King James Version
Zechariah 11
17 verses with commentary
The Shepherds of Israel
Open thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour thy cedars.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Open thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour thy cedars.</strong> This prophetic lament opens Zechariah's parable of the two shepherds with ominous imagery. "Lebanon" (<em>Levanon</em>, לְבָנוֹן) represents the pride and glory of Israel—its majestic cedars symbolized strength, beauty, and royal splendor (1 Kings 5:6; Psalm 92:12). The command to <strong>"open thy doors"</strong> (<e...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
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Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →Howl, fir tree; for the cedar is fallen; because the mighty are spoiled: howl, O ye oaks of Bashan; for the forest of the vintage is come down. mighty: or, gallants the forest: or, the defenced forest
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Howl, fir tree; for the cedar is fallen; because the mighty are spoiled: howl, O ye oaks of Bashan; for the forest of the vintage is come down.</strong> This verse extends the lament, using parallel tree imagery to depict comprehensive judgment. The <strong>"fir tree"</strong> (<em>berosh</em>, בְּרוֹשׁ, likely cypress) is commanded to <strong>"howl"</strong> (<em>yalel</em>, יָלֵל)—wail i...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
CHAPTER 4 Ho 4:1-19. Henceforth the Prophet Speaks Plainly and without Symbol, in Terse, Sententious Propositions.
In this chapter he reproves the people and priests for their sins in the interregnum which followed Jeroboam's death; hence there is no mention of the king or his family; and in Ho 4:2 bloodshed and other evils usual in a civil war are specified.
**1. Israel--**the ten tribes.
*...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →There is a voice of the howling of the shepherds; for their glory is spoiled: a voice of the roaring of young lions; for the pride of Jordan is spoiled.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>There is a voice of the howling of the shepherds; for their glory is spoiled: a voice of the roaring of young lions; for the pride of Jordan is spoiled.</strong> The lament shifts from trees to <strong>"shepherds"</strong> (<em>ro'im</em>, רֹעִים) and <strong>"young lions"</strong> (<em>kephirim</em>, כְּפִרִים), both representing Israel's leaders. The <strong>"howling"</strong> (<em>yelal...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**2. they break out--**bursting through every restraint.
**blood toucheth blood--**literally, "bloods." One act of bloodshed follows another without any interval between (see 2Ki 15:8-16, 25; Mi 7:2).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →The Two Shepherds
Thus saith the LORD my God; Feed the flock of the slaughter;
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Thus saith the LORD my God; Feed the flock of the slaughter.</strong> God commissions the prophet (representing the Messianic Shepherd) to <strong>"feed the flock of the slaughter"</strong> (<em>re'eh et-tson ha-haregah</em>, רְעֵה אֶת־צֹאן הַהֲרֵגָה). The term <em>haregah</em> means slaughter, killing—these sheep are doomed, destined for destruction. The phrase recalls Isaiah 53:7: "He is...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**3. land ... languish--**(Is 19:8; 24:4; Joe 1:10, 12).
**sea--**including all bodies of water, as pools and even rivers (see on Is 19:5). A general drought, the greatest calamity in the East, is threatened.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →Whose possessors slay them, and hold themselves not guilty: and they that sell them say, Blessed be the LORD; for I am rich: and their own shepherds pity them not.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Whose possessors slay them, and hold themselves not guilty: and they that sell them say, Blessed be the LORD; for I am rich: and their own shepherds pity them not.</strong> This verse describes the appalling exploitation of God's flock by their supposed caretakers. <strong>"Whose possessors slay them"</strong> (<em>asher qoneihem yahargum</em>, אֲשֶׁר קֹנֵיהֶם יַהַרְגֻם) depicts owners who...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**4. let no man ... reprove--**Great as is the sin of Israel, it is hopeless to reprove them; for their presumptuous guilt is as great as that of one who refuses to obey the priest when giving judgment in the name of Jehovah, and who therefore is to be put to death (De 17:12). They rush on to their own destruction as wilfully as such a one.
**thy people--**the ten tribes of Israel; distinct from...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →For I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land, saith the LORD: but, lo, I will deliver the men every one into his neighbour's hand, and into the hand of his king: and they shall smite the land, and out of their hand I will not deliver them. deliver: Heb. make to be found
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land, saith the LORD: but, lo, I will deliver the men every one into his neighbour's hand, and into the hand of his king: and they shall smite the land, and out of their hand I will not deliver them.</strong> This verse announces God's judgment on Israel for rejecting the Good Shepherd. <strong>"I will no more pity"</strong> (<em>lo echmos</em...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**5. fall in the day--**in broad daylight, a time when an attack would not be expected (see on Jr 6:4, 5; Jr 15:8).
**in ... night--**No time, night or day, shall be free from the slaughter of individuals of the people, as well as of the false prophets.
**thy mother--**the Israelitish state, of which the citizens are the children (Ho 2:2).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →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. even: or, verily the poor Bands: or, Binders
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>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.</strong> The shepherd (representing Messiah) accepts the commission to feed the doomed flock, specifically addressing <strong>"the poor of the flock"</strong> (<em>aniyyei ha-tson</em>, עֲנִיֵּי הַצֹּאן)—the humble...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**6. lack of knowledge--**"of God" (Ho 4:1), that is, lack of piety. Their ignorance was wilful, as the epithet, "My people," implies; they ought to have known, having the opportunity, as the people of God.
**thou--**O priest, so-called. Not regularly constituted, but still bearing the name, while confounding the worship of Jehovah and of the calves in Beth-el (1Ki 12:29, 31).
**I will ... for...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →Three shepherds also I cut off in one month; and my soul lothed them, and their soul also abhorred me. lothed: Heb. was straightened for them
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Three shepherds also I cut off in one month; and my soul lothed them, and their soul also abhorred me.</strong> This cryptic verse describes the shepherd's action against corrupt leadership. <strong>"Three shepherds also I cut off in one month"</strong> (<em>va-akhchid et-sheloshet ha-ro'im be-yerach echad</em>, וָאַכְחִיד אֶת־שְׁלֹשֶׁת הָרֹעִים בְּיֶרַח אֶחָד) has generated extensive inte...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**7. As they were increased--**in numbers and power. Compare Ho 4:6, "thy children," to which their "increase" in numbers refers.
**so they sinned--**(Compare Ho 10:1 and Ho 13:6).
**will I change their glory into shame--**that is, I will strip them of all they now glory in (their numbers and power), and give them shame instead. A just retribution: as they changed their glory into shame, by id...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →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. another: Heb. his fellow, or, neighbour
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>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.</strong> After cutting off the false shepherds, the Good Shepherd announces withdrawal from those who reject Him. <strong>"I will not feed you"</strong> (<em>lo er'eh etkhem</em>, לֹא אֶרְעֶה אֶתְכֶם) is judicial abandonment—...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8. eat ... sin of my people--**that is, the sin offerings (Le 6:26; 10:17). The priests greedily devoured them.
**set their heart on their iniquity--**literally, "lift up the animal soul to lust after," or strongly desire. Compare De 24:15, Margin; Psa 24:4; Jr 22:27. The priests set their own hearts on the iniquity of the people, instead of trying to suppress it. For the more the people sinne...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →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.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>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.</strong> The shepherd performs a symbolic act of breaking the staff called <strong>"Beauty"</strong> (<em>No'am</em>, נֹעַם), representing grace, favor, and covenant relationship. <strong>"Cut it asunder"</strong> (<em>va-egda</em>, וָאֶגְדַּע) means to cut down, hew, ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**9. like people, like priest--**They are one in guilt; therefore they shall be one in punishment (Is 24:2).
**reward them their doings--**in homely phrase, "pay them back in their own coin" (Pr 1:31).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →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. so: or, the poor of the flock, etc. certainly knew
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>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.</strong> This verse records the immediate fulfillment of the symbolic action and its recognition by the faithful remnant. <strong>"It was broken in that day"</strong> (<em>va-tufer ba-yom ha-hu</em>, וַתֻּפַר בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא) emphasizes the immediacy and certainty of the c...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**10. eat, and not have enough--**just retribution on those who "eat up (greedily) the sin of My people" (Ho 4:8; Mi 6:14; Hag 1:6).
**whoredom, and ... not increase--**literally, "break forth"; used of giving birth to children (Ge 28:14, Margin; compare Ge 38:29). Not only their wives, but their concubines, shall be barren. To be childless was considered a great calamity among the Jews.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →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. If ye: Heb. If it be good in your eyes
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KJV Study Commentary
Prophetic symbol of Messiah's betrayal: '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.' The shepherd-prophet asks for wages; they pay thirty shekels—Exodus 21:32's price for a slave killed by an ox. This insultingly low valuation of God's shepherd becomes prophecy of Judas betraying Jesus for thirty silver piece...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
11. A moral truth applicable to all times. The special reference here is to the licentious orgies connected with the Syrian worship, which lured Israel away from the pure worship of God (Is 28:1, 7; Am 4:1).
**take away the heart--**that is, the understanding; make men blind to their own true good (Ec 7:7).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →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.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them.</strong> This verse drips with divine irony following the contemptuous payment of thirty silver pieces. The command <strong>"Cast it unto the potter"</strong> (<em>hashlikhehu el-ha-yotser</em>, הַשְׁלִיכֵהוּ אֶל־הַיּוֹצֵר) involves throwing the money contemptuously to the potter—either a craft...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
12. Instances of their understanding ("heart") being "taken away."
**stocks--**wooden idols (Jr 2:27; Ha 2:19).
**staff--**alluding to divination by rods (see on Eze 21:21, 22). The diviner, says Rosenmuller, threw a rod from him, which was stripped of its bark on one side, not on the other: if the bare side turned uppermost, it was a good omen; if the side with the bark, it was a bad omen. Th...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →Then I cut asunder mine other staff, even Bands, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel. Bands: or, Binders
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Then I cut asunder mine other staff, even Bands, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.</strong> Following the rejection symbolized by the thirty pieces, Zechariah performs a second prophetic act. The breaking of <strong>"Bands"</strong> (<em>Chovelim</em>, חֹבְלִים, literally "binders" or "unifiers") symbolizes shattering the unity between Judah (Southern Kingdom) an...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**13. upon ... mountains--**High places were selected by idolaters on which to sacrifice, because of their greater nearness to the heavenly hosts which they worshipped (De 12:2).
**elms--**rather, "terebinths" [Maurer].
**shadow ... good--**screening the lascivious worshippers from the heat of the sun.
**daughters ... commit whoredom ... spouses ... adultery--**in the polluted worship of Ast...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →And the LORD said unto me, Take unto thee yet the instruments of a foolish shepherd.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And the LORD said unto me, Take unto thee yet the instruments of a foolish shepherd.</strong> After portraying the rejected Good Shepherd, Zechariah now must enact the role of <strong>"a foolish shepherd"</strong> (<em>ro'eh ewili</em>, רֹעֶה אֱוִלִי). The term <em>ewili</em> (אֱוִלִי, "foolish") doesn't mean lacking intelligence but morally perverse, wicked, and destructive—the opposite o...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**14. I will not punish ... daughters--**I will visit with the heaviest punishments "not" the unchaste "daughters and spouses," but the fathers and husbands; for it is these who "themselves" have set the bad example, so that as compared with the punishment of the latter, that of the former shall seem as nothing [Munster].
**separated with whores--**withdrawn from the assembly of worshippers to s...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →For, lo, I will raise up a shepherd in the land, which shall not visit those that be cut off, neither shall seek the young one, nor heal that that is broken, nor feed that that standeth still: but he shall eat the flesh of the fat, and tear their claws in pieces. cut off: or, hidden feed: or, bear
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KJV Study Commentary
This prophetic oracle introduces a worthless shepherd as divine judgment on Israel. The phrase <strong>"lo, I will raise up"</strong> (<em>hineh anokhi meqim</em>) indicates God's sovereign action in bringing judgment through a wicked leader. The term <strong>"shepherd"</strong> (<em>ro'eh</em>) is loaded with meaning in Scripture, representing both political and spiritual leadership.<br><br>The s...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
15. Though Israel's ten tribes indulge in spiritual harlotry, at least thou, Judah, who hast the legal priesthood, and the temple rites, and Jerusalem, do not follow her bad example.
**Gilgal--**situated between Jordan and Jericho on the confines of Samaria; once a holy place to Jehovah (Jos 5:10-15; 1Sa 10:8; 15:21); afterwards desecrated by idol-worship (Ho 9:15; 12:11; Am 4:4; 5:5; compare Ju...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →Woe to the idol shepherd that leaveth the flock! the sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Woe to the idol shepherd that leaveth the flock!</strong> (הוֹי רֹעִי הָאֱלִיל עֹזְבִי הַצֹּאן)—<em>hoy</em> introduces covenant curse against the <em>ro'i ha-elil</em> (worthless/idol shepherd), one who <em>azav</em> (abandons, forsakes) sheep entrusted to him. This follows Zechariah's enacted prophecy where he symbolically became shepherd of a doomed flock (11:4-14), representing both fa...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**16. backsliding--**Translate, "Israel is refractory, as a refractory heifer," namely, one that throws the yoke off her neck. Israel had represented God under the form of "calves" (1Ki 12:28); but it is she herself who is one.
**lamb in a large place--**not in a good sense, as in Is 30:23. Here there is irony: lambs like a large pasture; but it is not so safe for them as a small one, duly fence...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 11
The vision of the Scriptures of truth.
**Verses 1-30** The angel shows Daniel the succession of the Persian and Grecian empires. The kings of Egypt and Syria are noticed: Judea was between their dominions, and affected by their contests. From Dn 11:5-30, is generally considered to relate to the events which came to pass during the continuance of these governments; and from Dn 11:2...
Read full commentary →