The passage opens with a beautiful and vivid poem.
Open your doors, O Lebanon,
so that fire may devour your cedars!
Wail, O pine tree, for the cedar has fallen;
the stately trees are ruined!
Wail, oaks of Bashan;
the dense forest has been cut down!
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!
The ministry of Zechariah took place during the reign of the king Darius, the Great. He lived in an era after the exile of the Jews to Babylon from Jerusalem. Jerusalem had fallen to the Babylonians in 586 B.C. Zechariah was fortunate enough to experience the excitement of the return of the Jews to their homeland. Cyrus, the Great overtook the Babylonians in 539 B.C. and he allowed Israel to return home and rebuild their lives. According to history, this poem would have been written around the time of the return. The latter portion of verse 3 could be emblematic of Judah's return.
In verse 4, God gives Zechariah a tremendous responsibility. He tells Zechariah that he is to be shepherd to the returning children of Israel. He was charged with taking care of them spiritually. The children of Israel were very quick to return to their old ways and God was willing to let them. However, this defiance didn't go without retribution. God had a man. A REAL man. A man unafraid to tell Israel the err of their ways. We should thank God every day for the shepherd that God has so graciously given us.
It is later in the passage that God reveals to Zechariah, the corruption that has so subtly crept its way into Israelites. There were those shepherds that sought to lead for their own political and financial gain. The Lord was quick to point out these "wolves" as they are referred to later in Matthew 7 and Acts 20. The Lord always provided a watchman. Whether by a judge, a prophet, a preacher, or a pastor, He was, and is still, faithful to make sure that His own are looked after.
REAL men are called to be the shepherds of our homes. That means that we are to look out not for just the temporal things needed for survival in this life, but also the lasting needs necessary for the life to come. We are charged with imparting to a younger generation the statutes and principles that have so ably guided us to this point in our own lives. I'm not a father, but one day I will be. In that day, I pray that there will be REAL men of God that will stand true to their heritage and reinforce these principles that I will strive to pass on to my own children.
Donley Gandee
