Ezekiel 34:5

5 Without a shepherd, my flock was scattered; and when it was scattered, it became food for all the wild animals.

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 You drink the milk, you wear the wool, and you slaughter the fat animals, but you don't tend the flock.

4 You don't strengthen the weak, heal the sick, bind up the injured, bring back the strays, or seek out the lost; but instead you use force to rule them with injustice.

5 Without a shepherd, my flock was scattered; and when it was scattered, it became food for all the wild animals.

6 My flock strayed on all the mountains and on every high hill throughout all the earth. My flock was scattered, and there was no one to look for them or find them.

7 So now shepherds, hear the LORD's word!