Zechariah has a final message for the returning exiles. In this discourse, which covers the last three chapters of his book, Zechariah continues to describe a future Day, in which Israel is victorious over all evil. In this last discourse, the phrase "on that day" appears sixteen times, six times in this chapter. Each occurrence initiates a description of this future age.
Zechariah 12:1-3, Cup of wrath, immovable stone
A prophecy:
This is the word of the LORD concerning Israel. The LORD, who stretches out the heavens, who lays the foundation of the earth, and who forms the spirit of man within him, declares:
"I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling. Judah will be besieged as well as Jerusalem.
On that day, when all the nations of the earth are gathered against her, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves.
Zechariah begins this message with a description of YHWH as creator of the heavens, the one who made the earth and formed mankind and put His spirit within man.
After this introduction, Jerusalem is identified as a future cup (presumably of wine) that make surrounding nations stumble as they lay siege to Jerusalem. In a second metaphor, Jerusalem is a rock that cannot be moved. Those attempting to move it will only hurt themselves.
Zechariah 12:4-5, Blind panic
On that day I will strike every horse with panic and its rider with madness,"
declares the LORD.
"I will keep a watchful eye over the house of Judah, but I will blind all the horses of the nations. Then the leaders of Judah will say in their hearts, `The people of Jerusalem are strong, because the LORD Almighty is their God.'
As the enemy nations approach, the horses are struck with blindness; they and their riders panic. The leaders of Judah are encouraged that YHWH ṣə·ḇā·’ō·wṯ ("God of hosts") is on their side.
Zechariah 12:6-7, Bursting into flame
"On that day I will make the leaders of Judah like a firepot in a woodpile, like a flaming torch among sheaves. They will consume right and left all the surrounding peoples, but Jerusalem will remain intact in her place.
"The LORD will save the dwellings of Judah first, so that the honor of the house of David and of Jerusalem's inhabitants may not be greater than that of Judah.
A hot firepot is intended to create a fire; here the firepot ignites an entire woodpile. In a similar image, a flaming torch is thrust into dried grass. Jerusalem will ignite a fire that consumes those around them, but they will remain safe.
Zechariah 12:8-9, Weakest made strong
On that day the LORD will shield those who live in Jerusalem, so that the feeblest among them will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the Angel of the LORD going before them.
On that day I will set out to destroy all the nations that attack Jerusalem.
YHWH will form a protective shield around Jerusalem, so that the weak are made strong and the strong even more powerful. The enemy nations will begin to be destroyed.
Zechariah 12:10, The one they pierced
"And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son.
God will pour out on Israel grace and humble communion with their God. The people of Jerusalem will look on God as one they have "pierced" and will grieve for how they have mistreated Him. A similar description of One pierced for Israel appears in Isaiah 53:4-6. In the New Testament, in John 19:33-37, the disciple John identifies Messiah Jesus as the One Who is pierced and quotes part of this verse.
Zechariah 12:11-14, Weeping, each clan by itself
On that day the weeping in Jerusalem will be great, like the weeping of Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. The land will mourn, each clan by itself, with their wives by themselves: the clan of the house of David and their wives, the clan of the house of Nathan and their wives, the clan of the house of Levi and their wives, the clan of Shimei and their wives and all the rest of the clans and their wives.
The identity of Hadad Rimmon is unknown. Apparently Hadad was a Canaanite or Ugaritic god (see this Wikipedia page; Strong's concordance agrees here.) If Hadad Rimmon was associated with fertility, then people may have ritually wept to encourage spring rains, as they did with Tammuz (see Ezekiel 8:14.) But Hadad Rimmon could have been an important individual killed on the Megiddo plain or a town destroyed by an enemy or plague. (Barker has a long paragraph summary on p. 684. Rimmon is a geographic location in 14:10.)
Regardless of the identity of Hadad Rimmon, the people will grieve, deeply, personally, privately, in their homes and families. In context, the grieving will be for the past rebellion and will lead to renewal, described in the next chapter.
First published December 23, 2025; updated December 23, 2025
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