Zechariah 11:10
“And I took my staff, even Beauty, and cut it asunder, that I might break my covenant which I had made with all the people.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →The shepherd breaks the staff named Beauty, signifying the breaking of a covenant made with all the peoples.
What Does Zechariah 11:10 Mean?
The shepherd now acts out the meaning of the first staff. He takes Beauty and cuts it in two, an enacted sign that the covenant of favor extended to all the peoples is being set aside. The breaking of the staff is the breaking of a sheltering relationship the flock has refused.
To break the staff of favor is to lift a hedge of grace that once held danger back. The scene is heavy with loss, showing that the gifts of God are not to be presumed upon. Yet even here the larger story of Scripture moves toward restoration, and the reader is drawn to cling to the covenant mercy that, in Christ, is offered anew and cannot be broken.
In the Original Language
berit (בְּרִית), 'covenant' -- a binding pledge that establishes a sworn relationship.