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Ezekiel 34:2-10
“ Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds, the leaders of Israel. Give them this message from the Sovereign Lord: What sorrow awaits you shepherds who feed yourselves instead of your flocks. Shouldn’t shepherds feed their sheep?You drink the milk, wear the wool, and butcher the best animals, but you let your flocks starve.You have not taken care of the weak. You have not tended the sick or bound up the injured. You have not gone looking for those who have wandered away and are lost. Instead, you have ruled them with harshness and cruelty.So my sheep have been scattered without a shepherd, and they are easy prey for any wild animal.They have wandered through all the mountains and all the hills, across the face of the earth, yet no one has gone to search for them.“ Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord:As surely as I live, says the Sovereign Lord, you abandoned my flock and left them to be attacked by every wild animal. And though you were my shepherds, you didn’t search for my sheep when they were lost. You took care of yourselves and left the sheep to starve.Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord.This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I now consider these shepherds my enemies, and I will hold them responsible for what has happened to my flock. I will take away their right to feed the flock, and I will stop them from feeding themselves. I will rescue my flock from their mouths; the sheep will no longer be their prey.
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Jeremiah 12:10
“ Many rulers have ravaged my vineyard, trampling down the vines and turning all its beauty into a barren wilderness.
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Jeremiah 23:1-2
“ What sorrow awaits the leaders of my people— the shepherds of my sheep— for they have destroyed and scattered the very ones they were expected to care for,” says the Lord.Therefore, this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to these shepherds:“ Instead of caring for my flock and leading them to safety, you have deserted them and driven them to destruction. Now I will pour out judgment on you for the evil you have done to them.
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John 10:12-13
A hired hand will run when he sees a wolf coming. He will abandon the sheep because they don’t belong to him and he isn’t their shepherd. And so the wolf attacks them and scatters the flock.The hired hand runs away because he’s working only for the money and doesn’t really care about the sheep.
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Jeremiah 10:8
People who worship idols are stupid and foolish. The things they worship are made of wood!
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Isaiah 56:10-12
For the leaders of my people— the Lord’s watchmen, his shepherds— are blind and ignorant. They are like silent watchdogs that give no warning when danger comes. They love to lie around, sleeping and dreaming.Like greedy dogs, they are never satisfied. They are ignorant shepherds, all following their own path and intent on personal gain.“ Come,” they say,“ let’s get some wine and have a party. Let’s all get drunk. Then tomorrow we’ll do it again and have an even bigger party!”
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Ezekiel 22:25-30
Your princes plot conspiracies just as lions stalk their prey. They devour innocent people, seizing treasures and extorting wealth. They make many widows in the land.Your priests have violated my instructions and defiled my holy things. They make no distinction between what is holy and what is not. And they do not teach my people the difference between what is ceremonially clean and unclean. They disregard my Sabbath days so that I am dishonored among them.Your leaders are like wolves who tear apart their victims. They actually destroy people’s lives for money!And your prophets cover up for them by announcing false visions and making lying predictions. They say,‘ My message is from the Sovereign Lord,’ when the Lord hasn’t spoken a single word to them.Even common people oppress the poor, rob the needy, and deprive foreigners of justice.“ I looked for someone who might rebuild the wall of righteousness that guards the land. I searched for someone to stand in the gap in the wall so I wouldn’t have to destroy the land, but I found no one.
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Jeremiah 2:8
The priests did not ask,‘ Where is the Lord?’ Those who taught my word ignored me, the rulers turned against me, and the prophets spoke in the name of Baal, wasting their time on worthless idols.
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Jeremiah 23:9-32
My heart is broken because of the false prophets, and my bones tremble. I stagger like a drunkard, like someone overcome by wine, because of the holy words the Lord has spoken against them.For the land is full of adultery, and it lies under a curse. The land itself is in mourning— its wilderness pastures are dried up. For they all do evil and abuse what power they have.“ Even the priests and prophets are ungodly, wicked men. I have seen their despicable acts right here in my own Temple,” says the Lord.“ Therefore, the paths they take will become slippery. They will be chased through the dark, and there they will fall. For I will bring disaster upon them at the time fixed for their punishment. I, the Lord, have spoken!“ I saw that the prophets of Samaria were terribly evil, for they prophesied in the name of Baal and led my people of Israel into sin.But now I see that the prophets of Jerusalem are even worse! They commit adultery and love dishonesty. They encourage those who are doing evil so that no one turns away from their sins. These prophets are as wicked as the people of Sodom and Gomorrah once were.”Therefore, this is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says concerning the prophets:“ I will feed them with bitterness and give them poison to drink. For it is because of Jerusalem’s prophets that wickedness has filled this land.”This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says to his people:“ Do not listen to these prophets when they prophesy to you, filling you with futile hopes. They are making up everything they say. They do not speak for the Lord!They keep saying to those who despise my word,‘ Don’t worry! The Lord says you will have peace!’ And to those who stubbornly follow their own desires, they say,‘ No harm will come your way!’“ Have any of these prophets been in the Lord’s presence to hear what he is really saying? Has even one of them cared enough to listen?Look! The Lord’s anger bursts out like a storm, a whirlwind that swirls down on the heads of the wicked.The anger of the Lord will not diminish until it has finished all he has planned. In the days to come you will understand all this very clearly.“ I have not sent these prophets, yet they run around claiming to speak for me. I have given them no message, yet they go on prophesying.If they had stood before me and listened to me, they would have spoken my words, and they would have turned my people from their evil ways and deeds.Am I a God who is only close at hand?” says the Lord.“ No, I am far away at the same time.Can anyone hide from me in a secret place? Am I not everywhere in all the heavens and earth?” says the Lord.“ I have heard these prophets say,‘ Listen to the dream I had from God last night.’ And then they proceed to tell lies in my name.How long will this go on? If they are prophets, they are prophets of deceit, inventing everything they say.By telling these false dreams, they are trying to get my people to forget me, just as their ancestors did by worshiping the idols of Baal.“ Let these false prophets tell their dreams, but let my true messengers faithfully proclaim my every word. There is a difference between straw and grain!Does not my word burn like fire?” says the Lord.“ Is it not like a mighty hammer that smashes a rock to pieces?“ Therefore,” says the Lord,“ I am against these prophets who steal messages from each other and claim they are from me.I am against these smooth tongued prophets who say,‘ This prophecy is from the Lord!’I am against these false prophets. Their imaginary dreams are flagrant lies that lead my people into sin. I did not send or appoint them, and they have no message at all for my people. I, the Lord, have spoken!
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Zechariah 13:7
“ Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, the man who is my partner,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.“ Strike down the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered, and I will turn against the lambs.
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Zechariah 10:3
“ My anger burns against your shepherds, and I will punish these leaders. For the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has arrived to look after Judah, his flock. He will make them strong and glorious, like a proud warhorse in battle.
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Ezekiel 34:12
I will be like a shepherd looking for his scattered flock. I will find my sheep and rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on that dark and cloudy day.
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Jeremiah 10:14
The whole human race is foolish and has no knowledge! The craftsmen are disgraced by the idols they make, for their carefully shaped works are a fraud. These idols have no breath or power.
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Jeremiah 50:17
“ The Israelites are like sheep that have been scattered by lions. First the king of Assyria ate them up. Then King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon cracked their bones.”
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Jeremiah 49:32
Their camels and other livestock will all be yours. I will scatter to the winds these people who live in remote places. I will bring calamity upon them from every direction,” says the Lord.
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Jeremiah 8:9
These wise teachers will fall into the trap of their own foolishness, for they have rejected the word of the Lord. Are they so wise after all?
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Jeremiah 5:31
the prophets give false prophecies, and the priests rule with an iron hand. Worse yet, my people like it that way! But what will you do when the end comes?
