So I fed the flock of slaughter, especially the oppressed of the flock. I took for myself two staffs. The one I called “Favor”, and the other I called “Union”, and I fed the flock. I cut off the three shepherds in one month; for my soul was weary of them, and their soul also loathed me. Then I said, “I will not feed you. That which dies, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let those who are left eat each other’s flesh.” I took my staff Favor, and cut it apart, that I might break my covenant that I had made with all the peoples. It was broken in that day; and thus the poor of the flock that listened to me knew that it was Yahweh’s word. I said to them, “If you think it best, give me my wages; and if not, keep them.” So they weighed for my wages thirty pieces of silver. Yahweh said to me, “Throw it to the potter, the handsome price that I was valued at by them!” I took the thirty pieces of silver, and threw them to the potter, in Yahweh’s house. Then I cut apart my other staff, even Union, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.
Parallel Translations
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So I fed the flock of slaughter, especially the oppressed of the flock. I took for myself two staffs. The one I called “Favor”, and the other I called “Union”, and I fed the flock.
I cut off the three shepherds in one month; for my soul was weary of them, and their soul also loathed me.
Then I said, “I will not feed you. That which dies, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let those who are left eat each other’s flesh.”
I took my staff Favor, and cut it apart, that I might break my covenant that I had made with all the peoples.
It was broken in that day; and thus the poor of the flock that listened to me knew that it was Yahweh’s word.
I said to them, “If you think it best, give me my wages; and if not, keep them.” So they weighed for my wages thirty pieces of silver.
Yahweh said to me, “Throw it to the potter, the handsome price that I was valued at by them!” I took the thirty pieces of silver, and threw them to the potter, in Yahweh’s house.
Then I cut apart my other staff, even Union, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.
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And I will feed the flock of slaughter, even you, O poor of the flock. And I took unto me two staves; the one I called Beauty, and the other I called Bands; and I fed the flock.
Three shepherds also I cut off in one month; and my soul lothed them, and their soul also abhorred me.
Then said I, I will not feed you: that that dieth, let it die; and that that is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let the rest eat every one the flesh of another.
And I took my staff, even Beauty, and cut it asunder, that I might break my covenant which I had made with all the people.
And it was broken in that day: and so the poor of the flock that waited upon me knew that it was the word of the LORD.
And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver.
And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the LORD.
Then I cut asunder mine other staff, even Bands, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.
Show all 3 translations
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So I fed the flock of slaughter, verily the poor of the flock. And I took unto me two staves; the one I called Graciousness, and the other I called Binders; and I fed the flock.
And I cut off the three shepherds in one month; 'for My soul became impatient of them, and their soul also loathed Me.'
Then said I: 'I will not feed you; that which dieth, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let them that are left eat every one the flesh of another.'
And I took my staff Graciousness, and cut it asunder, 'that I might break My covenant which I had made with all the peoples.'
And it was broken in that day; and the poor of the flock that gave heed unto me knew of a truth that it was the word of the LORD.
And I said unto them: 'If ye think good, give me my hire; and if not, forbear.' So they weighed for my hire thirty pieces of silver.
And the LORD said unto me: 'Cast it into the treasury, the goodly price that I was prized at of them.' And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them into the treasury, in the house of the LORD.
Then I cut asunder mine other staff, even Binders, that the brotherhood between Judah and Israel might be broken.
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Contradictions (1)
Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.
Cross-references (130)
- Matthew 26:15 (v12) and said, “What are you willing to give me, that I should deliver him to you?” They weighed out for him thirty pieces of silver.
- Matthew 27:3-10 (v13) Then Judas, who betrayed him, when he saw that Jesus was condemned, felt remorse, and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief…
- Zechariah 11:7 (vv10, 14) So I fed the flock of slaughter, especially the oppressed of the flock. I took for myself two staffs. The one I called “Favor”, and the…
- Exodus 21:32 (v12) If the bull gores a male servant or a female servant, thirty shekels of silver shall be given to their master, and the ox shall be stoned.
- Psalms 89:39 (v10) You have renounced the covenant of your servant. You have defiled his crown in the dust.
Show all 100 cross-references
- Mark 14:10-11 (v12) Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve, went away to the chief priests, that he might deliver him to them. They, when they heard it,…
- Luke 22:3-6 (v12) Satan entered into Judas, who was also called Iscariot, who was counted with the twelve. He went away, and talked with the chief priests…
- Acts 1:18-19 (v13) Now this man obtained a field with the reward for his wickedness, and falling headlong, his body burst open, and all his intestines gushed…
- Jeremiah 14:21 (vv8, 10) Do not abhor us, for your name’s sake. Do not disgrace the throne of your glory. Remember, and don’t break your covenant with us.
- Isaiah 11:4 (v7) but he will judge the poor with righteousness, and decide with equity for the humble of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of…
- Jeremiah 31:31-32 (v10) “Behold, the days come,” says Yahweh, “that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: not according…
- Zechariah 11:4 (v7) Yahweh my God says: “Feed the flock of slaughter.
- Zechariah 11:14 (v7) Then I cut apart my other staff, even Union, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.
- John 7:7 (v8) The world can’t hate you, but it hates me, because I testify about it, that its works are evil.
- John 13:27-30 (v12) After the piece of bread, then Satan entered into him. Then Jesus said to him, “What you do, do quickly.” Now nobody at the table knew why…
- John 15:18 (v8) If the world hates you, you know that it has hated me before it hated you.
- Hebrews 8:8-13 (v10) For finding fault with them, he said, “Behold, the days come”, says the Lord, “that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and…
- Genesis 37:28 (v12) Midianites who were merchants passed by, and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty…
- 1 Samuel 2:30 (v10) “Therefore Yahweh, the God of Israel, says, ‘I said indeed that your house and the house of your father should walk before me forever.’ But…
- Psalms 90:17 (v10) Let the favor of the Lord our God be on us. Establish the work of our hands for us. Yes, establish the work of our hands.
- Isaiah 49:7 (v8) Yahweh, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, says to him whom man despises, to him whom the nation abhors, to a servant of rulers:…
- Ezekiel 37:16-23 (v7) “You, son of man, take one stick, and write on it, ‘For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions.’ Then take another stick, and…
- Matthew 23:34-36 (v8) Therefore behold, I send to you prophets, wise men, and scribes. Some of them you will kill and crucify; and some of them you will scourge…
- Luke 21:5-6 (v10) As some were talking about the temple and how it was decorated with beautiful stones and gifts, he said, “As for these things which you…
- Hebrews 7:17-22 (v10) for it is testified, “You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.” For there is an annulling of a foregoing…
- Zephaniah 3:12 (vv7, 11) But I will leave among you an afflicted and poor people, and they will take refuge in Yahweh’s name.
- 1 Kings 21:2 (v12) Ahab spoke to Naboth, saying, “Give me your vineyard, that I may have it for a garden of herbs, because it is near my house; and I will…
- Psalms 23:4 (v7) Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they…
- Isaiah 9:21 (v14) Manasseh, Ephraim; and Ephraim, Manasseh; and they together shall be against Judah. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand…
- Isaiah 40:31 (v11) but those who wait for Yahweh will renew their strength. They will mount up with wings like eagles. They will run, and not be weary. They…
- Isaiah 61:1 (v7) The Lord Yahweh’s Spirit is on me, because Yahweh has anointed me to preach good news to the humble. He has sent me to bind up the broken…
- Jeremiah 43:11 (v9) He will come, and will strike the land of Egypt; such as are for death will be put to death, and such as are for captivity to captivity,…
- Lamentations 3:25-26 (v11) Yahweh is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that a man should hope and quietly wait for the salvation…
- Hosea 1:9 (v10) He said, “Call his name Lo-Ammi; for you are not my people, and I will not be yours.
- Hosea 5:7 (v8) They are unfaithful to Yahweh; for they have borne illegitimate children. Now the new moon will devour them with their fields.
- Zechariah 11:10-11 (v7) I took my staff Favor, and cut it apart, that I might break my covenant that I had made with all the peoples. It was broken in that day;…
- Matthew 13:10-11 (v9) The disciples came, and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” He answered them, “To you it is given to know the mysteries of…
- Luke 19:14 (v8) But his citizens hated him, and sent an envoy after him, saying, ‘We don’t want this man to reign over us.’
- Luke 21:32 (v10) Most certainly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things are accomplished.
- John 13:2 (v12) During supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him,
- John 15:23-25 (v8) He who hates me, hates my Father also. If I hadn’t done among them the works which no one else did, they wouldn’t have had sin. But now…
- Acts 6:13-14 (v10) and set up false witnesses who said, “This man never stops speaking blasphemous words against this holy place and the law. For we have…
- Romans 9:3-5 (v10) For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brothers’ sake, my relatives according to the flesh who are Israelites;…
- Ephesians 2:13-16 (v7) But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off are made near in the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who made both one, and broke…
- James 2:5-6 (v11) Listen, my beloved brothers. Didn’t God choose those who are poor in this world to be rich in faith, and heirs of the Kingdom which he…
- James 3:16 (v14) For where jealousy and selfish ambition are, there is confusion and every evil deed.
- Revelation 22:11 (v9) He who acts unjustly, let him act unjustly still. He who is filthy, let him be filthy still. He who is righteous, let him do righteousness…
- Leviticus 26:11 (v8) I will set my tent among you, and my soul won’t abhor you.
- Leviticus 26:30 (v8) I will destroy your high places, and cut down your incense altars, and cast your dead bodies upon the bodies of your idols; and my soul…
- Leviticus 26:38-46 (v11) You will perish among the nations. The land of your enemies will eat you up. Those of you who are left will pine away in their iniquity in…
- Leviticus 26:44 (v8) Yet for all that, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not reject them, neither will I abhor them, to destroy them utterly…
- Leviticus 27:32 (v7) All the tithe of the herds or the flocks, whatever passes under the rod, the tenth shall be holy to Yahweh.
- Numbers 14:34 (v10) After the number of the days in which you spied out the land, even forty days, for every day a year, you will bear your iniquities, even…
- Deuteronomy 28:49-68 (v11) Yahweh will bring a nation against you from far, from the end of the earth, as the eagle flies: a nation whose language you will not…
- Deuteronomy 28:53-56 (v9) You will eat the fruit of your own body, the flesh of your sons and of your daughters, whom Yahweh your God has given you, in the siege and…
- Deuteronomy 31:21 (v11) It will happen, when many evils and troubles have come on them, that this song will testify before them as a witness; for it will not be…
- Deuteronomy 31:29 (v11) For I know that after my death you will utterly corrupt yourselves, and turn away from the way which I have commanded you; and evil will…
- Deuteronomy 32:19 (v8) Yahweh saw and abhorred, because of the provocation of his sons and his daughters.
- Deuteronomy 32:21-42 (v11) They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God. They have provoked me to anger with their vanities. I will move them to jealousy…
- 1 Samuel 17:40 (v7) He took his staff in his hand, and chose for himself five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag…
- 1 Samuel 17:43 (v7) The Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” The Philistine cursed David by his gods.
- Psalms 50:2 (v10) Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines out.
- Psalms 69:22-28 (v9) Let their table before them become a snare. May it become a retribution and a trap. Let their eyes be darkened, so that they can’t see. Let…
- Psalms 69:33 (v11) For Yahweh hears the needy, and doesn’t despise his captive people.
- Psalms 72:12-14 (v11) For he will deliver the needy when he cries; the poor, who has no helper. He will have pity on the poor and needy. He will save the souls…
- Psalms 106:40 (v8) Therefore Yahweh burned with anger against his people. He abhorred his inheritance.
- Psalms 133:1-3 (v7) See how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to live together in unity! It is like the precious oil on the head, that ran down on the…
- Isaiah 8:17 (v11) I will wait for Yahweh, who hides his face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for him.
- Isaiah 9:19-21 (v9) Through Yahweh of Armies’ wrath, the land is burned up; and the people are the fuel for the fire. No one spares his brother. One will…
- Isaiah 11:13 (v14) The envy also of Ephraim will depart, and those who persecute Judah will be cut off. Ephraim won’t envy Judah, and Judah won’t persecute…
- Isaiah 14:32 (v11) What will they answer the messengers of the nation? That Yahweh has founded Zion, and in her the afflicted of his people will take refuge.
- Isaiah 26:8-9 (v11) Yes, in the way of your judgments, Yahweh, we have waited for you. Your name and your renown are the desire of our soul. With my soul I…
- Isaiah 53:2-3 (v13) For he grew up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of dry ground. He has no good looks or majesty. When we see him, there is no…
- Jeremiah 5:4-5 (v7) Then I said, “Surely these are poor. They are foolish; for they don’t know the Yahweh’s way, nor the law of their God. I will go to the…
- Jeremiah 12:8 (v8) My heritage has become to me as a lion in the forest. She has uttered her voice against me. Therefore I have hated her.
- Jeremiah 15:2-3 (v9) It will happen, when they ask you, ‘Where shall we go out?’ then you shall tell them, ‘Yahweh says: “Such as are for death, to death; such…
- Jeremiah 19:9 (v9) I will cause them to eat the flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters. They will each eat the flesh of his friend in the siege…
- Jeremiah 23:33 (v9) “When this people, or the prophet, or a priest, asks you, saying, ‘What is the message from Yahweh?’ Then you shall tell them, ‘ “What…
- Jeremiah 23:39 (v9) therefore, behold, I will utterly forget you, and I will cast you off, and the city that I gave to you and to your fathers, away from my…
- Ezekiel 5:10 (v9) Therefore the fathers will eat the sons within you, and the sons will eat their fathers. I will execute judgments on you; and I will…
- Ezekiel 7:20-22 (v10) As for the beauty of his ornament, he set it in majesty; but they made the images of their abominations and their detestable things…
- Ezekiel 16:59-61 (v10) “ ‘For the Lord Yahweh says: “I will also deal with you as you have done, who have despised the oath in breaking the covenant. Nevertheless…
- Ezekiel 24:21 (v10) ‘Speak to the house of Israel, “The Lord Yahweh says: ‘Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the pride of your power, the desire of your…
- Ezekiel 37:16-20 (v14) “You, son of man, take one stick, and write on it, ‘For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions.’ Then take another stick, and…
- Daniel 9:26 (v10) After the sixty-two weeks the Anointed One will be cut off, and will have nothing. The people of the prince who come will destroy the city…
- Hosea 9:15 (v8) “All their wickedness is in Gilgal; for there I hated them. Because of the wickedness of their deeds I will drive them out of my house! I…
- Micah 7:7 (v11) But as for me, I will look to Yahweh. I will wait for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me.
- Zechariah 11:6-7 (v11) For I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land,” says Yahweh; “but, behold, I will deliver the men everyone into his neighbor’s hand,…
- Zechariah 11:9 (v14) Then I said, “I will not feed you. That which dies, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let those who are…
- Zechariah 13:8-9 (v7) It shall happen that in all the land,” says Yahweh, “two parts in it will be cut off and die; but the third will be left in it. I will…
- Matthew 11:5 (v7) the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news…
- Matthew 15:14 (v9) Leave them alone. They are blind guides of the blind. If the blind guide the blind, both will fall into a pit.”
- Matthew 21:19 (v9) Seeing a fig tree by the road, he came to it, and found nothing on it but leaves. He said to it, “Let there be no fruit from you forever!”…
- Matthew 21:43 (v9) “Therefore I tell you, God’s Kingdom will be taken away from you, and will be given to a nation producing its fruit.
- Matthew 23:38-39 (v9) Behold, your house is left to you desolate. For I tell you, you will not see me from now on, until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the…
- Matthew 24:10 (v14) Then many will stumble, and will deliver up one another, and will hate one another.
- Matthew 24:50-51 (v8) the lord of that servant will come in a day when he doesn’t expect it, and in an hour when he doesn’t know it, and will cut him in pieces,…
- Mark 12:37 (v7) Therefore David himself calls him Lord, so how can he be his son?” The common people heard him gladly.
- Luke 2:25 (v11) Behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel, and…
- Luke 2:38 (v11) Coming up at that very hour, she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of him to all those who were looking for redemption in Jerusalem.
100 distinct cross-references across this passage (130 total citations).
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv7–14 He resumes here the thread of the discourse, which…
He resumes here the thread of the discourse, which he had shortly before broken off; for he sets forth what had not yet been sufficiently expressed — that the ingratitude of the people, with which obstinacy was especially united, deserved entire ruin, and that now there was no hope of pardon; for the paternal care of God had been most basely and most shamefully repudiated, as well as the kind favor which he had manifested to the people.
God then complains that he fed the flock. Some apply this to Zechariah; but, as I have said, God relates the acts of kindness which he had uniformly showed to the people, until they became wholly unworthy of his favor. Let us however remember that the Prophet speaks of the remnant; for he does not here recount the benefits of God in ancient times, but describes the state of the people after their return from their exile in Babylon. God seemed before to have committed this office to Zechariah — to feed them; but as I have already said, the design of that was no other than to make it evident that the whole fault was in the people; for they had thrust from them the kindness of God, and in a manner carried on war frowardly with God, so as to prevent any access for his favor. There is therefore here an expostulation in God’s name.
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I have fed, he says, the flock of slaughter, even the poor of the flock. Some render לכן, on account of; but it may be taken in an explanatory sense: or we may give this rendering — “therefore the poor,” or, especially the poor. With regard to the meaning, God here intimates that he had manifested his care for the whole people, for he had hoped that there were a few sheep yet remaining worthy of having mercy shown to them. As then some poor sheep might have been found among the impure flock, God says, that having this hope, he did not deem it grievous or burdensome to undertake the office of a shepherd in ruling the people. I have then fed the flock of slaughter, even for this reason, he says, because there were some miserable sheep among them: I was therefore unwilling to forsake them, and preferred to try all means rather than to cast away even one little sheep, provided a single one were found in the whole flock.
He says that he took two rods, that he called one נעם, nom, “Beauty,” and that he called the other חבלים, chebelim, “Cords,” rendered “destroyers” by those who adhere to the Hebrew points; but as חבל, both in the singular and plural, has the meaning of a rope or cord, the Prophet, I have no doubt, means by חבלים, chebelim, ropes or bindings. Grammar, indeed, does not allow this; but Zechariah did not set down the points, for they were not then in use. I indeed know with how much care the old scribes contrived the points, when the language had already ceased to be in common use. They then who neglect, or wholly reject the points, are certainly void of all judgment and reason; but yet some discrimination ought to be exercised; for if we read here “destroyers,” there is no meaning; if we read “cords,” there is no letter changed, but only two points are altered. As then the subject itself necessarily demands this meaning, I wonder that interpreters suffer themselves to be servilely constrained, so as not to regard the design of the Prophet.
The Prophet then says, that he had taken two rods, that he might devote himself in a manner not common to the office of a shepherd. Shepherds were satisfied with one crook; for by rods he means here the crook used by shepherds. As then every shepherd carried his own crook, the Prophet says here that he was furnished with two crooks, or pastoral staffs, because the Lord surpassed all men in his solicitude in the office of ruling his people. But the remainder I must defer until tomorrow.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv7, 8, 11, 12, 13 God showeth his great benefits toward his people to…
God showeth his great benefits toward his people to convince them of greater ingratitude, which would neither be ruled by his most beautiful order of government, neither continue in the bands of brotherly unity, and therefore he breaketh both the one and the other. Some read, for Bands, Destroyers, but in verse 14 the first reading is confirmed.
That is, the small remnant, whom he thought worthy to show mercy unto.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv7–14 Zec 11:7 And I will feed the flock of…
Zec 11:7 And I will feed the flock of slaughter, [even] you, O poor of the flock. And I took unto me two staves; the one I called Beauty, and the other I called Bands; and I fed the flock.
Ver. 7. And will I feed the flock of slaughter, even you, O poor of the flock] Or, as Montanus readeth it, for you, for your sakes, O poor of the flock, i.e. O ye that are poor in spirit, pure in heart, my little flock, as our Saviour’s expression is in Luke. Even for your sakes will I yet for a time spare the reprobate goats, feeding them by my prophets, and provoking them to repentance. The word and sacraments, and all God’s common temporal favours, are, in respect of external participation, communicated to reprobates by way of concomitancy only; because they are intermixed with the elect. Thus tares, mingled among wheat, partake of the fat of the land and moisture of the manure, which was not intended for them.
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And I took unto me two staves] viz. That I might therewith do the office of a shepherd; and yet in more than an ordinary manner. For shepherds commonly carry but one staff or crook; or, at most, but a staff on their shoulders and a rod in their hands, as David shows in his pastoral, Psa 23:3. But here are two staves taken; to show, saith Calvin, that God would surpass all the care and pains of men in governing that people.
The one I called Beauty, and the other I called Bands] What these two should mean much ado is made among intrepreters. Some are for the two Covenants; others for the two Testaments; others for the order of Christ’s preaching, sweet and mild at first, terrible and full of threatenings at last, as appeareth in Mat 24:24-25. But what a wild conceit was that of Anthony, Archbishop of Florence, who understood the word of Dominic and his order; construing them thus: I, that is, God, took unto me two staves, viz. Beauty, that is, the order of Preachers, and Bands, that is, the order of Minorites, who are girt with a cord? The sounder sort of expositors make it to be a figure of the two ways which Christ useth at all times in the feeding of his Church; the one by love, guiding them by his word and Spirit; the other by severity, punishing them by the cruel hand of their enemies. See Isa 10:5. Thus Vatablus, Diodati, &c. And that this is the true sense, saith a Lapide, it appeareth: First, because this oracle of the prophet is of the time to come, and not of the time past. Secondly, the event (that best interpreter of prophecies) maketh for it. For first God’s government of the commonwealth of Israel was beautiful and gentle, in the time of the Maccabees and of Christ; and then terrible and destructory, in the time of the Romans, of Nero, Vespasian, Adrian, &c. Thirdly, because a little after the prophet saith that he brake both the staves, that is, he utterly rejected the Jews, and brought his wrath upon them to the utmost, which cannot be meant by any other time than that of Christ, and of Titus. Especially since (in the fourth place) the prophet declareth, Zec 11:13, that the staff of Beauty was broken at the death of Christ, for their unworthy selling and slaughtering of him, as if he had been some slave or base person.
And I fed the flock] q.d. I did my part by them. Thy destruction, therefore, is of thyself, O Israel. England is a mighty animal, saith a politician, which can never die except it kill itself. The same might be much more said of the Jewish commonwealth, which Josephus truly and trimly calleth a Theocratia, or a God government, for the form and first constitution of it; and Moses, in this respect, magnifieth that nation above all other, Deu 4:6-7.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv7–14 And, or But, as the Hebrew particle is sometimes…
And, or But, as the Hebrew particle is sometimes read: As for the greatest part, they are so corrupt and obstinately disobedient, I will cast them off;
but I will feed, & c. O therefore, so then, because it is the will of God that the flock of slaughter should. be fed, I will feed, &c.: the French version seems this way inclined. Je me suis done mis a paitre les brebis exposes tuerie: I am sent then to feed the sheep that are exposed to slaughter.
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The flock of slaughter; either by the violence of their enemies, or by the monstrous negligence of their shepherds.
O poor of the flock: this is explicatory of the former, and by the ingemination of it shows us that God doth in his charge to the prophet typically, and in his charge to Christ antitype, distinguish clearly between people and people among the Jews, between those that were poor and forlorn, and those that were tyrannical, proud, cruel, and made a prey of them; these are left out of the pastoral charge, the other are taken care of.
I took unto me two staves: thus he enters on the actual exercise of his office, and takes two staves to himself, at the meaning whereof we can but guess. Two, say some, to signify the twofold way of Christ’s governing his people, by lenity and severity. Or, say others, to note his singular care and diligence in his office; when other shepherds content themselves with one, Christ takes two. Or what if hereby Christ would be provided with one to guide the flock, with another to repel such as would slaughter them, to protect against violence and to direct such as are meek. Christ hath his golden sceptre for his loyal and obedient subjects, and his iron rod for refractory rebels and violent enemies.
The one I called Beauty; or pleasantness, sweetness, and loveliness; this lay in the holiness of his precepts, the excellency of his comforts, the glory of his reward. This is the first, and answers to the character of the ways of wisdom, Pro 3:17; they are pleasantness. The ordinances of God, and the enjoyment of them, are the beauty of the Lord, and our beholding it, as David, Psa 27:4.
The other I called Bands; either alluding to the lines wherewith the portion of the Holy Land was meted out to every one according to their lot; or referring to the obligations Christ lays on men to hold together in peace and unity. The beauty of grace and glory, the bands of love and peace.
And I fed the flock; with these in hand the shepherd undertakes to feed and rule this flock.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv7–14 And I will feed the flock of slaughter,.... According…
And I will feed the flock of slaughter,.... According to the call and commission he had from his divine Father, Zac 11:4 he determines to do as it was enjoined him, and as he had undertook:
even you, O poor of the flock; besides the people of the Jews in general, to whom Christ was sent, and he came to feed, there were a small remnant, according to the election of grace, he had a special regard for; and whom he fed by the word and ordinances with himself, the bread of life; and with the discoveries of his love, and with the covenant of grace, its blessings and promises, the sure mercies of David. These are called "the poor of the flock", because they were the poor of this world, as were the disciples and followers of Christ; "the poor have the Gospel preached unto them"; Mat 11:5 and because they were spiritually poor, or poor in spirit, Mat 5:3 who saw their spiritual poverty, and owned it; who bewailed it, and were humbled under a sense of it; and sought after the true riches; and acknowledged that all they had were owing to the grace of God: and who, as to the frame of their mind, are the meek and humble ones; or, as to their outward state and condition, afflicted ones, as the word (y) may be rendered; who were persecuted, reviled, reproached, and accursed by others, Joh 7:49 and, as to their gifts and graces, the meanest of God's people:
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And I took unto me two staves; the one I called Beauty, and the other I called Bands; Jarchi, agreeably to the Targum, interprets this of the division of the kingdom of Israel into two parts, in the times of Rehoboam and Jeroboam. Some think persons are meant. In the Talmud (z) it is explained of the disciples of the wise men in the land of Israel, who make each other pleasant by their doctrines; and of the disciples of the wise men in Babylon that corrupt one another, or object to one another: according to Aben Ezra, Zerubbabel and Nehemiah are intended: others, the good king Josiah, and the bad king Zedekiah: others the priest, and the king, as Abendana observes; and Kimchi explains it of the different manner in which the Lord led the people, according to their behaviour to him; when they behaved well, they had good kings and governors, which led them in a right way, and they were filled with good things; but when they behaved otherwise they had evil kings, and evil befell them. The first of these staves some render "clemency" (a) lenity, kindness, gentleness; and suppose it has respect to the kind and gentle manner in which God dealt with the Jews before the times of Christ, both as to civil and religious things; as to civil things, by bringing them into and settling them in a pleasant land, a land flowing with milk and honey; by giving them wholesome laws, by which they were governed, such as no other nation had; and by setting over them judges, to protect, defend, and deliver them; and kings to rule over them, very wise and good, especially some of them, David, Solomon, &c.: and as to religious things, by giving them a revelation of his mind and will, his word, statutes, and judgments, he did not give to other nations; and by sending prophets to instruct them in them, and stir them up to the observance of them; and by appointing a place of worship, and settling the form of it; setting apart men to the office of priests, and ordering sacrifices to be offered, with the whole of temple service; which were the beauty of the Lord, to be beheld in his sanctuary: and then the latter, called "Bands", which some render destroyers (b), may denote either the destruction of this people, when they sinned against God, either by the Chaldeans or by the Romans; when severity was exercised on them, and wrath came upon them to the uttermost, in the ruin of their nation, city, and temple: and others think these may refer to the different usage of the Roman emperors, with respect to the Jews, who, for the most part, used them kindly, until the times of Nero; but afterwards, by him and other emperors, they were treated very roughly, until they were utterly destroyed by them; but as it plainly appears from the context that this is spoken of no other shepherd but Christ, and of no other feeding but his, they must design the instruments he makes use of, and still continues to make use of, in feeding his people. Shepherds commonly have but one staff, rod, or crook; but Christ has two: so the psalmist makes mention of a "rod" and "staff", when speaking of Christ as a Shepherd, Psa 23:4 and these two staves some interpret of his twofold way of government, lenity to his people, and severity to his enemies; but rather it denotes the very great diligence and care Christ takes of his flock, both in guiding and directing them, and in protecting and defending them from their enemies: he fed his people in his own person when here on earth, with his staff "Beauty", or "clemency"; he was sent, and came to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, and had great compassion on them, as being like sheep without a shepherd; their present shepherds, or who bore that name, being such as are before described: and his tenderness and gentleness towards them appeared in his calling sinners to repentance; in his gracious invitations to come unto him; by his kind reception of them; his affable and courteous deportment towards them; the gentle reproofs and suitable instructions he gave them, and the comfortable truths of the Gospel he delivered to them; and, during his personal ministry, he suffered his disciples to go nowhere else with his Gospel; and, at his resurrection from the dead, ordered them to begin preaching at Jerusalem, and to continue preaching to the Jews first everywhere, as they did, until they rejected the Gospel; and then Christ broke both his staves, or removed the Gospel, and the ordinances of it, which I think are meant by these staves: for these staves are not only ensigns of the shepherd, as instruments of guiding, directing, and protecting the flock; but emblematical, as their names show; and emblems they might be of the stay and staff of food, of the whole stay of bread, and the whole stay of water, Isa 3:1 and we find that Christ's rod and staff, in a mystical sense, are of use to feed, refresh, and comfort, as well as to guide and direct, Psa 23:4 by the staff "Beauty" we are to understand the Gospel, which was preached to the Jews before the destruction of Jerusalem, which is beautiful and pleasant in itself; the doctrines of it are so, such as those of peace, pardon, righteousness, and salvation by Christ; and such are the promises of it, being absolute and unconditional, sure and suitable to the cases of God's people, and likewise its ministers, Isa 52:7 and the ordinances of it comely and lovely; and besides, it sets forth the beauty of Christ, and represents the saints' beautifulness in him; and it is like the shepherd's staff; of great use in feeding the flock, not only by supplying with food, being food itself, milk for babes, and meat for strong men; and by directing to Christ, his covenant and church, where it is to be had; but by setting right such who are going in wrong pastures; pushing forward such as are backward to duty; fetching back such as are driven away, or backslidden, and preserving the whole from wolves and bears: and by the other staff, "Bands", the ordinances of the Gospel are designed, which are of use to keep the saints together, and to direct them to proper food; particularly the ordinance of the Lord's supper, which, as it is a feeding ordinance, and sets forth Christ, as food for faith, his flesh which is meat indeed, and his blood which is drink indeed; so it is a knitting and uniting ordinance, and is fitly expressed by "bands"; is not only a means of knitting the affections to Christ, whose love is so fully expressed in it; but of uniting the hearts of believers to one another, who herein become one bread, and one body, and feed together; and have communion with each other, and maintain their church state in a comfortable manner; and keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace; and the ordinances of the Gospel, though they are such bonds as are disagreeable to graceless persons, who are for breaking them asunder; yet they are a yoke that is easy, and a burden light to the people of God, Psa 2:3. It may be observed, that the word for "bands" is rendered "pilots", Eze 27:8 and masters or governors of ships, Jon 1:6 and is so rendered here (c); and as churches may be compared to ships, Rev 8:9 so may ministers of the word to those who have the government and direction of them; and whose business lies in the ministration of the word, and the administration of ordinances, and taking care of the discipline of the Gospel: this seems to be the evangelic sense of these words; and they express the manner in which Christ fed his own dear people in Judea, partly by his own ministry, and partly by the ministry of his apostles, while he had an interest there, until the sins of that nation brought utter ruin upon them. It is a most ridiculous application made of these two staves by Antoninus, archbishop of Florence (d), that Zechariah, being of the Dominican order, took to him in the person of God two staves; the one he called "Beauty", which is the order of the preaching Friars; and the other "Bands", which is the order of the Minors:
and I fed the flock; with the said staves, as he had determined; which includes the doing of the whole office of a shepherd; taking an exact account of his sheep, that none be lost; going before them, and setting them an example in the exercise of grace and discharge of duty; leading them to the still waters of his Father's love; to the fountains and fulness of his own grace; to the rich provisions of his house, and the green pastures of Gospel ordinances; feeding them himself, and with himself, the bread of life, the hidden and heavenly manna; appointing shepherds under him, whom he qualifies to be pastors, gives them to his churches as such, and who receive from him the doctrines of the Gospel to feed them with; and protecting them from all their enemies, the roaring lion, Satan, wolves in sheep's clothing, false teachers, and the world's goats, who thrust with side and shoulder, and push with their horns of power; as well as by seeking that which is lost; bringing back that which is driven, or drawn away; binding up that which is broken; strengthening the weak; healing the sick; and watching over the whole flock night and day, lest any hurt them.
(y) "mites de grege", Grotius; "afflictos pecoris", Montanus; "afflictos gregis", Burkius. (z) T. Bab. Sanhedrin, fol. 24. 1. (a) "clementia", Cocceius. (b) "perditores", Munster; "destructores", Vatablus; "perdentes", Burkius. (c) "Nautae, vel gubernatores", Cocceius. (d) Apud Quistorpium in loc.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 Bands - The beauty of grace and glory, the…
Bands - The beauty of grace and glory, the bands of love and peace.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv7–14 Verse 7. And I wilt feed the flock of…
Verse 7. And I wilt feed the flock of slaughter] I showed them what God had revealed to me relative to the evils coming upon the land; and I did this the more especially for the sake of the poor of the flock.
Two staves] Two shepherd's crooks. One I called Beauty-that probably by which they marked the sheep; dipping the end into vermillion, or some red liquid. And this was done when they were to mark every tenth sheep, as it came out of the field, when the tithe was to be set apart for the Lord.
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The other I called Bands] Probably that with the hook or crook at the head of it, by which the shepherd was wont to catch the sheep by the horns or legs when he wished to bring any to hand.
And I fed the flock.] These two rods show the beauty and union of the people, while under God as their Shepherd. It was the delight of God to see them in a state of peace and harmony.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 14 Zec 11:7. And — Or rather, but, I will…
Zec 11:7. And — Or rather, but, I will feed the flock of slaughter, even you — Or, especially you, O poor of the flock — Zechariah here, representing Christ the true shepherd, says, he will enter upon his office, and undertake the care of the flock appointed for the slaughter; even you, O poor of the flock — This clause is explicatory of the former, and by the repetition of it we are shown, that God, in his charge to the prophet, as a type of Christ, and to Christ the antitype, distinguishes clearly between different sorts of people among the Jews; between those that were poor, despised, weak, and humble, and those that were tyrannical, proud, and cruel, and made a prey of their inferiors: these were left out of the pastoral charge; the others were to be taken care of. And I took unto me two staves — These were the proper accoutrements of a shepherd, and these the prophet assumed as a badge of his office, and gave them significant names, which are partly explained, Zec 11:10-14. “The shepherds of old time,” says Lowth, “had two rods, or staves, one turned round at the top, that it might not hurt the sheep: this was for counting them, and separating the sound from the diseased, Lev 27:32; the other had an iron hook at the end of it, to pull in and hold the straying sheep. The psalmist mentions both these, Psa 23:4, Thy rod and thy staff comfort me.” The one I called Beauty — Or, pleasantness, or, delight, as the word נועםmay be rendered, signifying, says Lowth, his favour, gentleness, or kindness toward his people; which was remarkably verified in Christ, whose gracious words, and beneficial works, were conspicuous through the whole course of his life. The other I called Bands — Which the same author interprets of the bond of the new covenant, whereby he intended to unite both the kingdoms of Israel and Judah under himself, as their head and king, Eze 37:22; and then afterward to unite the Jews and the Gentiles into one church, by breaking down the partition wall that was between them. Newcome considers the former, Beauty, as intended to “denote how beautiful and pleasant the land would have been, if its inhabitants had kept their covenant with God.” The other, Bands, “ as signifying the union which ought to have subsisted between Judah and Israel.” Mr. Scott explains “the former word of the honour, privilege, and ornament which the Jews possessed, according to their national covenant, in the oracles, instituted worship, and temple of God; and especially by the ministry of Christ and his apostles, who preached the gospel to them first.” The other, he thinks, means, “the connection of the nation under one government, and the harmony that had, in some measure, hitherto united them, as the flock of God.” Many other interpretations are given of these two names, but as they all are, and must be, in a great measure, founded on conjecture, the reader is not here troubled with them.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv7–14 The prophetic narrative which follows, differs in its form,…
The prophetic narrative which follows, differs in its form, in some respects, from the symbolical actions of the prophets and from Zechariah’s own visions. The symbolical actions of the prophets are actions of their own: this involves acts, which it would be impossible to represent, except as a sort of drama. Such are the very central points, the feeding of the flock, which are still intelligent people who understand God’s doings: the cutting off of the three shepherds; the asking for the price; the unworthy price offered; the casting it aside. It differs from Zechariah’s own visions, in that they are for the most part exhibited to the eye, and Zechariah’s own part is simply to enquire their meaning and to learn it, and to receive further revelation. In one case only, he himself interposes in the action of the vision Zec 3:1-10 :15; but this too, as asking that it might be done, not, as himself doing it. Here, he is himself the actor, yet as representing Another, who alone could cut off shepherds, abandon the people to mutual destruction, annulling the covenant which He had made. Maimonides, then, seems to say rightly; : “This, “I fed the flock of the slaughter,” to the end of the narrative, where he is said to have asked for his hire, to have received it, and to have cast it into the temple, to the treasurer, all this Zechariah saw in prophetic vision. For the command which he received, and the act which he is said to have done, took place in prophetic vision or dream.” “This,” he adds, “is beyond controversy, as all know, who are able to distinguish the possible from the impossible.”
Osorius: “The actions, presented to the prophets are not always to be understood as actions but as predictions. As when God commands Isaiah, to make the heart of the people dull Isa 6:10 that is, to denounce to the people their future blindness, through which they would, with obstinate mind, reject the mercies of Christ. Or when He says, that He appointed Jeremiah Jer 1:10 to destroy and to build; to root out and to plant. Or when He commanded the same prophet to cause the nations to drink the cup, whereby they should be bereft of their senses (Jer 25:15 ff), Jeremiah did nothing of all this, but asserted that it would be. So here.”
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And I will feed the flock of the slaughter - Rather And (our, so) “I fed.” The prophet declares, in the name of our Lord, that He did what the Father commanded Him. He fed the flock, committed to His care by the Father, who, through their own obstinacy, became “the flock of slaughter.” What could be done, He did for them; so that all might see that they perished by their own fault. The symbol of our Lord, as the Good Shepherd, had been made prominent by Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel, “Behold the Lord will come, as a Mighty One - He shall feed His flock like a shepherd: He shall gather the lambs with His arm and carry them in His bosom: He shall gently lead those that are with young” Isa 40:10-11. And Jeremiah, having declared God’s judgments on the then shepherds Jer 23:2, “I will gather the remnant of My flock out of all countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their fold; and they shall be fruitful and increase. And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them. Behold the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a king shall reign and prosper - and this is the name whereby He shall be called, the Lord our Righteousness” Jer 23:3-6. And Ezekiel with the like context Ezek. 34:1-21; “Therefore will I save My flock and they shall be no more a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle. And I will set One Shepherd over them, and He shall feed them: My servant David, He shall feed them; and He shall be their Shepherd” Eze 34:22-23; and, uniting both offices, “David, My servant, shall be king over them, and they shall all have One Shepherd” Eze 37:24. It was apparent then beforehand, who this Shepherd was to be, to whom God gave the feeding of the flock.
“Even ‘you,’ or ‘for you, ye poor of the flock;’ or, ‘therefore,’ being thus commanded, (fed I) the poor of the flock”. The whole flock was committed to Him to feed. He had to seek out all “the lost sheep of the house of Israel” Mat 10:6; Mat 15:24. Dionysius: “He fed, for the time, the Jews destined to death, until their time should come;” the fruit of His labor was in the “little flock” Luk 12:32, “the faithful Jews who believed in Him, out of the people of the flock aforesaid, or the synagogue, who in the primitive Church despised all earthly things, leading a most pure life.” So He says, “I will feed My flock and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord God: I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong, I will feed them with judgment” Eze 34:15-16.
The elect are the end of all God’s dispensations. He fed all; yet the fruit of His feeding, His toils, His death, the travail of His soul, was in those only who are saved. So Paul says, “Therefore I endure all things for the elect’s sakes, that they may also obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory” 2Ti 2:10. He fed all; but the “poor of the flock” alone, those who were despised of men, because they would not follow the pride of the high priests and scribes and Pharisees, believed on Him, as they themselves say, “Have any of the rulers or the Pharisees believed on Him?” Joh 12:48, and Paul says, “Not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called; but God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things that are mighty; and base things of the world, and things despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are” 1Co 1:26-28.
And I took unto Me two - (shepherd’s) staves as David says, “Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me” Psa 23:4. “The one I called Beauty or Loveliness” , as the Psalmist longs to “behold the beauty or loveliness” of God in His temple Psa 27:4, and says; let “the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us” Psa 90:17.
And the other I called Bands - Literally, “Binders” . The one staff represents the full favor and loving-kindness of God; when this was broken, there yet remained the other, by which they were held together as a people in covenant with God. “And I fed the flock.” This was the use of his staves; He tended them with both, ever putting in exercise toward them the loving beauty and grace of God, and binding them together and with Himself.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv7–14 For this. Christ came to feed his flock. (Calmet)…
For this. Christ came to feed his flock. (Calmet) --- But the Jews would not receive him. (Haydock) --- Septuagint read (Calmet) locnani, as [in] ver. 11, "of slaughter into Chanaan, and I," &c. (Haydock) --- Two rods, or shepherds’ staves, meaning the different ways of God’s dealing with his people; the one by sweet means, called the rod of Beauty, the other by bands and punishments, called the Cord. And where both these rods are made of no use or effect by the obstinacy of sinners, the rods are broken, and such sinners are given up to a reprobate sense, as the Jews were. (Challoner) --- The first denotes God’s general providence, as it is most seemly that all should be under him; the second means his particular care of the Jews. (Worthington) --- God uses both the crook and the whip, employing both severity and tenderness. Now all proves in vain.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv7–14 And--rather, "Accordingly": implying the motive cause which led Messiah…
And--rather, "Accordingly": implying the motive cause which led Messiah to assume the office, namely, the will of the Father (Zac 11:4-5), who pitied the sheep without any true shepherd.
I will feed--"I fed" [CALVIN], which comes to the same thing, as the past tense must in Zechariah's time have referred to the event of Messiah's advent then future: the prophets often speaking of the future in vision as already present. It was not My fault, Jehovah implies, that these sheep were not fed; the fault rests solely with you, because ye rejected the grace of God [CALVIN].
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even you, O poor of the flock--rather, "in order that (I might feed, that is, save) the poor (humble; compare Zac 11:11; Zep 3:12; Mat 5:3) of the flock"; literally, not you, but, "therefore (I will feed)" [MOORE]. See Margin, "Verily the poor." It is for the sake of the believing remnant that Messiah took charge of the flock, though He would have saved all, if they would have come to Him. They would not come; therefore, as a nation, they are "the flock of (that is, doomed to) slaughter."
I took . . . two staves--that is, shepherds' staves or rods (Psa 23:4). Symbolizing His assumption of the pastor's office.
Beauty--The Jews' peculiar excellency above other nations (Deu 4:7), God's special manifestation to them (Psa 147:19-20), the glory of the temple ("the beauty of holiness," Psa 29:2; compare Psa 27:4; Psa 90:17; Ch2 20:21), the "pleasantness" of their land (Gen 49:15; Dan 8:9; Dan 11:16), "the glorious land."
Bands--implying the bond of "brotherhood" between Judah and Israel. "Bands," in Psa 119:61, Margin, is used for confederate companies: The Easterns in making a confederacy often tie a cord or band as a symbol of it, and untie it when they dissolve the confederacy [LUDOVICUS DE DIEU]. Messiah would have joined Judah and Israel in the bonds of a common faith and common laws (Zac 11:14), but they would not; therefore in just retribution He broke "His covenant which He had made with all the people." Alexander, Antiochus Epiphanes, and Pompey were all kept from marring utterly the distinctive "beauty" and "brotherhood" of Judah and Israel, which subsisted more or less so long as the temple stood. But when Jehovah brake the staves, not even Titus could save the temple from his own Roman soldiery, nor was Jurian able to restore it.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv7–9 The people’s lack of appreciation, Zec_11:7-8.
The people’s lack of appreciation, Zec_11:7-8.
The newly appointed shepherd enters upon his tasks with great expectation, but, alas! he is sorely disappointed.
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7. Even you, O poor of the flock — R.V., “verily the poor of the flock”; margin, “the most miserable of sheep.” The word translated even you or verily means ordinarily therefore, which gives no sense here. LXX. combines it with the next word into one and reads, “for the Canaanites of the flock”=for the traffickers of the flock (see on Hos_12:7), which would be a reference to the buyers and sellers of Zec_11:5. The divinely appointed shepherd enters upon his tasks with the determination to displace these buyers and sellers who have cruelly abused the flock. LXX.
is probably to be preferred. The means with which the shepherd intended to accomplish his ends are indicated by the two staves which are selected.
Beauty — Margin R.V., “Graciousness.” The staff symbolizes the return of the divine favor to the people. The shepherd meant to emphasize constantly the truth that, in spite of the present suffering, Jehovah is gracious to his people and is ready to shower upon them his blessing, if they will let him.
Bands — Or, union. Zec_11:14 places it beyond doubt that the prophet is thinking of the reunion between the north and south. The promise of such reunion would be an earnest of strength and victory.
Evidently he considers the two staves sufficient to put new life and courage into the ill-treated flock.
I fed — See on Zec_11:4, and reference there.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 7. And I will feed] Rather, So I fed,…
7. And I will feed] Rather, So I fed, in accordance with the command given me in Zec_11:4. Comp. “and I fed,” at the end of this verse.
even you] or, therefore: i.e. “So I fed the flock of slaughter: therefore (because I had been commanded to do so, fed I) the poor of the flock.” R. V. adopts A. V. margin: verily the poor of the flock.
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two staves] two, instead of one as on becoming shepherd he would naturally have done, to denote, as the names given them imply, that his twofold aim in discharging his office would be to ensure the comeliness and the unity of the flock. The latter name, “Bands,” refers specially to the union between Judah and Israel.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14 (7) Will feed.—Correctly, fed. The prophet, acting as God’s…
(7) Will feed.—Correctly, fed. The prophet, acting as God’s representative, performs a symbolical action, figuring thereby God’s treatment of His people.
Beauty.—Or, rather, favour.
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Bands.—Or, as in margin, binders. The first staff denotes the return of God’s favour to His people; the second (comp. Eze_37:16-22) the binding together of Judah and Ephraim in “brotherhood,” which latter took place, for the first time since the separation, on the return from Babylon. When He took His flock into favour once more, “He made with them a covenant of peace . . . so that they should no more be a prey to the heathen.” (See Eze_34:25-28.)
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv7–14 And I will feed. Thus the Greek and Latin…
And I will feed. Thus the Greek and Latin Versions; but it should be, So I fed. It is the account of what the prophet did in accordance with the command in ver. 4 (see the end of this verse, "and I fed"). Even you, O poor of the flock. There is difficulty about the word rendered "you" (lachen) which may be the personal pronoun, or an adverb meaning "therefore," "therewith," "truly," or a preposition, "on account of;" Vulgate, propter hoc. The best rendering is, I fed the flock therefore the poor among the flock. "Therefore" refers to the previous command. It is also rendered "in sooth." The LXX, arranging the letters differently, translates, Poimanw ta probata thv sfaghv eiv thtin . "I will go and tend the flock of slaughter in the land of Canaan;" some render the last words, "for the merchants." This Jerome interprets to mean that the Lord will nourish the Israelites for slaughter in the land of the Gentiles (but see note on ver. 6). And I took unto me two staves. Executing in vision his commission of feeding the flock, the prophet, as the representative of the Shepherd, took two shepherd"s staves. The two staves intimate the manifold care of God for his flock from the earliest days, and the two blessings which he designed to bestow (as the names of the staves show), favour and unity. Beauty; Kallov (Septuagint); Decorem (Vulgate); "Graciousness" (Revised Version margin). It probably means the favour and grace of God, as in Psa_90:17. Bands; literally, Those that bind; Scoinisma , "Cord;" Vulgate, Funiculum. The name is meant to express the union of all the members of the flock, especially that between Israel and Judah (see ver. 14). These make one flock under one shepherd. I fed the flock. This repetition emphasizes the beginning of the verse, and expresses God"s ears in time past and in time to come also.
Vers. 7-14. A final opportunity.
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"And I will feed the flock of slaughter," etc. Although the "flock" of Israel was ripe for "slaughter as we saw in our last there was to be, nevertheless, a certain measure of pause before that slaughter began. (comp. 1Pe_3:20) Israel should hear again, if only once more, an offer of peace. Our present very difficult passage may, perhaps, be understood as describing how such an offer was made to rebellious Israel just previously to that destruction of Jerusalem which seems predicted in the preceding verses by our Lord himself (the good Shepherd) and his apostles. Also it seems to describe to us how that final offer was met. These, accordingly, are the two points on which we would speak; viz.
(1) that momentous offer; and
(2) its momentous results.
I THE NATURE OF THIS FINAL OFFER. This Seems to be represented to us:
1. By the good Shepherd"s resolve. "I will feed the flock I will attend to them carefully; I will offer them all they require. Also:
2. By the good Shepherd"s implements. These are two, we read, called "Beauty" and "Bands," By the one we may, perhaps, understand (see Psa_90:17 Psa_27:4 Zec_9:17, supra; Isa_52:7) the abounding favour and grace and love of the message of Christ. Though he came to a "generation" altogether deserving condemnation and death, (Mat_12:34, 39 23:32, 33 Act_2:40) he came not to condemn, but to save. (Joh_3:17 Joh_12:47 Luk_9:56) By the other we may, perhaps, understand the special limitation of the personal message of Christ; (Mat_15:24) as also, in the first instance, of that of his apostles. (Mat_10:5, 6 Act_13:46) There was especial favour there was almost exclusive favor in this final offer of Christ to "his own". (Joh_1:11, second clause)
II ITS MOMENTOUS RESULTS. These appear to have been of two very different kinds.
1. In the case of the Jewish teachers and people at large they proved to be of a very painful and calamitous kind. On the one hand, these teachers and people contemptuously rejected the gracious offers of Christ. To them there was no degree whatever of "beauty," either in his character or his teaching. (see ver. 8, end; and comp. Isa 53:2Jo Isa_7:12, 13 Mat_26:66 Mat_27:63) By them, therefore, the peculiar favour he offered was utterly scorned; (Joh_19:15 Joh_18:40; and such passages Act_13:45 1Th_2:15, etc.) and he himself, in a certain most remarkable and significant manner, only estimated and valued at the price of a slave. (vers. 12, 13 Mat_26:15 Mat_27:9, 10 Exo_21:32) On the other hand, this being so, both the Saviour"s feelings and conduct towards them became changed. Instead of favour there comes" loathing" (or indignation and grief; see Mar_3:5 Luk_19:41-46); instead of a special offer of mercy, the coming down of special judgment, in a singularly rapid and terrible manner, on the highest persons or classes amongst them ("three shepherds in one month"); instead of deliverance, utter desertion (ver. 9 compared with Mat_19:7 Luk_21:22-24); and instead of the limitation of favour to them, the manifest transference of it from them to the rest of mankind. (Act_13:46 Act_18:6 Act_28:28 Rom_11:11)
2. At the same time, in the case of the less esteemed and less eminent portion of the flock of Israel, there were results of a different kind. In their case the Shepherd"s gracious offer was not only made, but also received. As he resolved ("I will feed even you, O poor of the flock") in their case, so he did. (end of ver. 7; see also Mat_11:5 Luk_4:18 Mar_12:37) In their case, again, the Shepherd"s message was duly honoured and highly prized as being indeed "the Word of the Lord". (ver 11, end; comp. Mat_16:16 Joh_6:68 Joh_16:30) Even that comparative and temporary rejection of the Jews, which we suppose to be described in vers. 8, 9, 10, and 14, contributed greatly among the "poor" of the Gentiles to their establishment in this faith. (see, again, ver. 11, and such passages as Rom_11:11, Rom_11:25, beginning of 28, 30 1Co_1:26)
From this view of the passage or, at any rate, from this review of those undoubted New Testament facts to which we have supposed it to point two concluding reflections seem to arise.
1. How obdurate is mans nature! We have become so familiar with the story of the rejection of Christ by his own people, that it does not always surprise us as it ought. Yet how exceedingly surprising it is! Greater power, greater wisdom, greater goodness, could not possibly have been combined. Should we not also have said, at first, that they could not possibly have been resisted? No wonder the apostle speaks with such evident amazement as he does in Joh 11 (supra); see also Joh_12:11, Joh_12:37.
2. How wonderful are Gods ways! The rejection of Christianity by those to whom it first came has been overruled to furnish its best evidence in the eyes of the rest of mankind. By crucifying their Messiah the Jews crowned him as ours. It reminds us of the words of the poet"From seeming evil still educing good, And better thence again, and better still, In infinite progression.
Vers. 7-14. The true Shepherd.
I GOD"S IDEA OF THE TRUE SHEPHERD. His character and service. Faithful and disinterested. Not a hireling. He is for the sheep, not the sheep for him. If his recompense left to the free will of the people, should be adequate and fair. "The workman is worthy of his hire." But the wage should be given in more than material form. Themselves. " Their trust, sympathy, prayers, and hearty cooperation in all good. "I seek not yours, but you," said Paul.
II MAN"S TREATMENT OF THE TRUE SHEPHERD.
1. Grossly unjust. Remuneration mean and paltry. Not measured by the work done, but doled out by selfish and stupid hands.
2. Basely insulting. Instead of just appreciation, mockery. Put on the level of a slave. Such remuneration worthy of scorn. Away with it.
3. Darkly menacing. Take it or leave it. Nothing to us. Starve if you will. Murder is in their hearts.
4. Reveals the baseness of the heart. Indicates great social degeneracy. Foreshadows the rejection of the Saviour. (Mat_27:9, Mat_27:10) Let us endeavour to be true to God"s idea.
"The Christian pastor, bow"d to earth With thankless toil, and vile esteem"d, Still travailing in second birth Of souls that will not be redeem"d" Yet steadfast set to do his part, And fearing most his own vain heart. (Kebla) F.
Vers. 7-10. The two staves.
Acted parable. May be taken to illustrate the two great blessings of Christ"s kingdom.
I THE FATHERHOOD OF GOD. "Beauty" may indicate the covenant of peace. God"s grace restraining, preserving, governing. Broken. " Sign of judgment and woe. "Ichabod!" But as whole, emblem of the fatherly love and care of God, and the fairness and beneficence of his vile.
II BROTHERHOOD OF MAN. National covenant. Union of Judah and Israel. One people under the rule of Jehovah. Fulfilled in part in the restoration; more perfectly, and in a spiritual sense, under the gospel of Christ. His kingdom is one. In him all the kindreds of the earth shall be blessed. F. (Gal_3:28 Eph_2:14-22)
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv8, 10 My soul lothed them, and their soul also abhorred…
Zec_11:8
My soul lothed them, and their soul also abhorred Me
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A mutual dislike between God and man
I.
This mutual moral antagonism is manifestly abnormal. It is not conceivable that the all-wise and all-loving Maker of the universe would create beings whom He would loathe and who would abhor Him. Such an idea is opposed at once to our intuitions and our conclusions. In the pristine state of humanity, God loved man, and man loved God.
II. This mutual moral antagonism implies wrong on mans part. For Infinite Purity and Righteousness to loathe the corrupt and the wrong is not only right, but a necessity of the Divine character. He abhorreth sin; it is the abominable thing which He hates. This is His glory. But for man to abhor Him, this is the great sin, the fontal sin, the source of all other sins.
III. This mutual moral antagonism explains the sin and wretchedness of the world. Why does the world abound with falsehoods, dishonesties and oppressions, unchastities, cruelties, and impieties? Because human souls are not in supreme sympathy with the supremely good, because they are at enmity with God, because God loathes sin.
IV. This mutual moral antagonism argues the necessity for a reconciliation. The great want of the world is the reconciliation of man to the character and the friendship of God. Such a reconciliation requires no change on Gods part. His loathing is the loathing of love, love loathing the wrong and the miserable. The change must be on mans part. God was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself. (Homilist.)
Divine rejection
A time comes in the history of incorrigible nations and incorrigible individuals when they are rejected of heaven.
I. The cause of this lamentable event. My soul loatheth them.
II. The result. The results here are threefold.
1. The cessation of Divine mercy. I will not feed you.
2. Abandonment to self-ruin. That that dieth, let it die; and that that is to be cut off, let it be cut off. The wages of sin is death. Sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.
3. Deliverance to mutual tormentors. And let the rest eat everyone the flesh of another. All these results were realised in a material sense in the rejection of the Jewish people. Josephus tells us that in the destruction of Jerusalem, pestilence, famine, and intestine discord ran riot amongst the God-rejected people. These material evils are but faint emblems of the spiritual evils that must be realised by every God-rejected soul.
III. The sign. And I took My staff, even Beauty, and cut it asunder, that I might break My convenant which I had made with all the people. The Divine Shepherd is represented as having two staves, or crooks; ordinary shepherds have only one. Expositors in their interpretation of these staves differ here as in most places elsewhere in this book. Some say they indicate the double care that the Divine Shepherd takes of his people; some, the different methods of treatment pursued by the Almighty Shepherd towards His people; some, that they refer to the house of of Judah and to the house of Israel, indicating that neither was to be left out in the mission of the work of the Good Shepherd; and some, that the one called Beauty--which means grace--represents the merciful dispensation, under which the Hebrew people had been placed; and the other staff called Bands, the brotherhood between Judah and Israel. One thing seems clear, that the cutting of the staff called Beauty asunder was a symbol of their rejection from all future grace and mercy. It may be stated as a general truth, that all heaven-rejected souls have signs of their miserable condition. What are the general signs?
1. Practical ignorance of God.
2. Utter subjection to the senses.
3. Complete devotion to selfish aims.
4. Insensibility of conscience. (Homilist.)
Abhorring the name of God
For the last ten years I (Gambetta) have made a pledge with myself to entirely avoid introducing the name of God into any speech of mine. You can hardly believe how difficult it has been, but I have succeeded, thank God! (Dieu merci!) Thus the name so sternly tabooed rose unconsciously to his lips at the very moment when he was congratulating himself on having overcome the habit of using it. (E. D. Pressense.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On vv7, 9, 12 Zec_11:7. I] The prophet executed the task committed to…
CRITICAL NOTES.
Zec_11:7. I] The prophet executed the task committed to him by shepherding a sad (poor) flock. Two staves] “to set forth the kind of double salvation bestowed upon the nation through the care of the Good Shepherd” [Keil]. Beauty] Loveliness or favour (Psa_27:4; Psa_90:17); which Jehovah will give them in protecting them from foes. Bands] Internal union and friendship. Easterns tied a cord or band as a symbol of confederacy (cf. Psa_119:61, marg,).
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Zec_11:8.] First act of shepherd. Cut off] Lit. cause to disappear, destroy, or annihilate (Exo_23:23). Three] orders—civil authorities, priests, and prophets (cf. Jer_2:8; Jer_2:18); others, three rulers of Asmonean line—who died by violent death in a short space of time—Hircanus, Alexander, and Antigonus. Loathed] Was straitened for them: “the Divine grief at the misery of his people” [Pusey]. Abhorred] “Nauseated me.”
HOMILETICS
THE TWO STAVES; OR BEAUTY AND BANDS.—Zec_11:7
The two staves are differently explained, indicating, according to some, the double care of Christ for his flock. Henderson takes them as symbols of “the two modes of treatment” which the Jews had experienced “under the guidance and protection of God.” Beauty has been rendered grace or favour. Taken in its connection (Zec_11:10), it means the covenant of God, with all its blessings and special favours. Bands signify unity or brotherhood, which binds men together (Zec_11:14).
I. The staff Beauty. “The one I called Beauty.” This symbolizes—
1. God’s gifts to men. The gifts of pastors, the wisdom of senators, and the power of princes come from God.
2. God’s presence with men. Purity of worship and principle in the nation—holiness in character and usefulness in the Church—are beauties which attract and adorn. The image of God, the beauties of holiness, are most desirable. “Let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us.”
3. God’s defence of men. God’s covenant was a pledge of defence to them as long as they kept it. Thus God’s favour is better than armies and fleets, wealth and valour, in the protection of a people. This alone beautifies and strengthens. “For God is my defence, and the God of my mercy.”
II. The staff Bands. “The other I called Bands.” Binders symbolize the unity or brotherhood among men.
1. This alone is the gift of God. In the gospel we have a basis of brotherhood, and motives to cement it. The bands of friendship and marriage, the contracts of business, and the treaties of nations may be broken. But in Christ we have a living, universal, and everlasting brotherhood of humanity.
2. How strong art men when thus bound together. Foes without cannot destroy unity within. “Union gives strength and firmness to the humblest aids.”
3. How weak are men when not thus bound together. Factions and civil discords in the nation, divisions in the Church, and discords in the family, will bring ruin. Nothing can beautify or defend a broken people. “Men’s hearts,” says Carlyle, “ought not to be set against one another, but set with one another, and all against the evil thing only.” If you wish to retain strength and beauty, co-operate together, in obedience to the Great Shepherd, and under the rule of Beauty and Bands. “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand.”
THE SHEPHERD PROPHET.—Zec_11:7-8
I. The charge. The command was given, “Feed the sheep” (Zec_11:4). Eagerly does the prophet undertake the duty, and become a type of Christ. “Lo, I come to do thy will, O my God.” But notice the condition of the flock.
1. A helpless flock. In the hands of cruel shepherds; bought and sold by strangers, oppressed by native rulers.
2. A miserable flock. “Poor of the flock,” lit. truly miserable sheep. Men may be poor without being miserable. But the Jewish people were reduced to a most unhappy condition. As in the days of Christ, they were harassed and worried (Mat_9:36); lost sheep (Mat_10:36). The poor are not despised, the lost are sought out, and the wounded are healed by the gospel. “I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick.”
II. The method of executing the charge. “And I fed the flock” (Zec_11:7). He performed, like Christ, the work of a good shepherd to the Jewish nation.
1. He furnished himself with staves. “I took unto me two staves.” He did all he could to bind them together in unity and obedience, and direct them to the grace and favour of God.
2. He destroyed the oppressors of the flock. “I cut off three shepherds.” “These,” says a critic, “were the persons of influence by whom the affairs of the nation were conducted, and to whose wickedness, which reached its culminating point when they crucified the Lord of glory the destruction of the state is to be ascribed.”
3. He was grieved in soul at the condition of the flock. “My soul loathed them.” He witnessed the fearful wickedness of rulers and teachers, He was deeply pained, “vexed from day to day with their unlawful deeds.” This was the feeling of Christ, and will be the feeling of all true shepherds. Sad the wickedness which creates tears of the Saviour! If “every human feeling is greater and larger than the exciting cause,” as Coleridge says, what must be the loathing of him who sees the hearts of all men! “He knew what was in man.”
HOMILETIC HINTS AND SUGGESTIONS
Zec_11:7. I fed the flock. Christ the King of men. The poor in spirit are chosen to be rich in faith, and heirs of his kingdom. “Jehovah in Christ did the work of a Good Shepherd to the Jewish nation during the whole of his earthly ministry (cf. Joh_10:11-14; Joh_14:6; Heb_13:20; 1Pe_2:25)” [Wordsworth].
Zec_11:8. My soul loathed them.
1. Divine compassion. “Loathed,” lit was straitened, the opposite of enlarged towards them, in love and tender compassion (2Co_6:11-12). “His soul was grieved (shortened) for the misery of Israel” (Jdg_10:16).
2. Human abhorrence. “Their soul also abhorred me.” “My soul did not loathe them first, but their soul first despised me, therefore my soul abhorred them.” The soul which drives away God’s good Spirit comes at last to loathe him and the thought and mention of him [Pusey]. No room was left by them for the grace of God, and his favours were rejected [Calvin]. Learn that unbelief creates a mutual distaste between God and the sinner. “Their soul nauseated me” is the real meaning—that alienation from God will lead to God’s withdrawal from men. “I will not feed them” (Zec_11:9).
3. The impenitent flock and the grieved Shepherd. God is infinitely happy and incapable of grief, yet acts as if he felt the sins and miseries of men. “The Good Shepherd lost patience with their perverse impenitence, and they, on the other hand, loathed him for his spirituality and holiness” [Lange]. Christ cannot be rejected with impunity. Even the Jews, who “did it ignorantly in unbelief,” paid a terrible penalty for their crime; how much more terrible will be the punishment of those who have all their unbelief without any of their ignorance [Id.].
ILLUSTRATIONS TO CHAPTER 11
Zec_11:7 (10 and 14). The prophetic narrative which follows differs in its form, in some respects, from the symbolic actions of the prophets, and from Zechariah’s own visions. The symbolic actions of the prophets are actions of their own: this involves acts which it would be impossible to represent, except as a sort of drama. Such are the central points, the feeding of the flock, which yet are intelligent men who understand God’s doings: the cutting off of the three shepherds; the asking for the price; the unworthy price offered; the casting it aside. It differs from Zechariah’s own visions, in that they are for the most part exhibited to the eye, and Zechariah’s own part is simply to inquire their meaning and learn it, and receive further information. Here he himself is the actor, yet representing Another, who alone could cut off shepherds, abandon the people to mutual destruction, annulling the covenant which he had made [Pusey].
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On vv7, 11 two staves
two staves
The scene belongs to the first advent. Beauty and Bands--literally "graciousness and union"; the first signifying God’s attitude toward His people Israel, in sending His Son Mat 21:37 the second, His purpose to reunite Judah and Ephraim Eze 37:15-22. Christ, at His first advent, came with grace Joh 1:17 to offer union Mat 4:17 and was sold for thirty pieces of silver Zec 11:12; Zec 11:13. "Beauty" (i.e. graciousness) was "cut in sunder" (Zec 8:10; Zec 8:11), signifying that Judah was abandoned to the destruction foretold in Zec 11:1-6 and fulfilled A.D. 70. After the betrayal of the Lord for thirty pieces of silver (Zec 11:12; Zec 11:13) "Bands" (i.e. union) was broken (Zec 11:14), signifying the abandonment, for the time, of the purpose to reunite Judah and Israel. The order of Zechariah 11. is,
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(1) the wrath against the land (Zec 11:1-6), fulfilled in the destruction of Jerusalem after the rejection of Christ Luk 19:41-44.
(2) the cause of that wrath in the sale and rejection of Christ vs. (Zec 11:7-14);
(3) the rise of the "idol shepherd," the Beast Dan 7:8; Rev 19:20 and his destruction (Zec 11:15-17).
the one
The O.T. Parables: Summary. A parable is a similitude used to teach or enforce a truth. The O.T. parables fall into three classes:
(1) The story-parable, of which Jdg 9:7-15 is an instance;
(2) parabolic discourses; e.g. Isa 5:1-7
(3) parabolic actions; e.g. Eze 37:16-22
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv7, 10, 13 for those who dealt in sheep
for those who dealt in sheep
"for those who bought and sold sheep"
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Favor
Other versions of the Bible translate this word as "grace," "beauty," or "pleasant."
I became impatient with them,
Possible meanings are 1) "them" refers to the three shepherds or 2) "them" refers to the sheep owners.
the sheep that are being destroyed—let them be destroyed
This can be stated in active form. AT: "the sheep that are perishing—let them perish" or "the sheep that are to wander and get lost—let them get lost" (See: Active or Passive)
translationWords
shepherd
flocks
slaughter
ewe
staff
favor
flesh
neighbor
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13 11:7 Shepherd’s staffs symbolize leadership and authority. • Favor:…
11:7 Shepherd’s staffs symbolize leadership and authority. • Favor: This staff symbolized God’s choice of Israel as his people (see Gen 12:1-3) and the promise of a leader like King David (see 2 Sam 7:12-16). • Union: Ezekiel’s staff (Ezek 37:16-17) represented the unity of the Hebrew tribes as a single nation during King David’s reign (2 Sam 5:1-3).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.