Zechariah 14:18 (WEB)

Passage

If the family of Egypt doesn’t go up, and doesn’t come, neither will it rain on them. This will be the plague with which Yahweh will strike the nations that don’t go up to keep the feast of tents.

Nearby Context

Zechariah 14:16 It will happen that everyone who is left of all the nations that came against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, Yahweh of Armies, and to keep the feast of tents.

Zechariah 14:17 It will be, that whoever of all the families of the earth doesn’t go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, Yahweh of Armies, on them there will be no rain.

Zechariah 14:18 If the family of Egypt doesn’t go up, and doesn’t come, neither will it rain on them. This will be the plague with which Yahweh will strike the nations that don’t go up to keep the feast of tents.

Zechariah 14:19 This will be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all the nations that don’t go up to keep the feast of tents.

Zechariah 14:20 In that day there will be on the bells of the horses, “HOLY TO YAHWEH”; and the pots in Yahweh’s house will be like the bowls before the altar.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "family", "egypt", "doesn", "come", "neither", "rain", and "plague". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "family" and "egypt", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 17's "It will be that whoever of all..." into verse 19's "This will be the punishment of Egypt...", so "family" and "egypt" 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 "family" and "egypt" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.