An End to Idolatry 1 UST At that time, Yahweh will continually cleanse the descendants of King David and the people who live in Jerusalem; he will forgive the sins that they have committed and take away everything that has made them impure. BSB BSB: “On that day a fountain will be opened to the house of David and the people of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and impurity.
2 UST Yahweh, the commander of the heavenly armies, declares,“At that time I will destroy all the idols in the land, so that no one will even speak their names or remember them anymore. I will also drive out of the land those who falsely claim to be prophets, along with the impure spirit that controls them. BSB BSB: And on that day, declares the LORD of Hosts, I will erase the names of the idols from the land, and they will no longer be remembered. I will also remove the prophets and the spirit of impurity from the land.
3 UST If anyone still prophesies falsely, his own father and mother, the ones who gave birth to him, will tell him that he must die, because he has lied by claiming that he was speaking with my authority. Then, while he is prophesying, his own father and mother, who gave birth to him, will stab him to death. BSB BSB: And if anyone still prophesies, his father and mother who bore him will say to him, ‘You shall not remain alive, because you have spoken falsely in the name of the LORD.’ When he prophesies, his father and mother who bore him will pierce him through.
4 UST At that time, every one of those prophets will feel ashamed of the visions that he claimed to see when he prophesied. None of them will wear the rough garment of animal hair that prophets wear, because they will no longer try to deceive people. BSB BSB: And on that day every prophet who prophesies will be ashamed of his vision, and he will not put on a hairy cloak in order to deceive.
5 UST Instead, each one will say,‘I am not a prophet. I am a farmer; a man sold me to this land’s owner when I was young.’ BSB BSB: He will say, ‘I am not a prophet; I work the land, for I was purchased as a servant in my youth.’
6 UST If someone asks him,‘Then what are these wounds on your chest?’ he will answer,‘Someone wounded me at the house of my friends.’” BSB BSB: If someone asks him, ‘What are these wounds on your chest?’ he will answer, ‘These are the wounds I received in the house of my friends.’
The Shepherd Struck, the Sheep Scattered (Matthew 26:31–35; Mark 14:27–31)
7 UST Yahweh, the commander of the heavenly armies, says this:“I command that someone kill with a sword the leader who cares for my people, the man who is my close associate. When someone strikes that leader down, the people whom he led will scatter in every direction, and I myself will attack even the lowliest people among them.” BSB BSB: Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, against the man who is My Companion, declares the LORD of Hosts. Strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered, and I will turn My hand against the little ones.
8 UST Yahweh declares,“Throughout the whole land, two out of every three people will certainly die, and only one third of the people will remain alive. BSB BSB: And in all the land, declares the LORD, two-thirds will be cut off and perish, but a third will be left in it.
9 UST I will cause that remaining third to suffer greatly in order to purify them, just as a person refines silver and tests gold by heating them in a fire. Then they will call out to me for help, and I will answer them. I will tell them that they are my people, and they will declare that I, Yahweh, am their God.” BSB BSB: This third I will bring through the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. 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 our God.’”