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 Howl, O fir tree, for the cedar is fallen, because the goodly ones are spoiled: howl, O ye oaks of Bashan, for the strong forest is 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 howling of the shepherds! for their glory is spoiled: a voice of the roaring of young lions! for the pride of Jordan is spoiled.

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 the LORD my God: Feed the flock of slaughter;

Thus, saith Yahweh my God, —Tend thou the flock doomed to slaughter:

5 whose possessors slay them, and hold themselves not guilty; and they that sell them say, Blessed be the LORD, 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, saith the LORD: but, lo, I will deliver the men every one into his neighbour’s hand, and into the hand of his king: and they shall smite the land, and out of their hand I will not deliver them.

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, verily the 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.

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 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 them which are left eat every 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 asunder, 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 that gave heed unto me knew that it was the word of the LORD.

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 unto them, If ye think good, give me my hire; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my hire 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 the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter, the goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty [pieces] of silver, and cast them unto the potter, in the house of the LORD.

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 asunder mine 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 the LORD said unto me, Take unto 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, which shall not visit those that be cut off, neither shall seek those that be scattered, nor heal that that is broken; neither shall he feed that which is sound, but he shall eat the flesh of the fat, and shall 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 that leaveth the flock, the sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be clean 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.