Ezekiel 34:5

5 et dispersae sunt oves meae eo quod non esset pastor et factae sunt in devorationem omnium bestiarum agri et dispersae sunt

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 lac comedebatis et lanis operiebamini et quod crassum erat occidebatis gregem autem meum non pascebatis

4 quod infirmum fuit non consolidastis et quod aegrotum non sanastis quod fractum est non alligastis et quod abiectum est non reduxistis quod perierat non quaesistis sed cum austeritate imperabatis eis et cum potentia

5 et dispersae sunt oves meae eo quod non esset pastor et factae sunt in devorationem omnium bestiarum agri et dispersae sunt

6 erraverunt greges mei in cunctis montibus et in universo colle excelso et super omnem faciem terrae dispersi sunt greges mei et non erat qui requireret non erat inquam qui requireret

7 propterea pastores audite verbum Domini