John Calvin Commentary Zechariah 13:4

"And it shall come to pass in that day, that the prophets shall be ashamed every one of his vision, when he prophesieth; neither shall they wear a hairy mantle to deceive:" — Zechariah 13:4 (ASV)

Zechariah continues with the same subject, but in different words and another way of speaking, and says that the light of knowledge would be so great that those who had previously presented themselves as the luminaries of the Church would be constrained to be ashamed of themselves. And he further shows how such great and gross errors had arisen when the whole of religion had been trampled underfoot; this was because Satan had veiled the eyes and minds of everyone, so that they could not distinguish between black and white.

And such ignorance has been the source of all errors under the Papacy. How great has been the stupidity of those people, as they have indiscriminately accepted whatever their ungodly teachers dared to impose on them! And in their bishops themselves, and in the whole band of their filthy clergy, how great a gross stupidity has prevailed, so that they are no different from asses! For artisans, and even cowherds, surpass many of the priests and many of the bishops, at least in common prudence.

While, then, there was such ignorance in these asses, no distinction could be made between truth and falsehood. And then when they put on fine rings, adorn themselves with a forked miter and its ornaments, and also display their crook, and appear in all their pontifical splendor, the eyes of the simple are so dazzled that they all think them to be new gods come down from heaven. Hence these prelates were immeasurably proud, until God stripped off their mask: and now their ignorance is well known, and no one among the common people is now deceived.

How then is it that many are still immersed in their own errors? Because they wish to be so; they close their own eyes to clear light. The kings themselves, and those who exercise authority in the world, desire to remain in their filth and are indifferent to any kind of abomination, for they fear that in case of any innovation, the common people might take the opportunity to cause disturbances.

Since they themselves wish to remain undisturbed, they therefore defend with diabolical stubbornness those superstitions which are abundantly proven to be such. And the people themselves care neither for God nor for their own salvation. Therefore, almost all, from the least to the greatest, regard these asses, who are called prelates, as most ignorant, and yet they submit to their tyranny. However this may be, the Lord has nevertheless exposed the shame of those who, a short time ago, were almost adored.

This is what Zechariah now declares: Ashamed, he says, shall all the Prophets be in that day, every one for his own vision, when they shall have prophesied. And the concession, of which we have spoken, is not without reason; for when the brawling monks about thirty years ago ascended their pulpits, or the prelates who theatrically performed their holy rites, there was nothing that was not considered divine and from heaven.

Hence, with great impudence they boasted of being God’s messengers, His ministers, vicars, and pastors; though the name of pastors was almost insignificant in their estimation. But they were Christ’s vicars, they were His messengers; in short, there was nothing they dared not claim for themselves. The Prophet ridicules this sort of pride and seems to say, “Well, let all their nonsense be prophecies, and all their babblings be considered oracles for a time; but when they prophesy in this way, the Lord will at last make them ashamed, every one for his vision.”

It follows, And they shall not wear a hairy garment that they may lie; that is, they will not be anxious to retain their honor and fame but will readily withdraw from seeking the renown they had falsely attained. It appears from this passage that Prophets wore shabby and hairy garments.

Yet interpreters do not appropriately quote those passages from the Prophets where they are commanded to put on sackcloth and ashes. For Isaiah, while announcing many of his prophecies, did not put on sackcloth and ashes, except when he delivered some sad message. The same may also be said of Jeremiah, when he was commanded to go naked.

But it was common for the Prophets to be content with a hairy, that is, with a shabby and plain garment. For though liberty is allowed in external things, yet some moderation ought to be observed; for if I were to teach in a military uniform, it would be considered inconsistent with common sense.

There is no need to be taught what common decency may require. The true Prophets accustomed themselves to hairy garments to show that they were sparing and frugal in their clothing as well as in their diet, but they attached no sanctity to this practice, as though they acquired some eminence by their dress, like the monks today, who consider themselves holy on account of their hoods and other worthless trappings.

This, then, was not the object of the Prophets, but only that by their dress they might show they had nothing else in view but to serve God, and so to separate themselves from the world, that they might wholly devote themselves to their ministry. Now the false prophets imitated them; hence Zechariah says, they shall no more wear a hairy garment, that is, they shall no more assume prophetic attire.

His purpose was not to condemn the false prophets for wearing that sort of garment, as some have supposed who have seized upon this passage to condemn long garments and whatever displeased their gloomy disposition. But the Prophet simply means that when purity of doctrine shines forth and true religion attains its proper honor, there will then be no place for false teachers, for they will surrender their office of their own accord and no longer try to deceive the unwary.

This is the real meaning of the Prophet: hence he says, that they may lie. We then see that hairy garments are condemned on account of a certain purpose—namely, that rapacious wolves might be concealed under sheep’s skin, so that foxes might introduce themselves under a guise not their own. This design, and not the clothing itself, is what Zechariah condemns. He afterwards adds—