Ezekiel 34:1-31

YAHWEH spoke to me, saying, “Son of man, prophesy against the leaders of Israel; prophesy and say to them, ‘Listen, you leaders, Lord YAHWEH has a message for you: Disaster is in store for the shepherds of Israel whose only concern is to feed themselves. Aren’t shepherds supposed to feed the sheep? Yet you eat the fat, you shear the sheep to make your clothes, you slaughter the fattest sheep for your feasts, but you never feed the flock. You haven’t cared for the weak ones, brought healing to the sick, nor bandaged those who are injured. You haven’t looked for the strays nor brought the lost back to the fold. Instead, you have ruled over them cruelly and treated them harshly. Because there was no shepherd to care for the sheep, they were scattered and were eaten by every wild beast. My flock has wandered aimlessly over every hill and mountain over the face of the earth, and no one went to look for them or tried to find them. “ ‘Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of YAHWEH: As surely as I live, declares Lord YAHWEH—my sheep have become the prey of every wild beast. Since there was no shepherd to protect my sheep, they have been devoured. My shepherds have not searched for my sheep; they have cared for themselves and not the flock. Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of YAHWEH: Lord YAHWEH says: Behold, I am against you selfish shepherds! I will hold you accountable for my flock, and I will demand that you return my flock to me. No longer will you feed only yourselves because I will rescue my sheep from your mouths. You will help yourselves to my sheep no longer.’ ” YAHWEH “For Lord YAHWEH says: ‘From now on, I will personally search for my sheep and look after them. As a good shepherd searches after his scattered sheep, so I will look after my sheep and rescue them from wherever they have been scattered on the day of disaster. I will bring them back from foreign countries and gather them together as my flock and return them to their own land. I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, in the valley streams and in all the fertile places. I will feed them in fair meadows and on the slopes of the mountains of Israel. There they will lie down in good grazing grounds and graze in green pastures on the mountains of Israel. I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will give them rest. I will seek out the lost one, bring back the stray, bandage the injured, and heal those that are sick. I will watch over the fat and healthy of the flock. I will be a true, caring shepherd to them. I, Lord YAHWEH, have spoken. “ ‘As for you, my sheep, Lord YAHWEH says to you: I am the one who judges between one sheep and the other, between rams and billy goats. Since you’re not satisfied with feeding from the best pastures, you also trample down the rest of the grass. You’re not satisfied to drink the clean water; must you also muddy up the rest of the water with your feet? Is it right that my sheep have to eat what you have walked all over? Is it right that they must drink muddy water because of your trampling feet? Therefore, Lord YAHWEH says this: I am the one who judges between the strong sheep and the weak. Because you shove with your side and your shoulder and thrust your horns at all the weak sheep until you scatter them, therefore, I will come and save my sheep and rescue them from being victimized. I will judge between one sheep and another. “ ‘I will raise up one shepherd over them, like my servant David, and put him in charge of my flock to feed them. He will care for them and be their shepherd. I, YAHWEH, will be their God, and my servant, like David, will be their prince taken from among them. I, YAHWEH, have spoken. I will make a covenant of peace with them and rid the land of its wild beasts. Then they will be able to live securely in the wilderness and sleep soundly in the forest. And I will make them and the places all around my sacred hill a blessing. And I will send showers of blessing —showers will come down in their season. And the tree of the field will yield its luscious fruit, the earth will yield its harvest, and they will live safely in their own land. When I set them free from slavery and rescue them from the hands of those who enslaved them, then they will acknowledge that I am YAHWEH. Foreign powers will no longer plunder them; the wild beasts of the land will no longer feast on them. They will live safe and secure, with no one to frighten them. I will establish for them a planting of renown so that they will no longer suffer from famine. And they will no longer have to endure the insults of other nations. So they will know that I, YAHWEH, am with them as their God. And they, the people of Israel, will know that they are my people—declares the Lord YAHWEH. And you, my people, are my sheep, the flock of my pasture are people, and I am your God. I, Lord YAHWEH, have spoken.’ ”