Zechariah 8:14

14 “For this is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: I was determined to punish you when your ancestors angered me, and I did not change my mind, says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.

Zechariah 8:14 Meaning and Commentary

Zechariah 8:14

For thus saith the Lord of hosts
In order to assure them of the truth of what he promised, he observes the fulfilment of what he had threatened, he being as true and faithful in the one as in the other: As I thought to punish you:
determined to do it, by suffering them to be carried captive: when your fathers provoked me to wrath, saith the Lord of hosts;
by their immorality, idolatry, and contempt of his prophets: and I repented not;
the Targum adds, "of my word"; of the resolution he had taken up in his heart, and of the declaration of it by his prophets, that he would punish them; this he did not repent of, revoke, change, and alter, but steadily abode by it, and executed it.

Zechariah 8:14 In-Context

12 For I am planting seeds of peace and prosperity among you. The grapevines will be heavy with fruit. The earth will produce its crops, and the heavens will release the dew. Once more I will cause the remnant in Judah and Israel to inherit these blessings.

13 Among the other nations, Judah and Israel became symbols of a cursed nation. But no longer! Now I will rescue you and make you both a symbol and a source of blessing. So don’t be afraid. Be strong, and get on with rebuilding the Temple!

14 “For this is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: I was determined to punish you when your ancestors angered me, and I did not change my mind, says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.

15 But now I am determined to bless Jerusalem and the people of Judah. So don’t be afraid.

16 But this is what you must do: Tell the truth to each other. Render verdicts in your courts that are just and that lead to peace.