Zechariah 11:7
in Zechariah 11So I pastured the flock marked for slaughter, especially the afflicted of the flock. Then I took for myself two staffs, calling one Favor and the other Union, and I pastured the flock.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
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.
KJV
And I will feed the flock of slaughter, even you, O 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.
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This verse in Zechariah 11
Commentary
8 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
The prophetic narrative which follows, differs in its form, in some respects, from the symbolical actions of the prophets and from Zechariah’s own visions. The symbolical actions of the prophets are actions of their own: this involves acts, which it would be impossible to represent, except as a sort of drama. Such are the very central points, the feeding of the flock, which are still intelligent people who understand God’s doings: the cutting off of the three shepherds; the asking for the price; the unworthy price offered; the casting it aside.
This site's exposition
the other I called Bands
on Zechariah 11:7-8
The prophet himself becomes the shepherd of the doomed flock, taking two staves he names Beauty and Bands, the first standing for the covenant's grace and the second for the brotherhood binding the nation together. Three shepherds are cut off in a single month, an event the bench reads variously of failed priestly, prophetic, and royal offices, or of a swift purge of rival leaders, with the positions named and none settled. The mutual loathing that follows, the prophet's soul weary of the flock and the flock's soul abhorring him, marks the covenant already fraying before either staff is broken.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 6, 7) And I will no longer spare those who dwell on the earth, says the Lord. Behold, I will deliver each man into the hand of his neighbor and into the hand of his king, and they shall strike the earth, and I will not deliver it from their hand. And I will feed the sheep of slaughter, O you poor of the flock. LXX: Therefore, I will no longer spare the inhabitants of the earth, says the Lord.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Bands - The beauty of grace and glory, the bands of love and peace.
He does as it were say, Lo, I come to do thy will, O my God! and, since this is thy will, it is mine: I will feed the flock of slaughter. Christ will care for these lost sheep; he will go about among them, teaching and healing even you, O poor of the flock! Christ did not neglect the meanest, nor overlook them for their meanness.
And I will feed the flock of slaughter,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
It was not My fault, Jehovah implies, that these sheep were not fed; the fault rests solely with you, because ye rejected the grace of God [CALVIN]. even you, O poor of the flock--rather, "in order that (I might feed, that is, save) the poor (humble; compare Zec 11:11;
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens+odd-straight-quotes
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
And I wilt feed the flock of slaughter - I showed them what God had revealed to me relative to the evils coming upon the land; and I did this the more especially for the sake of the poor of the flock. Two staves - Two shepherd’s crooks. One I called Beauty - that probably by which they marked the sheep; dipping the end into vermillion, or some red liquid. And this was done when they were to mark every tenth sheep, as it came out of the field, when the tithe was to be set apart for the Lord. The other I called Bands - Probably that with the hook or crook at the head of it, by which the shepherd was wont to catch the sheep by the horns or legs when he wished to bring any to hand. And I fed the flock - These two rods show the beauty and union of the people, while under God as their Shepherd. It was the delight of God to see them in a state of peace and harmony.
The words behind it
20 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וָֽאֶרְעֶה֙ | vaereh | and I shepherded | H7462 → | 177 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| צֹ֣אן | tzon | [the] flock of | H6629 → | 274 times |
| הַֽהֲרֵגָ֔ה | haharegah | <the> slaughter | H2028 → | |
| לָכֵ֖ן | lakhen | <to> therefore | H3651 → | 771 times |
| עֲנִיֵּ֣י | ʾaniyei | [the] afflicted [ones] of | H6041 → | 73 times |
| הַצֹּ֑אן | hatzon | the flock | H6629 → | 274 times |
| וָאֶקַּֽח־ | vaekach- | and I took | H3947 → | 966 times |
| לִ֞י | li | for myself | ||
| שְׁנֵ֣י | shenei | two | H8147 → | 768 times |
| מַקְל֗וֹת | maklot | staffs | H4731 → | 18 times |
| לְאַחַ֞ד | leachad | <to> one | H259 → | 971 times |
| קָרָ֤אתִי | karati | I called | H7121 → | 733 times |
| נֹ֙עַם֙ | noam | Favor | H5278 → | |
| וּלְאַחַד֙ | uleachad | and <to> one | H259 → | 971 times |
| קָרָ֣אתִי | karati | I called | H7121 → | 733 times |
| חֹֽבְלִ֔ים | choelim | Union | H2256 → | 62 times |
| וָאֶרְעֶ֖ה | vaereh | and I shepherded | H7462 → | 177 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| הַצֹּֽאן׃ | hatzon | the flock | H6629 → | 274 times |
וָֽאֶרְעֶה֙and I shepherded
vaerehH7462 →177 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
צֹ֣אן[the] flock of
tzonH6629 →274 times
הַֽהֲרֵגָ֔ה<the> slaughter
haharegahH2028 →
לָכֵ֖ן<to> therefore
lakhenH3651 →771 times
עֲנִיֵּ֣י[the] afflicted [ones] of
ʾaniyeiH6041 →73 times
הַצֹּ֑אןthe flock
hatzonH6629 →274 times
וָאֶקַּֽח־and I took
vaekach-H3947 →966 times
לִ֞יfor myself
li
שְׁנֵ֣יtwo
sheneiH8147 →768 times
מַקְל֗וֹתstaffs
maklotH4731 →18 times
לְאַחַ֞ד<to> one
leachadH259 →971 times
קָרָ֤אתִיI called
karatiH7121 →733 times
נֹ֙עַם֙Favor
noamH5278 →
וּלְאַחַד֙and <to> one
uleachadH259 →971 times
קָרָ֣אתִיI called
karatiH7121 →733 times
חֹֽבְלִ֔יםUnion
choelimH2256 →62 times
וָאֶרְעֶ֖הand I shepherded
vaerehH7462 →177 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
הַצֹּֽאן׃the flock
hatzonH6629 →274 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Isaiah 11:4but with righteousness He will judge the poor, and with equity He will decide for the lowly of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth and slay the…
it leads to
- Revelation 19:15
And from His mouth proceeds a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and He will rule them with an iron scepter. He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath…
- 2 Thessalonians 2:8
And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will slay with the breath of His mouth and annihilate by the majesty of His arrival.
- Proverbs 31:8–9
Open your mouth for those with no voice, for the cause of all the dispossessed.
- Malachi 4:6
And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers. Otherwise, I will come and strike the land with a curse.”
- Job 4:9
By the breath of God they perish, and by the blast of His anger they are consumed.
- Revelation 19:15
Through
Zephaniah 3:12But I will leave within you a meek and humble people, and they will trust in the name of the LORD.
it leads to
- Nahum 1:7
The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of distress; He cares for those who trust in Him.
- Isaiah 14:32
What answer will be given to the envoys of that nation? “The LORD has founded Zion, where His afflicted people will find refuge.”
- Isaiah 61:1–3
The Spirit of the Lord GOD is on Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty…
- Nahum 1:7
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Zechariah
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Carl Friedrich Keil, The Twelve Minor Prophets; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Zechariah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.