7 Then the cover of lead was raised, and there in the basket sat a woman!
7 And, behold, there was lifted up a talent
7 And behold, the leaden cover was lifted, and there was a woman sitting in the basket!
7 Then the lid made of lead was removed from the basket - and there was a woman sitting in it!
7 Here is a lead disc lifted up, and this is a woman sitting inside the basket";
7 Then the heavy lead cover was lifted off the basket, and there was a woman sitting inside it.
8 He said, "This is wickedness," and he pushed her back into the basket and pushed its lead cover down on it.
8 And he said, This is wickedness. And he cast it into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof.
8 And he said, "This is Wickedness." And he thrust her back into the basket, and thrust down the leaden weight on its opening.
8 He said, "This is Miss Wicked." He pushed her back down into the basket and clamped the lead lid over her.
8 then he said, "This is Wickedness!" And he thrust her down into the basket, and threw the lead cover over its mouth.
8 The angel said, "The woman's name is Wickedness," and he pushed her back into the basket and closed the heavy lid again.
(Read Zechariah 5:5-11)
In this vision the prophet sees an ephah, something in the shape of a corn measure. This betokened the Jewish nation. They are filling the measure of their iniquity; and when it is full, they shall be delivered into the hands of those to whom God sold them for their sins. The woman sitting in the midst of the ephah represents the sinful church and nation of the Jews, in their latter and corrupt age. Guilt is upon the sinner as a weight of lead, to sink him to the lowest hell. This seems to mean the condemnation of the Jews, after they filled the measure of their iniquities by crucifying Christ and rejecting his gospel. Zechariah sees the ephah, with the woman thus pressed in it, carried away to some far country. This intimates that the Jews should be hurried out of their own land, and forced to dwell in far countries, as they had been in Babylon. There the ephah shall be firmly placed, and their sufferings shall continue far longer than in their late captivity. Blindness is happened unto Israel, and they are settled upon their own unbelief. Let sinners fear to treasure up wrath against the day of wrath; for the more they multiply crimes, the faster the measure fills.
11 And he said unto me, To build it an house in the land of Shinar: and it shall be established, and set there upon her own base.
11 He said to me, "To the land of Shinar, to build a house for it. And when this is prepared, they will set the basket down there on its base."
11 He said, "East to the land of Shinar. They will build a garage to house it. When it's finished, the basket will be stored there."
11 And he said to me, "To build a house for it in the land of Shinar; when it is ready, the basket will be set there on its base."
11 He replied, "To the land of Babylonia, where they will build a temple for the basket. And when the temple is ready, they will set the basket there on its pedestal."
(Read Zechariah 5:5-11)
In this vision the prophet sees an ephah, something in the shape of a corn measure. This betokened the Jewish nation. They are filling the measure of their iniquity; and when it is full, they shall be delivered into the hands of those to whom God sold them for their sins. The woman sitting in the midst of the ephah represents the sinful church and nation of the Jews, in their latter and corrupt age. Guilt is upon the sinner as a weight of lead, to sink him to the lowest hell. This seems to mean the condemnation of the Jews, after they filled the measure of their iniquities by crucifying Christ and rejecting his gospel. Zechariah sees the ephah, with the woman thus pressed in it, carried away to some far country. This intimates that the Jews should be hurried out of their own land, and forced to dwell in far countries, as they had been in Babylon. There the ephah shall be firmly placed, and their sufferings shall continue far longer than in their late captivity. Blindness is happened unto Israel, and they are settled upon their own unbelief. Let sinners fear to treasure up wrath against the day of wrath; for the more they multiply crimes, the faster the measure fills.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Zechariah 5:7
Commentary on Zechariah 5:5-11
(Read Zechariah 5:5-11)
In this vision the prophet sees an ephah, something in the shape of a corn measure. This betokened the Jewish nation. They are filling the measure of their iniquity; and when it is full, they shall be delivered into the hands of those to whom God sold them for their sins. The woman sitting in the midst of the ephah represents the sinful church and nation of the Jews, in their latter and corrupt age. Guilt is upon the sinner as a weight of lead, to sink him to the lowest hell. This seems to mean the condemnation of the Jews, after they filled the measure of their iniquities by crucifying Christ and rejecting his gospel. Zechariah sees the ephah, with the woman thus pressed in it, carried away to some far country. This intimates that the Jews should be hurried out of their own land, and forced to dwell in far countries, as they had been in Babylon. There the ephah shall be firmly placed, and their sufferings shall continue far longer than in their late captivity. Blindness is happened unto Israel, and they are settled upon their own unbelief. Let sinners fear to treasure up wrath against the day of wrath; for the more they multiply crimes, the faster the measure fills.