Zechariah 7:3

unto the priests See Haggai 2:11 and note.

which were in ofR.V.

and to the prophets i.e. Haggai and Zechariah.

Should I weep Similarly the sing. num. is used of a community or nation, Numbers 20:18-19; Joshua 9:7, and elsewhere.

in the fifth month 2 Kings 25:8-9; Jeremiah 52:12-13, from a comparison of which passages it appears that "from the seventh to the tenth day (of the fifth month) Jerusalem was in flames" (Pusey). While the Temple lay in ruins the Jews had marked this time by an annual fast. Now that it was being rebuilt the question naturally arose, should the fast be continued?

separating myself Or, abstainingfrom meat and drink (Zechariah 7:5 with 6), and from all pleasure, Isaiah 58:5.