NOTES for Zec 12:1-13:9

One sign of the triumph of God’s truth will be the end of false prophecy, mentioned alongside idolatry. False prophets resemble idolaters not only because they turn to spiritual powers that have fallen away from God, but also because they offer themselves as objects of attention and thus, in essence, become idols—not only for a credulous public, but even for themselves. Such false teachers bring condemnation upon themselves, which is hardly surprising: they are reproved throughout the Old Testament. Yet in Zechariah’s prophecy we see hope of repentance even for such people. They, too, can change their ways, become ashamed of their pursuits, and renounce them.

In the words “I am no prophet; I am a tiller of the soil,” one can see a renunciation not only of deliberate falsehood, but also of the self-deception that prevents us from seeing our own vocation and developing the real gifts implanted in us by the Creator.