Ezekiel 34

1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

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

2 Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus says the Lord GOD unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks?

“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 All of you eat the fat, and all of you clothe you with the wool, all of you kill them that are fed: but all of you feed not the flock.

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

4 The diseased have all of you not strengthened, neither have all of you healed that which was sick, neither have all of you bound up that which was broken, neither have all of you brought again that which was driven away, neither have all of you sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty have all of you ruled them.

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 scattered, because there is no shepherd: and they became food to all the beasts of the field, when they were scattered.

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

6 My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yea, my flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after 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 Therefore, all of you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD;

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

8 As I live, says the Lord GOD, surely because my flock became a prey, and my flock became food to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my flock, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not my flock;

‘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 Therefore, O all of you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD;

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

10 Thus says the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, 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 thus says the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out.

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

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

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 bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and in all the inhabited places of 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 feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie in a good fold, and in a fat pasture shall they feed upon 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 will feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down, says the Lord GOD.

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

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

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, thus says the Lord GOD; Behold, I judge between cattle and cattle, between the rams 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 Seems it a small thing unto you to have eaten up the good pasture, but all of you must tread down with your feet the residue of your pastures? and to have drunk of the deep waters, but all of you must foul the residue 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 flock, they eat that which all of you have trodden with your feet; and they drink that which all of you have fouled with your feet.

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

20 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD unto them; Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat cattle and between the lean cattle.

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 all of you have thrust with side and with shoulder, and pushed all the diseased with your horns, till all of you have scattered them abroad;

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

22 Therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle.

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

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.

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 a prince among them; I the LORD have spoken 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 a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land: and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep 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 make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall 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 shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the LORD, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them.

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 they shall no more be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid.

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 raise up for them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear the shame of the heathen any more.

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 Thus shall they know that I the LORD their God am with them, and that they, even the house of Israel, are my people, says the Lord GOD.

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 all of you my flock, the flock of my pasture, are men, and I am your God, says the Lord GOD.

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