3. “And now the lord says: I am returning to Mount Zion, and I will live in Jerusalem. Then Jerusalem will be called the Faithful City; the mountain of the lord of Heaven’s Armies will be called the Holy Mountain.
4. “This is what the lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Once again old men and women will walk Jerusalem’s streets with their canes and will sit together in the city squares.
5. And the streets of the city will be filled with boys and girls at play.
6. “This is what the lord of Heaven’s Armies says: All this may seem impossible to you now, a small remnant of God’s people. But is it impossible for me? says the lord of Heaven’s Armies.
7. “This is what the lord of Heaven’s Armies says: You can be sure that I will rescue my people from the east and from the west.
8. I will bring them home again to live safely in Jerusalem. They will be my people, and I will be faithful and just toward them as their God.
9. “This is what the lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Be strong and finish the task! Ever since the laying of the foundation of the Temple of the lord of Heaven’s Armies, you have heard what the prophets have been saying about completing the building.
10. Before the work on the Temple began, there were no jobs and no money to hire people or animals. No traveler was safe from the enemy, for there were enemies on all sides. I had turned everyone against each other.
11. “But now I will not treat the remnant of my people as I treated them before, says the lord of Heaven’s Armies.