Matthew Henry on Zechariah 11:1-3
In dark and figurative expressions, as is usual in the scripture predictions of things at a great distance, that destruction of Jerusalem and of the Jewish church and nation is here foretold which our Lord Jesus, when the time was at hand, prophesied of very plainly and expressly. We have here, 1. Preparation made for that destruction (Zac 11:1): "Open thy doors, O Lebanon! Thou wouldst not open them to let thy king in - he came to his own and his own received him not; now thou must open them to let thy ruin in. Let the gates of the forest, and all the avenues to it, be thrown open, and let the fire come in and devour its glory." Some by Lebanon here understand the temple, which was built of…
Read the whole note in the consoleJamieson-Fausset-Brown on Zechariah 11:2
fir tree . . . cedar--if even the cedars (the highest in the state) are not spared, how much less the fir trees (the lowest)!
forest of . . . vintage--As the vines are stripped of their grapes in the vintage (compare Joe 3:13), so the forest of Lebanon "is come down," stripped of all its beauty. Rather, "the fortified" or "inaccessible forest" [MAURER]; that is, Jerusalem dense with houses as a thick forest is with trees, and "fortified" with a wall around. Compare Mic 3:12, where its desolate state is described as a forest.
Adam Clarke on Zechariah 11:2
Howl, fir tree - This seems to point out the fall and destruction of all the mighty men.
John Gill on Zechariah 11:2
Howl, fir tree; for the cedar is fallen,.... By which are designed the princes, nobles, and magistrates of the land: so the Targum interprets them of kings and princes; see Nahum 2:3,
because all the mighty are spoiled; which is an explanation of the figurative expressions in the former clause, and in the following; and designs rich men, as the Targum paraphrases it, who at this time would be spoiled of their wealth and substance.
Howl, O ye oaks of Bashan; which the Targum interprets of governors of provinces; and men of power and authority are doubtless intended; see Isaiah 2:13,
for the forest of the vintage is come down; or rather, "the fortified forest"; meaning the city of Jerusalem…
