Bible Strands
Zechariah 11:2
Wail, O cypress, for the cedar has fallen; the majestic trees are ruined! Wail, O oaks of Bashan, for the dense forest has been cut down!
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The prophet pronounces a lament to Lebanon and the oaks of Bashan, using the felling of towering trees to mark a moment of national collapse. This oracle follows a summons to open Lebanon to consuming fire and precedes a description of ruined shepherds and destroyed Jordan thickets.
The words — The imperative הֵילֵ֤ל (hei.Lel) commands a wail, while בְּרוֹשׁ֙ (be.ro.Vosh) directly addresses a cypress. The verb נָ֣פַל (Na.fal) states that the cedar has fallen, and שֻׁדָּ֑דוּ (shu.Da.du) declares the majestic trees devastated.
The thread — This pattern of divine pruning appears in Isaiah 10:33, where the Lord lops off branches and cuts down tall trees. It also runs parallel to the green and dry tree warning in Luke 23:31, which traces judgment from present to future severity.
Why it lands — The text states that exalted structures and forests will be cut down and ruined. It requires the reader to acknowledge the certainty of that collapse before the subsequent destruction of shepherds and Jordan thickets.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Howl, fir tree; for the cedar is fallen; because the mighty are spoiled: howl, O ye oaks of Bashan; for the forest of the vintage is come down.
Cross-references
- Luke 23:31 For if men do these things while the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”
- Isaiah 2:12 For the Day of the LORD of Hosts will come against all the proud and lofty, against all that is exalted—it will be humbled—
- Isaiah 10:33 Behold, the Lord GOD of Hosts will lop off the branches with terrifying power. The tall trees will be cut down, the lofty ones will be felled.
- Isaiah 32:15 until the Spirit is poured out upon us from on high. Then the desert will be an orchard, and the orchard will seem like a forest.
- Ezekiel 20:46 “Son of man, set your face toward the south, preach against it, and prophesy against the forest of the Negev.
- Ezekiel 31:2 “Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his multitude: ‘Who can be compared to your greatness?
- Ezekiel 31:17 They too descended with it to Sheol, to those slain by the sword. As its allies they had lived in its shade among the nations.
- Amos 6:1 Woe to those at ease in Zion and those secure on Mount Samaria, the distinguished ones of the foremost nation, to whom the house of Israel comes.
- Nahum 3:8 Are you better than Thebes, stationed by the Nile with water around her, whose rampart was the sea, whose wall was the water?