11 In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon. 12 And the land shall mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart; (which is however the reading of some MSS., though the great majority, and all the best, read). S. John xix. 37 and Rev. i. 7 cannot be looked on as positive evidence in favour of the reading, because, not the actual words, but merely the sense of the passage seems to be given in those two places. The reading has, however, been supported by Kennicott, Ewald, Geiger, Bunsen. For hayyachid LXX. άуaлητ, either translating ad sensum, or reading 777. If we are to interpret this verse as it stands, we must certainly understand “the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem" as the subject of Remarks. the verbs vehibbitu "and they shall look," and daqaru "they pierced," or rather " thrust-through.' So we cannot with RASHI understand the verse to mean, that Israel will look [unto God] in mourning for those slain by the Chaldeans; nor with IBN EZRA, that all the nations will look unto God to see what He will do to them on account of their having slain the Messiah, son of Joseph (comp. T. B. Succah 52a); for (apart from the question of the subject of the verbs), as QIMCHI most sensibly remarks, if Messiah son of Joseph be referred to here (and we may add, in Ezek. xxxviii. xxxix. also) why is he not mentioned? Retaining the reading of the Text elay "unto me," some interpret the verb daqaru figuratively "they pierced," i.e. "contemned." The Person might be God Himself, or the Prophet (who seems to have personified the Rejected Shepherd in ch. xi.) looked on as identified (HITZIG) for the moment with Him that sent him. But surely, such a rendering of dagaru (even supposing it to be admissible, which we do not think to be the case) is too weak to account for the strong expressions which follow, "and they shall mourn over him as with the mourning for an only son, &c.," which can only refer to the case of some one actually slain. We must therefore reject this interpretation of dagaru. If, on the other hand, we take it as meaning "they thrust-through," the first person "unto me" presents great difficulties. For it cannot be referred to God Himself, as that would, as Ewald says, "introduce into the Old Testament the absurd notion that persons will bitterly lament over Yahvé (YHVH) as over one that is dead." Nor can it be explained, primarily, of the twofold nature of Christ, as that is a notion which could never have suggested itself to a Jew of Zechariah's time. Nor can it be interpreted of the Prophet as representing Him who sent him, for no mention is made of the slaying of such a person, nor is any hint dropped of such a thing even in xi. 13. EWALD would read elav "unto him," and says "we can only say, that at that time a distinguished martyr in the cause of Jerusalem and the house of David and the true religion may have fallen shortly before without receiving the just acknowledgment of the capital, and there may be here reference to him." But this "distinguished martyr" exists only in 13 The family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart; the family of Shimei apart, and their wives apart; 14 All the families that remain, every family apart, and their wives apart. the imagination of the commentator. As we see no way of interpreting this passage in its present context, so, at least, as to have been understood by the prophet's hearers, we propose to place it after xiii. 3. See Remarks, p. 114-117. DESERTION OF IDOLATRY. ZEAL NOT ACCORDING TO KNOWLEDGE. SLAYING OF THE PROPHET. CONSEQUENT MOURNING. There is, no doubt, a reference here to Numb. xix. 977 T "for water of purification, a means of removing 99.66 "offering for sin," means Verse 1. sin is it." Chaṭṭáth means 66 sin," " of removing sin" (comp. the use of the verb 'N Ps. li. 9, “thou shalt cleanse me," and Numb. xix. 12, "he shall cleanse him T-: self"). Similarly niddah, while it means especially that sort of ceremonial uncleanness, which requires separation (Lev. xii. 2, &c.), denotes also "the removal of this uncleanness." So we may here correctly render the words l'chattáth ulniddáh "for the removal of sin and uncleanness." Elsewhere the word is in the absol., and N in the constr.; but here all authorities read LXX. Māqór wâs tótos, reading, and taking, apparently, the undefined substantive as meaning "every place."-In rendering lchattath by εἰς τὴν μετακίνησιν, they appear to have taken as the Infin. Hiph. of לחטאת (?).—Niddah xwpropóv, reverting to the primary meaning of the root. that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land. 3 And it shall come to pass, that when any shall yet prophesy, then and ; גְמַלִּים גָּמָל occurs in the plur. only, the form is that of עֲצַבִּים Verse 2. the singl., if it occurred, would be ‘açábh. As a singular in Words and the sense of "idol" we have in use (Is. xlviii. 5). and “trouble” make in plur. “çābhím, e.g. D'Y (Ps. cxxvii. 2) "bread earned by much toil.". The expression rúach hattum áh "the unclean spirit," which occurs here only, is the origin, doubtless, of the common N. T. expression то νeûμа тò άкáðaρтov.— in the sense of "removing," comp. (2 Chron. xv. 8) Dp and he removed the abominations." LXX. understand "The prophets" correctly as vevdoπpopýtαs. Verse 3. "if," or "when" (comp. note on p. 73).- "then shall 66 say unto him his father and his mother": yòľdháv Words and 'even they who bare him," is added for emphasis. - udqārúhū, the rú is long, merely defectively constructions. written (comp. xi. 5); the word means "and they shall thrust him through," comp. - " "and he thrust them both through” (Numb. xxv. 8).—B'hinnàbhoó might mean "in his act of prophesying," but "because of his prophesying" is better, comp. of thy leaning on" (2 Chron. xvi. 7). "because udgaruhu καὶ συμποδιοῦσιν αὐτόν, translating euphemistically, as in xii. 10 they give for the same verb κатwруnoavто. LXX. Remarks. Here we propose to read chap. xii. 10-14. We admit that we have no authority for so doing, either of MSS., versions, or commentators. Two considerations have suggested to us this rearrangement of the text: (1) We are unable to discover any intelligible meaning which the words "and they shall look on me (or him) whom they thrust through," in the place in which they now stand in the Hebrew Text, could have conveyed to the Prophet's hearers, and even to us of the present day they seem enigmatical words suddenly introduced without the idea of "thrusting through" having been supplied by the context: (2) If we place them after ch. xiii. 3, in which the "thrusting through" of a son is distinctly mentioned, the words which commentators have taxed their ingenuity in vain to explain, will convey the simplest and most obvious sense. In a section, in which the phrase on that day," ," "and it shall come to pass on that day," occurs so often, it is easy to imagine that a confusion of order may have arisen in early times. If our conjecture (and it is but a conjecture) be correct, the whole passage will run as follows: 66 (iii. 1) In that day shall be a fountain opened, for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for [removal of] sin and of uncleanness.-(2) And it shall be in that day ('tis the utterance of YHVH Çeba'ōth) I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, and they shall not be remembered any more; and the [false] prophets and the unclean spirit will I cause to pass away from the land. (3) And it shall be, when a man shall prophesy, then they shall say to him, his father and his mother, they that bare him, "Thou shalt not live, because thou hast spoken lies in the name of YHVH;" and they shall thrust him through, his father and his mother, they that bare him, on account of his prophesying. (xii. 10) Then will I pour out upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and supplication, and they shall look on him, even him whom they thrust through, and they shall mourn over him, as the mourning for an only son, and they shall make bitter mourning over him, as one mourneth bitterly for a firstborn. In that day... (14)...and their wives apart. When, in the blindness of fanaticism, these people should have been led to commit such a crime, as that mentioned xiii. 3, then God would have pity on them, and pour out on them the spirit of grace and supplication, &c. The reader will perceive, that the application of the expression "and they shall look on him whom they thrust through" to our Lord (John xix. 34, 37, Rev. i. 7) is even more appropriate, if the words be taken as we have proposed, than if they were left in their present context. For the passage, as we propose to read it, depicts a Prophet, and a true Prophet, rejected by his own people as a false prophet, and slain by them. What more appropriate passage could be cited relative to our Lord? We must not, however, any more than in xi. 12, 13, confine the application of the prophecy to this single fulfilment, though it is certainly by far the most remarkable and important one. On the accentuation of v'shàphactá see notes on i. 3. Chén seems to denote here "Divine favour," i. e. "grace." Tàchanuním "earnest supplication" as the result of chén (but LXX. OKTIPμo)." And they shall look on me"; but Chap. xii. 10. Words and constructions. οἰκτιρμοῦ). והביטו we prefer to read "on him " (see pp. 112, 115).-, among other meanings, has that of "to contemplate" as (Ps. cii. 20) p אליו The . ואל זה אביט אל עני וּנְכֵה רוח (2 .Is. xvi) אל ארץ הביט nature of the feelings of the contemplator is decided by the context. Here they are, evidently, those of compunction. For the construction NN (1)' "unto me (or him), viz. him whom they thrust through," compare (Jer. xxxviii. 9) * 127? 66 T: to Jeremiah the prophet, him whom they * את אשר השליכו אל הבור cast into the pit."-Hayyachid, the article is generic, and may be best rendered into English by "a"; in Amos viii. 10 we have 7 S (where also the next clause contains a derivative of 19).—Vohāmér is the Infin. Absol. Hiph. and may be taken as used emphatically, for 17' (but see note on vii. 5). In the Hiph. this verb is nowhere else used of "mourning bitterly," but in the Pi'el is so used (Is. xxii. 4) -Chamer is the Infin. Construct lit. "as the mourning bitterly for."—We can hardly take v'sàph'dhú ‘āláv to mean they shall mourn over it (ea de re), viz. the crime committed, as that would materially weaken the force of the expressions which follow, "9 66 over an only son," over a first-born." 66 Chap. xii. 11. Hadadrimmon "is a city," says Jerome, "near Jezreel, now called Maximianopolis, in the field of Mageddon, where the good king Josiah was (mortally) wounded in battle (2 Chron. xxxv. 22-25) with Pharaoh-necho." According to Assyriologists, Hadar-Ramman is the proper pronunciation of this word. The fact that a place in the tribe of Issachar was at the time of these prophecies known by an Assyrian name is an additional link in the chain of evidence, which proves them to be of post-exilian origin. The mourning for Josiah became, no doubt, proverbial for a great national mourning. LXX Hadadrimmón is rendered po@vos "of a plantation of pomegranates," by way of conjecture (rimmón means pomegranate). Megiddon is rendered ẻккOTтoμévov, by reverting to the meaning of the root 77, comp. (Dan. iv. 11) góddū, ¿kkófate. Mishpachoth mishpachóth "each family"; for the repetition of the substantive to denote "each single," compare y Chap. xii. 12. לבדו "each flock by itself" (Gen. xxxii. 17); the plur. however is not generally used in this manner, but comp. Ezek. xxiv. 6 |