9
Israel Defended Against Enemies
1The burden of the word of the Lord
Against the land of Hadrach,
And ⚓Damascus its resting place
(For ⚓the eyes of men
And all the tribes of Israel
Are on the Lord);
2Also against⚓Hamath, which borders on it,
And against⚓Tyre and ⚓Sidon, though they are very ⚓wise.
3For Tyre built herself a tower,
Heaped up silver like the dust,
And gold like the mire of the streets.
4Behold, ⚓the Lord will cast her out;
He will destroy ⚓her power in the sea,
And she will be devoured by fire.
5Ashkelon shall see it and fear;
Gaza also shall be very sorrowful;
And ⚓Ekron, for He dried up her expectation.
The king shall perish from Gaza,
And Ashkelon shall not be inhabited.
6“A mixed race shall settle ⚓in Ashdod,
And I will cut off the pride of the ⚓Philistines.
7I will take away the blood from his mouth,
And the abominations from between his teeth.
But he who remains, even he shall be for our God,
And shall be like a leader in Judah,
And Ekron like a Jebusite.
8⚓I will camp around My house
Because of the army,
Because of him who passes by and him who returns.
No more shall an oppressor pass through them,
For now I have seen with My eyes.
The Coming King
9“Rejoice ⚓greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, ⚓your King is coming to you;
He is just and having salvation,
Lowly and riding on a donkey,
A colt, the foal of a donkey.
10I ⚓will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
And the horse from Jerusalem;
The ⚓battle bow shall be cut off.
He shall speak peace to the nations;
His dominion shall be⚓‘from sea to sea,
And from the River to the ends of the earth.’
God Will Save His People
11“As for you also,
Because of the blood of your covenant,
I will set your ⚓prisoners free from the waterless pit.
12Return to the stronghold,
⚓You prisoners of hope.
Even today I declare
That I will restore ⚓double to you.
13For I have bent Judah, My bow,
Fitted the bow with Ephraim,
And raised up your sons, O Zion,
Against your sons, O Greece,
And made you like the sword of a mighty man.”
14Then the Lord will be seen over them,
And ⚓His arrow will go forth like lightning.
The Lord God will blow the trumpet,
And go ⚓with whirlwinds from the south.
15The Lord of hosts will ⚓defend them;
They shall devour and subdue with slingstones.
They shall drink and roar as if with wine;
They shall be filled with blood like basins,
Like the corners of the altar.
16The Lord their God will ⚓save them in that day,
As the flock of His people.
For ⚓they shall be like the jewels of a crown,
⚓Lifted like a banner over His land—
17For ⚓how great is its goodness
And how great its ⚓beauty!
⚓Grain shall make the young men thrive,
And new wine the young women.