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Zechariah 5 (Zecharyah) in Hebrew and English

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Tenakh Study · Read Zechariah in Hebrew and English, one chapter per page. Our Tenakh study meets every Wednesday at 7 pm (Central Time) on Zoom. Text us for the Zoom link.

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Tenakh Study · Zechariah 5:1–11

Zechariah, Chapter 5

זכריה ה

Zecharyah sees a flying roll, the curse that goes forth over the whole earth against the thief and against him that swears falsely, and then an ephah with a woman sitting in it, called wickedness, which two women with wings carry away to the land of Shin’ar.

5:1Then I turned, and lifted up my eyes, and looked, and behold a flying roll.

אוָאָשׁ֕וּב וָאֶשָּׂ֥א עֵינַ֖י וָֽאֶרְאֶ֑ה וְהִנֵּ֖ה מְגִלָּ֥ה עָפָֽה׃

5:2And he said unto me, “What see you?” And I answered, “I see a flying roll; the length thereof is twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof ten cubits.”

בוַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֵלַ֔י מָ֥ה אַתָּ֖ה רֹאֶ֑ה וָאֹמַ֗ר אֲנִ֤י רֹאֶה֙ מְגִלָּ֣ה עָפָ֔ה אָרְכָּהּ֙ עֶשְׂרִ֣ים בָּֽאַמָּ֔ה וְרָחְבָּ֖הּ עֶ֥שֶׂר בָּאַמָּֽה׃

5:3Then said he unto me, “This is the curse that goes forth over the face of the whole earth: for every one that steals shall be cut off as on this side according to it; and every one that swears shall be cut off as on that side according to it.

גוַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֵלַ֔י זֹ֚את הָֽאָלָ֔ה הַיּוֹצֵ֖את עַל־פְּנֵ֣י כָל־הָאָ֑רֶץ כִּ֣י כָל־הַגֹּנֵ֗ב מִזֶּה֙ כָּמ֣וֹהָ נִקָּ֔ה וְכָל־הַנִּ֨שְׁבָּ֔ע מִזֶּ֖ה כָּמ֥וֹהָ נִקָּֽה׃

5:4I will bring it forth, says Hashem of hosts, and it shall enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him that swears falsely by My name: and it shall remain in the midst of his house, and shall consume it with the timber thereof and the stones thereof.”

דהוֹצֵאתִ֗יהָ נְאֻם֙ יְהוָ֣ה צְבָא֔וֹת וּבָ֨אָה֙ אֶל־בֵּ֣ית הַגַּנָּ֔ב וְאֶל־בֵּ֛ית הַנִּשְׁבָּ֥ע בִּשְׁמִ֖י לַשָּׁ֑קֶר וְלָ֨נֶה֙ בְּת֣וֹךְ בֵּית֔וֹ וְכִלַּ֖תּוּ וְאֶת־עֵצָ֥יו וְאֶת־אֲבָנָֽיו׃

The woman in the ephah

5:5Then the angel that talked with me went forth, and said unto me, “Lift up now your eyes, and see what is this that goes forth.”

הוַיֵּצֵ֕א הַמַּלְאָ֖ךְ הַדֹּבֵ֣ר בִּ֑י וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֵלַ֔י שָׂ֣א נָ֤א עֵינֶ֨יךָ֙ וּרְאֵ֔ה מָ֖ה הַיּוֹצֵ֥את הַזֹּֽאת׃

5:6And I said, “What is it?” And he said, “This is an ephah that goes forth.” He said moreover, “This is their resemblance through all the earth.”

ווָאֹמַ֖ר מַה־הִ֑יא וַיֹּ֗אמֶר זֹ֤את הָֽאֵיפָה֙ הַיּוֹצֵ֔את וַיֹּ֕אמֶר זֹ֥את עֵינָ֖ם בְּכָל־הָאָֽרֶץ׃

5:7And, behold, there was lifted up a talent of lead: and this is a woman that sits in the midst of the ephah.

זוְהִנֵּ֛ה כִּכַּ֥ר עֹפֶ֖רֶת נִשֵּׂ֑את וְזֹאת֙ אִשָּׁ֣ה אַחַ֔ת יוֹשֶׁ֖בֶת בְּת֥וֹךְ הָאֵיפָֽה׃

5:8And he said, “This is wickedness.” And he cast it into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof.

חוַיֹּ֨אמֶר֙ זֹ֣את הָרִשְׁעָ֔ה וַיַּשְׁלֵ֥ךְ אֹתָ֖הּ אֶל־תּ֣וֹךְ הָֽאֵיפָ֑ה וַיַּשְׁלֵ֛ךְ אֶת־אֶ֥בֶן הָעֹפֶ֖רֶת אֶל־פִּֽיהָ׃

Carried to the land of Shin’ar

5:9Then lifted I up my eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came out two women, and the wind was in their wings; for they had wings like the wings of a stork: and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heaven.

טוָאֶשָּׂ֨א עֵינַ֜י וָאֵ֗רֶא וְהִנֵּה֩ שְׁתַּ֨יִם נָשִׁ֤ים יֽוֹצְאוֹת֙ וְר֣וּחַ בְּכַנְפֵיהֶ֔ם וְלָהֵ֥נָּה כְנָפַ֖יִם כְּכַנְפֵ֣י הַחֲסִידָ֑ה וַתִּשֶּׂ֨אנָה֙ אֶת־הָ֣אֵיפָ֔ה בֵּ֥ין הָאָ֖רֶץ וּבֵ֥ין הַשָּׁמָֽיִם׃

5:10Then said I to the angel that talked with me, “Whither do these bear the ephah?”

יוָאֹמַ֕ר אֶל־הַמַּלְאָ֖ךְ הַדֹּבֵ֣ר בִּ֑י אָ֛נָה הֵ֥מָּה מֽוֹלִכ֖וֹת אֶת־הָאֵיפָֽה׃

5:11And he said unto me, “To build it a house in the land of Shin’ar (Shinar): and it shall be established, and set there upon her own base.”

יאוַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֵלַ֔י לִבְנֽוֹת־לָ֥הֿ בַ֖יִת בְּאֶ֣רֶץ שִׁנְעָ֑ר וְהוּכַ֛ן וְהֻנִּ֥יחָה שָּׁ֖ם עַל־מְכֻנָתָֽהּ׃

Sources & method

Hebrew text
The Masoretic text with vowels (nikkud) and cantillation marks (ta’amim), from the Westminster Leningrad Codex (public domain) as published by the Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (CC BY 4.0). Where the written text (ketiv) differs from the reading (qere), the reading is shown and the written form follows in small type. A paragraph mark (ס or פ) inside a verse is shown in small type.
English translation
The King James Version (public domain), lightly modernized by Benei Avraham: “thee/thou/ye” become “you,” older verb forms are updated (“hath” to “has”), and archaic words are replaced only where the meaning would otherwise be unclear. People and places carry their Hebrew names, with the King James spelling in parentheses the first time on each page (e.g., Yehudah (Judah)). The Divine Name (יהוה, “the LORD” in the KJV) is written “Hashem”; “God” (Elohim) is unchanged, and “law” is “Torah” where the Hebrew is תּוֹרָה.
Verse numbers
Verse numbers follow the Hebrew Bible. In Zechariah they differ from most English Bibles, or a verse is divided differently, in chapters 1 and 2; a note under the summary on those pages explains how.
Hebrew font
SBL Hebrew, by the Society of Biblical Literature.