26: Minor Prophets – Zechariah 9:9 -11:17

[Dunkle] Welcome back to Minor Prophets class! We had a little interval where we had a week off, but we're picking up where we left off in the book of Zechariah. Last time we started chapter 9 and didn't get through the whole chapter. So I'll remind you, without going through all of it, the first several verses, almost half of the chapter, seem like they're describing the progress of Alexander the Great when he led his Greco-Macedonian army to invade Persia.

And of course they fought a tremendous battle up here in the north, then went down along the coast towards Egypt. We passed Jerusalem and then came back again, and we see that happen. So I'm not going to reinterpret all of that.

We're going to pick up with verse 9 in Zechariah, where I'll say it seems that Zechariah's prophecy is pretty dramatically switching from what was at the time an imminent Greek conqueror. I say imminent because Alexander the Great had not yet come, but it was going to happen in the relatively near future. Did I say verse 9? Chapter 9 is what I meant.

Chapter 9, actually, we're in chapter 9 and verse 9, so I'm covered on both counts. That's where we're going to switch from the Greek conqueror to the coming Messiah. And what we'll see here in this verse is what looks like references to both Christ's first coming and to a second coming. So let me just read it and then we'll comment. "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you! He is just and having salvation! Lowly and riding on a donkey! A colt, the foal of a donkey!" (Zechariah 9:9)

And if we add verse 10, "I'll cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the horse from Jerusalem. The battle bow will be cut off. He'll speak peace to the nations. His dominion shall be from sea to sea, from the river to the ends of the earth" (Zechariah 9:10).

I wanted to add that because verse 10 seems specifically to talk about what we understand as Christ's second coming. He will establish a dominion. He's going to bring peace to the earth in a way the earth doesn't have now. But it's worth backing up and looking at the reference, O daughter of Zion and, O daughter of Jerusalem. The dual prophecy in that makes us think, okay, it's directed to the people of Judah, but daughter of Zion is most often a symbol of the church.

And Christ came to Jerusalem in His first coming. I think we could well say He's coming to the church that He founded when He comes at His second coming. So let's note four distinct attributes that are here. So one is that He's just. So He's just. He had no sin. He lived a perfect life. And it says, having salvation. So He paid the penalty for sins for mankind. I've read some cases where they say He was the just and was the justifier.

Because He was just already, but He makes us just. That's how He's bringing salvation. He pays the price for sin. Okay, so having salvation, we could also say, by Him living in us, He makes us that new creation that the Apostle Paul describes. Let me reference a couple of scriptures from Paul. Romans 5 and verse 10. And Romans 5:10 is where Paul says, we are reconciled by His death, but we're saved by His life.

And I know Mr. Myers will comment on that more when he covers Romans, but it's good to say Christ did more than just pay the penalty for our sins. Because if He just paid the penalty, that erases the debt, but it leaves us as people who will sin. We're not changed. So we're saved by His life. And I think what Paul meant was Him living in us. There's where I'd reference Galatians 2 and verse 20. And Galatians 2:20 is where Paul says, "I'm crucified with Christ" (Galatians 2:20), but he says, "Nevertheless I live" (Galatians 2:20), because Christ lives in me.

So Paul said that, but each of us could say that. Christ is living in me. That's what saves us. So when He's bringing salvation, He's making each of us a new creation. And that's what makes us, brings us salvation. Justified by His death, reconciled by His death, saved by His life.

Okay, the next two points are pretty easy. Lowly. I'd say not just lowly because He's riding a donkey instead of a horse, but think of what Jesus Christ did for His first coming. He was eternal God. He was the one who John 1:1 says "was with God and was God" (John 1:1). But whatever the process was, He became mortal. He emptied Himself of divinity, I've heard some people say. He became a lowly human being. So much that He depended on God the Father to do things. John 5 and verse 30 is where Jesus said, "I can of mine own self do nothing" (John 5:30).

Jesus was so lowly as a human being that He didn't have all the power of God anymore. He relied on God the Father through the Spirit to work miracles. And of course, He rode on a donkey. Jesus Christ literally fulfilled this, as we see in the Gospel accounts, where He sent a couple of disciples to loose the donkey, because He said these things have to be fulfilled. He was well aware of this prophecy.

It's worth noting that if you look through Israel's history in the Judges and 1 and 2 Samuel and such, you can see examples of judges and sometimes princes riding donkeys. You don't see horseback all that often. And so maybe this is exemplifying Christ's lowly status at this point. Now I could ask the question, does that mean He's never going to be on horseback? And I think we know the answer if you've read Revelation. In Revelation 19, the heavens open and there He is on a white horse.

So when He comes the second time, He's not going to be lowly and riding on a colt, the foal of a donkey. He's going to come in power to rule the nations. And that's what leads into verse 10. That's when He'll cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the horse from Jerusalem. He's going to supersede the need for the peoples to have military power. He's going to bring peace forcibly, if necessary. And His dominion will be earth-wide. From river to the ends of the earth, it's basically from one end of the globe to the other. And since it's actually a globe rather than a map, one end to the other is back where He started. I'm going to smile at that.

Okay. So let's move on in verse 11. "As for you also, because of the blood of your covenant, I'll set your prisoners free from the waterless pit" (Zechariah 9:11).

Now this seems to be devoted to who? Well, in the beginning of verse 9, it was addressing the daughter of Zion, the daughter of Jerusalem. And I pointed out, we could see that as dual. This message is for Judah anciently, but for the church in modern times. So, for you, because of the blood of your covenant, I'll set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.

Blood of what covenant? Well, for ancient Judah and ancient Israel, we could say the covenant that God made with Israel. And we might remember in Exodus chapter 24, with Moses as the mediator, God made a covenant with Israel that we say was like a marriage. God proposed, Israel accepted, they had all the terms of the covenant, and Israel said, "I do," in a sense. They said, "All that the Lord God has said, we will do" (Exodus 24:3). And there was blood, there was sacrifice. Moses sprinkled some of the blood on the people. Hebrews says some of the blood on the book, and there was the covenant.

God has never forgotten that covenant, though Israel broke it. If we want to look at the newer fulfillment of this, we would refer to the New Covenant, the New Covenant made in Christ's blood. I'm going to turn to Jeremiah 31. This one, we talk about a New Covenant so often, I think sometimes it bears reading what it actually says.

So, Jeremiah 31, beginning in verse 31. Through Jeremiah, God says, "Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. Not according to the covenant which I made with their fathers, in the day I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them" (Jeremiah 31:31-32).

So this references what I mentioned in Exodus 24. Verse 33, it says, "But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days. I'll put my law in their minds and write it in their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people" (Jeremiah 31:33). And it goes on to say everyone's going to know God.

Because of the blood of this covenant, God sets the prisoners free. And we have the opportunity to be a part of this covenant. And although it's not addressed here, it's worth us remembering, whereas circumcision was the token of that old covenant, all the males had to be circumcised, baptism is the token of this New Covenant. And we can all enter that and have the sign of that covenant by being baptized.

Moving on in verse 12. "Return to the stronghold, you prisoners of hope. Even today I declare that I will restore double to you" (Zechariah 9:12).

This seems to be end-time prophecy yet. God is talking about turning around the state of the descendants of Israel in the end time, many of whom are prophesied to be in captivity. But He's saying, I'm going to turn that around. You prisoners could be descendants of Israel who are some type of prisoner. He's going to restore them. And He goes on to say in verse 13 that "I've bent Judah my bow, fitted the bow with Ephraim" (Zechariah 9:13).

Now we want to note this is figurative language because Judah isn't an actual bow, nor its people. But we see a military power with Judah and Ephraim.

"I've raised up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece" (Zechariah 9:13). And that's Greece the country. For some reason I thought of auto grease, but it's not that. "Made you like a sword of a mighty man" (Zechariah 9:13). "Then the Eternal will be seen over them. His arrow will go forth like lightning. The Lord will blow the trumpet and go with a whirlwind from the south" (Zechariah 9:14).

"The Lord of hosts will defend them and shall devour and subdue the sling stones. They'll drink and roar as if with wine, be filled with blood like basins, like the corners of the altar" (Zechariah 9:15).

I've gone a little further than I wanted there, but I wanted to... we see this stretch where it seems to be talking about God's intervention with power.

But we see this also... do we see Judah with Ephraim? In ancient history, people thought of the Jews having military power, and they thought of the Maccabean revolt.

Remember when they'd been dominated by the Seleucids that were part of the Greek Empire? Because of Antiochus Epiphanes and the abomination of desolation, the Maccabees rose up and were able to gain their independence.

There's a reference to that, but Ephraim wasn't involved at that time.

So I think that draws us to look to an end-time fulfillment where we might see occasions of descendants of Judah cooperating with descendants of Ephraim.

Flower, did I misspeak?

[Flower] When it says in verse 14, "and shall go with whirlwinds from the south" (Zechariah 9:14), we were doing Job, and God spoke to Job through a whirlwind.

[Dunkle] It's worth noting whirlwinds is sometimes used as imagery and poetry. So it's hard at this point to say, is God talking about there being literal whirlwinds? Would that be a tornado? Or, you know, I was going to say a cyclone. I believe that's the same thing in the other hemisphere. Typhoons, hurricanes? Or is it more a vivid, picturesque description of God's power and dynamism? I tend to lean towards the latter, but I wouldn't rule out any literal fulfillment.

Speaking of literal fulfillment, we don't see in ancient times, after Israel was taken into captivity by the Assyrians, after that happened, we wouldn't see an opportunity for Ephraim to cooperate with Judah.

But if our understanding of the modern identity of several of the tribes of Israel is correct, we would see Ephraim primarily in the British Isles. And there have been times where there was cooperation, especially in the world wars and more modern history. We could say Britain, and even more the United States, has been in alliance with the modern state of Israel, especially since 1948, when Israel declared its independence.

So, the United States and Britain haven't really been sending soldiers to fight, but we've had an alliance and worked together. And some would say, at the very end time, are we going to see even more of that?

Is there cooperation yet to come? And how does Greece figure into it? Greece isn't exactly a mighty military power that we're dealing with. So I'll note that the Hebrew word there is Javan. It's transliterated often J-A-V-A-N. And that's often referring to Western nations. Or we do see sometimes where it seems to just stand in for non-Israelite peoples.

So, if it is in that sense... let me say that sentence again. If it is in that sense that Zechariah is using it, it doesn't have to be the specific nation of Greece. It could be non-Israelite nations working against a combination of Judah and Ephraim. So it does make us wonder.

But we see what happened is we transferred from a prophecy of Christ coming, especially coming in peace, and then we had a description of war and fighting. I want to note that kind of fits with a prophecy that was given many, many years ago in Genesis 49.

Genesis 49, verses 11 and 12. This is when Jacob is on his deathbed, literally. And he calls in his sons and he says, "I'm going to tell you what will befall you in the latter days" (Genesis 49:1). In the last days, that is what my New King James has. And in verse 11 and 12, it mentions Judah, where it says, "Binding his donkey to the vine, his donkey's colt to the choice vine" (Genesis 49:11).

That reminds us of this prophecy in Zechariah of Christ riding on a colt, the foal of a donkey, which Christ did. But it also says, "He washed his garments in wine and his clothes in the blood of grapes" (Genesis 49:11). Is that a turn to the idea of Christ's second coming?

It's going to be with power and might and fighting against the nations. Rather than lowly riding on a colt, it's going to be having His garments dipped in blood or spattered with blood. And I think there's a good case for that. Now, I read, it said, you know, talked about in verse 14, "The Lord, His arrow will go forth like lightning" (Zechariah 9:14).

We talked about the whirlwinds. Verse 15, "He'll devour and subdue the slingstones" (Zechariah 9:15). The literal Hebrew there should better say, "tread underfoot the slingstones." Like they're going to be shooting slingstones at Him. He just walks over them. It's to give the impression that weapons are powerless. And that would make sense. When Jesus Christ comes as God and faces the nations, there's no weapons that they could have that would have any effect on Him.

All mankind's greatest might and power will be a waste. So on the victorious side, "drink and roar as if with wine" (Zechariah 9:15). No, it says, "as if with wine." It seems to be referring to a celebration of victory by those who are with God. We'll talk about that in a moment. It says they'll be filled... notice "with blood" is in italics. That's not in the original. It could just be saying they'll be filled like basins at the corner of the altar. You know, some scholars even suggest it should say they'll be filled with wine. It said they're roaring like wine, but maybe they're filled with elation as if with wine.

I like that interpretation a little better. I don't think... Well, I say I'm confident Christ is not going to have a drunken party when He comes back. But there will be elation and celebration when the final victory is here. This might seem... maybe it's a small comparison, but I've been a Star Wars fan for many years, as many of you know. At the end of the third movie, when the second Death Star is destroyed, you see this celebration across the planets and, you know, the Ewoks are playing music, and everybody's dancing, and just everywhere there's music and celebration and happiness.

Whatever George Lucas was able to portray in that movie, I'd say would be small compared to what it's actually going to be when Christ is victorious. There's probably going to be music, shouting, celebration. The King of Kings is here. He rules. You know, the enemy has been defeated. And that's what I think of when it says, "Roar as if with wine" (Zechariah 9:15), filled like the basins of the corners of the altar.

And verse 16 reminds us of why. "The Lord their God will save them in that day. As the flock of His people, they'll be like the jewels in a crown, like a banner lifted over His head" (Zechariah 9:16). Jewels in a crown reminds us of something that we could see actually just a few pages later in the book of Malachi.

In Malachi 3, verse 17, God talking about, in verse 16, those who fear the Lord, who meditate on His name, and said they spoke to one another. And in verse 17, God says, "They'll be mine on the day I make them my jewels" (Malachi 3:17). And jewels there is talking about something very precious. He's not going to make us into jewels, but we'll be precious and special to God, in how precious jewelry might be to someone who has precious jewelry.

I'm not a jewelry guy myself, but I know my wife has some diamonds that she takes very special care of, and if any of them is missing, she will not rest till they're found. And that might be a small symbol of how God is going to look on us.

To continue in verse 17, "How great is its goodness, how great its beauty! Grain shall make the young men thrive, new wine the young women" (Zechariah 9:17).

And again, it's just talking about the celebration and God providing everything that's needed. Now, going into the next chapter, we wouldn't have to have a chapter break. This seems to be continuing and showing that in response to obedience and in response to prayer and worship, God provides what's needed. He says, "Ask the Lord for rain in the time of the latter rain, and He'll make flashing clouds" (Zechariah 10:1). This seems like lightning.

The latter rain, I'll remind you, is the rain that comes in the spring. In the Middle East, around March into April, it would be the rain that helps the crops come to their ripening to get ready for the harvest that would start after the wave sheaf is done during Unleavened Bread.

So, "Give them showers of rain, grass in the field for everyone" (Zechariah 10:1). In contrast, verse 2, "The idols speak delusion" (Zechariah 10:2). The word there for idols is teraphim. It's the word that's often used for household idols or good luck charms. And this is not meaning to say that they literally speak because think of what it says in Isaiah in the chapters 40 through 50, where God derides these idols that can't do anything. What He's saying is this false idea is a lie.

Idols can't speak, you know? So, it says, "The diviners envision lies, tell false dreams, comfort in vain. Therefore, the people wend their way like sheep, and they're in trouble because there is no shepherd" (Zechariah 10:2).

So, God can provide the rain. God can provide protection. He can give victory. Idols can do nothing. False prophets can do nothing. Well, not nothing in a sense. They can cause harm. They lead people astray. They bring delusion.

Let's carry on in chapter 10, verse 3. God says... what's the difference between a shepherd and a goat herd?

Okay, one is with sheep, one's with goats. Since we're speaking symbolically, I don't think God is against people who take care of animals here. Shepherds is often referring to spiritual leaders, those who should be teaching God's way and God's word. And if that's the case, then maybe we could argue that goat herds is referring to civil leaders, governmental leaders who should be fulfilling their roles properly. But God's angry with them because they're not doing what they should do.

So He says, so forget what those shepherds and goat herds are doing. I'm going to treat you like a horse. Thank you for chuckling. But a royal horse that's cared for in battle was a very valuable, prized animal that someone who had one would take extravagant care of. You'd make sure it had the best food. You'd take care of its coat, watch its hooves to make sure there's no damage. So God is sort of saying, I'm going to make you like that. You're not going to be mistreated by bad leaders anymore. God says, when I step in, I'll take the best care of you.

Going on, verse 4, "From God comes the cornerstone" (Zechariah 10:4). Okay, that's stability and rulership. "From Him the tent peg, from Him the battle bow, from Him every ruler together" (Zechariah 10:4). The last part could say God is going to provide good leadership, good rulers. These other three things, we might say, are images of the Messiah and what He'll provide.

Of course, seeing Christ as the cornerstone is a symbol we're used to. We see that. He's the stone that the builders rejected that's become the chief cornerstone. But it tends to reflect a firm foundation and stability. A tent peg is very similar. A tent peg provides the support and holds up against, keeps the wind from blowing your tent down. If you've ever camped when the weather's bad, you want to have those stakes driven in. So they give a proper grounding and a strength.

And then the battle bow could refer to defense against anything that would cause harm. I put a reference in my notes to Exodus 15 and verse 3. In Exodus 15:3, Moses wrote, "The Eternal is a man of war" (Exodus 15:3). Exodus 15, by the way, has the song that Moses wrote after Israel went through the Red Sea and God destroyed Pharaoh's army. So Moses writes this beautiful poem that's made into a song to talk about God's great wonders. And he describes God as having military power. And that's why I don't think it's wrong to reference that here when Zechariah is talking about good leadership, stability, strength, but also defense.

At the end of verse 4 it says, "From Him every ruler together" (Zechariah 10:4). And it goes on to say, "They'll be like mighty men who tread down their enemies in the mire of the streets in the battle. They'll fight because the Eternal is with them. The riders on horses will be put to shame" (Zechariah 10:5).

"I will strengthen the house of Judah and I will save the house of Joseph" (Zechariah 10:6). Now, we saw Judah mentioned with Ephraim before. Ephraim was one part of the house of Joseph. "I'll bring them back because I have mercy on them. They shall be as though I had not cast them aside, for I am the Lord their God and I will hear them" (Zechariah 10:6).

"Those of Ephraim shall be like a mighty man. Their heart shall rejoice as if with wine. Yet their children will see it and be glad. Their heart shall rejoice in the Lord" (Zechariah 10:7).

Now, if this is a dual prophecy, as I was discussing before, it could be foretelling the great victories of the Maccabees and their throwing off external rule by that Greek-Syrian Empire.

So, I wouldn't discount that, but including Joseph seems to be talking about perhaps a reuniting of all of Israel. And we know that comes after Christ returns, when Israel is brought back together. And we'll see prophecies of them being brought back to the Promised Land, you know, in what we call the Second Exodus. So, this seems to be a prophecy perhaps of the Maccabees and their military success, but I think more so of what's yet to come, you know, of God working with Israel, bringing them back together and giving them success and protection.

And if that's the case, I don't want to lose my place here.

In verse... oh, I turned the page here. "I'll whistle for them and gather them. I will redeem them and they shall increase as they once increased. I'll sow them among the peoples" (Zechariah 10:8-9). The "them" here again seems to be the descendants of Israel.

So, starting in verse 8, this isn't as elaborate as some others, but it seems to be a prophecy of the Second Exodus.

And I've got a list of about a dozen scriptures that also reference the Second Exodus, and I'm not going to list them all. But I will mention ones like Jeremiah 29 verse 14. Actually, I marked that one. I think I wanted to turn and read it. Jeremiah 29 and verse 14. God says, "I will be found by you, says the Eternal, and I will bring you back from your captivity. I'll gather you from all the nations and all the places where I've driven you, says the Eternal, and I'll bring you to the place from which I caused you to be carried away captive" (Jeremiah 29:14).

Now, I do want to stop and say, in Jeremiah 29, this was a letter that God had Jeremiah send to the Jewish captives in Babylon.

So it certainly could be seen to reflect that after 70 years they would be allowed to come back to Judah and rebuild Jerusalem. So, I don't want to take that away, but here it talks about also "all the nations where I've driven you" (Jeremiah 29:14).

Let's add Jeremiah 31 verse 8 to that, where it says, "Behold, I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the ends of the earth, among them the blind and the lame, the woman with child and the one who labors with child, together; a great throng shall return there." (Jeremiah 31:8)

Actually, I skipped to verse 10 here in Jeremiah 30. "'Hear the word of the Lord, O nations, and declare it in the isles afar off, and say, "He who scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him as a shepherd does his flock."'"

As I said, we could literally find dozens of prophecies of this happening. Enough that it tells us it's not just a figure of speech, it's not just symbolic. God describes in considerable detail that He'll bring physical Israelites back to the physical Promised Land. And I think He has a purpose for that, but I don't want to branch off and make a big discussion of that right now.

It comes up in other classes. The point is, I think that's what it's speaking of here in Zechariah chapter 10, where He says, yeah, verse 8, "I'll whistle and gather them" (Zechariah 10:8), and then, you know, they'll increase as they once increased.

And verse 9, He says... the word there for "I'll sow them" (Zechariah 10:9) is Jezreel, which can be translated as "God plants." We discussed this early on when we started Hosea, because the same word can mean scattered, because it's like broadcast planting. So God enjoys a good play on words better than Dr. Dunkel does, but He uses that kind of thing quite a bit to show that as He's scattered, so He'll gather back in, and He'll plant them where He wants them to be. Oh, Hosea 2 verse 23 is a reference to that.

So they'll remember me, and as it says at the end of verse 9, "they shall return" (Zechariah 10:9).

Verse 10, "I'll bring them back from the land of Egypt and gather them from Assyria" (Zechariah 10:10). That's two places where the Israelites were in captivity. Of course, they were slaves in Egypt before God brought them out with the Exodus, and then later in Assyria, when He used the Assyrians to take them into captivity. So He says, I'm going to bring them back from there.

Finishing verse 10, "I'll bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon, until there's no room for them" (Zechariah 10:10). Gilead is over on this side, the Transjordan, and Lebanon is up here, so it's basically from the west to the east, and it's describing some of the most productive lands that God is going to settle them in.

Continuing on this theme in verse 11, "He'll pass through the sea with affliction and strike the waves of the sea. The depths of the river will dry up" (Zechariah 10:11). Makes me wonder, this sounds like it's referencing what God did with Israel when He brought them out of Egypt and into the Promised Land. He parted the Red Sea. He stopped the flow of the Jordan River. But if this is looking to the future, Second Exodus, it could well be saying that God is going to work similar great miracles.

Will He part seas again? Will He dry up rivers? It seems like there's all kinds of things He could do to work a miracle. Bringing those peoples back will be something.

In verse 12, "So I will strengthen them in the Lord, in the Eternal. They'll walk up and down in His name, says the Eternal" (Zechariah 10:12).

This might be another example of the two beings in the God family, because we see the "I," if that's the one that we know of as the Word, saying, "I'll strengthen them in the Eternal" (Zechariah 10:12). It could be the Word saying, "I'll strengthen them in God the Father." I'm saying "could be" because the Hebrew isn't crystal clear, but it sure seems to be saying that. The Son speaking of the Father.

And I like it when we see those things in the Old Testament, because it cements our understanding of what God is and who He is.

Okay, I'm deliberately pausing because we're at a chapter break. And I know, as I often do in Minor Prophets, I'm going a bit fast, although I'm not intending to. One thing I should remind you of, though, I think I meant to say it at the start of the class, but chapters 9, 10, and 11 are a single prophetic utterance. So they're tied together. And then chapter 12 will begin the last major prophecy of the book of Zechariah. So if we can get to the end of chapter 11, that'll be good, although that might be in our next session together. But we start here.

"Open your doors, O Lebanon, that fire may devour your cedars" (Zechariah 11:1).

That doesn't sound so good. At this point, we're turning from a message of hope and joy, but now looking back, turning back again to discuss the consequences of rejecting God. So I'll remind you, the Minor Prophets don't have a clear chronological sequence the way Daniel and Revelation lay things out for us. So, I'm going to start with the last one. Daniel and Revelation lay things out for us. So in these Old Testament prophecies, we go back and forth in the timeline as we perceive it.

So, "the fire may devour your cedars" (Zechariah 11:1). It's worth remembering fire is often a symbol for war and the destruction that comes from it. So it mentions Lebanon.

At the end of verse 2, "Wail, O oaks of Bashan, for the thick forest has come down" (Zechariah 11:2). Lebanon and Bashan, I mentioned Lebanon here earlier, and I said Gilead. Bashan is the further north area. Both fertile, lush territories that seem... there's a prophecy of destruction, probably from war more than literal fire.

And yeah, let's... well, I'll note, some scholars have looked at this just for the ancient fulfillment that seems to have been done when Rome conquered Judah. There was the rebellion and Rome squashed it pretty badly, and there was a lot of destruction. But I wouldn't discount future fulfillment at the end time. But let's move on in verse 3.

"There is the sound of wailing shepherds, for their glory is in ruin. There's the sound of roaring lions, for the pride of Jordan is in ruin" (Zechariah 11:3).

So the shepherds seem to be referring perhaps to the leaders of Judah, at whatever time we're discussing, because there's the sound of roaring lions. Lions are predatory animals that are feeding on the flock. So it seems to be referring perhaps to the invading powers, whichever they are, that God is going to allow them to come in, perhaps bring them in to accomplish His purpose.

And we're going to see that God has been severely disappointed with the leaders that were leading His people, I think both in the ancient nation and maybe in the future. Although, I will say we're going to see coming in the next verses a prophecy that seems primarily to apply to ancient Judah into Christ's first coming. And if there's secondary meaning for later times, it's not as clear. So let's continue in verse 4.

"Thus says the Lord my God, 'Feed the flock for slaughter,'" (Zechariah 11:4)

Now, some people question, who's speaking in first person? Most scholars believe that God would have Zechariah literally act this out. I'll use a term that comes up more in other books, but sometimes when God has a prophet portray something, it's referred to as a pantomime. So we see that with Ezekiel quite a bit. And you know a pantomime, you know, the guy who pretends there's a wall. So if Ezekiel has to literally get some staffs and act the role of a shepherd, it's symbolizing what God would do.

And it seems that if true, then Zechariah is portraying Jesus Christ when He comes. So let's imagine maybe Zechariah acting some out, but it portrays Jesus Christ. So, "Feed the flock for slaughter" (Zechariah 11:4), whose owners slaughter them and feel no guilt.

Okay, so the owners seem to be referring to leaders. Matter of fact, if you glance down to verse 8, "I dismissed the three shepherds in one month" (Zechariah 11:8). So we've got owners and shepherds who aren't taking good care of the sheep. You know, they're feeding the flock for slaughter, not slaughtering. And they feel no guilt. They say, "Blessed be the Lord, for I am rich" (Zechariah 11:5), and their shepherds don't pity them.

So God says, "I'll no longer pity the inhabitants of the land, says the Lord. But indeed I'll give everyone into his neighbor's hand and into the hand of his king. They'll attack the land, and I will not deliver them from their hand" (Zechariah 11:6).

Okay, so giving everyone into his neighbor's hand. If we set this in the period of the first century when Christ would come to Judah, we do know that Judah had considerable internal division. There were different factions that were competing with each other and disagreed. In truth, it had been so bad that some of them asked Rome to help settle things. And that's how they became part of the Roman Empire. And Rome did establish a king, Herod the Great.

So this could be saying God just lets them have this internal division. You know, it's causing trouble. But in verse 7 it says, "So I fed the flock for slaughter" (Zechariah 11:7).

This might picture Jesus coming to spiritually provide feed, coming to teach people and bring them the truth. "I took for myself two staffs, the one I called Beauty and the other I called Bonds" (Zechariah 11:7).

Okay, so shepherds literally did often carry two staffs. And I think I've drawn this on the board — pardon the artwork — but one would be what we think of as the shepherd's crook. So a long staff with a hook. So it's easy to imagine a shepherd with that. And you'd use that for protection, like if a sheep's down somewhere, he's having trouble, you hook him and pull him out, or you pull him away from going somewhere he shouldn't.

And there'd be a shorter one that really is a club. And it could be used as a weapon against predators, or if a sheep's really unruly, you might bonk him with it, but hopefully you don't need to do that.

So having these two staffs is not at all uncommon. Now the word Beauty there could be translated favor or grace. Bonds means unity or union. And we're going to see both of these end up being broken and destroyed.

So if Zechariah is feeding the flock for slaughter, meaning getting ready to slaughter it, if it pictures Christ, it's like, okay, I'm setting it up.

We know what happened within a few decades of Christ's first coming. The Romans did destroy Judah. But let's come back to the thought of Christ coming on the scene. In verse 8 it says, "I dismissed the three shepherds in one month, and my soul loathed them, and their soul also abhorred me" (Zechariah 11:8).

There are a lot of different speculations on exactly what this means. So I'm going to admit we just aren't sure. There's different interpretations. But "one month" probably means a relatively short time. It's possible it means one literal month.

The three shepherds — notice the Hebrew is correct there. The Old King James didn't have the word "the," but the New one does properly. It's like it's referring to the three shepherds.

You know, those shepherds, the ones you know. Only we don't know. We're not sure who they are, and a lot of guessing comes in. Some have said maybe it's the ruling types. Like it could be referring to prophets, priests, and civil rulers or magistrates. Those three are kicked out.

Some have said maybe the three competing factions in Christ's time. We know about the Pharisees and the Sadducees. They often didn't get along. They only got along when they were both against Christ. The third would be what we call the Herodians.

People who supported Roman government and the Roman-slash-Greek culture. So, could be all of those. You can find some sources that will study the history of the time and choose three actual leaders and plug their names in. I wouldn't argue that that's incorrect. I just argue it's hard to be certain who they might be.

What I am going to argue against doing is something I've seen in our modern time. Because if we see this as a dual prophecy, we might say, yeah, there's going to be bad rulers at the time just before Christ returns, and He's going to depose them.

So, let's say who they are, and we might list a leader of this church group and a leader of that church group and a leader of a third church group. Notice I didn't name any men or church groups. For one thing, three seems to be a very limiting number right now. It would be more like three dozen, sadly.

I'll remind you something I think I've said in this class. Always be very, very wary of plugging in a contemporary name into an Old Testament prophecy. I caution against that. When Christ has already returned and we're looking back at it, we might say, "Aha, it was this, this, and this." But I think until we're looking back at it, it's very unwise to put names in there because more often than not, we're proved wrong.

So, I like looking at the possibilities for ancient times because they could hold up and we'll find out how it might apply in the future. But with this happening, there's an animosity. If we say in Christ's time some leaders are deposed, they didn't like Jesus, and He didn't like them much of the time. Remember when Jesus confronted Pharisees and Sadducees, He called them a bunch of snakes and hypocrites. Riled them up, made them so angry, they determined they had to kill Him.

So, let's go on to verse 9. With this mutual disgust, "I said, I will not feed you. Let what is dying die, what is perishing perish. Let those that are left eat each other's flesh" (Zechariah 11:9). Just have it out. I'm not going to take care of you.

Now, some have pointed out that eating each other's flesh isn't something sheep do.

But if we put this in the context of later the Roman siege of Jerusalem, where they were besieged for over a year, literal cannibalism did occur. And it's gruesome to think about, so I'm just going to say it in passing and move on.

So, in verse 10, "I took my staff, Beauty, and cut it in two, that I might break the covenant which I'd made with all the peoples" (Zechariah 11:10).

So, we could disagree which covenant is it? When Israel broke its covenant with God, some have speculated God might have made a covenant, an agreement, with foreign peoples to not harm Israel. That doesn't hold up so well because, if you note, at the end of verse 10 where it says, "all the peoples" (Zechariah 11:10), the word there for peoples is amim, often transliterated ammin. The normal word we often see for peoples is goyim. Goyim basically means peoples who aren't Israel. And Jews still use that term today. So the fact that it's not that, but it is this, seems to refer to breaking a covenant with God's chosen people at the time.

So, broke the bond, the covenant made with the people of particularly Judah. "So it was broken in that day. Thus the poor of the flock who were watching knew that it was the word of the Lord" (Zechariah 11:11).

The poor of the flock might be those who actually are paying attention to Christ's teaching. And we know that happened, and they might have been benefiting, and that's where it's sad because they're going to be hurt for it.

I made a note of what Christ said that's recorded in Matthew 23. Because God never rejoices in having to punish or bad things happening. In Matthew 23, I think it's beginning in verse 36, Jesus said, "Assuredly I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation" (Matthew 23:36). And He says, "Oh, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her. How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing. See, your house is left to you desolate. For I say to you, you'll see me no more till you say, Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord" (Matthew 23:37-39).

I see some of that same feeling. You know, it's broken. The poor of the flock are watching, and they're going to be left to this.

And if you'll bear with me, I'm going to go a little over time to finish this thought. He says, "I said to them, if it's agreeable to you, give me my wages; if not, refrain" (Zechariah 11:12). So if this is the Messiah, it's like, "I've done my job. You can pay me or not pay me. But I'm out of here." Okay?

So what do they do? Well, we could question what should they do? What kind of payment should be made for the Messiah? It's beyond price. I've read some accounts that say it should have been love, devotion, obedience. But what is it in this case? "Thirty pieces of silver" (Zechariah 11:12).

And the Lord said, "Throw it to the potter" (Zechariah 11:13). Again, that seems to be a case of God the Father giving instructions to God the Son. "Throw it to the potter — that princely price" (Zechariah 11:13). This is sarcasm. That insulting price. "So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the Lord for the potter" (Zechariah 11:13).

Okay, this sounds very familiar to us, does it not? Okay, we know this is described in Matthew 26 verse 14. Judas Iscariot accepted thirty pieces of silver as the price to betray Jesus Christ. It was an insulting price. Let me reference also, by the way, that was Matthew 26:14.

Back in Exodus, Exodus 21 verse 32, when God is giving Moses the statutes for Israel, if an ox gored a slave and killed him, the price that had to be given for that dead slave was thirty pieces of silver. Hardly comparable to the price of the Messiah, the Savior of mankind. As I said, it's an insult.

So He says, "that princely price they set on me" (Zechariah 11:13). Yeah, it's a deliberate insult, it seems.

And we know it's described in Matthew 27, early in the chapter, that Judas Iscariot tried to bring the money back when he was pricked in his conscience, and the priests wouldn't take it, so he literally threw it into the temple. All of this is prophesied back here in Zechariah, and the disciples recognized it when it happened.

Okay, so there's one small matter I want to mention because I've referenced Matthew. Matthew attributes the prophecy of this to Jeremiah, but we're reading it in Zechariah, and I promise you when we get to Jeremiah, we're not going to find this. So it causes a little consternation, and it's something I'm not going to address too thoroughly because I think it's more proper to talk about it when we cover the book of Matthew.

But I'll say there are some proposals that do not include that the Bible is wrong. I don't think the Bible is wrong. The Bible doesn't contradict itself. Some say that Jeremiah might have said this verbally, but he didn't write it in his book. But Matthew is properly aware that Jeremiah verbally said it. Yeah, maybe.

Another possibility, some say that Matthew was citing just a scroll that had all the prophets. And there were some versions where the prophetic books are on one scroll, and Jeremiah is the first one. So the name Jeremiah is just the title for the whole scroll. That's another one that seems a bit of a stretch to me. Actually, all of these seem a little bit of a stretch, but something must be correct.

Some scholars say that Zechariah here is actually copying something that Jeremiah had written, but Jeremiah had not included it in a scroll, but God inspired Zechariah to include it. Now, if that sounds far-fetched, I'll remind you, when you get to parts of the book of Proverbs, you'll find some places where it says, like, Hezekiah found these things written by Solomon, and Hezekiah copied them out. And there's other places where we see someone copying someone else's works. So it's not inconceivable that Jeremiah somehow is the source of this, but we find it recorded in the book of Zechariah.

Okay, the question is, now we're so close, can you bear with me a couple more minutes? We get to the end of this chapter, then we'll take a break.

So we have this. So we do have the prophecy that we know is fulfilled with Judas and Christ. Christ was betrayed for thirty pieces of silver. It was an insulting amount. Judas throws the money, and they use it to buy a field where he's later buried.

Turning again in verse 14, "Then I cut in two my other staff, Bonds, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel" (Zechariah 11:14).

There we have a question, because the brotherhood between Judah and Israel was broken long before Zechariah prophesied. Is it referencing some future prophecy? Some have said maybe God prevented a reunion earlier, but maybe it's looking at an end-time fulfillment.

I referenced the fact that since 1948, the modern nation of Judah has had a pretty close alliance with the United States. Will there be a falling out? We're going to see in the next prophecy some rather pointed things said about the leaders of Judah, causing offense, being like a firepan in a woodpile. So maybe there is going to be an end to an alliance that was there.

Let's go on in verse 15. "The Lord said to me, Next take for yourself the implements of a foolish shepherd" (Zechariah 11:15).

Been pantomiming a good shepherd, now a foolish shepherd. And he says, "For indeed I will raise up a shepherd" (Zechariah 11:16). So God is prophesying, providing bad leadership. You know, allow bad rulers to come in. "A shepherd in the land who will not care for those who are cut off, nor seek the young, nor heal those who are broken, nor feed those that still stand, but will eat the flesh of the fat and tear their hooves in pieces" (Zechariah 11:16).

"Woe to the worthless shepherd who leaves the flock" (Zechariah 11:17). In John chapter 10, Jesus describes Himself as the good shepherd. And He says, "A hireling flees" (John 10:12) when someone breaks in to harm the sheep, but a good shepherd doesn't. So, "Woe to the worthless shepherd who leaves the flock" (Zechariah 11:17). Jesus talked about that exact thing.

And he's going to come to destruction. "A sword shall be against his arm and against his right eye. His arm shall completely wither, and his right eye shall be totally blinded" (Zechariah 11:17).

I'll say, there's been some speculation you could find about what about his right eye and his arm. And I don't know. I've never come across anything that I thought worthy of sharing in class. Probably has some meaning. I'd rather focus on what we see in verse 16.

And I'll close with this, because if we think of shepherds as representing what a good spiritual leader will do — and of course, if Jesus is the good shepherd, that's great — I'll remind you, the word that's translated pastor is the same word that's translated shepherd. So a pastor is a spiritual shepherd.

I propose that what a bad shepherd does not do is telling us exactly what a good shepherd should do. Okay, so a good shepherd — you know, a man taking care of animals should do these. Let's say a spiritual elder taking care of a flock should, well, should care for those who are cut off. "Cut off" could be lost or separated. You know, a pastor seeks them out and tries to heal the breach.

Seek the young, care for the young. "Young" doesn't have to be young in age. Someone could be new to the truth, as we say, newly called into the church, even if they're in their 70s or 80s.

A pastor needs to take special care of them because it's easy to be offended or led astray when you're inexperienced. Okay, pastors are thinking of this.

Heal those who are broken. Well, rather than heal, let's say take special care and concern. And a pastor will visit those who are in the hospital. He'll go and anoint those who are sick.

But he should also be on the lookout for those who are hurt or harmed spiritually or emotionally, and strive to bring healing. Spend time with that person. Help them work through hurt feelings, through raw emotions.

And I'm saying a pastor should do this. I'm going to confess that that's never been my greatest strength when I was serving a pastoral role, but at least I saw that I needed to work harder at it. And I think we have pastors who do do this extremely well. And I'm proud of the pastors that serve our church.

And of course, it also says, "Feed those that still stand" (Zechariah 11:16). Maintain the good condition of those who are spiritually healthy. We talk about spiritual food that a pastor provides. And hopefully a pastor is thinking of a well-balanced spiritual diet. We don't have all of our sermons on prophecy. We don't have all of them on doctrine. We have a healthy balance. And we help our people.

So, I know most of you in this room aren't heading off to serve as pastors right away, but I hope if that comes up in the future, or you just have an opportunity to assist a pastor, you know, we'll all see this as a responsibility we want to help fulfill.

All right, we pushed on a bit long, so thanks for bearing with me. Let's close this session. Next time, we'll start with the new prophecy in Zechariah 12.