1“Now gather yourself in troops, O daughter of troops;

A state of siege has been placed against us.

They shall strike the ruler of Israel on the cheek with a rod (scepter).

2“But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,

Too little to be among the clans of Judah;

From you One shall come forth for Me [who is] to be Ruler in Israel,

His goings forth (appearances) are from long ago,

From [a]ancient days.”

3Therefore, He will give them up until the time

When she who is in labor has given birth to a child.

Then what is left of His kinsmen

Shall return to the children of Israel.

4And He shall stand and shepherd and guide His flock

In the strength of the LORD,

In the majesty of the name of the LORD His God;

And they shall dwell [secure in undisturbed peace],

Because at that time He shall be great [extending His authority]

[Even] to the ends of the earth.

5This One [the Messiah] shall be our peace.

When the Assyrian invades our land

And tramples on our citadels and in our palaces,

Then shall we raise against him

Seven shepherds and eight princes [an overpowering force] among men.

6They shall devastate the land of Assyria with the sword and

The land of Nimrod within her [own] gates.

And He (the Messiah) shall rescue us from the Assyrian (all enemy nations)

When he attacks our land

And when he tramples our territory.

7Then the remnant of Jacob

Shall be among many peoples

Like dew from the LORD,

Like showers on the grass [a source of blessing]

Which [come suddenly and] do not wait for man

Nor delay for the sons of men.

8The remnant of Jacob

Shall be among the nations,

In the midst of many peoples

Like a lion among the beasts of the forest,

Like a young lion [suddenly appearing] among the flocks of sheep

Which, if he passes through,

Tramples down and tears into pieces [the nations in judgment],

And there is no one to rescue.

9Your hand will be lifted up against your adversaries,

And all your enemies shall be cut off and destroyed.

10“And in that day,” says the LORD,

“I will cut off your horses from among you

And destroy your chariots [on which you depend].

11“I will cut off the cities of your land

And tear down all your fortifications.

12“I will cut off witchcrafts and sorceries from your hand,

And you shall have no more fortune-tellers.

13“I will also cut off your carved images

And your sacred pillars from among you,

So that you will no longer worship and bow down

To the work of your hands.

14“I will root out your Asherim (symbols of the goddess Asherah) from among you

And destroy your cities [which are the centers of pagan worship].

15“And in anger and wrath I shall execute vengeance

On the nations which have not obeyed [such vengeance as they have not known before].”