Zechariah 7:12

Zechariah 7:12 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the Lord of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the Lord of hosts.
• New International Version (NIV)They made their hearts as hard as flint and would not listen to the law or to the words that the Lord Almighty had sent by his Spirit through the earlier prophets. So the Lord Almighty was very angry.
• English Standard Version (ESV)They made their hearts diamond-hard lest they should hear the law and the words that the Lord of hosts had sent by his Spirit through the former prophets. Therefore great anger came from the Lord of hosts.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Yes, they made their hearts like flint, refusing to hear the law and the words which the Lord of hosts had sent by His Spirit through the former prophets. Thus great wrath came from the Lord of hosts.

Context of Zechariah 7:12

10Do not cheat widows or children who have no family. Do not cheat foreigners or poor people. Do not think secretly of ways to hurt each other.” 11But the people would not listen and they turned away. They put their hands over their ears, because they did not want to hear. They decided that they would not listen to God's rules or to the messages from the prophets. But the Lord Almighty had sent those messages by His Spirit. So I, the Lord Almighty, was very angry. 13When I spoke to them, they did not listen. So when they prayed to me, I did not listen to them, says the Lord Almighty. 14As a storm takes things away, I took my people away to strange countries. The country that they left became an empty country. Nobody lived in it. That is how they made the good country an empty country.’

Zechariah 7:12 word by word

וְלִבָּ֞ם שָׂ֣מוּ שָׁמִ֗יר מִ֠שְּׁמוֹעַ אֶת־הַתּוֹרָ֤ה וְאֶת־הַדְּבָרִים֙ אֲשֶׁ֨ר שָׁלַ֜ח יְהוָ֤ה צְבָאוֹת֙ בְּרוּח֔וֹ בְּיַ֖ד הַנְּבִיאִ֣ים הָרִֽאשֹׁנִ֑ים וַֽיְהִי֙ קֶ֣צֶף גָּד֔וֹל מֵאֵ֖ת יְהוָ֥ה צְבָאֽוֹת׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Yea, they madeשׂוּםώûm ώîym · to set: makeH7760
• their heartsלֵבlêb · heartH3820
• an adamant stoneשָׁמִירshâmîyr · thornH8068
• lest they should hearשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: hearH8085
• the lawתּוֹרָהtôrâh tôrâh · instructionH8451
• and the wordsדָּבָרdâbâr · wordH1697
• which the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• of hostsצָבָאtsâbâ' tsebâ'âh · HostsH6635
• hath sentשָׁלַחshâlach · to send: departH7971
• in his spiritרוּחַrûach · spiritH7307
• byיָדyâd · hand: byH3027
• the formerרִאשׁוֹןri'shôn ri'shôn · first: previousH7223
• prophetsנָבִיאnâbîy' · prophetH5030
• therefore came a greatגָּדוֹלgâdôl gâdôl · great: largeH1419
• wrathקֶ֫צֶףqetseph · wrathH7110

Cross-references for Zechariah 7:12

• Nehemiah 9:29You warned them to obey your laws. But they refused to listen to you. They did not obey your commands. You had given them rules which would help them to have true life if they obeyed them. But they would not obey your laws. They turned away from you and they continued to do bad things.
• Job 9:4God is very wise and he is very powerful. It is impossible to argue against him and win.
• Isaiah 48:4I did it because I know what you are like. You refuse to obey me. You do not want to change the way that you live. Your neck is like iron and it will not bend! Your head is as hard as bronze!
• Jeremiah 5:3Lord, you want people to be honest and true. You have punished your people, but they did not feel any pain. You nearly destroyed them, but they still refuse to change. Their minds have become as hard as rock. They refuse to turn back to you.
• Ezekiel 2:4I am sending you to speak to these people. They do not accept my authority and they refuse to change. But you must say to them, “This is what the Almighty Lord says.”
• Ezekiel 3:7But Israel's people will not agree to listen to you. That is because they refuse to listen to me. All the Israelites have decided not to obey me, and they will not change.
• Ezekiel 11:19I will give them new thoughts so that they will choose to worship only me. I will put a new spirit in them. They will no longer refuse to change their way of life. Instead, I will help them to want to obey me.
• Ezekiel 36:26I will give you new thoughts. I will put a new spirit in you. You will no longer refuse to obey me. Instead, you will want to please me.
• Psalms 50:17For you hate my teaching, and you refuse to accept my message.
• Isaiah 6:10Make them refuse to understand. Cause their ears to be deaf and their eyes to be blind. If you do not do that, they might use their eyes to see. They might use their ears to listen. They might use their minds to understand. Then they might turn back to me so that I would make them well again.’
• Matthew 13:15These people do not really want to understand. They are like people who have shut their ears. They are like people who have shut their eyes. If they did want to look, then they would really see. If they did want to listen, then they would really hear. They would understand my message. They would turn back to obey me. Then I would forgive them and I would make them well.” ’
• Mark 4:12This is so that: “They are always looking but they do not see clearly. They are always listening but they do not understand.” If they did understand, they would turn to God. Then God would forgive them.’
• Luke 8:12Some seeds fell on the path. That is like some people who hear the message, but they do not think about it. The Devil comes and he takes the message away from their minds. He takes it away so that they cannot believe it. Because they do not believe the message, God does not save them.
• John 3:19God's Son has brought light into the world. But some people did not love the light. They loved the dark instead. That was because they were doing evil things. That is why God has decided to punish those people.
• John 3:20Everyone who does evil things hates the light. A person like that will not come to the light because he is afraid. He does not want the bad things that he has done to show clearly.
• Acts 28:27These people do not really want to understand. They are like people who have shut their ears. They are like people who have shut their eyes. If they did want to look, then they would really see. If they did want to listen, then they would really hear. They would understand my message. They would turn back to me and they would obey me. Then I would forgive them and I would make them well.” ’

Commentaries on Zechariah 7:12

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 12Made their hearts as an adamant stone - שמיר shamir may mean the granite. This is the hardest stone with which the common people could be acquainted. Perhaps the corundum, of which emery is a species, may be intended. Bochart thinks it means a stone used in polishing others. The same name, in Hebrew, applies to different stones.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 12Harder than adamant - The stone, whatever it be, was hard enough to cut ineffaceable characters: it was harder than flint. It would cut rocks; it could not be graven itself, or receive the characters of God. This is the last sin, obduracy, persevering impenitence, which “resisted the Holy Spirit” Acts 7:51. and “did despite to the Spirit of grace” Hebrews 10:29. Not through infirmity, but of set purpose, they hardened themselves, lest “they should…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 8-14Verses 8-14 God's judgements upon Israel of old for their sins, were written to warn Christians. The duties required are, not keeping fasts and offering sacrifices, but doing justly and loving mercy, which tend to the public welfare and peace. The law of God lays restraint upon the heart. But they filled their minds with prejudices against the word of God. Nothing is harder than the heart of a presumptuous sinner. See the fatal consequences of this to…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 12To make your heart like flint is to resist God's will (see Jeremiah 17:1; compare Ezekiel 3:9). The law (torah in Hebrew) refers to God's laws and commands as taught and explained by the prophets.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1212. hearts ... adamant--(Eze 3:9; 11:19). Lord ... sent in Spirit by ... prophets--that is, sent by the former prophets inspired with His Spirit. therefore ... great wrath--(2Ch 36:16). As they pushed from them the yoke of obedience, God laid on them the yoke of oppression. As they made their heart hard as adamant, God brake their hard hearts with judgments. Hard hearts must expect hard treatment. The harder the stone, the harder the blow of the hammer to…Read the comment

Topics related to Zechariah 7:12

• Adamant
• Afflictions and Adversities
• Impenitence
• Prophets
• Wicked (People)
• Word of God

In the dictionaries

• Lord of Hosts
• Adamant
• Diamond
• Bible, the
• Canon of the Old Testament
• Ezekiel
• Revelation
• Stones, Precious
• Trinity
• Zechariah, Book of

Commentaries on Zechariah 7

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings