God’s People Cleansed

¹‘On that day a fountain will be opened for the house of David and for the residents of Jerusalem, to wash away sin and impurity.[#13:1 Ps 36:9; 68:26; Pr 14:27; Jr 2:13; 17:13; #13:1 Zch 3:1–10]

²On that day’ #– #this is the declaration of the Lord of Armies #– #‘I will remove the names of the idols from the land, and they will no longer be remembered. I will banish the prophets and the unclean spirit from the land.[#13:2 Ex 17:14; Dt 12:3; 25:19; 29:20; 32:26; Ps 34:16; 109:15; #13:2 = false prophets]

³If a man still prophesies, his father and his mother who bore him will say to him, “You cannot remain alive because you have spoken a lie in the name of the Lord .” When he prophesies, his father and his mother who bore him will pierce him through.[#13:3 Dt 13:5; 18:20; Jr 14:14–15; 23:14–16,30–31; 27:15–16; Ezk 13:2–4,9,16; Mc 3:5–6,11]

⁴On that day every prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies; they will not put on a hairy cloak in order to deceive.[#13:4 1Kg 19:13,19; 2Kg 2:8]

⁵He will say, “I am not a prophet; I work the land, for a man purchased me as a servant since my youth.”[#13:5 Or sold; #13:5 Am 7:14]

⁶If someone asks him, “What are these wounds on your chest?” #– #then he will answer, “I received the wounds in the house of my friends.”[#13:6 1Kg 18:28; #13:6 Lit wounds between your hands]

⁷Sword, awake against my shepherd,

against the man who is my associate –

Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered;

I will turn my hand against the little ones.

⁸In the whole land –

two-thirds will be cut off and die,

but a third will be left in it.

⁹I will put this third through the fire;

I will refine them as silver is refined

and test them as gold is tested.

They will call on my name,

and I will answer them.

I will say, “They are my people,”

and they will say, “The Lord is our God.” ’