Mazmur 78:71

78:71 He took him away from following the mother sheep, ¹ 

and made him the shepherd of Jacob, his people,

and of Israel, his chosen nation. ² 

Mazmur 78:2

78:2 I will sing a song that imparts wisdom;

I will make insightful observations about the past. ³ 

1 Samuel 7:7

7:7 When the Philistines heard that the Israelites had gathered at Mizpah, the leaders of the Philistines went up against Israel. When the Israelites heard about this, they were afraid of the Philistines.

Yesaya 40:11

40:11 Like a shepherd he tends his flock;

he gathers up the lambs with his arm;

he carries them close to his heart; ⁴ 

he leads the ewes along.

Yehezkiel 34:23-24

34:23 I will set one shepherd over them, and he will feed them – namely, my servant David. ⁵  He will feed them and will be their shepherd. 34:24 I, the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David will be prince ⁶  among them; I, the Lord, have spoken!

Mikha 5:2

A King Will Come and a Remnant Will Prosper

5:2 (5:1) As for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, ⁷ 

seemingly insignificant ⁸  among the clans of Judah –

from you a king will emerge who will rule over Israel on my behalf, ⁹ 

one whose origins ¹⁰  are in the distant past. ¹¹ 

Mikha 5:4

5:4 He will assume his post ¹²  and shepherd the people ¹³  by the Lord’s strength,

by the sovereign authority of the Lord his God. ¹⁴ 

They will live securely, ¹⁵  for at that time he will be honored ¹⁶ 

even in the distant regions of ¹⁷  the earth.

Mikha 7:14

7:14 Shepherd your people with your shepherd’s rod, ¹⁸ 

the flock that belongs to you, ¹⁹ 

the one that lives alone in a thicket,

in the midst of a pastureland. ²⁰ 

Allow them to graze in Bashan and Gilead, ²¹ 

as they did in the old days. ²² 

Matius 2:6

2:6 ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,

are in no way least among the rulers of Judah,

for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’” ²³ 

[78:71]  ¹ tn Heb “from after the ewes he brought him.”

[78:71]  ² tn Heb “to shepherd Jacob, his people, and Israel, his inheritance.”

[78:2]  ³ tn Heb “I will open with a wise saying my mouth, I will utter insightful sayings from long ago.” Elsewhere the Hebrew word pair חִידָה+מָשָׁל (mashal + khidah) refers to a taunt song (Hab 2:6), a parable (Ezek 17:2), proverbial sayings (Prov 1:6), and an insightful song that reflects on the mortality of humankind and the ultimate inability of riches to prevent death (Ps 49:4).

[40:11]  ⁴ tn Heb “in his bosom” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV), an expression which reflects closeness and protective care.

[34:23]  ⁵ sn The messianic king is here called “David” (see Jer 30:9 and Hos 3:5, as well as Isa 11:1 and Mic 5:2) because he will fulfill the Davidic royal ideal depicted in the prophets and royal psalms (see Ps 2, 89).

[34:24]  ⁶ sn The messianic king (“David”) is called both “king” and “prince” in 37:24-25. The use of the term “prince” for this king facilitates the contrast between this ideal ruler and the Davidic “princes” denounced in earlier prophecies (see 7:27; 12:10, 12; 19:1; 21:25; 22:6, 25).

[5:2]  ⁷ sn Ephrathah is either an alternate name for Bethlehem or the name of the district in which Bethlehem was located. See Ruth 4:11.

[5:2]  map For location of Bethlehem see Map5 B1; Map7 E2; Map8 E2; Map10 B4.

[5:2]  ⁸ tn Heb “being small.” Some omit לִהְיוֹת (lihyot, “being”) because it fits awkwardly and appears again in the next line.

[5:2]  ⁹ tn Heb “from you for me one will go out to be a ruler over Israel.”

[5:2]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “his goings out.” The term may refer to the ruler’s origins (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT) or to his activities.

[5:2]  ¹¹ tn Heb “from the past, from the days of antiquity.” Elsewhere both phrases refer to the early periods in the history of the world or of the nation of Israel. For מִקֶּדֶם (miqqedem, “from the past”) see Neh 12:46; Pss 74:12; 77:11; Isa 45:21; 46:10. For מִימֵי עוֹלָם (mimey ’olam, “from the days of antiquity”) see Isa 63:9, 11; Amos 9:11; Mic 7:14; Mal 3:4. In Neh 12:46 and Amos 9:11 the Davidic era is in view.

[5:2]  sn In riddle-like fashion this verse alludes to David, as the references to Bethlehem and to his ancient origins/activities indicate. The passage anticipates the second coming of the great king to usher in a new era of national glory for Israel. Other prophets are more direct and name this coming ideal ruler “David” (Jer 30:9; Ezek 34:23-24; 37:24-25; Hos 3:5). Of course, this prophecy of “David’s” second coming is actually fulfilled through his descendant, the Messiah, who will rule in the spirit and power of his famous ancestor and bring to realization the Davidic royal ideal in an even greater way than the historical David (see Isa 11:1, 10; Jer 33:15).

[5:4]  ¹² tn Heb “stand up”; NAB “stand firm”; NASB “will arise.”

[5:4]  ¹³ tn The words “the people” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[5:4]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “by the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.”

[5:4]  ¹⁵ tn The words “in peace” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Perhaps וְיָשָׁבוּ (vÿyashavu, “and they will live”) should be emended to וְשָׁבוּ (vÿshavu, “and they will return”).

[5:4]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “be great.”

[5:4]  ¹⁷ tn Or “to the ends of.”

[7:14]  ¹⁸ tn Or “with your scepter” (the Hebrew term can mean either “rod” or “scepter”).

[7:14]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “the flock of your inheritance.”

[7:14]  ²⁰ tn Or “in the midst of Carmel.” The Hebrew term translated “pastureland” may be a place name.

[7:14]  sn The point seems to be that Israel is in a vulnerable position, like sheep in a thicket populated by predators, while rich pastureland (their homeland and God’s blessings) is in view.

[7:14]  ²¹ sn The regions of Bashan and Gilead, located in Transjordan, were noted for their rich grazing lands.

[7:14]  ²² tn Heb “as in the days of antiquity.”

[2:6]  ²³ sn A quotation from Mic 5:2.