The Lord says, “I am angry at my shepherds, and I will punish the leaders. I, the Lord All-Powerful, care for my flock, the people of Judah. I will make them like my proud war horses.
When the Lord finishes doing what he planned to Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he will punish Assyria. The king of Assyria is very proud, and his pride has made him do these evil things, so God will punish him.
So this is what the Lord All-Powerful says: “I will soon punish the men from Anathoth. Their young men will die in war. Their sons and daughters will die from hunger.
“But when the seventy years have passed, I will punish the king of Babylon and his entire nation for their evil,” says the Lord. “I will make that land a desert forever.
Cry, you leaders! Cry out loud! Roll around in the dust, leaders of the people! It is now time for you to be killed. You will fall and be scattered, like pieces of a broken jar.
“My people have been like lost sheep. Their leaders have led them in the wrong way and made them wander around in the mountains and hills. They forgot where their resting place was.
As a shepherd takes care of his scattered flock when it is found, I will take care of my sheep. I will save them from all the places where they were scattered on a cloudy and dark day.
“Human, prophesy against the leaders of Israel, who are like shepherds. Prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Lord God says: How terrible it will be for the shepherds of Israel who feed only themselves! Why don’t the shepherds feed the flock?
The king of the North will tell lies and cause those who have not obeyed God to be ruined. But those who know God and obey him will be strong and fight back.
It will belong to the descendants of Judah who are left alive. There they will let their sheep eat grass. At night they will sleep in the houses of Ashkelon. The Lord their God will pay attention to them and will make their life good again.
“How terrible it will be for the useless shepherd who abandoned the flock. A sword will strike his arm and his right eye. His arm will lose all its strength, and his right eye will go blind.”
People who do not believe are living all around you and might say that you are doing wrong. Live such good lives that they will see the good things you do and will give glory to God on the day when Christ comes again.
While Naomi was in Moab, she heard that the Lord had come to help his people and had given them food again. So she and her daughters-in-law got ready to leave Moab and return home.