Zechariah 9:5 (GNV)

Passage

Ashkelon shall see it, and feare, and Azzah also shalbe very sorowfull, and Ekron: for her countenance shalbe ashamed, and the King shall perish from Azzah, and Ashkelon shall not be inhabited.

Nearby Context

Zechariah 9:3 For Tyrus did build her selfe a strong holde, and heaped vp siluer as the dust, and golde as the myre of the streetes.

Zechariah 9:4 Beholde, the Lord wil spoyle her, and he wil smite her power in the Sea, and she shalbe deuoured with fire.

Zechariah 9:5 Ashkelon shall see it, and feare, and Azzah also shalbe very sorowfull, and Ekron: for her countenance shalbe ashamed, and the King shall perish from Azzah, and Ashkelon shall not be inhabited.

Zechariah 9:6 And the stranger shall dwell in Ashdod, and I wil cut off the pride of the Philistims.

Zechariah 9:7 And I wil take away his blood out of his mouth, and his abominations from betweene his teeth: but he that remaineth, euen he shalbe for our God, and he shalbe as a prince in Iudah, but Ekron shalbe as a Iebusite.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "ashkelon", "shall", "feare", "azzah", "shalbe", "very", "sorowfull", and "ekron". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "ashkelon" and "shall", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 4's "Beholde the Lord wil spoyle her and..." into verse 6's "And the stranger shall dwell in Ashdod...", so "ashkelon" and "shall" belong inside that flow. In Zechariah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "ashkelon" and "shall" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.