Jeremiah and Zechariah and Matthew

Matthew 27:9 Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him that was valued, whom they of the children of Israel did value;

On Saturday am, June 3rd, Pastor Jeff Riddle posted Word Magazine 283, “An error in Matthew 27:9?” This is a nice discussion on what some folks claim is an error in Matthew 27:9 – that the name Jeremiah should be Zechariah instead. Brother Riddle concludes with an explanation and exoneration of Matthew. This video and presentation made me think of a similar explanation that was taught me by a former pastor, an historian and Old Testament scholar. Below I give an excerpt from his book Old Testament in Matthew. This is part of Lesson 48, “A Prophecy Runs Its Course.” Brother J. W. Griffith divides this lesson into three parts: (1) “Jeremiah Begins It” (with reference to Jeremiah 18:1-6; 19:1-2, 10-12), (2) “Zechariah Continues It” (with reference to Zechariah 11:12-13) and (3) “Matthew Proclaims Its Fulfillment” (with reference to Matthew 27:1-10). The explanation incorporates the view of Brother Riddle and others (a sort of synecdoche or metonymy, I suppose we might call it), additionally seeing that the gospel author Matthew by inspiration created a cento of passages from Jeremiah and Zechariah. Brother Griffith writes:

“Zechariah Continues It, Zech. 11:12-13.”

“Prophetic Connections. The reference on which this lesson is based is found in Matthew 27:9-10. It is introduced with the words, ‘Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet,’ etc. It continues to record the prophecy of Zechariah 11:12-13. Various attempts have been made to explain this seeming mistake. The best seems to be that which has the prophecy beginning with that of Jeremiah, concerning the potter and the wheel and the broken vessel. Some authorities explain that the prophecy of Jeremiah was the first in a scroll which included the prophecy of Zechariah. It was commonly referred to as ‘Jeremiah,’ much as the first five books of the Bible are sometimes called ‘Moses’ and the Psalms ‘David.’

“If it is admitted that Matthew made a mistake in attributing the quotation to Jeremiah the divine inspiration of the Scriptures might be put in doubt. The Jews divided their Scriptures into the Law, Prophets, and Psalms. Several books were included in each of these divisions. Often there were scrolls which might contain one book, or several. The explanation above would account for the fact that Matthew referred to the scroll of ‘Jeremiah,’ including Zechariah. 

“The prophecies of Jeremiah, chapters 18 and 19, contain things clearly pertinent to the events around the Judas Iscariot’s betrayal of Jesus, his subsequent remorse, suicide, and burial. Thus they are clearly joined with what Zechariah prophesied a few hundred years later. The prophecy of the potter’s field had its beginning with Jeremiah and was added to by Zechariah.

“Jeremiah’s prophesying coincided with the fall of Jerusalem and the departure of the Jewish remnant into the captivity of Babylon. This was the early fulfillment of what he had told them about the marred vessel on the potter’s wheel and the broken vessel in the Valley of the son of Hinnom. Zechariah’s prophesying coincided with the return of the Jewish remnant from the Babylonian captivity and their attempts to re-establish themselves in the land of Judah.

“The re-establishment of the Jews was to prepare the land and the people for the birth of Jesus and His ministry. The Jews then living would treat their Messiah badly put Him to death. Zechariah foretold many things about this, some of which have been studied in the foregoing lessons of this book. When the Lord had Matthew to record the ministry and atonement of Jesus, the Son of Man, these prophecies were at another point of fulfillment. Matthew gospel seems to have been directly written for the Jews, and these things from the prophecies of Jeremiah and Zechariah were most pertinent to those things about which he wrote.”

James Wyatt Griffith, Old Testament in Matthew: Volume II, Pasadena, TX: White’s Printing, 1997, pp. 225-226.

Note: Gill, Lightfoot, and other commentators point to Bava Batra and Radak (David Kimchi) describing the Jewish practice of identifying a scroll by the name of the first book in the scroll. For example: “The Sages taught: The order of the books of the Prophets when they are attached together is as follows: Joshua and Judges, Samuel and Kings, Jeremiah and Ezekiel, and Isaiah and the Twelve Prophets.” Bava Batra 14b.8.  Tertullian, who lived around AD 155-225, refers to this verse in his writing Against Marcion (Book IV), mentioning without comment that the event was foretold by Jeremiah. Augustine of Hippo, writing possibly two hundred later in his Harmony of the Gospels, Book III, gives a long, odd (to me), and somewhat tedious explanation of the correctness of the prophet Jeremiah in Matthew 27:9. While I am not sure I even understood some of what Augustine wrote, I agree with his basic premise: “this has been done in accordance with the more secret counsel of that providence of God by which the minds of the evangelists were governed.” It is not an error. Additionally, Matthew does not strictly follow the prophet’s words – that is, as a quote. Rather he follows the prophet’s sense – that is, an allusion to it – which Matthew shows to be fulfilled on this occasion.