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 say to those shepherds, ‘This is what the Lord God says: “Woe, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding themselves! Should the shepherds not feed the flock? 3You eat the fat and clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fat sheep without feeding the flock. Those who are sickly you have not strengthened, the diseased you have not healed, the broken you have not bound up, the scattered you have not brought back, nor have you searched for the lost; but with force and with violence you have dominated them. 5They scattered for lack of a shepherd, and they became food for every animal of the field and scattered. 6My flock strayed through all the mountains and on every high hill; My flock was scattered over all the surface of the earth, and there was no one to search or seek for them.”’”

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

• Those who are sicklyחָלָהchâlâh · be weak: weakH2470
• you have not strengthenedחָזַקchâzaq · to strengthen: strengthenH2388
• the diseasedחָלָהchâlâh · be weak: illH2470
• you have not healedרָפָאrâphâ' râphâh · to healH7495
• the brokenשָׁבַרshâbar · to breakH7665
• you have not boundחָבַשׁchâbash · to saddle/tieH2280
• the scatteredנָדַחnâdach · to banishH5080
• you have not broughtשׁוּבshûb · to return: returnH7725
• backשׁוּבshûb · to return: returnH7725
• norלֹאlô' lô' lôh · notH3808
• searchedבָּקַשׁbâqash · to seekH1245
• for the lostאָבַד'âbad · to perishH6
• but with forceחׇזְקָהchozqâh · forceH2394
• and with violenceפֶּ֫רֶךְperek · severityH6531
• dominatedרָדָהrâdâh · to ruleH7287

Cross-references for Ezekiel 34:4

• Ezekiel 34:16“I will seek the lost, bring back the scattered, bind up the broken, and strengthen the sick; but the fat and the strong I will eliminate. I will feed them with judgment.
• Isaiah 56:10His watchmen are blind, All of them know nothing. All of them are mute dogs unable to bark, Dreamers lying down, who love to slumber;
• Jeremiah 8:22Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then has not the health of the daughter of my people been restored?
• Zechariah 11:15And the Lord said to me, “Take again for yourself the equipment of a foolish shepherd.
• Matthew 9:36Seeing the crowds, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and downcast, like sheep without a shepherd.
• Hebrews 12:12Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble,
• Matthew 10:6but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
• Matthew 18:12“What do you think? If any man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains, and go and search for the one that is lost?
• Luke 15:4“What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the other ninety-nine in the open pasture and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it?
• Exodus 1:13The Egyptians used violence to compel the sons of Israel to labor;
• Jeremiah 22:13“Woe to him who builds his house without righteousness, And his upstairs rooms without justice, Who uses his neighbor’s services without pay And does not give him his wages,
• Matthew 21:35And the vine-growers took his slaves and beat one, killed another, and stoned another.
• Matthew 24:49and he begins to beat his fellow slaves, and he eats and drinks with those habitually drunk;
• 2 Corinthians 1:24Not that we domineer over your faith, but we are workers with you for your joy; for in your faith you are standing firm.
• James 5:1Come now, you rich people, weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you.
• 1 Peter 5:2shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not with greed but with 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
• 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