1 Kings 22:17

22:17 Micaiah ¹  said, “I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains like sheep that have no shepherd. Then the Lord said, ‘They have no master. They should go home in peace.’”

1 Kings 22:2

22:2 In the third year King Jehoshaphat of Judah came down to visit ²  the king of Israel.

1 Kings 18:16

Elijah Confronts Baal’s Prophets

18:16 When Obadiah went and informed Ahab, the king went to meet Elijah. ³ 

Ezekiel 34:5

34:5 They were scattered because they had no shepherd, and they became food for every wild beast. ⁴ 

Zechariah 10:2

10:2 For the household gods ⁵  have spoken wickedness, the soothsayers have seen a lie, and as for the dreamers, they have disclosed emptiness and give comfort in vain. Therefore the people set out like sheep and become scattered because they have no shepherd. ⁶ 

Zechariah 13:7

13:7 “Awake, sword, against my shepherd,

against the man who is my associate,”

says the Lord who rules over all.

Strike the shepherd that the flock may be scattered; ⁷ 

I will turn my hand against the insignificant ones.

Matthew 9:36

9:36 When ⁸  he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were bewildered and helpless, ⁹  like sheep without a shepherd.

Matthew 10:6

10:6 Go ¹⁰  instead to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

Matthew 15:24

15:24 So ¹¹  he answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

Mark 6:34

6:34 As Jesus ¹²  came ashore ¹³  he saw the large crowd and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So ¹⁴  he taught them many things.

Mark 6:1

Rejection at Nazareth

6:1 Now ¹⁵  Jesus left that place and came to his hometown, ¹⁶  and his disciples followed him.

Mark 2:25

2:25 He said to them, “Have you never read what David did when he was in need and he and his companions were hungry –

¹ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Micaiah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

² tn The word “visit” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

³ tn Heb “Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him, and Ahab went to meet Elijah.”

⁴ tn As a case of dittography, the MT repeats “and they were scattered” at the end of the verse.

⁵ tn The Hebrew word תְּרָפִים (tÿrafim, “teraphim”) refers to small images used as means of divination and in other occult practices (cf. Gen 31:19, 34-35; 1 Sam 19:13, 16; Hos 3:4). A number of English versions transliterate the Hebrew term (cf. ASV, NAB, NASB, NRSV) or simply use the generic term “idols” (so KJV, NIV, TEV).

⁶ sn Shepherd is a common OT metaphor for the king (see esp. Jer 2:8; 3:15; 10:21; 23:1-2; 50:6; Ezek 34).

⁷ sn Despite the NT use of this text to speak of the scattering of the disciples following Jesus’ crucifixion (Matt 26:31; Mark 14:27), the immediate context of Zechariah suggests that unfaithful shepherds (kings) will be punished by the Lord precisely so their flocks (disobedient Israel) can be scattered (cf. Zech 11:6, 8, 9, 16). It is likely that Jesus drew on this passage merely to make the point that whenever shepherds are incapacitated, sheep will scatter. Thus he was not identifying himself with the shepherd in this text (the shepherd in the Zechariah text is a character who is portrayed negatively).

⁸ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

⁹ tn Or “because they had been bewildered and helpless.” The translational issue is whether the perfect participles are predicate (as in the text) or are pluperfect periphrastic (the alternate translation). If the latter, the implication would seem to be that the crowds had been in such a state until the Great Shepherd arrived.

¹⁰ tn Grk “But go.” The Greek μᾶλλον (mallon, “rather, instead”) conveys the adversative nuance here so that δέ (de) has not been translated.

¹¹ tn Grk “And answering, he said.” The construction in Greek is somewhat redundant and has been simplified in the translation. Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the disciples’ request.

¹² tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹³ tn Grk “came out [of the boat],” with the reference to the boat understood.

¹⁴ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “So” to indicate this action is the result of Jesus’ compassion on the crowd in the narrative.

¹⁵ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.

¹⁶ sn Jesus’ hometown (where he spent his childhood years) was Nazareth, about 20 miles (30 km) southwest of Capernaum.