Zechariah 12:2

Easy-to-Read Version

"Look, I will make Jerusalem like a cup of poison to the nations around her. The nations will come and attack that city, and all of Judah will be caught in the trap.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
“Look, I will make Jerusalem a cup that causes staggering for the peoples who surround the city. The siege against Jerusalem will also involve Judah.

Hebrew Names Version
"Behold, I will make Yerushalayim a cup of reeling to all the surrounding peoples, and on Yehudah also will it be in the siege against Yerushalayim.

King James Version (1611)
Behold, I will make Ierusalem a cup of trembling vnto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Iudah and against Ierusalem.

King James Version
Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem.

English Standard Version
"Behold, I am about to make Jerusalem a cup of staggering to all the surrounding peoples. The siege of Jerusalem will also be against Judah.

New American Standard Bible
"Behold, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that causes staggering to all the peoples around; and when the siege is against Jerusalem, it will also be against Judah.

New Century Version
"I will make Jerusalem like a cup of poison to the nations around her. They will come and attack Jerusalem and Judah.

Amplified Bible
"Behold, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that causes reeling (staggering) to all the surrounding peoples; and when the siege is against Jerusalem, it will also be against Judah.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Beholde, I will make Ierusalem a cuppe of poyson vnto all the people round about: and also with Iudah will he be, in ye siege against Ierusalem.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Behold, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that causes reeling to all the peoples around; and when the siege is against Jerusalem, it will also be against Judah.

Legacy Standard Bible
"Behold, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that causes reeling to all the peoples all around. Now the one in siege against Jerusalem will also be against Judah.

Berean Standard Bible
"Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples. Judah will be besieged, as well as Jerusalem.

Contemporary English Version
I have decided that Jerusalem will become a bowl of wine that makes the neighboring nations drunk. And when Jerusalem is attacked, Judah will also be attacked.

Complete Jewish Bible
"I will make Yerushalayim a cup that will stagger the surrounding peoples. Even Y'hudah will be caught up in the siege against Yerushalayim.

Darby Translation
Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of bewilderment unto all the peoples round about, and also against Judah shall it be in the siege against Jerusalem.

George Lamsa Translation
Behold, I will make Jerusalem a fearful place to all the people round about her, also there shall be a siege both against Judah together with Jerusalem.

Good News Translation
"I will make Jerusalem like a cup of wine; the nations around her will drink and stagger like drunks. And when they besiege Jerusalem, the cities of the rest of Judah will also be besieged.

Lexham English Bible
‘Look, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup of reeling for all the surrounding nations; it will also be against Judah in the siege against Jerusalem.

Literal Translation
Behold! I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling to all the peoples all around, and it shall also be against Judah in the siege against Jerusalem.

American Standard Version
Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of reeling unto all the peoples round about, and upon Judah also shall it be in the siege against Jerusalem.

Bible in Basic English
See, I will make Jerusalem a cup of shaking fear to all the peoples round about, when Jerusalem is shut in.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of staggering unto all the peoples round about, and upon Judah also shall it fall to be in the siege against Jerusalem.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Beholde, I wyll make Hierusalem a cuppe of surfet vnto all the people that are rounde about her: yea Iuda him selfe also shalbe in the siege against Hierusalem.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Behold, I will make Jerusalem as trembling door-posts to all the nations round about, and in Judea there shall be a siege against Jerusalem.

English Revised Version
behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of reeling unto all the peoples round about, and upon Judah also shall it be in the siege against Jerusalem.

World English Bible
"Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of reeling to all the surrounding peoples, and on Judah also will it be in the siege against Jerusalem.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Y schal putte Jerusalem a lyntel of glotonye to alle puplis in cumpas, but and Juda schal be in `a segyng ayens Jerusalem.

Update Bible Version
look, I will make Jerusalem a cup of reeling to all the peoples round about, and on Judah also it shall be in the siege against Jerusalem.

Webster's Bible Translation
Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling to all the people around, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah [and] against Jerusalem.

New English Translation
"I am about to make Jerusalem a cup that brings dizziness to all the surrounding nations; indeed, Judah will also be included when Jerusalem is besieged.

New King James Version
"Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples, when they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem.

New Living Translation
I will make Jerusalem like an intoxicating drink that makes the nearby nations stagger when they send their armies to besiege Jerusalem and Judah.

New Life Bible
"I am going to make Jerusalem like a cup that makes all the people around it seem to be drunk. Judah will be shut in by armies as well as Jerusalem.

New Revised Standard
See, I am about to make Jerusalem a cup of reeling for all the surrounding peoples; it will be against Judah also in the siege against Jerusalem.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Lo! I am making Jerusalem a bowl of reeling to all the peoples, round about, - Moreover also, on Judah, shall it be in the siege against Jerusalem;

Douay-Rheims Bible
Behold I will make Jerusalem a lintel of surfeiting to all the people round about: and Juda also shall be in the siege against Jerusalem.

Revised Standard Version
"Lo, I am about to make Jerusalem a cup of reeling to all the peoples round about; it will be against Judah also in the siege against Jerusalem.

Young's Literal Translation
Lo, I am making Jerusalem a cup of reeling To all the peoples round about, And also against Judah it is, In the siege against Jerusalem.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Beholde, I will make Ierusalem a cuppe of surfet, vnto all the people yt are rounde aboute her: Yee Iuda himself also shalbe in the sege agaynst Ierusalem.

Contextual Overview

¹ This is a message from the Lord about Israel. The Lord is the one who made the earth and the sky, and he put the human spirit in people. And this is what the Lord said: ² "Look, I will make Jerusalem like a cup of poison to the nations around her. The nations will come and attack that city, and all of Judah will be caught in the trap. ³ But I will make Jerusalem like a heavy rock—those who try to take it will hurt themselves. They will be cut and scratched. All the nations on earth will come together to fight against Jerusalem. ⁴ But at that time I will scare the horse, and the soldier riding it will panic. I will make all the enemy horses blind, but my eyes will be open—and I will be watching over Judah's family. ⁵ The leaders of Judah will encourage the people and say, ‘The Lord All-Powerful is your God. He makes us strong.' ⁶ At that time I will make the leaders of Judah like a fire burning in a forest. They will destroy their enemies like fire burning straw. They will destroy the enemy all around them, and the people in Jerusalem will again be able to sit back and relax." ⁷ The Lord will save the people of Judah first, so the people in Jerusalem will not be able to brag too much. David's family and the other people who live in Jerusalem will not be able to brag that they are better than the other people in Judah. ⁸ But the Lord will protect the people in Jerusalem. Even the man who trips and falls will become a great soldier like David. And the men from David's family will be like gods—like the Lord 's own angel leading the people.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

a cup: Psalms 75:8, Isaiah 51:17, Isaiah 51:22, Isaiah 51:23, Jeremiah 25:15, Jeremiah 25:17, Jeremiah 49:12, Jeremiah 51:7, Habakkuk 2:16, Revelation 14:10, Revelation 16:19, Revelation 18:6

trembling: or, slumber, Jeremiah 51:57, or, poison, Jeremiah 8:14

when they: etc. or, and also against Judah shall he be, which shall be in siege against Jerusalem, Zechariah 14:14

Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 7:21 - a mighty God Deuteronomy 28:52 - General Ezra 6:12 - destroy Esther 6:13 - If Mordecai Isaiah 60:12 - General Jeremiah 2:3 - all that Jeremiah 12:14 - that Jeremiah 30:16 - General Jeremiah 33:9 - fear Jeremiah 50:28 - to declare Jeremiah 51:11 - the vengeance Ezekiel 38:15 - and many Ezekiel 38:17 - whom Daniel 3:22 - slew Habakkuk 2:8 - the violence Haggai 2:22 - overthrow Zechariah 1:20 - four Zechariah 9:13 - bent Zechariah 12:9 - I will Zechariah 14:3 - General Acts 26:14 - hard

Cross-References

Genesis 12:3
I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse those who curse you. I will use you to bless all the people on earth."

Genesis 12:4
So Abram left Haran just like the Lord said, and Lot went with him. Abram was 75 years old when he left Haran.

Genesis 12:6
Abram traveled through the land as far as the town of Shechem and then to the big tree at Moreh. The Canaanites were living in the land at that time.

Genesis 12:8
Then he left that place and traveled to the mountains east of Bethel. He set up his tent there. Bethel was to the west, and Ai was to the east. Abram built another altar at that place to honor the Lord , and he worshiped the Lord there.

Genesis 12:9
Then he moved on toward the Negev, stopping for a time at several places on the way.

Genesis 12:10
During this time there was not enough food in the land, so Abram went down to Egypt to live.

Genesis 12:14
So when Abram went into Egypt, the Egyptian men saw that Sarai was a very beautiful woman.

Genesis 12:16
Pharaoh was kind to Abram because he thought Abram was Sarai's brother. He gave Abram sheep, cattle, donkeys, camels, and men and women servants.

Genesis 12:17
Pharaoh took Abram's wife, so the Lord caused Pharaoh and all the people in his house to have very bad diseases.

Genesis 12:18
Pharaoh called Abram and said to him, "You have done a very bad thing to me! Why didn't you tell me Sarai was your wife?

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about,.... The Targum renders it,

"a vessel full of inebriating liquor;''

which intoxicates and makes giddy, and causes to tremble, stagger, and fall like a drunken man. The phrase denotes the punishment inflicted by the Lord upon the enemies of his church and people; see

Isaiah 51:22:

when they shall be in the siege both against Judah [and] against Jerusalem; not by Antiochus Epiphanes; nor by Titus Vespasian; nor by Gog and Magog, as Kimchi; but by the antichristian powers, especially the Mahometan nations, the Turks, which shall come against Jerusalem, when the Jews are returned thither, and resettled in their own land; see Ezekiel 38:5. The words should be rendered, "and upon Judah shall it be" y, i.e. the cup of trembling, "in the siege against Jerusalem"; according to the Targum, and the Jewish commentators, the nations of the earth shall bring the men of Judah by force to join with them in the siege of Jerusalem; as, in the times of Antiochus, many of the Jews were drawn in to fight against their brethren; but the meaning is, that not only the wrath of God will come upon the Mahometan nations that shall besiege Jerusalem; but also on those who bear the Christian name, who are Jews outwardly, but not inwardly; and shall join with the Turks in distressing the people of the Jews upon their return to their own land: to besiege Judah, or a country, is not proper and pertinent: Jerusalem, when again in the hands of the Jews, according to this prophecy, only is to be besieged, as it will, by the Turks; and it should be observed, that it never was besieged by Antiochus, and therefore the prophecy can not be applied to his times, as it is by many.

y וגם על יהודה יהיה "et etiam super Jehudah erit", Pagninus, Montanus, Burkius.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling - For encouragement, He promises the victory, and at first mentions the attack incidentally. Jerusalem is as a cup or basin, which its enemies take into their hands; a stone, which they put forth their strength to lift; but they themselves reel with the draught of God’s judgments which they would give to others, they are torn by the stone which they would lift to fling. The image of the “cup” is mostly of God’s displeasure, which is given to His own people, and then, His judgment of chastisement being exceeded, given in turn to those who had been the instruments of giving it . Thus, Isaiah speaks of “the cup of trembling.” Thou, “Jerusalem, hast drunk the dregs of the cup of trembling, hast wrung them out. Therefore hear thou this, thou afflicted and drunken but not with wine. Thus saith thy Lord, the Lord, and thy God that pleadeth the cause of His people, Behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling, the dregs of the cup of My fury; thou shalt no more drink it again: but I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee” Isaiah 51:17, Isaiah 51:21-23. Jeremiah speaks of “the cup of God’s anger,” as given by God first to Jerusalem, then to all whom Nebuchadnezzar should subdue, then to Babylon itself Jeremiah 25:15-26; and as “passing through” to Edom also Lamentations 4:21; Jeremiah 49:12; Ezekiel, of “Aholibah” Ezekiel 23:31-33 (Jerusalem) “drinking the cup of Samaria.” In Jeremiah alone, Babylon is herself the cup. “Babylon” is “a golden cup in the Lord’s hand, that made all the nations drunken; the nations have drunken of the wine; therefore the nations are mad” Jeremiah 51:7. Now Jerusalem is to be, not an ordinary cup, but a large “basin” or vessel, from which all nations may drink what will make them reel.

“And also upon Judah will it be in the siege against Jerusalem, that is, the burden of the word of the Lord which was on Israel” should be “upon Judah,” that is, upon all, great and small.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Zechariah 12:2. Jerusalem a cup of trembling — The Babylonians, who captivated and ruined the Jews, shall in their turn be ruined.

I incline to think that what is spoken in this chapter about the Jews and Jerusalem, belongs to the "glory of the latter times."

Shall be in the siege — This may refer to some war against the Church of Christ, such as that mentioned Revelation 20:9.