Ezekiel 34:4

Ezekiel 34:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)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.
• New International Version (NIV)You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally.
• English Standard Version (ESV)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.
• New King James Version (NKJV)The weak you have not strengthened, nor have you healed those who were sick, nor bound up the broken, nor brought back what was driven away, nor sought what was lost; but with force and cruelty you have ruled them.

Context of Ezekiel 34:4

2“Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Woe to the shepherds of Israel, who only feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed their flock? 3You eat the fat, wear the wool, and butcher the fattened sheep, but you do not feed the flock. You have not strengthened the weak, healed the sick, bound up the injured, brought back the strays, or searched for the lost. Instead, you have ruled them with violence and cruelty. 5They were scattered for lack of a shepherd, and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild beasts. 6My flock went astray on all the mountains and every high hill. They were scattered over the face of all the earth, with no one to search for them or seek them out.’

Ezekiel 34:4 word by word

אֶֽת־הַנַּחְלוֹת֩ לֹ֨א חִזַּקְתֶּ֜ם וְאֶת־הַחוֹלָ֣ה לֹֽא־רִפֵּאתֶ֗ם וְלַנִּשְׁבֶּ֙רֶת֙ לֹ֣א חֲבַשְׁתֶּ֔ם וְאֶת־הַנִּדַּ֙חַת֙ לֹ֣א הֲשֵׁבֹתֶ֔ם וְאֶת־הָאֹבֶ֖דֶת לֹ֣א בִקַּשְׁתֶּ֑ם וּבְחָזְקָ֛ה רְדִיתֶ֥ם אֹתָ֖ם וּבְפָֽרֶךְ׃Read the interlinear

• ·אֵת'êth · [Obj.]H853
• You have notלֹאlô' lô' lôh · notH3808
• strengthenedחָזַקchâzaq · to strengthen: strengthenH2388
• the weakחָלָהchâlâh · be weak: weakH2470
• healedרָפָאrâphâ' râphâh · to healH7495
• the sickחָלָהchâlâh · be weak: illH2470
• bound upחָבַשׁchâbash · to saddle/tieH2280
• the injuredשָׁבַרshâbar · to breakH7665
• brought backשׁוּבshûb · to return: returnH7725
• the straysנָדַחnâdach · to banishH5080
• or searched forבָּקַשׁbâqash · to seekH1245
• the lostאָבַד'âbad · to perishH6
• you have ruledרָדָהrâdâh · to ruleH7287
• with violenceחׇזְקָהchozqâh · forceH2394
• and crueltyפֶּ֫רֶךְperek · severityH6531

Cross-references for Ezekiel 34:4

• Ezekiel 34:16I will seek the lost, bring back the strays, bind up the broken, and strengthen the weak; but the sleek and strong I will destroy. I will shepherd them with justice.’
• Isaiah 56:10Israel’s watchmen are blind, they are all oblivious; they are all mute dogs, they cannot bark; they are dreamers lying around, loving to slumber.
• Jeremiah 8:22Is there no balm in Gilead? Is no physician there? Why then has the health of the daughter of my people not been restored?
• Zechariah 11:15And the LORD said to me: “Take up once more the equipment of a foolish shepherd.
• Matthew 9:36When He saw the crowds, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
• Hebrews 12:12Therefore strengthen your limp hands and weak knees.
• Matthew 10:6Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel.
• Matthew 18:12What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go out to search for the one that is lost?
• Luke 15:4“What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the pasture and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it?
• Exodus 1:13They worked the Israelites ruthlessly
• Jeremiah 22:13“Woe to him who builds his palace by unrighteousness, and his upper rooms without justice, who makes his countrymen serve without pay, and fails to pay their wages,
• Matthew 21:35But the tenants seized his servants. They beat one, killed another, and stoned a third.
• Matthew 24:49And he begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards.
• 2 Corinthians 1:24Not that we lord it over your faith, but we are fellow workers with you for your joy, because it is by faith that you stand firm.
• James 5:1Come now, you who are rich, weep and wail over the misery to come upon you.
• 1 Peter 5:2Be shepherds of God’s flock that is among you, watching over them not out of compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not out of greed, but out of eagerness;

Commentaries on Ezekiel 34:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4The diseased have ye not strengthened - No person is fit for the office of a shepherd, who does not well understand the diseases to which sheep are incident, and the mode of cure. And is any man fit for the pastoral office, or to be a shepherd of souls, who is not well acquainted with the disease of sin in all its varieties, and the remedy for this disease, and the proper mode of administering it, in those various cases? He who does not know Jesus Christ…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2-6Woe to the shepherds: Israel’s leaders did not care for the weak or search for those who wandered away and were lost. They pursued their own interests, feeding themselves at the flock’s expense. They ruled the sheep with harshness and cruelty, similar to how the Egyptians treated the Israelites in the time of Moses (Exodus 1:13–14). The neglect and abuse by these cruel shepherds scattered the Lord’s flock across the earth.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. The diseased--rather, those weak from the effects of "disease," as "strengthened" (that is, with due nourishment) requires [Grotius]. broken--that is, fractures from wounds inflicted by the wolf. brought again ... driven away--(Ex 23:4). Those "driven away" by the enemy into foreign lands through God's judgments are meant (Jr 23:3). A spiritual reformation of the state by the rulers would have turned away God's wrath, and "brought again" the exiles…Read the comment

Topics related to Ezekiel 34:4

• Levites
• Minister, Christian
• Rulers

In the dictionaries

• Cruelty
• Ezekiel, Book of
• Require
• Seek
• Cruel; Cruelty
• Ezekiel
• Sick; Sickness
• Teach; Teacher; Teaching

Commentaries on Ezekiel 34

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings