THE WITHDRAWAL OF THE DIVINE

SHEPHERD

A THREEfold emBLEM

i

The Flock of Slaughter

Thus said the LORD my God: Feed the flock of slaughter: whose buyers slay them, and hold themselves not guilty; and they that sell them say, Blessed be the LORD, for I am rich; and their shepherd pitieth them not. For I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land, saith the LORD: but, lo, I will deliver the men every one into his neighbour's hand, and into the hand of his king: and they shall smite the land, and out of their hand I will not deliver them.

So I fed the flock of slaughter: verily the most miserable of sheep!

ii

Graciousness and Union

And I took unto me two staves; the one I called Graciousness, and the other I called Union; and I fed the

flock. And I cut off the three shepherds in one month; for my soul was weary of them, and their soul also loathed me. Then said I, I will not feed you: that that dieth, let it die; and that that is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let them which are left eat every one the flesh of another. And I took my staff Graciousness, and cut it asunder, that I might break my covenant which I had made with all the peoples. And it was broken in that day: and thus the poor of the flock that gave heed unto me knew that it was the word of the LORD. And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my hire; and if not, forbear. they weighed for my hire thirty pieces of silver. And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter, the goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them unto the potter, in the house of the LORD. Then I cut asunder mine other staff, even Union, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.

iii

The Foolish Shepherd

So

And the LORD said unto me, Take unto thee yet again the instruments of a foolish shepherd. For, lo, I will raise up a shepherd in the land, which shall not miss those that be lost, neither shall seek those that be scattered, nor

heal that that is broken; neither shall he feed that which

is sound, but he shall eat tear their hoofs in pieces.

the flesh of the fat, and shall

Woe to the worthless shepherd

that leaveth the flock! the sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened.

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THREE PROPHECIES OF THE SIEGE

i

The Fountain for the House of David

Thus saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him: Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of reeling unto all the peoples round about, and upon Judah also shall it be in the siege against Jerusalem. And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all the peoples; all that burden themselves with it shall be sore wounded; and all the nations of the earth shall be gathered together against it. In that day, saith the LORD, I will smite every horse with astonishment, and his rider with madness: and I will open mine eyes upon the house of Judah, and will smite every horse of the peoples with blindness. And the chieftains of Judah shall say in their heart, The inhabitants of Jerusalem are my strength in the LORD of hosts their God. In that day will I make the chieftains of Judah like a pan of fire among wood, and like a torch of fire among sheaves; and they shall devour all the peoples

round about, on the right hand and on the left: and Jerusalem shall yet again dwell in her own place, even in Jerusalem. The LORD also shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem be not magnified above Judah. In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them. And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.

And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplication; and they shall look unto me whom they have pierced and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon. And the land shall mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart; the family of the Shimeites apart, and their wives apart; all the families that remain, every family apart, and their wives apart.

In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the