New International Version
Zechariah 8:13
13Just as you, Judah and Israel, have been a curse among the nations, so I will save you, and you will be a blessing. Do not be afraid, but let your hands be strong.”
Zechariah 8:13 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel; so will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing: fear not, but let your hands be strong.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And as you have been a byword of cursing among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so will I save you, and you shall be a blessing. Fear not, but let your hands be strong."
- New King James Version (NKJV)And it shall come to pass That just as you were a curse among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, So I will save you, and you shall be a blessing. Do not fear, Let your hands be strong.’
- New Living Translation (NLT)Among the other nations, Judah and Israel became symbols of a cursed nation. But no longer! Now I will rescue you and make you both a symbol and a source of blessing. So don’t be afraid. Be strong, and get on with rebuilding the Temple!
Context of Zechariah 8:13
11But now I will not deal with the remnant of this people as I did in the past,” declares the Lord Almighty. 12“The seed will grow well, the vine will yield its fruit, the ground will produce its crops, and the heavens will drop their dew. I will give all these things as an inheritance to the remnant of this people. Just as you, Judah and Israel, have been a curse among the nations, so I will save you, and you will be a blessing. Do not be afraid, but let your hands be strong.” 14This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Just as I had determined to bring disaster on you and showed no pity when your ancestors angered me,” says the Lord Almighty, 15“so now I have determined to do good again to Jerusalem and Judah. Do not be afraid.
Read all of Zechariah 8Zechariah 8:13 word by word
וְהָיָ֡ה כַּאֲשֶׁר֩ הֱיִיתֶ֨ם קְלָלָ֜ה בַּגּוֹיִ֗ם בֵּ֤ית יְהוּדָה֙ וּבֵ֣ית יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל כֵּ֚ן אוֹשִׁ֣יעַ אֶתְכֶ֔ם וִהְיִיתֶ֖ם בְּרָכָ֑ה אַל־תִּירָ֖אוּ תֶּחֱזַ֥קְנָה יְדֵיכֶֽם׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- as ye were a curseקְלָלָהqelâlâh · curseH7045
- among the heathenגּוֹיgôy gôy · nationH1471
- O houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: householdH1004
- of Judahיְהוּדָהyehûdâh · JudahH3063
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- so will I saveיָשַׁעyâsha‛ · to saveH3467
- you, and ye shall be a blessingבְּרָכָהberâkâh · blessingH1293
- fearיָרֵאyârê' · to fearH3372
- let your handsיָדyâd · handH3027
- be strongחָזַקchâzaq · to strengthen: strengthenH2388
Cross-references for Zechariah 8:13
- Deuteronomy 28:37You will become a thing of horror, a byword and an object of ridicule among all the peoples where the Lord will drive you.
- Deuteronomy 29:23The whole land will be a burning waste of salt and sulfur—nothing planted, nothing sprouting, no vegetation growing on it. It will be like the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboyim, which the Lord overthrew in fierce anger.
- 1 Kings 9:7then I will cut off Israel from the land I have given them and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. Israel will then become a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples.
- 2 Chronicles 7:20then I will uproot Israel from my land, which I have given them, and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. I will make it a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples.
- Psalms 44:13You have made us a reproach to our neighbors, the scorn and derision of those around us.
- Psalms 79:4We are objects of contempt to our neighbors, of scorn and derision to those around us.
- Isaiah 65:15You will leave your name for my chosen ones to use in their curses; the Sovereign Lord will put you to death, but to his servants he will give another name.
- Jeremiah 24:9I will make them abhorrent and an offense to all the kingdoms of the earth, a reproach and a byword, a curse and an object of ridicule, wherever I banish them.
- Jeremiah 25:18Jerusalem and the towns of Judah, its kings and officials, to make them a ruin and an object of horror and scorn, a curse—as they are today;
- Jeremiah 26:6then I will make this house like Shiloh and this city a curse among all the nations of the earth.’ ”
- Jeremiah 29:18I will pursue them with the sword, famine and plague and will make them abhorrent to all the kingdoms of the earth, a curse and an object of horror, of scorn and reproach, among all the nations where I drive them.
- Jeremiah 42:18This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: ‘As my anger and wrath have been poured out on those who lived in Jerusalem, so will my wrath be poured out on you when you go to Egypt. You will be a curse and an object of horror, a curse and an object of reproach; you will never see this place again.’
- Jeremiah 44:12I will take away the remnant of Judah who were determined to go to Egypt to settle there. They will all perish in Egypt; they will fall by the sword or die from famine. From the least to the greatest, they will die by sword or famine. They will become a curse and an object of horror, a curse and an object of reproach.
- Lamentations 2:15All who pass your way clap their hands at you; they scoff and shake their heads at Daughter Jerusalem: “Is this the city that was called the perfection of beauty, the joy of the whole earth?”
- Lamentations 4:15“Go away! You are unclean!” people cry to them. “Away! Away! Don’t touch us!” When they flee and wander about, people among the nations say, “They can stay here no longer.”
- Ezekiel 5:15You will be a reproach and a taunt, a warning and an object of horror to the nations around you when I inflict punishment on you in anger and in wrath and with stinging rebuke. I the Lord have spoken.
Commentaries on Zechariah 8:13
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 13As ye were a curse - Instead of being execrated among the people, ye shall be blessed; instead of being reproached, ye shall be commended. Ye shall be a blessing to all the nations round about. All these promises we may expect to be completely fulfilled when the Jews acknowledge their Messiah. O house of Judah, and house of Israel - The restoration shall be complete, when both Israel and Judah are brought back.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 13As ye were a curse among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so I will save you - The ten tribes bore the name of Israel, in contrast with the two tribes with the name of Judah, not only in the history but in the prophets; as Hosea says, “I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel, and on the house of Judah I will have mercy” Hosea 1:6-7. Here he unites both; both, in the time of their captivity, were a curse, were held to be a…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 9-17Verses 9-17 Those only who lay their hands to the plough of duty, shall have them strengthened with the promises of mercy: those who avoid their fathers' faults have the curse turned into a blessing. Those who believed the promises, were to show their faith by their works, and to wait the fulfilment. When God is displeased, he can cause trade to decay, and set every man against his neighbour; but when he returns in mercy, all is happy and prosperous…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 9-13This section shows how Jerusalem's situation improved when they rebuilt the temple (see 2 Chronicles 15:3–7). The call to be strong (Zechariah 8:9, 13) serves as an inclusio (a rhetorical device that begins and ends a section with a similar refrain) for the section.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 9-139-13. All adversities formerly attended them when neglecting to build the temple: but now God promises all blessings, as an encouragement to energy in the work. hands ... strong--be of courageous mind (2Sa 16:21), not merely in building, but in general, as having such bright prospects (Zec 8:13, &c.). these days--the time that had elapsed between the prophet's having spoken "these words" and the time (Zec 8:10; compare Hag 2:15-19) when they set about in…Read the comment
Topics related to Zechariah 8:13
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Zechariah 8
- 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
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