TRV
Translation
King James Version
For the idols have spoken vanity, and the diviners have seen a lie, and have told false dreams; they comfort in vain: therefore they went their way as a flock, they were troubled, because there was no shepherd.
KJV (with Strong's)
Complete Jewish Bible
For the household gods talk nonsense, the diviners have seen a lie; their dreams convey delusions, and the comfort they offer is in vain. Therefore they go their way like sheep in distress from lack of a shepherd.
Berean Standard Bible
For idols speak deceitand diviners see illusions;they tell false dreamsand offer empty comfort.Therefore the people wander like sheep,oppressed for lack of a shepherd.
American Standard Version
For the teraphim have spoken vanity, and the diviners have seen a lie; and they have told false dreams, they comfort in vain: therefore they go their way like sheep, they are afflicted, because there is no shepherd.
World English Bible Messianic
For the teraphim have spoken vanity, and the diviners have seen a lie; and they have told false dreams. They comfort in vain. Therefore they go their way like sheep. They are oppressed, because there is no shepherd.
Geneva Bible (1599)
Surely the idols haue spoken vanitie, and the southsayers haue seene a lye, and the dreamers haue tolde a vaine thing: they comfort in vaine: therefore they went away as sheepe: they were troubled, because there was no shepheard.
Young's Literal Translation
Because the teraphim did speak iniquity, And the diviners have seen a falsehood, And dreams of the vanity they speak, With vanity they give comfort, Therefore they have journeyed as a flock, They are afflicted, for there is no shepherd.
See on the biblical-era map
In the KJVVerse 23,019 of 31,102
Study This Verse
Commentary on Zechariah 10 verses 1–4
1 ¶ Ask ye of the LORD rain in the time of the latter rain; so the LORD shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain, to every one grass in the field.
2 For the idols have spoken vanity, and the diviners have seen a lie, and have told false dreams; they comfort in vain: therefore they went their way as a flock, they were troubled, because there was no shepherd.
3 Mine anger was kindled against the shepherds, and I punished the goats: for the LORD of hosts hath visited his flock the house of Judah, and hath made them as his goodly horse in the battle.
4 Out of him came forth the corner, out of him the nail, out of him the battle bow, out of him every oppressor together.
Gracious things and glorious ones, very glorious and very gracious, were promised to this poor afflicted people in the foregoing chapter; now here God intimates to them that he will for these things be enquired of by them, and that he expects they should acknowledge him in all their ways and in all his ways towards them - and not idols that were rivals with him for their respects.
I. The prophet directs them to apply to God by prayer for rain in the season thereof. He had promised, in the close of the foregoing chapter, that there should be great plenty of corn and wine, whereas for several years, by reason of unseasonable weather, there had been great scarcity of both; but the earth will not yield its fruits unless the heavens water it, and therefore they must look up to God for the dew of heaven, in order to the fatness and fruitfulness of the earth (Zac 10:1): "Ask you of the Lord rain. Do not pray to the clouds, nor to the stars, for rain, but to the Lord; for he it is that hears the heavens, when they hear the earth," Hos 2:21. Seasonable rain is a great mercy, which we must ask of God, rain in the time of the latter rain, when there is most need of it. The former rain fell at the seed-time, in autumn, the latter fell in the spring, between March and May, which brought the corn to an ear and filled it. If either of these rains failed, it was very bad with that land; for from the end of May to September they never had any rain at all. Jerome, who lived in Judea, says that he never saw any rain there in June or July. They are directed to ask for it in the time when it used to come. Note, We must, in our prayers, dutifully attend the course of Providence; we must ask for mercies in their proper time, and not expect that God should go out of his usual way and method for us. But, since sometimes God denied rain in the usual time as a token of his displeasure, they must pray for it then as a token of his favour, and they shall not pray in vain. Ask and it shall be given you. So the Lord shall make bright clouds (which, though they are without rain themselves, are yet presages of rain) - lightnings (so the margin reads it), for he maketh lightnings for the rain. He will give them showers of rain in great abundance, and so give to every one grass in the field; for God is universally good, and makes his rain to fall upon the just and the unjust.
II. He shows them the folly of making their addresses to idols as their fathers had done (Zac 10:2): The idols have spoken vanity; the teraphim, which they courted and consulted in their distress, were so far from being able to command rain for them that they could not so much as tell them when they should have rain. They pretended to promise them rain at such a time, but it did not come. The diviners, who were the prophets of those idols, have seen a lie (their visions were all a cheat and a sham); and they have told false dreams, such as the event did not answer, which proved that they were not from God. Thus they comforted in vain those that consulted the lying oracles; all the vanities of the heathen put together could not give rain, Jer 14:22. Yet this was not the worst of it; they not only got nothing by the false gods, but they lost the favour of the true God, for therefore they went their way into captivity as a flock driven into the fold, and they were troubled with one vexation after another, as scattered sheep are, because there was no shepherd, no prince to rule them, no priest to intercede for them, none to take care of them and keep them together. Those that wandered after strange gods were made to wander, into strange nations.
III. He shows them the hand of God in all the events that concerned them, both those that made against them and those that made for them, Zac 10:3. Let them consider, 1. When every thing went cross it was God that walked contrary to them (Zac 10:3): "My anger was kindled against the shepherds that should have fed the flock, but neglected it, and starved it. I was displeased at the wicked magistrates and ministers, the idol-shepherds." The captivity in Babylon was a token of God's anger against them; in it likewise he punished the goats, those of the flock that were filthy and mischievous; they were set on the left hand, to go away into punishment. Though the body of the nation suffered in the captivity, yet it was only the goats and the shepherds that God was angry with, and that he punished; the same affliction to others came from the love of God, and was but a fatherly chastisement, which to them came from his wrath, and was a judicial punishment. 2. When things began to change for the better it was God that gave them the happy turn. "He has now visited his flock with favour, to enquire after them, and provides what he finds proper for them, and he has made them as his goodly horse in the battle, has beautified them, taken care of them, managed and made use of them, as a man does the horse he rides on, has made them valuable in themselves and formidable to those about them, as his goodly horse." It is God that makes us what we are, and it is with us as he appoints.
IV. He shows them that every creature is to them what God makes it to be (Zac 10:4): Out of him came forth the corner, out of him the nails. 1. All the power that was engaged against them was from God. Out of him came all the combined force of their enemies; every oppressor together (and the oppressors of Israel were not a few) did but what his hand and his counsel determined before to be done; nor could they have had such power against them unless it had been given them from above. 2. All the power likewise that was engaged for them was derived from him and depended on him. Out of him came forth the corner-stone of the building, the power of magistrates, which keeps the several parts of the state together. Princes are often called the corners of the people, as Sa1 14:38, marg. Out of him came forth the nail that fixed the state, the nail in the sure place (Isa 22:23), the nail in his holy place, Ezr 9:8. Out of him came forth the battle-bow, the military power, and out of him every oppressor, or exactor, that had the civil power in his hand; and therefore to God, the fountain of power, we must always have an eye, and see every man's judgment proceeding from him.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 1–4. Public domain.
Copy as
JeromeAD 420
Commentary on Zechariah
(Chapter X, Verses 1 onwards) Pray to the Lord for late rain, and the Lord will send snow and rain showers, and every one will have grass in the fields. For the idols spoke in vain, and the diviners saw falsehood, and the dreamers spoke in vain, offering false consolation. Therefore, they have been led astray like a flock without a shepherd. They will be afflicted because they have no shepherd. Pray to the Lord for timely, seasonal, and late rain. The Lord has made illusions and will give them winter rain and grass to each one in the field. The ones who spoke have labored in vain, and the diviners have spoken false visions and false dreams, offering empty consolation. Therefore, they have withered like sheep and have been afflicted because there was no one to heal them. So the happiness that was promised in the time of the Maccabees, when the holy stones were raised up from the earth, and the Israelite nation grew greater, to the point that your virgins once again fed on the wheat of the Law, and were intoxicated with the wine of the Holy Spirit, is promised in part. However, because now is the last time of the prophets, and the world is approaching its end, and all that has been prophesied is awaiting its fulfillment: Ask the Lord to give you late rain: so that Christ, who was promised, may come and bestow upon you dews and snows, for which it is written in Hebrew Azizim (). And I do not know what they wanted, but perhaps they wanted to describe the greatness of grace and the admiration of gifts by the name of fantasy. Therefore, the Lord who makes snow and dryness for all the earth will be watered by the rain of the gospel preaching: He will give rain to the believers, and all things will be filled with abundance, so that after the nations have believed in Christ, they may understand that which they worshipped before is vain. Whether Israel itself understands, which once deceived, was held by the errors of idolatry, in vain it worshipped statues, and heard lies of the divine, and acquiesced in dreams, which Scripture commands not to believe (Deut. XIII). And for this reason they were led like a flock into captivity, and afflicted without the shepherd God, because they did not have knowledge of the Law. This whole passage is obscure and doubtful, and the reader must forgive us if in those things that are ambiguous, we proceed with a hesitant step. However, according to spiritual understanding, we can say that believers in Christ are encouraged by the Lord to ask for the latter rain at the end of the world, when the fullness of grace is to be given, and every herb will grow in its own field, so that they may say: The Lord is my shepherd, and I shall not want; he has set me in a place of pasture, he has nourished me on the waters of refreshment (Ps. 23:1-2). For all idols, both divine and dreamers, have spoken in vain and provided empty consolation. Those who speak about heretics, who do not understand the name Christian, nor about whom they speak, nor of whom they affirm, and they attend to erroneous spirits and the teachers of demons speaking lies in hypocrisy, and having their conscience seared (I Tim. IV): so that they are not led astray by the consolations of those who promise empty things, and for this reason they are handed over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh (I Cor. V), and taken captive by the king of Babylon, and afflicted, because they do not have Christ as their shepherd, whom they falsely promise to themselves under a fake name.
Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
Copy as
Continue studying Zechariah 10:2 across the web’s major study libraries — every link below opens this exact verse, chapter, or book on the destination site.
Read & Compare
BibleGatewayThis verse in more than 200 translations and 70 languages.
Bible.comThe YouVersion reader — hundreds of translations, reading plans, and highlights.
ESV.orgCrossway's official English Standard Version reader.
NET BibleThe NET translation with 60,000+ translators' notes on every rendering decision.
STEP BibleTyndale House's free study tool — original text, vocabulary, and scholarly resources.
BibliaLogos Bible Software's free web reader.
USCCBThe New American Bible (Revised Edition) with the U.S. bishops' study notes.
Commentaries
BibleHub CommentariesDozens of classic commentaries on this verse, gathered on one page.
StudyLightMore than 100 commentary sets — the largest collection on the web.
BibleRefPlain-English commentary on what this verse means, verse by verse.
Enduring WordDavid Guzik's free commentary on this chapter, widely used by Bible teachers.
Bible Study ToolsVerse commentary alongside Greek and Hebrew study aids.
Original Language & Research
- BibleHub InterlinearThe verse word by word — original language, transliteration, and English.
- BibleHub LexiconEvery word's original-language definition and Strong's entry.
Blue Letter BibleDeep-study tools — Strong's numbers, concordance, and word studies.
SefariaThe Hebrew text with Rashi and centuries of Jewish commentary.
Sermons, Hymns & Audio
TrulyRandomVerse is not affiliated with these sites and doesn’t control their content. They’re linked because they’re genuinely useful.
SUMMARY
Zechariah 10:2 powerfully exposes the spiritual desolation and deception plaguing ancient Israel, revealing the dire consequences of seeking guidance from idolatrous practices and false prophets. It highlights how reliance on empty promises and deceptive visions leads to a people disoriented and distressed, wandering aimlessly like a flock without the essential guidance and protection of a true shepherd.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Zechariah 10:2 employs powerful Imagery to convey its message, particularly the vivid portrayal of the people as a "flock" that is "troubled" and without a "shepherd." This evokes a sense of vulnerability, disorientation, and distress. The prophet also uses Parallelism in the opening clauses ("idols have spoken vanity," "diviners have seen a lie," "told false dreams"), creating a cumulative effect that emphasizes the pervasive nature of deception from various false sources. There is a strong Contrast between the empty comfort offered by idols and diviners and the desperate need for a true shepherd, highlighting the futility of human-made solutions versus divine provision. Furthermore, the verse uses Metaphor, where "shepherd" stands for a leader, whether spiritual or political, who should guide and protect the people, and "flock" represents the people themselves.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Zechariah 10:2 profoundly underscores the perils of spiritual idolatry and reliance on humanistic wisdom, serving as a timeless warning against any source of guidance that deviates from God's truth. The theological implication is clear: true comfort, direction, and security come only from the Lord and His appointed leaders. When a people turn from God's authoritative Word and leadership, they inevitably fall prey to deception, leading to spiritual and societal disarray. The "no shepherd" motif is a deep theological lament, signifying a crisis of leadership and the resulting suffering of God's people, a theme echoed throughout the prophetic books as a call for repentance and a turning back to divine authority.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Zechariah 10:2 offers a profound spiritual mirror for believers today, challenging us to critically examine the sources of our comfort, guidance, and truth. In a world saturated with information, ideologies, and self-help philosophies, it is easy to inadvertently turn to "idols" or "diviners" that promise peace or answers but ultimately deliver "vanity" and "lies." This verse calls us to a radical discernment, urging us to rely solely on God's unchanging Word as our ultimate authority and to seek out spiritual leaders who faithfully shepherd us according to His truth. When we neglect true spiritual nourishment and guidance, we risk becoming "troubled" and "scattered," vulnerable to the deceptions of the age. Our application must be to cultivate a deep dependence on God, to remain rooted in His community, and to actively seek the wisdom and direction that only He can provide through His Spirit and His Word.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
What does "idols have spoken vanity" mean in a contemporary context?
Answer: In a contemporary context, "idols have spoken vanity" refers to any source of wisdom, comfort, or guidance that is not rooted in God's truth, yet promises fulfillment or answers. This can include secular philosophies, self-help gurus, social media trends, political ideologies, or even unbiblical theological teachings that offer superficial solutions or empty promises. Just as ancient teraphim were powerless to provide genuine direction, these modern "idols" ultimately lead to emptiness (vanity) and disillusionment, failing to address the deepest needs of the human spirit. They speak a "lie" because they present a false reality or an ineffective path to peace and purpose.
Who are the "diviners" and "shepherds" mentioned, and how do they relate to leadership?
Answer: In Zechariah's time, "diviners" (qâçam) were individuals who claimed to foretell the future or provide hidden knowledge through various forbidden practices like augury, necromancy, or interpreting omens and dreams. They were false spiritual guides. "Shepherds" (râʻâh) in the biblical context are metaphors for leaders, both political and spiritual. Kings, priests, and prophets were often referred to as shepherds of Israel. The verse's lament that "there was no shepherd" indicates a severe crisis of leadership, where those who should have guided and protected the people were either absent, ineffective, or themselves leading the flock astray. This highlights the critical importance of righteous, God-appointed leadership for the well-being and direction of God's people.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Zechariah 10:2, with its lament over a troubled flock without a shepherd, finds its ultimate and glorious fulfillment in Jesus Christ. The Old Testament's recurring theme of Israel as sheep gone astray, harassed and helpless (Matthew 9:36), perfectly sets the stage for the arrival of the Good Shepherd. While the idols and diviners of Zechariah's day offered only "vanity" and "lies," Jesus declares, "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep" (John 10:11). He is the one who truly sees, knows, and gathers His flock, providing genuine comfort and infallible direction, unlike the false comforters who speak "in vain." Through His atoning sacrifice, Jesus takes away the sin that scattered the sheep (Isaiah 53:6), and as the Great Shepherd of the sheep, He now guides and protects His people, ensuring they are no longer troubled or lost. In Christ, the "no shepherd" problem is definitively solved, for He is the one who leads His sheep into abundant life (John 10:10).