Zechariah 13:5 (KJV)

What does Zechariah 13:5 mean?

Zechariah 13:5 portrays a man distancing himself from the role of a prophet. He presents himself instead as a worker with a lifelong history of tending livestock. His words come in a setting where claiming to speak as a prophet has become dangerous.

After the shame described in verse 4, the man says, “I am no prophet.” His claim to have worked with cattle “from my youth” presents farming as his settled occupation, rather than a recent change.

The Hebrew behind Zechariah 13:5

• “husbandman” — אִישׁ (ʾish), עָבַד (ʿavad), אֲדָמָה (ʾadamah): Together, these words describe a man who works the ground. The KJV’s “husbandman” is an older word for someone who works in farming.
• “cattle” — קָנָה (qanah): This word can carry the sense of acquiring or possessing. The KJV understands the phrase as referring to cattle and presents the man as having been taught to care for livestock.

Why Zechariah 13:5 matters

• The man’s denial is part of a larger change in how prophets are treated. In verse 4, prophets are ashamed of their visions, and in verse 5, the man disclaims the role altogether.
• The words are the man’s own account of himself. His statement, “I am no prophet,” is presented as his response within the scene.
• The conversation continues in verse 6 with a question about wounds on his hands. The question places his account under further scrutiny.