Ezekiel 34:5

5 And they were scattered {without} a shepherd, and they were as food for all the animals of the field [when] they were scattered.

Ezekiel 34:5 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 34:5

And they were scattered because there is no shepherd
No good one; there were shepherds, but they were idol shepherds, good for nothing, and it was all one as if there were none: so, in Christ's time, there were the Scribes and Pharisees; yet, since these did not feed the people with wholesome doctrine, they are said to be as sheep without a shepherd, and scattered abroad, as here from the fold, and from one another; dispersed here and there, seeking food, and none, which moved his compassion, ( Matthew 9:36 ) , in the political sense it may refer to their captivity, and their dispersion among the nations, having no king: So the Targum,

``and they were scattered without a governor.''

And they became meat to all beasts of the field when they were
scattered;
the Targum is,

``and they were delivered to all the kingdoms of the people to be consumed;''

such as the Assyrians, Babylonians, Ammonites, Moabites, and others; and may be applied to false teachers, those grievous wolves, which spare not the flock, into whose hands members of churches, professors of religion, fall, when neglected by their shepherds.

Ezekiel 34:5 In-Context

3 The fat you eat, and you clothe [yourself] [with] the wool; the well-nourished [animals] you slaughter, [but] you do not feed the flock.

4 The weak you [have] not strengthened, and the sick you [have] not healed, and {with respect to} the hurt you have not bound [them up], and you [have] not brought back the scattered, and you [have] not sought the lost, but [rather] you ruled over them with force and with ruthlessness.

5 And they were scattered {without} a shepherd, and they were as food for all the animals of the field [when] they were scattered.

6 My flock went astray upon all of the mountains and on every high hill, and [so] upon all the surface of the world my flock were scattered, and {there was no one seeking them}, and {there was no one searching for them}."

7 Therefore, hear, [O] shepherds, the word of Yahweh:

Footnotes

• [a]. Literally "from not"
• [b]. Or "became"
• [c]. Hebrew "animal"