Prophecy against the Shepherds of Israel

34 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Son of man, prophesy against the (A)shepherds of Israel. Prophesy and say to [a]those shepherds, ‘This is what the Lord [b]God says: “Woe, shepherds of Israel who have been [c](B)feeding themselves! Should the shepherds not [d](C)feed the flock? You (D)eat the fat and clothe yourselves with the wool, you (E)slaughter the fat sheep [e]without feeding the flock. Those who are sickly you have not strengthened, the diseased you have not healed, (F)the broken you have not bound up, the scattered you have not brought back, nor have you (G)searched for the lost; but with force and with violence you have [f]dominated them. They (H)scattered for lack of a shepherd, and they became (I)food for every animal of the field and scattered. My flock (J)strayed through all the mountains and on every high hill; (K)My flock was scattered over all the surface of the earth, and there was (L)no one to search or seek for them.”’”

Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: “As I live,” declares the Lord God, “certainly, because My flock has become (M)plunder, and My flock has become food for all the animals of the field for lack of a shepherd, and My shepherds did not search for My flock, but rather the shepherds fed themselves and did not feed My flock, therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: 10 ‘This is what the Lord God says: “Behold, I am (N)against the shepherds, and I will demand My [g]sheep [h]from them and make them (O)stop tending sheep. So the shepherds will not [i]feed themselves anymore, but I will (P)save My sheep from their mouth, so that they will not be food for them.”’”

The Restoration of Israel

11 For the Lord God says this: “Behold, I Myself will (Q)search for My sheep and look after them. 12 (R)As a shepherd cares for his flock on a day when he is among his scattered [j]sheep, so I will (S)care for My [k]sheep and will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a (T)cloudy and gloomy day. 13 I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries and bring them to their own land; and I will (U)feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the (V)streams, and in all the inhabited places of the land. 14 I will feed them in a (W)good pasture, and their grazing place will be on the mountain heights of Israel. There they will lie down in a good grazing place and feed in [l](X)rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. 15 I Myself will (Y)feed My flock and I Myself will [m]lead them to rest,” declares the Lord God. 16 “I will seek the lost, bring back the scattered, bind up the broken, and strengthen the sick; but the (Z)fat and the strong I will eliminate. I will (AA)feed them with judgment.

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Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 34:2 Lit them, the shepherds
  2. Ezekiel 34:2 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord, and so throughout the ch
  3. Ezekiel 34:2 Lit pasturing, pasture
  4. Ezekiel 34:2 Lit pasturing, pasture
  5. Ezekiel 34:3 Lit you do not pasture
  6. Ezekiel 34:4 Or ruled
  7. Ezekiel 34:10 Or flock
  8. Ezekiel 34:10 Lit from their hand
  9. Ezekiel 34:10 Lit pasture, and so throughout the ch
  10. Ezekiel 34:12 Or flock
  11. Ezekiel 34:12 Or flock
  12. Ezekiel 34:14 Lit fat
  13. Ezekiel 34:15 Lit let them lie down

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