At asher

Bs'd

Christians insist that Zech 12:10 must be translated as "They will look upon me whom they have stabbed"

In the Hebrew it is written: והביטו אלי את אשר דקרו

That is in English:  They will look to me, at asher they stabbed.  The words "at asher" are difficult to translate, as there is no exact English equivalent for them.  In different contexts it can mean different things.

Now the Christian claim is that the words "they stabbed" which appear after the words "at asher" MUST refer back to the object what is written right before "at asher", said object being "Me", which is God speaking.

So according to the Christian translation, God is pierced here.

However, there is no need whatsoever that the words following "at asher" must refer back to the object right before at asher.

We can see that in the table below.  There are a few ocurrances of the word "at asher" given, and in all those cases we see that the words right after "at asher" do not refer back to the object right before "at asher".

Judges 14:6;  "6 The Spirit of the LORD came upon him in power so that he tore the lion apart with his bare hands as he might have torn a young goat. But he told neither his father nor his mother what he had done."

We see here that the "what he had done" has no bearing on "his father and mother", but instead refers to what he had done to the lion.

Numbers 22:6;  "For I know that those you bless are blessed, and those you curse are cursed."

Also here we see that what comes after "at asher" does not refer back to the speaker who is right before the "at asher".

II Sam 21:11;  "10 Rizpah daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it out for herself on a rock. From the beginning of the harvest till the rain poured down from the heavens on the bodies, she did not let the birds of the air touch them by day or the wild animals by night. 11 When David was told what Aiah's daughter Rizpah, Saul's concubine, had done, 12 he went and took the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from the citizens of Jabesh Gilead."

Also here we see that what comes after the "at asher", that is "what Ritspah did", has no bearing on the object that preceeds the "at asher", which is David. "What Ritspah did" instead refers to the remains of Shaul and Jonathan.

Joshua 9:24;  ""Your servants were clearly told how the LORD your God had commanded his servant Moses"

Here "God commanded" which comes right after the "at asher", does not refer back to "the servants", but instead it refers to Moses. 

So from these examples we see that what is written after "at asher" does not necessarily refer back to the object written right before the "at asher".  

In some cases it does, but in many cases it does not.   So there is no iron clad rule that says that in the sentence "They will look to me, at asher they stabbed." the "stabbing" must have been done to God.

The proof that it is not God who is stabbed, is right in the selfsame verse.  God is speaking in Zech 12:10.  If he speaks about himself who was stabbed, then he should say:  "And they will mourn for ME, as one mourns for an only child."  However, it clearly says: "They will mourn for HIM", clearly indicating that it is not God himself they are mourning for.

Some Christians admit this fact, and translate Zechariah 12:10 in the right way.  The Christian Revised Standard Version says there: "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of compassion and supplication, so that, when they look on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a first-born."

 Christianity claims that Zech 12:10 speaks about JC coming back. JC who was dead for only a few days, and that thousands of years ago. They claim that there he comes back as a triumphant king, alive and kicking.  But when he is alive and feeling fine, why all the mourning??

"and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son. 11 On that day the weeping in Jerusalem will be great, like the weeping of Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. 12 The land will mourn, each clan by itself, with their wives by themselves: the clan of the house of David and their wives, the clan of the house of Nathan and their wives, 13 the clan of the house of Levi and their wives, the clan of Shimei and their wives, 14 and all the rest of the clans and their wives."

Why all this terrible mourning for somebody who is alive??

Also that is inconsistent with the Christian explanation.

So Zech 12:10 speaks about the ones fallen in the battle for Jerusalem.  They are killed, and not God.

For the main article:  "Why don't the Jewish people recognize the New Testament?"  LOOK HERE