The Pulpit Commentary — Zechariah — Section 106

mal<et1' the l.ightn,'.ngs. Tbundel'llto'11b:11! -rulerR were indeed God's instruments in acoompRny the periodical rains. Ye must punishin~ his people, but they hnd exoeeded Mk of him, and ye shall have. Septuagint, their oommission, and o.fflicted rsrael ,in Kop,or ,,,a/711T< q,a.V'Ta.1Tias, " The Lord makes order to cMry out their own evil designs, flashes" (of lightning?); Vulgate, Domina, and now they themselves shnll be chastised. /aciel nioes, where the right reading is sup- Some commentators take" tho shepherds" posed to be nubes ( oomp. Pii. cxxxv. 7; to be the rulets of Israel civil and ecclesins- Joi, xxxviii. 25, 26). Give them showers of tioal, compa.ring Ezek. xxxiv. 2, 6, etc. But ra.in. Abundant rain, as Job xxxvii. 6. the context leads us to consider them as The address is now in the third person. those who took the place of rulers of Isro.el Gra.ss. All vegetable food for man and when she ha.d no shepherd of her own (ver. beast, e.s in Gen. i. 11, 29; Ps. civ. 14; 2). I punished (will punish) the goats (bell- Amos vii. 2. wethers); literally, will visit upou; i.e. will Yer. 2.-For. The prophet supports his chastise. The same word (paquad) is used emortation to pray to Jehovah by showing in the next clause in a good sense. The the worthlessness of trust in idols. Idols; " goats " e.re the leading men, those powerful teraphim. What these were is not known for evil, as Isa. xiv. 9. Rath visited his for certain. They seem to have been images 1look. The reason why the evil shepherds of human form and sometimes of life size, are punished is because God visits hie flock corresponding in some degree to the lares in love and ea.re, to see their state and to or penates of the Romans (Gen. xxxi. 19; relieve them from trouble (Zepb. ii. 7). l Sam. xix. 13). They were supposed to be The house of Jude.h here includes all the capable of bestowing temporal blessingB nation, to which it afterwards gave its and irinng oracles (Judg. xvii. 5; xviii. 5, name. Hath ma.de (shall make) them as his 24: Ezek. xxi. 21 ). llave spoken vanity. goodly horse. The Israelites shall not only Gave worthless, misleading responses. The be delivered from oppression, but God shall mention of teraphim in this passage is nse them a.s a stately we.r-horse, richly thought to indicate a date anterior to the caparisoned, to tread down enemies and Captivity; but the prophet is speaking of triumph over them. So he said before past events, of the results of these base (eh. ix. 13) that he would make Judah his superstitions in former, not present, time. bow and Ephraim his arrow. (For ~ Three kinds of snperstition are mentioned. description of the war-horse, see Job xxxi.x. Septuagint, ol 4'11'oq,6"'YY&µ.,vo<, "speaking" 19-25; comp. Rev. vi. 2; xi.x. 14, where images. These are the first. Secondly Christ is represented riding on a. white come the soothsayers, the diviners, per- horse, and his saints following him on sons who pretended. to predict the futnre white horses.) (Jer. xxvii. 9; :x:xix. 8; Ezek. xxi. 21; Ver. 4.-The firmness and security of Hnb. ii. 18). llave told false dreams; Vul- Judah, thus "visited," is announced in gate, somniatores 'locuti sunt Jnutra; LXX., terms admitting of further application. Out Ta. <lv,nrvu,. 1/t•u~ij O..a.>..ouv, "spake false of him came forth (shall come). Out of dreams." The Vulgate seems to be correct, Judah, mentioned in ver. 3. Others, not " dreams, i.e. dreamer•, spake deceit." This so suitably, explain, "out of ,Jehovah," in is the third class among the practiser~ of contrast to Hos. viii. 4. The succeeding superstitions observances. They comfort in figures are taken from the building all<l vain, when they promise temporal blessings furnishing of a house. The corner. The (Job xri. 34). Therefore they went their corner-stone (Isa. xxviii. 16). From Judah way as a 1lock.. Becauee they trusted in herself sholl come the prince on whom the these vain superstitions, the Israelites had whole edifice shall rest; i.e. primarily, she to leave their own place, were led into shall be indepe11dent of foreign rulers; and exile like a flock of sheep driven away for secondly, from Judah Bhall come the Mes- sale or slau~hter (Jer. 1. 17). They were siah, "the Head-;ione of the corner" (Me.tt. troubled. They were and are still oppressed xxi. 42; Eph. ii. 20; Heh. vii. 14). Sep!ua- bv the heathen. Because there was (ill) no gint (taking the noun as a verb), Ka.l cbr' llhepherd. Becau•e they bad no king to at-roii i1r,/3A•,J,•, "et ex ipso rospexit" guard and lead them, they fell under the (Jerome). The nail. The word (yathed) power of foreign rulers, who ill treated and is taken for the peg that fe.stenH the cord of oppressed them (Ezek. xxxiv. 5; Neh. v. 15). a tent, for o. nail used in building with timber, or a peg for hanging up arias o.nd Vera. 3, 4.--§ 5. The et1il rulers set m,er utensils on the walls of a house. In which- them for their ,ins shall be removed, and ever sense we take it here, it implies one Israel shall be firmly utablished. who consolidates or upholds the political constitution (Isa. xxii. 23, 24). The battle Ver. 3.-:Mine anger we.a (ill) kindled bow. The people sho.11 thcmsclvt·s have against the shepherd.II. These bee.then e.rms o.nd military skill to protect them CJI, X, 1-12,] 'l'HJ!i .HOOK OF ZECHARIAH. lf,7