10:6

Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel: The phrase lost sheep of Israel is a metaphor. In this metaphor, Jesus compared the nation of Israel to lost sheep.

They were lost in the sense that they had strayed from their shepherd (God).

Here are some other ways to translate this metaphor:

• Keep the metaphor. For example:

Instead, go to the lost sheep of the nation of Israel (God’s Word)

• Change the metaphor to a simile. For example:

Go only to the people of Israel, because they are like a flock of lost sheep. (Contemporary English Version)

• Change the metaphor to a simile and add how sheep and Israel are similar. For example:

Go only to the descendants of Israel. They are like sheep who have strayed ⌊from their shepherd⌋.

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