Ezekiel 34:1 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
A new prophecy in which the unfaithful shepherds are denounced. God promises to remove His flock from them and appoint David as His shepherd instead (
v. 23). The land will be restored to full fruitfulness. The message of the chapter is similar to that of
Jer. 23:1-8.
Ezekiel 34:2 Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks?
Heb.
ro‘im, from the root
ra‘ah,
“to pasture,” “to feed.” It is used metaphorically of responsible rulers or leaders (see
1 Kings 22:17; Jer. 2:8).
The shepherd ought to do that which his name implies. The charge is probably directed specifically at Judah’s later kings.
Ezekiel 34:3 Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock.
Heb. cheleb. A slightly different vowel pointing to chalab gives the meaning “milk.” This is the reading of the LXX and Vulgate. Either meaning fits the context. The rulers levied exorbitant taxes.
Ezekiel 34:4 The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them.
Ezekiel 34:5 And they were scattered, because there is no shepherd: and they became meat to all the beasts of the field, when they were scattered.
The rulers are blamed for the disaster that had befallen Israel. Their evil example had caused the people to depart from the way of righteousness. This does not mean, of course, that the people were free from sin. No man can be forced to transgress. His own consent must first be gained. It is by his own choice that he follows the evil example of others.
Ezekiel 34:6 My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yea, my flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after them.
The pronoun indicates that God claims the people as His own.
Ezekiel 34:8 As I live, saith the Lord God, surely because my flock became a prey, and my flock became meat to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my flock, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not my flock;
They were the ones appointed over God’s flock and hence responsible to God.
Ezekiel 34:10 Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them.
The first act of judgment was to be the removal of the self-seeking shepherds.
Ezekiel 34:11 For thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out.
The rich promises of
vs. 12-31 describe conditions as they might have been if Israel had met the necessary conditions. The prophecies were partially fulfilled at the time of the return from exile. But because the Jews failed to seek a true spiritual experience, either in the Exile or subsequently, the degree of fulfillment was extremely limited. Later, when Israel rejected her Messiah, the nation forever forfeited all claim to the blessings here promised. These promises were then transferred to the Christian church and were to be fulfilled in principle in connection with this spiritual body. A local, political kingdom would no longer form the center of the spiritual kingdom. The new adherents would be scattered in all lands. Their capital would no longer be an earthly Jerusalem; instead, they were to anticipate a heavenly. In their spiritual application these verses will be fulfilled in the new heavens and the new earth. They would have met a literal fulfillment after the Jews returned from Babylonian exile if they had met the conditions God set down (see pp. 29-32).
Ezekiel 34:14 I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie in a good fold, and in a fat pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel.
If the conditions of repentance and spiritual revival had been met, the Lord would have restored Palestine to its original productiveness as a
“land flowing with milk and honey” (
Ex. 3:8, 17; Num. 13:27; etc.). He would have sent the rain in due season and blessed His people in
“basket and ... store” as He had promised to do formerly (
Deut. 28:1-14). At the time of the original entry into Canaan the fulfillment had been prevented by a failure of the people to comply with the necessary conditions. Here, now, was a second opportunity to inherit the same rich promises. Israel was offered a fresh start. Would the nation now prove willing?
Ezekiel 34:16 I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment.
Fatness was a symbol of prosperity. Prosperity often leads to forgetfulness of God (
Deut. 32:15). The unfaithful shepherds had waxed fat by robbing the flock. They had fed themselves instead of the flock. Now they are to be fed
“with judgment.”
Ezekiel 34:17 And as for you, O my flock, thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I judge between cattle and cattle, between the rams and the he goats.
Between cattle and cattle.
Literally,
“between sheep and sheep.” God will judge between the various members of the flock. Not all will share in the restoration—only those who repent and turn to God, their Shepherd (see
Eze. 34:20, 22; cf.
Matt. 25:31-46).
Ezekiel 34:18 Seemeth it a small thing unto you to have eaten up the good pasture, but ye must tread down with your feet the residue of your pastures? and to have drunk of the deep waters, but ye must foul the residue with your feet?
The false shepherds are charged with wantonness and waste. That which they did not use they spoiled so as to make it of no use to others.
Ezekiel 34:23 And 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.
Doubtless in contrast with the many rulers who had gone before, and probably also with reference to the two kingdoms of Israel, which were to be reunited.
Commentators have generally taken this prediction to refer to the Messiah (
Jer. 23:5, 6; Luke 1:32). Because Israel never accepted the conditions on which these promises could be fulfilled, the application is justified. Jesus, coming in the flesh, and later to come in His glory, is the fulfillment this prediction is now to have.
Ezekiel 34:25 And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land: and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods.
At the time of the entrance into Canaan, God had promised to establish the conditions of tranquillity here mentioned (
Lev. 26:6). Israel was now given the opportunity to assume once more her role as the center of God’s worldwide spiritual kingdom, and as such was promised every temporal advantage (see
Eze. 34:14, 26-30).
Ezekiel 34:26 And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing.
Ezekiel 34:29 And I will raise up for them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear the shame of the heathen any more.
Better, “a plantation of renown.”
Ezekiel 34:31 And ye my flock, the flock of my pasture, are men, and I am your God, saith the Lord God.
The figure is applied. What grace when the God of heaven condescends to have fellowship with men who, like a flock, have wandered far from Him!