MENU

Old Testament Reading - The Lord Will Be Israel’s Shepherd

¹Then this message came to me from the Lord:

²“Son of dust, prophesy against the shepherds, the leaders of Israel. Say to them, ‘The Lord God says to you: Woe to the shepherds who feed themselves instead of their flocks. Shouldn’t shepherds feed the sheep? ³You eat the best food and wear the finest clothes, but you let your flocks starve. ⁴You haven’t taken care of the weak, nor tended the sick, nor bound up the broken bones, nor gone looking for those who have wandered away and are lost. Instead, you have ruled them with force and cruelty. ⁵So they were scattered, without a shepherd. They have become a prey to every animal that comes along. ⁶My sheep wandered through the mountains and hills and over the face of the earth, and there was no one to search for them or care about them.

⁷“‘Therefore, O shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: ⁸As I live, says the Lord God, you abandoned my flock, leaving them to be attacked and destroyed, and you were no real shepherds at all, for you didn’t search for them. You fed yourselves and let them starve; ^9-10therefore, I am against the shepherds, and I will hold them responsible for what has happened to my flock. I will take away their right to feed the flock — and take away their right to eat. I will save my flock from being taken for their food.’”

¹¹For the Lord God says: “I will search and find my sheep.