A Call to Repentance
(Jeremiah 3:11–25; Hosea 14:1–3)

1In the eyght moneth of the seconde yere of king Darius, came the worde of the Lord vnto Zacharias the sonne of Barachias the sonne of Addo the prophete, saying: 2The Lorde hath ben sore displeased with your forefathers. 3And say thou vnto them, thus sayth the Lorde of hoastes: Turne you vnto me saith the Lord of hoastes, & I wil turne vnto you, sayth the Lord of hoastes. 4Be ye not like your forefathers, vnto whom prophetes cryed, saying, thus sayth the Lorde of hoastes, Turne you from your euyl wayes, and from your wicked imaginations: But they woulde not heare nor regarde me, sayth the Lorde. 5What is nowe become of your forefathers? & do the prophetes liue for euer? 6But did not my wordes and statutes whiche I commaunded by my seruauntes the prophetes take hold of your forefathers? and they returned, & sayde: Like as the Lorde of hoastes determined to do vnto vs according to our owne wayes and imaginations, euen so hath he dealt with vs.

The Vision of the Horses

7Upon the twentie and fourth day of the eleuenth moneth, (whiche is the moneth Sebah) in the seconde yere of Darius, came the word of the Lord vnto Zacharias the sonne of Barachias the sonne of Addo the prophete, saying: 8I sawe by night, and behold, there sate one vpon a red horse, and stoode still among the myrre trees that were in a botome: and behinde hym were there red, speckled, and whyte horses. 9Then sayde I, O my Lorde, what are these? And the angel that talked with me, sayde vnto me: I will shewe thee what these be. 10And the man that stoode among the myrre trees aunswered, and said: These are they whom the Lorde hath sent to go thorowe the world. 11And they aunswered the angel of the Lorde that stoode among the myrre trees, and sayd: We haue gone thorowe the world, and beholde all the world sitteth still, and is carelesse.

12Then the lordes angel gaue aunswere, and saide: O lorde of hoastes, how long wylt thou be vnmerciful to Hierusalem, and to the cities of Iuda, with whom thou hast ben displeased now these three score and ten yeres? 13So the Lorde gaue a louing and a comfortable aunswere vnto the angel that talked with me. 14And the angel that communed with me, saide vnto me: Crye thou, & speake, Thus saith the Lorde of hoastes: I am exceeding ielous ouer Hierusalem and Sion, 15And sore displeased at the carelesse heathen: for where as I was but a litle angry, they helped forward the affliction. 16Therfore thus saith the Lorde: I wyl returne vnto Hierusalem in tender mercie, so that my house shalbe builded in it, saith the Lorde of hoastes: yea, and the lyne shalbe stretched vpon Hierusale 17Crye also and speake, thus saith the Lorde of hoastes: My cities shalbe in good prosperitie againe, the Lorde shall yet comforte Sion, & choose Hierusalem.

The Vision of the Horns and the Craftsmen

18Then lyft I vp myne eyes and sawe, and beholde, foure hornes. 19And I saide vnto the angel that talked with me, what be these? He aunswered me, These are the hornes which haue scattered Iuda, Israel, and Hierusalem. 20And the Lorde shewed me foure carpenters. 21Then saide I: what wyll these do? He aunswered & said: These are the hornes which haue scattered Iuda, so that no man durst lyft vp his head: but these are come to fray them away, and to cast out the hornes of the Gentiles which lyft vp their horne ouer the lande of Iuda to scatter it abroade.