9: There has been much debate over the quote here made by Matthew. He says that this prophecy was made by Jeremiah. However, though Jeremiah does state things similar to it, it is plainly manifest that this is a quote from Zechariah. There are two good possibilities for reconciling this, which may even be taken together. First, the book of Jeremiah was, in the Jewish scriptures which Matthew would have used, the first in a grouping of books that included Zechariah. Often the minor prophets were then referred to by the name of the major prophet at the beginning of the grouping. Secondly, inasmuch as Mathew says specifically that Jeremiah said it, it cannot be denied that he did. Though it is not found in the book of Jeremiah, it is altogether possible that Zechariah was quoting from Jeremiah’s words, if not his book, in his own writings. The specifics of all this would have been well known to Mathew, though not so well to us two thousand years later.
10: The thirty pieces would be the common price for a slave, not as great an amount as one might expect to be paid for Christ’s betrayal. Of course, the Jewish leaders were very thrifty, and Judas was very greedy. It is an amazing testimony to the veracity of prophecy that this amount, as is here mentioned by the prophet, was able to purchase a field. Even more specifically, we have here the fact that it was the potter’s field.
Personal Journal Entry #12024
Prayer Journal Entry #12024
Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 14:1-16:35