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Ezekiel 34:11

Old Testament Major Prophet ASV (1901)

What does Ezekiel 34:11 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “For thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I myself, even I, will search for my sheep, and will seek them out.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

For thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I myself, even I, will search for my sheep, and will seek them out.
Ezekiel 34:11 — American Standard Version

Context — Ezekiel 34

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
8As I live, saith the Lord Jehovah, surely forasmuch as my sheep became a prey, and my sheep became food to all the beasts of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my sheep, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not my sheep;
9therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of Jehovah:
10Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my sheep at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the sheep; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; and I will deliver my sheep from their mouth, that they may not be food for them.
11For thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I myself, even I, will search for my sheep, and will seek them out.
12As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered abroad, so will I seek out my sheep; and I will deliver them out of all places whither they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day.
13And I will bring them out from the peoples, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them upon the mountains of Israel, by the watercourses, and in all the inhabited places of the country.
14I will feed them with good pasture; and upon the mountains of the height of Israel shall their fold be: there shall they lie down in a good fold; and on fat pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel.
← Ezekiel 34:10Ezekiel 34:12 →
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What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“For thus saith the Lord God, &c.] Since the shepherds are so negligent, careless, and cruel: behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out; as he did the Jews, in all countries where they were, so his elect in all places where they are: he is the omniscient God, and knows them that are his, and can call his own sheep by name; he knows the places where they are; for he has fixed the bounds of their habitation, and was delighting himself in the habitable parts of the earth, where he knew they would be, even before the world was; he knows the time of finding them, which he himself has fixed, and which is a time of love, and a time of life; and he can distinguish them,…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“I . . . will . . . search--doing that which the so-called shepherds had failed to do, I being the rightful owner of the flock.”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Yahweh is the shepherd of His people. He will do all which the shepherds should have done and did not. These promises - partially fulfilled in the return from Babylon, and in the subsequent prosperity under the Maccabees - point to the ingathering of all nations in the Church of Christ the Good Shepherd. Compare Matthew 18:11 : John 10:1-18; Romans 9:25-33. return to 'Top of Page'”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“I: Eze 5:8, Eze 6:3; Gen 6:17; Lev 26:28; Deu 32:39; Isa 45:12, Isa 48:15, Isa 51:12; Hos 5:14 search: Psa 23:1-3, Psa 80:1, Psa 119:176; Isa 40:10, Isa 40:11, Isa 56:8; Jer 23:3, Jer 31:8; Mat 13:11, Mat 13:12; Luk 19:10; Joh 10:16 Ezekiel 34:12”
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Keil & Delitzsch
C. F. Keil & F. Delitzsch · Commentary on the Old Testament · 19th-century historical commentary
“Jehovah Himself will seek His flock, gather it together from the dispersion, lead it to good pasture, and sift it by the destruction of the bad sheep. - Eze 34:11. For thus saith the Lord Jehovah, Behold, I myself, I will inquire after my flock, and take charge thereof. Eze 34:12. As a shepherd taketh charge of his flock in the day when he is in the midst of his scattered sheep, so will I take charge of my flock, and deliver them out of all the places whither they have been scattered in the day of cloud and cloudy night. Eze 34:13. And I will bring them out from the nations, and gather them together out of the lands, and bring them into their land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel,…”
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Related study paths

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Sources and verification