And Hamath also shall border thereby; Tyrus, and Zidon, though it be very wise.
Parallel translations
- WEB and Hamath, also, which borders on it; Tyre and Sidon, because they are very wise.
- BSB and also against Hamath, which borders it, as well as Tyre and Sidon, though they are very shrewd.
- NKJV Also against Hamath, which borders on it, And against Tyre and Sidon, though they are very wise.
- NASB And Hamath also, which borders on it; Tyre and Sidon, though they are very wise.
- NLT Doom is certain for Hamath, near Damascus, and for the cities of Tyre and Sidon, though they are so clever.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The judgment extends to Hamath and to wise, wealthy Tyre and Sidon. Even the cleverest, richest cities cannot escape God's sovereign word.
Overview
The oracle moves down the coast to the famed Phoenician cities, noted for their wisdom and commercial cunning. Their renowned skill and self-reliance will not shield them from the Lord's purposes. The passage prepares for the announcement of the coming King by first showing God's supremacy over the proud nations.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- Jer 49:23Concerning Damascus. Hamath is confounded, and Arpad: for they have heard evil tidings: they are fainthearted; there is sorrow on the sea; it cannot be quiet.
- Ezek 28:12Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty.
- Ezek 28:2–5Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thine heart is lifted up, and thou hast said, I am a God, I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas; yet thou art a man, and not God, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God:
- Ezek 28:21–26Son of man, set thy face against Zidon, and prophesy against it,
- Isa 23:1–18The burden of Tyre. Howl, ye ships of Tarshish; for it is laid waste, so that there is no house, no entering in: from the land of Chittim it is revealed to them.
- Ezek 26:1–21And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
- Joel 3:4–8Yea, and what have ye to do with me, O Tyre, and Zidon, and all the coasts of Palestine? will ye render me a recompence? and if ye recompense me, swiftly and speedily will I return your recompence upon your own head;
- 2 Kgs 25:21And the king of Babylon smote them, and slew them at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was carried away out of their land.
- Amos 1:9–10Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Tyrus, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they delivered up the whole captivity to Edom, and remembered not the brotherly covenant:
- 2 Kgs 23:33And Pharaohnechoh put him in bands at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem; and put the land to a tribute of an hundred talents of silver, and a talent of gold.
- Obad 1:20And the captivity of this host of the children of Israel shall possess that of the Canaanites, even unto Zarephath; and the captivity of Jerusalem, which is in Sepharad, shall possess the cities of the south.
- Amos 6:14But, behold, I will raise up against you a nation, O house of Israel, saith the LORD the God of hosts; and they shall afflict you from the entering in of Hemath unto the river of the wilderness.
- Num 13:21So they went up, and searched the land from the wilderness of Zin unto Rehob, as men come to Hamath.
- 1 Kgs 17:9Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The Branch who is both priest and king, the shepherd struck and the flock scattered, the king coming humble on a donkey, the one they pierced, the fountain opened for sin — Zechariah is dense with Christ.
How Zechariah 9:2 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.