Zechariah 11

And I will feed the flock of slaughter, even you, O poor of the flock

(Zechariah 11:7)

In Short

Central in Zechariah 11 is the rejection of Christ by his own people, the betrayal of Him for 30 pieces of silver. This has the most profound impact that anything ever had on history. Two thousand years of suffering of God's people and humanity through the power of the empire is presented as the slaughter of sheep. Two of the deepest valleys of suffering are (1) the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple and the Jewish war of 130-135 AD by the roman legions and (2) the eradication of the Palestinian people, closest to God's people, after WWII by the US-empire and its zionist colony.

Introduction

Previous chapter revealed that the Lord (1) would bring his people, the true people of Israel, home, (2) would use his people to conquer their enemies and (3) would bless his people with prosperity. But the end of previous chapter made already clear that this would happen under the most difficult of circumstances. This message is continued in Chapter 11. It is a message of the turmoil, the world would be in while God executes his great rescue operation on behalf of his people. This turmoil is being described with the analogy of false shepherds that mistreat the flock that they are responsible for. Does this sound strange, looking at the behavior of world politicians in 2025?

Zechariah 11 would be fulfilled more than once. The first fulfillment was in the first age, at the first coming of Jesus and what happened afterward. The second fulfillment will be shortly before the second coming of Jesus. We are seeing if happen before our very eyes.

First fulfillment

Verse 1-3 - In figurative language, the first verses describe the destruction of the temple, which would follow the rejection of Messiah by his people. The temple in Jerusalem was for a great part built of cedars of the Lebanon, both the first temple, built by Salomo and the second built by Zerubbabel and later renovated by Herod the Great. The Al-Aqsa Mosque very probably contains some of the beams of the first and second temple, made out of these cedars. From the year 30 AD, when Jesus was crucified, until 70 AD the doors of the temple mysteriously opened on their own accord, in which a Rabbi of those days saw the looming doom of the temple, knowing the prophecy of Zechariah 11. The fir tree (verse 2) stands for the ordinary houses and people. If the residence of the Lord would be destroyed how much more the people's residences. The forest of the vintage might be all neighborhoods of Jerusalem, which were also totally destroyed. The shepherds (verse 3) are a picture of the religious rulers, which profited from the temple service. The you lions are an image of the civil rulers. The temple was the most magnificent building in the complete Middle East and could be described as the 'pride of the Jordan', which usually stood for the thicket of bushes and trees along the Jordan river.

Verse 4 - 'Flock of the slaughter' relates to the Jewish people in the first century AD, which were indeed slain by the hundreds of thousands when  the Roman legions invaded Judea, besieged Jerusalem, took the city after heavy battles and laid it in ashes. However being 'flock of the slaughter', the Lord still wants to feed them, as can be seen in Jesus in the gospels, feeding the 5000 and the 4000. Besides, Jesus also fed them the Word of God, through his unwavering teaching to the people of Israel, till the very last days before his crucifixion. Jesus Himself was and is the Word of God. The people have no excuse for what they did and what became of them - flock of the slaughter.

Verse 5 - The possessors (buyers) that slay them were the Roman legions, to which the people was 'sold' by the religious rulers, the Sanhedrin, which can be seen as the sellers of the sheep. The action of selling was in fact done before Pilate, when they said 'We have no king but Caesar'. From then on, the Romans could do with the people whatever they wanted - not feeling any guilt - for the wrath  that they brought upon the people had its origin in God Himself - the people having betrayed their own Messiah. 'The profits that the priestly class made from the temple service was a very important motive to have Jesus removed from the scene. 'and they that sell them say, Blessed be the Lord; for I am rich'. The priests said among themselves: 'If we let Him thus alone, all men will believe on him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation' (John 11:48).'The shepherds, those that led the people in a certain direction, both the rulers and the lower spiritual leaders, felt no pity and minded only their own selfish interests. 'And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him.' (Luke 16:14).

Verse 6 - The metaphoric language is dropped. Instead of flock and shepherds, this verse talks about inhabitants, neighbors and king. Neighbors: 'Zealots and other factious Jews expelled and slew one another by turns at the last invasion by Rome' - "there were three generals and three armies, and between these three there was constant fighting, treachery, and arson". King: the Roman king, Vespasian and later Titus became the king they had asked for: 'We have no king but Caesar' (John 19:15). 

Verse 7 - Even though the people are 'flock of the slaughter', still the Lord feeds them. Even though people wage war, our God and Father still upholds everything in his creation, necessary for human life. Any food shortage that would emerge, or lack of knowledge of God's word, is the guilt of the spiritual leaders. The poor of the flock are the Christians, that generally were poor and not in any ruling position because Christ was rejected. Jews that had repented and had accepted Jesus were 'the remnant' under the people, as taught by Paul: 'Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace.' (Rom.11:5) Paul compared himself and his fellow Christians with 'sheep for the slaughter' (Rom.8:36).

The two staves 'Beauty' and 'Bands' stand for the way Jesus presented Himself as Shepherd to the nation of Israel. The stave 'Beauty' speaks of his Holy Person, the grace and love and truth with which He spoke, as accounted in many parts of the gospels and the rest of the New Testament. 'And all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth. And they said, Is not this Joseph's son?' (Luke 4:22), 'And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.' (John 1:14), 'How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.' (Acts 10:38). 'The thief comes not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd gives his life for the sheep.' (John 10:10,11).

The stave 'Bonds' speaks of the unity which he sought under his people: 'And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.' (John 10:16).

Verse 8 - Three shepherds the Lord cut off in one month. Who are the three shepherds? There are multiple explanations. (1) Pharisees, Sadducees and Herodians - Problem: these are no concrete shepherds but religious movements and they didn't disappear all three. The Pharisees remained for centuries. (2) prophet, priest and king - Problem: these are no concrete shepherds but functions or posts and at least the kings (rulers) remained. (3) The three oppressive and infamous leaders of the first and second Jewish revolts: Simon, John and Simon Bar-Kokhba - Problem: the last Simon was leader of the second uprising  (130-135 AD) while the first two led the first revolt (66-70 AD). (4) John, Simon, and Eleazar, three leaders of three factions in the Jewish war that also fought each other - Problem: they didn't all die at the end of the Roman victory over the Jews. Simon was executed in 71 AD, after the procession into Rome.  John was sentence to life imprisonment and the fate of Eleazar is unknown. Perhaps the word 'cut off' means 'hide' in which case the end of their leadership is meant, which for all three ended indeed with the defeat in 70 AD. (5) the three highest offices responsible for the death of Jesus: Caiaphas was replaced 37 AD in spring, Tiberius died on in March 16, 37 AD and Pilate was prefect until 37 AD (sent to Rome to be tried by Tiberius, where he found him to have died). Here also, there is more 'hiding' (end of public office) than 'death'. There is a sixth interpretation, which exactly fits 'cut off within one month' but that applies to the second fulfillment.

Verse 9 - The moment came that the Lord stopped showing Himself to his people as Messiah. Throughout the book of Acts, we still see the Lord trying to reach the heart of his people but however the apostles tried to bring them to repentance, they didn't succeed. It even ended with the efforts to murder Paul in the temple and to press the Romans to hold him captive for the rest of his life. The ultimate end came in 70 AD with the siege and the destruction of city and temple, a horrible period for the people in which pestilences ('that that dies, let it die') and the sword ('that that is to be cut off, let it be cut off') and famine ('let the rest eat every one the flesh of another').

Verse 10 - The Lord 'cut it asunder' - the staff Beauty - When? It is difficult to pinpoint one specific moment. Things like these don't change abruptly but gradually. It started with his rebuke of the Pharisees in Mathew 23, ending with: 'Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord. (Mathew 23:38,39). Then came the word of Paul at the end of Acts: 'Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that they will hear it.' (Acts 28:28) And it ended that which the Lord had warned about: 'the desolation of the house'. They would no longer have a house or a homeland without them acknowledging Him. And so it has been to this very day. Present day Israel is not a homeland to the Jews. It is a military base of the USA in disguise. We therefore do not expect a temple to arise before the second coming of Jesus. The abomination of desolation will then take place in the Al-Aqsa Mosque, built with wood from the old temple. The cutting asunder of the staff 'Beauty' is symbolic of the breaking of the covenant with the whole people by God. It once was instituted with all the people. In Deuteronomy twelve times, it was stated: 'And all the people shall answer and say, Amen' (Deut.27:15-26)

Verse 11 - 'The poor of the flock that waited upon Me knew that it was the word of the Lord.' The second time that 'the poor of the flock' are mentioned. In verse 7 they were directly addressed by the Lord:  'even you, O poor of the flock'. As believers, having accepted Christ, they had a relationship with the Lord. That made them poor in this world but rich in God. 'I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich)' (Rev.2:9). Here the poor of the flock had knowledge that others lack. They knew that the nation of Israel would come to an end because they heeded what the Lord said: 'As for these things which ye behold, the days will come, in the which there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.' (Luke 21:6). Therefore the poor of the flock, the Christians under the Jews, knew when they had to flee: 'And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. Then let them which are in Judea flee to the mountains;' (Luke 21:20,21). Many Christians were obedient to these words of Christ and fled the Roman armies to Pella, present day Jordan.

Verse 12 - These verses have been fulfilled in the betrayal of the Lord by Judas, Who sold his Master for 30 pieces of silver: 'And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver.' (Mathew 26:1 5). It is strange that the way the Lord bargained for the price they would pay for Him through the mouth and actions of Judas. The fulfillment of prophecy often happens in ways that we cannot recognize once it happens. It always happens through very natural causes, like a disciple that no longer trusts in a happy end and that tries to get as much out of his relation with the Lord as he possibly can.

Verse 13 - In the prophetic picture, it is Zechariah, who had to 'play' shepherd, to collect his pay of 30 pieces of silver, and had to throw it to the potter in the house of the Lord. In the fulfillment of it, it was Judas, who collected the price at which the Lord was estimated, and he threw it into the temple. It were the priests that took the money from the temple floor. The temple was quite desecrated by Judas' act, it being blood money. The money being defiled as blood price had become unfit as an offering for the temple, so they decided to buy a piece of land with it as a burial place for strangers from the potter, the first of which was Judas, who had hanged himself out of total desperation over what he had done. After he had hanged himself, the rope somehow broke which caused him to fall off the cliff above which he had committed suicide 'Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out. (Acts 1:18). The field was actually bought by the priests with Judas' money. The money ended up in the hands of 'the potter in the house of the Lord', probably someone that made vessels for the temple service. Isn't that a beautiful picture of the Lord Himself? The great Potter of man, in Whose hands we are as clay? 'But now, O Lord, thou art our Father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.' (Isaiah 64:8)

Verse 14 - After the fulfillment of the price at which the Lord is assessed in the betrayal of Judas, ending with the price at which He was estimated in the hands of the great Creator and Former of everything Himself, the second staff 'Bonds' is broken. This is clearly seen in the multiple factions within the people that started to fight with each other, even while the Roman legions were devastating the country. And like the brokenness of the staff Beauty, the total absence of Messiah, the deep divide within the people of Israel remains to this very day, as we will show in the second fulfillment.

Verse 15 - 16 - The last verses of Zechariah 11 concern the foolish shepherd, who would show no compassion for his flock, the people - no visiting of them, no seeking of them, no healing of them, no feeding of them. This foolish shepherd would only try to profit form the people for his own selfish interests. He would leave the flock and would act like the hireling in the Lord's words: 'But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep, and flees: and the wolf catches them, and scatters the sheep. The hireling flees, because he is an hireling, and cares not for the sheep.'

The first fulfillment of the prophecy of the foolish shepherd can be seen in Simon Bar Kokhba, who led the second revolt against the Romans from 132 AD - 135 AD. This time the Jews fought more as one army compared to the revolt of 66 AD - 70 AD when three rivals each led his own army, often striving one another (possibly the three shepherds of verse 8). The character of Simon Bar Kokhba resembles that of the foolish shepherd. He was very violent, and is said to have asked of his men to cut off their own fingers in order to display their valor and loyalty - 'tear their claws in pieces'. He killed his own uncle and 'severely punished the Christians with death by different means of torture for their refusal to fight against the Romans'

Verse 17 - This foolish shepherd would be severely punished, with a sword upon his arm and upon his right eye', so that his right arm would dry up and his right eye would be blinded. In 135AD the Roman legions again took Jerusalem. Simon Bar Kokhba was killed in the battle. His severed head was brought to the emperor who then saw a serpent wrapped around the head. About the arm, nothing is found. His arm might of course have been severely damaged also. 

Second fulfillment

Verses 1-3 - Today, the Cedar is more common to Southern Turkey than to Lebanon. So it is difficult to apply the first 3 verses to a recent fulfillment. One might however apply it to the struggle that the Middle East has been in since the fall of the Ottoman empire during the first world war. From then on the Western powers took over, Britain and France. After World War II the peoples of the Middle East were given outward autonomy. That is however the way the new power in the world, the US-empire, establishes itself: hidden behind the regimes of the countries that it controls. Therefore self governance is rarely seen. Instead the region is characterized by brutal dictatorships and incidental uprisings among the peoples. The most direct way in which the empire exerts its influence is through its proxy, the state of Israel, which has brought decades of death and destruction, foremost upon the Palestinians, which country it stole, but also on many other Arab nations. The strategic location together with the enormous richness of oil in the region are the predominant reasons for the empire to never let loose.

Verses 4,5 - The general attitude of rulers toward the people that they are responsible for hasn't changed much since the days of the two Jewish revolts. Politicians (the shepherds - steering the people in the desired direction) are interested in only one thing: their own careers. The corporations (sellers) that profit from the people, know how to select and to control the right type of men for governmental positions. The rich oligarchs (owners) steer the world through their corporations in the direction of the long-run plans they determined. In all of this, the interests of the flock have no say. The flock is destined for slaughter.

Verse 6 - This verse shows lots of resemblance with the red horse of the second seal in Revelation 6. Verse 6 shows us that the Lord will give the people over to their fate as 'flock of the slaughter'. And 'People will no longer only concern the Jewish people, it will eventually apply to all nations. We consider this verse to show the conditions being set for the arrival of the red horse of Revelation 6 - 'And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword.' (Rev.6:3,4) People given over in the hand of neighbor and king means that peace is gone. In 'that they should kill one another', the hand of the neighbor is seen. In 'him was given a great sword', the hand of the king is seen. In 'take peace from the earth', the 'they shall smite the land (or earth)' is seen. The opening of the sixth seal by the Lamb' illustrates the sentence' and out of their hand I will not deliver them'. The parallels between Zechariah and Revelation are striking. In Zechariah 9, we saw the white horse in the deliverance and victory of God's people and here we have the red horse.

Verse 7 - God's preserving power throughout all the struggles in society is of all times. In that preserving power, the believer, that are addressed directly by the Lord, enjoy his special care: '...because we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, specially of those that believe.' They are called 'the poor of the flock' because the following of Jesus means a low position in the world, as  'For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.' (1 Cor.1:26). And: 'Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?' (James 2:5)

The two staves, Beauty and Bands, shows Christ's position in glory, from which He still cares for his people, be it from a distance and solely based on his mercy. Through a very long and difficult path, He eventually leads the remnant among them to salvation, as Paul writes: 'I say then, Hath God cast away his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. God hath not cast away his people which he foreknew.' (Romans 11:1,2) And: '...that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. (Romans 11:25-27).

Verse 8 - But even these staves are cut asunder. When? After three shepherds were cut off by the Lord in one month. Who were these three shepherds and when were they cut off? There has been a month in recent history within which three important politicians all three died. It was at the end of WWII:

Adolf Hitler - died on April 30, 1945 (or disappeared from the scene)

Benito Mussolini - died on April 28, 1945 (executed after he tried to flee)

F.D. Roosevelt - died on April 12, 1945 (health issues)

These were all leaders who laid the groundwork for the zionist project in the Middle east, called 'the state of Israel' Hitler as well as Mussolini as well as Roosevelt.

Verse 9 - Since then, the people were again given over to destruction as 'flock of the slaughter'. For what happened after 1945? In 1947 the UN-partition plan was voted into being, after enormous pressure from wealthy bankers, called zionists and lobbyists. Pressure was exerted on the US as well as on many small countries that had a vote. About 55% of Palestine was given to Jews that came mainly from Europe while 93% of Palestine was owned by Palestinians. And once the state of Israel was founded in 1948, the Nakba started, the robbery of Palestinians of their land, the destruction of their homes, the slaughtering of hundreds of them in order to chase them away. An estimated 750,000 Palestinians had to flee and never returned. This was repeated in 1967, after the 6-day war when more than a million Palestinians had to flee. Since then they have lived in refugee camps, from which they are again expelled anno 2025, under the severest military violence one can think of, in Gaza and in the West-Bank.

Verse 10 - The staff 'Beauty' was cut asunder only once. If we have to pinpoint a moment, it is in the words of Jesus to the Pharisees at the last occasion He spoke to them in the temple courts: 'Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord.' (Mathew 23:38,39). But this cutting asunder of the staff resonates through the 2000 years of history that followed, the loudest in the years 66 AD - 135 AD and the years 1948 - 2029 AD. The covenant is broken and remains broken. The Lord was received into heaven until the times of restitution of all things - times, which start with the repentance of Israel. The Lord will return to install his new covenant, that He didn't make with the church - as if often suggested - but that He made with Israel, as is to be read in Hebrews 8: 'For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah' (Hebrews 8:8).

Verse 11 - The poor of the flock, the Christians, know exactly what is the reason behind all the suffering of the Jewish people. It is the word of the Lord because of what the people did to the Lord: they rejected Him.

Nothing is what it seems. The distinction Palestinians - Jews is very misleading for all inhabitants of Palestine were in fact descendants of the same ancestral family of Israelites, mainly from the tribe of Judah. But since many of them had turned to Islam as their religion, they were not longer seen as Jews but as 'Arabs', because they shared the same faith with many in other Arab countries. The opposite is true for the European Jews, who were for a great deal assimilated with the peoples of Europe and stood much further from their Jewish ancestry, while holding on to Jewish religion. This is even more the case for people that accepted Jewish religion while not being Jewish in origin at all. So, the term 'Jews' became a term with cultural/religious connotation instead of having an ancestral meaning. But that is not how the Lord looks at it. For Him, the Jews, his holy people are those that descended from the patriarchs in the most direct line - that are the Palestinians. And the devil knows this. Therefore the devil uses the empire under his control (the USA) to attack the 'woman' that brought forth the Child (Messiah), the holy people (Revelation 12:13, Daniel 7:21).

The establishment of the state of Israel has been an enormous 'Nakba' = catastrophe for the Palestinians and for all countries that sided with them. The Palestinians and their allies were all severely attacked by the empire, either directly or via its military base in disguise, the state of Israel, that has been overloaded with the most advanced weaponry and with finance and legal and diplomatic protection on all sides. The displacement of millions brought sicknesses (lack of sanitation), wars (many were killed) and famine as is the case in Gaza, July 2025. The Palestinians in Gaza of 2025 face almost the same situation as the Jews in 70AD: they are besieged, shot at and starved to death. Only arrows and stones are replaced by bullets and bombs. As the text says: '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. And I took my staff, even Beauty, and cut it asunder, that I might break my covenant which I had made with all the people.' Since 1948, the Palestinians have lost any form of decent life and have become the most harassed population on earth.

Verses 12-13 - And the UN? The UN is the means by which the empire betrayed the Palestinians. The UN was necessary for the establishment of Israel and as a whip for poor countries in order to have them obey the empire. But of course, the empire itself is above the UN and if it wants that nothing is done in protection of the Palestinians, the UN is powerless and can only utter some words that have no meaning and raise some hands that have no say. Every resolution, every accord, every promise that was made with the Palestinians as a step toward a state for themselves, was betrayal by the empire, either directly or through its proxy's, Israel and its European vassal states. This is where verses 12-13 come into view. The Lord was betrayed by one of his disciples for 30 pieces of silver. He was betrayed by his own people for solidifying their political position. He was delivered into the hands of sinners. He was betrayed while they said 'we have no king but Caesar'. He was betrayed while they said 'his blood upon us and upon our children'. In the years 66 - 70, the years 132 - 135 and especially the years 1948 - 2025, the betrayal has become their own fate - by the empire, which they said to be part of. But the price, the Lord was estimated at, the 30 pieces of silver, is ultimately being used for the good of the people. It does not end with the graveyard, which was bought with the blood price. It ends with the temple's potter, of whom the graveyard is bought, picture of the Lord of the temple, who is the great Potter, the Creator in whose hands people are as clay, to be formed by Him, ultimately into his own image, the goal He intended for man (Genesis 1:26,27). In later chapters of Zechariah, we will see more of the goal that God has with his Palestinian people.

Verse 14 - The betrayal, which came back upon their own heads, came with another evil. This second evil, we see in verse 14. 'Then I cut asunder mine other staff, even Bands, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.' The Zionist state of Israel consists of many Jews, however on average they are less directly linked to the patriarchs. Within the 1967 borders there is a blatant form of apartheid because Palestinians are treated as second rate citizens. Outside of that borders, in Gaza and in the West-Bank, a genocide is roaring, in which many Jews participate. Palestinians and Jews are descendants of the same Patriarchs but they are further apart than ever. It is because of the interests of the empire, that are served by those participating in the zionist state (most 'Jews'), while the original population ('Palestinians') represents a constant threat to the empire's most important stronghold in the Middle East. It is the empire that not only attacks God's people vehemently but it also causes a very deep rift withing God's people. The staff 'Bands' is cut asunder, the brotherhood between Judah and Israel is broken.

Verses 15-16 - The last verses concern the foolish shepherd, the man who is more than any other person on earth the instrument of the empire to constantly betray the Palestinians, to bring a genocide upon them and to cause a deep rift within the holy people: Benjamin Netanyahu. Multiple Bible prophecies can be directly applied to him. The prophecy of the foolish shepherd being one of them. We name Daniel 8:23-26, Isaiah 28:14,15, Daniel 11:36-40 and Revelation 13:11-13. That this politician has zero concern for the nation and the people he is to lead is clear from everything he does. The only thing he is interested in, is his own political career, which he wants to extend as long as possible, by acting on behalf of the interests of the empire - not of Israel. For Israel only exists for the protection of the empire's vital interests in the Middle East and the world. That is even more the case in days that the empire seems to loose power to upcoming countries, Russia, India and foremost China. Therefore Netanyahu couldn't care less for the fate of the hostages of October 7, for the release of which the whole county keeps begging. The hostages are not just the last card for Hamas. They are also an argument for Netanyahu to continue the ethnic cleansing of Gaza (and the West-Bank, where almost nobody is looking). It is not Hamas that is constantly obstructing a cease fire, it is Netanyahu with the empire at his back.

Verse 17 - If the foolish shepherd in this prophecy stands for Netanyahu, then he will experience the last verse of this chapter: a sword over his right arm and over his right eye. We do not know what this sword will be or who will apply it to him and when this will happen. It could be a strike from abroad, Hezbollah, the Houthis or Iran. It could also be one of his own citizens who is fed up by the deplorable situation his country is thrown in. We do not know whether it will directly cause his death, as was the case in the first fulfillment with Simon bar Kokhbah, or that he will resume office with a covered eye and a disabled arm. This man has so many enemies that it is a miracle he has been functioning in this high position of power for such a long time - longer than any other world leader at the time. 

It might seem strange that this prophecy would have a second fulfillment. Yet, many things in the Bible happen twice. In the case of Jesus: Two times He cleansed the temple, two times He stilled the storm at the lake, two times He fed the multitudes, two times He performed the miraculous catch of fish.

Moreover: the severe attack on God's people is also seen twice in the central prophecy of Revelation 12:  (1) Directly after Christ went up to heaven (70 AD - 135 AD) and (2) Shortly before the Endtime and the return of Christ (1948 - 2029?)

And lastly: The prophecy of the 2,300 morning and evenings of Daniel 8 also has a double fulfillment - or rather: is fully fulfilled in two separate epoques: (1) in the days of the Greek Antioch Epiphanes (about 1080 days) and (2) in the Endtime (about 1220 days).