Ezekiel 34

1 Then the word of Yahweh came to me, saying,

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

2 “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy and say to them, 'The Lord Yahweh says this to the shepherds: Woe to the shepherds of Israel who are shepherding themselves. Should not shepherds guard the flock?

Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say to the shepherds, Thus saith the Lord God; O shepherds of Israel, do shepherds feed themselves? do not the shepherds feed the sheep?

3 You eat the fatty portions and you dress in wool. You slaughter the fatlings of the flock. You do not shepherd at all.

Behold, ye feed on the milk, and clothe yourselves with the wool, and slay the fat: but ye feed not my sheep.

4 You have not strengthened those who have diseases, nor do you heal the ones who are ill. You do not bind up the ones who are broken, and you do not restore the outcasts or seek the lost. Instead, you rule over them through strength and violence.

The weak one ye have not strengthened, and the sick ye have not cherished, and the bruised ye have not bound up, and the stray one ye have not turned back, and the lost ye have not sought; and the strong ye have wearied with labour.

5 Then they were scattered without a shepherd, and they became food for all the living beasts in the fields, after they were scattered.

And my sheep were scattered, because there were no shepherds: and they became meat to all the wild beasts of the field.

6 My flock strays on all of the mountains and on every high hill, and it is dispersed over the entire surface of the earth. Yet no one is searching for them.

And my sheep were scattered on every mountain, and on every high hill: yea, they were scattered on the face of the earth, and there was none to seek them out, nor to bring them back.

7 Therefore, shepherds, hear the word of Yahweh:

Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the Lord.

8 As I live—this is the Lord Yahweh's declaration—because my flock has become plunder and food for all the beasts in the fields, because there was no shepherd and none of my shepherds sought my flock, but the shepherds guarded themselves and did not shepherd my flock.

[As] I live, saith the Lord God, surely because my sheep became a prey, and my sheep became meat to all the wild beasts of the field, because there were no shepherds, and the shepherds sought not out my sheep, and the shepherds fed themselves, but fed not my sheep.

9 Therefore, shepherds, hear the word of Yahweh:

For this cause, O shepherds,

10 The Lord Yahweh says this: Behold! I am against the shepherds, and I will require my flock from their hand. Then I will dismiss them from shepherding the flock; neither will the shepherds any longer shepherd themselves since I will take away my flock from their mouths, so that my flock will no longer be food for them.

thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my sheep at their hands, and will turn them back that they shall not feed my sheep, and the shepherds shall no longer feed them; and I will deliver my sheep out of their mouth, and they shall no longer be meat for them.

11 For the Lord Yahweh says this: Behold! I myself will seek out my flock and I will look after them,

For thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I will seek out my sheep, and will visit them.

12 like a shepherd seeking his flock on the day he is within the midst of his scattered flock. Thus I will seek my flock, and I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on the day of clouds and darkness.

As the shepherd seeks his flock, in the day when there is darkness and cloud, in the midst of the sheep that are separated: so will I seek out my sheep, and will bring them back from every place where they were scattered in the day of cloud and darkness.

13 Then I will bring them out from among the peoples; I will gather them from the lands and bring them to their land. I will put them in pastures on the mountainsides of Israel, by the streams, and in every settlement in the land.

And I will bring them out from the Gentiles, and will gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land, and will feed them upon the mountains of Israel, and in the valleys, and in every inhabited place of the land.

14 I will put them in good pastures; the high mountains of Israel will be their grazing places. They will lie down there in good places for grazing, in abundant pastures, and they will graze on the mountains of Israel.

I will feed them in a good pasture, on a high mountain of Israel: and their folds shall be there, and they shall lie down, and there shall they rest in perfect prosperity, and they shall feed in a fat pasture on the mountains of Israel.

15 I myself will shepherd my flock, and I myself will make them lie down—this is the Lord Yahweh's declaration—

I will feed my sheep, and I will cause them to rest; and they shall know that I am the Lord: thus saith the Lord God.

16 I will seek the lost and restore the outcast. I will bind up the broken sheep and heal the sick sheep but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd with justice.

I will seek that which is lost, and I will recover the stray one, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen the fainting, and will guard the strong, and will feed them with judgment.

17 So now you, my flock—this is what the Lord Yahweh says—behold, I will be a judge between sheep and sheep and between rams and male goats.

And [as for] you, ye sheep, thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I will distinguish between sheep and sheep, [between] rams and he-goats.

18 Is it not enough to feed on the good pasture, that you must trample down with your feet what is left of the pasture; and to drink from clear waters, that you must muddy the rivers with your feet?

And [is it] not enough for you that ye fed on the good pasture, that ye trampled with your feet the remnant of your pasture? and [that] ye drank the standing water, [that] ye disturbed the residue with your feet?

19 Must my sheep eat what you have trampled with your feet, and drink what you have muddied with your feet?

So my sheep fed on that which ye had trampled with your feet; and they drank the water that had been disturbed by your feet.

20 Therefore the Lord Yahweh says this to them: Behold! I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the thin ones,

Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will separate between the strong sheep and the weak sheep.

21 for you have pushed them with your sides and shoulders, and you have gored all of the weak ones with your horns until you have scattered them away from the land.

Ye did thrust with your sides and shoulders, and pushed with your horns, and ye cruelly treated all the sick.

22 I will save my flock and they will no longer be plunder, and I will judge between one sheep and another!

Therefore I will save my sheep, and they shall not be any more for a prey; and will judge between ram and ram.

23 I will set over them one shepherd, my servant David. He will shepherd them, he will feed them, and he will be their shepherd.

And I will raise up one shepherd over them, and he shall tend them, [even] my servant David, and he shall be their shepherd;

24 For I, Yahweh, will be their God, and my servant David will be a prince among them—I, Yahweh, have declared this.

and I the Lord will be to them a God, and David a prince in the midst of them; I the Lord have spoken it.

25 Then I will make a covenant of peace with them and remove the evil wild animals from the land, so that they will live securely in the wilderness and safely sleep in the forests.

And I will make with David a covenant of peace and I will utterly destroy evil beasts from off the land; and they shall dwell in the wilderness, and sleep in the forests.

26 I will also bring blessings on them and on the places around my hill, for I will send out showers in due season. These will be showers of blessing.

And I will settle them round about my mountain; and I will give you the rain, the rain of blessing.

27 Then the trees of the field will produce their fruit, and the earth will yield its produce. My sheep will be secure in their land; then they will know that I am Yahweh, when I break the bars of their yoke, and when I rescue them from the hand of those who enslaved them.

And the trees that are in the field shall yield their fruit, and the earth shall yield her strength, and they shall dwell in the confidence of peace on their land, and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I have broken their yoke; and I will deliver them out of the hand of those that enslaved them.

28 They will no longer be plunder for the nations, and the wild animals on the earth will no longer devour them. For they will live securely, and no one will frighten them.

And they shall no more be a spoil to the nations, and the wild beasts of the land shall no more at all devour them; and they shall dwell safely, and there shall be none to make them afraid.

29 For I will provide them a land known for its crops; so they will not be victims of famine in the land, and they will not bear the scorn of the nations.

And I will raise up for them a plant of peace, and they shall no more perish with hunger upon the land, and they shall no more bear the reproach of the nations.

30 Then they will know that I, Yahweh their God, am with them. They are my people, the house of Israel—this is the Lord Yahweh's declaration.

And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, and they my people. O house of Israel, saith the Lord God,

31 For you are my sheep, the flock of my pasture, and my people, and I am your God—this is the Lord Yahweh's declaration.'”

ye are my sheep, even the sheep of my flock, and I am the Lord your God, saith the Lord God.