Zechariah 13
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In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness.
2 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land.
3 And it shall come to pass, that when any shall yet prophesy, then his father and his mother that begat him shall say unto him, Thou shalt not live; for thou speakest lies in the name of the Lord: and his father and his mother that begat him shall thrust him through when he prophesieth.
4 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the prophets shall be ashamed every one of his vision, when he hath prophesied; neither shall they wear a rough garment to deceive:
5 But he shall say, I am no prophet, I am an husbandman; for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth.
6 And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.
7 Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the Lord of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones.
8 And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein.
9 And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God.
Public Domain KJV text from Wordproject.org
Zechariah 13:1-9
1“On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness.
Idolatry Cut Off
2“And on that day, declares the Lord of hosts, I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, so that they shall be remembered no more. And also I will remove from the land the prophets and the spirit of uncleanness. 3And if anyone again prophesies, his father and mother who bore him will say to him, ‘You shall not live, for you speak lies in the name of the Lord.’ And his father and mother who bore him shall pierce him through when he prophesies.
4“On that day every prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies. He will not put on a hairy cloak in order to deceive, 5but he will say, ‘I am no prophet, I am a worker of the soil, for a man sold me in my youth.’ 6And if one asks him, ‘What are these wounds on your back?’ he will say, ‘The wounds I received in the house of my friends.’
The Shepherd Struck
7“Awake, O sword, against my shepherd,
against the man who stands next to me,”
declares the Lord of hosts.
“Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered;
I will turn my hand against the little ones.
8In the whole land, declares the Lord,
two thirds shall be cut off and perish,
and one third shall be left alive.
9And I will put this third into the fire,
and refine them as one refines silver,
and test them as gold is tested.
They will call upon my name,
and I will answer them.
I will say, ‘They are my people’;
and they will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’”
ESV Bible text displayed through the American Bible Society's Global Bible Widget
Zech. 13:1-9
Cleansing From Sin
1“On that day a fountain will be opened to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and impurity.
2“On that day, I will banish the names of the idols from the land, and they will be remembered no more,” declares the Lord Almighty. “I will remove both the prophets and the spirit of impurity from the land. 3And if anyone still prophesies, their father and mother, to whom they were born, will say to them, ‘You must die, because you have told lies in the Lord’s name.’ Then their own parents will stab the one who prophesies.
4“On that day every prophet will be ashamed of their prophetic vision. They will not put on a prophet’s garment of hair in order to deceive. 5Each will say, ‘I am not a prophet. I am a farmer; the land has been my livelihood since my youth.’ 6If someone asks, ‘What are these wounds on your body?’ they will answer, ‘The wounds I was given at the house of my friends.’
The Shepherd Struck, the Sheep Scattered
7“Awake, sword, against my shepherd,
against the man who is close to me!”
declares the Lord Almighty.
“Strike the shepherd,
and the sheep will be scattered,
and I will turn my hand against the little ones.
8In the whole land,” declares the Lord,
“two-thirds will be struck down and perish;
yet one-third will be left in it.
9This third I will put into the fire;
I will refine them like silver
and test them like gold.
They will call on my name
and I will answer them;
I will say, ‘They are my people,’
and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God.’ ”
NIV Bible text displayed through the American Bible Society's Global Bible Widget
Commentary
Verse 1 contains a wonderful prediction of God’s intervention and provision to bring solution to the problem of sin. “In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David...for sin and for uncleanness” Zechariah 1:1 (also vs. 6,7). To bring solution, redemption and the atonement work to the problem of sin is the provision made by heaven for the nation and humankind. The prediction of Zechariah is presenting how the future Messiah is bringing redemption, washing their sins away.
Another main point in the chapter is the eradication of the idols, unclean spirits, false prophets, and false prophecies from the land. The false religions, teachings and worships systems are a plague for the church and a serious concern for the Lord.
It is wonderful how the Lord was caring and working to keep His redemptive plan with the disobedient house of David and Jerusalem in Zechariah’s time. He is doing the same with His current church and children all over, inviting everyone to join His people.
“..I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God…” Zechariah 13:9.
Moises Pena-Rivas
Literature Ministry- New Mexico, USA (as of this writing)