Ezekiel 34

1 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

2 Son of man, be a prophet against the keepers of the flock of Israel, and say to them, O keepers of the sheep! this is the word of the Lord: A curse is on the keepers of the flock of Israel who take the food for themselves! is it not right for the keepers to give the food to the sheep?

“Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Woe to the shepherds of Israel, who only feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed their flock?

3 You take the milk and are clothed with the wool, you put the fat beasts to death, but you give the sheep no food.

You eat the fat, wear the wool, and butcher the fattened sheep, but you do not feed the flock.

4 You have not made the diseased ones strong or made well that which was ill; you have not put bands on the broken or got back that which had been sent away or made search for the wandering ones; and the strong you have been ruling cruelly.

You have not strengthened the weak, healed the sick, bound up the injured, brought back the strays, or searched for the lost. Instead, you have ruled them with violence and cruelty.

5 And they were wandering in every direction because there was no keeper: and they became food for all the beasts of the field.

They were scattered for lack of a shepherd, and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild beasts.

6 And my sheep went out of the way, wandering through all the mountains and on every high hill: my sheep went here and there over all the face of the earth; and no one was troubled about them or went in search of them.

My flock went astray on all the mountains and every high hill. They were scattered over the face of all the earth, with no one to search for them or seek them out.’

7 For this cause, O keepers of the flock, give ear to the word of the Lord:

Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD:

8 By my life, says the Lord, truly, because my sheep have been taken away, and my sheep became food for all the beasts of the field, because there was no keeper, and my keepers did not go in search of the sheep, but the keepers took food for themselves and gave my sheep no food;

‘As surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, because My flock lacks a shepherd and has become prey and food for every wild beast, and because My shepherds did not search for My flock but fed themselves instead,

9 For this reason, O you keepers of the flock, give ear to the word of the Lord;

therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD!’

10 This is what the Lord has said: See I am against the keepers of the flock, and I will make search and see what they have done with my sheep, and will let them be keepers of my sheep no longer; and the keepers will no longer get food for themselves; I will take my sheep out of their mouths so that they may not be food for them.

This is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will demand from them My flock and remove them from tending the flock, so that they can no longer feed themselves. For I will deliver My flock from their mouths, and it will no longer be food for them.’

11 For this is what the Lord has said: Truly, I, even I, will go searching and looking for my sheep.

For this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, I Myself will search for My flock and seek them out.

12 As the keeper goes looking for his flock when he is among his wandering sheep, so I will go looking for my sheep, and will get them safely out of all the places where they have been sent wandering in the day of clouds and black night.

As a shepherd looks for his scattered sheep when he is among the flock, so I will look for My flock. I will rescue them from all the places to which they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness.

13 And I will take them out from among the peoples, and get them together from the countries, and will take them into their land; and I will give them food on the mountains of Israel by the water-streams and wherever men are living in the country.

I will bring them out from the peoples, gather them from the countries, and bring them into their own land. I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines, and in all the settlements of the land.

14 I will give them good grass-land for their food, and their safe place will be the mountains of the high place of Israel: there they will take their rest in a good place, and on fat grass-land they will take their food on the mountains of Israel.

I will feed them in good pasture, and the lofty mountains of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in a good grazing land; they will feed in rich pasture on the mountains of Israel.

15 I myself will give food to my flock, and I will give them rest, says the Lord.

I will tend My flock and make them lie down, declares the Lord GOD.

16 I will go in search of that which had gone wandering from the way, and will get back that which had been sent in flight, and will put bands on that which was broken, and give strength to that which was ill: but the fat and the strong I will give up to destruction; I will give them for their food the punishment which is theirs by right.

I will seek the lost, bring back the strays, bind up the broken, and strengthen the weak; but the sleek and strong I will destroy. I will shepherd them with justice.’

17 And as for you, O my flock, says the Lord, truly, I will be judge between sheep and sheep, the he-sheep and the he-goats.

This is what the Lord GOD says to you, My flock: ‘I will judge between one sheep and another, between the rams and the goats.

18 Does it seem a small thing to you to have taken your food on good grass-land while the rest of your grass-land is stamped down under your feet? and that after drinking from clear waters you make the rest of the waters dirty with your feet?

Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture? Must you also trample the rest of the pasture with your feet? Is it not enough for you to drink the clear waters? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet?

19 And as for my sheep, their food is the grass which has been stamped on by your feet, and their drink the water which has been made dirty by your feet.

Why must My flock feed on what your feet have trampled, and drink what your feet have muddied?’

20 For this reason the Lord has said to them, Truly, I, even I, will be judge between the fat sheep and the thin sheep.

Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says to them: ‘Behold, I Myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep.

21 Because you have been pushing with side and leg, pushing the diseased with your horns till they were sent away in every direction;

Since you shove with flank and shoulder, butting all the weak ones with your horns until you have scattered them abroad,

22 I will make my flock safe, and they will no longer be taken away, and I will be judge between sheep and sheep.

I will save My flock, and they will no longer be prey. I will judge between one sheep and another.

23 And I will put over them one keeper, and he will give them food, even my servant David; he will give them food and be their keeper.

I will appoint over them one shepherd, My servant David, and he will feed them. He will feed them and be their shepherd.

24 And I the Lord will be their God and my servant David their ruler; I the Lord have said it.

I, the LORD, will be their God, and My servant David will be a prince among them. I, the LORD, have spoken.

25 And I will make with them an agreement of peace, and will put an end to evil beasts through all the land: and they will be living safely in the waste land, sleeping in the woods.

I will make with them a covenant of peace and rid the land of wild animals, so that they may dwell securely in the wilderness and sleep in the forest.

26 And I will give the rain at the right time, and I will make the shower come down at the right time; there will be showers of blessing.

I will make them and the places around My hill a blessing. I will send down showers in season—showers of blessing.

27 And the tree of the field will give its fruit and the earth will give its increase, and they will be safe in their land; and they will be certain that I am the Lord, when I have had their yoke broken and have given them salvation from the hands of those who made them servants.

The trees of the field will give their fruit, and the land will yield its produce; My flock will be secure in their land. Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I have broken the bars of their yoke and delivered them from the hands that enslaved them.

28 And their goods will no longer be taken by the nations, and they will not again be food for the beasts of the earth; but they will be living safely and no one will be a cause of fear to them.

They will no longer be prey for the nations, and the beasts of the earth will not consume them. They will dwell securely, and no one will frighten them.

29 And I will give them planting-places of peace, and they will no longer be wasted from need of food or put to shame by the nations.

And I will raise up for them a garden of renown, and they will no longer be victims of famine in the land or bear the scorn of the nations.

30 And they will be certain that I the Lord their God am with them, and that they, the children of Israel, are my people, says the Lord.

Then they will know that I, the LORD their God, am with them, and that they, the house of Israel, are My people,’ declares the Lord GOD.

31 And you are my sheep, the sheep of my grass-lands, and I am your God, says the Lord.

‘You are My flock, the sheep of My pasture, My people, and I am your God,’ declares the Lord GOD.”