The Doomed Flock

11 Open your doors, O Lebanon,

That a (A)fire may feed on your (B)cedars.
Wail, O [a]cypress, for the cedar has fallen,
Because the glorious trees have been destroyed;
Wail, O oaks of Bashan,
For the [b]impenetrable forest has come down.
There is a sound of the shepherds’ (C)wail,
For their glory is ruined;
There is a (D)sound of the young lions’ roar,
For the [c]pride of the Jordan is ruined.

Thus says the Lord my God, “Pasture the flock doomed to (E)slaughter. Those who buy them slay them and [d]go (F)unpunished, and each of those who sell them says, ‘Blessed be the Lord, for (G)I have become rich!’ And their (H)own shepherds have no pity on them. For I will (I)no longer have pity on the inhabitants of the land,” declares the Lord; “but behold, I will (J)cause the men to [e]fall, each into another’s [f]power and into the [g]power of his king; and they will strike the land, and I will (K)not deliver them from their [h]power.”

So I (L)pastured the flock doomed to slaughter, [i]hence the (M)afflicted of the flock. And I took for myself two (N)staffs: the one I called [j](O)Favor and the other I called [k](P)Union; so I pastured the flock. Then I annihilated the three shepherds in (Q)one month, for my soul was impatient with them, and their soul also [l]was weary of me. Then I said, “I will not pasture you. What is to (R)die, [m]let it die, and what is to be annihilated, [n]let it be annihilated; and [o]let those who are left eat one another’s flesh.” 10 I took my staff [p](S)Favor and cut it in pieces, to [q](T)break my covenant which I had made with all the peoples. 11 So it was [r]broken on that day, and [s]thus the (U)afflicted of the flock who were watching me realized that it was the word of the Lord. 12 I said to them, “If it is good in your sight, give me my (V)wages; but if not, [t]never mind!” So they weighed out (W)thirty shekels of silver as my wages. 13 Then the Lord said to me, “Throw it to the (X)potter, that magnificent price at which I was valued by them.” So I took the thirty shekels of silver and threw them to the potter in the house of the Lord. 14 Then I cut in pieces my second staff [u](Y)Union, to (Z)break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.

15 The Lord said to me, “Take again for yourself the equipment of a [v](AA)foolish shepherd. 16 For behold, I am going to raise up a shepherd in the land who will (AB)not care for the perishing, seek the scattered, heal the broken, or sustain the one standing, but will (AC)devour the flesh of the fat sheep and tear off their hoofs.

17 (AD)Woe to the worthless shepherd
Who leaves the flock!
A (AE)sword will be on his arm
And on his right eye!
His (AF)arm will be totally withered
And his right eye will be [w]blind.”

Footnotes

  1. Zechariah 11:2 Or juniper
  2. Zechariah 11:2 Another reading is forest of the vintage
  3. Zechariah 11:3 Or jungle
  4. Zechariah 11:5 Lit are not held guilty
  5. Zechariah 11:6 Lit find
  6. Zechariah 11:6 Lit hand
  7. Zechariah 11:6 Lit hand
  8. Zechariah 11:6 Lit hand
  9. Zechariah 11:7 Another reading is for the sheep dealers
  10. Zechariah 11:7 Or Pleasantness
  11. Zechariah 11:7 Or Cords
  12. Zechariah 11:8 Or detested
  13. Zechariah 11:9 Or will die
  14. Zechariah 11:9 Or will be annihilated
  15. Zechariah 11:9 Or those...will eat
  16. Zechariah 11:10 Or Pleasantness
  17. Zechariah 11:10 Or annul
  18. Zechariah 11:11 Or annulled
  19. Zechariah 11:11 Another reading is the sheep dealers who
  20. Zechariah 11:12 Lit cease
  21. Zechariah 11:14 Or Cords
  22. Zechariah 11:15 Or useless
  23. Zechariah 11:17 Lit completely dimmed

11 Oh Líbano, abre tus puertas, y queme fuego tus cedros.

Aúlla, oh haya, porque el cedro cayó, porque los magníficos son talados. Aullad, alcornoques de Basán, porque el fuerte monte es derribado.

Voz de aullido de pastores se oyó, porque su magnificencia es asolada; estruendo de bramidos de cachorros de leones, porque la soberbia del Jordán es destruida.

Así dijo el SEÑOR mi Dios: Apacienta las ovejas de la matanza;

a las cuales mataban sus compradores, y no se tenían por culpables; y el que las vendía, decía: Bendito sea el SEÑOR, porque he enriquecido; ni sus pastores tenían piedad de ellas.

Por tanto, no tendré piedad más de los moradores de la tierra, dice el SEÑOR; porque he aquí, yo entregaré los hombres, cada cual en mano de su compañero, y en mano de su rey; y quebrantarán la tierra, y yo no los libraré de sus manos.

Y apacentaré, pues, las ovejas de la matanza, es a saber, a los pobres del rebaño. Porque yo me tomé dos cayados; al uno puse por nombre Suavidad, y al otro Ligaduras; y apacenté las ovejas.

E hice matar tres pastores en un mes, y mi alma se angustió por ellos, y también el alma de ellos me aborreció a mí.

Y dije: No os apacentaré más; la que muriere, muera; y la que se perdiere, se pierda; y las que quedaren, que cada una coma la carne de su compañera.

10 Y tomé mi cayado Suavidad, y lo quebré, para deshacer mi pacto que concerté con todos los pueblos.

11 Y fue deshecho en ese día, y así conocieron los pobres del rebaño que miran a mí, que era palabra del SEÑOR.

12 Y les dije: Si os parece bien, dadme mi salario; y si no, dejadlo. Y apreciaron mi salario en treinta piezas de plata.

13 Y me dijo el SEÑOR: Echalo al tesorero, hermoso precio con que me han apreciado. Y tomé las treinta piezas de plata, y las eché en la Casa del SEÑOR al tesorero.

14 Y quebré el otro mi cayado, Ligaduras, para romper la hermandad entre Judá e Israel.

15 Y me dijo el SEÑOR: Toma aún los aperos de un pastor loco;

16 porque he aquí, que yo levanto pastor en la tierra, que no visitará las perdidas, no buscará la pequeña, no curará la perniquebrada, ni llevará la cansada a cuestas; sino que se comerá la carne de la gruesa, y romperá sus uñas.

17 ¡Ay del pastor inútil, que abandona el ganado! Espada sobre su brazo, y sobre su ojo derecho; del todo se secará su brazo, y enteramente será su ojo derecho oscurecido.