John Gill's Bible Commentary Ver. 5. Whose possessors slay them, and hold themselves not guilty , etc.] Not the Romans after Christ came, into whose hands they were delivered, and by whom they were slain in great numbers, not accounting it any sin to put them to death; but the priests, Scribes, Pharisees, and doctors, among the Jews, who ruined and destroyed their souls, by feeding them with poisonous doctrines; teaching them the commandments of men, and to observe the traditions of the elders; and to seek for life and salvation by the works of the law, which was a ministration of condemnation and death to them; and yet thought they did God and the souls of men good service: and they that sell them ; as false teachers make merchandise of the souls of men: say, Blessed [be] the Lord, for I am rich ; having devoured widows’ houses and substances, under a pretence of long prayers; and enriched themselves through tithes of everything, and by other methods; as the Scribes and Pharisees did: and their own shepherds pity them not ; those who should have been concerned for the welfare of their souls had no compassion on them. Aben Ezra, Kimchi, and Ben Melech, interpret this of God, the Shepherd of Israel; the verb being singular, though the noun is plural: so God is called Makers, Creators, ( <19E902> Psalm 149:2 Ecclesiastes 12:1) and this sense agrees with the following words.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 4-14 - Christ came into this world for judgment to the Jewish church an nation, which were wretchedly corrupt and degenerate. Those have their minds wofully blinded, who do ill, and justify themselves in it; but God will not hold those guiltless who hold themselves so. How can we go to God to beg a blessing on unlawful methods of getting wealth, or to return thanks for success in them? There was a general decay of religion among them, and they regarded it not. The Good Shepherd woul feed his flock, but his attention would chiefly be directed to the poor. As an emblem, the prophet seems to have taken two staves; Beauty denoted the privileges of the Jewish nation, in their nationa covenant; the other he called Bands, denoting the harmony whic hitherto united them as the flock of God. But they chose to cleave to false teachers. The carnal mind and the friendship of the world ar enmity to God; and God hates all the workers of iniquity: it is easy to foresee what this will end in. The prophet demanded wages, or a reward and received thirty pieces of silver. By Divine direction he cast it to the potter, as in disdain for the smallness of the sum. This shadowe forth the bargain of Judas to betray Christ, and the final method of applying it. Nothing ruins a people so certainly, as weakening the brotherhood among them. This follows the dissolving of the covenan between God and them: when sin abounds, love waxes cold, and civi contests follow. No wonder if those fall out among themselves, who have provoked God to fall out with them. Wilful contempt of Christ is the great cause of men's ruin. And if professors rightly valued Christ they would not contend about little matters.
Original Hebrew אשׁר834 קניהן7069 יהרגן2026 ולא3808 יאשׁמו816 ומכריהן4376 יאמר559 ברוך1288 יהוה3068 ואעשׁר6238 ורעיהם7462 לא3808 יחמול2550 עליהן׃5921
