The Lord Will Be the Shepherd of His People

34 A message from the Lord came to me. The Lord said, ² “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Tell them, ‘The Lord and King says, “How terrible it will be for you shepherds of Israel! You only take care of yourselves. You should take good care of your flocks. ³ Instead, you eat the butter. You dress yourselves with the wool. You kill the finest animals. But you do not take care of your flocks. ⁴ You have not made the weak ones in the flock stronger. You have not healed the sick. You have not bandaged those who are hurt. You have not brought back those who have wandered away. You have not searched for the lost. When you ruled over them, you were mean to them. You treated them badly. ⁵ So they were scattered because they did not have a shepherd. They became food for all of the wild animals. ⁶ My sheep wandered all over the mountains and high hills. They were scattered over the whole earth. No one searched for them. No one looked for them.”

⁷ “ ‘Shepherds, listen to the Lord’s message. He says, ⁸ “My flock does not have a shepherd. Many of my sheep have been stolen. They have become food for all the wild animals. My shepherds did not care for my sheep. They did not even search for them. Instead, they only took care of themselves. And that is just as sure as I am alive,” announces the Lord and King. ⁹ Shepherds, listen to the Lord’s message. ¹⁰ The Lord and King says, “I am against the shepherds. I will hold them responsible for my flock. I will stop them from taking care of the flock. Then they will not be able to feed themselves anymore. I will save my flock from their mouths. My sheep will no longer be food for them.” ’ ”

¹¹ The Lord and King says, “I myself will search for my sheep. I will look after them. ¹² A shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them. And I will look after my sheep. I will save them from all the places where they were scattered on a dark and cloudy day. ¹³ I will bring them out from among the nations. I will gather them together from other countries. I will bring them into their own land. There they will eat grass on the mountains and in the valleys. And they will eat in all the fields of Israel. ¹⁴ I will take care of them in the best grasslands. They will eat grass on the highest mountains of Israel. There they will lie down in the finest grasslands. They will eat grass in the best places on Israel’s mountains. ¹⁵ I myself will take care of my sheep. I will let them lie down in safety,” announces the Lord and King. ¹⁶ “I will search for the lost. I will bring back those who have wandered away. I will bandage the ones who are hurt. I will make the weak ones stronger. But I will destroy those who are fat and strong. I will take good care of my sheep. I will treat them fairly.”

¹⁷ The Lord and King says, “You are my flock. I will judge between one sheep and another. I will judge between rams and goats. ¹⁸ You already eat in the best grasslands. Must you also stomp all over the other fields? You already drink clear water. Must you also make the rest of the water muddy with your feet? ¹⁹ Must my flock have to eat the grass you have stomped on? Must they drink the water you have made muddy?”

²⁰ So the Lord and King speaks to them. He says, “I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the skinny sheep. ²¹ You push the other sheep around with your hips and shoulders. You use your horns to butt all the weak sheep. Finally, you drive them away. ²² But I will save my sheep. They will not be carried off anymore. I will judge between one sheep and another. ²³ I will place one shepherd over them. He will belong to the family line of my servant David. He will take good care of them. He will look after them. He will be their shepherd. ²⁴ I am the Lord. I will be their God. And my servant from David’s family line will be the prince among them. I have spoken. I am the Lord.

²⁵ “I will make a covenant with them. It promises to give them peace. I will get rid of the wild animals in the land. Then my sheep can live safely in the desert. They can sleep in the forests. ²⁶ I will make them and the places surrounding my holy mountain of Zion a blessing. I will send down rain at the right time. There will be showers of blessing. ²⁷ The trees will bear their fruit. And the ground will produce its crops. The people will be secure in their land. I will break the chains that hold them. I will save them from the power of those who made them slaves. Then they will know that I am the Lord. ²⁸ The nations will not carry them off anymore. Wild animals will no longer eat them up. They will live in safety. And no one will make them afraid. ²⁹ I will give them a land that is famous for its crops. They will never again be hungry there. The nations will not make fun of them anymore. ³⁰ Then they will know that I am with them. I am the Lord their God. And the Israelites will know that they are my people,” announces the Lord and King. ³¹ “You are my sheep. You belong to my flock. And I am your God,” announces the Lord and King.

A Prophecy Against Edom

35 A message from the Lord came to me. The Lord said, ² “Son of man, turn your attention to Mount Seir. Prophesy against it. ³ Tell it, ‘The Lord and King says, “Mount Seir, I am against you. I will reach out my powerful hand against you. I will turn you into a dry and empty desert. ⁴ I will destroy your towns. Your land will become empty. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

⁵ “ ‘ “People of Edom, you have been Israel’s enemies for a long time. You let many Israelites be killed by swords when they were in great trouble. At that time I used Nebuchadnezzar to punish them and destroy them completely. ⁶ Now I will hand you over to murderers. They will hunt you down. You murdered others. So murderers will chase you. And that is just as sure as I am alive,” announces the Lord and King. ⁷ “I will turn Mount Seir into a dry and empty desert. No one will be able to go anywhere or do anything there. ⁸ I will fill your mountains with dead bodies. Some of those who are killed by swords will fall down dead on your hills. Others will die in your valleys and in all your canyons. ⁹ I will make your land empty forever. No one will live in your towns. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

¹⁰ “ ‘ “You said, ‘The nations of Israel and Judah will belong to us. We will take them over.’ You said that, even though I was there. I am the Lord. ¹¹ You were full of anger, jealousy and hatred toward my people. So I will punish you. When I judge you, they will know that I am the Lord. And that is just as sure as I am alive,” announces the Lord and King. ¹² “You will know that I have heard all the terrible things you said. You said them about those who live in the mountains of Israel. You made fun of them. You said, ‘They have been destroyed. They’ve been handed over to us. Let’s wipe them out.’ ¹³ You bragged that you were better than I am. You spoke against me. You did not hold anything back. But I heard it.” ’ ” ¹⁴ The Lord and King says, “The whole earth will be glad. But I will make your land empty. ¹⁵ You were happy when the land of Israel became empty. So I will treat you in the same way. Mount Seir, you will be empty. So will the whole land of Edom. Then you will know that I am the Lord.”

A Prophecy of Hope for the Mountains of Israel

36 “Son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel. Tell them, ‘Mountains of Israel, listen to the Lord’s message. ² The Lord and King says, “Your enemies made fun of you. They bragged, ‘The hills you lived in for a long time belong to us now.’ ” ’ ³ Ezekiel, prophesy. Say, ‘The Lord and King says, “Your enemies destroyed you. They crushed you from every side. So the rest of the nations took over your land. People talked about you. They told lies about you.” ’ ” ⁴ Mountains of Israel, listen to the message of the Lord and King. He speaks to you mountains, hills, canyons and valleys. He speaks to you destroyed cities and deserted towns. The rest of the nations around you took away from you everything of value. They made fun of you. ⁵ So the Lord and King says, “I am very angry with those nations. I have spoken against them and the whole land of Edom. They were very happy when they took over my land. Deep down inside them, they hated Israel. They wanted to take its grasslands. ⁶ Ezekiel, prophesy about the land of Israel. Speak to the mountains, hills, canyons and valleys. Tell them, ‘The Lord and King says, “I have a jealous anger against the nations. They have laughed at you.” ⁷ So the Lord and King says, “I raise my hand and make a promise. I promise that the nations around you will also be laughed at.

⁸ “ ‘ “Mountains of Israel, you will produce branches and bear fruit for my people Israel. They will come home soon. ⁹ I am concerned about you. I will do good things for you. Farmers will plow your ground. They will plant seeds in it. ¹⁰ I will cause many people to live in Israel. The towns will no longer be empty. Their broken-down houses will be rebuilt. ¹¹ I will cause many people and animals to live in you, Israel. They will have many babies. I will cause people to make their homes in your towns, just as I did in the past. I will help you succeed more than ever before. Then you will know that I am the Lord. ¹² I will let my people Israel live there again. They will possess you. They will receive you as their own. You will never take their children away from them again.” ’ ”

¹³ The Lord and King says, “People say to you mountains, ‘You destroy people. You let your nation’s children be taken away.’ ¹⁴ But I will not let you destroy people anymore. I will no longer let your nation’s children be taken away,” announces the Lord and King. ¹⁵ “You will not have to listen to the nations laughing at you anymore. People will no longer make fun of you. You will not let your nation fall,” announces the Lord and King.

Israel Will Surely Be Rebuilt

¹⁶ Another message from the Lord came to me. The Lord said, ¹⁷ “Son of man, the people of Israel used to live in their own land. But they made it ‘unclean’ because of how they acted and the way they lived. To me they were ‘unclean’ like a woman having her monthly period. ¹⁸ They spilled people’s blood in the land. They made the land ‘unclean’ by worshiping other gods. So I poured out my great anger on them. ¹⁹ I scattered them among the nations. I sent them to other countries. I judged them based on how they acted and on how they lived. ²⁰ They treated my name as if it were not holy. They did it everywhere they went among the nations. People said about them, ‘They are the Lord’s people. But they were forced to leave his land.’ ²¹ I was concerned about my holy name. The people of Israel treated it as if it were not holy. They did it everywhere they went among the nations.

²² “So tell the Israelites, ‘The Lord and King speaks. He says, “People of Israel, I will not take action for your benefit. Instead, I will act for the honor of my holy name. You have treated it as if it were not holy. You did it everywhere you went among the nations. ²³ But I will show everyone how holy my great name is. You have treated it as if it were not holy. So I will use you to prove to the nations how holy I am. Then they will know that I am the Lord,” announces the Lord and King.

²⁴ “ ‘ “I will take you out of the nations. I will gather you together from all the countries. I will bring you back into your own land. ²⁵ I will sprinkle pure water on you. Then you will be ‘clean.’ I will make you completely pure and ‘clean.’ I will take all the statues of your gods away from you. ²⁶ I will give you new hearts. I will give you a new spirit that is faithful to me. I will remove your stubborn hearts from you. I will give you hearts that obey me. ²⁷ I will put my Spirit in you. I will make you want to obey my rules. I want you to be careful to keep my laws. ²⁸ Then you will live in the land I gave your people of long ago. You will be my people. And I will be your God. ²⁹ I will save you from all your ‘uncleanness.’ I will give you plenty of grain. You will have more than enough. So you will never be hungry again. ³⁰ I will multiply the fruit on your trees. I will increase the crops in your fields. Then the nations will no longer make fun of you because you are hungry. ³¹ You will remember your evil ways and the sinful things you have done. You will hate yourselves because you have sinned so much. I also hate your evil practices. ³² I want you to know that I am not doing those things for your benefit,” announces the Lord and King. “People of Israel, you should be ashamed of yourselves! Your conduct has brought dishonor to you.” ’ ”

³³ The Lord and King says, “I will make you pure from all your sins. On that day I will give you homes in your towns again. Your broken-down houses will be rebuilt. ³⁴ The dry and empty land will be farmed again. Everyone who passes through it will see that it is no longer empty. ³⁵ They will say, ‘This land was completely destroyed. But now it’s like the Garden of Eden. The cities were full of broken-down buildings. They were destroyed and empty. But now they have high walls around them. And people live in them.’ ³⁶ Then the nations that remain around you will know that I have rebuilt what was once destroyed. I have planted again the fields that were once empty. I have spoken. And I will do this. I am the Lord.”

³⁷ The Lord and King says, “Once again I will answer Israel’s prayer. Here is what I will do for them. I will multiply them as if they were sheep. ³⁸ Large flocks of animals are sacrificed at Jerusalem during the appointed feasts there. In the same way, the destroyed cities will be filled with flocks of people. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”