Therefore thus saith the LORD; I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies: my house shall be built in it, saith the LORD of hosts, and a line shall be stretched forth upon Jerusalem.

ZECHARIAH 1:16KJV
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Zechariah 1:16 (KJV)

What does Zechariah 1:16 mean?

Zechariah 1:16 announces that the LORD has turned toward Jerusalem with compassion after a period of hardship. His promise to rebuild his house and measure the city presents Jerusalem as a place where construction and restoration can begin again.

The “house” is the temple, the place where the people worshiped the LORD. The stretched “line” pictures a builder measuring out a site. After the anger described in verse 15, these promises answer the city’s need for rebuilding.

The Hebrew behind Zechariah 1:16

  • “mercies” — רַחֲמִים (raḥamim): The word carries the sense of compassion or tender care. It describes the manner of the LORD’s return to Jerusalem, not merely his arrival.
  • “line” — קָו (qav): This word can mean a measuring cord used by builders. In Zechariah 1:16, the cord points to the practical work of laying out the city for rebuilding.

Why Zechariah 1:16 matters

  • The temple and the city belong together in the promise. “My house shall be built in it” places the temple within Jerusalem, while the measuring line extends attention to the city itself.
  • The words are presented as the LORD’s own declaration, not simply Zechariah’s construction plan. The verse repeats “saith the LORD,” giving the rebuilding promise the weight of a direct announcement from him.
  • The promise speaks to people living after Jerusalem and its temple had been devastated. Rebuilding the temple was already a pressing concern for the returned community, as the opening of the neighboring book of Haggai shows.

Where else these words appear

“line” Hebrew H6961 · used in 3 verses

  • 1 Kings 7:23 And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one brim to the other: it was round all about, and his height was five cubits: and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about.
  • Jeremiah 31:39 And the measuring line shall yet go forth over against it upon the hill Gareb, and shall compass about to Goath.

“line” Hebrew H6957 · used in 15 verses

  • 1 Kings 7:23 And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one brim to the other: it was round all about, and his height was five cubits: and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about.
  • Psalms 19:4 Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun,
  • Isaiah 34:17 And he hath cast the lot for them, and his hand hath divided it unto them by line: they shall possess it for ever, from generation to generation shall they dwell therein.

“mercies” Hebrew H7356 · used in 44 verses

  • Genesis 43:14 And God Almighty give you mercy before the man, that he may send away your other brother, and Benjamin. If I be bereaved of my children, I am bereaved.
  • Nehemiah 9:31 Nevertheless for thy great mercies' sake thou didst not utterly consume them, nor forsake them; for thou art a gracious and merciful God.
  • Isaiah 46:3 Hearken unto me, O house of Jacob, and all the remnant of the house of Israel, which are borne by me from the belly, which are carried from the womb: