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Zechariah
Chapter Twelve
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO ZECHARIAH 12
This
chapter contains a prophecy of the defence
protection
and salvation of the
church of God; and of the effusion of the Spirit; and of the conversion of the
Jews in the latter day. It begins with a title and preface
describing the
power of God
from the creation of the heavens and earth
and soul of man
Zechariah 12:1 then
follows the subject matter of the prophecy
in a way of judgment upon the
enemies of the people of God
and in a way of salvation to them. The judgments
on their enemies are signified by various metaphors; by Jerusalem's being a cup
of trembling
a burdensome stone
and a hearth
and torch of fire to them
Zechariah 12:2. The
effects of which are to them astonishment
madness
blindness
and utter
destruction; and to the people of God confidence in him
salvation from him
and strength and protection by him
Zechariah 12:4 and
at the same time that God will destroy all the enemies of his people
he will
pour out his Spirit upon his chosen ones among the Jews. The consequence of
which will be
their faith in Christ
signified by looking to him whom they
have pierced; and their repentance towards God
expressed by mourning; and this
illustrated by mourning for an only and firstborn son
Zechariah 12:9 and
which is further illustrated by the mourning for Josiah in the valley of
Megiddon; and by an enumeration of the several families in Jerusalem
that
should separately mourn on this account
Zechariah 12:11.
Zechariah 12:1 The burden[a] of the
word of the Lord against Israel. Thus says the Lord
who
stretches out the heavens
lays the foundation of the earth
and forms the
spirit of man within him:
YLT
1The burden of a word of
Jehovah on Israel. An affirmation of Jehovah
Stretching out heaven
and
founding earth
And forming the spirit of man in his midst.
The burden of the word of the Lord for Israel
.... And
against their enemies; for the good of the church of God
for its joy
comfort
and salvation; or
"concerning Israel"F24על "de"
Piscator
Drusius; "super
Israele"
Cocceius
Burkius. ; what shall befall them in the latter day
as the destruction of antichrist
prophesied of in the preceding chapter Zechariah 11:1; and
what is hereafter said may be believed that it shall be accomplished. The Lord
is described in the greatness of his power
speaking as follows:
saith the Lord
which stretcheth forth the heavens: as a curtain
Psalm 104:2 the
expanse or firmament of heaven
which is stretched out as a canopy over all the
earth around:
and layeth the foundation of the earth; firm and
sure
though upon the seas and floods
yea
upon nothing
Psalm 24:2
and formeth the spirit of man within him; the soul of
man
with all its powers and faculties
gifts and endowments; which is of his
immediate creation
and which he continues daily to form
and infuse into the
bodies of men
and holds in life there; hence he is called the Father of
spirits
Hebrews 12:9.
Zechariah 12:2 2 “Behold
I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples
when
they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem.
YLT
2Lo
I am making Jerusalem a
cup of reeling To all the peoples round about
And also against Judah it is
In
the siege against Jerusalem.
Behold
I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the
people round about
.... The Targum renders it
"a
vessel full of inebriating liquor;'
which
intoxicates and makes giddy
and causes to tremble
stagger
and fall like a
drunken man. The phrase denotes the punishment inflicted by the Lord upon the
enemies of his church and people; see Isaiah 51:22
when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and
against Jerusalem; not by Antiochus Epiphanes; nor by Titus Vespasian; nor by Gog
and Magog
as Kimchi; but by the antichristian powers
especially the Mahometan
nations
the Turks
which shall come against Jerusalem
when the Jews are
returned thither
and resettled in their own land; see Ezekiel 38:5. The
words should be rendered
"and upon Judah shall it be"F25וגם על יהודה
יהיה "et etiam super Jehudah erit"
Pagninus
Montanus
Burkius.
i.e. the cup of trembling
"in the siege
against Jerusalem"; according to the Targum
and the Jewish commentators
the nations of the earth shall bring the men of Judah by force to join with
them in the siege of Jerusalem; as
in the times of Antiochus
many of the Jews
were drawn in to fight against their brethren; but the meaning is
that not
only the wrath of God will come upon the Mahometan nations that shall besiege
Jerusalem; but also on those who bear the Christian name
who are Jews
outwardly
but not inwardly; and shall join with the Turks in distressing the
people of the Jews upon their return to their own land: to besiege Judah
or a
country
is not proper and pertinent: Jerusalem
when again in the hands of the
Jews
according to this prophecy
only is to be besieged
as it will
by the
Turks; and it should be observed
that it never was besieged by Antiochus
and
therefore the prophecy can not be applied to his times
as it is by many.
Zechariah 12:3 3 And
it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for
all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces
though
all nations of the earth are gathered against it.
YLT 3And it hath come to pass
in that day
I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone to all the peoples
All
loading it are completely pressed down
And gathered against it have been all
nations of the earth.
And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all
people
.... The Targum renders it "a stone of offence"; at
which they shall stumble and fall; but it seems to design the immovableness of
the state and condition of Jerusalem
that those who attempt to remove her out
of her place
or to make any alteration in her happy circumstances
will not be
able to do it
Psalm 125:1. Jerom
makes mention of a custom in the cities of Palestine
and which continued to his
times throughout all Judea
that large
huge
round stones
used to be placed
in the towns and villages
which the youths exercised themselves with
by
trying to lift them up as high as they could
by which they showed their
strength; and the same ancient writer observes that a like custom obtained in
Greece; for he says he himself saw in the tower at Athens
by the image of
Minerva
a globe of brass
of at very great weight
which he
through the
weakness of his body
could not move; and asking the meaning of it
he was told
that the strength of wrestlers was tried by it; and no man might be admitted a
combatant
until it was known
by the lifting up of that weight
with whom he
should be matched; and the throwing of the "discus" was an ancient
military exercise
as old as the times of Homer
who speaksF26Iliad.
2. & 23. of it; and is mentioned by Latin writers
as appears from some
lines of MartialF1"Splendida cum volitent Spartani pondera
disci Este procul pueri; sit se nel ille nocens." ---Epigr. l. 14. Ep.
157. ; see the Apocrypha:
"In
like manner also Judas gathered together all those things that were lost by
reason of the war we had
and they remain with us
' (2 Maccabees 2:14)
and
this
as it tried the strength of men
so it was sometimes dangerous to
themselves
or to bystanders
lest it should fall upon their heads: and as it
was usual to defend themselves and oppress enemies by casting stones at them
so young men used to exercise themselves by lifting up and casting large
stones; to which VirgilF2"Certabant Troes contra defendere
saxis." ---Aeneid. l. 9. "Mijaculis
illi certent defendere
saxis." --Aeneid. l. 10. --Vid. Lydium de Re Militari
l. 5. c. 2. p. 178
179. & Menochium de Republica Hebr. l. 6. col. 555
556. sometimes refers;
and it is well known that Abimelech was killed even by a woman casting a piece
of a millstone upon his head
Judges 9:53 and
such heavy stones
and the lifting of them up
in order to cast them
may he
alluded to here:
all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces; all that
attempt to unsettle and remove it shall be pressed down with the weight of it
and be utterly destroyed: or
"shall be torn to pieces"F3שרוט ישרטו "incidendo
incidentur"
Montanus
Burkius; "lacerando lacerabuntur"
Pagninus
Cocceius. ; as men's hands are cut and torn with rough and heavy stones
The Targum is
"all
that injure her shall be consumed;'
which
gives the sense of the passage:
though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it; so safe and
secure will the people of God be; he being a wall of fire round about them
and
the glory in the midst of them.
Zechariah 12:4 4 In
that day
” says the Lord
“I will strike every horse with
confusion
and its rider with madness; I will open My eyes on the house of
Judah
and will strike every horse of the peoples with blindness.
YLT
4In that day -- an
affirmation of Jehovah
I do smite every horse with astonishment
And its rider
with madness
And on the house of Judah I open My eyes
And every horse of the
peoples I smite with blindness.
In that day
saith the Lord
I will smite every horse with
astonishment
and his rider with madness
.... The meaning is
the
enemies of God's people shall be astonished at the failure of their attempts
and be filled with fury and madness because they cannot accomplish their
designs; and shall be at their wits' end
not knowing what course to take:
perhaps reference is had to the Turkish armies
that shall be brought against
Jerusalem to recover it into their possession
which generally consist of a
large cavalry; see Revelation 9:16
and I will open mine eyes upon the house of Judah; which phrase
is sometimes used
as expressive of the wrath of God against his enemies
Amos 9:4 and
if
the house of Judah signifies the same as Judah
joined with the nations of the
earth in the siege
Zechariah 12:2
it
must be so understood here; but rather it seems to be different
and to intend
those who will inhabit other parts of Judea
and who will be truly the people
of God
Jews not only literally
but spiritually; and so is to be interpreted
in a good sense
of the divine love to them
care of them
and protection over
them; see Job 14:13 and so
the Targum paraphrases it
"and
upon those of the house of Judah
I will reveal my power to do them good:'
and will smite every horse of the people with blindness: that is
every rider of them
either with blindness of mind or body
or both. It may be
as the former smiting
mentioned in the beginning of the verse
respects the
mind
this may regard the body; so that they shall not see their way
and their
hands shall not perform their enterprise.
Zechariah 12:5 5 And
the governors of Judah shall say in their heart
‘The inhabitants of Jerusalem are
my strength in the Lord of hosts
their God.’
YLT
5And leaders of Judah have
said in their heart
`Strength to me [are] the inhabitants of Jerusalem
In
Jehovah of Hosts their God.'
And the governors of Judah shall say in their heart
.... The
governors of the rest of the cities in Judea
besides Jerusalem
when they
shall observe the armies of the people
their horses and their riders
smitten
by the Lord
as above
shall take heart
and be of good courage: and secretly
say within themselves
The inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be my strength in the
Lord of hosts their God; that is
they
in the strength of the Lord
shall overcome their
enemies
and so be the means of preserving and securing the other cities of
Judah from destruction: the governors do not place their strength and
confidence in the inhabitants of Jerusalem
but as they are strengthened in and
by the Lord their God
from whom all strength
safety
and salvation come. In
this and the following verse Zechariah 12:6
by
"the governors of Judah" are not meant Judas Maccabeus
and his
brethren
as some think; for though there are some things in the context that
seem to agree with them
and they may be an emblem of the governors in the
times referred to
for their courage
bravery
and success; yet the thread of
history
and series of prophecy
will not admit such a sense.
Zechariah 12:6 6 In
that day I will make the governors of Judah like a firepan in the woodpile
and
like a fiery torch in the sheaves; they shall devour all the surrounding
peoples on the right hand and on the left
but Jerusalem shall be inhabited
again in her own place—Jerusalem.
YLT
6In that day I make the
leaders of Judah As a hearth of fire among trees
And as a torch of fire in a
sheaf
And they have consumed -- on the right and on the left -- all the
peoples round about
And Jerusalem hath inhabited again her place in Jerusalem.
In that day will I make the governors of Judah like a hearth of
fire among the wood
.... As a large hearth of fire
with wood all about it
devours
and consumes it; so shall the governors of Judah be to the nations that shall
come up against Jerusalem. The Targum renders it
"as
a garment of fire among wood:'
and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; of wheat
which
presently destroys it; see Obadiah 1:18
and they shall devour all the people round about
on the right
hand and on the left; on the south and on the north
as the Targum interprets it. The
phrase denotes the utter destruction of the people on all sides:
and Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place
even
in Jerusalem; upon that very spot of ground which was formerly called
Jerusalem shall the city be built again
and inhabited; and shall continue
notwithstanding the attempts of all the nations of the earth to destroy it; see
Jeremiah 30:18.
Zechariah 12:7 7 “The
Lord will save the tents of Judah first
so that the glory of the house
of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem shall not become greater
than that of Judah.
YLT
7And saved hath Jehovah the
tents of Judah first
So that become not great against Judah Doth the beauty of
the house of David
And the beauty of the inhabitant of Jerusalem.
The Lord also shall save the tents of Judah first
.... That is
the Jews
who will be in other parts of the land encamped in tents
to defend
themselves against their enemies; these will be saved out of the hands of them
before the inhabitants of Jerusalem will be saved; and in such a manner
that
it will evidently appear that their salvation is of the Lord: and his end in so
doing will be
that the glory of the house of David
and the glory of the
inhabitants of Jerusalem
do not magnify themselves against Judah; lest the
chief of the family of David
and the principal inhabitants of Jerusalem
should glory over their brethren in other parts of Judea; and say it was owing
to them that they were saved and delivered out of the hands of their enemies.
Zechariah 12:8 8 In
that day the Lord will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; the one who is feeble
among them in that day shall be like David
and the house of David shall be
like God
like the Angel of the Lord before
them.
YLT
8In that day cover over doth
Jehovah the inhabitant of Jerusalem
And the stumbling among them hath been in
that day as David
And the house of David as God -- As a messenger of Jehovah
-- before them.
In that day shall the Lord defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem
.... As with a
shield against their enemies; and such is the Lord to all his people; he is
their shield to protect them; he keeps and guards them by his power; he
encompasses them about with his favour
as with a shield; and gives unto them
the shield of salvation; all which will eminently appear to be the case of the
Jews at this time:
and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; they that
have the most fearful hearts
and feeble minds
shall be as courageous
as
valiant
and as victorious as David; and they that are the weakest
in a
spiritual sense
in the grace and in the doctrine of faith
and in that part of
it
respecting the use of things indifferent
who are ready to be
"offended
stumble
and fall"F4נכשל
"lapsabundus
ad lapsum propensus
proprie qui facile offendit"
Drusius; "corruens"
Montanus; "collapsus"
Burkius. ; for
the spiritual reign
which will at this time take place
will not be a state of
perfection; even those will be like David
beloved of the Lord
kings as well
as priests unto God
and as strong in faith as he:
and the house of David shall be as God; the stronger
sort of believers among them
such as are strong in the Lord
in the grace of
faith
and in the doctrines of the Gospel; they shall have much of God with
them
great grace upon them
and be like unto him in goodness
truth
and holiness:
or they shall be like "Elohim"
the angels
as this word is rendered
Psalm 8:5 for
knowledge
purity
and readiness to do the will of God; and it follows:
as the Angel of the Lord before them; that is
as
Christ
who is the Angel of the covenant
and of the divine Presence; and in
whom the name of the Lord is; who is at the head of his people
and goes before
them
as their Leader and Commander
and the Captain of salvation
Micah 2:13 whose
image they bear
and into which they are changed from glory to glory by the
spirit of God; and which will now be very clearly discerned upon the saints in
the latter day glory. Kimchi and Ben Melech
by "the house of David"
understand the King MessiahF5R. Isaac Chizzuk Emunah
par. 1. c. 36.
p. 307.
who was to be of the seed of David; and so does Cocceius
who takes
the "as" to be a note
not of similitude
but of truth
he being
truly God
and the Angel of Jehovah. The Targum is
"the
house of David shall be like great men or princes that shall prosper
as the
Angel of God before them.'
Zechariah 12:9 9 It
shall be in that day that I will seek to destroy all the nations that
come against Jerusalem.
YLT
9And it hath come to pass
in that day
I seek to destroy all the nations Who are coming in against
Jerusalem
And it shall come to pass in that day
.... So often
mentioned in this chapter; by which is meant the latter part of the Gospel
dispensation
the spiritual reign of Christ:
that I will seek to
destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem; and shall
destroy them. The whole of this paragraph seems to refer to the same as in Ezekiel 38:1.
Zechariah 12:10 10 “And
I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the
Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced.
Yes
they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son
and
grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.
YLT
10And I have poured on the
house of David
And on the inhabitant of Jerusalem
A spirit of grace and
supplications
And they have looked unto Me whom they pierced
And they have
mourned over it
Like a mourning over the only one
And they have been in
bitterness for it
Like a bitterness over the first-born.
And I will pour out upon the house of David
and upon the
inhabitants of Jerusalem
.... The Jews that belong to the family of Christ
and to the
heavenly Jerusalem
the church of the firstborn
whose names are written in
heaven:
the Spirit of grace and of supplications; by which is
meant the Holy Spirit of God
who is called the "Spirit of grace";
not merely because he is good and gracious
and loving to his people
and is of
grace given unto them; but because he is the author of all grace in them; of
gracious convictions
and spiritual illuminations; of quickening
regenerating
converting
and sanctifying grace; and of all particular graces
as faith
hope
love
fear
repentance
humility
joy
peace
meekness
patience
longsuffering
self-denial
&c.; as well as because he is the revealer
applier
and witnesser of all the blessings of grace unto them: and he is
called the "Spirit of supplications"; because he indites the prayers
of his people
shows them their wants
and stirs them up to pray; enlarges
their hearts
supplies them with arguments
and puts words into their mouths;
gives faith
fervency
and freedom
and encourages to come to God as their
Father
and makes intercession for them
according to the will of God: pouring
it upon them denotes the abundance and freeness of his grace; see Isaiah 44:3
and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced; by nailing
him to the tree at his crucifixion; and especially by piercing his side with a
spear; which
though not personally done by them
yet by their ancestors
at
least through their instigation and request; and besides
as he was pierced and
wounded for their sins
so by them: and now
being enlightened and convicted by
the Spirit of God
they shall look to him by faith for the pardon of their
sins
through his blood; for the justification of their persons by his
righteousness; and for eternal life and salvation through him. We Christians
can have no doubt upon us that this passage belongs to Christ
when it is
observed
upon one of the soldiers piercing the side of Jesus with a spear
it
is said
"these things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled;
they shall look on him whom they have pierced"; and it seems also to be
referred to in Revelation 1:7 yea
the Jews themselves
some of them
acknowledge it is to be understood of the
Messiah. In the TalmudF6T. Bab. Succah
fol. 52. 1.
mention being
made of the mourning after spoken of
it is asked
what this mourning was made
for? and it is replied
R. Dusa and the Rabbins are divided about it: one says
for Messiah ben Joseph
who shall be slain; and another says
for the evil
imagination
that shall be slain; it must be granted to him that says
for
Messiah the son of Joseph that shall be slain; as it is written
"and they
shall look upon whom they have pierced
and mourn"
&c. for
for the
other
why should they mourn? hence Jarchi and Kimchi on the place say
our
Rabbins interpret this of Messiah the son of Joseph
who shall be slain; and
the note of Aben Ezra is
all the nations shall look unto me
to see what I
will do to those who have pierced Messiah the son of Joseph. Grotius observes
that Hadarsan on Genesis 28:10
understands it of Messiah the son of David. The Jews observing some prophecies
speaking of the Messiah in a state of humiliation
and others of him in an
exalted state
have coined this notion of two Messiahs
which are easily
reconciled without it. The Messiah here prophesied of appears to be both God
and man; a divine Person called Jehovah
who is all along speaking in the context
and in the text itself; for none else could pour out the spirit of grace and
supplication; and yet he must be man
to be pierced; and the same is spoken of
that would do the one
and suffer the other; and therefore must be the θεανθρωπος
or God-man in one
person. As to what a Jewish writerF7R. Isaac Chizzuk Emunah
par. 1.
c. 36. p. 309. objects
that this was spoken of one that was pierced in war
as
appears from the context; and that if the same person that is pierced is to be
looked to
then it would have been said
"and mourn for me
and be in
bitterness for me"; it may be replied
that this prophecy does not speak
of the piercing this person at the time when the above wars shall be; but of
the Jews mourning for him at the time of their conversion
who had been pierced
by them
that is
by their ancestors
hundreds of years ago; which now they
will with contrition remember
they having assented to it
and commended it as
a right action; and as for the change from the first person to the third
this
is not at all unusual in Scripture:
and they shall mourn for him as one mourneth for his only son; or
"for
this"F8עליו "super hoc"
Junius & Tremellius; "propter hoc"
Gussetius; "super
illo"
Piscator
Cocceius. ; that is
piercing him; for sin committed
against him; because of their rejection of him
their hardness of heart
and
unbelief with respect to him; and on account of their many sins
which were the
occasion of his being pierced; which mourning will arise from
and be increased
by
a spiritual sight of him
a sense of his love to them
and a view of
benefits by him. Evangelical repentance springs from faith
and is accompanied
with it; and this godly sorrow is like that which is expressed for an only son;
see Amos 8:10 and
indeed Christ is the only begotten of the Father
as well as the firstborn
among many brethren
as follows:
and shall be in bitterness for him
as one that is in bitterness
for his firstborn; sin is a bitter thing
and makes work for bitter repentance.
Zechariah 12:11 11 In
that day there shall be a great mourning in Jerusalem
like the mourning at
Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo.[b]
YLT
11In that day
great is the
mourning of Jerusalem
As the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of
Megiddon
In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem
.... Great
numbers being awakened
convinced
and converted
and brought to true
repentance:
as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon. LightfootF9Works
vol. 1. p. 46. thinks the prophet alludes to the two great and general
lamentations of Israel; the one about the rock Rimmon
where a whole tribe was
come to four hundred (it should be six hundred) men
Judges 20:47 and
may be rendered
"the sad shout of Rimmon"; and the other in the
valley of Megiddo
for the death of Josiah. Some take Hadadrimmon to be the
name of a man
as Aben Ezra; and the Targum and Jarchi say who he was
and also
make two mournings to be alluded toF11Vid. T. Bab. Megillah
fol. 3.
1. & Gloss. in ib. & Moed Katon
fol. 28. 2. ; paraphrasing the words
thus
"at
that time mourning shall be multiplied in Jerusalem
as the mourning of Ahab
the son of Omri
whom Hadadrimmon the son of Tabrimmon slew in Ramothgilead;
and as the mourning of Josiah
the son of Amon
whom Pharaohnecho
or the lame
slew in the valley of Megiddo:'
and
so the Syriac version renders it
"as
the mourning of the son of Amon in the valley of Megiddo.'
Of
the first of these
see 1 Kings 22:31 and
of the latter
2 Kings 23:29
according to Jerom
it was the name of a place in the valley of Megiddo
near
to Jezreel; and which
in his time
went by the name of Maximianopolis
called
so in honour of the Emperor Maximian; it was seventeen miles from Caesarea in
Palestine
and ten miles from JezreelF12Vid. Reland. Palestina
Illustrata
tom. 2. p. 892. ; and mention is made by JewishF13T.
Hieros. Chagigah
fol. 78. 4. writers of the valley of Rimmon
in which place
the elders intercalated the year; though Jerom elsewhereF14Trad.
Heb. fol. 86. I. says
that Adadrimon was a king
the son of Tabrimmon
who
reigned at Carchemish
whom Pharaohnecho slew at the same time he slew Josiah.
Both words
Hadad
or Adad
and Rimmon
are names of idols with the Syrians.
Zechariah 12:12 12 And
the land shall mourn
every family by itself: the family of the house of David
by itself
and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by
itself
and their wives by themselves;
YLT
12And mourned hath the land
-- every family apart
The family of the house of David apart
And their women
apart; The family of the house of Nathan apart
And their women apart;
And the land shall mourn
.... That is
the
inhabitants of it; not only Jerusalem
but the land of Judea
and the people in
it everywhere: in the TalmudF15T. Hieros. Succah
fol. 55. 2. it is
said
this is the mourning of the Messiah
that is
on his account:
every family apart; though the mourning will be general and
public
yet it will be not in a body of the whole people together
but separate
and distinct:
the family of the house of David apart
and their wives apart; the men by
themselves
and the women by themselves
which is according to the custom of
the Jews in public worship; those that belong to the family of David shall
mourn because of the Jews' long rejection of the King Messiah
Jesus the son of
David
the Saviour
whom God raised up of his seed:
the family of the house of Nathan apart
and their wives apart; not of Nathan
the son of David
the brother of Solomon
as some think; for
as Aben Ezra
observes
he and his family are comprehended in the family of David; but of
Nathan the prophet
who will mourn because the Jews have so much slighted Jesus
the great Prophet
the Lord raised up in Israel
his doctrines and ordinances.
Zechariah 12:13 13 the
family of the house of Levi by itself
and their wives by themselves; the
family of Shimei by itself
and their wives by themselves;
YLT
13The family of the house of
Levi apart
And their women apart; The family of Shimei apart
And their women
apart
The family of the house of Levi apart
and their wives apart
.... Because
of the contempt of the priestly office of Christ
which theirs prefigured
and
was abolished by him; because of their trampling upon his blood
righteousness
and sacrifice:
the family of Shimei apart
and their wives apart; not of Shimea
the son of David
1 Chronicles 3:5 as
Jarchi thinks
for his family is comprehended in the family of David; nor of
Shimei the son of Merari
and grandson of Levi
1 Chronicles 6:16
for the same reason: some think that
by way of prophecy
the family of Semei
mentioned among the progenitors of Christ
Luke 3:26
is
intended; and others have thought of Shammai
a famous Misnic doctor in the
times of Christ
whose disciples were called the house or family of Shammai
of
which frequent mention is made in the Misna and Talmud: but the Septuagint
Syriac
and Arabic versions
read "the family of Simeon"; mentioned
together with Levi
as brethren in iniquity
and now mourn for the common
concern they had in the crucifixion of Christ
and their refusal of him.
Zechariah 12:14 14 all
the families that remain
every family by itself
and their wives by themselves.
YLT
14All the families that are
left
Every family apart
and their women apart!
All the families that remain
.... That will be in
being in those times;
every family apart
and their wives apart; for the whole
nation shall be born at once
and converted
and all Israel shall be saved
Isaiah 66:8.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)