‏ Zechariah 7

A Call for Justice and Mercy

1 aIn the fourth year of King Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month, which is bChislev. 2Now the people of Bethel had sent Sharezer and Regem-melech and their men cto entreat the favor of the Lord, 3 dsaying to the priests of the house of the Lord of hosts and ethe prophets, “Should I weep and fabstain in gthe fifth month, as I have done for so many years?”

4Then the word of the Lord of hosts came to me: 5Say to all the people of the land and the priests, 'When you fasted and mourned in hthe fifth month and in ithe seventh, for these jseventy years, kwas it lfor me that you fasted? 6 mAnd when you eat and when you drink, do you not eat for yourselves and drink for yourselves? 7 nWere not these the words that the Lord proclaimed oby the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and prosperous, pwith her cities around her, and the qSouth and the rlowland were inhabited?'”

8And the word of the Lord came to Zechariah, saying, 9Thus says the Lord of hosts, sRender true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another, 10 tdo not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, uor the poor, and vlet none of you devise evil against another in your heart.” 11But wthey refused to pay attention xand turned a stubborn shoulder and stopped their ears that they might not hear.
Hebrew and made their ears too heavy to hear
12 zThey made their hearts diamond-hard aalest they should hear the law and the words that the Lord of hosts had sent abby his Spirit through acthe former prophets. adTherefore great anger came from the Lord of hosts. 13 aeAs I
Hebrew he
called, and they would not hear, agso they called, and I would not hear,” says the Lord of hosts,
14 ah“and I scattered them with a whirlwind among all aithe nations that they had not known. ajThus the land they left was desolate, akso that no one went to and fro, aland the pleasant land was made desolate.”

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