Jeremiah 12:10

10 Many shepherds have destroyed my vineyard. They've trampled my property. They've turned my pleasant property into a wasteland.

Jeremiah 12:10 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 12:10

Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard
This is a metaphor which is often used of the people of Israel and Judah; see ( Psalms 80:8 ) ( Isaiah 5:1-7 ) ( 27:2 ) , the pastors that destroyed them are not their own governors, civil or religious, but Heathen princes, Nebuchadnezzar and his generals. So the Targum paraphrases it,

``many kings slay my people;''

so Kimchi and Ben Melech. They have trodden my portion under foot;
the people of the Jews, that were his portion, and before called his heritage; whom the Chaldeans subdued, and reduced to extreme servitude and bondage; and were as the dirt under their feet, greatly oppressed and despised. They have made my pleasant portion a desolate wilderness;
by pulling down stately edifices, unwalling of towers, and destroying men; so that there were none to manure the fields, to dress the vineyards, and keep gardens and orchards in good case; but all were come to ruin and what before was a delightful paradise was now like an heath or desert.

Jeremiah 12:10 In-Context

8 My people have turned on me like a lion in the forest. They roar at me, so I hate them.

9 My people are like a colorful bird of prey. Other birds of prey surround it. Go, gather all the animals in the field, and bring them to devour it.

10 Many shepherds have destroyed my vineyard. They've trampled my property. They've turned my pleasant property into a wasteland.

11 They've left it a wasteland. Devastated, it mourns in my presence. The whole land is destroyed, but no one takes this to heart.

12 Looters swarm all over the bare hills in the desert. The LORD's sword destroys them from one end of the land to the other. No one will be safe.