Zechariah 7:7

Zechariah 7:7 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Should ye not hear the words which the Lord hath cried by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, and the cities thereof round about her, when men inhabited the south and the plain?
• New International Version (NIV)Are these not the words the Lord proclaimed through the earlier prophets when Jerusalem and its surrounding towns were at rest and prosperous, and the Negev and the western foothills were settled?’ ”
• New King James Version (NKJV)Should you not have obeyed the words which the Lord proclaimed through the former prophets when Jerusalem and the cities around it were inhabited and prosperous, and the South and the Lowland were inhabited?’ ”
• New Living Translation (NLT)Isn’t this the same message the Lord proclaimed through the prophets in years past when Jerusalem and the towns of Judah were bustling with people, and the Negev and the foothills of Judah were well populated?’”

Context of Zechariah 7:7

5"Say to all the people of the land and the priests, 'When you fasted and mourned in the fifth month and in the seventh, for these seventy years, was it for me that you fasted? 6And when you eat and when you drink, do you not eat for yourselves and drink for yourselves? Were not these the words that the Lord proclaimed by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and prosperous, with her cities around her, and the South and the lowland were inhabited?'" 8And the word of the Lord came to Zechariah, saying, 9"Thus says the Lord of hosts, Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another,

Zechariah 7:7 word by word

הֲל֣וֹא אֶת־הַדְּבָרִ֗ים אֲשֶׁ֨ר קָרָ֤א יְהוָה֙ בְּיַד֙ הַנְּבִיאִ֣ים הָרִֽאשֹׁנִ֔ים בִּהְי֤וֹת יְרוּשָׁלִַ֙ם֙ יֹשֶׁ֣בֶת וּשְׁלֵוָ֔ה וְעָרֶ֖יהָ סְבִיבֹתֶ֑יהָ וְהַנֶּ֥גֶב וְהַשְּׁפֵלָ֖ה יֹשֵֽׁב׃ פRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• the wordsדָּבָרdâbâr · wordH1697
• which the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• hath criedקָרָאqârâ' · to call: call outH7121
• byיָדyâd · hand: byH3027
• the formerרִאשׁוֹןri'shôn ri'shôn · first: previousH7223
• prophetsנָבִיאnâbîy' · prophetH5030
• when Jerusalemיְרוּשָׁלִַ֫ם, יְרוּשְׁלֵםyerûshâlaim yerûshâlayim · JerusalemH3389
• was inhabitedיָשַׁבyâshab · to dwellH3427
• and in prosperityשָׁלֵוshâlêv shâlêyv shelêvâh · at easeH7961
• and the citiesעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
• thereof round about herסָבִיבsâbîyb sebîybâh · aroundH5439
• the southנֶ֫גֶבnegeb · NegebH5045
• and the plainשְׁפֵלָהshephêlâh · ShephelahH8219

Cross-references for Zechariah 7:7

• Isaiah 55:3Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.
• Zechariah 1:3Therefore say to them, Thus declares the Lord of hosts: Return to me, says the Lord of hosts, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts.
• Isaiah 1:16Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil,
• Jeremiah 7:5"For if you truly amend your ways and your deeds, if you truly execute justice one with another,
• Jeremiah 36:2"Take a scroll and write on it all the words that I have spoken to you against Israel and Judah and all the nations, from the day I spoke to you, from the days of Josiah until today.
• Ezekiel 18:30"Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, declares the Lord God. Repent and turn from all your transgressions, lest iniquity be your ruin.
• Daniel 9:6We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.
• Hosea 14:1Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity.
• Amos 5:14Seek good, and not evil, that you may live; and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you, as you have said.
• Micah 6:6"With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old?
• Zephaniah 2:1Gather together, yes, gather, O shameless nation,
• Deuteronomy 34:3the Negeb, and the Plain, that is, the Valley of Jericho the city of palm trees, as far as Zoar.
• Jeremiah 17:26And people shall come from the cities of Judah and the places around Jerusalem, from the land of Benjamin, from the Shephelah, from the hill country, and from the Negeb, bringing burnt offerings and sacrifices, grain offerings and frankincense, and bringing thank offerings to the house of the Lord.
• Jeremiah 32:44Fields shall be bought for money, and deeds shall be signed and sealed and witnessed, in the land of Benjamin, in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, in the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the Shephelah, and in the cities of the Negeb; for I will restore their fortunes, declares the Lord."
• Jeremiah 33:13In the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the Shephelah, and in the cities of the Negeb, in the land of Benjamin, the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, flocks shall again pass under the hands of the one who counts them, says the Lord.

Commentaries on Zechariah 7:7

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 7The words which the Lord hath cried by the former prophets - הראשנים נביאים nebiim harishonim, is the title which the Jews give to Joshua, Judges, the two books of Samuel, and the two books of Kings. The latter prophets, אחרונים נביאים nebiim acharonim, are Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the twelve minor prophets. The hagiographa, כתובים kethubim, holy writings, are the Psalms, Proverbs, Job, Song of Solomon, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, Esther…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7Should ye “not hear” the words, or, Know ye “not the words?” The verb is presupposed in the emphatic question, as in, “Shall I, the blood of these men?” 2 Samuel 23:17. David omits the word “drink” for abhorrence. By the former prophets - Isaiah and Jeremiah, “when Jerusalem was dwelling abidingly,” at ease, as the whole world then was, except herself, “and the south and the low-country,” both belonging to Judah, were inhabited. The restoration then was…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7Are these not the words: For example, see Isaiah 1:11–20; 58:3–7.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 77. Should ye not hear the words--rather, "Should ye not do the words," as their question naturally was as to what they should do (Zec 7:3); "hearing" is not mentioned till Zec 7:12. The sense is, It is not fasts that Jehovah requires of you, but that ye should keep His precepts given to you at the time when Jerusalem was in its integrity. Had ye done so then, ye would have had no occasion to institute fasts to commemorate its destruction, for it would…Read the comment

Topics related to Zechariah 7:7

• Impenitence
• Word of God

In the dictionaries

• Jerusalem
• Fast
• Plain
• Bible, the
• Ezekiel
• Intercession
• Lowland
• Shephelah
• Zechariah, Book of
• Fasts

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