Zechariah 1:3

3 And thou shalt say to them, The Lord of hosts saith these things. Be ye turned again to me, saith the Lord of hosts, and I shall be turned again to you, saith the Lord of hosts. (And thou shalt say to the people, The Lord of hosts saith these things. Return ye to me, saith the Lord of hosts, and I shall return to you/Come ye back to me, saith the Lord of hosts, and I shall come back to you.)

Zechariah 1:3 Meaning and Commentary

Zechariah 1:3

Therefore say thou unto them
This is an order from the Lord to Zechariah, to say unto them, in the name of the Lord: thus saith the Lord of hosts;
of the hosts above and below, of angels and of men, of heaven and earth, and all that is therein: this is said, that the greater regard might be had to his words: turn ye unto me, saith the Lord of hosts;
by repentance, and acknowledgment of former sins; by reformation for the future; by attending to the worship and service of God, and seeking to glorify him. So the Targum, "return to my worship": this is not the condition of what follows, but what follows is the motive and encouragement to this: and I will turn unto you, saith the Lord of hosts;
to dwell among them, manifest himself unto and protect them. Three times the phrase, "the Lord of hosts", is used in this verse: it may be with respect to the three Persons in the Godhead, Father, Son, and Spirit; who manifest themselves unto, and take up their abode with, such as love the Lord, and keep his commandments; see ( John 14:21 ) .

Zechariah 1:3 In-Context

1 In the eighth month, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord was made to Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, (the) prophet, and said,
2 The Lord is wroth on your fathers with wrathfulness. (The Lord was truly angry with your forefathers.)
3 And thou shalt say to them, The Lord of hosts saith these things. Be ye turned again to me, saith the Lord of hosts, and I shall be turned again to you, saith the Lord of hosts. (And thou shalt say to the people, The Lord of hosts saith these things. Return ye to me, saith the Lord of hosts, and I shall return to you/Come ye back to me, saith the Lord of hosts, and I shall come back to you.)
4 Be ye not as your fathers, to which the former prophets cried, saying, The Lord of hosts saith these things, Be ye converted from your evil ways, and your worst thoughts; and they heard not, neither took attention to me, saith the Lord of hosts. (Do not ye be like your forefathers, to whom the earlier prophets, or the prophets of old, cried, saying, The Lord of hosts saith these things, Turn ye away from your evil ways, and your worst thoughts; and they did not listen, nor pay any attention to me, saith the Lord of hosts.)
5 Where be your fathers and (the) prophets? whether they shall live [into] without end? (And now where be your forefathers, and the prophets? do they live forever?)
Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.