Zechariah 11 · Verse 8

Zechariah 11:8

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

Zechariah 11:8, King James Version

Zechariah 11:8 in other translations

BSB	And in one month I dismissed three shepherds. My soul grew impatient with the flock, and their souls also detested me.
WEB	I cut off the three shepherds in one month; for my soul was weary of them, and their soul also loathed me.
ASV	And I cut off the three shepherds in one month; for my soul was weary of them, and their soul also loathed me.
YLT	And I cut off the three shepherds in one month, and my soul is grieved with them, and also their soul hath abhorred me.
DARBY	And I destroyed three shepherds in one month; and my soul was vexed with them, and their soul also loathed me.
BBE	And in one month I put an end to the three keepers of the flock; for my soul was tired of them, and their souls were disgusted with me.
Webster	Three shepherds also I cut off in one month; and my soul lothed them, and their soul also abhorred me.

What does Zechariah 11:8 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown

8. Three shepherds ... I cut off--literally, "to cause to disappear," to destroy so as not to leave a vestige of them. The three shepherds whom Messiah removes are John, Simon, and Eleazar, three leaders of factions in the Jewish war [Drusius]. Or, as Messiah, the Antitype, was at once prophet, priest, and king, so He by the destruction of the Jewish polity destroyed these three orders for the unbelief of both the rulers and people [Moore]. If they had accepted Messiah, they would have had all three combined in Him, and would have been themselves spiritually prophets, priests, and kings to God. Refusing Him, they lost all three, in every sense. one month--a brief and fixed space of time (Ho 5:7). Probably alluding to the last period of the siege of Jerusalem, when all authority within the city was at an end [Henderson]. loathed them--literally, "was straitened" as to them; instead of being enlarged towards them in love (2Co 6:11, 12). The same Hebrew as in Nu 21:4, Margin. No room was left by them for the grace of God, as His favors were rejected [Calvin]. The mutual distaste that existed between the holy Messiah and the guilty Jews is implied.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Verse 8 Three shepherds also I cut off in one month - Taking this literally, some think the three shepherds mean the three Maccabees, Judas, Jonathan, and Simon; others, the three wicked high priests, Jason, Alcimus, and Menelaus; others, the three last princes of the Asmonean race, Alexander, Hyrcanus, and Antigonus. Perhaps three orders may be intended: 1. The priesthood. 2. The dictatorship, including the Scribes, Pharisees, etc. 3. The magistracy, the great sanhedrin, and the smaller councils. These were all annihilated by the Roman conquest.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Zechariah 11:4-14

Christ came into this world for judgment to the Jewish church and nation, which were wretchedly corrupt and degenerate. Those have their minds wofully blinded, who do ill, and justify themselves in it; but God will not hold those guiltless who hold themselves so. How can we go to God to beg a blessing on unlawful methods of getting wealth, or to return thanks for success in them? There was a general decay of…

Read the full comment on Zechariah 11:4-14 →

Zechariah 11:8 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וָאַכְחִ֛דva.'akh.Chidand I annihilatedH3582

אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853

שְׁלֹ֥שֶׁתshe.Lo.shet[the] threeH7969

הָרֹעִ֖יםha.ro.'Imthe shepherdsH7462

בְּיֶ֣רַחbe.Ye.rachin a monthH3391

אֶחָ֑ד'e.ChadoneH259

וַתִּקְצַ֤רva.tik.Tzarand it was shortH7114

נַפְשִׁי֙naf.Shiself myH5315

בָּהֶ֔םba.Hemwith them

וְגַם\־ve.gam-and alsoH1571

נַפְשָׁ֖םnaf.Shamself theirH5315

בָּחֲלָ֥הba.cha.Lahit loathedH973

בִֽי\׃Vi<in> me

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Zechariah 11:8

John 15:18
If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.
John 7:7
The world cannot hate you; but me it hateth, because I testify of it, that the works thereof are evil.
Matthew 23:34-36
Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.
Isaiah 49:7
Thus saith the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the Lord that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee.
Hosea 5:7
They have dealt treacherously against the Lord: for they have begotten strange children: now shall a month devour them with their portions.
John 15:23-25
He that hateth me hateth my Father also. If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father. But this cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause.
Luke 19:14
But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us.
Jeremiah 12:8
Mine heritage is unto me as a lion in the forest; it crieth out against me: therefore have I hated it.
Jeremiah 14:21
Do not abhor us, for thy name’s sake, do not disgrace the throne of thy glory: remember, break not thy covenant with us.
Hebrews 10:38
Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
Matthew 24:50-51
The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Leviticus 26:30
And I will destroy your high places, and cut down your images, and cast your carcases upon the carcases of your idols, and my soul shall abhor you.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

in.
Ho 5:7; Mt 23:34-36; 24:50,51
and my.
Le 26:11,30,44; De 32:19; Ps 5:5; 78:9; 106:40; Jer 12:8; 14:21
Ho 9:15; Heb 10:38
lothed them. Heb. was straitened for them.
Isa 49:7; Lu 12:50; 19:14; Joh 7:7; 15:18,23-25

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

Zechariah 11:7
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.
Zechariah 11:8
Three shepherds also I cut off in one month; and my soul lothed them, and their soul also abhorred me.
Zechariah 11:9
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.

Read all of Zechariah 11

Zechariah 11:8 in other languages

Spanish Reina-Valera 1909	E hice matar tres pastores en un mes, y mi alma se angustió por ellos, y también el alma de ellos me aborreció á mí.
French Bible J.N. Darby 1885	Et je détruisis trois des bergers en un mois, et mon âme fut ennuyée d’eux, et leur âme aussi se dégoûta de moi.
German Elberfelder 1871	Und ich vertilgte drei Hirten in einem Monat. Und meine Seele wurde ungeduldig über sie, und auch ihre Seele wurde meiner überdrüssig.
Latin Clementine Vulgate	Et succidi tres pastores in mense uno, et contracta est anima mea in eis, siquidem et anima eorum variavit in me.