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False Gods and False Preachers

13 “On that day a well of water will be opened for the family of David and for the people of Jerusalem to make them clean from their sin.

“On that day,” says the Lord of All, “I will destroy the names of the false gods from the land. They will no longer be remembered. And I will take away from the land those who tell what will happen in the future and the unclean spirit. If anyone still tells what will happen in the future, his father and mother who gave birth to him will tell him, ‘You must not live, because you have lied in the name of the Lord.’ And his father and mother who gave birth to him will kill him when he speaks false words. On that day those who tell what will happen in the future will each be ashamed of his special dream when he speaks. He will not put on clothing made from hair to fool the people. But he will say, ‘I am not a man who speaks for God. I am a farmer. A man sold me as a servant when I was young.’ If someone asks him, ‘What are these sores on your back?’ he will answer, ‘They are the sores I received in the house of my friends.’

The Shepherd Who Saves

“Wake up, O sword, against My shepherd and against the man who is close to Me,” says the Lord of All. “Kill the shepherd, and the sheep will go everywhere. And I will turn My hand against the little ones. In the whole land,” says the Lord, “two-thirds will die, but one-third will be left alive. And I will bring the third part through the fire. I will make them pure like silver is made pure. I will test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘They are My people,’ and they will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’”

Cleansing From Sin

13 “On that day a fountain(A) will be opened to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse(B) them from sin and impurity.

“On that day, I will banish the names of the idols(C) from the land, and they will be remembered no more,”(D) declares the Lord Almighty. “I will remove both the prophets(E) and the spirit of impurity from the land. And if anyone still prophesies, their father and mother, to whom they were born, will say to them, ‘You must die, because you have told lies(F) in the Lord’s name.’ Then their own parents will stab the one who prophesies.(G)

“On that day every prophet will be ashamed(H) of their prophetic vision. They will not put on a prophet’s garment(I) of hair(J) in order to deceive.(K) Each will say, ‘I am not a prophet. I am a farmer; the land has been my livelihood since my youth.[a](L) If someone asks, ‘What are these wounds on your body[b]?’ they will answer, ‘The wounds I was given at the house of my friends.’

The Shepherd Struck, the Sheep Scattered

“Awake, sword,(M) against my shepherd,(N)
    against the man who is close to me!”
    declares the Lord Almighty.
“Strike the shepherd,
    and the sheep will be scattered,(O)
    and I will turn my hand against the little ones.
In the whole land,” declares the Lord,
    “two-thirds will be struck down and perish;
    yet one-third will be left in it.(P)
This third I will put into the fire;(Q)
    I will refine them like silver(R)
    and test them like gold.(S)
They will call(T) on my name(U)
    and I will answer(V) them;
I will say, ‘They are my people,’(W)
    and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God.(X)’”

Footnotes

  1. Zechariah 13:5 Or farmer; a man sold me in my youth
  2. Zechariah 13:6 Or wounds between your hands