Keraia
Zechariah 5

Zechariah 5:8

The Vision of the Woman in a Basket · Zechariah 5:5–11
Read Zechariah 5

Translations

Modern
“This is Wickedness,” he said. And he shoved her down into the basket, pushing down the lead cover over its opening.
Traditional
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.
Literal
And he said, “This is Wickedness.” And he threw her down into the midst of the basket, and he threw the weight of lead over its mouth.
Latin
Et dixit: Hæc est impietas. Et projecit eam in medio amphoræ, et misit massam plumbeam in os ejus.

Original

Hebrew
English
“This is Wickedness,” he said. And he shoved her down into the basket, pushing down the lead cover over its opening.

Notes

Zechariah 5:8

Wickedness can be moral evil or ceremonial evil, and it is opposed to righteousness (see Proverbs 13:6; Ezekiel 33:12). The word wickedness (Hebrew rish‘ah) sounds similar in Hebrew to the name Asherah, the fertility goddess of the ancient Near East (see Deuteronomy 7:5; 16:21).

Zechariah 5:7–8

a woman sitting inside the basket: This symbolizes a tempting and dangerous force that is hard to control. The sin of worshiping idols had earlier caused God's judgment (2 Kings 17:16–18; 2 Chronicles 36:14).

Zechariah 5:5–11

The seventh vision continues the theme of cleansing that began when the high priest Jeshua was declared innocent (Zechariah 3:1–10). The removal of wickedness, like the removal of Jeshua’s filthy clothes (Zechariah 3:4), shows God’s gracious forgiveness. This act comes from the covenant-keeping God.

Zechariah 1:7–6:15

These eight visions helped the Judeans overcome their fears and trust in God's promises. The visions happened two months after Haggai's last two messages (Haggai 2:10–19, 20–23). They suggest that Haggai's prophecies were coming true.

Events

Glossary

Apocalyptic Weights and Measures Zechariah, Book of

Topics

Lead used for Weighing Measure: An Ephah, Equal to Three Seah, and in Liquid, to a Bath, Containing About a Bushel and a Half Symbols and Similitudes: Ephah Women: Symbolical of Wickedness