Zechariah 7:13
King James Version (1769)
Other translations
| Verse | KJV | BSB | ASV |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | Therefore it is come to pass, that as he cried, and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear, saith the LORD of hosts: | And just as I had called and they would not listen, so when they called I would not listen, says the LORD of Hosts. | And it is come to pass that, as he cried, and they would not hear, so they shall cry, and I will not hear, said Jehovah of hosts; |
In context
AI-assisted, sourcedThe LORD explains why the earlier generation was judged. He called to them through the former prophets and they would not listen, so when trouble came and they called to him, he would not listen. The next verse says he then scattered them among the nations and the land lay desolate. Zechariah 7:11Zechariah 7:12Zechariah 7:13Zechariah 7:14
SpeakingThe LORD of hosts, speaking through the prophet Zechariah. The verse moves from "he cried" to "I would not hear," so the LORD himself is the one speaking. Zechariah 7:8Zechariah 7:13Zechariah overview
ToAll the people of the land and the priests, the Jews who had come back from exile in Babylon. Some of them had sent men to ask whether they should keep weeping and fasting in the fifth month. Zechariah 7:2Zechariah 7:3Zechariah 7:5Zechariah overview
Also involvedTheir ancestors, who lived before the exile. They refused the words God sent by the former prophets and were then scattered among the nations. Zechariah 7:7Zechariah 7:11Zechariah 7:12Zechariah 7:14
The verse states a matching judgment: as God called and they would not hear, so they called and God would not hear. It rests on the call in verses 9-10 to do justice, show mercy, and not oppress the widow, orphan, stranger, or poor, which the people refused. Zechariah 7:9Zechariah 7:10Zechariah 7:11Zechariah 7:13
The message was given in Jerusalem among the returned exiles, in answer to men sent to the house of God. The judgment it recalls left the land of Judah desolate. Zechariah 7:2Zechariah 7:14Zechariah overview
The eventsThe refusal and judgment happened before the exile, when Jerusalem was still inhabited and prosperous and the former prophets were speaking. The word came to Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month in the fourth year of Darius, about 518 BC. Zechariah 7:1Zechariah 7:7Zechariah overview
WrittenTraditional: Zechariah wrote it, with dated messages from about 520 to 518 BC. Scholarly: most scholars agree chapters 1-8, including this verse, come from Zechariah in 520-518 BC, while some assign chapters 9-14 to later writers. Zechariah overview
HereGod answers the question about fasting by pointing back to why the exile came. Their fasts had not truly been for him, and the earlier generation fell because it would not hear his word. Zechariah 7:3Zechariah 7:5Zechariah 7:6Zechariah 7:7Zechariah 7:13
In the whole of ScriptureZechariah's book calls the people to "turn ye unto me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn unto you." This verse shows the other side: those who turn away from God's voice find he turns away from their cry. Zechariah overviewZechariah 7:13
For readersOther Scripture says the same: "Because I have called, and ye refused... Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer" (Proverbs 1:24, 28). Isaiah 1:15 and Micah 3:4 also tie God's refusal to hear prayer to people's evil deeds, so the verse warns that prayer cannot replace listening to and obeying God. Proverbs 1:24Proverbs 1:28Isaiah 1:15Micah 3:4Jeremiah 11:11
- criedקָרָא
This one word, meaning to call, cry out, or proclaim, is used both for God calling the people and for the people crying to God. The verse uses it to show the two calls mirroring each other. Strong's H7121GZechariah 7:13
- hearשָׁמַע
The word means to hear, listen to, and obey. Their failure to "hear" was a refusal to obey the law and the prophets, not a failure of the ears, as verses 11-12 show. Strong's H8085GZechariah 7:11Zechariah 7:12
Takeaway
God did not ignore a people who had listened to him. He would not hear those who had long refused to hear him. The returned exiles, and every reader, are called to listen to God's word while he is speaking. Zechariah 7:11Zechariah 7:13Psalms 81:8Psalms 81:12
Drafted by AI from the Scripture and data shown under “Show sources,” then checked automatically and by a second AI pass. Updated 2026-10-28.
The world around the text
About 520-518 BC. King of Persia: Darius I (522-486 BC). Where Zechariah prophesied. A small, poor community was rebuilding the temple among the ruins of the city Babylon had burned.
Who ruled
- King of PersiaDarius I522-486 BC
Zechariah dates his messages by the years of Darius. Darius confirmed Cyrus's decree and ordered the temple work to go on at royal expense. Zechariah 1:1Zechariah 7:1Ezra 6:1-12Haggai 1:1Behistun Inscription
- Governor of JudahZerubbabelc. 520 BC
A descendant of David who led the rebuilding. "The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it." Zechariah 4:6-10Haggai 1:1Ezra 3:8
- High priestJoshua the high priestc. 520 BC
Called Jeshua in Ezra. He stands in Zechariah's vision clothed in filthy garments, which are taken away, and later receives crowns as a sign. Zechariah 3:1-10Zechariah 6:11Haggai 1:1Ezra 3:2
- Persian governor "on this side the river"Tattenaic. 520 BC
The governor of the province west of the Euphrates. He asked who had allowed the building, wrote to Darius, and was told to let the work go on. Ezra 5:3-6Ezra 6:6-13
What was happening, 539 BC to 332 BC
- 539 BCWarBabylon falls to Cyrus
Cyrus king of Persia took Babylon, ending the empire that had destroyed Jerusalem. Daniel 5:30-31Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)Cyrus Cylinder
- 538 BCGod's peopleThe first return
Cyrus let the exiles go home to build the LORD's house. About fifty thousand returned with Zerubbabel and Jeshua. Ezra 1:1-4Ezra 2:1-2Ezra 2:64-65
- c. 536 BCGod's peopleThe foundation is laid, then the work stops
The returned exiles laid the temple's foundation with shouting and weeping. Opposition from their neighbors stopped the work until the second year of Darius. Ezra 3:10-13Ezra 4:4-5Ezra 4:24
- 525 BCWarPersia conquers Egypt
Cyrus's son Cambyses invaded and took Egypt, bringing the whole region from the Nile to the Indus under one king. Herodotus, Histories 3.1-16
- 522-521 BCWarDarius crushes the revolts
When Darius took the throne, provinces across the empire rebelled, Babylon twice. By 520 he had put them all down. Compare the riders' report in Zechariah's first vision: "all the earth sitteth still, and is at rest." Behistun InscriptionHerodotus, Histories 3.150-159Zechariah 1:11
- 520 BCGod's peopleHaggai and Zechariah stir the people to build
In Darius's second year the two prophets urged the people to take up the temple work again, and Zerubbabel and Jeshua began to build. Ezra 5:1-2Haggai 1:1-15Zechariah 1:1
- c. 520-519 BCRulersDarius confirms Cyrus's decree
Tattenai questioned the building. A search found Cyrus's decree at Achmetha, and Darius ordered the work to continue and be paid for from royal taxes. Ezra 5:3-6:12
- 515 BCBuildingThe second temple is finished
The temple was finished on the third day of Adar in Darius's sixth year and dedicated with joy. Ezra 6:14-18Zechariah 4:9
- 490-479 BCWarPersia's wars with Greece
Persia invaded Greece twice and was turned back at Marathon (490), Salamis (480) and Plataea (479). Greece, which Zechariah names in 9:13, was becoming Persia's great rival. Herodotus, Histories 6.102-117Herodotus, Histories 8.40-96Herodotus, Histories 9.1-89Zechariah 9:13
- 445 BCBuildingNehemiah rebuilds Jerusalem's walls
Under the Persian king Artaxerxes, Nehemiah came from Shushan and rebuilt the walls in fifty-two days. Nehemiah 2:1-8Nehemiah 6:15
- 332 BCWarAlexander takes Tyre and Gaza
Alexander the Great besieged island Tyre for seven months and then Gaza for two, on his way to Egypt. Zechariah 9 speaks of Tyre's "strong hold" and of Gaza, Ashkelon, Ekron and Ashdod. Arrian, Anabasis of Alexander 2.15-27Zechariah 9:3-7
The full picture: places, culture and daily life. Scripture first, then ancient records (the Behistun Inscription, the Cyrus Cylinder, the Babylonian Chronicles) and ancient writers (Herodotus, Arrian, Josephus). Drafted by Claude and not yet reviewed by a person.
Original Hebrew words
| English | Hebrew | Say it | Strong's | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| and it was | וַיְהִ֥י | vay-HI | H1961 | to beהָיָה (ha.yah) 1) to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out 1a) (Qal) 1a1) --- 1a1a) to happen, fall out, occur, take place, come about, come to pass 1a1b) to come about, come to pass 1a2) to come into being, become 1a2a) to arise, appear, come 1a2b) to become 1a2b1) to become 1a2b2) to become like 1a2b3) to be instituted, be established 1a3) to be 1a3a) to exist, be in existence 1a3b) to abide, remain, continue (with word of place or time) 1a3c) to stand, lie, be in, be at, be situated (with word of locality) 1a3d) to accompany, be with 1b) (Niphal) … |
| just as | כַאֲשֶׁר־ | kha-'a-SHER- | H0834D | as whichכַּאֲשֶׁר (ka.a.sher) conj 1) according as, as, when 1a) according to that which, according as, as 1b) with a causal force: in so far as, since 1c) with a temporal force: when |
| he called | קָרָ֖א | ka-RA' | H7121G | to call: call toקָרָא (qa.ra) : call_to/invite/entreat 1) to call, call out, recite, read, cry out, proclaim 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to call, cry, utter a loud sound 1a2) to call unto, cry (for help), call (with name of God) 1a3) to proclaim 1a4) to read aloud, read (to oneself), read 1a5) to summon, invite, call for, call and commission, appoint, call and endow 1a6) to call, name, give name to, call by 1b) (Niphal) 1b1) to call oneself 1b2) to be called, be proclaimed, be read aloud, be summoned, be named 1c) (Pual) to be called, be named, be called out, be chosen |
| and not | וְלֹ֣א | ve-LO' | H3808 | notלֹא (lo) 1) not, no 1a) not (with verb-absolute prohibition) 1b) not (with modifier-negation) 1c) nothing (subst) 1d) without (with particle) 1e) before (of time) Aramaic equivalent: la (לָא "not" H3809) |
| they listened | שָׁמֵ֑עוּ | sha-ME-'u | H8085G | to hear: hearשָׁמַע (sha.ma) : hear v 1) to hear, listen to, obey 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to hear (perceive by ear) 1a2) to hear of or concerning 1a3) to hear (have power to hear) 1a4) to hear with attention or interest, listen to 1a5) to understand (language) 1a6) to hear (of judicial cases) 1a7) to listen, give heed 1a7a) to consent, agree 1a7b) to grant request 1a8) to listen to, yield to 1a9) to obey, be obedient 1b) (Niphal) 1b1) to be heard (of voice or sound) 1b2) to be heard of 1b3) to be regarded, be obeyed 1c) (Piel) to cause to hear, call to hear, summon 1d) (Hiphil) 1d1) to cause to hear, tell, proclaim, utter a sound … |
| so | כֵּ֤ן | ken | H3651C | rightכֵּן (ken) adv adj 1) right, just, honest, true, veritable 1a) right, just, honest 1b) correct 1c) true, veritable |
| they called | יִקְרְאוּ֙ | yik-re-'U | H7121G | to call: call toקָרָא (qa.ra) : call_to/invite/entreat 1) to call, call out, recite, read, cry out, proclaim 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to call, cry, utter a loud sound 1a2) to call unto, cry (for help), call (with name of God) 1a3) to proclaim 1a4) to read aloud, read (to oneself), read 1a5) to summon, invite, call for, call and commission, appoint, call and endow 1a6) to call, name, give name to, call by 1b) (Niphal) 1b1) to call oneself 1b2) to be called, be proclaimed, be read aloud, be summoned, be named 1c) (Pual) to be called, be named, be called out, be chosen |
| and not | וְלֹ֣א | ve-LO' | H3808 | notלֹא (lo) 1) not, no 1a) not (with verb-absolute prohibition) 1b) not (with modifier-negation) 1c) nothing (subst) 1d) without (with particle) 1e) before (of time) Aramaic equivalent: la (לָא "not" H3809) |
| I listened | אֶשְׁמָ֔ע | 'esh-MA' | H8085G | to hear: hearשָׁמַע (sha.ma) : hear v 1) to hear, listen to, obey 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to hear (perceive by ear) 1a2) to hear of or concerning 1a3) to hear (have power to hear) 1a4) to hear with attention or interest, listen to 1a5) to understand (language) 1a6) to hear (of judicial cases) 1a7) to listen, give heed 1a7a) to consent, agree 1a7b) to grant request 1a8) to listen to, yield to 1a9) to obey, be obedient 1b) (Niphal) 1b1) to be heard (of voice or sound) 1b2) to be heard of 1b3) to be regarded, be obeyed 1c) (Piel) to cause to hear, call to hear, summon 1d) (Hiphil) 1d1) to cause to hear, tell, proclaim, utter a sound … |
| he says | אָמַ֖ר | 'a-MAR | H0559 | to sayאָמַר (a.mar) 1) to say, speak, utter 1a) (Qal) to say, to answer, to say in one's heart, to think, to command, to promise, to intend 1b) (Niphal) to be told, to be said, to be called 1c) (Hithpael) to boast, to act proudly 1d) (Hiphil) to avow, to avouch Aramaic equivalent: a.mar (אֲמַר "to say" H0560) |
| Yahweh | יְהוָ֥ה | YAH-weh | H3068G | Lordאֲדֹנָי (a.do.nai) Lord - a title, spoken in place of Yahweh in Jewish display of reverence Another name of ye.ho.vah (יהוה "LORD" H3068G) |
| of hosts | צְבָאֽוֹת׃ | tze-va-'ot | H6635B | Hostsצָבָא (tsa.va) The Hosts (of the Lord) Another name of ye.ho.vah (יהוה "LORD" H3068G) |
Words and meanings from STEPBible data (Tyndale House, Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). The capitalized syllable is the stressed one.