Zechariah 13:8

Translations

Modern

And in all the land, declares the LORD, two-thirds will be cut off and perish, but a third will be left in it.

Traditional

And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein.

Literal

And it will come to pass, in all the land, a declaration of YHWH, a measure that two in it will be cut off and die, and the third will remain in it.

Latin

Et erunt in omni terra, dicit Dominus: partes duæ in ea dispergentur, et deficient: et tertia pars relinquetur in ea.

Original

Hebrew

English

And in all the land, declares the LORD, two-thirds will be cut off and perish, but a third will be left in it.

Notes

Zechariah 13:8

two-thirds … a third: The divine judgment would be catastrophic. However, God would save a small group and forgive their sin (see Isaiah 65:9; Jeremiah 50:20; Ezekiel 5:2–12; Revelation 9:15–18).

Zechariah 13:7–9

This message talks about a future day when God’s chosen leader of Israel will be harmed, causing the people of Israel to scatter. Some of the nation will face divine judgment, while others will experience spiritual renewal. This will fulfill Zechariah’s vision of God being with his people again (see Zechariah 1:16; 2:5, 10–11; 8:3, 23). The gospel writers connect parts of this passage (Zechariah 13:7) to the scattering of the disciples of Jesus when he was arrested, tried, and executed by the Romans (see Matthew 26:31, 56).

Zechariah 12:1–14:21

The theme of Jerusalem versus the nations connects the four messages in Zechariah's second oracle. The nations gather against Jerusalem at both the start (Zechariah 12:1–9) and the end (14:1–15) of the oracle. The repeated phrase on that day points to the future day of the Lord.

This oracle shows both judgment and blessing for Jerusalem. The main focus is the cleansing of the people of Israel (Zechariah 13:1), ending with God's universal kingdom (14:16–21). These future visions encouraged the Judeans of Zechariah's time to stay faithful despite feeling unimportant and helpless.

Theme notes and profiles

Apocalyptic Literature

Events

Prophecies of Zechariahc. 520 BC

Related verses

Ezekiel 5:12
A third of your people will die by plague or be consumed by famine within you, a third will fall by the sword outside your walls, and a third I will scatter to every wind and unleash a sword behind them.
Revelation 16:19
The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. And God remembered Babylon the great and gave her the cup of the wine of the fury of His wrath.
Ezekiel 5:2–4
When the days of the siege have ended, you are to burn up a third of the hair inside the city; you are also to take a third and slash it with the sword all around the city; and you are to scatter a third to the wind. For I will unleash a sword behind them.
Malachi 4:1–3
“For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace, when all the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble; the day is coming when I will set them ablaze,” says the LORD of Hosts. “Not a root or branch will be left to them.”
Revelation 8:7–12
Then the first angel sounded his trumpet, and hail and fire mixed with blood were hurled down upon the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, along with a third of the trees and all the green grass.
Matthew 24:21–22
For at that time there will be great tribulation, unseen from the beginning of the world until now, and never to be seen again.
Luke 23:28–30
But Jesus turned to them and said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children.
1 Thessalonians 2:15–16
…who killed both the Lord Jesus and their own prophets and drove us out as well. They are displeasing to God and hostile to all men,
Isaiah 6:13
And though a tenth remains in the land, it will be burned again. As the terebinth and oak leave stumps when felled, so the holy seed will be a stump in the land.”
Matthew 23:35–37
And so upon you will come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.
Deuteronomy 28:49–68
The LORD will bring a nation from afar, from the ends of the earth, to swoop down upon you like an eagle—a nation whose language you will not understand,
Luke 19:41–44
As Jesus approached Jerusalem and saw the city, He wept over it

Parallels

Matthew 26:31–35 Mark 14:27–31

Glossary

David Zechariah, Book of

Zechariah 13:8

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