¹³ Shepherds will count their sheep again, one by one. They will do that in the towns of the hill country, in the low hills in the west and in the Negev region in the south. They will do it in the land that belongs to Benjamin's tribe, in the villages around Jerusalem and in all the towns of Judah.” That is what the Lord says.

¹⁴ The Lord also says, “A time will soon come when I do good things for the nations of Israel and Judah. I will do what I have promised to do for them. ¹⁵ At that time, I will cause a descendant of David to be born. He will be righteous. He will grow like a branch on the tree of David's family. He will do what is right and fair in the land.^[a]