Zechariah 14

Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.

1Look! A day is coming that belongs to the LORD. Enemies will take your things. They will split up what they took while you watch.

2For 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.

2God says, "I will bring all the nations to fight against Jerusalem." The city will be captured. The houses will be robbed. The women will be raped. Half the people will be taken away as prisoners. The rest will stay in the city.

3Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.

3Then the LORD will go out and fight those nations. He will fight the way he fights on a day of battle.

4And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.

4On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives. That hill sits just east of Jerusalem. The hill will split open from east to west. A very big valley will open up. Half the hill will move north, and half will move south.

5And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.

5You will run away through that mountain valley. The valley will reach all the way to Azal. You will run like people ran from the earthquake long ago. That was when Uzziah was king of Judah. Then the LORD my God will come. All his holy ones will come with him.

NoteThe KJV word "saints" here means "holy ones" — the ones who come with God.

6And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark:

6On that day there will be no light. There will be no cold and no frost.

7But it shall be one day which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light.

7It will be one special day. Only the LORD knows when it will come. It will not be day, and it will not be night. When evening comes, there will still be light.

8And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be.

8On that day fresh water will flow out from Jerusalem. Half will flow to the sea in the east. Half will flow to the sea in the west. It will flow in summer and in winter.

NoteThe KJV says "former sea" and "hinder sea." These mean the sea to the east (the Dead Sea) and the sea to the west (the Mediterranean).

9And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.

9The LORD will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one LORD. He will have one name.

10All the land shall be turned as a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem: and it shall be lifted up, and inhabited in her place, from Benjamin’s gate unto the place of the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananeel unto the king’s winepresses.

10All the land from Geba to Rimmon will be made flat, like a plain. Rimmon is south of Jerusalem. But Jerusalem will be lifted up high and stay right where it is. The city will run from the Benjamin Gate to the place of the First Gate. It will reach the Corner Gate, and go from the Tower of Hananel to the king's winepresses.

11And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited.

11People will live there. The city will never be destroyed again. Jerusalem will be a safe place to live.

12And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.

12The LORD will send a sickness on the nations that fought against Jerusalem. Their skin will rot while they are still standing up. Their eyes will rot in their eye sockets. Their tongues will rot in their mouths.

13And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.

13On that day the LORD will make them very afraid and mixed up. Each one will grab the hand of the man next to him. Then they will turn and fight each other.

14And Judah also shall fight at Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered together, gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance.

14Judah will fight at Jerusalem too. The riches of all the nations around them will be gathered up. There will be lots of gold, silver, and clothing.

15And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of all the beasts that shall be in these tents, as this plague.

15The same sickness will strike the animals in those camps. It will hit the horses, the mules, the camels, the donkeys, and every other animal.

16And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles.

16Some people from the nations that attacked Jerusalem will still be alive. Every year they will go up to worship the King, the LORD of Hosts, who leads heaven's armies. They will keep the Feast of Tabernacles, a holiday when people live in little shelters.

17And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain.

17Some families of the earth may not go up to Jerusalem. If they will not come and worship the King, the LORD of Hosts, no rain will fall on them.

18And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the LORD will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.

18If the people of Egypt will not come up, no rain will fall on them either. The LORD will strike every nation that will not come to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.

19This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles.

19That is how Egypt will be punished. Every nation that stays away from the Feast of Tabernacles will be punished the same way.

20In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses, HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD; and the pots in the LORD’s house shall be like the bowls before the altar.

20On that day the bells on the horses will say, HOLY TO THE LORD. The cooking pots in the LORD's house will be as holy as the special bowls by the altar.

21Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the LORD of hosts: and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein: and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts.

21Every pot in Jerusalem and Judah will be holy to the LORD of Hosts. Anyone who brings an offering may take a pot and cook in it. On that day there will be no Canaanite in the house of the LORD of Hosts.

Note"Seethe" is an old English word. It means to boil or cook food.