Zechariah by Chuck Missler Lesson 11

The predictions of this chapter were given long after the completion
of the Temple of Zerubbabel, and address concerns in the more distant
future from the prophet. There is to be a scattering of the people even
after the time of Zechariah.

This chapter explains why the blessings and promises of the previous
chapter are in abeyance for Israel. By rejecting their true Shepherd-
Messiah at His first advent, they will experience rejection themselves,
climaxing in their taking up with the False Shepherd in the time of
their greatest woe.

It presents the Good Shepherd in His first advent, who will give His
life for the sheep. It will also present a glimpse of another shepherd
who will shear the sheep and kill them for food.

While there are many views as to which desolation Zechariah has in
mind in the highly poetic style of the first 3 verses, the context of the
rest of the chapter suggests that the judgment which resulted from the
rejection of the Shepherd of Israel and the destruction which overtook
the land in 70 A.D. is in view here.

Verse 1]
Open thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour thy cedars.

Lebanon is north of Israel, and takes its name (“White One”) from
the snow-covered mountains in the area.
The cedars of Lebanon furnished the timber for the Temple (1 Kgs 5:6),
and it is thus addressed. This is the ancient rabbinical tradition.

Verse 2]
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.

Bashan was also an area in the northern part of Israel east of the
Jordan River: The Golan.
God’s judgment fell upon the land from north to south in 70 A.D.

Voice of Lions
Verse 3]
[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.

The verb destroy, passive intensive of "shadad" (3X: v.2; 2X v.3), and
the “wailing” or “howling” (2X as an imperative (v.2), once as a noun
(v.3); and the interjectional idea “listen!”—all speak to the severity, the
reality, and the suffering, of the coming judgment upon the land.

The Flock
Verse 4]
Thus saith the Lord my God; Feed [tend?] the flock of the slaughter;

This a commission of the Son of God by the Father: The Messiah is
given the task of feeding the flock of slaughter.
Ra’ah = pasture, tend, graze, feed (Ps 23:1-6. Cf. Ru’ah, Spirit) the
flock destined for butchering.

Verse 5]
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.

Terrifying! Untold suffering lies ahead. And their own unprincipled
teachers and rulers—while claiming piety in bare-faced hypocrisy.
Their avarice proved to be colossal.

Verse 6]
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 neighbor’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].

“We have no king but Caesar,” (Jn 19:15).

How accurately this portrays the Roman invasion and the disasters of
the late 1st and the 2nd centuries... and destructive measures the Romans
used to crush the Jewish state. Over 1,100,000 Jews perished in the
fall of Jerusalem, and a half million more died during the course of
the war and siege.
...With the Diaspora following... and the centuries of abandonment
under the Ottoman Empire, etc.

Verse 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.

[Compare the rod and staff of Psalm 23:4. These were to protect
the sheep against a two-fold danger: outward enemies and inward
strife.]

Beauty (“grace, or graciousness; pleasantness”); Naomi is of the same
root, Na’om. (v.9 is an antithesis) Like a shepherd’s crook used to
keep the sheep in line.

Bands (word has to do with making a covenant; Hobhelim: hobbel,
bind, pledge.) A heavy stick, used to fight off wild animals or those
who would try to steal the sheep.

False Leadership
Verse 8]
Three shepherds also I cut off in one month; and my soul lothed them, and
their soul also abhorred me.

[Over 40 interpretations of the three shepherds... none convincing.
“In one month” suggests their own national leaders, in rejecting their
promised Messiah, sealed the fate of the Jewish state. They rejected
Him and He rejected them.]

God made a covenant with the peoples of the earth relative to His
own people Israel. He has placed them under restraint lest they work
Israel harm or ill (Gen 12:3; Cf. Job 5:23; Ezek 34:25; Hos 2:18ff).

When this restraint was removed, the Romans destroyed their city
and economy. Neither Alexander, nor Antiochus Epiphanes, nor
Pompey was allowed to mar their national existence. But when the
Messiah broke His staff, neither Titus nor his generals could spare
the Temple, nor could Julian the Apostate later restore it (Cf. Lk
19:41-44; 21:24).

Verse 9]
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.

Against the false leadership: remember Malachi had also described
their stinginess and failure to offer proper sacrifices. Rather than offer
sickly offerings, “let them die.”

Josephus records the famine and cannibalism during the siege of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. [Wars of the Jews, VI, 201-13] Cf. Deut 28:54-57;
Lam 4:10. See Ezek 6:12.
The Shepherd withdraws from his traditional care... Disowned and
disclaimed by the Good Shepherd, the sheep are exposed to destruction by their enemies.

The Broken Staff
verse 10]
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.

“Cut it asunder” or chopped it to pieces. His patience finally exhausted.

Berith, “an agreement,” from the root barah, to cut up, as in sacrificing
animals to seal the contract (Gen 15:10), or to eat a banquet together
to seal a friendship (Gen 31:54).

God’s grace and mercy will be withdrawn. His promises to them (10:6)
had been conditioned upon obedience. The unconditional promises
are not the ones in view here. Here we are dealing with the divine
restraint upon the nations preventing the decimation of Israel. This
holding in check of forces inimical to Israel is spoken of under the
figure of a covenant (Job 5:23; Hos 2:18, 20; Ezek 34:25).
[Remember, we too are called to holiness...]

Verse 11]
And it was broken [annulled] in that day: and so the poor of the flock that
waited upon me knew that it [was] the word of the Lord.

Mt 23:1-39. The summary of all history. The willing heart, then
as now, perceived the truth and intent of God through His servant.
[If we know that the Bible is the Word of God, we find that apologet-
ics seems a waste of time. We don’t need to “prove” that the Bible
is true. It can take care of itself.]

[In Hebrew style, an effect is often stated first, then the cause is pre-
sented afterward. The cause—the rejection of the Good Shepherd—is
now commented upon...]

The Good Shepherd

verse 12]
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.

Discounted goods? This was the price of a gored slave (Ex 21:32;
the “ox” shall, indeed, be “stoned”: Rev 16:21). A freeman was
considered worth twice that amount.

Verse 13]
And the Lord said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly [fancy] 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.

Cf. Matthew 27:3-10. It was not lawful to put the money into the
treasury since it was “blood money” (Cf. Deut 23:18); but nothing
prevented them from pre-paying anticipated expenses with it.
One of the most remarkable prophecies in the Bible:

1) The price: 30 pieces of silver
2) The site of the transaction: the Temple
3) The ultimate recipient: a potter
4) The nature of the transaction: the purchase of blood.

This is alluded to in Jeremiah 18:1-4 and quoted in Zechariah 11:12-
13. In Jesus’ day, Jeremiah was the first in the roll of the books of
the prophets (Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Isaiah, et al.) and that section was
designated by the name of the first book. [Talmudic tradition, also.]
Cf. Lk 24:44, where “Psalms” indicated the 3rd division of the Hebrew canon.

The Second Staff Broken
Verse 14]
Then I cut asunder mine other staff, [even] Bands, that I might break the
brotherhood between [with] Judah and Israel.

Thus is severed the relationships between Judah and Israel. The
internal strife and divisions contributed largely to the downfall of
Judea. Titus would soon scatter them all over the world...

The breaking of the first staff preceded; the breaking of the 2nd staff
succeeded.

They are (temporarily) blinded (Lk 19:42) until the “fullness of the
Gentiles” is come in (Rom 11:25).
Between vv. 14 & 15 comes the entire Church period.

In His reading of Isaiah 6 1:1, 2 in Luke 4:16-21, the interval im-
plied when Jesus stopped at the comma (v.19) has now begun. That
“comma” has lasted almost 2,000 years... Cf. Dan 9:26; Rev 12:5
vs. 6; et al.

The Coming World Leader: The Terrible Tyrant
Verse 15]
And the Lord said unto me, Take unto thee yet [again] the instruments of a
foolish shepherd.

This will be a specific false “shepherd” and Terrible Tyrant yet to
be seen on the horizon. John 5:43! OT: “Foolishness” = moral lack
and failure.

The world seems to be getting ready to welcome a leader with answers.
Some Bible experts believe he might even appear as an “alien” or with
“alien” connections—with lying signs and wonders... (Dan 11:36-39;
2 Thess 2:1-12; Rev 13:1-10 or 11-18?)
(The opposite of what he should be: Isa 42:3; Jer 23:1ff; Ezek 34:1ff;
Jn 10: 12, 13.)

Verse 16]
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.

Notice the contrast with the Good Shepherd: he will feed on the sheep
rather than feed them.

Verse 17]
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.

Woe: ‘oi an onomatopoetic interjection commonly used in laments (1
Kgs 13:30; Jer 22:18; Isa 1:4), here attest to the coming judgment.

“...the idol shepherd”: involving false worship. This appears to be
the Coming World Leader: He “enforces the covenant” (Dan 9:27).
In the first part of the “70th Week” of Daniel, Israel will believe they
have (finally) received peace. But midway, he has become so powerful
he sets himself up to be worshiped—the abomination of desolation
(2 Thess 2:3-10).

Physical Description?
“Arm... right eye...” These specific designations are, indeed, provocative:

“Dried up” = shriveled (1 Kings 13:4).
“Darkened” kahah, to grow dim or faint; blind.

These seem too specific to be figurative. These appear to be the only
physical descriptions of the Coming World Leader in Scripture. In
Revelation, we find that he receives a mortal head wound that appears
to be miraculously healed. (Rev 13:3, 12, 14. Cf. Ps 68:21?)

Could the impaired arm and right eye be a vestige of this head wound?
Could this be why his loyal followers receive his mark on their right
hand or forehead? (Rev 13:16). Thus, this chapter opens the way for
the climactic portions of the book which begin in Chapter 12...

“In that day” = 17X
“Jerusalem” = 22X
“Nations” = 13X

[Note: We should not be looking for him. So what if the tribulation
seems near.]
We are looking forward to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb! We
should be asking a different set of questions:
Do they serve seconds?
Who will we be sitting with?
What will we be wearing? Etc.

Jesus has been working in the potter’s field for a long time now. He
purchased it. But He paid much more than 30 pieces of silver for it.

And He did, indeed, purchase it with blood: His.
He purchased this entire field—the world—filled with broken lives;
broken physically, mentally, morally, spiritually...

The Great Potter takes the clay that should be thrown away, puts on
the wheel of circumstance, and shapes it into a vessel of honor. If
we let Him.

Are you completely yielded to Him in your life?

Some Chuck Missler lessons and talks:
https://rumble.com/c/c-3633088

Sermons, My Dutch Uncle John's video's, audio bibles, windows privacy help and more!
https://rumble.com/user/Bitcoin01

https://rumble.com/user/DutchUncleJohn

Prophecy Simplified (previously What is truth?)
https://rumble.com/c/c-6844258

Audio bible books and many biblical movies
https://rumble.com/user/drcervantes

Walter Veith - Total Onslaught
My original Greek friends
https://rumble.com/c/c-5247424?e9s=src_v1_cbl

here is the complete series:
https://rumble.com/c/c-7750566

Also Amazing Discoveries website with a TV channel (haven't watched it yet), and Walter Veith, his videos, and seminars-
https://amazingdiscoveries.org/