Shepherds count their sheep as the sheep walk in front of them. People will be counting their sheep all around the country—in the hill-country, in the western foothills, in the Negev, {\cf2\super [279]} and in all the other towns of Judah.”
The Lord my Master says these things, “And you, my flock, I will judge between one sheep and another. I will judge between the male sheep and the male goats.
“And I will make a peace agreement with my sheep. I will take harmful animals away from the land. Then the sheep can be safe in the desert and sleep in the woods.
And I will make a peace agreement with them. This agreement will continue forever. I agree to give them their land. I agree to make them become many, many people. And I agree to put my holy place among them forever.
You will have broken my Agreement, so I will punish you. I will bring armies against you. You will go into your cities for safety. But I will cause diseases to spread among you. And your enemies will defeat you.
“There are many families on earth. But you are the only family I chose to know in a special way. \{And you turned against me.\} So I will punish you for all your sins.”