The beginning of a new discourse unit is marked in Hebrew by the occurrence of the interjections translated Ho! ho!, and by the imperative verb Flee. The Hebrew does not state who is spoken to in this verse, but it is obviously the Jews who were still in exile. Good News Translation makes this clearer by putting “The LORD said to his people” at the beginning of the verse. Good News Translation also links verse 6 with verse 7 and restructures them, but this does not seem necessary. As discussed above, such a procedure neglects the structure of the whole unit.

Ho! translates a Hebrew word that elsewhere often means “Woe!” (compare Hab 2.6, 9, 12, 15, 19). Here it may have something of the same feeling, suggesting that some evil will come on the land of the north. However, most English versions translate it here more as a term of exhortation. New American Bible, Jerusalem Bible, and New Revised Standard Version have “Up, up;” New English Bible/ Revised English Bible and New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh have “Away, away;” New International Version has “Come! Come!” (similarly Beck). Since all these expressions are rather artificial in English, Good News Translation omits any direct equivalent. Translators should try to use an appropriate expression showing urgency in their own languages if this is available. Contemporary English Version retains the urgency of Ho! ho! with “Run!” In certain languages this may also be an ideal place to use an ideophone expressing urgency.

Flee from the land of the north: The command to Flee may be translated as “escape from” (Good News Translation) or “run away from.” The land of the north means in this context Babylonia, as verse 7 makes clear. Although Babylonia was east rather than north from Judah, the road from Babylonia avoided the direct route across the desert, and approached Judah from the north. This is why the north is associated with both Babylonia and Assyria in the Old Testament.

Says the LORD occurs twice in this verse. The first occurrence probably helps to mark the beginning of the new unit, and the second probably marks the end of the first part of that unit. Good News Translation puts its equivalent “The LORD said to his people” just once at the beginning of the verse. This may be better style in many languages. Some translators may have other means of marking the equivalent discourse functions, for instance by particles.

For I have spread you abroad as the four winds of the heavens: This is a reference to the scattering of the people in many countries at the time of the exile. For I have spread you, see the discussion on “scattered” in 1.19. As the four winds of the heavens means in every direction. Good News Translation thus translates this whole clause in simple English as “I scattered you in all directions” (compare 6.5; Jer 49.36; Dan 8.8; Dan 11.4).

Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. & Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Zechariah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2002. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .