9:1 The burden of the word of the Lord in the land of Hadrach, and Damascus shall be the rest thereof: when the (lunar) eyes of man, as of all the tribes of Israel, shall be toward the Lord (Centaurus).

Alexander's Conquests in Syria (Zec 9:1-8). God's People Safe because Her King Cometh Lowly, but a Saviour (Zec 9:9-10). The Maccabean Deliverance a Type Thereof (Zec 9:11-17).

This is a prophecy against Syria, the Philistines, Tyre, and Sidon, which were to be subdued by Alexander the Great. After this the prophet speaks gloriously concerning the coming of Christ, and redemption by him.

The prophecy is thought to relate to Alexander the Great conquering Syria; Damascus being at the same time betrayed to him, and all Darius’s treasure, which was laid up there, delivered into his hands.

The land of Hadrach - The valley of Damascus, or a place near to Damascus. Alexander the Great gained possession of Damascus, and took all its treasures; but it was without blood; the city was betrayed to him.The progress of war from the Orontes valley by Damascus and thence down the coast of Palestine follows the line of Alexander’s campaign in 332, which must also have been the line of Demetrius in 315 and of Antigonus in 311. The evidence of language is mostly in favor of a late date. If Ptolemy I took Jerusalem in 320, then the promise, no assailant shall return (Zechariah 9:8), is probably later than that.

In face, then, of Alexander’s invasion of Palestine, or of another campaign on the same line, this oracle repeats the ancient confidence of Isaiah (Zechariah 9:1). God rules: His providence is awake alike for the heathen and for Israel. "Jehovah hath an eye for mankind, and all the tribes of Israel." The heathen shall be destroyed, but Jerusalem rest secure; and the remnant of the heathen be converted, according to the Levitical notion, by having unclean foods taken out of their mouths.(9:1-6)

2 And Hamath also shall border thereby; Tyrus, and Zidon, though it be very wise.

very wise—in her own eyes. Referring to Tyre: Zec 9:3 shows wherein her wisdom consisted, namely, in building a stronghold, and heaping up gold and silver (Eze 38:3, 5, 12, 17). On Alexander's expressing his wish to sacrifice in Hercules' temple in New Tyre on the island, she showed her wisdom in sending a golden crown, and replying that the true and ancient temple of Hercules was at Old Tyre on the mainland. With all her wisdom she cannot avert her doom.

3 And Tyrus did build herself a strong hold, and heaped up (lunar) silver as the dust, and fine (solar) gold as the mire of the streets.

The heathen historian, Diodorus Siculus [17.40], confirms this. "Tyre had the greatest confidence owing to her insular position and fortifications, and the abundant stores she had prepared." New Tyre was on an island seven hundred paces from the shore. As Isaiah's and Ezekiel's (Eze 27:1-36) prophecies were directed against Old Tyre on the mainland and were fulfilled by Nebuchadnezzar, so Zechariah's are against New Tyre, which was made seemingly impregnable by a double wall one hundred fifty feet high, as well as the sea on all sides.

4 Behold, the Lord will cast her out, and he will smite her power in the sea; and she shall be devoured with (solar) fire.

The cities mentioned in Zechariah 9:1-7 trace Alexander’s march through the Promised Land in 332-331 B.C.
Alexander the Great conquered Tyre by laying siege for seven months, then using the rubble from the old city to make a causeway out to the island city. It was a spectacular achievement of both military and engineering strategy.

“Proudly confident in the strength of their island fortress, the Tyrians mocked the attempts of Alexander to reduce their city. Every engine of war suited for defence had been stored up in their bulwarks, and every device which their skilful engineers could suggest was had recourse to, and for a time with marked success. ‘Ye despise this land army through confidence in the place that ye dwell in as an island, but I will show you that ye dwell on a continent,’ was the language of Alexander (Q. Curtius, de reb. gest. Alex. Magn. iv. 2). The shallow channel between the mainland and the island was at last bridged over by a huge dam of earth erected after repeated failures, and the city which had stood a five years’ siege from the Assyrians, a thirteen years’ siege from the Chaldæans, was taken after a short siege of seven months by Alexander. Ten thousand of its brave defenders were either massacred or crucified” (2,000 were crucified, from 6,000 to 8,000 are said to have been massacred), “the rest were sold into slavery, none escaped save those who were concealed by the Sidonians in the ships. Q. Curtius adds distinctly (Zechariah 4:4) that ‘Alexander having slain all, save those who fled to the temples, ordered the houses to be set on fire.’ ” Rev. C. H. H. Wright.

(Eze 26:4, 12; 27:27).
cast her out—Hebrew, "dispossess her," that is, will cast her inhabitants into exile [Grotius]. Alexander, though without a navy, by incredible labor constructed a mole of the ruins of Old Tyre (fulfilling Eze 26:4-12, &c., by "scraping her dust from her," and "laying her stones, timber, and dust in the midst of the water"), from the shore to the island, and, after a seven months' siege, took the city by storm, slew with the sword about eight thousand, enslaved thirteen thousand, crucified two thousand, and set the city on "fire," as here foretold [Curtius, Book 4].

smite her power in the sea—situated though she be in the sea, and so seeming impregnable (compare Eze 28:2, "I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the sea"). "Her power" includes not only her fortifications, but her fleet, all of which Alexander sank in the sea before her very walls [Curtius, Book 4]. Eze 26:17 corresponds, "How art thou destroyed which wast strong in the sea!"

5 Ashkelon shall (lunar eye) see it, and fear; Gaza also shall (lunar eye) see it, and be very sorrowful, and Ekron; for her expectation shall be (red radius) ashamed; and the king shall perish from Gaza, and Ashkelon shall not be inhabited.

Ashkelon, &c.—Gath alone is omitted, perhaps as being somewhat inland, and so out of the route of the advancing conqueror.
Ekron … expectation … ashamed—Ekron, the farthest north of the Philistine cities, had expected Tyre would withstand Alexander, and so check his progress southward through Philistia to Egypt. This hope being confounded ("put to shame"), Ekron shall "fear."

king shall perish from Gaza—Its government shall be overthrown. In literal fulfilment of this prophecy, after a two month's siege, Gaza was taken by Alexander, ten thousand of its inhabitants slain, and the rest sold as slaves. Betis the satrap, or petty "king," was bound to a chariot by thongs thrust through the soles of his feet, and dragged round the city.

And the king shall perish from Gaza; some understand this of Batis, who was governor of Gaza, when it was taken by Alexander; who was fastened to a chariot, and dragged about the city, as Curtius relates in Hist. l. 4. c. 6.

The Philistine cities of Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and Ashdod are south of Tyre and Sidon, and were also conquered by Alexander the Great in 332-331 B.C.
This passage “accurately foretells the conquest of the eastern Mediterranean coastlands by Greek armies under the command of Alexander the Great.” (Boice)

6 And a bastard shall dwell in Ashdod, and I will cut off the pride of the Philistines.

some, by the "bastard" here, understand Alexander the great, who gave out that he was not the son of Philip, but of Jupiter Ammon:

A bastard shall dwell in Ashdod - This character would suit Alexander very well, who most certainly was a bastard; for his mother Olympia said that Jupiter Ammon entered her apartment in the shape of a dragon, and begat Alexander! Could her husband Philip believe this? The word signifies a stranger.

And I will cut off the pride of the Philistines; by Alexander, and by the Jews in the times of the Maccabees, bringing them into subjection, which their haughty spirits could not well bear; or through the abolition of their old Heathenish religion, in which they prided themselves. It may be observed, that all along the conversion of these various people to Christianity is expressed in terms which seem to signify the destruction of them; and that partly because, in the literal sense, reference is had to the conquest of them by Alexander, by which means the Greek language obtained in Syria and Phoenicia, into which, a little after, the Bible was translated, which paved the way for the bringing of these people to the knowledge of Christ, through the preaching of the Gospel; and partly because Paganism was abolished in these places when Christianity prevailed.

7 And I will take away his (red radius) blood out of his (lunar) mouth, and his abominations from between his (lunar) teeth: but he that remaineth, even he, shall be for our God, and he shall be as a governor in Judah, and Ekron as a Jebusite.

I will take away his blood out of his mouth - The Philistines, when incorporated with the Israelites, shall abstain from blood, and every thing that is abominable.
And Ekron as a Jebusite - As an inhabitant of Jerusalem. Many of the Philistines became proselytes to Judiasm; and particularly the cities of Gaza, and Ashdod. See Josephus Antiq. lib. xlii., c. 15, s. 4.

The close of the seventh verse relates to the number of Philistines that should become proselytes to Judaism; (see Josephus Antiq. 14:15, 4); and the eighth, to the watchful providence of God over his temple in those troublesome times.

8 And I will encamp about mine house because of the army, because of him that passeth by, and because of him that returneth (Alexander the Great in 331 B.C.): and no oppressor shall pass through them any more: for now have I seen with mine (lunar) eyes.

If we inquire now into the historical allusion or fulfilment of this prophecy, it seems most natural to think of the divine judgment, which fell upon Syria, Phoenicia, and Philistia through the march of Alexander the Great from Asia Minor to Egypt. After the battle at Issus in Cilicia, Alexander sent one division of his army under Parmenio to Damascus, to conquer this capital of Coele-Syria. On this expedition Hamath must also have been touched and taken. Alexander himself marched from Cilicia direct to Phoenicia, where Sidon and the other Phoenician cities voluntarily surrendered to him; and only Tyre offered so serious a resistance in its confidence in its own security, that it was not till after a seven months' siege and very great exertions that he succeeded in taking this fortified city by storm. On his further march the fortified city of Gaza also offered a prolonged resistance, but it too was eventually taken by storm (cf. Arrian, ii. 15ff.; Curtius, iv. 12, 13, and 2-4; and Stark, Gaza, p. 237ff.). On the basis of these facts, Hengstenberg observes (Christol. iii. p. 369), as others have done before him, that "there can be no doubt that in Zechariah 9:1-8 we have before us a description of the expedition of Alexander as clear as it was possible for one to be given, making allowance for the difference between prophecy and history."

This may, in a literal sense, respect the care of God over the Jewish nation, his church and people, in the times of Alexander, who passed to and fro without distressing them; or in the times of the Lagidae and Seleucidae, the kings of Egypt and Syria, during whose commotions, and their passing to and fro against each other, and against them, were still continued a kingdom.

Josephus’ account of Alexander’s meeting with the High Priest is fascinating (Antiquities 11.8.4-5):

Now Alexander, when he had taken Gaza, made haste to go up to Jerusalem; and Jaddua the high-priest, when he heard that, was in agony, and under terror, as not knowing how he should meet the Macedonians, since the king was displeased at his foregoing disobedience. He therefore ordained that the people should make supplications, and should join with him in offering sacrifices to God, whom he besought to protect that nation, and to deliver them from the perils that were coming upon them; whereupon God warned him in a dream, which came upon him after he had offered sacrifice, that he should take courage, adorn the city, and open the gates; that the rest appear in white garments, but that he and the priests should meet the king in habits proper to their order, without the dread of any ill consequences, which the providence of God would prevent. Upon which, when he rose from his sleep, he greatly rejoiced; and declared to all the warning he had received from God. According to the dream he acted entirely, and so waited for the coming of the king.

And when he understood that he was not far from the city, he went out in procession, with the priests and the multitude of the citizens. The procession was venerable, and the manner of it different from that of other nations. It reached to a place called Sapha; which name, translated in Greek, signifies a prospect, for you have thence a prospect both of Jerusalem and of the temple; and when the Phoenicians and the Chaldeans that followed him, thought they should have liberty to plunder the city, and torment the high-priest to death, which the king’s displeasure fairly promised them, the very reverse of it happened; for Alexander, when he saw the multitude at a distance, in white garments, while the priests stood clothed with fine linen, and the high-priest in purple and scarlet clothing, with his mitre on his head having the golden plate on which the name of God was engraved, he approached by himself, and adored that name, and first saluted the high-priest. The Jews also did all together, with one voice, salute Alexander, and encompass him about: whereupon the kings of Syria and the rest were surprised at what Alexander had done, and supposed him to be disordered in his mind. However, Parmenio [Alexander’s second-in-command] alone went up to him, and asked him how it came to pass, that when all others adored him, he should adore the high-priest of the Jews? To whom he replied, “I did not adore him, but that God who has honored him with that high-priesthood; for I saw this very person in a dream, in this very habit, when I was at Dios, in Macedonia, who, when I was considering with myself how I might obtain the dominion of Asia, exhorted me to make no delay, but boldly to pass over the sea thither, for that he would conduct my army, and would give me dominion over the Persians; whence it is, that having seen no other in that habit, and now seeing this person in it, and remembering my vision and the exhortation which I had in my dream, I believe that I bring this army under divine conduct, and shall therewith conquer Darius, and destroy the power of the Persians, and that all things will succeed according to what is in my own mind.” And when he had said this to Parmenio, and had given the high-priest his right hand, the priests ran along by him, and he came into the city; and when he went up into the temple, he offered sacrifice to God, according to the high-priest’s direction, and magnificently treated both the high-priest and the priests. And when the book of Daniel was showed him, wherein Daniel declared that one of the Greeks should destroy the empire of the Persians, he supposed that himself was the person intended; and as he was then glad, he dismissed the multitude for the present, but the next day he called them to him, and bade them ask what favors they pleased of him: whereupon the high-priest desired that they might enjoy the laws of their forefathers, and might pay no tribute on the seventh year. He granted all they desired: and when they entreated him that he would permit the Jews in Babylon and Media to enjoy their own laws also, he willingly promised to do hereafter what they desired: and when he said to the multitude, that if any of them would enlist themselves in his army on this condition, that they should continue under the laws of their forefathers, and live according to them, he was willing to take them with him, many were ready to accompany him in his wars.

I will encamp about mine house - This may apply to the conquests in Palestine by Alexander, who, coming with great wrath against Jerusalem, was met by Jaddua the high priest and his fellows in their sacred robes, who made intercession for the city and the temple; and, in consequence, Alexander spared both, which he had previously purposed to destroy. He showed the Jews also much favor, and remitted the tax every seventh year, because the law on that year forbade them to cultivate their ground. See this extraordinary account in Josephus Antiq. lib. xi., c. 8, s. 5. Bishop Newcome translates: "I will encamp about my house with an army, so that none shall pass through or return."

The story of Alexander’s visit to Jerusalem, as it is gathered from Josephus (Ant. Bk. xi. c. 8) and from the Talmud is thus related by Dean Stanley. After the conquest of Tyre and Gaza, Alexander had approached Jerusalem, when “suddenly from the city emerged a long procession, the whole population streamed out, dressed in white. The priestly tribe, in their white robes; the High Priest, apparently the chief authority in the place, in his purple and gold attire, his turban on his head, bearing the golden plate on which was inscribed the ineffable name of Jehovah … It was at the sunrise of a winter morning, long afterwards observed as a joyous festival, when they stood before the king. To the astonishment of the surrounding chiefs Alexander descended from his chariot and bowed to the earth before the Jewish leader. None ventured to ask the meaning of this seeming frenzy, save Parmenio alone. ‘Why should he, whom all men worship, worship the High Priest of the Jews?’ ‘Not him,’ replied the king, ‘but the God whose High Priest he is I worship. Long ago, when at Dium in Macedonia, I saw in my dreams such an one in such an attire as this, who urged me to undertake the conquest of Persia and succeed’ … Hand in hand with the High Priest, and with the priestly tribe running by his side, he entered the sacred inclosure, and offered the usual sacrifice, saw with pleasure the indication of the rise of the Grecian power in the prophetic books, granted free use of their ancestral laws, and specially of the year of jubilee inaugurated so solemnly a hundred years before under Nehemiah, promised to befriend the Jewish settlements of Babylonia and Media, and invited any who were disposed to serve in his army with the preservation of their sacred customs.” Jewish Church, Vol. iii., Lect. xlvii. Without denying that the story is in a legendary dress, we may admit the “probability” of Alexander’s visit to Jerusalem, and the certainty that the city was spared, and the people favoured by him, in accordance with the terms of Zechariah’s prophecy.

9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass (Perseus on Aries, or Centaurus), and upon a colt the foal of an ass.(31 A.D.)

The reference to Christ, the true King of Israel, is direct and immediate. Even if the prophecy be placed before the exile, no event in Jewish history answers, even typically, to this prediction. After the exile no Jewish ruler bore the title of King. “The prophet here briefly shews the manner in which the church is to be restored, namely, because a King will come forth of the tribe and family of David, to bring all things to their pristine order. And this line of argument constantly occurs in the Prophets, since the hope of the ancient people rested, as ours does, on Christ.” Calvin.

10 And I will cut off the (Auriga) chariot from Ephraim, and the (Centaurus) horse from Jerusalem, and the (Hercules) battle bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth.

Zechariah 9:9 belongs to the first coming of Jesus, 31A.D. but Zechariah 9:10 belongs to the Second Coming of Jesus, 2026 A.D.when He comes in power and glory to reign over this earth for 1,000 years. In that day there will be an enforced righteousness, and He will no longer allow war (Isaiah 2:4).

No wars shall be employed to spread the kingdom of the Messiah; for it shall be founded and established, "not by might nor by power, but by the Spirit of the Lord of hosts," Zechariah 4:6.

That is, from the Red Sea, to the Sea called Syriacum: and by these places which the Jews knew, he meant an infinite space and area over the whole world.That is, from the Euphrates.

11 As for thee also, by the blood of thy covenant I have sent forth thy (Auriga and Orion) prisoners out of the (lunar) pit wherein is no water.

12 Turn you to the strong hold, ye prisoners of hope: even to day do I declare that I will render double unto thee;

13 When I have bent Judah for me, filled the (red radius) bow with Ephraim, and raised up thy (Auriga and Orion) sons, O Zion, against thy (Auriga and Orion) sons, O Greece, and made thee as the sword of a (Hercules) mighty man.

bent Judah—made Judah as it were My bow, and "filled" it "with Ephraim," as My arrow, wherewith to overcome the successor of the Grecian Alexander, Antiochus Epiphanes (compare Notes, see on [1185]Da 8:9; [1186]Da 11:32; 1 Maccabees 1:62; 2:41-43), the oppressor of Judah. Having spoken (Zec 9:1-8) of Alexander's victories, after the parenthesis (Zec 9:9, 10) as to Messiah the infinitely greater King coming, he passes to the victories which God would enable Judah to gain over Alexander's successor, after his temporary oppression of them.

This was partially fulfilled in the days of the Maccabean Wars (168 B.C.-164 B.C.), when God raised up Jews to fight against the successors of Alexander’s Empire.

advantage which the Maccabees gained over Antiochus, who was of Macedonian descent

Judas Maccabeus gained several advantages over the troops of Antiochus, who was of Grecian or Macedonian descent. But without excluding these events, it must be allowed that the terms of this prophecy are much too strong to be confined to them; their ultimate fulfillment must therefore be referred to Gospel times.

Israel in a state of absolute political weakness, and therefore suit a date after Alexander’s campaigns, which is also made sure by the reference to the "sons of Javan," as if Israel were now in immediate contact with them.

14 And the Lord shall be seen over them, and his (red radius) arrow shall go forth as the lightning: and the Lord God shall blow the (red radius tube with bell end) trumpet, and shall go with whirlwinds of the south.

15 The Lord of hosts shall defend them; and they shall devour, and subdue with (lunar) (red radius) sling stones; and they shall drink, and make a noise as through (red radius) wine; and they shall be filled like (lunar) bowls, and as the (four red radius) corners of the altar.

16 And the Lord their God shall save them in that day as the (Aries) flock of his people: for they shall be as the (lunar and solar) stones of a (Corona Borealis) crown, lifted up as an ensign upon his land.

for God's glory will shine in them, as Josephus declares of Alexander the great when he met Jadi the high priest.

17 For how great is his goodness, and how great is his beauty! (solar) corn shall make the young (Auriga and Orion) men cheerful, and new (red radius) wine the (Virgo and Coma) maids.

10:1 Ask ye of the Lord rain in the time of the latter rain; so the Lord shall make bright (solar-lunar) clouds, and give them showers of rain, to every one grass in the field.

2 For the (Perseus) idols have spoken vanity, and the (Auriga and Orion) diviners have seen a lie, and have told false dreams; they comfort in vain: therefore they went their way as a flock, they were troubled, because there was no shepherd.

3 Mine anger was kindled against the (Auriga and Orion) shepherds, and I punished the (Auriga) goats: for the Lord of hosts hath visited his (Aries) flock the house of Judah, and hath made them as his goodly (Centaurus) horse in the battle.

4 Out of him came forth the corner, out of him the nail, out of him the (red radius) battle bow, out of him every oppressor together.

5 And they shall be as (Auriga and Orion) mighty men, which tread down their enemies in the mire of the streets in the battle: and they shall fight, because the Lord is with them, and the (Perseus on Aries and Centaurus) riders on horses shall be confounded.

6 And I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will bring them again to place them; for I have mercy upon them: and they shall be as though I had not cast them off: for I am the Lord their God, and will hear them.

7 And they of Ephraim shall be like a (Orion or Hercules) mighty man, and their heart shall rejoice as through wine: yea, their (Auriga, Orion and Perseus) children shall see it, and be glad; their heart shall rejoice in the Lord.

8 I will hiss for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed them: and they shall increase as they have increased.

9 And I will sow them among the (Orion, Perseus and Auriga) people: and they shall remember me in far countries; and they shall live with their (Orion, Perseus and Auriga) children, and turn again.

10 I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon; and place shall not be found for them.

11 And he shall pass through the sea with affliction, and shall smite the waves in the sea, and all the deeps of the river shall dry up: and the pride of Assyria shall be brought down, and the sceptre of Egypt shall depart away.

12 And I will strengthen them in the Lord; and they shall walk up and down in his name, saith the Lord.

11:1 Open thy (lunar white Temple) doors, O Lebanon, that the (solar) fire may devour thy cedars.

The destruction of Jerusalem and of the Jewish church and nation is here foretold which our Lord Jesus, when the time was at hand, prophesied of very plainly and expressly. We have here, 1. Preparation made for that destruction (v. 1): "Open thy doors, O Lebanon! Thou wouldst not open them to let thy king in—he came to his own and his own received him not; now thou must open them to let thy ruin in. Let the gates of the forest, and all the avenues to it, be thrown open, and let the fire come in and devour its glory." Some by Lebanon here understand the temple, which was built of cedars from Lebanon, and the stones of it white as the snow of Lebanon. It was burnt with fire by the Romans, and its gates were forced open by the fury of the soldiers. To confirm this, they tell a story, that forty years before the destruction of the second temple the gates of it opened of their own accord, upon which prodigy Rabbi Johanan made this remark (as it is found in one of the Jewish authors), "Now I know," said he, "that the destruction of the temple is at hand, according to the prophecy of Zechariah, Open thy doors, O Lebanon! that the fire may devour thy cedars." Others understand it of Jerusalem, or rather of the whole land of Canaan, to which Lebanon was an inlet on the north.

was in Isaiah Isa 14:8; Isaiah 37:24 and Jeremiah Jer 22:6-7 the emblem of the glory of the Jewish state; and in Ezekiel, of Jerusalem, as the prophet himself explains it Ezekiel 17:3, Ezekiel 17:12; glorious, beauteous, inaccessible, so long as it was defended by God; a ready prey, when abandoned by Him. The center and source of her strength was the worship of God; and so Lebanon has of old been understood to be the temple, which was built with cedars of Lebanon, towering aloft upon a strong. summit; the spiritual glory and the eminence of Jerusalem, as Lebanon was of the whole country, and , "to strangers who came to it, it appeared from afar like a mountain full of snow; for, where it was not gilded, it was exceeding white, being built of marble." But at the time of destruction it was "a den of thieves" Matthew 21:13, as Lebanon, amidst its beauty, was of wild beasts.

2 Howl, fir tree; for the cedar is fallen; because the mighty are spoiled: howl, O ye oaks of Bashan; for the forest of the vintage is come down.

3 There is a voice of the howling of the (Perseus, Auriga and Orion) shepherds; for their glory is spoiled: a voice of the roaring of young (Orion) lions; for the pride of Jordan is spoiled.

4 Thus saith the Lord my God; Feed the flock of the slaughter;

5 Whose possessors slay them, and hold themselves not guilty: and they that sell them say, Blessed be the Lord; for I am rich: and their own (Perseus, Auriga and Orion) shepherds pity them not.

6 For I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land, saith the Lord: but, lo, I will deliver the men every one into his neighbour's hand, and into the hand of his king: and they shall smite the land, and out of their hand I will not deliver them (70 A.D.)

7 And I will feed the (Aries) flock of slaughter, even you, O poor of the flock. And I took unto me two (red radius) staves; the one I called Beauty, and the other I called Bands; and I fed the flock.

8 Three shepherds also I cut off in one month (Auriga and Orion and Perseus); and my soul lothed them, and their soul also abhorred me.

The three shepherds whom Messiah removes are John, Simon, and Eleazar, three leaders of factions in the Jewish war [Drusius].
one month— Probably alluding to the last period of the siege of Jerusalem, when all authority within the city was at an end [Henderson].

Taking this literally, some think the three shepherds mean the three Maccabees, Judas, Jonathan, and Simon; others, the three wicked high priests, Jason, Alcimus, and Menelaus; others, the three last princes of the Asmonean race, Alexander, Hyrcanus, and Antigonus.
Perhaps three orders may be intended:1. The priesthood. 2. The dictatorship, including the Scribes, Pharisees, etc. 3. The magistracy, the great sanhedrin, and the smaller councils. These were all annihilated by the Roman conquest.

9 Then said I, I will not feed you: that that dieth, let it die; and that that is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let the rest eat every one the flesh of another.

10 And I took my (red radius) staff, even Beauty, and cut it asunder, that I might break my covenant which I had made with all the people (not to hurt my people).

11 And it was broken in that day: and so the poor of the flock that waited upon me knew that it was the word of the Lord.

12 And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of (lunar) silver (31 A.D.).

The staff of Beauty (or Graciousness) is first broken, then the staff of Bands (or Unions): But in verses 12-14, the thirty pieces of silver cast unto the potter in the Temple of the Lord prophesies the price the priests paid Judas for betraying Jesus; thereafter there could be no more union between Judaism and Christianity.

13 And the Lord said unto me, Cast it unto the (Orion) potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the Lord.

14 Then I cut asunder mine other staff, even Bands, that I might break the brotherhood between (Taurus) Judah and (Aries) Israel.

Judah followed Judaism and Talmudism (Taurus). Benjamin followed Christ and Christianity (Aries). Their golden band was cut.

Jews became cut off from the covenant, when they rejected Christ. God no longer protected them; their city was destroyed in 70 A.D.

The Jews and Israelites had formed one society, both of religion and polity, which society continued till the last destruction of Jerusalem, when, the Jewish kingdom being subverted, the bands were broken, and a disunion in religion was made; some of the Jews continuing attached to their ancient law as much as they could without the temple, and others professing the Christian faith.” — Houbigant. The design of the prophet’s commission, says Blayney, was to endeavour to bring about a reformation, upon which would depend the continuance of the brotherhood, or political union, between Judah and Israel. The second crook, or staff, was therefore called Bands. But when the commission ended without producing its effect, the breaking of the crook prefigured the dissolution of that brotherhood. What that brotherhood was, is well explained by Mr. Lowth, who says, that “upon the destruction of Jerusalem, which was the bond and cement of all their tribes, being the seat and centre both of their civil power, and of the divine worship, (Psalm 132:3-5,) the consequence was the entire dissolution of the nation, and the dispersion and confusion of all their tribes, whose families could no longer be distinguished after the loss of their genealogies.” Calmet thinks that, in this verse, Israel denotes the unbelieving Jews, who rejected Christ, and Judah the faithful ones who believed in him.

Were Christ's Disciples all Benjamites?

Simon Peter, his brother Andrew, and also Philip were from Bethsaida, GALILEE (John 1:40-45). James and John, the sons of Zebedee, were GALILEANS also (Matt.4:21-23). "And it came to pass, when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciples, he departed from there to teach and to preach in THEIR cities" (Matt.11:1) -- the cities of his twelve disciples. What cities were they? "Chorazin ... Bethsaida ... And thou, Capernaum" (Matt.11:21-23) -- all cities of GALILEE. In fact, he was brought up in Nazareth of GALILEE (Luke 2:39) and spent virtually his whole recorded life in GALILEE (Matt.4:13-18). Except for his trips to the temple at Jerusalem during the festivals every year and a brief visit to Tyre and Sidon where he called a "woman of Canaan" ("a Greek [by culture], a Syrophoenician by nation"-- Mark 7:26) a "dog" (Matt.15:22-28) and illustrated the fact that non-Israelites can be partakers of the Bread of Life if they become Christians, he stayed in GALILEE. Christ did not go "into the way of the Gentiles" nor enter "into any city of the Samaritans" (Matt.10:5). With the exception of "James, the Lord's brother" (Gal.1:19) and Judas of Kirioth, it is safe to say that all Christ's followers were GALILEAN since we read, "Of a truth this fellow also was with him: for he is a GALILEAN" (Luke 22:59). His disciples are ALL called "Ye men of GALILEE" in Acts 1:10-11 and "Behold are not ALL these which speak GALILEANS " (Acts 2:4,7). Judas of Kiriot was probably Jewish since Kiriath-jearim and Kiriath-arba are both in JUDEA. But he was replaced by a GALILEAN (Acts 2:7). And GALILEANS were not Jews for we read that "After these things Jesus walked in GALILEE: for he would not walk in Jewry, because the Jews sought to kill him" (John 7:1).

GALILEE was looked down upon by Jews showing that they were not the same people ethnically (John 1:42; 7:53). When the two tribes of JUDAH and BENJAMIN were carried away to Babylon, no people occupied their land in the south of Palestine. It lay desolate. The ten tribes never returned from Assyria, but the two tribes did return soon after the fall of Babylon (Ezra 4:1; 10:9) and re-inhabited their unoccupied land. The territory of BENJAMIN lay to the north of JUDAH'S portion and adjacent to it (Neh.11:31-35). In course of time, as the population greatly increased, the BENJAMITES spread still further north into GALILEE (Obadiah 19), beyond the Samaritans, while JUDAH expanded into BENJAMIN'S original small territory. This explains why the city of Jerusalem was originally BENJAMITE (Josh.18:28) but was found in JUDEA in the time of Christ. As Josephus says, "there are but TWO tribes in Asia and Europe subject to the Romans, while the TEN tribes are beyond Euphrates till now, and are an immense multitude, and not to be estimated by numbers" (Ant.11:5:2). Paul declared "For I also am ... of the tribe of BENJAMIN" (Rom.11:1).

Christ said to his disciples, "Ye are the LIGHT of the world" (Matt.5:14). Benjamites were the LIGHT-BEARER tribe. In 1 Kings 11:31-36 God said that Jeroboam's northern kingdom would not have all the tribes "that David my servant may have a LIGHT always before me in Jerusalem." One tribe of Israel was lent to Judah -- the BENJAMITES -- for David's sake. Thus the Bible itself defines Benjamites as LIGHTS or Christians since Christians are "the LIGHTof the world" (Matt.5:14). So Christ's disciples were BENJAMITES.

Now BENJAMIN was prophesied to "BREAK" (its union) with Judah (Zech.11:14). We know that Christians FLED from Jerusalem before 70 A.D since they were told "Let us remove hence" (Wars 6:5:3). In Wars 2:19:7; 2:20:1, Josephus mentions that when Cestius withdrew his seige, "the most eminent of the Jews" escaped from Jerusalem. "O ye children of BENJAMIN, gather yourselves to FLEE OUT of the midst of Jerusalem ... for evil appeareth out of the north (the Roman seige) (Jer.6:1). Eusebius records the fact that all the Christians ESCAPED from Jerusalem unhurt prior to the next Roman Seige. (E.H. 3:5:2) In Luke 21:20-21 we read, "When ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies ... flee to the mountains." The Temple Dictionary of the Bible says "GALILEANS" and "BENJAMITES" are identical (art. "Galilee"). Prof. H.B. Hannay says the GALATIANS of Asia Minor were BENJAMITES who escaped captivity in Babylon and Media. They were united with Judah long enough to see and hear the Jewish Messiah and preserve the New Testament Scriptures. Later these BENJAMITES migrated to NORMANDY France and became part of the NORMAN Conquest of England. But Jews have never accepted Christ generally. "He came to his own (Jews) and his own received him not" (John 1:11) and "his citizens hated him" (Luke 19:14). Therefore we know that FEW of the original faithful disciples were racially Jewish although the New Testament speaks of them as "Jews" by religion (Acts 2:5,9,11; 21:39; 22:3; cp. Esther 8:17). For instance, Paul called himself a JEW and a BENJAMITE at the same time (Acts 22:3; Rom.11:1; Phil.3:5). But later some Jews by race were converted (Acts 3:13 to 4:4). It is "blindness in part," not totally.

Benjamite Christians

The "Kingdom of God shall be taken from you (Jews in 70 A.D.), and given to a NATION (Israel) bringing forth the fruits of it. And whosoever shall fall on this STONE shall be broken, but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder." This nation in process of time was to bring forth the fruits of the kingdom (Matt. 21:43). "This PEOPLE have I formed for Myself: they shall show forth my praise." Yes, "OTHER SHEEP I have which are not of this fold, them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice, and there shall be one flock, one shepherd" (John 10:16). As Caiaphas said in John 11:50 "It is expedient that one man should die for the people and that the whole nation perish not," "And not for that nation only, but that also He should gather together in one the CHILDREN of GOD that were SCATTERED abroad?" These are "the LOST SHEEP of the HOUSE of ISRAEL" (Matt. 10:6) "for whom he especially came" (Matt. 15:24; Ezek. 34), those SCATTERED ONES" (Jer. 31:10-11). This was Jesus' work till age 30. In John 21, Jesus tells Peter to "feed my SHEEP." Peter in his first epistle, writing to the lost SHEEP SCATTERED throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, calls them "Elect" and "a CHOSEN RACE, a ROYAL PRIESTHOOD, a HOLY NATION, a peculiar PEOPLE" and describes them as having once gone astray as SHEEP, but now (in his time) returned unto the Shepherd of their souls. Those Jews and scattered Israelites who believed in Jesus went to their brethren and proclaimed the Gospel, as told in Isaiah 9:1-9, 48:1-20, Jeremiah 6:1; Zech. 11:4-14; called "GALILEANS" out of contempt, they were joined by the many who repented after the Holy Spirit came (Acts 2:41; 4:32; 5:14; 6:7 etc.). The books of Hebrews, James, Peter and Revelation 7 confirm this union. As Psalm 80:14-17 says, "Return, we beseech thee, O God of hosts; look down from heaven and behold, and visit this VINE, And the VINEYARD which thy RIGHT HAND (Benjamin) hath planted, and the BRANCH that thou madest strong for thyself.... Let thy hand be upon the MAN of thy RIGHT HAND (Benjamin), upon the SON of MAN (Christ) whom thou madest strong for thyself."

Jerusalem was in BENJAMIN. Therefore, BENJAMIN was lent to Judah "For David my servant's sake, and for Jerusalem, which I have chosen.... That David my servant may have a light always before me in Jerusalem" (1 Ki. 11:13,39). The light was a candlestick of God's true church. Then Jeremiah 6:1 says, "O ye children of BENJAMIN, gather yourselves to flee out of the midst of Jerusalem ... for evil appeareth out of the NORTH, and great destruction." But Nebuchadnezzar came out of the EAST and BENJAMIN was taken captive with Judah to Babylon. After 70 years, part returned to Palestine and part settled in towns of Asia Minor. Then Christ came to his own and his own received him not. Judah cried, "His blood be on us and on our children." If his own rejected him, who received him? His disciples came from BENJAMIN, the light-bearing tribe, still "the Beloved of the Lord." "And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the Lord. Then I cut asunder mine other staff, even Bands, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel" (Zech. 11:10-14).

Then the punishment of Judah came out of the NORTH from Rome. But Christian BENJAMIN escaped the Roman Siege. In Eusebius' Ecclesiastical History , book 3:5:2 , written in 264 A.D., we read: "The people of the church in Jerusalem were directed, by a warning given in a revelation to approved men among them, to remove from the city before the war commenced, and to take for their dwelling place a city of Peraea, by name Pella; wherein, accordingly, they who believed on Christ abode, after quitting Jerusalem." Josephus' Wars of the Jews 2:19:7 says that Cestius Gallus, the Roman general, had already occupied the outer portions of the city. The war party in Jerusalem was for the moment cowed; the populace was preparing to invite Cestius within the walls. Had the Roman general been permitted to take advantage of these circumstances, the war would have been over and the horrible siege averted. But he withdrew from Jerusalem unexpectedly. "Cestius, perceiving neither the despair of the besieged nor the purpose of the popular party, suddenly recalled his troops; and, forming a ruinous resolution, justified by no blow to the hopes of the Romans, contrary to all expectation, he withdrew from the city." This was the occasion of BENJAMIN'S escape (Wars 2:20:1). BENJAMIN was already spread over the length and breadth of Asia Minor and no doubt composed the bulk of the membership of the scattered Christian church. It has already been shown that the GALATIANS were Israelites of the Remnant which escaped." In the year 267 A.D., Professor Max Muller says, "the GOTHS made a raid from Europe to Asia , GALATIA, and CAPPADOCIA, and the Christian captives, whom they carried back to the Danube, were the first to spread the light of the gospel among the GOTHS" (Lectures on the Science of Language, Series 1, p.188).

When the BENJAMITES arrived in NW Europe, they were known as NORMANS. "NORTHMEN" or "NORMANS" were simply adventurers from Scandinavia as they reached southern countries. Lord Macaulay says, 'The NORMANS were then the foremost race of Christendom. Their valour and ferocity had made them conspicuous among the rovers whom Scandinavia had sent forth to ravage western Europe." In 911 they were ceded Normandy. In 1040 they conquer Apulia Italy and in 1060 they conquer Sicily. In 1066 they invaded England and became part of the "little sanctuary." The badge or crest of the Dukes of Normandy was a WOLF since BENJAMIN was "to ravin like a WOLF." We find Duchesne, the editor of the History of the early Normans from 812 to 1396 A.D., entitled "Ad historia Normannorum Scriptores," writing confidently in his preface of the NORMANS from DACIA. The first document in his compilation is the work of some unknown author, the "Acta Normannorum in Francia." This begins: "The NORTHMEN, coming from the 'island' of Scanzia, which is Norway, in which live GOTHS, and HUNS, and DACIANS." Now DACIA was the land of the GETAE. The OSTROGOTHS also came from DACIA. The NORMANS appear at the end of the ninth century A.D.; the DACIANS disappear at the end of the first century A.D. The first NORMAN historian was Dudo, Dean of St. Quentin: and this worthy ecclesiastic thinks it necessary to preface his account of the "customs and early history of the NORMANS" with a long account of the Danube lands, SCYTHIA, DACIA, GOTHS, and GETAE. By the usual way of TROY, he derives his ancestors from the DACIANS. This leads us to believe that the NORMANS were the GOTHS or GETAE.

BENJAMIN is the NORMAN Irish. The targum of Onkelos, the Aramaic version of scriptures says, "The beloved of the Lord shall dwell in safety by Him: the shield shall be over him all the days, and the Shekinah will dwell in his land." A whole literature has sprung up around the central idea that the ark of the Covenant lies buried at Tara in Ireland. An interesting digression from this topic is that the language of the Christian Waldensians of the Alps was perfect Irish Gaelic. GALILEANS were BENJAMIN. Eleven of the twelve apostles were BENJAMITES. Judas Iscariot was Judah. It was from Bethphage, in the territory of BENJAMIN, that Christ passed on a procession inaugurating him king of Israel; when the multitude spread their garments in the way and cut down branches and strew them in his path crying, "Hosanna to the Son of David; blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord, Hosanna in the highest." The reception in Jerusalem was different. "And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, who is this?" Christ did not even remain that night in Jerusalem: "and he left them, and went out of the city into Bethany; and he lodged there" in the country of BENJAMIN.

Who took responsibility for killing Jesus? Not Rome. "Pilate ... took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person; see ye to it. (Matt. 27:24-25) Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be on us, and on our children" (Matt. 26:69-73). They were probably all Jews -- NOT BENJAMITES -- because Peter was singled out in the court of the high priest's house as a GALILEAN -- a follower of Christ. Paul was also a BENJAMITE (Rom. 11:1). The majority of Christians were probably also BENJAMITES. In Ezekiel 11:14-21 we read, "Son of man, thy brethren , even thy brethren, the men of thy kindred, and all the house of Israel wholly are they unto whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said,, Get you far from the Lord; unto us is this land given in possession." Judah even tells BENJAMIN to leave. Christ warned, "When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place ... then let them which be in Judea flee to the mountains (69 A.D.)." Therefore, the Christian BENJAMITES fled from Jerusalem as soon as the legions of Rome surrounded and then withdrew from Jerusalem. Did they then seek Israel in the land of Ar-Sareth? Or Parthia? Jesus said to flee to the mountains. Which mountains? The mountains beyond the Euphrates -- the Caucasus.

Josephus says the Jews rebelled against Rome thinking the Getae or Parthian kinsmen would help. It is interesting that in 69 A.D. we find the Getae undertaking an invasion of Moesia; and Decabalus, their king, trying to form an alliance with the Parthians against Rome. It was not till 86 A.D. that he crossed the Danube with a disciplined army and drove the Romans before him to the Balkans.

15 And the Lord said unto me, Take unto thee yet the instruments of a foolish shepherd.

16 For, lo, I will raise up a shepherd in the land, which shall not visit those that be cut off, neither shall seek the young one, nor heal that that is broken, nor feed that that standeth still: but he shall eat the flesh of the fat, and tear their claws in pieces.

17 Woe to the idol shepherd (Perseus) that leaveth the flock! the sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened (solar eclipse).

Since Alexander (331), and Antiochus (168), and Herod (31) and Titus (70) each failed to fulfill this verse completely, we believe the endtime anti-christ will fulfill it (2026).

the foolish shepherd to represent either the Jewish leaders, or the Romans.

Herman L. Hoeh, in 1972, raised the possibility that this prophecy was referring to Herbert Armstrong: "Woe to the IDOL shepherd [an "idol" shepherd is one who is worshipped and esteemed like a "god"!] that leaveth the flock! [Herbert Armstrong was noted for his many trips abroad in his private corporate jet plane, meeting and hobnobbing with the princes of this world, leaving the Church behind]. The sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye [as he grew older, Herbert Armstrong went blind in his right eye and almost blind in his left eye]: his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened" (Zech. 11:15-17). What was Herbert Armstrong's "arm"? For many years, his right arm was his son, Garner Ted Armstrong. Could this prophecy be a reference to the fact that Ted Armstrong would himself eventually "dry up" completely, spiritually? With all the evidence of Ted Armstrong's incessant philandering and womanizing, even up to his death, he certainly did become totally "dried up" as to being the "right arm" of Herbert Armstrong! In fact, he has been his "enemy," leading a competing branch of the Church of God, since 1978 when he was finally disfellowshipped by his father! In his later years, Herbert Armstrong often completely misjudged people. He himself "ordained" as evangelists in the Church the likes of such men as Stanley Rader, church attorney, and Joseph Tkach, who later betrayed both his memory and his doctrinal teachings. Was this not an example of outright "foolishness"? This shepherd was specifically prophesied to not heal that which was broken, but would live off the fat of the people. Herbert Armstrong's teaching on "healing" for decades referred to drugs as poisons, and medicine as "idolatry." He spent MILLIONS of dollars on expensive jewelry, original paintings, candelabra, ornate salt cellars, and fabulous dinner settings for his table. He lived in a mansion in Pasadena, and owned other mansions in Big Sandy, Texas and Bricket Wood, England. He flew around the world in his own jet airplane, and commanded a salary from the Church of over $250,000 a year plus an unlimited expense account. As the prophecy states, "he shall eat the flesh of the fat." Loma Armstrong reminisced about how the Work and Church began. While reflecting on how the ministry of her husband Herbert and his eldest son, Richard David Armstrong, originally got started, Mrs. Armstrong told Peggy, "They got into it for the money!" Garner Ted Armstrong once told a teacher in the church at Big Sandy and a personal friend that when his father was in the aluminum siding business back in Oregon, he got a call from far away to make a bid on a job. Herbert jacked up the price because he didn't want the job, the location was so distant. To his surprise, the customer said, "When can you get started?" It turns out the customer was the minister of a Seventh Day Adventist Church, and had plenty of money from tithes and offerings. According to Ted Armstrong, upon returning home that evening, Herbert -- who all his life wanted to be considered successful in business and make lots of money -- told his wife, "Honey, I now know how we're going to get rich!"