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•SHEPHAM a treeless place, Numbers 34:10, 11: “The coast shall go down from Shepham to Riblah.”
•SHEPHATIAH judged of the Lord. (1.) A son of David by Abital (2 Samuel 3:4).
(2.) A Benjamite who joined David at Ziklag (1 Chronicles 12:5). (3.) A Simeonite prince in David’s time (1 Chronicles 27:16). (4.) One of Jehoshaphat’s sons (2 Chronicles 21:2).
(5.) Ezra 2:4.
(6.) Ezra 2:57; Nehemiah 7:59.
(7.) One of the princes who urged the putting of Jeremiah to death (Jeremiah 38:1-4).
•SHEPHERD a word naturally of frequent occurence in Scripture. Sometimes the word “pastor” is used instead (Jeremiah 2:8; 3:15; 10:21; 12:10; 17:16). This word is used figuratively to represent the relation of rulers to their subjects and of God to his people (Psalm 23:1; 80:1; Isaiah 40:11; 44:28; Jeremiah 25:34, 35; Nahum 3:18; John 10:11, 14; Hebrews 13:20; 1 Peter 2:25; 5:4).
The duties of a shepherd in an unenclosed country like Palestine were very onerous. “In early morning he led forth the flock from the fold, marching at its head to the spot where they were to be pastured. Here he watched them all day, taking care that none of the sheep strayed, and if any for a time eluded his watch and wandered away from the rest, seeking diligently till he found and brought it back. In those lands sheep require to be supplied regularly with water, and the shepherd for this purpose has to guide them either to some running stream or to wells dug in the wilderness