Ezekiel 34:2-6 NIV

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Ezekiel 34:6

My sheep wandered through all the mountains - They all became idolaters, and lost the knowledge of the true God. And could it be otherwise while they had such pastors? "Himself a wanderer from the narrow way; His silly sheep, no wonder that they stray!" Reader, if thou be a minister, a preacher, or a person in holy orders, or pretended holy orders, or art one pretending to holy orders, look at the qualifications of a good shepherd as laid down by the prophet. He professes to be a... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:1-10

Shepherds denounced. I. THEIR RESPONSIBILITY . Ezekiel now turns from the people to their leaders. Theirs is the greatest guilt. They were placed in positions which led to much being expected of them. Their failure means a corresponding guilt. The princes and priests, the political leaders and the religious teachers, would be included under the designation "shepherds." The same two classes and other varieties may be seen today; i.e. political rulers, Christian ministers, leaders of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:1-10

The human shepherds of the flock. It is a comparison as old, yes, older than literature, this of the people to a flock of sheep, and of their rulers, leaders, and spiritual instructors to the shepherds whose vocation it is to protect, care for, and feed them. Both in the Old and New Testament Scriptures we meet with passages in which unfaithful, careless, selfish, and grasping religious teachers and leaders are denounced as hirelings who have nothing of the true shepherd's heart—no... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:1-10

The use and the abuse of office. It is generally agreed that by the shepherd of the text we are to understand primarily the king and princes of Israel, who should have guarded and nourished the people of Israel with the devotedness with which David (see Ezekiel 34:23 ) once tended his people; but the interpretation need not exclude the "ecclesiastical" officers of the land, those whose practice was to teach and warn the people—priest and Levite and prophet. These strong words of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:1-16

God's verdict upon self-serving rulers. The disasters that overtook the land and the people of Israel were largely due to the misdeeds of their rulers. The people in olden time were more easily led by their sovereign than they are now. The ability to read, combined with the free use of printed literature, has stimulated the power to think, and this has led to self-reliance, independence, and freedom. But in Ezekiel's day a dearth of literature made the people largely dependent on priests... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:2

Prophesy against the shepherds of Israel , etc. Our modern associations with the words, our use of terms like" the pastoral office," "the pastoral Epistles," lead us to think of the priests and prophets, the spiritual guides of the people, as being those whom the prophet has in view. In the language of the Old Testament, however, as in that of Homer, the shepherds of the people are always its kings and other civil rulers ( 1 Kings 22:17 ; Psalms 77:20 ; Psalms 78:71 ; Jeremiah 23:1-6 ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:3

Ye eat the fat . The LXX . and the Vulgate, following a different reading, give milk , and, as "killing" comes in the next clause, this is probably preferable. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:4

The diseased have ye not strengthened . The verbs indicate the difference between the "diseased," i.e. the weak sheep (comp. Isaiah 40:11 ; Psalms 78:71 ) and the sick, that were suffering from more definite maladies. So the broken are the sheep that have fallen from a rock and thus maimed themselves. Each case required its appropriate treatment, and none had met with it. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:5

And they were scattered . The words are an echo of 1 Kings 22:17 , and are, in their turn, echoed by Matthew 9:36 . The words that follow paint the sufferings of the exiles who left their homes and were scattered among the heathen in the days of Jehoiachin and Zedekiah. Of these the kings took no heed, and shut themselves up in the luxurious seclusion of their palace. read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Ezekiel 34:2

Shepherds - Not priests or prophets, but rulers and kings (see the Jeremiah 2:8 note). The most ancient title for “ruler” is a monogram which occurs on the oldest monuments discovered in the cuneiform character. In the Assyrian language it became riu (compare Hebrew רעה râ‛âh =shepherd). In the traditions of Berosus we find that Alorus, the first king in the world, received from the Divinity the title of Shepherd. The title, as well as the monogram, was preserved to the latest times of the... read more

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Ezekiel 34:6

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:1-10

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:1-10

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:1-10

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:1-16

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:2

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:3

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:4

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:5

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Ezekiel 34:2

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