Discovery BoxEzekiel 34:25-31 
Context34:25 “‘I will make a covenant of peace with them and will rid the land of wild beasts, so that they can live securely 1 in the wilderness and even sleep in the woods. 2 34:26 I will turn them and the regions around my hill into a blessing. I will make showers come down in their season; they will be showers that bring blessing. 3 34:27 The trees of the field will yield their fruit and the earth will yield its crops. They will live securely on their land; they will know that I am the Lord, when I break the bars of their yoke and rescue them from the hand of those who enslaved them. 34:28 They will no longer be prey for the nations and the wild beasts will not devour them. They will live securely and no one will make them afraid. 34:29 I will prepare for them a healthy 4 planting. They will no longer be victims 5 of famine in the land and will no longer bear the insults of the nations. 34:30 Then they will know that I, the Lord their God, am with them, 6 and that they are my people, the house of Israel, declares the sovereign Lord. 7 34:31 And you, my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are my people, 8 and I am your God, declares the sovereign Lord.’”
1 tn The phrase “live securely” occurs in Ezek 28:26; 38:8, 11, 14; 39:26 as an expression of freedom from fear. It is a promised blessing resulting from obedience (see Lev 26:5-6).
2 sn The woods were typically considered to be places of danger (Ps 104:20-21; Jer 5:6).
3 tn Heb “showers of blessing.” Abundant rain, which in turn produces fruit and crops (v. 27), is a covenantal blessing for obedience (Lev 26:4).
4 tc The MT reads לְשֵׁם (lÿshem, “for a name”), meaning perhaps a renowned planting (place). The translation takes this to be a metathesis of שָׁלֹם (shalom) as was read by the LXX.
5 tn Heb “those gathered” for famine.
6 sn A promise given to Abraham (Gen 15:7) and his descendants (Gen 15:8; Exod 6:7).
7 sn The blessings described in vv. 25-30 are those promised for obedience in Lev 26:4-13.
8 tn Heb, “the sheep of my pasture, you are human.” See 36:37-38 for a similar expression. The possessive pronoun “my” is supplied in the translation to balance “I am your God” in the next clause.
