Zechariah 11:9
New International Version
and said, “I will not be your shepherd. Let the dying die, and the perishing perish. Let those who are left eat one another’s flesh.”

New Living Translation
So I told them, “I won’t be your shepherd any longer. If you die, you die. If you are killed, you are killed. And let those who remain devour each other!”

English Standard Version
So I said, “I will not be your shepherd. What is to die, let it die. What is to be destroyed, let it be destroyed. And let those who are left devour the flesh of one another.”

Berean Standard Bible
Then I said, “I will no longer shepherd you. Let the dying die, and the perishing perish; and let those who remain devour one another’s flesh.”

King James Bible
Then said I, I will not feed you: that that dieth, let it die; and that that is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let the rest eat every one the flesh of another.

New King James Version
Then I said, “I will not feed you. Let what is dying die, and what is perishing perish. Let those that are left eat each other’s flesh.”

New American Standard Bible
Then I said, “I will not pasture you. What is to die, let it die, and what is to perish, let it perish; and let those who are left eat one another’s flesh.”

NASB 1995
Then I said, “I will not pasture you. What is to die, let it die, and what is to be annihilated, let it be annihilated; and let those who are left eat one another’s flesh.”

NASB 1977
Then I said, “I will not pasture you. What is to die, let it die, and what is to be annihilated, let it be annihilated; and let those who are left eat one another’s flesh.”

Legacy Standard Bible
Then I said, “I will not shepherd you. What is to die, let it die, and what is to be annihilated, let it be annihilated; and let those who remain consume one another’s flesh.”

Amplified Bible
So I said, “I will not pasture you. What is to die, let it die, and what is to be destroyed, let it be destroyed; and let the survivors devour one another’s flesh.”

Christian Standard Bible
Then I said, “I will no longer shepherd you. Let what is dying die, and let what is perishing perish; let the rest devour each other’s flesh.”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Then I said, “I will no longer shepherd you. Let what is dying die, and let what is going astray go astray; let the rest devour each other’s flesh.”

American Standard Version
Then said I, I will not feed you: that which dieth, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let them that are left eat every one the flesh of another.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And I said: ”I shall not feed you so that the dead will die and the lost will be destroyed, and she who remains would eat the flesh of her companions!”

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And I said, I will not tend you: that which dies, let it die; and that which falls off, let it fall off; and let the rest eat every one the flesh of his neighbour.

Contemporary English Version
Then I said, "I refuse to be your shepherd. Let the sheep that are going to die, go on and die, and those that are going to be destroyed, go on and be destroyed. Then let the others eat one another alive."

Douay-Rheims Bible
And I said: I will not feed you: that which dieth, let it die: and that which is cut off, let it be cut off: and let the rest devour every one the flesh of his neighbour.

English Revised Version
Then said I, I will not feed you: that that dieth, let it die; and that that is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let them which are left eat every one the flesh of another.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
So I said, "I won't be your shepherd. Let those that are dying die. Let those that are missing stay missing. And let those that are left devour each other."

Good News Translation
Then I said to the flock, "I will not be your shepherd any longer. Let those die who are to die. Let those be destroyed who are to be destroyed. Those who are left will destroy one another."

International Standard Version
So I said, "I will no longer be your shepherd. Let those who are about to die perish, and let what is about to be destroyed be destroyed. As for the survivors, let them devour each other."

JPS Tanakh 1917
Then said I: 'I will not feed you; that which dieth, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let them that are left eat every one the flesh of another.'

Literal Standard Version
And I say, “I do not feed you, the dying, let die; and the cut off, let be cut off; and the remaining ones, let each eat the flesh of its neighbor.”

Majority Standard Bible
Then I said, “I will no longer shepherd you. Let the dying die, and the perishing perish; and let those who remain devour one another’s flesh.”

New American Bible
“I will not shepherd you,” I said. “Whoever is to die shall die; whoever is to be done away with shall be done away with; and those who are left shall devour one another’s flesh.”

NET Bible
I then said, "I will not shepherd you. What is to die, let it die, and what is to be eradicated, let it be eradicated. As for those who survive, let them eat each other's flesh!"

New Revised Standard Version
So I said, “I will not be your shepherd. What is to die, let it die; what is to be destroyed, let it be destroyed; and let those that are left devour the flesh of one another!”

New Heart English Bible
Then I said, "I will not feed you. That which dies, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let those who are left eat each other's flesh."

Webster's Bible Translation
Then said I, I will not feed you: that which dieth, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let the rest eat, every one the flesh of another.

World English Bible
Then I said, “I will not feed you. That which dies, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let those who are left eat each other’s flesh.”

Young's Literal Translation
And I say, 'I do not feed you, the dying, let die; and the cut off, let be cut off; and the remaining ones, let each eat the flesh of its neighbour.'

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Doomed Flock
8And in one month I dismissed three shepherds. My soul grew impatient with the flock, and their souls also detested me. 9Then I said, “I will no longer shepherd you. Let the dying die, and the perishing perish; and let those who remain devour one another’s flesh.”

Cross References
Jeremiah 15:2
If they ask you, 'Where shall we go?' you are to tell them that this is what the LORD says: 'Those destined for death, to death; those destined for the sword, to the sword; those destined for famine, to famine; and those destined for captivity, to captivity.'

Hosea 4:6
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you as My priests. Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I will also forget your children.


Treasury of Scripture

Then said I, I will not feed you: that that dies, let it die; and that that is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let the rest eat every one the flesh of another.

I will.

Jeremiah 23:33,39
And when this people, or the prophet, or a priest, shall ask thee, saying, What is the burden of the LORD? thou shalt then say unto them, What burden? I will even forsake you, saith the LORD…

Matthew 13:10,11
And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? …

Matthew 21:43
Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.

that that dieth.

Psalm 69:22-28
Let their table become a snare before them: and that which should have been for their welfare, let it become a trap…

Jeremiah 15:2,3
And it shall come to pass, if they say unto thee, Whither shall we go forth? then thou shalt tell them, Thus saith the LORD; Such as are for death, to death; and such as are for the sword, to the sword; and such as are for the famine, to the famine; and such as are for the captivity, to the captivity…

Jeremiah 43:11
And when he cometh, he shall smite the land of Egypt, and deliver such as are for death to death; and such as are for captivity to captivity; and such as are for the sword to the sword.

and let.

Deuteronomy 28:53-56
And thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters, which the LORD thy God hath given thee, in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee: …

Isaiah 9:19-21
Through the wrath of the LORD of hosts is the land darkened, and the people shall be as the fuel of the fire: no man shall spare his brother…

Jeremiah 19:9
And I will cause them to eat the flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters, and they shall eat every one the flesh of his friend in the siege and straitness, wherewith their enemies, and they that seek their lives, shall straiten them.

another.

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Annihilated Another's Care Cut Death Destroyed Devour Die Dies Dieth Dying Eat Feed Flesh Food Left Neighbour Ones Other's Pasture Perisheth Perishing Remaining Rest Shepherd
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Annihilated Another's Care Cut Death Destroyed Devour Die Dies Dieth Dying Eat Feed Flesh Food Left Neighbour Ones Other's Pasture Perisheth Perishing Remaining Rest Shepherd
Zechariah 11
1. The destruction of Jerusalem.
3. The elect being cared for, the rest are rejected.
10. The staves of Beauty and Bands broken by the rejection of Christ.
15. The type and curse of a foolish shepherd.














Verse 9. - I will not feed you. In consequence of their contumacy, the shepherd abandons the flock to their fate, as God threatened (Deuteronomy 31:17; comp. the very similar passage in Jeremiah 15:1-3). Three scourges are intimated in the succeeding words - plague, war, famine, combined with civil strife. Eat every one the flesh of another (comp. Isaiah 9:20). Many see here a reference to the awful scenes enacted when Jerusalem was besieged by the Romans, and intestine feuds filled the city with bloodshed and added to the horrors of famine.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Then I said,
וָאֹמַ֕ר (wā·’ō·mar)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - first person common singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

“I will no longer
לֹ֥א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

shepherd you.
אֶרְעֶ֖ה (’er·‘eh)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - first person common singular
Strong's 7462: To tend a, flock, pasture it, in, to graze, to rule, to associate with

Let the dying
הַמֵּתָ֣ה (ham·mê·ṯāh)
Article | Verb - Qal - Participle - feminine singular
Strong's 4191: To die, to kill

die,
תָמ֗וּת (ṯā·mūṯ)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person feminine singular
Strong's 4191: To die, to kill

and the perishing
וְהַנִּכְחֶ֙דֶת֙ (wə·han·niḵ·ḥe·ḏeṯ)
Conjunctive waw, Article | Verb - Nifal - Participle - feminine singular
Strong's 3582: To secrete, by act, word, to destroy

perish;
תִּכָּחֵ֔ד (tik·kā·ḥêḏ)
Verb - Nifal - Imperfect - third person feminine singular
Strong's 3582: To secrete, by act, word, to destroy

let the rest
וְהַ֨נִּשְׁאָר֔וֹת (wə·han·niš·’ā·rō·wṯ)
Conjunctive waw, Article | Verb - Nifal - Participle - feminine plural
Strong's 7604: To swell up, be, redundant

devour
תֹּאכַ֕לְנָה (tō·ḵal·nāh)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person feminine plural
Strong's 398: To eat

one
אִשָּׁ֖ה (’iš·šāh)
Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 802: Woman, wife, female

another's
רְעוּתָֽהּ׃ (rə·‘ū·ṯāh)
Noun - feminine singular construct | third person feminine singular
Strong's 7468: A female associate, an additional one

flesh.”
בְּשַׂ֥ר (bə·śar)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 1320: Flesh, body, person, the pudenda of a, man


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OT Prophets: Zechariah 11:9 Then I said I will not feed (Zech. Zec Zc)
Zechariah 11:8
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