1Open your doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour your cedars.

2Wail, O cypress; for the cedar has fallen; because the mighty trees are ruined: wail, O you oaks of Bashan; for the thick forest has come down.

3There is a sound of the wailing of the shepherds; for their glory is in ruins: a sound of the roaring of young lions; for the pride of the Jordan is in ruins.

The Staffs of Grace and Unity

4Thus says the LORD my God; Feed the flock for the slaughter;

5Whose owners slay them, and hold themselves not guilty: and they that sell them say, Blessed be the LORD; for I am rich: and their own shepherds pity them not.

6For I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land, says the LORD: but, lo, I will deliver the men every one into his neighbor's hand, and into the hand of his king: and they shall strike the land, and out of their hand I will not deliver them.

7And I will feed the flock of slaughter, even you, O poor of the flock. And I took unto me two staffs; the one I called Grace, and the other I called Unity; and I fed the flock.

8Three shepherds also I cut off in one month; and my soul loathed them, and their souls also abhorred me.

9Then said I, I will not feed you: that that dies, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let the rest eat every one the flesh of another.

10And I took my staff, even Grace, and cut it asunder, that I might break my covenant which I had made with all the people.

11And it was broken in that day: and so the poor of the flock that waited upon me knew that it was the word of the LORD.

12And I said unto them, If you think it good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver.

13And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a princely price that I was valued at by them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the LORD.

14Then I cut asunder my other staff, even Unity, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.

15And the LORD said unto me, Take unto you yet the implements of a foolish shepherd.

16For, lo, I will raise up a shepherd in the land, who shall not visit those that are cut off, neither shall seek the young one, nor heal that that is broken, nor feed that which stands: but he shall eat the flesh of the fat, and tear their hoofs in pieces.

17Woe to the worthless shepherd that leaves the flock! the sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be wholly dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened.