In the eighth month of Darius’ second year, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah, son of Berechiah son of Iddo, as follows:

The Lord will take possession of Judah as his portion in the holy land and he will choose Jerusalem once again.

But I will be different now to this remnant of my people from the way I was in those days,’ says the Lord who rules over all,

Next I eradicated the three shepherds in one month, for I ran out of patience with them and, indeed, they detested me as well.

The crown will then be turned over to Helem, Tobijah, Jedaiah, and Hen son of Zephaniah as a memorial in the temple of the Lord.

In King Darius’ fourth year, on the fourth day of Kislev, the ninth month, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah.

Though I scatter them among the nations, they will remember in far-off places – they and their children will sprout forth and return.

These are the things you must do: Speak the truth, each of you, to one another. Practice true and righteous judgment in your courts.

This is the kind of plague that will devastate horses, mules, camels, donkeys, and all the other animals in those camps.

“Sing out and be happy, Zion my daughter! For look, I have come; I will settle in your midst,” says the Lord.

And people will settle there, and there will no longer be the threat of divine extermination – Jerusalem will dwell in security.

In that day,’ says the Lord who rules over all, ‘everyone will invite his friend to fellowship under his vine and under his fig tree.’”

Do not plan evil in your hearts against one another. Do not favor a false oath – these are all things that I hate,’ says the Lord.”

Then I took my staff “Pleasantness” and cut it in two to annul my covenant that I had made with all the people.

But this will be the nature of the plague with which the Lord will strike all the nations that have fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh will decay while they stand on their feet, their eyes will rot away in their sockets, and their tongues will dissolve in their mouths.

The Lord will then be king over all the earth. In that day the Lord will be seen as one with a single name.

Moreover, Judah will fight at Jerusalem, and the wealth of all the surrounding nations will be gathered up – gold, silver, and clothing in great abundance.

Then someone will ask him, ‘What are these wounds on your chest?’ and he will answer, ‘Some that I received in the house of my friends.’

Moreover, the Lord who rules over all says, ‘Old men and women will once more live in the plazas of Jerusalem, each one leaning on a cane because of advanced age.

But I (the Lord says) will be a wall of fire surrounding Jerusalem and the source of glory in her midst.’”