Ezekiel
Chapter 34
1 God’s message came to me, saying,
2 Human, speak against Israel’s leaders, speak and tell them, God says to the leaders: Trouble to you, Israel’s leaders, who only take care of yourselves! Shouldn’t leaders take care of the people?
3 You eat the fat and wear the wool, you kill the well-fed animals, but you do not take care of the flock.
4 You have not helped the sick get stronger, nor healed the ones who were ill, nor bandaged the ones who were injured, nor brought back the ones who were chased away, nor looked for the ones who were lost; instead, you have ruled them harshly and cruelly.
5 They were spread out because there was no shepherd; and wild animals ate them up when they were spread out.
6 My sheep roamed over all the hills and every high mountain; indeed, my flock spread out across the whole earth, and no one looked for or sought them.
7 So, shepherds, listen to what God says.
8 I am alive, says God, and because my sheep were hunted and eaten by every animal in the field since there was no shepherd, and my shepherds did not look for my sheep but fed themselves instead of my sheep;
9 So, you shepherds, listen to God’s message.
10 God says, “Look, I am against the shepherds. I will ask for my sheep back from them, and stop them from feeding the sheep. The shepherds won’t feed themselves anymore, because I will save my sheep from them, so they won’t be their food.”
11 For this is what God says; Look, I myself will search for my sheep and find them.
12 Like a shepherd looks for his sheep when they are spread out, I will look for my sheep and save them from all the places where they have been scattered on a dark and cloudy day.
13 I will take them from among the people, gather them from different countries, and bring them to their own land. I will feed them on Israel’s mountains, by the rivers, and in all the places where people live in the land.
14 I will give them good grass to eat, and their sheepfold will be on Israel’s tall mountains. There they will rest in a good sheepfold and eat from the rich grass on Israel’s mountains.
15 I will feed my sheep, and I will make them rest, says God.
16 I will look for the lost, bring back those who were pushed away, heal the injured, and make the weak strong. But I will get rid of the powerful and rich; I will treat them with fairness.
17 And for you, my sheep, this is what God says: Look, I will decide between one animal and another, between rams and male goats.
18 Do you think it’s minor that you’ve eaten the best grass, but you also crush the rest of the grass with your feet? And you drink clear water, but you dirty the rest with your feet?
19 My sheep eat what you’ve stepped on and drink what you’ve dirtied with your feet.
20 So this is what God says to them: “Look, I myself will decide between the fat sheep and the thin sheep.”
21 Because you pushed with body and shoulder, and butted all the weak ones with your horns until you scattered them away;
22 I will rescue my sheep so they won’t be attacked anymore; I will make fair decisions between one animal and another.
23 I will put one shepherd over them, and he will take care of them, my servant David; he will take care of them and be their shepherd.
24 I, God, will be their God, and my servant David will be a leader among them; I, God, have said this.
25 I will make a peace agreement with them and stop the harmful animals in the land; they will live safely in the wilderness and rest in the forests.
26 I will bless them and the areas near my hill, and I will send rain when it’s needed; there will be plenty of blessings with the rain.
27 The trees in the fields will give their fruit, and the earth will give its crops, and the people will be safe in their land. They will know that I am God when I have broken the straps of their yoke and set them free from those who used them.
28 They will no longer be attacked by other nations, nor will wild animals eat them; they will live safely and no one will scare them.
29 I will grow a famous plant for them, and they will not be hungry in the land, nor will they feel the shame from other nations anymore.
30 They will know that I, their God, am with them, and that they, the people of Israel, are my people, says God.
31 You, my sheep, the sheep I care for, are people, and I am your God, says God.