זכריה 11

1 פתח לבנון דלתיך ותאכל אש בארזיך

[You people of] [APO] Lebanon [should] open your gates, [because you will not be able to stop] fire from burning your cedar [trees]!

2 הילל ברוש כי נפל ארז אשר אדרים שדדו הילילו אלוני בשן כי ירד יער הבצור (הבציר)

Your cypress/pine [trees] [APO] should [also] wail because the cedar [trees] have been cut down. Those glorious/great trees have been destroyed. The oak trees in the Bashan [region] should also wail, because the other trees in the forest have been cut down.

3 קול יללת הרעים כי שדדה אדרתם קול שאגת כפירים כי שדד גאון הירדן

And listen to the shepherds crying because the fertile pastures have been ruined. Listen to the lions roar; they roar because the delightful forest [where they live] near the Jordan [River] has been ruined.

4 כה אמר יהוה אלהי רעה את צאן ההרגה

This is what Yahweh my God said [to me]: “[I want you to] become a shepherd for a flock [of sheep that are about] to be slaughtered.

5 אשר קניהן יהרגן ולא יאשמו ומכריהן יאמר ברוך יהוה ואעשר ורעיהם לא יחמול עליהן

The people who are going to buy the sheep will kill the sheep, and they will not be punished. Those who are selling the sheep say, ‘[I] praise Yahweh, [because] I will become rich!’ Even the shepherds do not feel sorry for the sheep.

6 כי לא אחמול עוד על ישבי הארץ--נאם יהוה והנה אנכי ממציא את האדם איש ביד רעהו וביד מלכו וכתתו את הארץ ולא אציל מידם

And similarly, I no longer feel sorry for the people of this country. I am going to allow many of them [HYP] to be captured by other people or by their king. Those who capture them will ruin this country, and I will not rescue any [of the people].”

7 וארעה את צאן ההרגה לכן עניי הצאן ואקח לי שני מקלות לאחד קראתי נעם ולאחד קראתי חבלים וארעה את הצאן

So I became the shepherd of a flock [of sheep that were about] to be slaughtered [for their meat to be sold] to the dealers. [I took good care of the sheep, even the ones that were the weakest sheep. Then] I took two [shepherds’] /walking sticks). I named the one [staff] ‘Kindness’ and the other [staff] ‘Union’. And I took good care of the sheep.

8 ואכחד את שלשת הרעים בירח אחד ותקצר נפשי בהם וגם נפשם בחלה בי

But the three shepherds [who had been working with me] detested me, and I became impatient with them. Within one month I (dismissed/got rid of) those shepherds.

9 ואמר לא ארעה אתכם המתה תמות והנכחדת תכחד והנשארות תאכלנה אשה את בשר רעותה

So I said [to the dealers], “I will no [longer] be the shepherd. I will allow the ones that are dying to die. I will allow the ones that are getting lost to get lost. And I will not prevent those that remain from destroying each other.”

10 ואקח את מקלי את נעם ואגדע אתו--להפיר את בריתי אשר כרתי את כל העמים

Then I took the staff that I had named ‘Kindness’ and I broke it. [That showed that Yahweh] was annulling/canceling the agreement that he had made with all the people-groups.

11 ותפר ביום ההוא וידעו כן עניי הצאן השמרים אתי כי דבר יהוה הוא

So that agreement was ended immediately. And the men who bought and sold sheep who were watching me knew [by seeing what I was doing] that I was giving them a message from Yahweh.

12 ואמר אליהם אם טוב בעיניכם הבו שכרי--ואם לא חדלו וישקלו את שכרי שלשים כסף

I told them, “If you think it is what you should do, pay me [for taking care of the sheep]. If you do not think that is what you should do, do not pay me.” So they paid me [only] 30 pieces of silver.

13 ויאמר יהוה אלי השליכהו אל היוצר אדר היקר אשר יקרתי מעליהם ואקחה שלשים הכסף ואשליך אתו בית יהוה אל היוצר

Then Yahweh said to me, “[That is a ridiculously small amount of money that they have paid you]! [So] throw it to the man who makes clay pots!” So I took the silver to the temple of Yahweh, and I threw it in the chest where the offerings/money is kept.

14 ואגדע את מקלי השני את החבלים--להפר את האחוה בין יהודה ובין ישראל

Then I broke my second staff, [the one that I named] ‘Union’. That [indicated that] Judah and Israel would no longer be united.

15 ויאמר יהוה אלי עוד קח לך כלי רעה אולי

Then Yahweh said to me, “Take again the things that a foolish shepherd uses,

16 כי הנה אנכי מקים רעה בארץ הנכחדות לא יפקד הנער לא יבקש והנשברת לא ירפא הנצבה לא יכלכל ובשר הבריאה יאכל ופרסיהן יפרק

because I am going to appoint a new king for the people, [one who will not take care of my people. He will be like a foolish shepherd]: [MET] He will not take care of those who are dying, those who are very young, those who have been injured, or those who do not have enough food. Instead, he will [treat them very cruelly, like a shepherd who would] [MET] kill and eat the best sheep and tear off their hoofs.

17 הוי רעי האליל עזבי הצאן חרב על זרועו ועל עין ימינו זרעו יבוש תיבש ועין ימינו כהה תכהה

But terrible things will happen to that foolish/useless king who abandons the people [MET] over whom he rules. [His enemies] will strike his arm and his right eye with their swords. [The result will be that] he will have no strength in his arm, and his right eye will become completely blind.”