now I will restore ⁴  the fortunes of Jacob, and I will have mercy on the entire house of Israel. I will be zealous for my holy name. 39:26 They will bear their shame for all their unfaithful acts against me, when they live securely on their land with no one to make them afraid. 39:27 When I have brought them back from the peoples and gathered them from the countries of their enemies, I will magnify myself among them in the sight of many nations. 39:28 Then they will know that I am the Lord their God, because I sent them into exile among the nations, and then gathered them into their own land. I will not leave any of them in exile ⁵  any longer. 39:29 I will no longer hide my face from them, when I pour out my Spirit on the house of Israel, ⁶  declares the sovereign Lord.”

Isaiah 4:5

4:5 Then the Lord will create

over all of Mount Zion ⁷ 

and over its convocations

a cloud and smoke by day

and a bright flame of fire by night; ⁸ 

indeed a canopy will accompany the Lord’s glorious presence. ⁹ 

Zechariah 2:8

2:8 For the Lord who rules over all says to me that for his own glory ¹⁰  he has sent me to the nations that plundered you – for anyone who touches you touches the pupil ¹¹  of his ¹²  eye.

¹ tn Or “reveal my holiness.” See verse 22.

² sn This promise was given in Lev 25:18-19.

³ sn The basic sense of the word “holy” is “set apart from that which is commonplace, special, unique.” The Lord’s holiness is first and foremost his transcendent sovereignty as the ruler of the world. He is “set apart” from the world over which he rules. At the same time his holiness encompasses his moral authority, which derives from his royal position. As king he has the right to dictate to his subjects how they are to live; indeed his very own character sets the standard for proper behavior. This expression is a common title for the Lord in the book of Isaiah.

⁴ tn Heb “cause to return.”

⁵ tn Heb “there,” referring to the foreign nations to which they were exiled. The translation makes the referent clear.

⁶ sn See Ezek 11:19; 37:14.

⁷ tn Heb “over all the place, Mount Zion.” Cf. NLT “Jerusalem”; CEV “the whole city.”

⁸ tn Heb “a cloud by day, and smoke, and brightness of fire, a flame by night.” Though the accents in the Hebrew text suggest otherwise, it might be preferable to take “smoke” with what follows, since one would expect smoke to accompany fire.

⁹ tn Heb “indeed (or “for”) over all the glory, a canopy.” This may allude to Exod 40:34-35, where a cloud overshadows the meeting tent as it is filled with God’s glory.

¹⁰ tn Heb “After glory has he sent me” (similar KJV, NASB). What is clearly in view is the role of Zechariah who, by faithful proclamation of the message, will glorify the Lord.

¹¹ tn Heb “gate” (בָּבָה, bavah) of the eye, that is, pupil. The rendering of this term by KJV as “apple” has created a well-known idiom in the English language, “the apple of his eye” (so ASV, NIV). The pupil is one of the most vulnerable and valuable parts of the body, so for Judah to be considered the “pupil” of the Lord’s eye is to raise her value to an incalculable price (cf. NLT “my most precious possession”).

¹² tc A scribal emendation (tiqqun sopherim) has apparently altered an original “my eye” to “his eye” in order to allow the prophet to be the speaker throughout vv. 8-9. This alleviates the problem of the Lord saying, in effect, that he has sent himself on the mission to the nations.