Zechariah / Question
Zechariah sees a woman sitting in an ephah, and the angel says, “This is Wickedness” in Zechariah 5:7–8. The ephah is carried away to the land of Shinar to build a house for it in Zechariah 5:11. The vision shows wickedness being contained and removed from the land.
In Zechariah 5:7–8, the scene inside the measuring basket becomes clear and then is forcefully controlled. A heavy lead weight is lifted, revealing a woman sitting inside the ephah. The interpreting figure identifies her as “Wickedness,” then physically pushes her back down into the basket and seals the opening with the lead weight. These verses sit in the middle of Zechariah’s night visions (Zechariah 1–6), where symbolic scenes are shown and then explained by an accompanying messenger.
Verses 7–8 complete the “reveal” of what the ephah contains. A heavy piece of lead is lifted, and a woman is seen sitting inside the ephah. The interpreting figure then explicitly identifies her: “This is Wickedness.” After the identification, she is forced back down into the container, and the lead is put over the opening.
A careful answer keeps the immediate passage, the book's argument, and the whole-Bible storyline together, so the question is answered in context instead of as a detached idea.
Start with Zechariah 5:7-8, then read the surrounding section so the answer stays connected to the passage's flow.
7(and, behold, there was lifted up a talent of lead); and this is a woman sitting in the midst of the ephah.
8He said, This is Wickedness: and he cast her down into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of lead on the mouth of it.