Zechariah 11:3-13

3 The rulers cry out in grief; their glory is gone! Listen to the roaring of the lions; their forest home along the Jordan is destroyed!

4 The Lord my God said to me, "Act the part of the shepherd of a flock of sheep that are going to be butchered.

5 Their owners kill them and go unpunished. They sell the meat and say, "Praise the Lord! We are rich!' Even their own shepherds have no pity on them."

6 (The Lord said, "I will no longer pity anyone on earth. I myself will put all the people in the power of their rulers. These rulers will devastate the earth, and I will not save it from their power.")

7 Those who bought and sold the sheep hired me, and I became the shepherd of the sheep that were going to be butchered. I took two sticks: one I called "Favor" and the other "Unity." And I took care of the flock.

8 I lost patience with three other shepherds, who hated me, and I got rid of them all in a single month.

9 Then I said to the flock, "I will not be your shepherd any longer. Let those die who are to die. Let those be destroyed who are to be destroyed. Those who are left will destroy one another."

10 Then I took the stick called "Favor" and broke it, to cancel the covenant which the Lord had made with all the nations.

11 So the covenant was canceled on that day. Those who bought and sold the sheep were watching me, and they knew that the Lord was speaking through what I did.

12 I said to them, "If you are willing, give me my wages. But if not, keep them." So they paid me thirty pieces of silver as my wages. ¹

13 The Lord said to me, "Put them in the Temple treasury." So I took the thirty pieces of silver - the magnificent sum they thought I was worth - and put them in the Temple treasury.

Zechariah 11:3-13 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO ZECHARIAH 11

This chapter contains a prophecy of the destruction of the Jews, and shows the causes and reasons of it; and is concluded with a prediction concerning antichrist. The destruction of the temple and city of Jerusalem, and the inhabitants of it, is signified by figurative expressions, Zec 11:1,2 which occasions an howling among the shepherds or rulers of Israel, on account of whose cruelty and covetousness the wrath of God came upon them without mercy, Zec 11:3,5,6 but inasmuch as there were a remnant according to the election of grace among them, named the flock of the slaughter, Christ is called upon to feed them; who undertakes it, and prepares for it, Zec 11:4,7 but being abhorred by the shepherds, whom he therefore loathed and cut off, he determines to leave the people to utter ruin and destruction, Zec 11:8,9 and, as a token of it, breaks the two staves asunder he had took to feed them with, Zec 11:10,11,14 and, as an instance of their ingratitude to him, and which is a justification of his conduct towards them, notice is taken of his being valued at and sold for thirty pieces of silver, Zec 11:12,13 but, in the place of these shepherds cut off, it is suggested that another should arise, who is described by his folly, negligence, and cruelty, Zec 11:15,16 to whom a woe is denounced, Zec 11:17.

Cross References

• 1. 11.12, 13Matthew 27.9, 10.+O+N11.12Matthew 26.15.

Footnotes

• [a]. shepherd: [Shepherd is used here as a symbol of a king or leader, and sheep as symbols of his people or followers.]
• [b]. [Some ancient translations] Put them in the Temple treasury; [Hebrew] Give them to the potter.