Zechariah 11
1 Open thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour thy cedars.
Open, O Lebanon, thy doors, —that a fire, may devour, thy cedar,
2 Wail, O fir tree, for the cedar is fallen, because the fine ones are destroyed. Wail, O ye oaks of Bashan, for the strong forest has come down.
Howl, fir-tree, for fallen is the cedar, because, the majestic ones, are spoiled: howl, ye oaks of Bashan, for the inaccessible forest, hath come down.
3 A voice of the wailing of the shepherds, for their glory is destroyed. A voice of the roaring of young lions, for the pride of the Jordan is laid waste.
The noise of the howling of the shepherds, for spoiled is their majesty, —The noise of the roaring of the young lions, for spoiled are the proud banks of the Jordan.
4 Thus said Jehovah my God: Feed the flock of slaughter,
Thus, saith Yahweh my God, —Tend thou the flock doomed to slaughter:
5 whose possessors kill them, and hold themselves not guilty. And those who sell them say, Blessed be Jehovah, for I am rich, and their own shepherds pity them not.
Whose, buyers, slay them, and are not held guilty, and whose, sellers, say—Blessed be Yahweh, that I am become rich, And so, their own shepherds, have no pity upon them.
6 For I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land, says Jehovah. But, lo, I will deliver the men each one into his neighbor's hand, and into the hand of his king. And they shall smite the land, and I will not deliver them out of their hand.
Surely I will have pity no longer upon the inhabitants of the earth, Declareth Yahweh, —Therefore lo! I am delivering up mankind, every man into the hand of his neighbour, and into the hand of his king, and they will crush the earth, nor will I deliver out of their hand.
7 So I fed the flock of slaughter, truly the poor of the flock. And I took to me two staves, the one I called Beauty, and the other I called Bands, and I fed the flock.
So I tended the flock doomed to slaughter, for the sheep-merchants, —and took unto me two staves, the one, I called Grace, and, the other, I called Union, thus I tended the sheep,
8 And I cut off the three shepherds in one month, for my soul was weary of them, and their soul also loathed me.
And I sent off three shepherds, in one month, —for impatient was my soul with them, moreover also, their soul, felt a loathing against me.
9 Then I said, I will not feed you. That which dies, let it die, and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off, and let those who are left eat each one the flesh of another.
Then said I—I will not tend you, —the dying, may die, and, the disappearing, may disappear, and, the remainder, may devour one another.
10 And I took my staff Beauty, and cut it apart, that I might break my covenant which I had made with all the peoples.
So I took my staff Grace, and cut it in two, —that I might set aside my covenant which I had solemnised with all the peoples.
11 And it was broken in that day, and thus the poor of the flock who gave heed to me knew that it was the word of Jehovah.
When it was broken, on that day, then did the sheep- merchants who were watching me, know, that, the word of Yahweh, it was.
12 And I said to them, If ye think good, give me my wage, and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my wage thirty pieces of silver.
Then said I unto them, If it be good in your eyes, give me my wage, and, if not, forbear. So they weighed out my wage, thirty pieces of silver.
13 And Jehovah said to me, Cast it to the potter, the good price that I was valued by them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of Jehovah.
Then said Yahweh unto me, Cast it into the treasury, the magnificent price at which I had been valued by them! So I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them, in the house of Yahweh, into the treasury.
14 Then I cut apart my other staff, even Bands, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.
Then cut I in two my second staff, even Union, —that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.
15 And Jehovah said to me, Take to thee yet again the instruments of a foolish shepherd.
Then said Yahweh unto me, —Yet further take thee the implements of a worthless shepherd.
16 For, lo, I will raise up a shepherd in the land, who will not visit those who are cut off, nor will he seek those who are scattered, nor heal that which is broken, nor feed that which is sound, but he will eat the flesh of the fat, and will tear their hoofs in pieces.
For lo! I am raising up a shepherd in the land, the disappearing, will he not visit, the straying, will he not seek, and, the fractured, will he not bind up, —the weak, will he not nourish, but, the flesh of the fat, will he eat, and, their hoofs, will he break in pieces.
17 Woe to the worthless shepherd who leaves the flock! The sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye. His arm shall be entirely dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened.
Alas! for my worthless shepherd, who forsaketh the flock, A sword upon his arm, and upon his right eye!—his arm, shall be, utterly withered, and, his right eye, shall be, wholly darkened.
