<h3>Justice and Mercy, Not Fasting</h3>7 In the fourth year of King Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month, the month of Kislev. 2 The people of Bethel had sent Sharezer and Regem-Melek, together with their men, to entreat the Lord 3 by asking the priests of the house of the Lord Almighty and the prophets, “Should I mourn and fast in the fifth month, as I have done for so many years?” 4 Then the word of the Lord Almighty came to me: 5 “Ask all the people of the land and the priests, ‘When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months for the past seventy years, was it really for me that you fasted? 6 And when you were eating and drinking, were you not just feasting for yourselves? 7 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?’” 8 And the word of the Lord came again to Zechariah: 9 “This is what the Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. 10 Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.’ 11 “But they refused to pay attention; stubbornly they turned their backs and covered their ears. 12 They made their hearts as hard as flint and would not listen to the law or to the words that the Lord Almighty had sent by his Spirit through the earlier prophets. So the Lord Almighty was very angry. 13 “‘When I called, they did not listen; so when they called, I would not listen,’ says the Lord Almighty. 14 ‘I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations, where they were strangers. The land they left behind them was so desolate that no one traveled through it. This is how they made the pleasant land desolate. ’”

Zechariah 7:1

In the fourth year of King Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah<cr>1</cr> on the fourth day of the ninth month, the month of Kislev.<cr>2</cr>

The people of Bethel had sent Sharezer and Regem-Melek, together with their men, to entreat<cr>1</cr> the Lord<cr>2</cr>

Zechariah 7:2

by asking the priests of the house of the Lord Almighty and the prophets, “Should I mourn<cr>1</cr> and fast in the fifth<cr>2</cr> month, as I have done for so many years?”

Zechariah 7:3

Then the word of the Lord Almighty came to me:

Zechariah 7:4

“Ask all the people of the land and the priests, ‘When you fasted<cr>1</cr> and mourned in the fifth and seventh<cr>2</cr> months for the past seventy years,<cr>3</cr> was it really for me that you fasted?

Zechariah 7:5

And when you were eating and drinking, were you not just feasting for yourselves?<cr>1</cr>

Zechariah 7:6

Are these not the words the Lord proclaimed through the earlier prophets<cr>1</cr> when Jerusalem and its surrounding towns were at rest<cr>2</cr> and prosperous, and the Negev and the western foothills<cr>3</cr> were settled?’”<cr>4</cr>

Zechariah 7:7

And the word of the Lord came again to Zechariah:

Zechariah 7:8

“This is what the Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice;<cr>1</cr> show mercy and compassion to one another.<cr>2</cr>

Zechariah 7:9

Do not oppress the widow<cr>1</cr> or the fatherless, the foreigner<cr>2</cr> or the poor.<cr>3</cr> Do not plot evil against each other.’<cr>4</cr>

Zechariah 7:10

“But they refused to pay attention; stubbornly<cr>1</cr> they turned their backs<cr>2</cr> and covered their ears.<cr>3</cr>

Zechariah 7:11

They made their hearts as hard as flint<cr>1</cr> and would not listen to the law or to the words that the Lord Almighty had sent by his Spirit through the earlier prophets.<cr>2</cr> So the Lord Almighty was very angry.<cr>3</cr>

Zechariah 7:12

“‘When I called, they did not listen;<cr>1</cr> so when they called, I would not listen,’<cr>2</cr> says the Lord Almighty.<cr>3</cr>

Zechariah 7:13

‘I scattered<cr>1</cr> them with a whirlwind<cr>2</cr> among all the nations, where they were strangers. The land they left behind them was so desolate that no one traveled through it.<cr>3</cr> This is how they made the pleasant land desolate.<cr>4</cr> ’”

Zechariah 7:14

 1 In the fourth year of King Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah   on the fourth day of the ninth month, the month of Kislev.   2 The people of Bethel had sent Sharezer and Regem-Melek, together with their men, to entreat   the Lord   3 by asking the priests of the house of the Lord Almighty and the prophets, “Should I mourn   and fast in the fifth   month, as I have done for so many years?” 4 Then the word of the Lord Almighty came to me: 5 “Ask all the people of the land and the priests, ‘When you fasted   and mourned in the fifth and seventh   months for the past seventy years,   was it really for me that you fasted? 6 And when you were eating and drinking, were you not just feasting for yourselves?   7 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?’”   8 And the word of the Lord came again to Zechariah: 9 “This is what the Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice;   show mercy and compassion to one another.   10 Do not oppress the widow   or the fatherless, the foreigner   or the poor.   Do not plot evil against each other.’   11 “But they refused to pay attention; stubbornly   they turned their backs   and covered their ears.   12 They made their hearts as hard as flint   and would not listen to the law or to the words that the Lord Almighty had sent by his Spirit through the earlier prophets.   So the Lord Almighty was very angry.   13 “‘When I called, they did not listen;   so when they called, I would not listen,’   says the Lord Almighty.   14 ‘I scattered   them with a whirlwind   among all the nations, where they were strangers. The land they left behind them was so desolate that no one traveled through it.   This is how they made the pleasant land desolate.  ’”

From Wikipedia: 

The New International Version (NIV) is an English translation of the Bible first published in 1978 by Biblica (formerly the International Bible Society). The NIV was published to meet the need for a modern translation done by Bible scholars using the earliest, highest quality manuscripts available. Of equal importance was that the Bible be expressed in broadly understood modern English.

The NIV is published by Zondervan in the United States and Hodder & Stoughton in the UK. The NIV was updated in 1984 and 2011 and has become one of the most popular and best-selling modern translations.

OT: Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia; additional sources;
NT: UBS Greek New Testament; Novum Testamentum Graece; additional sources;

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