Глава 11

Zechariah 11:1–2. Open, O Lebanon, your doors, let your cedars girdle with fire: let the Pitis weep, for the cedar fell, as the nobles of the nobles were impoverished: let the oak trees of Vasanitistia weep, for the oak grove planted was cut down. Now the explanation of what has been said leads to the path of other thoughts. Having very well outlined the detailed narrative of the calling of the nations in Christ through faith, it clearly foreshadows the future unbelief in Him of the sons of Israel, of course at the time of His incarnation, and that for this reason the church itself and, of course, Jerusalem should be burned, and the very cities of Israel should be taken and perish along with their inhabitants. This was accomplished by the hand of the Romans, once led by Vespasian and Titus. It seems unnecessary to talk in particular about each of the disasters that happened to the Jewish cities or people for mocking Christ - those who wish can turn to the writings of Joseph and clearly learn what they want to know exactly. So, he turns the word to those who were Israel by blood. And for what reason does he compare Judea with Lebanon? Because Lebanon is a mountain with beautiful vegetation, covered with extensive forests. The country of Judea is also populous with countless inhabitants, I will add, with priests and kings at one time from the tribe of Judah, who, towering in the dignity of power, were known to those living throughout the country and enjoyed high glory, like the tallest and most prominent cedars or cypress trees. Since they disrespected Christ, for they took the “key of understanding”, and neither entered in, nor did they allow those who were entering to enter (Luke 11:52), and finally crucified them, although they knew that He was the heir (Luke 20:14), therefore they justly perished completely, along with the houses and cities and household members. So, covertly, as I said, he calls Judea Lebanon, and compares its representatives with the tallest trees, as exalted above the others and too exalted. And that the city was to be taken easily, and even perished - having received the invading Roman army and being taken easily, and destroyed like a forest engulfed in flames - this is indicated in the words: “Open thy doors, O Lebanon, that thy cedars may burn; let Pitis cry, and let the cedar fall.” Figurative speech: for having called Lebanon, that is, likened the country of Judea to a mountain, (accordingly) he had to compare those living in it to pitis and oaks. And it’s not hard to see that we’re talking about people, for he immediately said that “the nobles are impoverished.” And what kind of impoverishment, of course, he partly indicated this by saying: “Let Pitis cry, before the cedar falls.” After all, when the hand of the Romans devastated the cities of Judea, it constantly happened that their noble inhabitants were taken captive. Those who had not yet experienced this mourned the captives and wept over themselves, they were in despondency and fear, as they were soon to experience the same thing themselves. This, I think, means: “Pitis mourns, the cedar falls before.” He probably calls the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Basanite oaks; for Basanitis is a region in Judea, fertile and very fruitful, growing very tall trees. Since there were other noble persons in Jerusalem, I mean priests and rulers of the people, I called them the oaks of the Basanites, who naturally wept because of the cutting of a dense forest: they knew that many living in the whole country, like some forest, perished, struck, as if by axes, by the cruel attacks of the enemies. By the dense forest, of which he says precisely that he was cut down, you can in the same way understand the people of Jerusalem themselves, for they perished from hunger and war, while the oak trees of the Basanites, that is, the rulers, mourned them. Zechariah 11:3. The voice of weeping shepherds, as if their greatness had been overcome: the voice of roaring lions, as if the vacillation of the Jordan was embittered. Makes it clearer what I just said; for he no longer names pitis or oak, but directly designates the leaders of the Jewish troops, about whom he says that they weep and let out voices, crying out that their greatness has become impoverished. Having previously enjoyed brilliant fame, they became poor and unhappy, pitiful and dishonest. After the shepherds appeared through Christ, that is, the divine disciples, the greatness of the false shepherds naturally became impoverished; for the Lord of the flock Himself accused them through the holy prophets, saying: “Woe to the shepherds, who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture” 149 (Jer. 23:1), and again: “The shepherds have not yet sought the Lord: for this reason the whole flock did not understand and was quickly scattered” (Jer. 10:21). He also announced that he would give lawful shepherds to those who believe in Him, saying again in this way: “And I will bring you into Zion and give you shepherds according to my heart, and they will guide you with understanding and teaching” 150 (Jer. 3:15). Who is this? divine disciples and leaders of the churches of their time, “rightly ruling the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15), who know how to lead the students entrusted to them to everything that contributes to spiritual benefit. So, the false shepherds cried because their greatness was impoverished. He shows us this in another way, adding: “the voice of roaring lions, as the reeling of the Jordan was embittered.” Roaring is actually the voice of lions, which they produce when they complain of hunger and thirst - and Divine Scripture also uses this expression about lions. So, the leaders of the Jewish troops found themselves, like roaring lions, hungry and crying because they did not receive fruits, tithes, firstfruits and gifts from the nations; for after they were deprived of the herd, they no longer enjoyed the profit from it. If anyone thinks that the scribes and Pharisees also roared at Christ like lions [for they shouted at Him and out of envy, hatred and complete madness they let out voices, calling him a Samaritan (John 8:48), calling him a wine drinker (Matthew 11:19) and born of fornication 151, shouting: “Take him, take him, crucify him” ( John 19:15)], then this one will argue completely fairly. However, although they roared, they became much poorer, “as the vacillation of the Jordan was embittered.” And what does this mean, I will also say about this. The Jordan flows near Jericho; There are many lions around it, emitting a terrible roar and instilling unbearable horror on the inhabitants. Such were the character of the scribes and Pharisees, who roared at their flock and terrified the weakest with threats 152 of their power. “But the fear of the lions was embittered” - this is exactly what the expression means: “the reeling of the Jordan.” “Wobbling (i.e. snorting - φρύαγμα) is a sound emitted by horses and mules through the nostrils and coming out along with strong breathing” 153. It is also understood in the sense of pride. At least the divine David said about those who rebelled against Christ: “the nations and people reeled in vain” (Ps. 2:1). So, when he says: “the staggering of the Jordan”, then he understands pride - and the staggering (of course) is not of the river, but of the lions living near it, for sometimes what is in them is designated by locality. Zechariah 11:4–5. To this the Lord Almighty says: Shepherd the sheep of the slaughter, which have been slaughtered and have not repented, and those who sell I say: Blessed is the Lord, and we are rich: and their shepherd has no concern for them. A word to the shepherds themselves, weeping and roaring like lions, who are still allowed to feed the sheep of the slaughter, although they did it extremely carelessly, so that even for as short a time as a moment, they did not grieve for those being sold and slaughtered. Just as unscrupulous shepherds, caring only about their own pleasures and thinking very little about the owner of the flock, mercilessly slaughter some (sheep), imitating the attack of animals, while selling others, not at all, as I said, not saddened, but rejoicing in the most obscene gains, being enslaved by such shameful greed: in the same way, the leaders of the tribes of Judah can be convicted, I think, of the fact that they did not spare their flock, multiplied their wealth and, as if with an insatiable hand, expanded their purses. Therefore, the Savior said, denouncing such: “Woe to you scribes and hypocrites, for you practice riot, and copra, and kimin, and abandon the teaching of the law, judgment, and mercy and faith” (Matthew 23:23). Yes, they were so meticulously concerned that they condemned those who did not pay tithes according to the law, even on the most insignificant items, and did not attach any importance to more important or more necessary and very useful regulations. And that they were not good shepherds, but on the contrary, caring only about acquisitions, this is clearly stated through the mouth of Ezekiel. “Ole, shepherds of Israel, the shepherds feed their own food; do not the shepherds feed the sheep? Behold, you eat milk and clothe yourself with the wool and kill the fat, but you do not feed my sheep” (Ezek. 34:3). So, “feed,” he says, the sheep of the slaughter, that is: either those who are soon to perish at the hands of the Romans, or those whom you yourself will slaughter, although you are in the position of shepherds. There is no other time at which they should have been slaughtered, for after the coming of the Savior many Jews fell from the swords of the Romans, despite all the long-suffering of God towards them. And that for the shepherds the subordinate peoples were an asset, this was shown in the words: “even those who have acquired a hardened life and do not repent.” Just as they made the spiritual vineyard belonging to the Lord their own property, newly planted, beloved, I mean Israel or the man of Judah (Is. 5:7), so they almost took possession of the flocks, collecting the fruits for themselves, always increasing their wealth, and allowing theft to those who wished. So those who had acquired them slaughtered them, and those who sold them said: “Blessed is the Lord, and we will become rich.” One can also understand these judges who trade the truth in the courts and, as it were, have said goodbye to the law of Moses, although it clearly states: “Let you not know the person in court, for the judgment of God is” (Deut. 7:17). Yes, it was pleasant and kind for them to sell the court in every case to those who wanted to buy. And this is again known to us through the lips of the saints. This is how one of the holy prophets spoke about Jerusalem: “its elders are in charge of judgment” (Mic. 3:11). And the divine Habakkuk almost cried out to God, saying: “How long, O Lord, will I call and you will not hear? I will offend you when I cry to you, and will you not deliver? What kind of labor and illness did you show me, look at passion and wickedness? There will be judgment against me, and the judge will take me down. For this reason the law is ruined, and judgment is not carried out; for the wicked will overthrow the righteous, for this reason judgment will come forth corrupted” (Hab. 1:1-4). So, collecting wealth through unjust exactions, perverting the truth and selling verdicts in almost every case - these judges can be those who, as I just said, say: “Blessed is the Lord, and let us become rich.” Those who say this can rightly be accused of madness and insolence, for they decide to bless God, as if He were helping to gather through unrighteousness and get rich through bloodshed. But it was better, having rightly decided the court, to say this: “blessed is the Lord,” for by pronouncing a fair verdict in every case, we are pure and lawful guardians of divine commands. So, a blessing turns out to be a deception and a shame if we do not do what pleases God. Zechariah 11:6–7. For this reason I will not have mercy on anyone living on the earth, says the Lord: and behold, I will betray the people who are in his sincere hand and every time in the hand of his king: and they will cut up the land: and the imam will not take it out of their hand. And I will feed the sheep of slaughter into the land of Canaan. Threatens death along with the flock 155... because although they had the opportunity to resort to the leadership of the archpastor of all, I mean Christ, and to be under His authority, they ignorantly chose to surrender to those who slaughtered and sold them. After all, the Only Begotten Word of God became man, and moreover he clearly spoke, showing the non-calling of those and the legality of our economy: “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11). But the unfortunate Jews, although they should have accused the hired shepherds, did not do this, but insulted the good shepherd, who laid down his soul in exchange for the lives of all, in countless ways, throwing stones, blaspheming and, finally, opening unbridled lips against him. Together with their leaders, they shouted to Pilate, saying: “Take, take, crucify Him” (John 19:15), and they poured the most righteous blood on their own heads, for they said again: “His blood be on us and on our children” (Matthew 27:25). “For this reason,” he says, “I will not have mercy on those who live on earth.” They no longer deserved mercy from God, but, on the contrary, they were each given into the hands of their neighbor and into the hands of the king, that is, their boss, because they crucified Emmanuel and became the murderers of the Lord, being filled with all wickedness. However, God called them to repentance and did not immediately impose the effects of His wrath on them. Already thirty years after the crucifixion of the Savior, the world departed from the land of the Jews, wars arose everywhere, city went against city, the inhabitants of each were torn by enmity and fought with each other, so that the evil they inflicted on themselves seemed equal to that which came from the war. The most courageous Roman military leaders took possession of the Jewish country and, burning cities along with the men themselves, subdued it to the yoke of slavery. Those who had the opportunity to escape settled in pagan countries, which can be seen to this day. And I think he points to this when he says: “I will feed the sheep of slaughter in the land of Canaan,” that is, both the country and the land of the Canaanites. The Canaanites are precisely those pagans who even to this day are being grazed by God, or rather seem to be grazed, by the sheep of the slaughter: for hitherto they observe certain regulations of the law, and to this day they can be seen not having completely abandoned ancient customs. Thus, they circumcise the flesh, keep the Sabbath, and other things besides this they deign to receive care and importance. And this was announced through the mouth of a prophet from God: “And I will be a little in the countries for their sanctification, and they may come in there” (Ezek. 11:16). The internecine wars that took place throughout Judea and especially in Jerusalem, as in every city, were clearly described by one man who tragically depicted the misfortunes of the Jews: it was Joseph, a learned and wise man. Zechariah 11:7. And I will take for myself two rods, one I called kindness, and the other I called it, and I will feed the sheep. In inspired scriptures, the rod has different meanings. Sometimes it denotes the kingdom, when, for example, it is said about Christ: “the scepter of righteousness is the scepter of your kingdom” (Ps. 44 and Heb. 1:8). Sometimes it is strength, as for example in the expression: “The Lord will send a rod of strength from Zion” (Ps. 109:2). It is sometimes understood as pastoral education and knowledge, as for example, also through the mouth of the prophet it was said to the Son: “Provide your people with a rod” (Mic. 7:14). And in the above words, the rods denote the methods of pastoral leadership in our country and the twofold type, we must think, of impeccable upbringing. The good shepherd, who lays down his soul for the sheep, that is, Christ, accepts the rods, in order to feed his own sheep with them. In ancient times, that is, before the time of incarnation, the Jehovah God and Lawgiver, from God the Father (born) Word, shepherded Israel, using, as it were, one rod - education according to the law, as in one place He told him (Israel) through the mouth of the prophet: “I shepherded you in the desert” (Hos. 13:5). But after he became a man like us, he accepts two rods, for he shepherds as his worshipers - those who are justified through faith and sanctified in the spirit - with regulations both by law and the Gospel, urging them not to sacrifice bulls and teaching them not to indulge in lawful sacrifices, but on the contrary, commanding the work of service in the spirit to be performed in the form of a bloodless sacrifice 156. And this is because the shadow is transformed into truth and the types are transformed into the splendor of Christian and evangelical good behavior. And the names of the rods are one “kindness”, this is a new covenant, good and worthy of wonder, about which the Son Himself said: “fair in kindness more than the sons of men” (Ps. 49:3); the other is “already”, that is, a part, so that we understand the law, which had the purpose of educating the part 157 separated from God, as it is written: “When the Most High divided the tongues, as if cutting apart the sons of Adam, set the boundaries of the tongues according to the number of the angels of God. And Jacob became the portion of the Lord, His people; Israel is already His inheritance” (Deut. 32:8–9). So, it is announced that with these two rods the Great Archpastor will feed his sheep. This word is immutable, for He gathered into one court both from Israel and from the pagans, offering them legal and evangelical education as food, providing them with a kind of spiritual pasture for their use, and abundantly fattening them. Zechariah 11:8–9. And I will destroy three shepherds in one month, and my soul will be aggravated against her: for I will roar their souls against me. And he said: the imam is not to shepherd you: let the dying die, and the disappearing let it disappear, and the rest let each one girdle the flesh of his neighbor. After the true and good Shepherd had already been revealed, it was, of course, very expedient, even more necessary, that the mercenaries and false shepherds, that is, the leaders of the Jews according to the law, were finally eliminated, some of whom slaughtered sheep, but did not repent, and others, selling them, said: blessed is the Lord and we are rich. But who, someone asks, does he call the three shepherds and how will they perish, as he says, in one month - this is what we will now discuss, citing passages from the sacred scriptures for proof. So, I think that he calls the three shepherds those who officiate according to the law and the judges appointed over the people, and besides them the scribes or lawyers, for they shepherded Israel. Those who had the dignity of the priesthood came from one tribe of Levi and Malachi spoke about them: “The mouth of the priest will keep understanding, and they will require the law from his mouth” (Mal. 2:7). Those who received the power to judge, although they were elected, were appointed from every tribe. In the same way, I think, were the scribes, or, as I just said, lawyers, who were always present next to those appointed for trial and cited the words of the law in every case to confirm. That the priests of the divine mysteries, as I said, came from one tribe of Levi, there is no need for any proof to confirm this. And that judges, as teachers of the law, were chosen from every tribe, blessed Moses will attest to this, saying in Deuteronomy to the children of Israel: “You shall appoint judges and scribes in all your cities, as the Lord your God gives you according to tribes, and let them judge righteous judgment among the people. Let them not turn aside from judgment, let them know the lower faces, let them receive lower gifts: for gifts blind the eyes of the wise and sweep away the words of the righteous” (Deut. 16:18-19). So, the three shepherds are priests, judges and those versed in the scriptures of the law, that is, lawyers. We will find that our Lord Jesus Christ Himself mourns separately for the Pharisees and scribes and lawyers. So He said: “Woe to you scribes and Pharisees” (Luke 11:44), and while He was saying this, one of the lawyers came up to Him, saying: “Teacher, with these words you are annoying us too. He, it is said, said: “Woe to you also as lawyers, for you place burdens on men that are not easy to bear, and you yourselves do not touch them with just your finger” (Luke 11:45–46). I also know that those who at one time reigned in Jerusalem from the tribe of Judah fulfilled the purpose of shepherds in relation to the subject peoples. But since, when Christ was born, the royal family had already disappeared or lost power (for Judea was then ruled by Herod the son of Antipater from Ascalon and Pontius Pilate), we were forced to keep silent about the kings from the tribe of Judah. And that they had already disappeared with the birth of Christ, this is confirmed by what is written: “The prince will not fail from Judah, nor the leader from his feet, until the hope of the tongues will come” (Gen. 49:10). Consequently: if the hope of the tongues has finally come and was born, that is, Christ, then the prince must have become impoverished from Judas and the leader from his loins. So, the three shepherds, as I said, are priests and judges and teachers of the law, who remained in their power, that is, in their position and place, until the time of the coming (of Christ). They die, and quite rightly, in one month. Since they killed the Author of life, therefore they are destroyed, and as if in one month, in which Emmanuel suffered the slaughter for us. True, even after the death of the Savior on the cross there were still those who ruled Israel, while the Almighty God was patient, compassionate towards them and called to repentance; however, as for God’s definition given about this, we affirm that they died at the very time when, as I said, they put the Savior and Redeemer of all to death on the cross. So they died in one month. These words speak about the fate of shepherds. The definition applies to the flock themselves: “It is not the imam to shepherd you” and: if they decide to devour and bite each other 158: for without any mercy they themselves ate each other, and were given to those who wanted to kidnap them as the easiest prey. He also said, and very rightly, about the three shepherds who died in one month, that “my soul is aggravated against me,” that is, I will send a heavy punishment on them, and that “their souls are roaring against me,” for no different from wild beasts, they constantly pursued Christ and finally brought him to Pilate, saying: take him, take him, crucify him. He reminds us of this through the mouth of Jeremiah, saying: “I have left my house, I have left my property, I have given my beloved soul into the hands of her enemies. My property was like a lion in an oak grove, and it gave out its voice against me: for this reason I hated it” (Jer. 12:7-8). Zechariah 11:10–11. And I will accept My good rod, and will reject it, even to destroy My covenant, which I commanded to all the people of the earth 159. And on that day they will be ruined, and the Canaanite sheep that I have kept will understand that the word of the Lord is for them. He calls education through the evangelical secret teaching, distinguished by its beauty, of course spiritual, a good rod. And when he says that he will reject and destroy it, he does not mean, of course, that he will reject and scatter it, destroying it or destroying it as useless - far from it. On the contrary, I will tell you how this should be understood. When shepherds notice one of the sheep straying from the flock and wandering far from the others, they throw a staff at them in every possible way and immediately drive them to graze along with the others. So, taking an image from the customs of the shepherds, the prophetic word says that the rod will be rejected - obviously for the pagans, for they were “far off” (Eph. 2:13), but became close through faith. The rod will be rejected, he says, so that it will be “ruined” throughout the whole earth, 160 that is, as I think, the word about Christ, or the preaching of the Gospel, will spread and be scattered everywhere. He will be ruined (scattered), he says, “on that day,” that is, at the very time when Christ, who has trampled upon the power of death, will come to life and say to the apostles: “Going and teaching all languages, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). It was then that the word of our Savior spread throughout all the heavens, and it is not false to say about the holy apostles: “Their message went out into all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world” (Ps. 18:5). And that it is not useless for the pagans to be rejected and scattered throughout the earth, or to spread in their countries the good rod, or the covenant, which was bequeathed not for Israel alone, but for all nations - this we can see without much difficulty by delving into the word of prophecy. “They understand,” he says, “the Canaanites (sheep) kept (to Me) are the word of the Lord.” Calls the Gentiles Canaanites. They are understood as the sheep kept for Christ, since they are kept by Him and since He Himself is the “dream of the tongues” (Gen. 49:10). After this covenant had spread to everyone in their countries, they believed that “the word of the Lord is”; for we, called from among the pagans through faith, know that in the divine and gospel words the Lord Himself and the Only Begotten Word of God, born of God by nature, speaks to us. That is why we worship Him and serve Him, leaving behind that ancient and inglorious error and unlearning polytheism. And this was sung to Him by the mouth of David: “For the great things which Thou hast made, they shall come and worship before Thee, O Lord” (Ps. 85:9), “at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, of things in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth: and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:10–11). Zechariah 11:12–13. And I say to them: if there is good before you, give 161 my bribe, or deny it: and set my bribe at thirty pieces of silver. And the Lord said to me: put me into the furnace, and see 162 if they are tempted to eat, in the same way they were tempted about them. And he took thirty pieces of silver, and put them in the church of the Lord in the furnace. By the revelations of the Gospel or with the good rod, that is, with considerable instruction, we were taught the mystery of the economy of the Only Begotten in the flesh. So we heard and believed that being God, as I said, from God the Father (begotten) the Word became flesh and “dwelt in us” (John 1:14), descended in the form of a servant, being in the form and equality of the Parent, “obedient even to death, the death of the cross” (Phil. 2:8), and being rich, for our sakes he became poor, so that through His poverty we might become rich ( 2 Corinthians 8:9). After all, He took us away from the bonds of death, freed us from sin, and revealed us as sons of God. And what good did he not give us? Moreover, we know that “we were bought with a price” (1 Cor. 6:20, 7:23) “not with corruptible silver or gold, but with the honorable blood of a lamb and the most pure of Christ” (1 Pet. 1:18-19). Thus, we finally find ourselves in debt to Him for our own lives, for “if one die for all, then all die” (2 Cor. 5:14) to Him, and we are obliged to live no longer for ourselves, but, according to a just and straightforward word, for Him who died for us and rose again (2 Cor. 5:15). That is why he says: “if there is good before you”, of course, the sacrament of dispensation in the flesh - if, that is, you are saved through Him and are in a prosperous state and have come to know Me, the Savior and Redeemer, who endured death for the sake of the life of all, then “give by placing, that is, by separating, My bribe, or deny.” However, those who converted from the pagans turned out to be prudent, since they set a reward, by no means equal, of course, but still at least somewhat corresponding to the benefits that we received from Him: just as He died for us, so we laid down our souls for closeness to Him and love, but to the holy martyrs we can say: “Who will separate us from the love of God? whether tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or trouble, or sword” (Rom. 8:35): for nothing has overcome the spiritual strength of the saints. So, the likeness of Christ with us is partly indicated in the words: thirty pieces of silver were given as His reward. After all, the traitor, truly the most vile and God-hating Judas, having taken thirty denarii, betrayed Christ to the murderers and sold the Author of our salvation to the villains. From the pagans, as a reward for Him, thirty pieces of silver were brought, which, at the command of God, were thrown into the furnace, undergoing a very good test, just as Christ Himself was tempted for us; for our faith with the omniscient God will not be without testing, and life will not be without temptation, but as blessed Paul says: “Everyone’s work will be tested by fire” (1 Cor. 3:13). It is also written about Christ that “the Lord will come suddenly into his church, and it is Him you seek, and the Angel of the covenant, it is Him you desire: behold, he comes, says the Lord Almighty. And who will endure the day of His coming, or who will stand in the vision of Him? before He descends like the fire of a furnace, like the soap of those who perish. And he sits boiling and purifying like silver and like gold” (Mal.3:1-3). The divine David also sings, as if on behalf of everyone who has believed in Christ and wants to live the Gospel: “Test me, Lord, and test me, kindle my belly and my heart” (Ps. 25:2). However, the prophet says that the crucible is in the church of God; for the Church of Christ tests the life of everyone and the sincerity of love for Christ and, having the gift of discerning spirits (1 Cor. 11:10), knows exactly who speaks by the Holy Spirit, calling Jesus Lord, and who (speaks) Beelzebub, pronouncing anathema against Him (1 Cor. 12:3); some are true worshipers, and some are again like wolves coming to us in the clothing of sheep. Zechariah 11:14. And he rejected the second rod to destroy the covenant that was in the midst of Judah and in the midst of Israel. He said that Christ would receive two rods and thus feed his own sheep with them, obviously the holy multitude of those called through faith. And the good rod, we said, is the instruction or preaching of the Gospel, and the second is the Old Testament, that is, given to Israel to help according to the word of the prophet: “For the law, he says, will be given to help” (Is. 8:20). And that not only the gospel instructions had to educate many pagans, but also those ancient commandments given through Moses, obviously, when transforming the canopy of law into truth - and this is clearly revealed in the words set before us. Just as the good rod, according to the Prophet, was rejected and scattered - that is, like the gospel instruction in the Canaanite countries, spread, obviously, by the holy apostles - so the second rod or instruction was rejected, that is, or the law established as a covenant by God between Judah and between Israel, that is, between the entire race of Israel; for by Judah he calls the two tribes that were in Jerusalem, I mean the tribe of Judah and Benjamin, and by Israel he refers to the remaining ten, located in Samaria with Jeroboam (at the head). So, the law was also given to the Canaanites, for it was given in secret, as I said, by both legal and gospel revelations. Therefore, the Savior said: “Do not remember that I came to destroy the law; I did not come to destroy, but to fulfill. I say to you: until heaven and earth pass away, one jot, or one tittle, will not pass from the law, until they all remain” (Matthew 5:17-18). Thus, he fulfills the law, teaching what is above the law, and not placing the leader outside the law, as for example in the words: “You have heard, as it was said to the ancients: you shall not kill: whoever kills is guilty of judgment. But I say to you, that if anyone is angry with his brother in vain, he is guilty of judgment” (Matthew 5:21-22). And again: “Hear, as it was said to the ancients: Thou shalt not commit adultery. “I say to you, that everyone who looks at a woman lusts after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:27-28). Thus, the commandment: “Thou shalt not kill” is fully fulfilled only when anger, which is the root and source of murder, is eliminated. Likewise, by completely avoiding desires or abstaining from pleasures, adultery is completely destroyed, just as, we say, as along with the roots, the shoots that come out of them certainly dry out and no longer grow at all. Zechariah 11:15–16. And the Lord spoke to me: again, receive for yourself vessels of shepherding, the shepherd is unskilled. Behold, I will raise up a shepherd 163 on the earth: he will not visit the perishing, and he will not seek the scattered, and he will not heal the broken, and he will not guide the healthy, and he will girdle the flesh of the elect, and he will beat them with glints. When the good, wise and experienced shepherd, that is, Christ, rejected the two rods and scattered them throughout the Canaanite countries in the manner previously explained, then some knew that He was the Word of the Lord: for they believed, as I said, that this God, from God the Father the ineffably begotten Word, after he became like us and appeared as the shepherd of all (1 Pet. 5:4), offered them in esoteric teaching and in the exact knowledge of the secret of Oneself, evangelical instruction and light-guiding, and also legal. These are precisely the essence of the two rods with which, as we said, Christ shepherds us “in the glad pasture and in the fat place,” as it is written (Ezek. 34:14). But not understanding the mystery, not knowing the good rod, that is, the preaching of the Gospel, and, moreover, having dishonored the second rod, whose name is already , that is, the law of Moses, the Jews did not come to faith, did not recognize the Foretold by the law and the prophets. And the Savior Himself clearly spoke to them: “Do not remember that I am speaking against you to the Father: even as Moses says in you, in the same way you trust. If they believed quickly in Moses, they also believed in Me, and they have written about Me. Even though you do not believe by the Scripture, you have faith by My word?” ( John 5:45-47 ) So, there is no doubt that they did not believe either the Scriptures of Moses or the speeches of the Savior. Since they did not accept the knowledge of the truth, “for this reason,” says the wisest Paul, “God will punish them with deceit if they believed lies” (2 Thess. 2:11). He calls the Antichrist the action of flattery, by joining which the Jews will be condemned, and the Savior will be faithful, saying to them who have fallen into unbelief: “I came in the name of My Father, and you do not receive Me: if anyone comes in his own name, him you will receive” (John 5:43). That the Jews will immediately accept the son of iniquity, who is about to appear in due time, “an adversary and one who exalts himself above all that is said to be God or worship, as if he should sit in the church of God like God, showing himself that there is a God” (2 Thess. 2:4), who does not know how to shepherd well and with experience, God commands the prophet to typically predict this, saying: “more accept for yourself the vessels of a shepherd, the shepherd is unskilled.” After all, the most worthy and experienced shepherds in their work have thin rods, so that, if the opportunity arises to hit, they will not crush what they hit. Those who are ignorant in this matter and very inexperienced in the pastoral art crush them with thick sticks. This, I think, is what the pastoral vessels of an unskilled shepherd mean. Since the once son of iniquity, invested with royal honor, has to reveal himself to those living on earth, it seems, in the form of a shepherd, who gives no mercy either to the peoples under his power or to the peoples outside his power, therefore he says: “Behold, I will raise up a shepherd on the earth: he will not visit the perishing.” This is the same as if he said: he who has fallen into lack of faith will not be strengthened by secret teachings. “And what is wasted cannot be recovered.” He who goes astray, he says, from the straight path and usually separates from the herd will not seek, that is, will not change for the better and right. “And he who is broken cannot be healed.” Anyone who is enslaved by vicious pleasure and seemingly unable to bear the weight of voluptuousness, or who is carried away by the errors of wicked heretics and who does not have a sound mind to follow the right faith, is lamented. This one is again healed by the good shepherd. But the unskillful one “and has no sense to direct and belt the meat of the elect and beat them with glens”: for the son of iniquity will fight with the saints, and directing unbridled anger at them, he will, as it were, divide the meat and devour it like a wild beast. “And he will beat the eyes” so that no one can walk straight; he will force them to worship him, striking him with miracles, for his coming will be according to the work of Satan, and by the power of Beelzebub he will perform signs, so that, if possible, he will deceive even the elect (2 Thess. 2 and Matt. 24:24), and as the Savior says: “all flesh would not be saved” ( Matthew 24:22), with his cruelty raging against everyone. “But for the sake of the elect these days will cease” (Matthew 24:22); for the Lord will kill him with the Spirit “and destroy him by the appearance of his coming” (2 Thess. 2:8). Zechariah 11:17. About him who feeds in vain, and leaves behind the sheep, the sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall wither, and his right eye shall become blind, and his eye shall become blind. Having once spoken about the unskillful shepherd, he seems to be grieving for the unkind shepherds and expresses himself very generally, foreshadowing what is about to happen to those who have such a mood. So, notice how they are already receiving punishment for their frivolity, and how, according to the meekness inherent in His nature, He both sympathizes and at the same time accuses them for the fact that they became shepherds of vain things, that is, zealous for transient things, and were so frivolous that they rejoiced at the miserably lost sheep. So some, when selling, said: Blessed is the Lord, and let us become rich; others slaughtered them and were not at all sad about them: for the duty of the right to shepherd had no meaning for them. Such were the leaders of the Jews, who closed the kingdom of heaven, according to the word of Christ, and did not themselves enter and did not allow others to enter, but walked around sea and land in order to create a single stranger and, if this happened, made him a son of Gehenna worse than themselves (Matthew 23:14-15). So, what will happen to such poor shepherds? - “A sword,” he says, “on his arm, and on his right eye.” The muscle is taken in the meaning and image of spiritual effectiveness. And since the chosen part of the slaughtered animals for the divine altar in the holy tabernacle and the sacred offering to God was the muscle, this, I think, secretly indicates that one should dedicate one’s strength, both bodily and spiritual, to God. That a muscle means strength is confirmed by one of the saints, who turned to the God of all with the words: “In the greatness of your muscles, let them turn to stone” (Ex. 15:16). The eye is understood as an image of the mind. So, one who does not shepherd the right will experience damage to the muscle and eye, that is, he will be deprived of bodily and spiritual strength. He will not be able to do anything good unless God strengthens him. He will also become darkened in mind, finding himself both truly and mentally unparticipated in the divine light; for he will not be able to say with boldness: “For you have enlightened my lamp, O Lord; my God, enlighten my darkness” (Ps. 17:29). The right muscle is the one that is cut off with the sword, the right eye is blinded: for the Jewish people have nothing right, not a good deed..... as Paul says: “even to this day, while Moses is always revered, a veil lies over their hearts” (2 Cor. 3:15). David also sings about them in one place: “Let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see” (Ps. 69:24). So, everything about them is left-wing, whether you name a thought or a way of life or anything else that they are sure of. I know that taking away the left would benefit those who would be subjected to it (taking away), for the rejection of wrong 164 would free them from guilt and all stupidity. On the contrary, the loss of what is right would be extremely harmful, for it undoubtedly leads to everything shameful and abominable. But it is fitting, and quite rightly, for the Jews to suffer deprivation of their right; But for us who are in Christ, we must reject the left and boast in the right. In Cyril, as in most of the LXX lists, it reads ἀυτῶν (theirs); Slavic moya follows Alexander. code. and some to others. This is how it is read in the Slavic Bible in the same way as in Hebrew. In Cyril and in the LXX (Vat. Alex. Sin. and others), instead of words, reason and teaching read ποιμάινοντες μετ ἐπιστήμης, i.e., grazing with knowledge. In Acta Pilati, sar. 2, §. 3–4, ed. Tischendorf, Evangelia apocrypha, p. 215–216 and 323–324 and F. S. Conybeare in Studia Biblica et eccleiastica, Oxford, 1986, vol. IV p. 83–84, – cf. John 8:41. In Aubert's edition, instead of δείμασι (personal fears) there is δείγμασιν (manifestations, evidence). Literally similar to St. Cyril reads from Pollux: – ἡ τῶν ἳππων καὶ ἡμιονων διὰ μυκτήρων ἠχὴ ἀγρίω φυσήματι ἐκπίπτουσα (Passov in the example of Rost and others to this line). In a figurative sense, φρύαγμα means pride, pout. About the swelling (glorious noise) of the Jordan used. even in LXX in Jer.12:5. In glory Bible No. the second one every time, as in Greek. and ev. There is an omission here, but the meaning of the speech is not violated at all. That. to serve in the spirit is given the meaning of a bloodless sacrifice. σχοινισμα=σχοινος - reed, a rope made of reeds, which served as a measure for measuring land, and also a measured piece of land for new settlers. Of course, the words καὶ τα καταλοιπα... and the rest, let everyone girdle the flesh of his neighbor. Words of the earth now. glory no, as in ancient times. Greek and Vulg. Heb. and Sir., but there is some. late Greek and Slav. Prison διασκεδασθηναι, personal: will be scattered. At St. Cyrus. after the word δότε (give), στήσαντες (putting) is added in the same way as the code. Alex. etc. σκέψαι, like some, but St. Kirill here, according to the ed. Minya, read σκέψομαι, like Vatik. and others no. Cyrus. adds here ἀπειρον (unskillful), as in Sin. late rep. (א. s. a) and some. Greek and Slav. Prison You might be interested in: