Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Zechariah 11:17
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.
17. idol shepherd ] Rather, worthless shepherd: lit. shepherd of nothingness, or worthlessness. Comp. “physicians of no value,” Job 13:4.
leaveth the flock ] Comp. Joh 10:12.
the sword ] To be taken perhaps metaphorically of punishment or visitation: “per gladium quamlibet speciem pn designat.” Calv. The particular kind of punishment then follows, in the withering of the arm and blinding of the eye.
The Second Burden. Chaps. 12 14. Like the First Burden of the Word of Jehovah, this Second extends over three chapters and contains two chief sections or prophecies. Of these the first reaches from Zec 12:1 to Zec 13:6; the second is comprised in the remainder of the Book.
The First Section contains three subdivisions, viz. Jehovah’s protection of His people from their enemies, Zec 12:1-9; their penitent sorrow for sin, Zec 12:10-14; their worthy fruits of repentance, Zec 13:1-6.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Woe to the idol shepherd – (A shepherd of nothingness, one who hath no quality of a shepherd 😉 who leaveth the flock. The condemnation of the evil shepherd is complete in the abandonment of the sheep; as our Lord says, He that is an hireling and not the Shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming and leaveth the sheep and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling and careth not for the sheep Joh 10:12-13.
Or it may equally be, Shepherd, thou idol, including the original meaning of nothingness, such as antichrist will be, (Jerome), while he calleth himself God, and willeth to be worshiped. Jerome: This shepherd shall therefore arise in Israel, because the true Shepherd had said, I will not feed you. He is prophesied of by another name in Daniel the prophet Dan. 9, and in the Gospel Mark 13, and in the Epistle of Paul to the Thessalonians 2 Thes 2, as the abomination of desolation, who shall sit in the temple of the Lord, and make himself as God. He cometh not to heal but to destroy the flock of Israel. This shepherd the Jews shall receive, whom the Lord Jesus shall slay with the breath of His mouth; and destroy with the brightness of His coming?
The sword shall be upon – (against) his arm and right eye His boast shall be of intelligence, and might. The punishment and destruction shall be directed against the instrument of each, the eye and the arm. Jerome: The eye, whereby he shall boast to behold acutely the mysteries of God, and to see more than all prophets heretofore, so that he shall call himself son of God. But the word of the Lord shall be upon his arm and upon his right eye, so that his strength and all his boast of might shall be dried up, and the knowledge which he promised himself falsely, shall be obscured in everlasting darkness. (Dionysius: Above and against the power of antichrist, shall be the virtue and vengeance and sentence of Christ, who shall slay him with the breath of His mouth. The right arm, the symbol of might, and the right eye which was to direct its aim, should fail together, through the judgment of God against him. He, lately boastful and persecuting shall become blind and powerless, bereit alike of wisdom and strength.
The right in Holy Scripture being so often a symbol of what is good, the left of what is evil, it may be also imagined, that (Osorius), the left eye, that is, the acumen and cunning to devise deadly frauds, will remain uninjured: while the right eye, that is, counsel to guard against evil, will be sunk in thick darkness. And so, the more he employs his ability to evil, the more frantically will he bring to bear destruction upon himself:
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 17. Wo to the idol shepherd] roi haelil, “the worthless,” or “good for nothing shepherd.” The shepherd in name and office, but not performing the work of one. See Joh 10:11.
The sword shall be upon his arm] Punishment shall be executed upon the wicked Jews, and especially their wicked kings and priests. See Zec 11:16.
Arm – the secular power; right eye – the ecclesiastical state.
His arm shall be clean dried up] The secular power shall be broken, and become utterly inefficient.
His right eye shall be utterly darkened] Prophecy shall be restrained; and the whole state, ecclesiastical and civil, shall be so completely eclipsed, that none of their functions shall be performed. This may refer to the worthless and wicked governor mentioned in the preceding verse.
There are several things in this chapter that are very obscure, and we can hardly say what opinion is right; nor is it at all clear whether they refer to a very early or late period of the Jewish history.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Woe to the idol shepherd! to every one of them that are but the images of shepherds, worthless and useless.
That leaveth, casts off the care of,
the flock, Jer 23:1; Eze 34:2.
The sword, of the enemy, shall be upon his arm, to break his strength, and upon his right eye; blind and befool his counsels.
His arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened; power and policy shall fail him: such shall be their governors.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
17. the idolThe Hebrewexpresses both vanity and an idol. Compare Isa 14:13;Dan 11:36; 2Th 2:4;Rev 13:5; Rev 13:6,as to the idolatrous and blasphemous claims of Antichrist. The “idolshepherd that leaveth the flock” cannot apply to Rome,but to some ruler among the Jews themselves, at first cajoling, then”leaving” them, nay, destroying them (Dan 9:27;Dan 11:30-38). God’s swordshall descend on his “arm,” the instrument of his tyrannytowards the sheep (2Th 2:8); andon his “right eye,” wherewith he ought to have watched thesheep (Joh 10:12; Joh 10:13).However, Antichrist shall destroy, rather than “leavethe flock.” Perhaps, therefore, the reference is to theshepherds who left the flock to Antichrist’s rapacity, andwho, in just retribution, shall feel his “sword” on their”arm,” which ought to have protected the flock but did not,and on their “eye,” which had failed duly to watch thesheep from hurt. The blinding of “the right eye” hasattached to it the notion of ignominy (1Sa11:2).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Woe to the idol shepherd,…. Or, “the shepherd of nothing” w; that is, no true shepherd, that is good for nothing, for an idol is nothing in the world, 1Co 8:4 and who is an idol himself, sits in the temple of God, and is worshipped as if he was God. 2Th 2:4 and is an encourager and defender of idolatry:
that leaveth the flock; has no regard to its spiritual concerns; does not feed it, but fleece it, and leaves it to the cruelty and avarice of his creatures under him:
the sword [shall be] upon his arm; with which he should feed the flock:
and upon his right eye; with which he should watch over it:
his arm shall be clean dried up; his power shall be taken away from him; the antichristian states, which supported him, shall withdraw from him; the ten kings shall hate the whore, strip her naked, eat her flesh, and burn her with fire, Re 17:16:
and his right eye shall be utterly darkened; not only given up to judicial blindness, which has been always his case; but his kingdom shall be full of darkness, Re 16:10 his hidden things of darkness shall be exposed; all his crafty schemes will be confounded; and all his wit, cunning, and subtlety, will cease; and everything desirable to him will be taken away from him. His “arm” may denote his secular power, which shall be taken away from him: and his “right eye” his knowledge of the Scriptures, judgment in controversies, and infallibility pretended to by him, which wilt cease, even in the opinion of men. Ben Melech interprets it the eye of his heart or mind; and so Aben Ezra.
w “pastori nihili”, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Drusius, So R. So. Urbin. Ohel Moed, fol. 4. 2.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
In this verse the Prophet teaches us, that though God would inflict a deserved punishment on the Jews, yet the shepherds themselves would not escape his vengeance; and thus he reminds them, that even in such a confused and depressed state of things, he would still in some degree remember his covenant. He addresses the Shepherds themselves, for he speaks not of one, but of the whole number, as it has already been stated.
Woe to the baseless shepherd, he says; the word אליל, alil, means in Hebrew a thing of nought, and hence idols were called אלילים, alilim, nothings; “Those useless shepherds,” (149) he says, “who forsake the flock.” He again shows by an explicit term, that those whom he called shepherds were not worthy of so honorable a title. He then only concedes the name, for a shepherd who is not solicitous for the safety of his flock, clearly proves that he is really no shepherd. He then denounces on him a punishment, A sword, he says, on his right arm and on his right eye! By the sword he means any kind of punishment, by the arm is to be understood strength, and by the eye prudence. He means, “God will punish thee both in soul and body, for his curse shall be on thy strength and on thine understanding.” Hence he says, Dry up shall his arm. This seems not indeed to correspond with the metaphor of the sword, but it matters not, for the Prophet, as we have said, includes under that word every kind of punishment. Dry up then shall his arm, that is, all its vigor shall cease, so as to become like a piece of decayed wood; and his right eye, the soundness of his mind or his right understanding, shall by contracting be contracted; some read, shall be darkened; but the verb properly signifies, to wrinkle, as it appears from other places, and I can find no better way of expressing its meaning than by saying that the eye would be contracted. (150)
I have briefly explained the object of the Prophet, even that God would so punish the wickedness of the people, as not to allow those shepherds to escape whom he would employ as instruments in executing his vengeance. For though they were under the direction of divine power, we must yet hold this principle, that they had nothing in common with God; for mere ambition, avarice, and cruelty instigated them; and nothing was farther from their purpose than to obey God: but he extorted service from the unwilling and even the ignorant — for what end? that he might render to the ungrateful, the wicked, and the perverse, in their own sinful ways, the reward which they deserved. We then see that the design of God’s vengeance is just; and we also see that the instruments he employs are ungodly: there is therefore no reason for them to think that they shall be unpunished, because they accomplish God’s purpose, for they do not intend any such thing.
We must also bear in mind, that when the extreme rigour of God prevails, there still remains some evidence of his favor, for some seed, though few in number, is still perpetuated; for the Church is never so completely abolished as not to leave any remnants, for whose safety God is pleased to provide when he executes his vengeance, inasmuch as he stretches forth his hand at the same time against the ministers he has employed, because they had cruelly abused their power. So also at this day the milted bishops shall be made to know how precious to God is the safety of his Church; for though almost all the people and almost every individual are worthy of the most tyrannical cruelty, yet we know that some are found in that labyrinth for whom God has a care. Though then they who at this day possess power under the Papacy think themselves innocent, while they are robbers and wolves, they shall yet find that God is a righteous judge, who will visit their abominable cruelty: for the disorder of the Church is not its destruction, as God ever preserves some remnant.
We also see that the whole strength of men depends on the grace of God; and farther, that a sound mind proceeds from his Spirit: for since it is he who takes away from men both their strength and a right judgment, we hence conclude that to give these things is also in his power. Let men then know that in order to possess due courage and strength, they are to rely on the hidden power of God; and let them also know that in order to discern what is useful and profitable, they must be governed by his Spirit; and let those especially who bear rule be assured of this, that when they exercise power in peace, it is God’s singular gift, and that when they rightly govern their subjects, and are endued with sound discretion, it is wholly to be ascribed to an influence from above.
But it may be asked, how can this harmonise — that those who were before useless are deprived of understanding and strength? To this I answer — that it is the same as though the Prophet had said, that the baseness of him who was previously an useless shepherd would be made conspicuous to all. For however deficient they might have been in their office, they yet for a time deceived the simple multitude; nay, we see at this day how the milted bishops and abbots and their whole company by their delusive splendor, dazzle the eyes of most men: they believe that the Pope is the vicar of God, and the rest the successors of the apostles! But the Prophet here testifies, that when the ripened time shall come, their shameful conduct shall be made evident, so that all shall treat them with contempt, and that they shall become an abomination to all. Though then they may be counted wise and held in admiration, or at least in honor, yet Zechariah threatens them with the loss of both; for God’s curse lies on them, on their arms, and on their right eyes. This is the import of the passage. I shall begin the next chapter tomorrow.
(149) “Worthless shepherd,” is the version of Newcome, and Henderson, and also of Drusius, Bochart, Piscator, and Marckius. Our version follows Jerome, who renders it “ idolum — idol.” Parkhurst considers it in the sense of nought, nothing, vain, nothing-worth, and refers to Job 13:4, and Jer 14:14. — Ed.
(150) To render the metaphor consistent, Dathius has rendered [ חרב ], not sword, but drought or dryness, which it sometimes means. Then the verse would be —
17. Woe to the worthless shepherd, Who forsakes the flock! A drought shall be on his arm, And on the eye of his right hand: ( i e. on his right eye:) His arm, withering it shall wither; And his right eye, shrinking it shall shrink.
Both Newcome and Henderson render the last line as in our version; but restraint, or contraction, or shrinking is the idea included in the verb. When there are no humors sufficient for the eye, it contracts, it shrinks, and this corresponds with the drought. — Ed.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(17) Idol shepherd.Better, useless shepherd. Though the wicked useless shepherd is allowed for a time to ill-treat and neglect the flock, in the end the judgment of God will fall upon him. (Comp. Dan. 7:26; and for the date of the prophecies of Daniel, see Introduction to that book.) Ewald has maintained that the passage Zec. 13:7-9 is out of place where it now stands, and that it ought to be transferred to the end of this chapter. There is apparently some truth in this supposition. In particular, the expression Awake, O sword, against my shepherd (Zec. 13:7) seems to follow naturally after Zec. 11:17. The expression my fellow (Zec. 13:7) would certainly be rather a strong one to be used of a foolish shepherd; but still, all shepherds of the people, whether good or bad, are looked upon as Gods ministers and representatives, so that we cannot regard the use of this expression as fatal to Ewalds theory. The reader is recommended to turn to Zec. 13:7-9 (and Notes), and to read that passage in close connection with Zec. 11:15-17, and to judge for himself.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
17. The present hopeless condition is not to continue forever; Jehovah has sent it as a judgment for the rejection of the good shepherd, but he will again have mercy; the foolish shepherd will be removed.
Woe to the idol shepherd Better, R.V., “worthless shepherd.” He is doomed.
That leaveth the flock To destruction (compare Joh 10:12). The succeeding words should be translated as an imprecatory clause, “A sword upon his arm and upon his right eye!” May the arm which should have guarded and protected the flock be cut off, and may the eyes which should have selected good pasture and should have watched against danger be destroyed. That this will happen is affirmed in the rest of the verse. The arm will wither and the eye will lose its sight. The forms of judgment prayed for and threatened in the two clauses do not seem to harmonize. If a sword were used against the arm the result would hardly be a withering of the same. In view of this fact some commentators read, with a slight change in the vocalization of a single consonant, drought drying up, withering instead of sword. This change, “drought upon his arm and upon his right eye,” would bring the two clauses into perfect accord. On the other hand, it has been suggested that the two different kinds of punishment are placed together so as to emphasize the “greatness and terrible nature of the judgment.” If Zec 13:7-9, is the original continuation of Zec 11:17 (see introductory remarks on Zec 13:7-9), the present reading, “sword,” is to be retained ( compare Zec 13:7).
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
REFLECTIONS.
Reader! how awful this Chapter begins, and how awful it ends. The doors are to be opened, to burn the whole dwelling that reject Christ; and the foolish shepherd, and the idle, that direct men from Christ, are to beset forth awful, and tremendous examples, of suffering vengeance from God, The sword is to be upon the arm, and upon the right eye; the one sinew shrank, and the other utterly darkened. Lord! in mercy, send pastors, faithful pastors, to thy people, after thine own heart, that shall instruct them with true understanding and knowledge!
Precious Lord Jesus! relieve my soul from such awful contemplations, as unfaithful, idle, and foolish shepherds raise up to the view of thine unequalled Pastorage, men after thine own heart, for care over thy people! And was it so, dearest Lord, that a price so low and contemptible was given for thee, thou Great and Almighty Shepherd! A goodly price indeed, ye Jewish rulers, you gave for my Lord! Lamb of God! be thou to me the pearl of great price! All the riches of the earth are not to be compared to thee, thou Lord of life and glory. Lord! enable me by thy grace, as a goodly merchant-man seeking pearls and finding thee, to go and sell all I have, and purchase thee, without money and without price. And may I be enabled, thou blessed Lord, in beholding the staves of Beauty, and of Bands, to value and prize thine everlasting Gospel, and no longer cleave to a covenant of works. Oh! for help to bless God, that I am not under the law, but under grace, and alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord!
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Zec 11:17 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.
Ver. 17. Woe to the idol shepherd ] The Vulgate hath, O pastor et idolum, O thou shepherd and idol; thou that hast the show only and semblance of a shepherd, the name, but not the thing; thou that art the ape of a shepherd, non verus sed vanus, non virus sed pictus et fictus pastor, that art cleped a shepherd, as an idol is a god; but shouldest be called rather a dumb dog, a greedy dog; a shepherd that cannot understand, Isa 56:10-11 , a foolish shepherd, as Zec 11:15 , an , one that hath nothing in him of any true worth, but art vain and vile, and of no value, as this word is rendered, Job 13:4 ; Job 11:17 ( Per agnominationem alludit ad through an alteriteration with Zec 11:15 ). Vae, vae, vae, tibi. Alas, alas, alas to you, Christ, the great Shepherd of the sheep, will surely pull off thy vizor, wash off thy varnish with rivers of brimstone, brand thee for a hireling,
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
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
idol = idol’s. For the sequel to this prophecy see Zec 13:7-9.
clean dried up = withered.
darkened = blinded.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Woe: Jer 22:1, Eze 13:3, Eze 34:2, Mat 23:13, Mat 23:16, Luk 11:42-52
idol: Isa 9:15, Isa 44:10, Jer 23:32, 1Co 8:4, 1Co 10:19, 1Co 10:20
that leaveth: Joh 10:12, Joh 10:13
the sword: Isa 6:9, Isa 6:10, Isa 29:10, Isa 42:19, Isa 42:20, Jer 50:35-37, Hos 4:5-7, Amo 8:9, Amo 8:10, Mic 3:6, Mic 3:7, Joh 9:39, Joh 12:40, Rom 11:7
his arm: 1Sa 2:31, 1Ki 13:4, Eze 30:22-24
Reciprocal: Psa 10:15 – Break Psa 137:5 – let my right Jer 13:20 – where Jer 22:22 – thy pastors Jer 23:1 – Woe Eze 34:21 – ye have Zec 10:3 – anger Mat 12:10 – which Luk 6:6 – there Luk 10:2 – are Luk 20:7 – that Joh 5:3 – withered Act 20:29 – not Rom 11:10 – their eyes 1Pe 5:2 – the flock
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Zec 11:17. This verse is a summing up of the entire chapter. The unfaithful Jewish leaders are condemned to complete rejection.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Zec 11:17. Wo to the idol shepherd Or the shepherd of nothing, or of no value, as should be translated; he who calls himself the shepherd, ruler, or teacher of the people, but is in reality nothing less. So , Job 13:4, signifies physicians of no value. That leaveth the flock Who taketh no care of the flock, and minds nothing but making his own profit out of them. Such a shepherd is no better than an idol, that is profitable for nothing, (Isa 44:10,) and hath only the outward form and appearance of a shepherd. The sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye As he has abused his power and his understanding, signified by his arm and his right eye, God shall in his just judgment, deprive him of the use of both those faculties. The sword is put for any instrument of the divine vengeance. As the word here rendered sword, also means desolation, Blayney renders the clause, Because of his arm is desolation, and because of his right eye: observing, The purport of the passage is, that since, through the misapplication of his power, and through his negligence in watching over the flock, they are subjected to desolation or the sword; therefore, as of strict justice, he shall be punished with a deprivation at least of those faculties which he so fatally misused. Some think the right arm and right eye of the people are intended, and observe, that the arm of the Jews was dried up from that time when they were no longer able to bear arms, or to defend themselves; as their right eye has been darkened to the true knowledge of the Scriptures, which they read as with a veil before them.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
11:17 Woe to the idle shepherd that leaveth the flock! the sword [shall be] upon his {t} arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be wholly dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened.
(t) By the arm he signifies strength, as he does wisdom and judgments by the eye: that is, the plague of God will take away both your strength and judgment.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
God pronounced judgment on the worthless shepherd for abandoning the flock (cf. Jer 50:35-37). This condemnation applies to all the evil kings of Israel and Judah who had let their people down, but one particular individual is in view primarily. Yahweh would paralyze this man’s power (arm) and nullify his intelligence (eye) rendering him incapable of hurting others or defending himself.
Who is this bad shepherd? Some students of history have seen Bar Kokhba as at least a partial fulfillment. He led the ineffective Jewish revolt against the Romans in A.D. 132-135, and some in his day hailed him as the Messiah. Others see the fulfillment in "all those leaders of Israel, who, under the guise of shepherds, misled and harmed the poor flock . . . ever since Zechariah’s day, especially since the time that the nation has rejected the Christ." [Note: Leupold, p. 219.] However the ultimate fulfillment must be the Antichrist who will make a covenant with Israel but then break it and proceed to persecute the Jews (Eze 34:2-4; Dan 9:27; Dan 11:36-39; Joh 5:43; 2Th 2:3-10; Rev 13:1-8). Perhaps the whole collective leadership of Israel from Zechariah’s time forward culminating in Antichrist is in view. [Note: Merrill, p. 303.]
"The judgment here (Zec 11:17) brings to a close the cycle of prophecy which began with judgment (Zec 9:1). Judgment has gone from the circumference (the nations) to the center (Israel); Zechariah will yet reveal that in blessing the direction will be from the center (Israel) to the circumference (the nations) as in chapter 14." [Note: Feinberg, God Remembers, pp. 213-14.]
"With this climactic scene the first prophetic burden describing the first advent and rejection of Messiah, the Shepherd-King (chapters 9-11) comes to a close. The way is thus opened for the second burden and the second advent and acceptance of Messiah, the King (chapters 12-14)." [Note: Unger, p. 205.]