Zechariah 9:12 (YLT)

Passage

Turn back to a fenced place, Ye prisoners of the hope, Even to-day a second announcer I restore to thee.

Nearby Context

Zechariah 9:10 And I have cut off the chariot from Ephraim, And the horse from Jerusalem, Yea, cut off hath been the bow of battle, And he hath spoken peace to nations, And his rule <FI>is<Fi> from sea unto sea, And from the river unto the ends of earth.

Zechariah 9:11 Also thou--by the blood of thy covenant, I have sent thy prisoners out of the pit, There is no water in it.

Zechariah 9:12 Turn back to a fenced place, Ye prisoners of the hope, Even to-day a second announcer I restore to thee.

Zechariah 9:13 For I have trodden for Me Judah, A bow I have filled <FI>with<Fi> Ephraim, And I have stirred up thy sons, O Zion, Against thy sons, O Javan, And I have set thee as the sword of a hero.

Zechariah 9:14 And Jehovah doth appear for them, And gone forth as lightning hath His arrow, And the Lord Jehovah with a trumpet bloweth, And He hath gone with whirlwinds of the south.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "turn", "back", "fenced", "place", "prisoners", "hope", "even", and "to-day". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "turn" and "back", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 11's "Also thou--by the blood of thy covenant..." into verse 13's "For I have trodden for Me Judah...", so "turn" and "back" 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 "turn" and "back" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.