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34 And the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,

Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy; and say unto them, unto the shepherds, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Woe to the shepherds of Israel that feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flock?

Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool; ye kill them that are fattened: [but] ye feed not the flock.

The weak have ye not strengthened, nor have ye healed the sick, and ye have not bound up [what was] broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought for that which was lost; but with harshness and with rigour have ye ruled over them.

And they were scattered because there was no shepherd; and they became meat to all the beasts of the field, and were scattered.

My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill, and my sheep have been scattered upon all the face of the earth, and there was none that searched, or that sought for them.

Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of Jehovah:

[As] I live, saith the Lord Jehovah, verily because my sheep have been a prey, and my sheep have been meat to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, and my shepherds searched not for my flock, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not my flock,

—therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of Jehovah.

10 Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my sheep at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock: that the shepherds may feed themselves no more; and I will deliver my sheep from their mouth, that they may not be food for them.

11 For thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold I, [even] I, will both search for my sheep, and tend them.

12 As a shepherd tendeth his flock in the day that he is among his scattered sheep, so will I tend my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places whither they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day.

13 And I will bring them out from the peoples, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land; and I will feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the water-courses, and in all the habitable places of the country.

14 I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie down in a good fold, and in a fat pasture they shall feed upon the mountains of Israel.

15 I will myself feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord Jehovah.

16 I will seek the lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up the broken, and will strengthen that which was sick; but I will destroy the fat and the strong: I will feed them with judgment.

17 And as for you, my flock, thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I judge between sheep and sheep, between the rams and the he-goats.

18 Is it too small a thing unto you to have eaten up the good pastures, but ye must tread down with your feet the rest of your pastures; and to have drunk of the settled waters, but ye must foul the rest with your feet?

19 And my sheep have to eat that which ye have trodden with your feet, and to drink that which ye have fouled with your feet.

20 Therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah unto them: Behold, [it is] I, and I will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep.

21 Because ye thrust with side and with shoulder, and push all the weak ones with your horns, till ye have scattered them abroad,

22 —I will save my flock, that they may no more be a prey; and I will judge between sheep and sheep.

23 And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David: he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd.

24 And I Jehovah will be their God, and my servant David a prince in their midst: I Jehovah have spoken [it].

25 And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause evil beasts to cease out of the land; and they shall dwell in safety in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods.

26 And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in its season: there shall be showers of blessing.

27 And the tree of the field shall yield its fruit, and the earth shall yield its increase; and they shall be in safety in their land, and shall know that I [am] Jehovah, when I have broken the bands of their yoke and delivered them out of the hand of those that kept them in servitude.

28 And they shall no more be a prey to the nations, neither shall the beast of the earth devour them; but they shall dwell in safety, and none shall make them afraid.

29 And I will raise up for them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear the ignominy of the nations any more.

30 And they shall know that I Jehovah their God [am] with them, and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, saith the Lord Jehovah.

31 And ye, my flock, the flock of my pasture, are men: I [am] your God, saith the Lord Jehovah.

The Lord Will Be Israel’s Shepherd

34 The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Woe to you shepherds of Israel who only take care of yourselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock?(A) You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock.(B) You have not strengthened the weak or healed(C) the sick or bound up(D) the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally.(E) So they were scattered because there was no shepherd,(F) and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild animals.(G) My sheep wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill.(H) They were scattered(I) over the whole earth, and no one searched or looked for them.(J)

“‘Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, because my flock lacks a shepherd and so has been plundered(K) and has become food for all the wild animals,(L) and because my shepherds did not search for my flock but cared for themselves rather than for my flock,(M) therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: 10 This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against(N) the shepherds and will hold them accountable for my flock. I will remove them from tending the flock so that the shepherds can no longer feed themselves. I will rescue(O) my flock from their mouths, and it will no longer be food for them.(P)

11 “‘For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself will search for my sheep(Q) and look after them. 12 As a shepherd(R) looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness.(S) 13 I will bring them out from the nations and gather(T) them from the countries, and I will bring them into their own land.(U) I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and in all the settlements in the land.(V) 14 I will tend them in a good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel(W) will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture(X) on the mountains of Israel.(Y) 15 I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down,(Z) declares the Sovereign Lord.(AA) 16 I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up(AB) the injured and strengthen the weak,(AC) but the sleek and the strong I will destroy.(AD) I will shepherd the flock with justice.(AE)

17 “‘As for you, my flock, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will judge between one sheep and another, and between rams and goats.(AF) 18 Is it not enough(AG) for you to feed on the good pasture? Must you also trample the rest of your pasture with your feet?(AH) Is it not enough for you to drink clear water? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet? 19 Must my flock feed on what you have trampled and drink what you have muddied with your feet?

20 “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says to them: See, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep.(AI) 21 Because you shove with flank and shoulder, butting all the weak sheep with your horns(AJ) until you have driven them away, 22 I will save my flock, and they will no longer be plundered. I will judge between one sheep and another.(AK) 23 I will place over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he will tend(AL) them; he will tend them and be their shepherd.(AM) 24 I the Lord will be their God,(AN) and my servant David(AO) will be prince among them.(AP) I the Lord have spoken.(AQ)

25 “‘I will make a covenant(AR) of peace(AS) with them and rid the land of savage beasts(AT) so that they may live in the wilderness and sleep in the forests in safety.(AU) 26 I will make them and the places surrounding my hill a blessing.[a](AV) I will send down showers in season;(AW) there will be showers of blessing.(AX) 27 The trees will yield their fruit(AY) and the ground will yield its crops;(AZ) the people will be secure(BA) in their land. They will know that I am the Lord, when I break the bars of their yoke(BB) and rescue them from the hands of those who enslaved them.(BC) 28 They will no longer be plundered by the nations, nor will wild animals devour them. They will live in safety,(BD) and no one will make them afraid.(BE) 29 I will provide for them a land renowned(BF) for its crops, and they will no longer be victims of famine(BG) in the land or bear the scorn(BH) of the nations.(BI) 30 Then they will know that I, the Lord their God, am with them and that they, the Israelites, are my people, declares the Sovereign Lord.(BJ) 31 You are my sheep,(BK) the sheep of my pasture,(BL) and I am your God, declares the Sovereign Lord.’”

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 34:26 Or I will cause them and the places surrounding my hill to be named in blessings (see Gen. 48:20); or I will cause them and the places surrounding my hill to be seen as blessed