Prophecy Against the Shepherds of Israel
The word of the Lord went to Ezekiel and told him to prophecy against the shepherds of Israel and say to them:
“Thus says the Lord God: Ah, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep? You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fat ones, but you do not feed the sheep.
The weak you have not strengthened, the sick you have not healed, the injured you have not bound up, the strayed you have not brought back, the lost you have not sought, and with force and harshness you have ruled them.
So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd, and they became food for all the wild beasts. My sheep were scattered; they wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. My sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, with none to search or seek for them.” -Ezekiel 34:2-6
Therefore, because of all this the Lord was against the shepherds and would require His sheep at their hand and put a stop to their feeding the sheep. No longer would the shepherds feed themselves, and the Lord would rescue His sheep from their mouths, so they would not be food for them.
The Lord God Will Seek Them Out
The Lord said that He would search for His sheep and would seek them out. He would rescue them from all the places they had been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness.
He would bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and would bring them into their own land. The Lord would feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the country. They would be fed with good pasture, and on the mountain heights of Israel would be their grazing land.
“I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord God. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice.” -Ezekiel 34:15-16
The Lord spoke to the flock and said that he would judge between sheep and sheep, between rams and male goats. “Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture, that you must tread down with your feet the rest of your pasture; and to drink of clear water, that you must muddy the rest of the water with your feet? And must my sheep eat what you have trodden with your feet, and drink what you have muddied with your feet?” -Ezekiel 34:17-19
Therefore, the Lord would judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep, because they pushed with their side and shoulder, and thrusted at all the weak with their horns, so they were scattered.
“I will rescue my flock; they shall no longer be a prey. And I will judge between sheep and sheep. And I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd. And I the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them. I am the Lord; I have spoken.” -Ezekiel 34:22-24
The Lord’s Covenant of Peace
The Lord would make a covenant with them so they could dwell securely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods. The Lord would make them and all the places around the hill a blessing. He would send down showers in the their season; and they would be showers of blessing. The trees would yield their fruit, and the earth would yield its increase, and they would be secure in their land.
They would know the Lord when the bars of their yoke were broken and they were delivered from the hands of those who enslaved them. They would no more be prey to the nations, nor would the beasts of the land devour them. They would dwell securely and none would make them afraid.
The Lord would provide for them renowned plantations so they would not be hungry in the land, nor suffer the reproach of the nations. They would know the Lord is their God with them; and that they, the house of Israel, were His people.
“And you are my sheep, human sheep of my pasture, and I am your God, declares the Lord God.” -Ezekiel 34:31
Prophecy Against Mount Seir
The Lord told Ezekiel to set his face against Mount Seir, and to prophesy against it. He was to say that the Lord was against them, and would stretch out His hand and make them a desolation and a waste.
Because they had cherished perpetual enmity and gave the people of Israel to the power of the sword at the time of their calamity and final punishment, the Lord would prepare them for blood. Since they did not hate bloodshed, therefore blood would pursue them.
Mount Seir would become a waste and desolation, and the Lord would cut off from it all who came and went. It’s mountains would be filled with the slain.
Because they said, ‘These two nations and these two countries shall be mine, and we will take possession of them’–although the Lord was there–therefore, the Lord would deal with them according to their anger and envy and hatred they showed against them. The Lord would make Himself known among them, and would judge them.
Prophecy to the Mountains of Israel
Ezekiel was to prophecy to the mountains of Israel and say that because they were crushed from all sides and became the possession of the rest of the nations; the Lord, in His jealous wrath, swore that the nations that were all around would suffer reproach.
For the mountains of Israel, they would shoot forth their branches and yield their fruit to the people Israel, for they would soon go home. The Lord was for them, and would turn to them to be tilled and sown.
The people would be multiplied and be fruitful, the whole house of Israel, and the cities would be inhabited and the waste places rebuilt. They would be inhabited as in their former times, and the Lord would do more good to them than ever before.
The people would walk on the mountains of Israel and would possess them and be their inheritance, and they would no longer be bereaved of children.
“And I will not let you hear anymore the reproach of the nations, and you shall no longer bear the disgrace of the peoples and no longer cause your nation to stumble, declares the Lord God.” -Ezekiel 36:15
The Lord’s Concern for His Holy Name
When the house of Israel lived in their own land, they defiled it by their ways and their deeds. Their ways before the Lord were like the uncleanness of a woman in her menstrual impurity. So the Lord poured out His wrath upon them for the blood that they had shed in the land, and for the idols with they they had defiled it.
They were scattered among the nations, and were dispersed through the countries. In accordance with their ways and their deeds, they were judged by the Lord.
But when they came to the nations, they profaned His holy name and said, ‘These are the people of the Lord, and yet they had to go out of his land.’
But the Lord had concern for His holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations to which they came.
I Will Put My Spirit Within You
Therefore, it was not for the house of Israel the Lord would act, but for His holy name which they had profaned among the nations. He would vindicate the holiness of His great name, and the nations would know that the Lord is God.
The Lord would take them from the nations and gather them from all the countries and bring them back to their own land. They would be sprinkled with clean water, and would be cleaned from all their uncleanness, and from the idols.
They would be given a new heart, and a new spirit. The Lord would remove their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh, and put His Spirit within them. They would walk in His statutes and be careful to obey His rules. They would dwell in the land that was given to their fathers, and they would be God’s people.
They would be delivered from all their uncleanness, and grain would be summoned and become abundant so they would have no famine. The fruit of the tree would increase and become abundant, so they would never again suffer the disgrace of famine among the nations.
Then they would remember their evil ways, and their deeds that were no good, and would loathe themselves for their iniquities and abominations.
On the day that the Lord would cleanse them from all their iniquities, would cause the cities to be inhabited and the waste places rebuilt. The land that was desolate would be tilled, and become not a desolation but like the garden of Eden.
This also the Lord would do for the house of Israel, and would increase their people like a flock. Like the flock for sacrifices, like the flock at Jerusalem during her appointed feasts, so the waste cities would be filled with people. Then, they would know the Lord.