1 THE burden of the word of the LORD in the land of Hadrach, and Damascus shall be the rest thereof: when the eyes of man, as of all the tribes of Israel, shall be toward the LORD.

2 And Hamath also shall border thereby; Tyrus, and Zidon, though it be very wise.

3 And Tyrus did build herself a strong hold, and heaped up silver as the dust, and fine gold as the mire of the streets.

4 Behold, the Lord will cast her out, and he will smite her power in the sea; and she shall be devoured with fire.

5 Ashkelon shall see it, and fear; Gaza also shall see it, and be very sorrowful, and Ekron; for her expectation shall be ashamed; and the king shall perish from Gaza, and Ashkelon shall not be inhabited.

6 And a bastard shall dwell in Ashdod, and I will cut off the pride of the Philistines.

7 And I will take away his blood out of his mouth, and his abominations from between his teeth: but he that remaineth, even he, shall be for our God, and he shall be as a governor in Judah, and Ekron as a Jebusite.

8 And I will encamp about mine house because of the army, because of him that passeth by, and because of him that returneth: and no oppressor shall pass through them any more: for now have I seen with mine eyes.

9 ¶ Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh [ Not ZerubbHebel, for he was never king; nor have they had a king, except Jesus the Christ, from the days of Zedekiah to the present time ] unto thee: he is just, [ There is only one who is completely just, even Jesus Christ. He is our judge and will exercise all justice in rendering those judgements. ] and having salvation; [ Again there is only one who hold salvation in his hands. He alone can save from sin, Satan, death, and hell. ] lowly, [ What does this say of him? He will not come with pomp or splendour; for neither his kingdom, nor that of his followers, is of this world. ] and riding upon an ass, [ What is the signifigance of this phrase? which he does to fulfilled prophecy. ] and upon a colt the foal of an ass. [ so what does this mean? appreciate the detail in the verse. While the second use of the word "ass" is a feminine noun, the first use of the word "ass" is masculine, along with colt, and foal. Colt means that the donkey will be a male. Foal means that the donkey will be less than a year in age. Of course, it also says that the foal will come of a female donkey. I think this specificity shows just how much God wanted to prove that Jesus was who he said he was. The King of Kings. see (Matt 21:5-7; Mark 11:2-7; Luke 19:30-35; John 12:16)]

[ By riding this colt into Jerusalem Jesus was presenting himself as the promised Messiah who they had been waiting for, as prophesied by Zechariah. (Zechariah 9:9). Jesus also deliberately planned his entry into Jerusalem after King solomon’s royal entry into Jerusalem––from the Mount of Olives and on The Kings Mule. By riding in on a donkey, amidst the shouts of praise and jubilation of the people, Jesus is proclaiming––to all of Israel––he is King of Judah, the prophesied heir to the throne through the Davidic line. This is evidenced by the crowds referring to Jesus as ‘son of David’ a title that only belonged to King solomon and the prophesied Messiah (see 1 Kings1:33; James E. Talmadge, Jesus The Christ p. 478)! Lastly, Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey proclaimed he came in peace as opposed to Rome’s grand display and parade of magnificent horse driven chariots at the beginning of every Jewish festival. A deliberate display of power meant to subdue and oppress the Jews. It is interesting to note that the same people who praised and honored him as the long awaited Messiah, would later reject him and call for his crucifixion because he didn’t suddenly turn into this powerful deliverer and military leader; even though he entered Jerusalem on a donkey, symbolic of establishing a kingdom of peace. ]

10 And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: [ This will happen without the tools used in war. It will be done not with strength and power. ] and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: [ He will win this battle by the peaceful spirit and power that comes from God. ] and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth. [ It will spread accross the entire earth. ]

11 As for thee [ Jerusalem. ] also, by the blood of thy covenant [ The covenant that God made with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and the Israelites in general. Until the time comes that Jesus Christ would shed his blood in the same manner as they were taught to sacrifice the firstlings of their flocks. ] I have sent forth thy prisoners [ Those who have tarried and have sinned, he will set them free from the bonds that they are under. Those who are in captivity in spirit prison are eventually made free as they accept the gospel and the saving ordinances are preformed for them in the Temple. ] out of the pit [ Spirit prison is often referred to as the pit. A place where it is imposible to get out of on our own without the help of the Savior and the saving ordinances of the gospel, which are performed in the temple. ] wherein is no water.

12 ¶ Turn you to the strong hold, [ Look to the one who gives you the most strength - in this case God. ] ye prisoners of hope: even to day do I declare that I will render double unto thee; [ Symbolic for abundance, peace and salvation. ]

13 When I have bent Judah for me, filled the bow with Ephraim, [ Judah is the bow, and Ephraim is the arrows; and these are to be shot against those who are Greek in this case. The reader will consult what is said on Hos. 7:16, relative to the oriental bow, which resembles a [figure C"] in its quiescent state, and must be recurved in order to be strung. Here, Judah is represented as the recurved bow; Ephraim, as an arrow placed on the string, and then discharged against the Javanites or Greeks with the momentum of lightning; the arrow kindling in its course through the air, and thus becoming the bolt of death to them against whom it was directed.] and raised up thy sons, O Zion, against thy sons, O Greece, and made thee as the sword of a mighty man.

14 And the LORD shall be seen over them, [ Just as the cloud was over the children of Israel. ] and his arrow shall go forth as the lightning: [ How fast the arrows from the previous verse will fly. ] and the Lord GOD shall blow the trumpet, and shall go with whirlwinds of the south.

15 The LORD of hosts shall defend them; and they shall devour, and subdue with sling stones; and they shall drink, and make a noise as through wine; and they shall be filled like bowls, and as the corners of the altar.

16 And the LORD their God shall save them in that day as the flock of his people: for they shall be as the stones of a crown, lifted up as an ensign upon his land.

17 For how great is his goodness, and how great is his beauty! corn shall make the young men cheerful, [ There shall be plenty of food, enough to make all men happy. ] and new wine the maids.