The Rabbis on Zechariah 11 & Messiah

The prophet Zechariah speaks of YHWH, whom he represented by acting out the role of divine Shepherd, would be priced at thirty pieces of silver:

“I took my staff Favor and cut it apart, that I might break my covenant that I had made with all the peoples. It was broken in that day; and thus the poor of the flock that listened to me knew that it was Yahweh’s word. I said to them, ‘If you think it best, give me my wages; and if not, keep them.’ So they weighed for my wages thirty pieces of silver. Yahweh said to me, ‘Throw it to the potter—the handsome price that I was valued at by them!’ I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them to the potter in Yahweh’s house. Then I cut apart my other staff, Union, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.” Zechariah 11:10-14

Matthew treats this a prophecy of the Lord Jesus being betrayed by Judas for thirty pieces of silver (Cf. Matt. 26:14-16; 27:1-10).

What makes this interesting is that the rabbis also applied Zechariah’s prophecy to the Messiah, just as the following rabbinic citation shows:

אֹסְרִי לַגֶּפֶן עִירֹה (בראשית מט, יא), רַבִּי יְהוּדָה וְרַבִּי נְחֶמְיָה וְרַבָּנָן, רַבִּי יְהוּדָה אָמַר גֶּפֶן שֶׁכֹּחָהּ רַע אוֹסְרִין לָהּ בַּרְקוּם אֶחָד, (בראשית מט, יא): וְלַשׂרֵקָה שְׁנֵי בְּנֵי אֲתוֹנוֹ. (בראשית מט, יא): כִּבֵּס בַּיַּיִן לְבֻשׁוֹ, זֶה הֶחָלָב, (בראשית מט, יא): וּבְדַם עֲנָבִים סוּתֹה, זֶה הָאָדֹם. רַבִּי נְחֶמְיָה אָמַר אֹסְרִי לַגֶּפֶן עִירֹה, מֵאוֹסְרִי לַגֶּפֶן עִירֹה, (מלכים א יא, לב): הָעִיר אֲשֶׁר בָּחַרְתִּי בָהּ. וְלַשׂרֵקָה בְּנִי אֲתֹנוֹ, בָּנִים הָאֵיתָנִים רְאוּיִים לַעֲמֹד מִמֶּנּוּ. וְרַבָּנָן אָמְרֵי אֲנִי נֶאֱסָר לַגֶּפֶן וְשׂרֵקָה עִירוֹ וְהָאֲתוֹנוֹ לִכְשֶׁיָּבוֹא אוֹתוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב בּוֹ (זכריה ט, ט): עָנִי וְרֹכֵב עַל חֲמוֹר וגו'. כִּבֵּס בַּיַּיִן לְבֻשׁוֹ, שֶׁהוּא מְחַוֵּר לָהֶן דִּבְרֵי תוֹרָה, וּבְדַם עֲנָבִים סוּתֹה, שֶׁהוּא מְחַוֵּר לָהֶם טָעֻיּוֹתֵיהֶן. אָמַר רַבִּי חָנִין אֵין יִשְׂרָאֵל צְרִיכִין לְתַלְמוּדוֹ שֶׁל מֶלֶךְ הַמָּשִׁיחַ לֶעָתִיד לָבוֹא, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (ישעיה יא, י): אֵלָיו גּוֹיִם יִדְרשׁוּ, לֹא יִשְׂרָאֵל, אִם כֵּן לָמָּה מֶלֶךְ הַמָּשִׁיחַ בָּא וּמַה הוּא בָּא לַעֲשׂוֹת, לְכַנֵּס גָּלֻיּוֹתֵיהֶן שֶׁל יִשְׂרָאֵל, וְלִתֵּן לָהֶם שְׁלשִׁים מִצְווֹת, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (זכריה יא, יב): וָאֹמַר אֲלֵיהֶם אִם טוֹב בְּעֵינֵיכֶם וגו'. רַב אָמַר אֵלּוּ שְׁלשִׁים גִּבּוֹרִים. רַבִּי יוֹחָנָן אָמַר אֵלּוּ שְׁלשִׁים מִצְווֹת. אָמְרֵי לֵיהּ לְרַבִּי יוֹחָנָן לָא שְׁמִיעָא לְרַב שֶׁאֵינוֹ מְדַבֵּר אֶלָּא בְּאֻמּוֹת הָעוֹלָם. עַל דַּעְתֵּיהּ דְּרַב בְּשָׁעָה שֶׁיִּשְׂרָאֵל זוֹכִין רֻבָּן בְּאֶרֶץ יִשְׂרָאֵל וּמִעוּטָן בְּבָבֶל.  

“He will bind his foal to the vine, and to the branch of the vine his donkey’s foal; he launders his garments in wine, and in the blood of grapes, his clothes” (Genesis 49:11).

“He will bind his foal to the vine” – Rabbi Yehuda, Rabbi Neḥemya, and the Rabbis: Rabbi Yehuda said: A vine with a poor yield, one binds a donkey to it; The vineyards of Judah would be so productive that even a vine with a poor yield would require a donkey to carry its produce. “and to the branch of the vine [velasoreka],” two of “his donkey’s foal.” “He launders his garments in wine” – this is the milk; This is a reference to white wine. “and in the blood of grapes, his clothes” – this is the red.

Rabbi Neḥemya said: “He will bind his foal [iro] to the vine” – from when He brings the vine The children of Israel are called a vine (see Psalms 80:9). into His city [iro] – “the city that I have chosen” (I Kings 11:32). “And to the branch of the vine his donkey’s [atono] foal” – steadfast [ha’etanim] children are worthy to be produced from him. The Rabbis say: I am bound to the vine and the vine branch. God is bound to Israel. “His foal” and “his donkey” – upon the arrival of the one in whose regard it is written: “A humble man riding on a donkey…” (Zechariah 9:9). *Upon the arrival of the Messiah, it will be demonstrated how God is bound to Israel. “He launders his garments in wine” – as [the Messiah] clarifies matters of Torah for them; “and in the blood of grapes, his clothes” – as he clarifies their errors for them.

Rabbi Ḥanin said: Israel does not need the teaching of the messianic king in the future, as it is stated: “Nations will seek him” (Isaiah 11:10) – not Israel. If so, why does the messianic king come, and what does he come to do? To gather the exiles of Israel and to give them thirty mitzvot. That is what is written: “I said to them: If it is proper in your eye, [give Me My fee…So they weighed out My fee: thirty silver coins]” (Zechariah 11:12) – Rav said: These are the thirty mighty men. They are the righteous individuals in every generation. They are known as silver based on Proverbs 10:20. Rabbi Yoḥanan said: These are thirty mitzvot. They said to Rabbi Yoḥanan: Rav does not accept that the verse is speaking only regarding the nations of the world. According to the opinion of Rav, when Israel merit, their majority will be in the Land of Israel and their minority in Babylon. The majority of the thirty righteous individuals will be in the Land of Israel, where their spiritual level and influence will be even greater than when they are outside of the land. (Bereshit Rabbah 98:9,The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah, 2022; emphasis mine)

Further Reading

The Messiah of Genesis Rabbah