Zechariah 14:3-8

3 Then the Lord will go out to fight against those nations as He fights on a day of battle.[a]
4 On that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives,[b] which faces Jerusalem on the east. The Mount of Olives will be split in half from east to west, forming a huge valley, so that half the mountain will move to the north and half to the south.
5 You will flee by My mountain valley,[c] for the valley of the mountains will extend to Azal. You will flee as you fled[d] from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah.[e] Then the Lord my God will come and all the holy ones with Him.[f][g]
6 On that day there will be no light; the sunlight and moonlight[h] will diminish.[i][j]
7 It will be a day known [only] to Yahweh,[k] without day or night, but there will be light at evening.
8 On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem,[l] half of it toward the eastern sea[m] and the other half toward the western sea,[n] in summer and winter alike.

Zechariah 14:3-8 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO ZECHARIAH 14

This chapter treats of the coming of Christ with all his saints, and his personal appearance among them; and of the signs of the times before that; and of what shall befall the enemies of the church, both open and secret; and of the happy state and condition of the church itself. First there will be a time of great affliction to the people of God, Zec 14:1,2, when the Lord will appear and fight for them, and will appear to them, and with them, Zec 14:3-5 but before this time it will be an uncommon season, neither day nor night; at the close of which, light will break forth, Zec 14:6,7 the Gospel will be spread far and near, attended with the Spirit and grace of God in great plenty, Zec 14:8 which will bring on the spiritual reign of Christ over all the earth, Zec 14:9 particularly the land of Judea, and the city of Jerusalem, shall be inhabited by men with safety, Zec 14:10,11 and all those that oppose and fight against the Lord's people shall be destroyed, partly by an immediate plague from the Lord upon them, and partly by the hands of one another, and also by the saints of the most High; and the plague shall not only be upon their persons, but upon their cattle likewise, Zec 14:12-16 and as for those that profess the Christian name, and yet neglect or refuse to worship the Lord in a spiritual and evangelical manner, there shall be no rain upon them, Zec 14:17-19 and as for the church and people of God, there shall be universal holiness among them, and not a single Canaanite to be found in the midst of them, Zec 14:20,21.

Footnotes 14

  • [a]. Rv 19:11-21
  • [b]. Ezk 11:23; Ac 1:11-12
  • [c]. Some Hb mss, LXX, Sym, Tg read You will be blocked-the valley of My mountains-
  • [d]. LXX reads It will be blocked as it was blocked
  • [e]. Am 1:1
  • [f]. Some Hb mss, LXX, Vg, Tg, Syr; other Hb mss read you
  • [g]. Ps 89:5-7; Mt 25:31
  • [h]. Lit light; the precious things
  • [i]. LXX, Sym, Syr, Tg, Vg read no light or cold or ice
  • [j]. Isa 13:10; Jl 2:10; 3:15
  • [k]. Mt 24:36
  • [l]. Ezk 47:1-12; Jl 3:18; Rv 22:1-2
  • [m]. the Dead Sea
  • [n]. the Mediterranean Sea
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