Chapter Thirteen

1–6. The destruction of idolatry and the removal of false prophets. 7–9. God’s judgment upon His people.

Zechariah 13:1. On that day a fountain shall be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness. Following repentance, naturally comes cleansing from sin and sanctification. The availability of this cleansing is depicted under the form of a fountain of cleansing water for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, that is, for all Jews without exception, without distinction of their station.

Zechariah 13:2. And on that day, says the Lord of hosts, I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, and they shall be remembered no more; and I will also remove from the land the false prophets and the unclean spirit. Sin and uncleanness were sustained in the midst of the Jews chiefly by their attachment to idolatry and the activity of false prophets, inspired by an unclean spirit (1 Sam 22:19-23). Henceforward even the names of idols will be forgotten, that is, idolatry will disappear completely; false prophets will cease to appear among the chosen people, the activity of the unclean spirit will be paralyzed (see Cyril, p. 194). With Zechariah, as a predecessor of Malachi, the “seal of the prophets,” in Zech 13:2 and following one can see a hint of the approaching cessation of prophecy in Israel. Here the speech is obviously about false prophets; but the very use of the name nebhiim without a qualifier, according to interpreters’ opinion, testifies that Zechariah has in mind that time when only false prophets will exist (Keil, pp. 642–643; ZAThW 1881, p. 90–91; Koen, Einl. II, p. 14; Smith, p. 484; Marti, p. 449; I. Korsunskii, Jewish Interpretation of the Old Testament, Moscow, 1882, p. 88–89).

Zechariah 13:3. And if anyone again prophesies, his father and his mother who bore him will say to him, “You shall not live, for you speak lies in the name of the Lord”; and his father and his mother who bore him will pierce him through because he prophesied. The aversion to false prophecy will be so strong that parents will not spare their own children, daring to speak lies in the name of the Lord, delivering them to death, as the Law had prescribed (Deut 13:6-11; Deut 18:20; see Keil, p. 642).

Zechariah 13:4. On that day the prophets will be ashamed, each of his vision when he prophesies; and they will not put on a mantle of hair in order to deceive. Zechariah 13:5. Each will say: “I am not a prophet; I am a man working the soil, for the land has been my possession since my youth. And the false prophets themselves will be ashamed of their disreputable activity and will cease to wear the clothing ordinarily used by prophets. Instead of the lofty title of prophet, they will prefer to pose as farmers.

Zechariah 13:6. If someone asks him, “What are these wounds on your hands?” he will answer, “The wounds I received in the house of my loved ones. If anyone had cuts on their hands, made in service to pagan deities, those having them will carefully hide the true cause of their origin, claiming they are blows received from their parents. By those “who loved” one understands the parents of the false prophet, who inflict wounds upon him for the utterance of lies in the name of the Lord.

Zechariah 13:7. Awake, O sword, against My shepherd and against the man who is close to Me, says the Lord of hosts. Strike the shepherd, that the sheep may be scattered; and I will turn My hand against the little ones. At the end of chapter XIII the prophet again depicts God’s judgment upon His people. According to the divine plan of dispensation, the shepherd of the Israeli people, who stands in immediate proximity to God Himself, the divine Person, the Messiah is struck by death. “Strike the shepherd!”—the prophet’s address from God’s behalf to the sword—in the words of Jehovah can be understood in the sense of God’s permission and foreknowledge; yet at the same time there is heard a rebuke toward those who will raise their hand against the Shepherd. Deprived of the shepherd, the sheep are scattered, but they do not perish completely; because God again stretches forth His right hand, defending the little ones, that is, the humble and obedient sheep. “I will turn My hand against the little ones,” that is, against those meek and obedient sheep of whom there was mention in chapter XI, as some researchers suppose. In the Slavonic version the corresponding passage reads: “I will turn My hand upon [the little] shepherds.” According to researchers’ assumption, the LXX either had a scribal error or incorrectly read instead of hazzóarim—haróim (omission of the letter tsade and transposition of letters ayin, yodh, resh); therefore the Alexandrian codex reads τούς ποιμένος (Reinke, p. 265, note). From the combination of the LXX reading according to the Alexandrian and Vatican codices (which corresponds to the Massoretic text, τούς μικρούς) a reading emerged: τούς μικρούς ποιμένας, which is found in Theodoret and our Slavonic version. Aquila’s reading: του (ποιμένας) βραχεῖς (τούς μικρους ποιμένοις), according to Gesenius, means: die Hirtenjungen (the young shepherds); this understanding also aligns with the Haldeic cal tinjanajja—super secundos (over the secondary ones); with this interpretation, the original text and the LXX Alexandrian codex come into complete agreement and do not present any essential disagreement (see Brian Walton, Bibliorum Sacrorum tomus tertius, London, MDCLVI; Field, op. cit.; The Old Testament in Greek according to the Septuagint, edited... by H. B. Swete, Vol. III, Cambridge, 1894; Gesenius, Hebr. W.B., Keil, p. 645; Kohl, Zach. 9–14, p. 241; Marti, p. 443). The Messianic character of Zech 13:7 and following is testified to by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself (Matt 26:31; Mark 14:27). The ancient interpreters understand here by the scattering of the sheep either the prophetic indication of the fact of the scattering of the apostles on that night when Christ was taken for crucifixion (Matt 26:56), or more generally the scattering resulting from persecutions of Christ’s followers (Ephrem, p. 259; Cyril, p. 200; Theodoret, p. 120; Иер 164; see Haupt, pp. 128–129; ZAThW 1891, p. 32).

Zechariah 13:8. And it shall come to pass that in all the land, says the Lord, two-thirds shall be cut off and perish, and one-third shall remain in it. Zechariah 13:9. And I will bring the third part through the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as one tests gold. They will call upon My name, and I will answer them. I will say, “They are My people,” and they will say, “The Lord is our God. Those who were culpable in the death of the Shepherd or sympathized with this evil deed will not escape deserved punishment. In all the land, that is, the land of Israel, two parts of the inhabitants will be cut off and perish, while one part will remain. “The entire Jewish people appears here as the inheritance left behind by the slain Shepherd, which is divided into three parts: of these, death, asserting its right of firstborn, receives two parts, life receives one (Keil, p. 646). But even the remaining third part will be tested and purified by the fire of misfortunes and trials; after that this part shall become truly God’s people, not calling upon God’s name in vain.