Zechariah 10: Group Study Handout

How to use: read Zechariah 10 aloud together, then take the questions in order. One page is enough for an evening.

Overview

Yahweh calls for the people to ask for rain in the springtime, emphasizing his control over storm clouds and the provision of rain for the fields (vv. 1-2). He expresses anger toward unfaithful shepherds who have led the people astray, noting that they are like oppressed sheep without a shepherd (vv.

Key verse

“I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will bring them back; for I have mercy on them; and they will be as though I had not cast them off: for I am Yahweh their God, and I will hear them.”
Zechariah 10:6 (WEB)

Outline

Zechariah 10:1–2 Call for Divine Rain
Zechariah 10:3–5 Judgment on Unfaithful Shepherds
Zechariah 10:6–8 Promise of Restoration
Zechariah 10:9–10 Gathering from Exile
Zechariah 10:11–12 Valiant Empowerment

Discussion questions

In v1, what does Yahweh provide to the people in the spring time?
What does 'the shepherds' in v3 suggest about leadership in Israel?
The phrase 'I have mercy on them' in v6: how does this connect to God's previous judgments?
In v10, what does the promise to 'gather them out of Assyria' indicate about Israel's future?
When have you felt strengthened like a 'mighty man' in v7 after a difficult time?

Go deeper

Passages that echo Zechariah 10: Isaiah 41, Isaiah 40, Joel 2.

Before next time: read Zechariah 11.