Zacarias 12

BLIVRE · Chapter 12/14

1Revelação da palavra do SENHOR sobre Israel: O SENHOR, que estende o céu, e funda a terra, e forma o espírito do ser humano em seu interior, diz:

2Eis que eu farei de Jerusalém um copo de cambalear a todos os povos de ao redor; e também será sobre Judá, durante o cerco contra Jerusalém.

3E será naquele dia, que farei de Jerusalém uma pedra pesada a todos os povos; todos os que a carregarem serão seriamente feridos, ainda que todas as nações da terra se ajuntarão contra ela.

4Naquele dia,diz o SENHOR, ferirei com espanto a todo cavalo, e com loucura ao cavaleiro; mas sobre a casa de Judá abrirei meus olhos, e a todo cavalo dos povos ferirei com cegueira.

5Então os líderes de Judá dirão em seu coração: Os moradores de Jerusalém serão minha força no SENHOR dos exércitos seu Deus.

6Naquele dia farei dos líderes de Judá como um braseiro de fogo debaixo da lenha, e como tocha de fogo debaixo de gravetos; e consumirão todos os povos ao redor à direita e à esquerda; e Jerusalém continuará habitada em seu lugar, em Jerusalém.

7E o SENHOR salvará primeiramente as tendas de Judá, para que a glória da casa de Davi e a glória dos moradores de Jerusalém não se exaltem sobre Judá.

8Naquele dia o SENHOR defenderá os moradores de Jerusalém; e o que mais fraco dentre eles, naquele dia será como Davi; e a casa de Davi será como Deus, como o anjo do SENHOR diante deles.

9E será naquele dia que eu buscarei destruir todas as nações que vierem contra Jerusalém;

10Porém sobre a casa de Davi e sobre os moradores de Jerusalém derramarei o Espírito de graça e de orações; e olharão a mim, a quem traspassaram; e farão pranto sobre ele, como pranto [da morte] de filho único; e chorarão amargamente por causa dele, tal como se chora pelo primogênito.

11Naquele dia haverá grande pranto em Jerusalém, como o pranto de Hadade-Rimom no vale de Megido.

12E a terra prateará, cada família por si só; a família da casa de Davi por si, e suas mulheres por si; a família da casa de Natã por si, e suas mulheres por si;

13A família da casa de Levi por si, e suas mulheres por si; a família de Simei por si, e suas mulheres por si;

14Todos as demais famílias, cada família por si, e suas mulheres por si.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

God promises to make Jerusalem a 'cup of trembling' for the nations that attack it, defending Judah with supernatural strength, and will pour out a spirit of grace and supplication on the house of David, who will look on 'him whom they have pierced' with great mourning.

Explanation

The image of the 'cup of trembling' describes Jerusalem as something that, when 'drunk' (attacked) by enemy nations, causes dizziness and ruin to whoever tries to consume it, a symbol of supernatural divine protection against any coalition of armies. The most striking and theologically rich point of the chapter is the promise that God will pour out 'the spirit of grace and of supplications' on the house of David, leading the people to look 'upon me whom they have pierced' with deep mourning, compared to grieving for an only son. This passage is intriguing because it seems to identify God Himself speaking in the first person as the one who would be pierced. The application for today: true national or personal repentance often comes accompanied by a deep and painful recognition of how we have rejected or wounded the one who truly loves us.

Fun facts

  • John 19:37 directly quotes Zechariah 12:10 ('they shall look on him whom they pierced') referring to the crucifixion of Jesus and the moment His side was pierced by a Roman spear, one of the most direct prophetic connections between the Old and New Testaments.
  • 'Hadadrimmon' (v.11), cited as a reference point for great mourning, was a place associated with the death of King Josiah in battle (2 Chronicles 35:22-25), one of the most intense national mournings in Judah's history, used here as a standard of comparison.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Zacarias 12:1A new section of the book opens with a solemn declaration of God's power: He stretched out the heavens, laid the foundation of the earth, and formed the spirit of man within him — the basis for everything that follows.
  2. Zacarias 12:2Jerusalem is compared to 'a cup of trembling' that will leave dizzy anyone who tries to drink it — the nations that surround her for war will hurt themselves in the attempt.
  3. Zacarias 12:3Comparing Jerusalem to 'a burdensome stone' that injures anyone who tries to lift it describes the city becoming too great a problem for any nation that tried to attack it.
  4. Zacarias 12:4On the day of battle, God promises to strike the enemy's horses and riders with astonishment and blindness, while specifically protecting Judah.
  5. Zacarias 12:5Judah's own leaders acknowledge that their real strength lies in the people of Jerusalem sustained by God, not in weapons or political alliances.
  6. Zacarias 12:6The leaders of Judah are compared to a hearth of fire that consumes everything around it — the defense will be so effective that Jerusalem will be inhabited again, safely, in the very same place.
  7. Zacarias 12:7God decides to save the rural areas of Judah first, so that the capital, with its fame and the line of David, will not glory over the rest of the land.
  8. Zacarias 12:8At the moment of defense, even the weakest among Jerusalem's inhabitants will fight like David himself — and the house of David will act with an almost divine strength.
  9. Zacarias 12:9God's declared purpose on that day is to destroy all the nations that gather to attack Jerusalem.
  10. Zacarias 12:10'They shall look upon me whom they have pierced' is one of the book's most debated verses, with scholars disagreeing on whom it originally refers to — either way, it describes a deep national mourning, compared to grieving an only son.
  11. Zacarias 12:11'The mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon' recalls the death of King Josiah in battle in that same valley (2 Chronicles 35), a well-known national mourning used as a comparison for the intensity of the future weeping.
  12. Zacarias 12:12The deep mourning announced in the previous verse is spelled out family by family: the line of David, the line of Nathan, each weeping separately, men and women apart.
  13. Zacarias 12:13The list continues with the priestly line of Levi and the family of Shimei, showing that the mourning reaches both the royalty and the priesthood of the nation.
  14. Zacarias 12:14Listing each family weeping 'apart' shows that this mourning would touch every group in society, not just one specific class or lineage.

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