A Piercing Look at A False Claim

[Zechariah 12:10]

 

 

I.            Introduction

 

Zechariah 12:10 is a verse used by Christian apologists and missionaries as a so-called "proof text" to support their claim that the crucifixion of Jesus was foretold in the Hebrew Bible.  Although the passage is problematic even in its mistranslated forms that appear in most Christian Bibles (as will be shown below), just a slight modification in the way it is applied in one of the Gospels supposedly "fixes" the problem.  However, a closer examination of this passage reveals that the imputed Christological relevance is absurd.

 

II.            The Hebrew Text and Several Christian and Jewish Translations

 

Table II-1 displays the Hebrew text of Zechariah 12:10, along with five Jewish translations and seven Christian translations.  The New American Standard Bible (NASB) shows Zechariah 12:10 pointing to two passages in the New Testament and these, in turn, cross-reference Zechariah 12:10.  These passages, as quoted from the KJV, are shown below Table II-1.  some words and phrases are emboldened, highlighted, or underlined in the Hebrew text, with the corresponding words and phrases marked likewise in the various translations, and these will all be addressed in the analysis that follows.

 

Table II-1 – The Hebrew Text of Zechariah 12:10 with Christian and Jewish Translations

 

1. New Testament passages cross-referenced (in the NASB) with Zechariah 12:10:

    John 19:37(KJV) - And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they

                                  pierced.

    Revelation 1:7(KJV) - Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and

                                       they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail

                                       because of him. Even so, Amen.

 

It is interesting to note that, in general, the Jewish translations and the Christian translations, separately, are internally consistent.  However, these two groups of translations show significant differences relative to each other in their renditions of the verse, and these details will be examined below.

 

III.            Overview of Christian and Jewish Interpretations

 

A.      Overview of the Christian Perspective

 

This verse is perceived by Christians as foretelling the crucifixion of Jesus and the grief that followed, a notion that is reinforced in New Testament narratives.  The author of the Gospel of John quotes almost verbatim the specific phrase of the verse that allegedly foretells the crucifixion and ensuing mourning, albeit with the help of some revision of the text that appears in the Hebrew:

 

John 19:37(KJV) - And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.

 

Then, with some help from the Book of Revelation (believed to have the same author as the Gospel of John), the connection with Zechariah 12:10 is reinforced:

 

Revelation 1:7(KJV) - Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

 

The passage in the Gospel of John which precedes the verse that allegedly refers to Zechariah 12:10 sheds some light on the Christian scenario:

 

John 19:31-36(KJV) – (31) The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high day,) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.  (32) Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with him.  (33) But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs:  (34) But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water.  (35) And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe.  (36) For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken.

 

Crucifixion was a horrible way to die.  On the cross, without having the feet supported in some manner, suspension from the hands or wrists nailed to the crossbeam would cause the body's weight to collapse the chest cavity and result in death by asphyxiation – a faster process.  However, when the feet were supported, either with a small wooden pedestal underneath or by being nailed to the central-beam of the cross, a person could stay alive for as much as several days.

 

Jewish Law, however, required a prompt burial following a person's death:

 

Deuteronomy 21:22-23 – (22) And if a man were to commit a sin deserving death, and he were to be put to death, and you hanged him on a tree.  (23) His body shall not remain upon the tree overnight, rather you shall surely bury him on that [same] day, for a hanged one is a cursed of G-d; and you shall not defile your land, which the L-rd your G-d gives you as an inheritance.

 

Thus, during the era of the Roman occupation, it was customary for the Jews to plead with the Romans to break the leg bones of Jewish people who were crucified, in order to quicken their death and, thereby, enable their burial within the required amount of time.

 

According to the account in the Gospel of John, there was no need to break the legs of Jesus.  The Roman soldiers who approached Jesus perceived that he was already dead, and then they stabbed his side with a sword to confirm that he had expired.  This act was depicted as yet another prophecy fulfilled some 2000 years ago, and which also identified Jesus with the Passover Lamb in the New Testament (e.g., 1 Cor 5:7), since the requirements spelled out in the Torah included the prohibition against breaking any of it's bones:

 

Exodus 12:46 - In one house it shall be eaten; you shall not bring from the house any of the meat outdoors; neither shall you break any bone of it.

 

More detailed verse-by-verse Christian interpretations of Zechariah 12:10, which are beyond the scope of this essay, may be found in the standard Christian sources, such as commentaries by Matthew Henry and Jamieson, Fausset, & Brown.

 

B.     The Jewish Perspective

 

From the Jewish perspective, two general Jewish interpretations of the passage that contains Zechariah 12:10 are plausible.  One view has it as an historic Biblical event from the prophet's own era, while the other considers it a prophecy of an event that will take place at some time near the commencement of the messianic era.

 

1.      Historic Event

 

The predominant perspective on Zechariah 12:10 among the Jewish commentators is that it describes the mourning over those Jews who were slain while defending the Kingdom of Judah and Jerusalem.  Those who fell in the battle were the ones described as having been thrust through with the swords and spears of soldiers from the attacking nations.  In other words, this verse describes a historical event from the Biblical times around which this was written.  Even S. R. Driver, the noted Christian commentator,  is at variance with many of his colleagues since he views Zechariah 12:10 as follows:

 

"The context points plainly to some historical event in the prophet's own time, for which the people would eventually feel that sorrow here described."

 

Driver apparently recognized that the passage describes an historical event from Zechariah's era.

 

2.      Messianic Prophecy

 

The other perspective on this passage, which originates in the Talmud, actually shares with the Christian view the fact that it is a messianic prophecy, except that, according to the traditional Jewish concept of the Messiah, this prophecy has not yet been fulfilled.

 

Since there is an ambiguity in the Hebrew text in terms of whether the subject (i.e., the "victim") here is an individual or a group – the particular pronouns used here are applied in both ways in the Hebrew Bible – there are two ways to interpret this passage within this messianic perspective.  Both interpretations are consistent with the Hebrew text as well as with Jewish tradition.

 

The "singular pronoun scenario" depicts a great hero who will fall in the battle of the nations against Jerusalem that was described earlier in the chapter (Zech 12:3).  Because this person will be one of towering stature among the Jewish people, the mourning for him will be great and widespread; the entire nation and all of Jerusalem are described as being in a state of great mourning (Zech 12:12).  But, this crying and mourning will lead people to repent and return to observance of Torah, as had happened in previous times:

 

Numbers 14:39-40 – (39) And Moses spoke these words to all the Children of Israel; and the people mourned greatly.  (40) And they arose early in the morning, and they ascended to the top of the mountain, saying; "Behold, we are here, and we will go up to the place of which the L-rd has spoken, for we have sinned."

 

This particular scenario fits well with the Rabbinic "two Messiahs" paradigm.  According to this Talmudic tradition, the first "Messiah",  (mashi'ah ben Yosef), Messiah son of Joseph, will be a hero out of either the Tribe of Ephraim or the Tribe of Menasheh (recall that Joseph's sons were Ephraim and Menasheh).  He will fight, and be killed in the Great War, an event that will be the catalyst for all of Israel to turn to G-d and repent.  After that,  (mashi'ah ben David), Messiah son of David, the Davidic Messiah, will appear and usher in the messianic era with its promised redemption of Israel.  The intensity of the sadness is quantified in Zechariah 12:11 by comparing the mourning in Jerusalem with the mourning in the valley of Megiddo.  This reference points to the death of King Josiah, the last of the great and righteous kings of Judah (2 Kgs 23:25), who was killed in a battle with Pharaoh Necho, King of Egypt:

 

2 Kings 23:29-30 – (29) In his [Josiah's] days, Pharaoh Necho, King of Egypt, went up against the King of Assyria by the Euphrates River; and King Josiah went against him, and he [Pharaoh Necho] killed him [Josiah] at Megiddo, when he saw him.  (30) And his servants transported him dead from Megiddo, and [they] brought him to Jerusalem, and [they] buried him in his grave; and the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and anointed him, and made him king in his father’s stead.

 

2 Chronicles 35:22-24 – (22) Nevertheless, Josiah did not turn his face from him [Pharao Necho], but disguised himself in order to fight with him, and he did not pay heed to the words of Necho [which came] from the mouth of G-d; and he came to fight in the valley of Megiddo.  (23) And the archers shot at King Josiah; and the king said to his servants, "Take me away, for I am badly wounded."  (24) And his servants took him from that chariot, and put him in the second chariot that he had, and they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died, and he was buried among the graves of his forefathers; and all of Judah and Jerusalem were mourning for Josiah.

 

Following Josiah's death, the mourning throughout the Kingdom of Judah and in Jerusalem was immense.  In the Hebrew Bible, this is alluded to by Jeremiah, and recorded in the historical books: 

 

Lamentations 4:20 - The breath of our nostrils, the anointed of the L-rd, was captured in their pits, of whom we said, "In his shadow we shall live among the nations."

 

2 Chronicles 35:24-25 - (24) And his servants took him from that chariot, and put him in the second chariot that he had, and they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died, and he was buried among the graves of his forefathers; and all of Judah and Jerusalem were mourning for Josiah.  (25) And Jeremiah lamented Josiah; and all the singing men and the singing women had spoken of Josiah in their lamentations to this day, and made them a statute upon Israel; and behold, they are written in the lamentations.

 

According to the Jewish Sages, these descriptions also characterize the magnitude of the grief that will prevail among Jews over the falling of  (mashi'ah ben Yosef), Messiah son of Joseph.

 

In the "plural pronoun scenario", the singular pronoun is applied to a group of Jewish people, a usage that is common in the Hebrew Bible (e.g., Hosea 11:1 has the Jewish people described via the same singular pronoun, him).  In Zechariah 12:10, the new spirit that G-d will pour unto the Jewish people will motivate them to look toward Him concerning the Jewish martyrs who fell in the battle over Jerusalem before His divine intervention on their behalf.  Here, as was the case in the previous scenario, the intensity of the mourning over those who will fall in the Great War of the future is still reflected in the historical references that appear in Zechariah 12:11.

 

In summary, the Jewish perspective on Zechariah 12:10 is that it may be viewed as either an historical event that occurred in the prophet's time or, alternatively, as a messianic prophecy that is yet to be fulfilled.  Neither of these interpretations agrees with, nor can accommodate, the Christian view that it is a messianic prophecy that was historically fulfilled with the death of Jesus. 

 

IV.            Pronouns and Context: A Closer Look at the Verse

 

As noted above, the Christian interpretation of this passage as foretelling the crucifixion of Jesus is problematic.  An analysis of the KJV rendition, which represents a typical Christian translation of Zechariah 12:10, will help illustrate some of the salient issues.

 

Zechariah 12:10(KJV) - And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

 

To facilitate the analysis, the KJV rendition is divided into two segments:

 

Zechariah 12:10A(KJV) - And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon

the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications:

 

Zechariah 12:10B(KJV) - and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

 

The segment Zechariah 12:10A(KJV) has two noteworthy aspects:

 

• Variations among virtually all translations, Jewish and Christian, are insignificant – they all agree on context and content.
• From all translations, Jewish and Christian, it is clear that the one speaking here is G-d (… I [G-d] will pour …)

 

The segment Zechariah 12:10B(KJV) requires a detailed analysis.

 

A.      Who is "me" and who is "him"?

 

A paraphrase of Zechariah 12:10B(KJV) will illustrate the way a Christian might read it, which will also bring to light some of its inherent problems:

 

And they [the Jews {or the Romans}] shall look upon me [Jesus] whom they [the Romans] have pierced; and they [the Jews] shall mourn for him [Jesus] as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him [Jesus] as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

 

Given that G-d is the speaker, and that most Christians regard Jesus as an integral part of the godhead (the Trinity), can the pronouns me and him, as they appear in this passage, refer to the same person, namely, Jesus?  It should be clear that the prophet is speaking here of not one, but of two distinct entities.  These pronouns, me and him, cannot refer to the same entity simultaneously!  Moreover, there is still the issue of the pronoun I as used in Zechariah 12:10A.  How does G-d's speaking in the 1^st-person in Zechariah 12:10A fit in with the rest of the verse, Zechariah 12:10B?

 

B.     The New Testament to the Rescue?

 

Evidently, the author of the Gospel of John was familiar with this passage from the Book of Zechariah, and he understood its problematic nature relative to the new religion.  To interpret this passage as saying that, at some future time, the Jewish people shall look unto Jesus whom the Romans had pierced, did not appear to him to be what Zechariah had in mind.  So he decided to "rectify" this problem by revising and abridging the passage, and "quotes" it in this way:

 

John 19:37(KJV) - And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him  whom they pierced.

 

The RSV translators utilized this version in the New Testament to revise the context of Zechariah's own words in their Old Testament version of Zechariah 12:10 (The Living Bible has a similar rendition):

 

Zechariah 12:10(RSV) - And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of compassion and supplication, so that, when they look on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a first-born.

 

Although this appears to solve the problem created by the use of two distinct pronouns, it does not resolve the identity issue between the two segments of this verse, Zechariah 12:10A&B.  Moreover, the RSV rendition is a deliberate revision of the Prophet's original words designed to "harmonizing" this passage with the Christian paradigm.  The evidence for this allegation is presented Table IV.B-1, which shows the Hebrew text, a Jewish translation, and the RSV rendition of Zechariah 12:10B broken into three components, with respective terms highlighted.

 

Table IV.B-1 – Comparing RSV translation with Hebrew text and Jewish translation

 

 

The significant Hebrew pronouns in the respective phrases that comprise Zechariah 12:10B are as follows:

 

§         Zechariah 12:10B(i) has  (elai), to me or toward me.

§         Zechariah 12:10B(ii) has  (alav), over him or upon him or for him.

§         Zechariah 12:10B(iii) has  (alav), over him or upon him or for him.

 

The combination of the two terms,  (elai) and  (alav), in the same verse is found elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible, e.g., at Genesis 44:21, which the RSV correctly renders as:

 

Genesis 44:21(RSV) - Then you said to your servants, "Bring him down to me [ (elai)], that I may set my eyes upon him [ (alav)]."

 

Is there any doubt that the RSV rendition of Zechariah 12:10B(i) is based on John 19:37 in the New Testament rather than on the Hebrew text?

 

It is also interesting to note that, according to the Gospel of John, the prophecy was fulfilled at the time when the Roman soldiers pierced the side of Jesus.  Yet, neither in the New Testament nor in recorded history is described the prophesied event that all the inhabitants of Jerusalem would mourn for Jesus.  In fact, the New Testament portrays Jews; who were the overwhelming majority of Jerusalem's population, as anything but compassionate and mournful over the death of Jesus.  This prophecy was not fulfilled when Jesus died!

 

C.     How Well Did Christian Translators Know the Hebrew Language?

 

There is yet another serious problem with the Christian renditions of this verse, one that stems from a lack of knowledge and understanding of the Hebrew language.  Specifically, the problem concerns the mistranslation of the Hebrew expression  (et asher-daqaru) found in Zechariah 12:10B(i), which reads: because of him who they pierced [or because of the ones who they pierced], when correctly translated.

 

The Hebrew words  (et) and  (asher) are ubiquitous in the Hebrew Bible.   (et) is a preposition that serves as the marker of a definite direct object of a verb.  In its root form, it is similar to the definite article the in English.  However, unlike the case of the English language,  (et) can be conjugated, and thereby it becomes the objective case of the respective pronoun, such as  (oti), me (1^st-person, singular, masculine or feminine pronoun; as in "He taught me."),  (ot'cha), you (2^nd-person, singular, masculine pronoun; as in "He taught you."), etc.  The word  (et) may also serve as the preposition with, and it can be conjugated in that context as well, albeit differently, such as,  (itti), with me,  (it'cha), with you, etc.  The Hebrew word  (asher) is a conjunction, a part of speech that connects other words or phrases.   (asher) can mean because or for, that or which, who or whom, and it may take on various other meanings when combined with prepositions.

 

When  (et) and  (asher) occur together as a phrase, and in the particular grammatical structure, such as is found in Zechariah 12:10B(i), the phrase  (et asher) must be read as, because of or concerning or regarding [something] or simply because or that which, but not simply as whom or the one, which are common in Christian translations.  The particular translation depends on the context of the specific passage.  The following example demonstrates this in another passage which has a grammatical structure similar to Zechariah 12:10B(i):

 

1 Samuel 30:23 – And David said, "You will not do so, my brothers, concerning that which [