apacentar

To graze or pasture livestock, or figuratively, to shepherd and guide people spiritually or morally. Mostly heard in pastoral, rural, or biblical/religious contexts — pastorear is the more everyday word for herding animals today.

• El pastor apacentaba sus ovejas en la ladera del cerro. — The shepherd grazed his sheep on the hillside.
• El sacerdote habló de apacentar espiritualmente a la comunidad. — The priest spoke of spiritually shepherding the community.
• Los campesinos apacentaban el ganado cerca del río. — The farmhands grazed the cattle near the river.

Assuming apacentar is purely literal — in religious and literary Spanish it's very often figurative, meaning to guide, teach, or care for people, not just animals grazing.

Often confused with pastorear.

• quote "Apacienta mis ovejas" — Jesus's words to Peter in John 21:15-17 of the Spanish-language Bible (Reina-Valera and other standard translations), where he repeats the charge — "apacienta mis corderos" / "apacienta mis ovejas" — commissioning Peter to care for and guide his followers.