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

2Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord Yhwh unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks? 3Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock. 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. 5And they were scattered, because there is no shepherd: and they became meat to all the beasts of the field, when they were scattered. 6My 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.

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

• The diseasedחָלָהchâlâh · be weak: weakH2470
• have ye not strengthenedחָזַקchâzaq · to strengthen: strengthenH2388
• neither have ye healedרָפָאrâphâ' râphâh · to healH7495
• that which was sickחָלָהchâlâh · be weak: illH2470
• neither have ye bound upחָבַשׁchâbash · to saddle/tieH2280
• brokenשָׁבַרshâbar · to breakH7665
• neither have ye brought againשׁוּבshûb · to return: returnH7725
• that which was driven awayנָדַחnâdach · to banishH5080
• neither have ye soughtבָּקַשׁbâqash · to seekH1245
• that which was lostאָבַד'âbad · to perishH6
• but with forceחׇזְקָהchozqâh · forceH2394
• and with crueltyפֶּ֫רֶךְperek · severityH6531
• have ye ruledרָדָהrâdâh · to ruleH7287

Cross-references for Ezekiel 34:4

• Ezekiel 34:16I 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.
• Isaiah 56:10His watchmen are blind: they are all ignorant, they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber.
• Jeremiah 8:22Is there no balm in Gilead; is there no physician there? why then is not the health of the daughter of my people recovered?
• Zechariah 11:15And Yhwh said unto me, Take unto thee yet the instruments of a foolish shepherd.
• Matthew 9:36But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.
• Hebrews 12:12Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees;
• Matthew 10:6But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
• Matthew 18:12How think ye? if a man have an hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which is gone astray?
• Luke 15:4What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?
• Exodus 1:13And the Egyptians made the children of Israel to serve with rigour:
• Jeremiah 22:13Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that useth his neighbour’s service without wages, and giveth him not for his work;
• Matthew 21:35And the husbandmen took his servants, and beat one, and killed another, and stoned another.
• Matthew 24:49And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;
• 2 Corinthians 1:24Not for that we have dominion over your faith, but are helpers of your joy: for by faith ye stand.
• James 5:1Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.
• 1 Peter 5:2Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;

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