1 In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah the prophet, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo saying, 2 “The Lord was very angry with your fathers. 3 Therefore say to them, ‘This is what the Lord of armies says: “Return to Me,” declares the Lord of armies, “that I may return to you,” says the Lord of armies. 4 “Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets proclaimed, saying, ‘This is what the Lord of armies says: “Return now from your evil ways and from your evil deeds.”’ But they did not listen or pay attention to Me,” declares the Lord. 5 “Your fathers, where are they? And the prophets, do they live forever? 6 But did My words and My statutes, which I commanded My servants the prophets, not overtake your fathers? Then they repented and said, ‘Just as the Lord of armies planned to do to us in accordance with our ways and our deeds, so He has dealt with us.’”’”
7 On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, that is, the month Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah the prophet, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, as follows: 8 I saw at night, and behold, a man was riding on a red horse, and he was standing among the myrtle trees which were in the ravine, with red, sorrel, and white horses behind him. 9 Then I said, “What are these, my lord?” And the angel who was speaking with me said to me, “I will show you what these are.” 10 And the man who was standing among the myrtle trees responded and said, “These are the ones whom the Lord has sent to patrol the earth.” 11 So they responded to the angel of the Lord who was standing among the myrtle trees and said, “We have patrolled the earth, and behold, all the earth is still and quiet.”
12 Then the angel of the Lord said, “Lord of armies, how long will You take no pity on Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, with which You have been indignant for these seventy years?” 13 And the Lord responded to the angel who was speaking with me with gracious words, comforting words. 14 So the angel who was speaking with me said to me, “Proclaim, saying, ‘This is what the Lord of armies says: “I am exceedingly jealous for Jerusalem and Zion. 15 But I am very angry with the nations who are carefree; for while I was only a little angry, they furthered the disaster.” 16 Therefore the Lord says this: “I will return to Jerusalem with compassion; My house will be built in it,” declares the Lord of armies, “and a measuring line will be stretched over Jerusalem.”’ 17 Again, proclaim, saying, ‘This is what the Lord of armies says: “My cities will again overflow with prosperity, and the Lord will again comfort Zion and again choose Jerusalem.”’”
18 Then I raised my eyes and looked, and behold, there were four horns. 19 So I said to the angel who was speaking with me, “What are these?” And he said to me, “These are the horns that have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.” 20 Then the Lord showed me four craftsmen. 21 And I said, “What are these coming to do?” And he said, “These are the horns that have scattered Judah so that no one lifts up his head; but these craftsmen have come to frighten them, to throw down the horns of the nations who have lifted up their horns against the land of Judah in order to scatter it.”
1 A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars; 2 and she was pregnant and she *cried out, being in labor and in pain to give birth.
3 Then another sign appeared in heaven: and behold, a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads were seven crowns. 4 And his tail *swept away a third of the stars of heaven and hurled them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she gave birth he might devour her Child.
5 And she gave birth to a Son, a male, who is going to rule all the nations with a rod of iron; and her Child was caught up to God and to His throne. 6 Then the woman fled into the wilderness where she *had a place prepared by God, so that there she would be nourished for 1,260 days.
7 And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war, 8 and they did not prevail, and there was no longer a place found for them in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying,
“Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers and sisters has been thrown down, the one who accuses them before our God day and night. 11 And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even when faced with death. 12 For this reason, rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them. Woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has come down to you with great wrath, knowing that he has only a short time.”
13 And when the dragon saw that he was thrown down to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child. 14 But the two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman, so that she could fly into the wilderness to her place, where she *was nourished for a time, times, and half a time, away from the presence of the serpent. 15 And the serpent hurled water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, so that he might cause her to be swept away with the flood. 16 But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and drank up the river which the dragon had hurled out of his mouth. 17 So the dragon was enraged with the woman, and went off to make war with the rest of her children, who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus.
1 Rescue me, Lord, from evil people;
Protect me from violent men
2 Who devise evil things in their hearts;
They continually stir up wars.
3 They sharpen their tongues like a snake;
The venom of a viper is under their lips. Selah
4 Keep me, Lord, from the hands of the wicked;
Protect me from violent men
Who intend to trip up my feet.
5 The proud have hidden a trap for me, and snares;
They have spread a net at the wayside;
They have set snares for me. Selah
6 I said to the Lord, “You are my God;
Listen, Lord, to the sound of my pleadings.
7 God the Lord, the strength of my salvation,
You have covered my head on the day of battle.
8 Do not grant, Lord, the desires of the wicked;
Do not bring about his evil planning, so that they are not exalted. Selah
9 “As for the head of those who surround me,
May the harm of their lips cover them.
10 May burning coals fall upon them;
May they be cast into the fire,
Into bottomless pits from which they cannot rise.
11 May a slanderer not endure on the earth;
May evil hunt a violent person violently.”
12 I know that the Lord will maintain the cause of the afflicted,
And justice for the poor.
13 Certainly the righteous will give thanks to Your name;
The upright will dwell in Your presence.
17 The eye that mocks a father
And scorns a mother,
The ravens of the valley will pick it out,
And the young eagles will eat it.
