The Meaning of Zechariah 11:4 Explained

Zechariah 11:4

KJV: Thus saith the LORD my God; Feed the flock of the slaughter;

YLT: Thus said Jehovah my God: 'Feed the flock of the slaughter,

Darby: Thus saith Jehovah my God: Feed the flock of slaughter,

ASV: Thus said Jehovah my God: Feed the flock of slaughter;

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Thus saith  the LORD  my God;  Feed  the flock  of the slaughter; 

What does Zechariah 11:4 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Yahweh, Zechariah"s God, instructed the prophet to present himself as a shepherd assigned to care for a flock doomed to slaughter. This may mean that the prophet was to act out a parable for his audience. [1] However it seems more likely, in view of what follows, that Zechariah spoke for God, and sometimes as Messiah, as though he were a shepherd. He seems to have been presenting an allegory that was the product of a visionary experience (cf. Jeremiah 1:10; Jeremiah 25:15-38). [2]

Context Summary

Zechariah 11:1-17 - Beauty And Bands
The times were very dark when Zechariah felt called upon to act as shepherd to Jehovah's harried flock. Rulers and priests were actuated by selfish greed and mutual antagonism. Three shepherds had already failed. After a brief effort Zechariah renounced the attempt. He broke his staff of Beauty, or Grace, Zechariah 11:10, r.v. margin, as if God's tender love had withdrawn from its struggle with evil; and when he challenged the people to set a value on his services, they weighed him out thirty pieces of silver, the price of a slave. Thereupon he broke the other staff, disrupting the brotherhood between Judah and Israel. In the following paragraph, Zechariah 11:15-17, there is an evident reference to the terrible reign of Antiochus whose cruelties led to the heroic uprising of the Maccabees. Five centuries afterwards Jesus was sent to gather the flock with the same result, Matthew 27:9-10. [source]

Chapter Summary: Zechariah 11

1  The destruction of Jerusalem
3  The elect being cared for, the rest are rejected
10  The staves of Beauty and Bands broken by the rejection of Christ
15  The type and curse of a foolish shepherd

What do the individual words in Zechariah 11:4 mean?

Thus says Yahweh my God Feed - the flock for slaughter
כֹּ֥ה אָמַ֖ר יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהָ֑י רְעֵ֖ה אֶת־ צֹ֥אן הַהֲרֵגָֽה

כֹּ֥ה  Thus 
Parse: Adverb
Root: כֹּה  
Sense: thus, here, in this manner.
אָמַ֖ר  says 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
יְהוָ֣ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
אֱלֹהָ֑י  my  God 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, first person common singular
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
רְעֵ֖ה  Feed 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine singular
Root: רָעָה 
Sense: to pasture, tend, graze, feed.
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
צֹ֥אן  the  flock  for 
Parse: Noun, common singular construct
Root: צֹאן  
Sense: small cattle, sheep, sheep and goats, flock, flocks.
הַהֲרֵגָֽה  slaughter 
Parse: Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: הֲרֵגָה  
Sense: a killing, slaughter.