New Living Translation
Zechariah 11:3
3Listen to the wailing of the shepherds, for their rich pastures are destroyed. Hear the young lions roaring, for their thickets in the Jordan Valley are ruined.
Zechariah 11:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)There is a voice of the howling of the shepherds; for their glory is spoiled: a voice of the roaring of young lions; for the pride of Jordan is spoiled.
- New International Version (NIV)Listen to the wail of the shepherds; their rich pastures are destroyed! Listen to the roar of the lions; the lush thicket of the Jordan is ruined!
- English Standard Version (ESV)The sound of the wail of the shepherds, for their glory is ruined! The sound of the roar of the lions, for the thicket of the Jordan is ruined!
- New King James Version (NKJV)There is the sound of wailing shepherds! For their glory is in ruins. There is the sound of roaring lions! For the pride of the Jordan is in ruins.
Context of Zechariah 11:3
1Open your doors, Lebanon, so that fire may devour your cedar forests. 2Weep, you cypress trees, for all the ruined cedars; the most majestic ones have fallen. Weep, you oaks of Bashan, for the thick forests have been cut down. Listen to the wailing of the shepherds, for their rich pastures are destroyed. Hear the young lions roaring, for their thickets in the Jordan Valley are ruined. 4This is what the Lord my God says: “Go and care for the flock that is intended for slaughter. 5The buyers slaughter their sheep without remorse. The sellers say, ‘Praise the Lord! Now I’m rich!’ Even the shepherds have no compassion for them.
Read all of Zechariah 11Zechariah 11:3 word by word
ק֚וֹל יִֽלְלַ֣ת הָרֹעִ֔ים כִּ֥י שֻׁדְּדָ֖ה אַדַּרְתָּ֑ם ק֚וֹל שַׁאֲגַ֣ת כְּפִירִ֔ים כִּ֥י שֻׁדַּ֖ד גְּא֥וֹן הַיַּרְדֵּֽן׃ סRead the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- a voiceקוֹלqôl qôl · voice: soundH6963
- of the howlingיְלָלָהyelâlâh · wailingH3215
- of the shepherdsרָעָהrâ‛âh · to pastureH7462
- for their gloryאַדֶּ֫רֶת'addereth · clothingH155
- is spoiledשָׁדַדshâdad · to ruinH7703
- of the roaringשְׁאָגָהshe'âgâh · roaringH7581
- of young lionsכְּפִירkephîyr · lionH3715
- for the prideגָּאוֹןgâ'ôn · prideH1347
- of Jordanיַרְדֵּןyardên · JordanH3383
Cross-references for Zechariah 11:3
- Zechariah 11:8I got rid of their three evil shepherds in a single month. But I became impatient with these sheep, and they hated me, too.
- Jeremiah 25:34Weep and moan, you evil shepherds! Roll in the dust, you leaders of the flock! The time of your slaughter has arrived; you will fall and shatter like a fragile vase.
- Joel 1:13Dress yourselves in burlap and weep, you priests! Wail, you who serve before the altar! Come, spend the night in burlap, you ministers of my God. For there is no grain or wine to offer at the Temple of your God.
- Amos 8:8The earth will tremble for your deeds, and everyone will mourn. The ground will rise like the Nile River at floodtime; it will heave up, then sink again.
- Zephaniah 1:10“On that day,” says the Lord, “a cry of alarm will come from the Fish Gate and echo throughout the New Quarter of the city. And a great crash will sound from the hills.
- Matthew 15:14so ignore them. They are blind guides leading the blind, and if one blind person guides another, they will both fall into a ditch.”
- Matthew 23:13“What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you shut the door of the Kingdom of Heaven in people’s faces. You won’t go in yourselves, and you don’t let others enter either.
- James 5:1Look here, you rich people: Weep and groan with anguish because of all the terrible troubles ahead of you.
- 1 Samuel 4:21She named the child Ichabod (which means “Where is the glory?”), for she said, “Israel’s glory is gone.” She named him this because the Ark of God had been captured and because her father-in-law and husband were dead.
- Isaiah 65:15Your name will be a curse word among my people, for the Sovereign Lord will destroy you and will call his true servants by another name.
- Jeremiah 7:4But don’t be fooled by those who promise you safety simply because the Lord’s Temple is here. They chant, “The Lord’s Temple is here! The Lord’s Temple is here!”
- Jeremiah 26:6then I will destroy this Temple as I destroyed Shiloh, the place where the Tabernacle was located. And I will make Jerusalem an object of cursing in every nation on earth.’”
- Ezekiel 24:21and I was told to give this message to the people of Israel. This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will defile my Temple, the source of your security and pride, the place your heart delights in. Your sons and daughters whom you left behind in Judah will be slaughtered by the sword.
- Hosea 1:9And the Lord said, “Name him Lo-ammi—‘Not my people’—for Israel is not my people, and I am not their God.
- Hosea 10:5The people of Samaria tremble in fear for their calf idol at Beth-aven, and they mourn for it. Though its priests rejoice over it, its glory will be stripped away.
- Zephaniah 3:11On that day you will no longer need to be ashamed, for you will no longer be rebels against me. I will remove all proud and arrogant people from among you. There will be no more haughtiness on my holy mountain.
Commentaries on Zechariah 11:3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3Young lions - Princes and rulers. By shepherds, kings or priests may be intended.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3A voice of the howling of the shepherds, for their glory is spoiled - It echoes on from Jeremiah before the captivity, “Howl, ye shepherds - A voice of the cry of the shepherds. and an howling of the principal of the flock; for the Lord hath spoiled their pasture” Jeremiah 25:34, Jeremiah 25:36. There is one chorus of desolation, the mighty and the lowly; the shepherds and the young lions; what is at other times opposed is joined in one wailing. “The…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3Shepherds and lions symbolically represent the leaders of Lebanon and Bashan. They mourn the loss of their forested slopes, pride, and livelihood (see Zechariah 11:1–2).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. shepherds--the Jewish rulers. their glory--their wealth and magnificence; or that of the temple, "their glory" (Mr 13:1; Lu 21:5). young lions--the princes, so described on account of their cruel rapacity. pride of Jordan--its thickly wooded banks, the lair of "lions" (Jr 12:5; 49:19). Image for Judea "spoiled" of the magnificence of its rulers ("the young lions"). The valley of the Jordan forms a deeper gash than any on the earth. The land at Lake…Read the comment
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Zechariah 11
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New Living Translation — © 1996, 2004, 2015 Tyndale House Foundation
Commentaries