Through the Bible – Day 364

Bible text(s)

Zechariah 12

Victory for Jerusalem

₁This is a message from the LORD about Israel:

I am the LORD! I stretched out the heavens; I put the earth on its foundations and gave breath to humans. ₂I have decided that Jerusalem will become a bowl of wine that makes the neighbouring nations drunk. And when Jerusalem is attacked, Judah will also be attacked. ₃But I will turn Jerusalem into a heavy stone that crushes anyone who tries to lift it.

When all nations on earth surround Jerusalem, ₄I will make every horse panic and every rider confused. But at the same time, I will watch over Judah. ₅Then every clan in Judah will realize that I, the LORD All-Powerful, am their God, and that I am the source of their strength.

₆At that time I will let the clans of Judah be like a ball of fire in a wood pile or a fiery torch in a hay stack. Then Judah will send the surrounding nations up in smoke. And once again the city of Jerusalem will be filled with people.

₇But I will first give victory to Judah, so the kingdom of David and the city of Jerusalem in all their glory won't be thought of more highly than Judah itself. ₈I, the LORD God, will protect Jerusalem. Even the weakest person there will be as strong as David, and David's kingdom will rule as though my very own angel were its leader. ₉I am determined to wipe out every nation that attacks Jerusalem.

The people will mourn and return to the Lord

Mourning for the one pierced with a spear

₁₀I, the LORD, will make the descendants of David and the people of Jerusalem feel deep sorrow and pray when they see the one they pierced with a spear. They will mourn and weep for him, as parents weep over the death of their only child or their firstborn. ₁₁On that day the people of Jerusalem will mourn as much as everyone did for Hadad Rimmon on the flat lands near Megiddo. ₁₂Everyone of each family in the land will mourn, and the men will mourn separately from the women. This includes those from the family of David, and the families of Nathan, ₁₃Levi, Shimei, ₁₄and all other families as well.

Zechariah 13

Getting rid of idols and false prophets

₁In the future there will be a fountain, where David's descendants and the people of Jerusalem can wash away their sin and guilt.

₂The LORD All-Powerful says:

When that time comes, I will get rid of every idol in the country, and they will be forgotten for ever. I will also do away with their prophets and those evil spirits that control them. ₃If any such prophets ever appear again, their own parents must warn them that they will die for telling lies in my name—the name of the LORD. If those prophets don't stop speaking, their parents must then kill them with a sword.

₄Those prophets will be ashamed of their so called visions, and they won't deceive anyone by dressing like a true prophet. ₅Instead, they will say, “I'm no prophet. I've been a farmer all my life.”

₆And if any of them are asked why they are wounded, they will answer, “It happened at the house of some friends.”

A wounded shepherd and scattered sheep

₇The LORD All-Powerful said:

My sword, wake up! Attack

my shepherd and friend.

Strike down the shepherd!

Scatter the little sheep,

and I will destroy them.

₈Nowhere in the land

will more than a third of them

be left alive.

₉Then I will purify them

and put them to the test,

just as gold and silver

are purified and tested.

They will pray in my name,

and I will answer them.

I will say, “You are my people,”

and they will reply,

“You, LORD, are our God!”

Zechariah 14

The final war and the Lord's victory

₁The LORD will have his day. And when it comes, everything that was ever taken from Jerusalem will be returned and divided among its people. ₂But first, he will bring many nations to attack Jerusalem—homes will be robbed, women raped, and half of the population dragged off, though the others will be allowed to remain.

₃The LORD will attack those nations like a warrior fighting in battle. ₄He will take his stand on the Mount of Olives east of Jerusalem, and the mountain will split in half, forming a wide valley that runs from east to west. ₅Then you people will escape from the LORD's mountain, through this valley, which reaches to Azal. You will run in all directions, just as everyone did when the earthquake struck in the time of King Uzziah of Judah. Afterwards, the LORD my God will appear with his holy angels.

₆It will be a bright day that won't turn cloudy. ₇And the LORD has decided when it will happen—this time of unending day.

₈In both summer and winter, life-giving streams will flow from Jerusalem, half of them to the Dead Sea in the east and half to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. ₉Then there will be only one LORD who rules as King and whose name is worshipped everywhere on earth.

_10-11From Geba down to Rimmon south of Jerusalem, the entire country will be turned into flat lands, with Jerusalem still towering above. Then the city will be full of people, from Benjamin Gate, Old Gate Place, and Hananel Tower in the north-east part of the city over to Corner Gate in the north-west and down to King's Wine Press in the south. Jerusalem will always be secure and will never again be destroyed.

₁₂Here is what the LORD will do to those who attack Jerusalem: while they are standing there, he will make their flesh rot and their eyes fall from their sockets and their tongues drop out. ₁₃The LORD will make them go into a frenzy and start attacking each other, _14-15until even the people of Judah turn against those in Jerusalem. This same terrible disaster will also strike every animal nearby, including horses, mules, camels, and donkeys. Finally, everything of value in the surrounding nations will be collected and brought to Jerusalem—gold, silver, and piles of clothing.

₁₆Afterwards, the survivors from those nations that attacked Jerusalem will go there each year to worship the King, the LORD All-Powerful, and to celebrate the Festival of Shelters. ₁₇No rain will fall on the land of anyone in any country who refuses to go to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD All-Powerful. _18-19This horrible disaster will strike the Egyptians and everyone else who refuses to go there for the celebration.

_20-21At that time the words “Dedicated to the LORD” will be engraved on the bells worn by horses. In fact, every ordinary cooking pot in Jerusalem will be just as sacred to the LORD All-Powerful as the bowls used at the altar. Any one of them will be acceptable for boiling the meat of sacrificed animals, and there will no longer be a need to sell special pots and bowls.

Zechariah 12:1-14:21CEVOpen in Bible reader

Revelation 21

A new heaven and a new earth

₁I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The first heaven and the first earth had disappeared, and so had the sea. ₂Then I saw New Jerusalem, that holy city, coming down from God in heaven. It was like a bride dressed in her wedding gown and ready to meet her husband.

₃I heard a loud voice shout from the throne:

God's home is now with his people. He will live with them, and they will be his own. Yes, God will make his home among his people. ₄He will wipe all tears from their eyes, and there will be no more death, suffering, crying, or pain. These things of the past are gone for ever.

₅Then the one sitting on the throne said:

I am making everything new. Write down what I have said. My words are true and can be trusted. ₆Everything is finished! I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will freely give water from the life-giving fountain to everyone who is thirsty. ₇All who win the victory will be given these blessings. I will be their God, and they will be my people.

₈But I will tell you what will happen to cowards and to everyone who is unfaithful or dirty-minded or who murders or is sexually immoral or uses witchcraft or worships idols or tells lies. They will be thrown into that lake of fire and burning sulphur. This is the second death.

New Jerusalem

₉I saw one of the seven angels who had the bowls filled with the seven last terrible troubles. The angel came to me and said, “Come on! I will show you the one who will be the bride and wife of the Lamb.” ₁₀Then with the help of the Spirit, he took me to the top of a very high mountain. There he showed me the holy city of Jerusalem coming down from God in heaven.

₁₁The glory of God made the city bright. It was dazzling and crystal clear like a precious jasper stone. ₁₂The city had a high and thick wall with twelve gates, and each one of them was guarded by an angel. On each of the gates was written the name of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. ₁₃Three of these gates were on the east, three were on the north, three more were on the south, and the other three were on the west. ₁₄The city was built on twelve foundation stones. On each of the stones was written the name of one of the Lamb's twelve apostles.

₁₅The angel who spoke to me had a gold measuring stick to measure the city and its gates and its walls. ₁₆The city was shaped like a cube, because it was just as high as it was wide. When the angel measured the city, it was about two thousand four hundred kilometres high and two thousand four hundred kilometres wide. ₁₇Then the angel measured the wall, and by our measurements it was about sixty metres high.

₁₈The wall was built of jasper, and the city was made of pure gold, clear as crystal. ₁₉Each of the twelve foundations was a precious stone. The first was jasper, the second was sapphire, the third was agate, the fourth was emerald, ₂₀the fifth was onyx, the sixth was carnelian, the seventh was chrysolite, the eighth was beryl, the ninth was topaz, the tenth was chrysoprase, the eleventh was jacinth, and the twelfth was amethyst. ₂₁Each of the twelve gates was a solid pearl. The streets of the city were made of pure gold, clear as crystal.

₂₂I did not see a temple there. The Lord God All-Powerful and the Lamb were its temple. ₂₃And the city did not need the sun or the moon. The glory of God was shining on it, and the Lamb was its light.

₂₄Nations will walk by the light of that city, and kings will bring their riches there. ₂₅Its gates are always open during the day, and night never comes. ₂₆The glorious treasures of nations will be brought into the city. ₂₇But nothing unworthy will be allowed to enter. No one who is dirty-minded or who tells lies will be there. Only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life will be in the city.

Revelation 21:1-27CEVOpen in Bible reader