{"id":74450,"date":"2018-07-09T17:47:50","date_gmt":"2018-07-09T14:47:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wall\/wall-486\/"},"modified":"2023-12-17T10:21:25","modified_gmt":"2023-12-17T08:21:25","slug":"wall-486","status":"publish","type":"wall","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wall\/wall-486\/","title":{"rendered":"chapter-Prophets-Ezekiel-34"},"parent":0,"template":"","acf":{"type":"chapter","wall_id":"486","date":"20270711","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"34","chapter_main_number":"486","books_group":"Prophets","posts":[{"order":1,"id":"74156","color":"#f8ebe3","size":"1","name":"JPS Audio Bible - Ezekiel Chapter 34 ","post_title":"JPS Audio Bible - Ezekiel Chapter 34","slug":"jps-audio-bible-ezekiel-chapter-34","old_id":"74156","type":"user","iframe":"","writer":{"id":34686,"post_title":"Soundcloud","slug":"soundcloud","old_id":"34686","first_name":"","last_name":"","description":"","short_description":"","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":34656,"alt":"","title":"491","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","width":300,"height":300,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium_large-width":300,"medium_large-height":300,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","large-width":300,"large-height":300,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","1536x1536-width":300,"1536x1536-height":300,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","2048x2048-width":300,"2048x2048-height":300,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","post_full_size-width":300,"post_full_size-height":300,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","home_baner-width":300,"home_baner-height":300}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"486","type_929":"4","show_author_image":true,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"JPS Audio Bible","tile_main_caption":"Ezekiel Chapter 34","tile_main_caption_size":"2","tile_sub_caption":"Hear the daily chapter","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":"","tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/user-753876298\/jps_audio_bible_ezekiel_chapter_34","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"34","chapter_main_number":"486","date":"20270711","wall_id":"486"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":2,"id":"119185","color":"#f6edf6","size":"1","name":"The Flock, And Its Ultimate Shepherd ","post_title":"The Flock, And Its Ultimate Shepherd","slug":"the-flock-and-its-ultimate-shepherd","old_id":"119185","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":78133,"post_title":"Josh Blechner","slug":"josh-blechner","old_id":"78133","first_name":"Josh ","last_name":"Blechner ","description":"Josh first finished the Tanach during Yeshiva in Mevaseret Zion. He and his daughter studied the Tanach again for her bat mitzvah. Josh has taught many classes on Tanach throughout the years and currently in the New Rochelle 929 group. When not studying for 929, Josh works as an in-house lawyer in New Jersey.","short_description":"Josh has taught many classes on Tanach throughout the years and currently in the New Rochelle 929 group, and is an in-house attorney in New Jersey. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":78134,"alt":"","title":"josh blechner","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","width":276,"height":351,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner-236x300.jpg","medium-width":236,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","medium_large-width":276,"medium_large-height":351,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","large-width":276,"large-height":351,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","1536x1536-width":276,"1536x1536-height":351,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","2048x2048-width":276,"2048x2048-height":351,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","post_full_size-width":276,"post_full_size-height":351,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","home_baner-width":276,"home_baner-height":351}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"486","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"The Shepherd who watches over each and every sheep\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

Ah, shepherds who let the flock of My pasture stray and scatter!\u2014declares the LORD. (Jeremiah 23:1).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In Jeremiah, God railed against the horrible leadership that betrayed the people using the metaphor of the wayward shepherd. Ezekiel borrows this image in chapter 34. He likens the people to a flock that has no shepherd to lead them. Instead of protecting their flock, the leadership has left them vulnerable to attacks:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

You have not sustained the weak, healed the sick, or bandaged the injured; you have not brought back the strayed, or looked for the lost; but you have driven them with harsh rigor (verse 4).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

This puts the blame squarely on the leadership. If they did their job properly, then the people would not have been harmed. Instead, God offers an alternative. God will step in to lead them. God will right the wrongs of verse 4.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

I will look for the lost, and I will bring back the strayed; I will bandage the injured, and I will sustain the weak; and the fat and healthy ones I will destroy. I will tend them rightly (verse 16).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

God\u2019s new role also features a line that is later quoted in the High Holiday <\/span>Unetane Tokef<\/em> <\/span>prayer:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

As a shepherd seeks out their flock<\/em> <\/span>when some [animals] in their flock have gotten separated, so I will seek out My flock, I will rescue them from all the places to which they were scattered on a day of cloud and gloom\u201d (verse 12).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Unetane Tokef<\/em> <\/span>is known as one of the most powerful prayers of both Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur (though its origin is unknown). The prayer is broken into three acts. The first is the set up of the power of the day, the second is the serious calculations that happen on the day, and the third is the loud pronouncement that acts of Repentance, Prayer, and Charity can overcome a bad decree.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Taken in that context, God\u2019s promise here is not just to lead the people, but also to take care to watch each and every person. As a true leader, God does not see the people as an anonymous hoard. He cares for each individual person.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Every Yom Kippur eve when I was growing up, we would go to my grandparents\u2019 house for the meal before the fast. My grandfather would talk about when he was in the shul choir as a little boy in Germany before the war. The one line he remembered was the opening words \u201cAs a shepherd seeks out their flock\u201d. Even when he was much older and could hardly communicate, we would still sing this one line with us at that meal. As a young boy in Germany, my grandfather could not believe that in a short period of time he would be shuttled from concentration camp to concentration camp. That memory stays with me to this day and the sounds of his singing this line brings even more power to this prayer.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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Shepherds Of Israel, Corrupt And Otherwise ","post_title":"The Shepherds Of Israel, Corrupt And Otherwise","slug":"the-shepherds-of-israel-corrupt-and-otherwise","old_id":"119188","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":33877,"post_title":"Marc Bregman","slug":"marc-bregman","old_id":"33877","first_name":"Marc","last_name":"Bregman","description":"Marc Bregman received his Ph.D. from The Hebrew University in Jerusalem in 1991. He taught at the Hebrew Union College (Jerusalem), The Hebrew University in Jerusalem, the Schechter Institute for Judaic Studies in Jerusalem, and at the Ben-Gurion University in Beer Sheba, Israel. During 1993 he was Visiting Associate Professor at Yale University, and during 1996 he was the Stroum Professor of Jewish Studies and Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Washington in Seattle. During 2005, Bregman served as the Harry Starr Fellow in Judaica at Harvard University and was awarded a Teaching Fellowship at the Center for Advanced Judaic Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. He also has served as Forchheimer Visiting Professor in the Faculty of Humanities at The Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He is the author of The Tanhuma-Yelammedenu Literature: Studies in the Evolution of the Versions (Gorgias Press, 2003). In 2006, Bregman was appointed the Herman and Zelda Bernard Distinguished Professor of Jewish Studies at the University of North Carolina in Greensboro, where he also headed the program in Jewish Studies, until 2013. Bregman retired from UNCG as of July 31, 2017. He has now returned to Jerusalem where he is continuing his research and teaching activities.","credit":"","image_url":"","short_description":"Marc Bregman is the Herman and Zelda Bernard Distinguished Professor of Jewish Studies emeritus, at the University of North Carolina in Greensboro.","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":33878,"alt":"Marc Bregman","title":"Marc Bregman","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","width":361,"height":488,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman-222x300.jpg","medium-width":222,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","medium_large-width":361,"medium_large-height":488,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","large-width":361,"large-height":488,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","1536x1536-width":361,"1536x1536-height":488,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","2048x2048-width":361,"2048x2048-height":488,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman.jpg","post_full_size-width":361,"post_full_size-height":488,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Marc-Bregman-311x420.jpg","home_baner-width":311,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"486","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"A widespread metaphor, a profession, and a leadership test\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

In our<\/span> chapter<\/span><\/a>, Ezekiel is told by God to prophecy against the corrupt \u201cshepherds of Israel\u201d (<\/span>ro\u2019ey Yisrael<\/span><\/i>) (verses 1-10). Here and elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible,<\/span> \"shepherding\"<\/span><\/a> is a metaphor for \u201cleadership\u201d. \u201cShepherd\u201d as a positive metaphor for \u201cruler\u201d is also found in other ancient Near Eastern texts, for example, the 18<\/span>th<\/span> century BCE Amorite King, Hammurabi (<\/span>ANET<\/span><\/a>, 164). Indeed, in the continuation of our chapter (verses 11-31), God is described as the true \u201cshepherd\u201d of Israel.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In general, \u201cshepherding\u201d has a positive connotation in Scripture and post-Biblical tradition. Among those mentioned as having engaged in this occupation as preparation for some leadership role are Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Amos and David.\u00a0 A Cairo Genizah fragment of Midrash Yelammedenu even includes Ezekiel among those who were tested for leadership by referring to shepherding.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Perhaps the most famous Biblical \u201cshepherd\u201d was Moses of whom it is<\/span> said<\/span><\/a>: \u201cNow Moses was shepherding the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian\u2026and he came to Horeb, the mountain of God\u201d. Significantly, this is the beginning of the story of the Burning Bush (<\/span>Exodus, Chapter 3<\/span><\/a>), in which Moses is commissioned by God to liberate the Israelites from Egyptian bondage.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Midrash Exodus Rabbah<\/span><\/a> elaborates how Moses demonstrated his preparedness to \u201cshepherd\u201d the People of Israel. Moses would make sure that first the lambs were allowed to graze on the most tender grass, and then he would let the older sheep graze on the tougher grass and only then would Moses let the strongest sheep graze on the toughest grass left in the field. The Holy One, blessed be He, said: \u201cHe who knows how to graze each sheep according to its strength shall come and shepherd My sheep, as it is<\/span> written<\/span><\/a>: \u201cHe brought him from minding the nursing ewes to tend His people Jacob, Israel, His very own\u201d. Once, while Moses, our Teacher, was tending [his father-in-law] Jethro\u2019s sheep, one of the lambs ran away. Moses ran after it until it reached a small, shaded place. There, the lamb came across a pool and began to drink. As Moses approached the lamb, he said, \u201cI did not know you ran away because you were thirsty. You are so exhausted!\u201d. He then put the lamb on his shoulders and carried it back. The Holy One said, \u201cSince you tend the sheep of human beings with such overwhelming love, by your life, I swear you shall be the shepherd of My sheep, Israel\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Based on<\/span> Psalms 78:52<\/span><\/a>: \u201cHe set His people moving like sheep, drove them like a flock in the wilderness\u201d,<\/span> Midrash Tanhuma<\/span><\/a> elaborates that Israel are compared to sheep, because, just as sheep may damage some trees, and yet their master is not upset with them, so too, though Israel sin, God ultimately forgives them. Therefore, He calls them My sheep: \u201cFor you, My flock, the flock that I tend, are human; and I am your God, declares the Lord God\u201d (<\/span>Ezekiel 34:31<\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

 <\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":96927,"alt":"","title":"ecc12-shepherd","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd.png","width":994,"height":1280,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd-233x300.png","medium-width":233,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd-768x989.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":989,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd-795x1024.png","large-width":795,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd.png","1536x1536-width":994,"1536x1536-height":1280,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd.png","2048x2048-width":994,"2048x2048-height":1280,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd-932x1200.png","post_full_size-width":932,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd-326x420.png","home_baner-width":326,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"The Shepherds Of Israel, Corrupt And Otherwise","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"A widespread metaphor, a profession, and a leadership test","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":96927,"alt":"","title":"ecc12-shepherd","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd.png","width":994,"height":1280,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd-233x300.png","medium-width":233,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd-768x989.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":989,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd-795x1024.png","large-width":795,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd.png","1536x1536-width":994,"1536x1536-height":1280,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd.png","2048x2048-width":994,"2048x2048-height":1280,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd-932x1200.png","post_full_size-width":932,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/ecc12-shepherd-326x420.png","home_baner-width":326,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"34","chapter_main_number":"486","date":"20270711","wall_id":"486"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":4,"id":"119190","color":"#f6edf6","size":"1","name":"More On The Pastoral Metaphor ","post_title":"More On The Pastoral Metaphor","slug":"more-on-the-pastoral-metaphor","old_id":"119190","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":62571,"post_title":"Yaakov Bieler","slug":"yaakov-bieler","old_id":"62571","first_name":"Yaakov ","last_name":"Bieler ","description":"Rabbi Yaakov Bieler has been involved in Jewish education and the synagogue Rabbinate in New York, NY and Silver Spring, MD since being ordained by Yeshiva University in 1974. He has lectured and written extensively on Modern Orthodoxy, and blogs daily at https:\/\/yaakovbieler.wordpress.com ","short_description":"Rabbi Yaakov Bieler has been involved in Jewish education and the synagogue Rabbinate in New York, NY and Silver Spring, MD since being ordained by Yeshiva University. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":62572,"alt":"","title":"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","width":141,"height":180,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler-141x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":141,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","medium-width":141,"medium-height":180,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","medium_large-width":141,"medium_large-height":180,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","large-width":141,"large-height":180,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","1536x1536-width":141,"1536x1536-height":180,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","2048x2048-width":141,"2048x2048-height":180,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","post_full_size-width":141,"post_full_size-height":180,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","home_baner-width":141,"home_baner-height":180}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"486","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"The challenges of taking care of the flock\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

Ezekiel 34 contains an elaborate pastoral metaphor: the leadership of the Jewish people are equated with shepherds, who are expected to \u201cherd\u201d and protect their \u201cflock,\u201d but are accused by God of having (vs. 2, 8) \u201ctended themselves\u201d instead. Rather than identifying themselves as committed to doing what\u2019s best for their \u201cflock,\u201dthe \u201cshepherds\u201d are dunned for (v. 3) enriching themselves by virtue of their leadership positions, (v. 4) not demonstrating concern and care for the weak and lost, and (vs. 5-6) allowing the flock to become scattered and therefore easy prey for predators.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

God promises to dismiss these \u201cshepherds \u201d (v. 10,) and do everything for the \u201cflock\u201d that has not been done until now (vs. 12-16.) But God also maintains that he will hold members of the \u201cflock\u201d accountable, demanding from those who ought to know better, appropriate behavior (vs. 17-22.)\u00a0 The parable is followed up by a messianic moral, implying that the realization of these guarantees will come to fruition at some future moment.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Proper \u201cshepherding\u201d is a difficult enterprise. This is established by the rabbis in the following Midrashim:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

He tested David by means of sheep. What did David do? He led the sheep into the desert to keep them from feeding from the field of others\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: Thou hast been found trustworthy with regard to sheep, and so now I shall entrust My flock to you that you may shepherd them\u2026 <\/span>\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Similarly, when Moses tended the flock of Jethro\u2026, he led it to the farthest end of the wilderness in order to keep the sheep from stealing. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: You have been found trustworthy with regard to sheep; now I shall entrust My flock to you that you may shepherd it (Midrash Tanchumah, Parashat Exodus, #7).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

That he (<\/span>David<\/span><\/i>) was compassionate, and would allow the tenderest sheep to graze first, and they would consume the tops of the upper greens which were softest. Then he would let out the rams, who would eat the middle greens. And finally, he would turn out the elders of the flock, who would devour the roots. Said the Holy One, blessed be He: This one is worthy of shepherding My flock (Midrash HaGadol, Parashat Exodus 3:1).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

However, whatever the challenges, there can be no excuse for leaders to take advantage of their followers, and improperly carry out their sacrificial responsibilities. It is a privilege to serve, but not to aggrandize oneself as a result.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":101182,"alt":"","title":"-61f8146e69b78--61f8146e69b792chron35-sheep 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On The Pastoral Metaphor","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"The challenges of taking care of the flock","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":101182,"alt":"","title":"-61f8146e69b78--61f8146e69b792chron35-sheep 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End of Kingship ","post_title":"The End of Kingship","slug":"the-end-of-kingship","old_id":"75082","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":72948,"post_title":"Tova Ganzel","slug":"tova-ganzel","old_id":"72948","first_name":"Tova ","last_name":"Ganzel ","description":"Dr. Tova Ganzel is the Director of the Midrasha at Bar-Ilan University, and is one the first trained women\u2019s halakhic advisors (Yoatzot Halacha). She received her PhD from Bar-Ilan\u2019s Department of Bible Studies, and teaches at the Institute for Advanced Torah Studies at Bar-Ilan University. Her work is mainly on the Hebrew Bible in the context of the larger ancient Near Eastern world. \r\n","short_description":"Dr. Tova Ganzel is the Director of the Midrasha at Bar-Ilan University, and is one the first trained women\u2019s halakhic advisors (Yoatzot Halacha).","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":72949,"alt":"","title":"tova ganzel","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel.jpg","width":892,"height":1000,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel-268x300.jpg","medium-width":268,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel-768x861.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":861,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel.jpg","large-width":892,"large-height":1000,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel.jpg","1536x1536-width":892,"1536x1536-height":1000,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel.jpg","2048x2048-width":892,"2048x2048-height":1000,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel.jpg","post_full_size-width":892,"post_full_size-height":1000,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel-375x420.jpg","home_baner-width":375,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"486","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"The monarchy failed - for good\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

Ezekiel records a harsh prophecy directed against the kings of Israel, the nation\u2019s leaders, whom he compares to shepherds who do not tend to their flocks. In the future, the leadership will be taken from these shepherds who failed in the past to properly lead the nation. God Himself will gather up the flock, rehabilitate it and hand it over to a different shepherd who will fulfill his role faithfully.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The new shepherd will be a descendant of David.\u00a0 However, the present model of leadership will come to an end. It will not be a mere technical replacement of personnel, but rather a fundamental change in the essence of the role. Therefore in speaking of David\u2019s future status he is not referred to as \u201cking\u201d but as a \u201cNasi\u201d \u2013 prince.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Since the institution of kingship has failed, an alternative form of leadership must replace it. One of the roles of the king of Israel is to bring about a situation that will facilitate the Divine Presence coming to rest amongst the nation. The kings of Israel, as depicted in the book of Ezekiel, brought about the opposite situation: defilement and the distancing of the Divine Presence. Now it is too late; there is no repair for the corrupt kingship, and therefore it is replaced by the station of the \u201cNasi.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Published in conjunction with hatanach.com. For the <\/span>full article see here.<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":75083,"alt":"","title":"ez34-checkmate king","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king.jpg","width":1920,"height":1208,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king-300x189.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":189,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king-768x483.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":483,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king-1024x644.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":644,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":966,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1208,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king-1200x755.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":755,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king-668x420.jpg","home_baner-width":668,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"The End of Kingship","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"The monarchy failed - for good","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":75083,"alt":"","title":"ez34-checkmate king","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king.jpg","width":1920,"height":1208,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king-300x189.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":189,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king-768x483.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":483,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king-1024x644.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":644,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":966,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1208,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king-1200x755.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":755,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-checkmate-king-668x420.jpg","home_baner-width":668,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"34","chapter_main_number":"486","date":"20270711","wall_id":"486"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":6,"id":"75088","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"A Prince Among Men ","post_title":"A Prince Among Men","slug":"a-prince-among-men","old_id":"75088","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":46656,"post_title":"Molly Morris","slug":"molly-morris","old_id":"46656","first_name":"Molly ","last_name":"Morris ","description":"Molly Morris holds a Masters degree in Leadership and Community Engagement. Her particular area of interest is biblical leadership. Molly participates in the 929 initiative with a dedicated group from the Beth Avraham Yoseph of Toronto congregation. \r\n\r\n","short_description":"Molly Morris holds a Masters degree in Leadership and Community Engagement. Molly participates in the 929 initiative with a dedicated group from the Beth Avraham Yoseph of Toronto congregation. \r\n\r\n","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":92561,"alt":"","title":"molly morris","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris.jpg","width":2192,"height":2488,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris-264x300.jpg","medium-width":264,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris-768x872.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":872,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris-902x1024.jpg","large-width":902,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris.jpg","1536x1536-width":1353,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris.jpg","2048x2048-width":1804,"2048x2048-height":2048,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris-1057x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":1057,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/molly-morris-370x420.jpg","home_baner-width":370,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"486","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Born aloft by the people, he in turn bears them\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

At the beginning of this chapter, God compares His people to a flock of sheep who have been led by a corrupt shepherd. Such a shepherd tends to himself before tending to his flock and takes the fattest sheep and the best wool for his own use. So, too, have many of the nations\u2019 kings neglected to serve their people, while at the same time, benefiting from their struggles.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

God is very specific about the particular failings of leadership, and the examples provided all focus on social justice. \u201cYou have not sustained the weak, healed the sick, or bandaged the injured. You have not brought back the strayed or looked for the lost (34:4).\u201d These are failures not only of physical leadership, but spiritual as well, and are considered a catalyst for the downfall of the nation. R. Yosef ben Shimon Kara (Mahari Kara) attributes the nation\u2019s descent into idol worship to the willful negligence of leaders who did not go after the strayed or look for the lost. Since they were not being tended to, the people looked for leadership elsewhere: tragically from other gods. Rashi points to a flock that has become scattered, as the Jewish people have, being more vulnerable to predatory nations, both physically and spiritually.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

So dire had the situation become, that Ezekiel prophecies that God Himself will now step in to be their shepherd. First, He will \u201csearch for the lost, retrieve the banished, bind the broken, strengthen the ill and tend them with justice (34:16).\u201d And then He will appoint a new shepherd. But the era of kings is now over, and the new leader, from the house of King David will be \u201ca prince (<\/span>nasi<\/span><\/em>)<\/span><\/i> among them (34:24).\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

How will a prince\u2019s leadership differ from that of a king? Rav Mordechai Breuer, in the name of his great-grandfather Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch, likens the Hebrew word for prince \u2013 <\/span>nasi<\/span><\/em> \u2013 to the Hebrew word for banner \u2013 <\/span>nes<\/span><\/em>. Just as people raise a banner and hold it aloft to uplift and guide them through difficulty, so too is a nasi \u2013 a prince \u2013 \u201cborne by the people to in turn bear them\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

To be a true servant of God and leader of a nation, means to recognize one\u2019s role as \u201ca prince among them\u201d; to respond to one\u2019s elevated status by reflecting wisdom and energy back to the people for the nation\u2019s benefit and wellbeing.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":75090,"alt":"","title":"ez34-prince 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Prince, King, President ","post_title":"Nasi: Prince, King, President","slug":"nasi-prince-king-president","old_id":"75092","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":64450,"post_title":"David Curwin","slug":"david-curwin","old_id":"64450","first_name":"David ","last_name":"Curwin ","description":"David Curwin is a writer living in Efrat, and the author of the Balashon blog www.balashon.com","short_description":"David Curwin is a writer living in Efrat, and the author of the Balashon blog www.balashon.com","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":64452,"alt":"","title":"david 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ruler by any other name\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

In chapter 34, Ezekiel describes the future redemption. Among the predictions, God says:\u00a0<\/span>\u201cI the LORD will be their God, and My servant David shall be a ruler among them\u2014I the LORD have spoken.\u201d (34:24).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

While David lived centuries before Ezekiel, the general understanding (as explained by Rashi, for example) is that the reference is to the Messiah, who will be a descendant from the House of David.\u00a0 But what is curious in the verse, is that the word to describe this leader is \u201cruler\u201d \u2013 <\/span>nasi<\/span><\/em>\u00a0in Hebrew. Why not use the word \u201cking\u201d (<\/span>melech<\/span><\/em>)?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The word <\/span>nasi<\/span><\/em>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>is an interesting one in Biblical Hebrew. It appears 129 times in the Bible but is not distributed evenly among them. It shows up in the first four books of the Torah, the book of Joshua and then frequently in our book of Ezekiel. It is not found in Deuteronomy, Samuel and all the other prophets.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In the Torah, it usually refers to the head of a tribe or a clan. This can be a ruler of the Canaanites, like Hamor in Genesis 34:2, or the heads of the tribes of Israel in the Sinai desert. It meant different things in different circumstances (sometimes chieftains, sometimes princes) \u2013 but the one thing it didn\u2019t mean was king. The nomadic Ishmaelites (Genesis 17:20, 25:16) didn\u2019t have a king, and the Israelites in the time of Moses and Joshua did not have a king either \u2013 so the term <\/span>nasi<\/span><\/em>\u00a0was used.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

This may explain why Ezekiel used it so frequently as well, and particularly in our verse about the Messiah. In Ezekiel\u2019s time, the kings of Judah were often morally corrupt and did not listen to the warnings of the prophets. They were blamed for the exile and destruction that came upon the Judeans. With such negative connotations, Ezekiel preferred to use an alternate word, and so he described the Messiah as a <\/span>nasi<\/span><\/em>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>instead of a <\/span>melech<\/span><\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

This distinction continued in later generations. The head of the Sanhedrin was not a king, but was a very important leader \u2013 and so was known as a <\/span>nasi<\/span><\/em>\u00a0(for example, Rabbi Yehuda Ha-Nasi.) Other future leaders of the Jewish people also bore that title.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Today, the word <\/span>nasi<\/span><\/em>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>means \u201cpresident.\u201d It\u2019s not entirely clear who was the first president to be called <\/span>nasi<\/span><\/em>, but the term began to be used in the 19<\/span>th<\/span> century, when countries like France and the United States did not have a king as the head of government, but rather a civilian president. <\/span>Nasi<\/span><\/em>\u00a0was certainly the most appropriate (and available) term. And so the State of Israel also has a <\/span>nasi<\/span><\/em>. However, since the <\/span>nasi<\/span><\/em>\u00a0is mostly a ceremonial head of state, he\u2019s actually more similar to the kings in most constitutional monarchies.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Will the Messiah therefore be a king or a <\/span>nasi<\/span><\/em>? We\u2019ll have to wait and see\u2026<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":75093,"alt":"","title":"ez34-frog prince","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince.jpg","width":1920,"height":1174,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince-300x183.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":183,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince-768x470.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":470,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince-1024x626.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":626,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":939,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1174,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince-1200x734.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":734,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince-687x420.jpg","home_baner-width":687,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Nasi: Prince, King, President","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"A ruler by any other name","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":75093,"alt":"","title":"ez34-frog prince","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince.jpg","width":1920,"height":1174,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince-300x183.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":183,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince-768x470.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":470,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince-1024x626.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":626,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":939,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1174,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince-1200x734.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":734,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-frog-prince-687x420.jpg","home_baner-width":687,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"34","chapter_main_number":"486","date":"20270711","wall_id":"486"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":8,"id":"119192","color":"#f6edf6","size":"1","name":"The Tanakh Podcast-Ezekiel34","post_title":"The Tanakh Podcast-Ezekiel34","slug":"the-tanakh-podcast-ezekiel34","old_id":"119192","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":33692,"post_title":"Alex Israel","slug":"33692-2","old_id":"33692","first_name":"Alex","last_name":"Israel","description":"Alex Israel teaches Tanakh at the Pardes Institute, Yeshivat Eretz Hatzvi and Matan, Jerusalem. His first book \"I Kings - Torn in Two\" was published in 2013. See his website www.alexisrael.org, and his podcasts at https:\/\/elmad.pardes.org\/ and https:\/\/tanachstudy.com\/ \r\n","credit":"","image_url":"","short_description":"Alex Israel teaches Tanakh at the Pardes Institute, Yeshivat Eretz Hatzvi and Matan, Jerusalem.","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":33693,"alt":"","title":"alex israel","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel.jpg","width":1657,"height":2500,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel-199x300.jpg","medium-width":199,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel-679x1024.jpg","medium_large-width":679,"medium_large-height":1024,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel-679x1024.jpg","large-width":679,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel.jpg","1536x1536-width":1018,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel.jpg","2048x2048-width":1357,"2048x2048-height":2048,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel-795x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":795,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel-278x420.jpg","home_baner-width":278,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"486","type_929":"4","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"The Tanakh Podcast","tile_main_caption":"Ezekiel 34: New Leadership","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"God decries the old, self-interested, corrupt leadership and vows that he will instate a leadership that has the nation's interests at heart. 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Of A Perfected World ","post_title":"Visions Of A Perfected World","slug":"visions-of-a-perfected-world","old_id":"75095","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":64460,"post_title":"Vincent Calabrese","slug":"vincent-calabrese","old_id":"64460","first_name":"Vincent ","last_name":"Calabrese ","description":"Vincent Calabrese is a doctoral student in Jewish thought at the University of Toronto and a rabbinical student at the Hadar Institute","short_description":"Vincent Calabrese is a doctoral student in Jewish thought at the University of Toronto and a rabbinical student at the Hadar Institute","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":64461,"alt":"","title":"vincent 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who exactly will be in charge?\u00a0\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

Who is the proper ruler of the people Israel? Different answers to this question seem to have circulated in antiquity. Some texts evince a kind of \u2018royal theology\u2019 according to which the king plays a mediating, quasi-priestly role on which the fate of the people depends. Others have a much dimmer view of royal power; the Book of Deuteronomy, for example, envisages a king who is subservient to religious law and to the priests who teach it, and whose ability to amass wealth and military power is strictly curtailed. Still more extreme are those moments which reject the institution of human monarchy entirely. The judge Gideon rejects the throne which the people offer him, saying \u201cI will not rule over you myself, nor shall my son rule over you; the LORD alone shall rule over you\u201d (Judges 8:23).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

These different answers to the question of who should rule Israel have their echoes in the ways in which different texts imagine the messianic era \u2014 sometimes this is described in terms of a single messianic king, descended from David, whose reign will usher in a universal peace; at other moments the era seems to be one in which it is <\/span>God<\/span><\/i>, unmediated and alone, who will assume the rulership of humanity.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In the 34th chapter of Ezekiel, we encounter what seems to be a synthesis of these visions. After a tirade against the rulers of Israel (\u201cshepherds\u201d in Ezekiel\u2019s metaphor) who have used their authority to enrich themselves and care little for the spiritual and material fate of the people, we read that \u201cI Myself will graze My flock, and I Myself will let them lie down\u2014declares the Lord GOD. I will look for the lost, and I will bring back the strayed; I will bandage the injured, and I will sustain the weak; and the fat and healthy ones I will destroy. I will tend them rightly\u201d (15-16). But no sooner have we read of the assumption by God of the kingship of Israel than we read a very different vision of Israel\u2019s salvation: \u201cI will rescue My flock and they shall no longer be a spoil. I will decide between one animal and another. Then I will appoint a single shepherd over them to tend them\u2014My servant David. He shall tend them, he shall be a shepherd to them\u201d (33:22-23).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The vision of a personal messiah with which Ezekiel concludes became the dominant position in Jewish history, enshrined in the daily <\/span>amidah<\/em> <\/span>and inspiring a longing which repeatedly burst forth in messianic movements throughout Jewish history. But the appeal of the messianic era ruled by God alone never disappeared, informing theologies as varied as the ethical monotheism of classical Reform movement, the religious anarchism of Martin Buber, and even some strains of religious Zionism. The strange shape of Ezekiel\u2019s prophecy, which refuses to choose absolutely between these options, indicates the enduring appeal of both of these visions of a perfected world.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":75096,"alt":"","title":"ez34-king ruler statuate","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate.jpg","width":1920,"height":1280,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate-300x200.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":200,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate-768x512.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":512,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate-1024x683.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":683,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1024,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1280,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate-1200x800.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":800,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate-630x420.jpg","home_baner-width":630,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Visions Of A Perfected World","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"But who exactly will be in charge?\u00a0","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":75096,"alt":"","title":"ez34-king ruler statuate","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate.jpg","width":1920,"height":1280,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate-300x200.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":200,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate-768x512.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":512,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate-1024x683.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":683,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1024,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1280,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate-1200x800.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":800,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-king-ruler-statuate-630x420.jpg","home_baner-width":630,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"34","chapter_main_number":"486","date":"20270711","wall_id":"486"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":10,"id":"75085","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"2","name":"The Shepherds Who Tended To Themselves ","post_title":"The Shepherds Who Tended To Themselves","slug":"the-shepherds-who-tended-to-themselves","old_id":"75085","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":34243,"post_title":"Moshe Sokolow","slug":"moshe-sokolow","old_id":"34243","first_name":"Moshe","last_name":"Sokolow","description":"Dr. Moshe Sokolow is Associate Dean of the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration, Yeshiva University, and teaches a weekly class in parashat hashavu`a at Lincoln Square Synagogue. He is the author of TANAKH: An Owner\u2019s Manual (Jerusalem: Urim\/Ktav, 2015).\r\n\r\n","short_description":"Dr. Moshe Sokolow is Associate Dean of the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration, Yeshiva University","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":34244,"alt":"","title":"sokolow","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","width":302,"height":300,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow-300x298.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":298,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","medium_large-width":302,"medium_large-height":300,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","large-width":302,"large-height":300,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","1536x1536-width":302,"1536x1536-height":300,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","2048x2048-width":302,"2048x2048-height":300,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","post_full_size-width":302,"post_full_size-height":300,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/sokolow.jpg","home_baner-width":302,"home_baner-height":300}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"486","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Nobles, judges, priests and prophets - all discredited\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

Here, God instructed Ezekiel as follows: \u201cO mortal, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy, and say to them: To the shepherds: Thus said the Lord GOD: Ah, you shepherds of Israel, who have been tending yourselves! Is it not the flock that the shepherds ought to tend?\u201d (2).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Rashi identified the shepherds as \u201ccommunity leaders\u201d (<\/span>parnasim<\/span><\/i>) and Eliezer of Beaugency expanded it to include \u201cnobles, judges, priests, and prophets,\u201d while Radak identified them with \u201ctheir kings.\u201d Malbim, once again (see Chapter 33), distinguished between two types of shepherds:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

There are shepherds who work for free, disdaining public funding, the essence of whose shepherding is exclusively the direction and welfare of the sheep. (So it is stated about David: \u201cHe chose His servant David, taking him from the sheep pens,\u201d which the Midrash explains as God testing him via the sheep.) This [type] is solely a shepherd.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

There is [another] shepherd who is salaried, who receives the shearing and fat as his payment, which is why he tends to them in order to wear their shearing and eat their fat. This means that he tends to them and they tend to him, too.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In previous generations, the shepherds of Israel who tended to them derived no benefit from the public and their sole [concern] were the sheep. Now, there were no such shepherds and [instead] the sheep tended to the shepherds.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Moshe Greenberg commented: \u201c[They are] the political leaders responsible for the disaster that befell Israel. The captive kings Jehoiachin and Zedekiah, along with their advisors and officials, all in disgrace, are the putative audience\u2026 For the exiled community\u2014the real audience\u2014the message is that this discredited leadership will be replaced by God\u201d (Anchor Bible: <\/span>Ezekiel<\/span><\/i>, 694-5).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":75086,"alt":"","title":"ez34-nobles","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles.jpg","width":1920,"height":1440,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles-300x225.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":225,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles-768x576.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":576,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles-1024x768.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":768,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1152,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1440,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles-1200x900.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":900,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles-560x420.jpg","home_baner-width":560,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"The Shepherds Who Tended To Themselves","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Nobles, judges, priests and prophets - all discredited","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":75086,"alt":"","title":"ez34-nobles","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles.jpg","width":1920,"height":1440,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles-300x225.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":225,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles-768x576.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":576,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles-1024x768.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":768,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1152,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1440,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles-1200x900.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":900,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez34-nobles-560x420.jpg","home_baner-width":560,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"34","chapter_main_number":"486","date":"20270711","wall_id":"486"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":11,"id":"75073","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Herd Community ","post_title":"Herd Community","slug":"herd-community","old_id":"75073","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":54356,"post_title":"Robert Alter","slug":"robert-alter","old_id":"54356","first_name":"Robert ","last_name":"Alter","description":"Robert Alter is the Class of 1937 Professor of Hebrew and Comparative Literature at the University of California at Berkeley, where he has taught since 1967. He has written over twenty books, focusing on such topics as the European novel from the 18th century to the present, contemporary American fiction, and modern Hebrew literature. He has also written extensively on the literary aspects of the Bible. His most recent work is his monumental three volume translation of the entire Hebrew Bible - The Hebrew Bible, W. W. Norton & Co., 2019 - from which the selections in 929 are taken. ","short_description":"Robert Alter is the Class of 1937 Professor of Hebrew and Comparative Literature at the University of California at Berkeley, and author of the three-volume translation of the entire Hebrew Bible - The Hebrew Bible, W. W. Norton & Co., 2019.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":54357,"alt":"","title":"robert alter","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","width":184,"height":275,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","medium-width":184,"medium-height":275,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","medium_large-width":184,"medium_large-height":275,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","large-width":184,"large-height":275,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","1536x1536-width":184,"1536x1536-height":275,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","2048x2048-width":184,"2048x2048-height":275,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","post_full_size-width":184,"post_full_size-height":275,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","home_baner-width":184,"home_baner-height":275}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"486","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"The shepherds have become part of the flock\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

34:16 \u201c\u2018The lost one will I seek out, and the strayed one will I bring back, and the one with the broken limb will I bind up, and the weak one will I strengthen, but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will herd it in justice. And you are My flock.\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

This is another instance in which Ezekiel does not quite manage his metaphorical vehicle. These two terms are feminine and so must be part of the flock, <\/span>ts\u2019on<\/span><\/em>, which is a feminine noun. But the reference is clearly to the predatory leaders, so at this point the shepherds have become part of the flock. Their metaphorical identity as belonging to the flock is spelled out in the next verse: \u201cI am about to judge between sheep and sheep, between rams and he-goats.\u201d A partial justification for this confusion is that God is now the shepherd and hence all Israel is the flock, but the switch is nevertheless awkward.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

From: Robert Alter, The Hebrew Bible<\/em>, vol. 2: Prophets, W. W. Norton & Co., 2019, ad loc. By permission of the author.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":54890,"alt":"","title":"Alter-Cover","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","width":1200,"height":693,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-300x173.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":173,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-768x444.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":444,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1024x591.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":591,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","1536x1536-width":1200,"1536x1536-height":693,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","2048x2048-width":1200,"2048x2048-height":693,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1200x693.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":693,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-727x420.jpg","home_baner-width":727,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"From Robert Alter's Bible Translation and Commentary","tile_main_caption":"Herd Community","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"The shepherds have become part of the flock","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":54890,"alt":"","title":"Alter-Cover","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","width":1200,"height":693,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-300x173.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":173,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-768x444.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":444,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1024x591.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":591,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","1536x1536-width":1200,"1536x1536-height":693,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","2048x2048-width":1200,"2048x2048-height":693,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1200x693.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":693,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-727x420.jpg","home_baner-width":727,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"34","chapter_main_number":"486","date":"20270711","wall_id":"486"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":12,"id":"74828","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"A Lesson on the Daily Chapter- Ezekiel 34 ","post_title":"A Lesson on the Daily Chapter- Ezekiel 34","slug":"a-lesson-on-the-daily-chapter-ezekiel-34","old_id":"74828","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":40936,"post_title":"David Silber","slug":"david-silber-2","old_id":"40936","first_name":"David ","last_name":"Silber ","description":"Rabbi David Silber is the Founder and Dean of Drisha Institute for Jewish Education. 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\u201cThe Lord is My \u201cShepherd\u201d?\u201d<\/a> by Rabbi David Segal: Looking at the term \u201cshepherd\u201d to describe God.<\/p>\r\n

\u201cMashiach and Christianity\u201d<\/a> by Mordechai Burg: Sources looking at Christianity and Messiah.<\/p>","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"Go deeper into the chapter....","tile_main_caption":"Source Sheets - Ezekiel 34","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Links to learning resources","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":42232,"alt":"","title":"sefaria-words-sunburst","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","width":608,"height":395,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst-300x195.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":195,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","medium_large-width":608,"medium_large-height":395,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","large-width":608,"large-height":395,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","1536x1536-width":608,"1536x1536-height":395,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","2048x2048-width":608,"2048x2048-height":395,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","post_full_size-width":608,"post_full_size-height":395,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","home_baner-width":608,"home_baner-height":395}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"Sefaria word sunburst visualization","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"34","chapter_main_number":"486","date":"20270711","wall_id":"486"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":14,"id":"75075","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Points to Ponder - Ezekiel 34 ","post_title":"Points to Ponder - Ezekiel 34","slug":"points-to-ponder-ezekiel-34","old_id":"75075","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":38102,"post_title":"929-English","slug":"929-english","old_id":"38102","first_name":"","last_name":"929-English","description":"","short_description":"","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":38333,"alt":"","title":"\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5.png","width":1513,"height":860,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-300x171.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":171,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-768x437.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":437,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-1024x582.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":582,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5.png","1536x1536-width":1513,"1536x1536-height":860,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5.png","2048x2048-width":1513,"2048x2048-height":860,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-1200x682.png","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":682,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-739x420.png","home_baner-width":739,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"486","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"

    \r\n\t
  1. L\u2019etat c\u2019est moi<\/em>. The prophecy about the shepherds of Israel touches on the question of who serves whom: is the leader serving the public, or enjoying the services of his subjects?<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  2. Taking responsibility for the exile<\/em>. The parable is clear. The sheep scatter because there is no responsible leadership to guide them.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  3. As a shepherd seeks out his flock<\/em> (<\/span>k\u2019vakarat ro\u2019eh edro <\/span><\/em>- <\/span><\/i>12). This verse made its way from the prophecy of Ezekiel to the High Holiday liturgy, to the piyyut \u201cU'netaneh tokef<\/em>.\u201d In the piyyut, the image of the shepherd\/judge is clearly drawn: he doesn\u2019t just know every member of his flock, he also is determines the fate of each and every one of them: \u201cAs a shepherd herds his flock, directing his sheep to pass under his staff, so do you shall pass, count, and record the souls of all living, and decree a limit to each person's days, and inscribe their final judgment.\u201d<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  4. Who is the shepherd?<\/em> There is a stage in history when the human shepherds are deposed, and God is the one who institutes law and order. And then there\u2019s normalization, when a human leader takes charge. \u201cI the LORD will be their God, and My servant David shall be a ruler among them\u201d (24).<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  5. A new stage of consciousness.<\/em> After many chapters of prophecies of catastrophe that were meant to make it clear that \u201cI am the LORD,\u201d it\u2019s time for redemption and a new consciousness to arise: \u201cThey shall know that I the LORD their God am with them and they, the House of Israel, are My people\u201d (30).<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ol>","post_main_content_image":{"id":86314,"alt":"","title":"Points to ponder","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","width":1000,"height":1000,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-300x300.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-768x768.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":768,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","large-width":1000,"large-height":1000,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","1536x1536-width":1000,"1536x1536-height":1000,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","2048x2048-width":1000,"2048x2048-height":1000,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","post_full_size-width":1000,"post_full_size-height":1000,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-420x420.jpg","home_baner-width":420,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"Ezekiel 34","tile_main_caption":"Points to Ponder","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Insights and questions for personal reflection and group discussion","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":86314,"alt":"","title":"Points to ponder","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","width":1000,"height":1000,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-300x300.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-768x768.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":768,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","large-width":1000,"large-height":1000,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","1536x1536-width":1000,"1536x1536-height":1000,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","2048x2048-width":1000,"2048x2048-height":1000,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder.jpg","post_full_size-width":1000,"post_full_size-height":1000,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Points-to-ponder-420x420.jpg","home_baner-width":420,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"34","chapter_main_number":"486","date":"20270711","wall_id":"486"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false}],"hide_acf":true,"home_image":false,"home_posts":false,"home_posts_title":"","posts_home":[],"static_cube_title":"","static_cube_brief":"","static_cube_color":"","link_teaser":"","listen_link":"","other_title":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wall\/74450"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wall"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/wall"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=74450"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}