1 T he Word of the Lord came to me saying,

Yahweh’s word came to me, saying,

2 “ Son of man, speak against the shepherds of Israel. Speak in My name and tell those shepherds, ‘The Lord God says, “It is bad for the shepherds of Israel who have been feeding themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flock?

Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and tell them, even to the shepherds, Thus says the Lord Yahweh: Woe to the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Shouldn’t the shepherds feed the sheep?

3 Y ou eat the fat and clothe yourselves with the wool. You kill the fat sheep without feeding the flock.

You eat the fat, and you clothe yourself with the wool, you kill the fatlings; but you don’t feed the sheep.

4 Y ou have not given strength to the weak ones. You have not healed the sick. You have not helped the ones that are hurt. You have not brought back those that have gone away. And you have not looked for the lost. But you have ruled them with power and without pity.

You haven’t strengthened the diseased, neither have you healed that which was sick, neither have you bound up that which was broken, neither have you brought back that which was driven away, neither have you sought that which was lost; but with force and with rigor you have ruled over them.

5 T hey went everywhere because they had no shepherd. And they became food for every animal of the field.

They were scattered, because there was no shepherd; and they became food to all the animals of the field, and were scattered.

6 M y flock went many different ways through all the mountains and on every high hill. My sheep were spread over all the earth, and there was no one looking for them.”’”

My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and on every high hill: yes, my sheep were scattered on all the surface of the earth; and there was no one who searched or sought.

7 S o, you shepherds, hear the Word of the Lord.

Therefore, you shepherds, hear Yahweh’s word:

8 “ As I live,” says the Lord God, “My flock has been killed and become food for wild animals because they had no shepherd. My shepherds did not look for My flock. They fed themselves, but have not fed My flock.”

As I live, says the Lord Yahweh, surely because my sheep became a prey, and my sheep became food to all the animals of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my sheep, but the shepherds fed themselves, and didn’t feed my sheep;

9 S o, you shepherds, hear the Word of the Lord.

therefore, you shepherds, hear Yahweh’s word:

10 T he Lord God says, “I am against the shepherds, and I will ask them for My sheep. I will stop them from feeding the sheep, so they will no longer be able to feed themselves. I will save my sheep from their mouths, so that they will no longer be food for them.” The Good Shepherd

Thus says the Lord Yahweh: Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my sheep at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the sheep; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; and I will deliver my sheep from their mouth, that they may not be food for them.

11 F or the Lord God says, “I Myself will look for My sheep and find them.

For thus says the Lord Yahweh: Behold, I myself, even I, will search for my sheep, and will seek them out.

12 A s a shepherd looks for his sheep when they are not together, so I will look for My sheep. And I will save them from all the places where they were spread out on a day of clouds and darkness.

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

13 I will bring them out from the people and gather them from the countries, and bring them to their own land. I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the rivers, and in all the places of the land where people live.

I will bring them out from the peoples, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the watercourses, and in all the inhabited places of the country.

14 I will feed them in a good field. The ground they eat upon will be on the mountains of Israel. There they will lie down in a good field and feed on good grass on the mountains of Israel.

I will feed them with good pasture; and on the mountains of the height of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie down in a good fold; and on fat pasture shall they feed on the mountains of Israel.

15 I will feed My sheep, and give them rest,” says the Lord God.

I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will cause them to lie down, says the Lord Yahweh.

16 “ I will look for the lost, bring back those that have gone away, help those who have been hurt, and give strength to the sick. But I will destroy the fat and the strong. I will feed them with punishment.

I will seek that which was lost, and will bring back that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but the fat and the strong I will destroy; I will feed them in justice.

17 “ As for you, My flock, the Lord God says, ‘I will judge between one sheep and another, between the rams and the male goats.

As for you, O my flock, thus says the Lord Yahweh: Behold, I judge between sheep and sheep, the rams and the male goats.

18 I s it not enough for you to eat in the good field? Must you crush under foot the rest of your fields? Is it not enough for you to drink of the clear waters? Must your feet fill the rest with mud?

Does it seem a small thing to you to have fed on the good pasture, but you must tread down with your feet the residue of your pasture? and to have drunk of the clear waters, but you must foul the residue with your feet?

19 M ust My flock eat what you have crushed with your feet, and drink what you have made dirty with your feet?’”

As for my sheep, they eat that which you have trodden with your feet, and they drink that which you have fouled with your feet.

20 S o the Lord God says to them, “I Myself will judge between the fat sheep and the weak sheep.

Therefore thus says the Lord Yahweh to them: Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep.

21 B ecause you push with your side and shoulder and run against all the weak with your horns until you have driven them away,

Because you thrust with side and with shoulder, and push all the diseased with your horns, until you have scattered them abroad;

22 I will save My flock. They will no longer be hurt. And I will judge between one sheep and another.

therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between sheep and sheep.

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

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.

24 I , the Lord, will be their God, and My servant David will be their leader. I, the Lord, have spoken.

I, Yahweh, will be their God, and my servant David prince among them; I, Yahweh, have spoken it.

25 “ I will make a peace agreement with them and take away wild animals from the land. Then they will be safe as they live in the desert and sleep in the woods.

I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause evil animals to cease out of the land; and they shall dwell securely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods.

26 I will bring good to them and to the places around My hill. I will give them rain when they need it. Good will rain down upon them.

I will make them and the places around my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in its season; there shall be showers of blessing.

27 T he trees of the field will give their fruit and the earth will give its food. They will be safe in their land. Then they will know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the load from their backs and have saved them from those who made servants of them.

The tree of the field shall yield its fruit, and the earth shall yield its increase, and they shall be secure in their land; and they shall know that I am Yahweh, when I have broken the bars of their yoke, and have delivered them out of the hand of those who made slaves of them.

28 T hey will no longer be under the power of the nations. And the wild animals of the earth will not eat them. But they will be safe, and no one will make them afraid.

They shall no more be a prey to the nations, neither shall the animals of the earth devour them; but they shall dwell securely, and no one shall make them afraid.

29 I will give them a land well known for its fields of food. They will never suffer with hunger again, and will no longer be put to shame by the nations.

I will raise up to them a plantation for renown, and they shall be no more consumed with famine in the land, neither bear the shame of the nations any more.

30 T hen they will know that I, the Lord their God, am with them, and that they, the people of Israel, are My people,” says the Lord God.

They shall know that I, Yahweh, their God am with them, and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, says the Lord Yahweh.

31 “ You, My sheep, the sheep of My field, are people, and I am your God,” says the Lord God.

You my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are men, and I am your God, says the Lord Yahweh.