I myself will tend my sheep and give them a place to lie down in peace, says the Sovereign Lord.
Parallel translations
- WEB I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will cause them to lie down, says the Lord Yahweh.
- KJV I will feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord GOD.
- BSB I will tend My flock and make them lie down, declares the Lord GOD.
- NKJV I will feed My flock, and I will make them lie down,” says the Lord God.
- NASB I Myself will feed My flock and I Myself will lead them to rest,” declares the Lord God.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God Himself declares, 'I will be the shepherd of my sheep,' personally giving them rest. The Lord claims the role His appointed leaders forfeited.
Overview
This is the climactic statement of God's direct shepherding. He will tend the flock and 'cause them to lie down' in security. The 'I myself' emphasis recalls v.11 and frames the whole promise as God's personal commitment. In the New Testament this very claim is taken up by Jesus, the Lord who shepherds His people (John 10; 1 Pet. 2:25).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Ps 23:1–2A Psalm by David. Yahweh is my shepherd: I shall lack nothing.
- Jer 3:15I will give you shepherds according to my heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.
- John 21:15So when they had eaten their breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I have affection for you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.”
- Ezek 34:23I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd.
- Zeph 3:13The remnant of Israel will not do iniquity, nor speak lies, neither will a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth, for they will feed and lie down, and no one will make them afraid.”
- Isa 11:6–7The wolf will live with the lamb, and the leopard will lie down with the young goat; The calf, the young lion, and the fattened calf together; and a little child will lead them.
- Isa 65:9–10I will bring offspring out of Jacob, and out of Judah an inheritor of my mountains. My chosen will inherit it, and my servants will dwell there.
- Isa 27:10For the fortified city is solitary, a habitation deserted and forsaken, like the wilderness. The calf will feed there, and there he will lie down, and consume its branches.
- Song 1:7–8Tell me, you whom my soul loves, where you graze your flock, where you rest them at noon; For why should I be as one who is veiled beside the flocks of your companions?
- Hos 2:18In that day I will make a covenant for them with the animals of the field, and with the birds of the sky, and with the creeping things of the ground. I will break the bow, the sword, and the battle out of the land, and will make them lie down safely.
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The promise of one Shepherd-King David, a new heart and new Spirit, and the river of life flowing from the temple all stream toward Christ, the good Shepherd who gives the Spirit.
How Ezekiel 34:15 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.