Bible Strands
Zechariah 1:16
Therefore this is what the LORD says: ‘I will return to Jerusalem with mercy, and there My house will be rebuilt, declares the LORD of Hosts, and a measuring line will be stretched out over Jerusalem.’
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The LORD speaks through the prophet Zechariah to the post-exilic community, shifting from previous judgment on complacent nations to a declaration of restoration. This message aligns with the period when Jewish elders were rebuilding under prophetic direction.
The words — The text highlights שַׁ֤בְתִּי (Shav.ti), literally “I have returned,” and בְּֽ/רַחֲמִ֔ים (be./ra.cha.Mim), meaning “with compassion.” These terms ground the promise in a deliberate divine movement toward the city.
The thread — The motif of God returning to dwell in Jerusalem appears in Zechariah 8:3, the rebuilding effort is documented in Ezra 6:14, and the future shepherd-king promise is noted in Ezekiel 37:24.
Why it lands — The text states that God will return to Jerusalem with compassion, rebuild His house, and stretch a measuring line over the city. This demands a reader to recognize that divine restoration follows judgment and requires active participation in the prescribed work.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Therefore thus saith the Lord; I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies: my house shall be built in it, saith the Lord of hosts, and a line shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem.
Cross-references
- Zechariah 8:3 This is what the LORD says: “I will return to Zion and dwell in Jerusalem. Then Jerusalem will be called the City of Truth, and the mountain of the LORD of Hosts will be called the Holy Mountain.”
- Ezra 6:14 So the Jewish elders built and prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah son of Iddo. They finished building according to the command of the God of Israel and the decrees of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes, kings of Persia.
- Ezekiel 37:24 My servant David will be king over them, and there will be one shepherd for all of them. They will follow My ordinances and keep and observe My statutes.
- Zechariah 2:10 “Shout for joy and be glad, O Daughter of Zion, for I am coming to dwell among you,” declares the LORD.
- Job 38:5 Who fixed its measurements? Surely you know! Or who stretched a measuring line across it?
- Isaiah 54:8 In a surge of anger I hid My face from you for a moment, but with everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you,” says the LORD your Redeemer.
- Zechariah 4:9 “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house, and his hands will complete it. Then you will know that the LORD of Hosts has sent me to you.
- Ezekiel 39:25 Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: Now I will restore Jacob from captivity and will have compassion on the whole house of Israel, and I will be jealous for My holy name.
- Ezekiel 40:3 So He took me there, and I saw a man whose appearance was like bronze. He was standing in the gateway with a linen cord and a measuring rod in his hand.
- Ezekiel 47:3 As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and led me through ankle-deep water.