NOTES for Zec 10:1-12

The hymn to liberation that makes up chapter 10 of the book of the prophet Zechariah draws on many images traditional among the prophets, and thus partly resembles messianic hymns and prophecies. Yet the essence of what the prophet says is different. At the end of the previous chapter he spoke of the restoration of the chosen people's spiritual beauty; the hymn in chapter 10 essentially develops and clarifies that thought. Second Zechariah's words about the rain in which God's blessing will descend upon the Holy Land echo Joel's prophecy, uttered at almost the same time. Perhaps around the turn of the fifth and fourth centuries BC, rain became a characteristic symbol of the outpouring of God's Spirit, which cleanses people's hearts. Second Zechariah sees this action of the Spirit as necessary because various forms of pagan magic are again spreading among the people: divinations and dreams that disturb their hearts. In the time of Second Zechariah and Joel, this was largely connected with foreign domination and Israel's cultural assimilation into the Greco-Persian world.

It is difficult to say whom the prophet means by the shepherds against whom the Lord's anger flared. One interpretation suggests that he means the political leaders of the Near Eastern world, who imposed their culture and their cults by force of arms. But it is also possible that, in keeping with prophetic tradition, he means the spiritual leaders of God's people, who in that period were increasingly captivated by a culture new to them and a refined way of life, neglecting the austere and pure faith of their fathers. It was at precisely this time that the Sadducee movement emerged, a religious and political movement that would hold the leading position by the time of the Lord Jesus Christ's coming; perhaps these are the shepherds Second Zechariah means. The two interpretations do not, however, exclude each other: clearly, the prophet has in mind those who determine the people's spiritual path. This is precisely why they are called he-goats: when sheep are pastured, he-goats are often used to lead the flock.

The prophet sees these people as something profoundly alien to the chosen people. The deliverance of which he speaks in chapter 10 means that the Lord will choose new leaders from among Israel's faithful. They will no longer incline towards foreign gods, and the people will regain strength and joy in faithfulness to the one God. The prophet depicts this through images familiar and close to his listeners: victory over enemies, the gathering of God's scattered children and Israel's strengthening in faith.

This prophecy is very important in the context of the second half of Zechariah's book. Speaking of the coming of the Messiah, the gentle King, the prophet sees Israel's beauty, the beauty of God's beloved vineyard, blossom anew. Like its fruit, men of faith rise to meet Him; they will follow the Messiah and lead the whole people along this path. The prophet sees the coming events as a new exodus, this time not from Egyptian slavery but from the darkness of paganism and unbelief. That is why the former oppressors, Egypt and Assyria, appear in his words, although the paganism from which the Messiah delivers people is predominantly Greco-Persian in origin. We cannot help recalling that it is precisely this deliverance from the darkness of error that will become one of the main aspects of God's saving action for the Greek theologians of the Byzantine era.