Zechariah 12:3

Zechariah 12:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.
• New International Version (NIV)On that day, when all the nations of the earth are gathered against her, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves.
• English Standard Version (ESV)On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And all the nations of the earth will gather against it.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.

Context of Zechariah 12:3

1The revelation of the word of the Lord concerning Israel: The Lord – he who stretches out the heavens and lays the foundations of the earth, who forms the human spirit within a person – says, 2“I am about to make Jerusalem a cup that brings dizziness to all the surrounding nations; indeed, Judah will also be included when Jerusalem is besieged. Moreover, on that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy burden for all the nations, and all who try to carry it will be seriously injured; yet all the peoples of the earth will be assembled against it. 4In that day,” says the Lord, “I will strike every horse with confusion and its rider with madness. I will pay close attention to the house of Judah, but will strike all the horses of the nations with blindness. 5Then the leaders of Judah will say to themselves, ‘The inhabitants of Jerusalem are a means of strength to us through their God, the Lord who rules over all.’

Zechariah 12:3 word by word

וְהָיָ֣ה בַיּוֹם־הַ֠הוּא אָשִׂ֨ים אֶת־יְרוּשָׁלִַ֜ם אֶ֤בֶן מַֽעֲמָסָה֙ לְכָל־הָ֣עַמִּ֔ים כָּל־עֹמְסֶ֖יהָ שָׂר֣וֹט יִשָּׂרֵ֑טוּ וְנֶאֶסְפ֣וּ עָלֶ֔יהָ כֹּ֖ל גּוֹיֵ֥י הָאָֽרֶץ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And in that dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
• will I makeשׂוּםώûm ώîym · to set: makeH7760
• Jerusalemיְרוּשָׁלִַ֫ם, יְרוּשְׁלֵםyerûshâlaim yerûshâlayim · JerusalemH3389
• a burdensomeמַעֲמָסָהma‛ămâsâh · burdenH4614
• stoneאֶ֫בֶן'eben · stoneH68
• for all peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
• all that burdenעָמַס‛âmas ‛âmaώ · loadH6006
• themselves with it shall be cut in piecesשָׂרַטώâraţ · to inciseH8295
• though all the peopleגּוֹיgôy gôy · nationH1471
• of the earthאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• be gathered togetherאָסַף'âsaph · to gatherH622

Cross-references for Zechariah 12:3

• Zechariah 12:4In that day,” says the Lord, “I will strike every horse with confusion and its rider with madness. I will pay close attention to the house of Judah, but will strike all the horses of the nations with blindness.
• Zechariah 2:8For the Lord who rules over all says to me that for his own glory he has sent me to the nations that plundered you – for anyone who touches you touches the pupil of his eye.
• Zechariah 10:3I am enraged at the shepherds and will punish the lead-goats. For the Lord who rules over all has brought blessing to his flock, the house of Judah, and will transform them into his majestic warhorse.
• Zechariah 13:1“In that day there will be a fountain opened up for the dynasty of David and the people of Jerusalem to cleanse them from sin and impurity.
• Zechariah 14:2For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to wage war; the city will be taken, its houses plundered, and the women raped. Then half of the city will go into exile, but the remainder of the people will not be taken away.
• Isaiah 60:12Indeed, nations or kingdoms that do not serve you will perish; such nations will be totally destroyed.
• Isaiah 66:14When you see this, you will be happy, and you will be revived. The Lord will reveal his power to his servants and his anger to his enemies.
• Ezekiel 38:1The word of the Lord came to me:
• Joel 3:8I will sell your sons and daughters to the people of Judah. They will sell them to the Sabeans, a nation far away. Indeed, the Lord has spoken!
• Obadiah 1:18The descendants of Jacob will be a fire, and the descendants of Joseph a flame. The descendants of Esau will be like stubble. They will burn them up and devour them. There will not be a single survivor of the descendants of Esau!” Indeed, the Lord has spoken it.
• Micah 5:8Those survivors from Jacob will live among the nations, in the midst of many peoples. They will be like a lion among the animals of the forest, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep, which attacks when it passes through; it rips its prey and there is no one to stop it.
• Micah 7:15“As in the days when you departed from the land of Egypt, I will show you miraculous deeds.”
• Habakkuk 2:17For you will pay in full for your violent acts against Lebanon; terrifying judgment will come upon you because of the way you destroyed the wild animals living there. You have shed human blood and committed violent acts against lands, cities, and those who live in them.
• Zephaniah 3:19Look, at that time I will deal with those who mistreated you. I will rescue the lame sheep and gather together the scattered sheep. I will take away their humiliation and make the whole earth admire and respect them.
• Haggai 2:22I will overthrow royal thrones and shatter the might of earthly kingdoms. I will overthrow chariots and those who ride them, and horses and their riders will fall as people kill one another.
• Daniel 2:34You were watching as a stone was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its iron and clay feet, breaking them in pieces.

Commentaries on Zechariah 12:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3A burdensome stone - Probably referring to that stone which was thrown on the breast of a culprit adjudged to lose his life by stoning, by which the whole region of the thorax, heart, lungs, liver, etc., was broken to pieces.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3I will make Jerusalem a burdensome stone to all nations - What is “a stone to all nations?” It is not a rock or anything in its own nature immovable, but a “stone,” a thing rolled up and down, moved, lifted, displaced, piled on others, in every way at the service and command of people, to do with it what they willed. So they thought of that “stone cut out without hands” Daniel 2:45; that “tried stone and sure foundation, laid in Zion” Isaiah 28:16; that…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3Jerusalem will be like a heavy stone that no one can move. Anyone who tries to conquer or control the city will be injured by it. This is because the Lord founded Jerusalem and loves it more than any other city in Israel (Psalm 87:1–2). In the book of Zechariah, stone imagery is often connected to the temple. These stones point to God’s work of building, restoring, and protecting his holy place (Zechariah 3:9; 4:7; 10:4).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. (Zec 14:4, 6-9, 13). Jerome states it was a custom in Palestine to test the strength of youths by their lifting up a massive stone; the phrase, "burden themselves with it," refers to this custom. Compare Mt 21:44: The Jews "fell" on the rock of offense, Messiah, and were "broken"; but the rock shall fall on Antichrist, who "burdens himself with it" by his assault on the restored Jews, and "grind him to powder." all ... people of ... earth--The…Read the comment

Topics related to Zechariah 12:3

• Israel, Prophecies Concerning

In the dictionaries

• Jerusalem
• That Day
• Bible, the
• Burden
• Cut; Cutting
• Ezekiel
• Games
• Salvation
• Stone, Stones
• Zechariah, Book of

Commentaries on Zechariah 12

• 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