1. July 21, 2011A Piercing Look at A False Claim Page 1 of 10 Zechariah 12:10 – A Piercing Look at A False Claim A Counter-Missionary Education Lesson by Uri Yosef, Ph.D., Director of Education Virtual Yeshiva of the Messiah Truth Project, Inc. http://virtualyeshiva.com [The article on this topic is located here - http://thejewishhome.org/counter/ Zech12_10.pdf ]http://thejewishhome.org/counter/ Zech12_10.pdf Copyright © Uri Yosef 2011 for the Messiah Truth Project, Inc. All rights reserved Counter-Missionary Education

2. July 21, 2011A Piercing Look at A False Claim Page 2 of 10 Introduction Christian missionaries claim the crucifixion of Jesus is prophesied in the Hebrew Bible. One of the passages they use as a so-called “proof text” in support of their claim is Zechariah 12:10. Although the passage is problematic for this purpose even in the variety of its mistranslated versions that appear in most Christian Bibles, a slight modification in the manner in which it is applied in one of the Gospels was designed to “fix” this difficulty. A rigorous analysis of the Hebrew text and context of Zechariah 12:10 demonstrates that reference to this verse in the New Testament, and its subsequent mistranslation in the Christian "Old Testament", are inconsistent with what the Hebrew Bible teaches. Moreover, a closer look at the 12 th chapter in context confirms that such imputed Christological relevance is absurd.

3. July 21, 2011A Piercing Look at A False Claim Page 3 of 10 Zechariah 12:10

4. July 21, 2011A Piercing Look at A False Claim Page 4 of 10 Summary of the Christian and Jewish Perspectives Christianity (  )Judaism (  ) The passage foretells the crucifixion of Jesus and the intense grief that followed that event. This interpretation originates from two pointers to Zechariah 12:10 in the New Testament - Two interpretations of the passage have been proposed: An historical event from biblical times, and a prophecy of a future event that will take place just prior to the commencement of the messianic era - The author of the Gospel of John, in John 19:37, provides a translation of an altered version of the middle portion of the verse, that could then be construed as speaking about the crucifixion of Jesus Historical event – The mourning over a beloved leader slain on the battlefield, or Jews* who were slain with the weapons of soldiers from the attacking nations while defending their country, their city, and perhaps, also their faith The author of the Book of Revelation, in Revelation 1:7, alludes to the middle and last portions of the verse, here, too, via altered verbiage, that would then point to the crucifixion of Jesus and the sorrow that followed it Messianic prophecy – The mourning over a great hero (Mashi’ah ben Yosef) who will be slain in the final battle over Jerusalem, or the Jewish defenders* of Jerusalem who will fall in that battle (Zechariah 12-14) * The singular 2 nd /3 rd -person pronouns are commonly also used for a group of people, e.g., Exodus 1:4

5. July 21, 2011A Piercing Look at A False Claim Page 5 of 10 Analysis of Zechariah 12:10(KJV) The KJV translation of Zechariah 12:10, which typifies the many existing Christian translations, is split into two segments - Zechariah 12:10A(KJV) & Zechariah 12:10B(KJV) to facilitate the analysis. Zechariah 12:10A(KJV) All translation of Zechariah 12:10A share the following attributes: Variations among virtually all translations, both Jewish and Christian, are insignificant; they all agree on context and content In all translations, both Jewish and Christian, it is clear that God of the Hebrew Bible, the Creator, is speaking here, i.e., “… I [God] will pour …” There is general agreement on the context of Zechariah 12:10(A).

6. July 21, 2011A Piercing Look at A False Claim Page 6 of 10 Zechariah 12:10B(KJV) For the purpose of the analysis, pronouns are now displayed in CAPS. Who are “ THEY ”, who is “ ME ”, and who is “ HIM ”? A few bracketed comments that reflect the Christian perspective added to this segment of the verse clarify the syntax and expose its serious problems. Given that God is the speaker Jesus is part of the triune godhead (the Trinity) for most Christians It follows that the pronouns “ ME ” and “ HIM ” cannot refer to the same entity simultaneously, namely, to Jesus, since the prophet is speaking of two distinct entities Moreover, since God speaks in the 1 st -person using the pronoun “ I ” in Zechariah 12:10A It follows that God cannot refers to Himself as both “ ME ” and “ HIM ” in Zechariah 12:10B

7. July 21, 2011A Piercing Look at A False Claim Page 7 of 10 Zechariah 12:10B (continued) “Houston, we have a problem!” Enter the New Testament… The author of the Gospel of John understood the problematic nature relative to the new religion, that, at some future time, the Jewish people shall look unto Jesus, whom the Romans had pierced, was not what Zechariah had in mind. So he decided to “fix” this problem by revising and abridging the passage he “quotes”: The RSV translators picked up on this “fix” and attempted to revise the context of Zechariah's own words in their translation of the passage: Problem solved? No, since the effort to resolve the issues came via a deliberate attempt to change Zechariah’s message. Consequently, the issue of the conflicting pronouns “ ME ” and “ HIM ”, although appearing as if it were resolved, still remains (even most, if not all, other Christian translations disagree with the RSV rendition) the issue of God speaking of Himself in terms of the pronouns “ I ” and “ HIM ” in Zechariah 12:10A and Zechariah 12:10B, respectively, still remains

8. July 21, 2011A Piercing Look at A False Claim Page 8 of 10 Zechariah 12:10B (continued) This portion of the verse is next partitioned into three segments: The relevant Hebrew pronouns, highlighted in the segments above, are: On another occasion, where the two different Hebrew pronouns occurred in the same verse, the RSV translators rendered them correctly: Can there be any doubt left that both the author of the Gospel of John and the RSV translators attempted to alter Zechariah’s message to suit their agenda? SegmentPronounPronunciationMeaning (as used in the Hebrew Bible) Zechariah 12:10B(i) אֵלַי ei LAI to ME, toward ME Zechariah 12:10B(ii) עָלָיו a LAV over HIM/THEM, upon HIM/THEM, for HIM/THEM Zechariah 12:10B(iii) עָלָיו a LAV over HIM/THEM, upon HIM/THEM, for HIM/THEM

9. July 21, 2011A Piercing Look at A False Claim Page 9 of 10 Zechariah 12:10B (continued) The most significant, yet controversial, phrase of the verse appears in Zechariah 12:10B(i), namely, אֵת אֲשֶׁר־דָּקָרוּ. Christian translators generally translate it in a similar manner as whom or the one, neither of which agrees with the contextually correct meaning of the Hebrew phrase, and as reflected in Jewish translations. The components of the phrase are: Another passage of a similar syntax serves as an example that validates this analysis: Christian translators correctly rendered the phrase אֵת אֲשֶׁר in this case: Evidently, it is only through deliberate alteration and mistranslation that Christian translators were able to infuse Christological significance into this passage. PronounPronunciationMeaning אֵת ETa preposition that serves as the marker of a definite direct object of a verb (similar to “the”) אֲשֶׁר a SHER a conjunction meaning: that/which, who/whom, because/for, as to/regarding, and various other meanings when combined with different prepositions דָּקָרוּ da QA ru a verb conjugated in the 3 rd -person, plural, past tense, meaning: they pierced, they stabbed, they thrust through (with a sharp implement) אֵת אֲשֶׁר ET a SHER the phrase contains new specificity, added by the preposition אֵת, which gives it the meaning: because of/concerning/regarding him [or them]/that [or who] [followed by a verb], or simply because [verb] him [or them], but not whom or the one as in Christian translations

10. July 21, 2011A Piercing Look at A False Claim Page 10 of 10 Zechariah 12 in Context (“Contra Jesus”!) In this chapter, Zechariah describes a war of nations against Jerusalem, in which Judeans initially fight on the side of the enemy for a while and, when they realize that God is with the people of Jerusalem, they “turn around” and join the battle against the enemy, which eventually will lead to the deliverance of Jerusalem and the restoration of its status. The victory will, however, be followed by grievous mourning over those who fell in the battle. The passage Zechariah 12:7-14, in particular, when read in its proper context, clearly rules out any notion that the prophet foretold the crucifixion of Jesus: The prophet promises that Jerusalem and its inhabitants will be protected (verses 7-8) - According to the historical record, less than 40 years after Jesus died, Jerusalem was torched and destroyed by the Romans, and its people were expelled and exiled The prophet foretells the destruction of those nations that will attack Jerusalem (verse 9) - According to the historical record, none of those nations were destroyed in the days of Jesus The prophet describes the intensity of the mourning in Jerusalem and throughout the land, that it would be like the grief over a deceased only son or firstborn, and compares it to the mourning that followed the slaying of King Josiah on the battlefield in Megiddo (verses 10-14) - Neither the New Testament nor the historical record account for Jesus being an “only son” who died on the battlefield - Neither the New Testament nor the historical record account for the fulfillment the part of the prophecy where all the inhabitants of Jerusalem mourn for Jesus [Quite to the contrary, the New Testament portrays the Jews, who comprised the majority of Jerusalem's population at the time, as being anything but compassionate and mournful over the death of Jesus]