Bible Strands
Zechariah 14:2
For I will gather all the nations for battle against Jerusalem, and the city will be captured, the houses looted, and the women ravished. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be removed from the city.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The Lord addresses Judah regarding a coming day of siege, declaring that He will gather all nations against Jerusalem before He personally goes out to fight on that day.
The words — אָסַפְתִּי (a.saf.Ti) translates to "I will gather," and נִלְכְּדָה (nil.ke.Dah) means "it will be captured," both emphasizing divine agency in the city's fall.
The thread — The imagery of captured cities, looted houses, and ravished women echoes Isaiah 13:16, while the surrounding siege motif parallels Luke 21:20. The survival of a remnant within the city aligns with the theological pattern in Romans 9:27.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition that human catastrophe occurs under sovereign direction, requiring readers to distinguish between the half taken into exile and the half preserved within the city.
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
For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
Cross-references
- Luke 21:20 But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, you will know that her desolation is near.
- Isaiah 13:16 Their infants will be dashed to pieces before their eyes, their houses will be looted, and their wives will be ravished.
- Romans 9:27 Isaiah cries out concerning Israel: “Though the number of the Israelites is like the sand of the sea, only the remnant will be saved.
- Matthew 24:19 How miserable those days will be for pregnant and nursing mothers!
- Mark 13:14 So when you see the abomination of desolation standing where it should not be (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.
- Matthew 24:15 So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by the prophet Daniel (let the reader understand),
- Isaiah 65:6 Behold, it is written before Me: I will not keep silent, but I will repay; I will pay it back into their laps,
- Luke 19:43 For the days will come upon you when your enemies will barricade you and surround you and hem you in on every side.
- Galatians 4:26 But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother.
- Deuteronomy 28:9 The LORD will establish you as His holy people, just as He has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the LORD your God and walk in His ways.