Three shepherds also I cut off in one month; and my soul lothed them, and their soul also abhorred me. Three shepherds also I cut off in one month - Taking this literally, some think the three shepherds mean the three Maccabees, Judas, Jonathan, and Simon; others, the three wicked high priests, Jason, Alcimus, and Menelaus; others, the three last princes of the Asmonean race, Alexander, Hyrcanus, and Antigonus.
Perhaps three orders may be intended:
1. The priesthood.
2. The dictatorship, including the Scribes, Pharisees, etc.
3. The magistracy, the great sanhedrin, and the smaller councils.
These were all annihilated by the Roman conquest.