Zechariah 13:7 - Meaning and Application

Here is a prophecy.

I. It speaks of the sufferings of Christ, the one who would be pierced and then become the open fountain. “Awake, O sword, against my Shepherd” (Zech. 13:7). These are the words of God the Father, giving the sword of his justice permission to strike his Son. Christ had willingly offered himself for sin, for it pleased the Lord to crush him and put him to grief; he was stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted (Isa. 53:4, 53:10).

Notice how God describes him. As God, he is “my fellow,” meaning he is equal with the Father. He and the Father are one. He was with the Father from eternity, like one brought up at his side. In the work of redeeming people, he was the chosen One in whom the Father delighted, and the plan of peace was between them both. As Mediator, that is, the one who stands between God and people to bring them together, he is “my Shepherd,” the great and good Shepherd who took care of the flock (Zech. 11:7). He is the Shepherd who would lay down his life for the sheep.

Notice also how God deals with him. “Awake, O sword, against him.” If he will be a sacrifice, he must be slain, for without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness. Men pierced him as the good Shepherd, so that he might purchase God’s flock with his own blood (Acts 20:28). This is not a rod given to correct him, but a sword given to kill him. Messiah the Prince must be cut off, but not for himself (Dan. 9:26). It is not the sword of war that is called, so that he might die an honorable death, but the sword of justice, so that he might die as a criminal on a shameful tree.

This sword must awaken against him. Since he had no sin of his own to answer for, justice had nothing to say against him on its own. Only by the special command of the Judge of all the earth was it allowed to strike him. He was the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world in God’s decree and purpose. Yet the sword appointed for him had long been asleep, until now it is called to awake. God did not spare his own Son.

II. It speaks of the scattering of the disciples that followed. “Strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.” Our Lord Jesus himself said that this was fulfilled when all his disciples were offended because of him on the night he was betrayed (Matt. 26:31; Mark 14:27). They all forsook him and fled. The striking of the Shepherd is the scattering of the sheep. They were scattered, each to his own place, and left him alone (John 16:32).

In this, they acted like frightened sheep. Yet the Shepherd was still caring for their safety, for he said, “If you are looking for me, let these go their way.” Some take this in another way. Christ was the Shepherd of the Jewish nation. Since they struck him, they were justly scattered among the nations, and they remain scattered even now. “I will turn my hand against the little ones” may be understood either as a warning or as a promise. It may warn that, as Christ suffered, so his disciples must also suffer and drink the cup he drank. Or it may promise that God will gather Christ’s scattered disciples again, and that he will meet them in Galilee.

Though the little ones among Christ’s followers may be scattered, they will gather again. The lambs of his flock may be frightened by wild beasts, yet they will recover. God will gather them in his arms and carry them close to his heart. Sometimes the sheep are scattered and lost in the wilderness, yet the little ones, who were thought likely to be lost, are brought back home, and God turns his hand toward them.

III. It speaks of the rejection and ruin of the unbelieving Jews (Zech. 13:8). This word has already been fulfilled, and it will also be fulfilled in the destruction of the corrupt and hypocritical part of the church. It will happen that in all the land of Israel, two parts will be cut off and die. The Roman army laid waste the country and killed at least two-thirds of the Jews.

Some understand this cutting off and dying, or the two parts throughout the earth, as the ending of both paganism and Judaism, so that Christianity, the third part, would remain to stand alone. The Jewish worship was entirely removed when Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed. A little later, pagan idolatry was also almost wiped out when the empire became Christian.

IV. It speaks of the reforming and preserving of the chosen remnant, those among them who believed, and of the Christian church more generally (Zech. 13:9). “The third part shall be left.” When Jerusalem and Judea were destroyed, all the Christians in that land escaped for their safety by following Christ’s warning to flee to the mountains. They found shelter in a city called Pella, across the Jordan.

Here we see first their trials, and then their triumphs. The Christian church, and all faithful members of it, must pass through both. Their trial is this: “I will bring that third part through the fire of affliction, and will refine them as silver and gold are refined.” This was fulfilled in the persecutions of the early church, the fiery trial that tested God’s people then (1 Pet. 4:12). Those whom God sets apart for himself must pass through testing and purification in this world. They must be tried so that their faith may be found to bring praise and honor (1 Pet. 1:6, 1:7), as Abraham’s faith was tested when God told him to offer up Isaac, and he could say, “Now I know that you fear me.” They must be tried so that both the mature and the immature may be shown for what they are. They must be refined from their dross, their corruption must be removed, and they must be made brighter and better.

Their triumph is seen in two ways. First, they have communion with God: “They shall call on my name, and I will hear them.” They write to God in prayer, and he answers with peace. In this way they keep up a sweet fellowship with him. This honor belongs to all his saints. Second, they have a covenant with God as their triumph: “I will say, ‘It is my people,’ whom I have chosen, loved, and owned, and they shall say, ‘The Lord is my God.’” He will be all they need, and they will boast in him every day and all the day long. “This God is our God forever and ever.”