Zechariah / Chapter 5

Zechariah 5

11 verses • Westminster Leningrad Codex

Translator's Introduction

What This Chapter Is About

Zechariah 5 contains the sixth and seventh night visions. The sixth vision (vv. 1-4) shows a flying scroll — enormous, twenty cubits by ten cubits — representing the curse that goes out over the entire land against thieves and those who swear falsely. The seventh vision (vv. 5-11) shows a woman called 'Wickedness' seated inside an ephah (a measuring container), sealed with a lead lid, and carried by two women with stork-like wings to the land of Shinar (Babylon), where a house will be built for it. Together these visions deal with the purging of sin from the restored community.

What Makes This Chapter Remarkable

The flying scroll's dimensions — twenty cubits by ten cubits — exactly match the dimensions of Solomon's temple porch (1 Kings 6:3), suggesting that the covenant law which once resided in the temple now flies out as an active agent of judgment. The woman-in-the-ephah vision is one of the most surreal images in the Hebrew Bible, combining commercial imagery (the ephah was a standard measure for grain trade) with personified wickedness and a bizarre aerial deportation to Babylon. Sin is not merely forgiven but physically removed from the land and relocated — Babylon becomes the repository for Israel's expelled wickedness, a reversal of the exile: this time wickedness, not Israel, is exiled.

Translation Friction

The word ha'alah in verse 3 can mean 'the curse' or 'the oath' — both relate to covenant violation, but 'curse' better fits the context of automatic judgment. The phrase 'enter the house of the thief and the house of him who swears falsely' (v. 4) describes the curse as an active agent that invades homes and destroys them from within — we preserved this vivid personification. The word rish'ah ('wickedness,' v. 8) is feminine, matching the feminine figure, and the allegorical nature of the vision is clear. The destination 'land of Shinar' (v. 11) is the archaic name for Babylon used in Genesis 11:2 (Tower of Babel), deliberately linking the deportation of wickedness to the primal site of human rebellion.

Connections

The flying scroll echoes the curses of Deuteronomy 27-28 and Ezekiel's scroll (Ezekiel 2:9-3:3). The two sins highlighted — theft and false oaths — represent violations of duties to neighbor and to God respectively, summarizing the whole law. The land of Shinar connects to Genesis 10:10, 11:2 (Babel), and Daniel 1:2. The ephah as a commercial measure connects to Amos 8:5's critique of dishonest weights and measures. The removal of wickedness anticipates the Day of Atonement's scapegoat (Leviticus 16:21-22), where sin is physically sent away.

Zechariah 5:1

וָאָשׁ֕וּב וָאֶשָּׂ֥א עֵינַ֖י וָאֵ֑רֶא וְהִנֵּ֖ה מְגִלָּ֥ה עָפָֽה׃

I looked up again and saw a flying scroll.

KJV Then I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a flying roll.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The megillah aphah ('flying scroll') is an extraordinary image — a written document soaring through the sky under its own power. Ancient scrolls were rolled, not folded, and this one is unfurled and airborne, making its text visible to all. The verb aphah ('flying') is the same used for birds, suggesting swift, purposeful movement across the land.
Zechariah 5:2

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֵלַ֔י מָ֥ה אַתָּ֖ה רֹאֶ֑ה וָאֹמַ֗ר אֲנִ֤י רֹאֶה֙ מְגִלָּ֣ה עָפָ֔ה אָרְכָּ֖הּ עֶשְׂרִ֣ים בָּֽאַמָּ֑ה וְרָחְבָּ֖הּ עֶ֥שֶׂר בָּאַמָּֽה׃

He asked me, "What do you see?" I said, "I see a flying scroll. Its length is twenty cubits, and its width is ten cubits."

KJV And he said unto me, What seest thou? And I answered, I see a flying roll; the length thereof is twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof ten cubits.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The dimensions — twenty cubits by ten cubits (approximately 30 by 15 feet, or 9 by 4.5 meters) — match the porch of Solomon's temple (1 Kings 6:3). This may be coincidental, but the parallel suggests that the covenant law, which was housed in the temple, now emerges from it as an active agent of judgment. A scroll this size would be overwhelming in the sky — the curse of the covenant is not hidden in fine print but displayed in massive, inescapable lettering.
Zechariah 5:3

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֵלַ֗י זֹ֤את הָאָלָה֙ הַיּוֹצֵ֔את עַל־פְּנֵ֖י כָּל־הָאָ֑רֶץ כִּ֣י כָל־הַגֹּנֵ֗ב מִזֶּה֙ כָּמ֣וֹהָ נִקָּ֔ה וְכָל־הַנִּשְׁבָּ֕ע מִזֶּ֖ה כָּמ֥וֹהָ נִקָּֽה׃

He said to me, "This is the curse that goes out over the face of the whole land. For everyone who steals will be purged out according to what is written on one side, and everyone who swears falsely will be purged out according to what is written on the other side.

KJV Then said he unto me, This is the curse that goeth forth over the face of the whole earth: for every one that stealeth shall be cut off as on this side according to it; and every one that sweareth shall be cut off as on that side according to it.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The word ha'alah means 'the curse' — specifically a covenant curse, the automatic consequence of violating a sworn oath. The scroll has two sides, each addressing a different category of sin: theft (violation of neighbor's rights, the 'horizontal' dimension of the law) and false oaths (violation of God's name, the 'vertical' dimension). Together they represent the whole covenant obligation. The verb niqqah ('will be purged out, will be made clean/empty') suggests removal — the sinners will be cleared from the community.
Zechariah 5:4

הוֹצֵאתִ֗יהָ נְאֻם֙ יְהוָ֣ה צְבָא֔וֹת וּבָ֗אָה אֶל־בֵּ֤ית הַגַּנָּב֙ וְאֶל־בֵּ֕ית הַנִּשְׁבָּ֥ע בִּשְׁמִ֖י לַשָּׁ֑קֶר וְלָ֣נֶת ׀ בְּת֣וֹךְ בֵּית֗וֹ וְכִלַּ֥תּוּ וְאֶת־עֵצָ֖יו וְאֶת־אֲבָנָֽיו׃

I have sent it out — declares the LORD of Armies — and it will enter the house of the thief and the house of the one who swears falsely by my name. It will lodge within his house and consume it — timber and stones alike."

KJV I will bring it forth, saith the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him that sweareth 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The curse is personified as an agent that enters homes, takes up residence (lanet, 'to lodge overnight'), and then destroys them completely — timber and stones, the fundamental building materials. The destruction is total: not merely punishment of the person but demolition of everything they have built. The verb killatu ('will consume/destroy it') pictures the curse eating through the house like fire or rot. The phrase bishmi lashsheqer ('falsely by my name') specifies the violation: using God's name to validate lies, the most direct profanation of the divine identity.
Zechariah 5:5

וַיֵּצֵ֕א הַמַּלְאָ֖ךְ הַדֹּבֵ֣ר בִּ֑י וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֵלַ֔י שָׂ֣א נָ֤א עֵינֶ֙יךָ֙ וּרְאֵ֔ה מָ֖ה הַיּוֹצֵ֥את הַזֹּֽאת׃

Then the angel who was speaking with me came forward and said to me, "Raise your eyes and see what this is that is going out."

KJV Then the angel that talked with me went forth, and said unto me, Lift up now thine eyes, and see what is this that goeth forth.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The seventh vision begins. The angel's command to 'raise your eyes' indicates a new visual experience. The feminine participle hayyotset ('going out') creates suspense — Zechariah sees something emerging but does not yet know what it is.
Zechariah 5:6

וָאֹמַ֖ר מָה־הִ֑יא וַיֹּ֗אמֶר זֹ֤את הָֽאֵיפָה֙ הַיּוֹצֵ֔את וַיֹּ֕אמֶר זֹ֥את עֵינָ֖ם בְּכָל־הָאָֽרֶץ׃

I asked, "What is it?" He said, "This is an ephah going out." He added, "This is their iniquity throughout the whole land."

KJV And I said, What is it? And he said, This is an ephah that goeth forth. He said moreover, This is their resemblance through all the earth.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The ephah was a standard dry measure for grain (approximately 22 liters or 5 gallons), making it a symbol of commerce and trade. The Hebrew einam ('their eye/appearance') is a textual difficulty — many Hebrew manuscripts and the LXX read avonam ('their iniquity'), which fits the context better and is likely the original reading (a scribal error of ayin/aleph). We follow the emended reading 'their iniquity' with this note. The ephah as a container for wickedness transforms a commercial instrument into a vessel of judgment.
Zechariah 5:7

וְהִנֵּ֛ה כִּכַּ֥ר עֹפֶ֖רֶת נִשֵּׂ֑את וְזֹ֛את אִשָּׁ֥ה אַחַ֖ת יוֹשֶׁ֥בֶת בְּתוֹךְ־הָאֵיפָֽה׃

Then a lead cover was lifted, and there was a woman sitting inside the ephah.

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

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The kikkar ophereth ('talent/disk of lead') serves as a heavy lid — lead is the densest common metal, ensuring the contents cannot escape. The woman inside the ephah is not a literal person but an allegorical figure representing wickedness (as verse 8 will identify). The image is claustrophobic and surreal: a woman crammed into a grain container, sealed with lead.
Zechariah 5:8

וַיֹּ֕אמֶר זֹ֖את הָרִשְׁעָ֑ה וַיַּשְׁלֵ֤ךְ אֹתָהּ֙ אֶל־תּ֣וֹךְ הָֽאֵיפָ֔ה וַיַּשְׁלֵ֛ךְ אֶת־אֶ֥בֶן הָעֹפֶ֖רֶת אֶל־פִּֽיהָ׃

He said, "This is Wickedness." Then he pushed her down into the ephah and threw the lead weight over its opening.

KJV And 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The identification is terse and absolute: zot harish'ah ('This is Wickedness'). The feminine noun rish'ah ('wickedness') personified as a woman is grammatically natural in Hebrew (abstract nouns are typically feminine). The angel's forceful actions — vayashlekh ('he threw/cast') appears twice — demonstrate violence against wickedness: she is shoved down and sealed in. The lead weight over the mouth (pi, 'opening') ensures permanent containment. Wickedness is not merely named but imprisoned.
Zechariah 5:9

וָאֶשָּׂ֨א עֵינַ֜י וָאֵ֗רֶא וְהִנֵּ֨ה שְׁתַּ֤יִם נָשִׁים֙ יוֹצְא֔וֹת וְר֖וּחַ בְּכַנְפֵיהֶ֑ם וְלָהֵ֣נָּה כְנָפַ֗יִם כְּכַנְפֵי֙ הַחֲסִידָ֔ה וַתִּשֶּׂ֙אנָה֙ אֶת־הָ֣אֵיפָ֔ה בֵּ֥ין הָאָ֖רֶץ וּבֵ֥ין הַשָּׁמָֽיִם׃

Then I raised my eyes and looked — two women were coming forward with wind in their wings. They had wings like the wings of a stork, and they lifted the ephah up between earth and sky.

KJV Then lifted I up mine 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.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The two winged women are among the most unusual figures in the Hebrew Bible. They are not identified as angels (the standard mal'akhim are masculine in Hebrew), and their stork-like wings create a strange hybrid image. The stork (chasidah) is an unclean bird in Leviticus 11:19, which may be significant — unclean carriers transport wickedness to its appropriate destination. Alternatively, the stork's name comes from chesed ('faithful love, loyalty'), and the irony may be intentional: faithfulness removes wickedness. The ephah is carried 'between earth and sky' — suspended in transit, neither in the holy land nor yet at its destination.
Zechariah 5:10

וָאֹמַ֕ר אֶל־הַמַּלְאָ֖ךְ הַדֹּבֵ֣ר בִּ֑י אָ֛נָה הֵ֥מָּה מוֹלִכ֖וֹת אֶת־הָאֵיפָֽה׃

I asked the angel who was speaking with me, "Where are they taking the ephah?"

KJV Then said I to the angel that talked with me, Whither do these bear the ephah?

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Zechariah's question is practical and direct — the vision demands an explanation of the destination. The verb molikhot ('taking, carrying, leading') suggests purposeful transport, not aimless flight.
Zechariah 5:11

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֵלַ֔י לִבְנ֥וֹת לָ֛הּ בַ֖יִת בְּאֶ֣רֶץ שִׁנְעָ֑ר וְהוּכַ֕ן וְהֻנִּ֥יחָה שָּׁ֖ם עַל־מְכֻנָתָֽהּ׃

He said to me, "To build a house for it in the land of Shinar. When it is prepared, she will be set down there on her own pedestal."

KJV And he said unto me, To build it an house in the land of Shinar: and it shall be established, and set there upon her own base.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The destination is erets Shin'ar ('the land of Shinar') — the archaic name for Babylonia used in Genesis 10:10 and 11:2 (the Tower of Babel). The choice of this ancient name rather than 'Babylon' connects wickedness to the primordial site of human rebellion against God. A 'house' (bayit) will be built for Wickedness — she will be enshrined, given a permanent dwelling, possibly a mock-temple. The word mekhunatah ('her pedestal/base') suggests a shrine-like installation. The vision is a theological reversal: Israel was exiled to Babylon, but now Wickedness itself is exiled there. The holy land is being purged.
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