The day of redemption for Israel will be a day of refreshing from the Lord (verse 1), a day of removal of false prophets (verses 2-5), a day of remembrance of the rejected shepherd (verses 6-7), and a day of refining for the remnant of the people (verses 8-9). It is the day when the people of Israel will say, “The LORD is my God.” We can all rejoice in what a day that will be!

What Does It Say?

1. In that day there shall be a ____________ opened for sin and for _____________.
2. The Lord will cut off the ________ of the idols out of the land and they shall be no more remembered.
3.   It will come to pass that the prophets shall be _____________ every one of his vision.
4. The prophet will say, I am no prophet, I am an _______________.
5. The third part of the inhabitants of the land will go through the _______ and God will ________ them as silver.

What Does It Mean?

1. Compare the prophets of Zechariah 13:2-5 [2] And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land. [3] And it shall come to pass, that when any shall yet prophesy, then his father and his mother that begat him shall say unto him, Thou shalt not live; for thou speakest lies in the name of the LORD: and his father and his mother that begat him shall thrust him through when he prophesieth. [4] And it shall come to pass in that day, that the prophets shall be ashamed every one of his vision, when he hath prophesied; neither shall they wear a rough garment to deceive: [5] But he shall say, I am no prophet, I am an husbandman; for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth.
   See All... with the shepherd of Zechariah 13:6-7 [6] And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends. [7] Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones.
   See All.... What kind of prophets are these prophets? Why are they doing what this passage records? Who is the shepherd? What contrasts can you find between the prophets and the shepherd?
2. In Zechariah 13:3And it shall come to pass, that when any shall yet prophesy, then his father and his mother that begat him shall say unto him, Thou shalt not live; for thou speakest lies in the name of the LORD: and his father and his mother that begat him shall thrust him through when he prophesieth.
   See All..., the parents of the prophet condemn and execute their son. Look at the following passages and tell what tests God gives to determine a true prophet: Deuteronomy 13:1-3 [1] If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, [2] And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; [3] Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
   See All...; Deuteronomy 18:20-22 [20] But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die. [21] And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the LORD hath not spoken? [22] When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him.
   See All...; Isaiah 8:18-20 [18] Behold, I and the children whom the LORD hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the LORD of hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion. [19] And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead? [20] To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.
   See All.... How does Deuteronomy 13:5And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death; because he hath spoken to turn you away from the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, to thrust thee out of the way which the LORD thy God commanded thee to walk in. So shalt thou put the evil away from the midst of thee.
   See All... help to explain Zechariah 13:3And it shall come to pass, that when any shall yet prophesy, then his father and his mother that begat him shall say unto him, Thou shalt not live; for thou speakest lies in the name of the LORD: and his father and his mother that begat him shall thrust him through when he prophesieth.
   See All...?
3. Zechariah 13:6And one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.
   See All... asks about the wounds in the hands of the shepherd. What are these wounds? What does this verse mean when it says that these wounds were received in the house of friends?

What Does It Mean to Me?

1. Zechariah 13:4And it shall come to pass in that day, that the prophets shall be ashamed every one of his vision, when he hath prophesied; neither shall they wear a rough garment to deceive:
   See All... speaks of prophets who wear a rough garment to deceive. A rough garment could refer to older clothes or clothes of lesser quality (2Kings 1:8And they answered him, He was an hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.
   See All...; Matthew 3:4And the same John had his raiment of camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey.
   See All...); or it could refer to sackcloth, a clothing often used in times of fasting or mourning (Isaiah 20:2At the same time spake the LORD by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, Go and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins, and put off thy shoe from thy foot. And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.
   See All...; Revelation 11:3And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.
   See All...). How could wearing such clothing be used for deception? What do some preachers or evangelists do today that deceives some people into thinking they are more holy than they are or into following them? What are our best guards against such deception?
2. Zechariah 13:7Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones.
   See All... declares this precept, “smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered.” How was this prophecy fulfilled in Matthew 26:31Then saith Jesus unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad.
   See All...? How can this precept be applied to our modern service for the Lord? Knowing this precept, what steps would wisdom have us take in order to lessen its impact?

Suggested Memory Verses

Zechariah 13:1In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness.
See All..., 6, 7