The Righteous Branch

23 ^(A)“Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture!” declares the Lord.

¹⁵ Then the Lord said to me, “Take once more the equipment of ^(A)a foolish shepherd. ¹⁶ For behold, I am raising up in the land a shepherd ^(B)who does not care for those being destroyed, or seek the young or heal the maimed or nourish the healthy, but ^(C)devours the flesh of the fat ones, tearing off even their hoofs.

^2 (A)“Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy, and say to them, even to the shepherds, Thus says the Lord God: ^(B)Ah, shepherds of Israel ^(C)who have been feeding yourselves! ^(D)Should not shepherds feed the sheep? ^3 (E)You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, ^(F)you slaughter the fat ones, but you do not feed the sheep. ^4 (G)The weak you have not strengthened, the sick you have not healed, ^(H)the injured you have not bound up, ^(I)the strayed you have not brought back, ^(J)the lost you have not sought, and with force and ^(K)harshness you have ruled them. ^5 (L)So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd, and ^(M)they became food for all the wild beasts. My sheep were scattered; ⁶ they wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. My sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, ^(N)with none to search or seek for them.

⁷ “Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: ^8 (O)As I live, declares the Lord God, surely because ^(P)my sheep have become a prey, and my sheep have become food for all the wild beasts, since there was no shepherd, and because my shepherds have not searched for my sheep, but the shepherds have fed themselves, and have not fed my sheep, ⁹ therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: ¹⁰ Thus says the Lord God, ^(Q)Behold, I am against the shepherds, and ^(R)I will require my sheep at their hand and ^(S)put a stop to their feeding the sheep. ^(T)No longer shall the shepherds feed themselves. ^(U)I will rescue my sheep from their mouths, that they may not be food for them.

³ Thus says the Lord God, Woe to the foolish prophets who follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing!

^36 (A)When he saw the crowds, ^(B)he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, ^(C)like sheep without a shepherd.

^42 (A)“But woe to you Pharisees! For ^(B)you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect ^(C)justice and ^(D)the love of God. ^(E)These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. ⁴³ Woe to you Pharisees! For ^(F)you love the best seat in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces. ⁴⁴ Woe to you! ^(G)For you are like unmarked graves, and people walk over them without knowing it.”

⁴⁵ One of ^(H)the lawyers answered him, “Teacher, in saying these things you insult us also.” ⁴⁶ And he said, “Woe to you ^(I)lawyers also! For ^(J)you load people with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers. ^47 (K)Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets whom your fathers killed. ^48 (L)So you are witnesses and you ^(M)consent to the deeds of ^(N)your fathers, for they killed them, and you build their tombs. ⁴⁹ Therefore also ^(O)the Wisdom of God said, ^(P)‘I will send them ^(Q)prophets and apostles, ^(R)some of whom they will ^(S)kill and persecute,’ ⁵⁰ so that ^(T)the blood of all the prophets, shed ^(U)from the foundation of the world, may be ^(V)charged against this generation, ⁵¹ from the blood of ^(W)Abel to the blood of ^(X)Zechariah, who perished between ^(Y)the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it will be ^(Z)required of this generation. ⁵² Woe to you ^(AA)lawyers! ^(AB)For you have taken away the key of ^(AC)knowledge. You ^(AD)did not enter yourselves, and you hindered those who were entering.”