The wages of thirty silver shekels (Zech 11:12-11:13)

“Then I said to them.

‘If it seems right to you,

Give me my wages.

But if not,

Keep them.’

Thus,

They weighed out,

As my wages,

Thirty shekels of silver.

Then Yahweh said to me.

‘Throw it into the treasury.’

This is the lordly price

At which I was valued

By them.

Thus,

I took the thirty shekels

Of silver.

I threw them

Into the treasury

In the house of Yahweh.”

Zechariah asked the sheep merchants whether he would he be paid any wages.  Then they weighted out 30 silver shekels, the price of a slave.  This insult was added to injury.  Next Yahweh told Zechariah to throw this money, the lordly price of a slave, into the Temple treasury.  They obviously had not understood his value.  Like all good prophets, Zechariah did what Yahweh asked him to do.  He threw the 30 silver shekels into the treasury in the house of Yahweh.

The breaking of the staff of favor (Zech 11:10-11:11)

“I took my staff,

Favor.

I broke it.

I annulling the covenant

That I had made

With all the people.

So,

It was annulled

On that day.

The sheep merchants,

Who were watching me,

Knew that it was

The word of Yahweh.”

Zechariah took his staff named favor, grace, or beauty.  Then he broke it.  By this, on that day, he annulled the covenant that had been made with his people.  Meanwhile, the sheep merchants were watching him.  They realized that this was truly the word of Yahweh.