Zechariah 8

Zechariah · Chapter 8

Zechariah 8:5

1Again the word of the LORD of hosts came to me, saying,2Thus saith the LORD of hosts; I was jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I was jealous for her with great fury.3Thus saith the LORD; I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called a city of truth; and the mountain of the LORD of hosts the holy mountain.4Thus saith the LORD of hosts; There shall yet old men and old women dwell in the streets of Jerusalem, and every man with his staff in his hand for very age.5And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof.6Thus saith the LORD of hosts; If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in these days, should it also be marvellous in mine eyes? saith the LORD of hosts.7Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will save my people from the east country, and from the west country;8And I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness.9Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Let your hands be strong, ye that hear in these days these words by the mouth of the prophets, which were in the day that the foundation of the house of the LORD of hosts was laid, that the temple might be built.10For before these days there was no hire for man, nor any hire for beast; neither was there any peace to him that went out or came in because of the affliction: for I set all men every one against his neighbour.11But now I will not be unto the residue of this people as in the former days, saith the LORD of hosts.12For the seed shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things.13And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel; so will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing: fear not, but let your hands be strong.14For thus saith the LORD of hosts; As I thought to punish you, when your fathers provoked me to wrath, saith the LORD of hosts, and I repented not:15So again have I thought in these days to do well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah: fear ye not.16These are the things that ye shall do; Speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates:17And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate, saith the LORD.18And the word of the LORD of hosts came unto me, saying,19Thus saith the LORD of hosts; The fast of the fourth month, and the fast of the fifth, and the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall be to the house of Judah joy and gladness, and cheerful feasts; therefore love the truth and peace.20Thus saith the LORD of hosts; It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities:21And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the LORD, and to seek the LORD of hosts: I will go also.22Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the LORD.23Thus saith the LORD of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.

King James Version (1769)

Other translations

VerseKJVBSBASV
5And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof.And the streets of the city will be filled with boys and girls playing there.”And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the streets thereof.

In context

AI-assisted, sourced

After God says He has returned to Zion (8:3), He promises that old men and women will again live in Jerusalem's streets (8:4). This verse adds the other end of life: the streets will be full of boys and girls at play. Together they picture a city that is peaceful and alive again. Zechariah 8:3Zechariah 8:4Zechariah 8:5

SpeakingThe LORD of hosts, speaking through the prophet Zechariah. Zechariah 8:1Zechariah 8:4Zechariah overview

ToThe people of Judah who had come back from exile in Babylon and were rebuilding the temple, called "the remnant of this people". Zechariah overviewZechariah 8:6Zechariah 8:9

Also involvedThe children of a restored Jerusalem, and the whole city whose streets they fill. Zechariah 8:5Zechariah 8:8

A promise that Jerusalem's open squares will be filled with children playing. It is a sign that God's blessing has returned, in contrast to the former days when there was no peace for anyone who went out or came in. Zechariah 8:5Zechariah 8:10Zechariah 8:11Strong's H7339

The streets and open squares of Jerusalem, the city God says will be called "a city of truth" and where He says He will dwell. Zechariah 8:3Zechariah 8:5Strong's H7339Zechariah overview

JUDAHMediterranean SeaJerusalemTyreSidonDamascusHamath 1GazaAshdodMegiddo

The eventsThe promise looks ahead: the streets "shall" be full. It was spoken in the setting of chapters 7-8, dated to Darius's fourth year, about 518 BC, while the temple was being rebuilt. Zechariah 8:5Zechariah overviewZechariah 8:9

WrittenTraditional: written by Zechariah about 520-518 BC. Scholarly: most scholars agree that chapters 1-8, including this verse, come from Zechariah in 520-518 BC. Zechariah overview

HereTo encourage a small remnant that God will truly bring life back to their city. God grants that this may seem marvellous in their eyes, and asks whether it should also be marvellous in His. Zechariah 8:6Zechariah 8:9Zechariah 8:13

In the whole of ScriptureChildren and joy in the city are a picture of God's blessing found elsewhere in Scripture. Jeremiah foresees young and old rejoicing together as mourning turns to joy, and the Psalms count sons and daughters as part of the happiness of a people whose God is the LORD. Jeremiah 31:13Psalms 144:12Psalms 144:15Psalms 128:3Psalms 128:4

For readersGod's promises reach the ordinary joys of life, such as children playing in the streets. The chapter sets beside this blessing a call for His people to speak truth, judge justly, and love truth and peace. Zechariah 8:5Zechariah 8:16Zechariah 8:17Zechariah 8:19

  • streetsרְחוֹב
    Hebrew · re.chov · H7339

    The word means a broad or open place or plaza. So the picture is of children filling the city's open public squares. Strong's H7339Zechariah 8:5

  • playingשָׂחַק
    Hebrew · sa.chaq · H7832

    The word means to laugh, sport, or play, and can include music, singing, and dancing. This fits the joyful dancing of young and old promised in Jeremiah 31:13. Strong's H7832Jeremiah 31:13

  • fullמָלֵא
    Hebrew · ma.le · H4390

    The word means to fill or be full. Here the city's squares are pictured as filled with children. Strong's H4390Zechariah 8:5

Takeaway

Zechariah 8:5 promises a Jerusalem whose squares are full of children at play. It is a sign that God has returned to dwell with His people. What seems marvellous to a weak remnant is not marvellous to the LORD. Zechariah 8:3Zechariah 8:5Zechariah 8:6

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

Behind this verse

Jerusalem: A large city with few people
Even in Nehemiah's day, "the city was large and great: but the people were few therein, and the houses were not builded." Compare Zechariah's promise that Jerusalem would be inhabited "as towns without walls for the multitude of men." Nehemiah 7:4Zechariah 2:4Zechariah 8:4-5

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
  1. 539 BC
    WarBabylon 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

  2. 538 BC
    God'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

  3. c. 536 BC
    God'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

  4. 525 BC
    WarPersia 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

  5. 522-521 BC
    WarDarius 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

  6. 520 BC
    God'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

  7. c. 520-519 BC
    RulersDarius 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

  8. 515 BC
    BuildingThe 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

  9. 490-479 BC
    WarPersia'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

  10. 445 BC
    BuildingNehemiah 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

  11. 332 BC
    WarAlexander 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

EnglishHebrewSay itStrong'sMeaning
and [the] open places ofוּרְחֹב֤וֹתu-re-cho-VOTH7339
street/plaza

רְחוֹב (re.chov) broad or open place or plaza

the cityהָעִיר֙ha-'IRH5892B
city

עִיר (ir) 1) city, town (a place of waking, guarded) 1a) city, town (a place of waking, guarded) 1a) city, town

they will be filledיִמָּ֣לְא֔וּyi-MAL-'UH4390
to fill

מָלֵא (ma.le) 1) to fill, be full 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to be full 1a1a) fulness, abundance (participle) 1a1b) to be full, be accomplished, be ended 1a2) to consecrate, fill the hand 1b) (Niphal) 1b1) to be filled, be armed, be satisfied 1b2) to be accomplished, be ended 1c) (Piel) 1c1) to fill 1c2) to satisfy 1c3) to fulfil, accomplish, complete 1c4) to confirm 1d) (Pual) to be filled 1e) (Hithpael) to mass themselves against Aramaic equivalent: me.la (מְלָא "to fill" H4391)

boysיְלָדִ֖יםye-la-DIMH3206
youth

יֶ֫לֶד (ye.led) 1) child, son, boy, offspring, youth 1a) child, son, boy 1b) child, children 1c) descendants 1d) youth 1e) apostate Israelites (fig.)

and girlsוִֽילָד֑וֹתvi-la-DOTH3207
maiden

יַלְדָּה (yal.dah) girl, damsel, marriageable girl

playingמְשַׂחֲקִ֖יםme-sa-cha-KIMH7832
to laugh

שָׂחַק (sa.chaq) 1) to laugh, play, mock 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to laugh (usually in contempt or derision) 1a2) to sport, play 1b) (Piel) 1b1) to make sport 1b2) to jest 1b3) to play (including instrumental music, singing, dancing) 1c) (Hiphil) to laugh mockingly

in open places itsבִּרְחֹֽבֹתֶֽיהָ׃ סbir-CHO-o-TEI-haH7339
street/plaza

רְחוֹב (re.chov) broad or open place or plaza

Words and meanings from STEPBible data (Tyndale House, Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). The capitalized syllable is the stressed one.