Глава 13

1–6. The destruction of idolatry and the removal of false prophets. 7–9. Judgment on the people of God. Zechariah 13:1. On that day a fountain will be opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem for the washing away of sin and uncleanness. Repentance naturally follows cleansing from sin and sanctification. The availability of this purification is depicted as a source of purifying water for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, that is, for all Jews without exception, regardless of their status. Zechariah 13:2. And it will come to pass in that day, says the Lord of hosts, that I will destroy the names of the idols from the land, and they will be mentioned no more, just as I will remove the false prophets and the unclean spirit from the land. Sin and uncleanness were maintained among the Jews, mainly by attachment to idolatry and the activities of false prophets inspired by an unclean spirit (1 Kings 22:19-23). From now on, 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 Cyrus 194). In Zechariah, as the predecessor of Malachi, the “seal of the prophets,” in Zechariah 13:2 et seq. one can see a hint of the imminent end of prophecy in Israel. Here we are obviously talking about false prophets; but the very use of the name nethíim without a definition, according to interpreters, indicates that Zechariah is referring to the time when only false prophets will exist (Keil 642–643; Zatw 1881, 90–91; Koen Einl. II, 14; Smith 484, Marti 449; I. Korsunsky, Jewish interpretation of the Old Testament. Moscow, 1882, pp. 88–89). Zechariah 13:3. Then, if anyone prophesies, his father and his mother, who gave birth to him, will say to him: you should not live, because you are telling lies in the name of the Lord; and his father and his mother who bare him will smite him when he prophesies. The aversion to false prophecy will be so strong that parents will not spare their own children who dare to speak lies in the name of the Lord, putting them to death, as prescribed by the Law (Deut. 13:6-11; Deut. 18:20; – Keil 642). Zechariah 13:4. And it will come to pass in that day that such soothsayers will be ashamed, every one of his vision, when they prophesy, and they will not put on sackcloth to deceive. Zechariah 13:5. And everyone will say: I am not a prophet, I am a farmer, because someone made me a slave from my childhood. And the soothsayers themselves will be ashamed of their reprehensible activities and will stop wearing the clothes usually used by prophets. Instead of the high title of prophet, they will prefer to pretend to be farmers. Zechariah 13:6. They will say to him: why do you have scars on your hands? And he will answer: because I was beaten in the house of those who loved me. If anyone had cuts on their hands made while serving pagan deities, those who had them would carefully hide the true reason for their origin, citing blows received from their parents. By “loving” they mean the parents of the false prophet, who inflict wounds on him for uttering lies in the name of the Lord. Zechariah 13:7. Oh sword! rise up against My shepherd and against My neighbor, says the Lord of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered! And I will turn My hand on the little ones. At the end of ch. The XIII prophet again depicts the judgment of the people of God. According to the divine plan of economy, the shepherd of the Israeli people, standing in close proximity to God Himself, the Divine Person, the Messiah is struck by death. - “Strike the shepherd!” – the prophet’s appeal on behalf of God to the sword – in the mouth of Jehovah can be understood in the sense of God’s permission and foreknowledge; Here a reproach is also heard in relation to those who raise their hand against the Shepherd. Deprived of a shepherd, the sheep are scattered, but do not perish completely; because God again stretches out His right hand to protect the little ones, that is, the humble and obedient sheep. – I will turn my hand “on the little ones,” that is, on those meek and obedient sheep, about which we spoke in ch. XI, as some researchers think. In glory the corresponding passage reads: “I will lay My hand on the [small] shepherds.” According to the researchers, LXX either had a typo in this place or misread the text. hazzóarim – haróim (omission of the letter tsade and rearrangement of the letters ain, ya, resh); so Alex. the codex reads τούς ποιμένος (Reinke 265, Anm.). From the LXX reading connection by Alex. and Vatik. (having in accordance with Masor., τούς μικρούς) code. it turned out: τούς μικρούς ποιμένας, which Theodoret and our glory have. translation Reading Aquila: του (ποιμένας) βραχεῖς (τούς μικρους ποιμένοις), according to Gesenius, means: die Hirtenjungen (under-shepherds); Khald can be interpreted in the same sense. cal tinjanajja – super secundos; With this understanding, the text is vile. and LXX Alex. They are completely close and no longer represent significant disagreement (see Brianus Waltonus, Bibliorum Sacrorum tomus tertius. Londini, MDCLVI; Field op. cit. ; The Old Testament in Greek according to the Septuagint, edited... by Z. B. Swete. Vol. III. Cambridge 1894; Ges. WB., Keil 645, Kohl. Sach. 9–14, s. 241; Marti 443). Messianic Character Zechariah 13:7ff. witnessed by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself (Matthew 26:31; Mark 14:27). Ancient interpreters mean here by the scattering of the sheep or a prophetic indication of the fact of the scattering of the apostles on the night when Christ was taken for crucifixion (Matthew 26:56), or in general of the scattering, due to persecution, of the followers of Christ (Ephr. 259, Cyr. 200, Theod. 120, Jer. 164; see Haupt 128–129, Zatw 1891, 32). Zechariah 13:8. And it will happen throughout the whole earth, says the Lord, that two parts of it will be destroyed and die out, and the third will remain on it. Zechariah 13:9. And I will bring this third part into the fire, and I will refine them as silver is refined, and I will refine them as gold is refined: they will call on My name, and I will hear them and say: “These are My people,” and they will say: “The Lord is my God!” Those who were responsible for the death of the Shepherd or sympathized with this crime will not escape deserved punishment. In the whole earth, that is, the land of Israel, two parts of the living will be destroyed, and the third will remain. “The entire Jewish people appears here as an inheritance left by the slain Shepherd, which is divided into three parts: of which death, appropriating the right of birthright, receives two parts, one life (Keil 646). But the remaining third part will also be tested and purified by the fire of disasters and temptations; after this, this part will truly become the people of God, not calling on the name of God in vain. You might be interested in: