The Lord Will Be Israel’s Shepherd
Ezekiel 34
“The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Woe to you shepherds of Israel who only take care of yourselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock?” (Ezekiel 34:1-2).
Ezekiel was God’s chosen watchman to proclaim His word, but the Lord came to Ezekiel to give a word of judgment regarding Israel’s leaders, to include both kings, priests, and prophets. Furthermore, the Lord rebuked the shepherds’ narcissism and lack of empathy for their sheep. His wrath was against the shepherds (kings, priests, and prophets) because they failed to give proper care to the sheep to prevent them from spiritual harm and breaking covenant with the Lord. These were the pre-exilic leaders who did not prevent the people from going into destruction.
2 Samuel 5:2 describes and lays a foundation for what the Lord expected from His leaders. The Bible says: “…you will shepherd my people Israel, and you will become their ruler” (2 Samuel 5:2).
The role of a good shepherd:
1. A good shepherd protects the sheep from the outside danger of predators and dissension within.
2. A good shepherd goes after any lost sheep that have gone astray.
3. A shepherd leads the sheep to good pasture, clean drinking water, and look out for poisonous plants.
4. A good shepherd cares for the overall health of the sheep, tends to their illnesses and injuries, prevent diseases, and cares for the weak.
5. A shepherd gives up his comfort and life for the sheep.
6. A good shepherd places them under one coveringfor their care.
7. A good shepherd communicates with his sheep so they can familiarize themselves with his voice.
8. A good shepherd and his sheep have a good relationship.
9. A good shepherd shears or hires a professional to shear the sheep to help with their comfort, prevent parasites, and keep them from getting snagged or stuck on their backs.
10. A good shepherd assists pregnant ewes, helps with the birthing process, and cares for newborn lambs.
“You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock. You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally” (Ezekiel 34:3-4).
The Lord had a word of rebuke concerning the greed of the shepherds who took the best of the offerings and wore fine linen without seeing to the needs of their flock. The shepherds used their position for wealth, power, and personal gain. They were selfish and did not care that the people had turned to idolatry, thus bringing a curse upon the entire nation. They were to denounce the idols and covenant violations. The Lord had harsh words to say against them even in Isaiah’s day. The Bible says: “Yes, they are greedy dogs Which never have enough. And they are shepherds Who cannot understand; They all look to their own way, Every one for his own gain, From his own territory” (Isaiah 56:11).
The Lord’s lays out further charges against the shepherds, for they had been found guilty of spiritual neglect and abuse, thus spiritual malpractice. The shepherds did not strengthen the spiritually weak and wounded; consequently, there was no healing in what should have been a hospital. They were cruel and harsh without love. The sheep needed love, guidance, correction, rebuke, uplifting and spiritual nutrition; instead, they were spiritually malnourished and left to fend for themselves. The shepherds did not try to win back the lost or search for them, but where only concerned for their own welfare in obtaining the fat from the land, but leaving the sheep open to attacks.
As during Ezekiel’s time, there are a lot of Charringtons in today’s pulpits and various social media platforms. They take from the poor to fatten their own coffers. Many do not provide the people with spiritual nourishment and the people suffer due to being spiritually malnourished from sin. Yet, the Apostle Paul wrote: “Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction” (2 Timothy 4:2). Failure to do this causes the church to be spiritually sick, but Jesus is the Good Shepherd who restores all who are His.
“So they were scattered because there was no shepherd, and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild animals. My sheep wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. They were scattered over the whole earth, and no one searched or looked for them”
(Ezekiel 34:5-6).
God was upset with the scattering of the sheep due to there being no shepherd to protect them, thus becoming food for prey. When the sheep stray away from the pack, they are easy targets for wolves to feast on. It was the same way with Israel, the shepherds failed to keep them from the enticements of idolatry. Therefore, they became prey to heathen worship, sexual immorality, child sacrifice, and other abominable sins against the Lord, thus causing judgment and destruction to overtake them.
The Lord’s people had been scattered everywhere throughout the world with no one to look for them. Israel had become spiritually lost, which led them to be in not only a spiritual but literal bondage. Israel, the northern kingdom, had already been taken into captivity by the Assyrians and were scattered abroad. Yet, this could have been prevented if only the shepherds had done their job in turning the people’s hearts back to the Lord instead of being led astray themselves, thus setting the wrong example before the people. The Bible says: “I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified” (1 Corinthians 9:27).
“‘Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, because my flock lacks a shepherd and so has been plundered and has become food for all the wild animals, and because my shepherds did not search for my flock but cared for themselves rather than for my flock, therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against the shepherds and will hold them accountable for my flock. I will remove them from tending the flock so that the shepherds can no longer feed themselves. I will rescue my flock from their mouths, and it will no longer be food for them”
(Ezekiel 34:7-10).
The Lord’s command for the shepherds was to hear and listen to His word. The Lord commanding the shepherds to listen was the first part of their problem. They had failed to listen to and seek the Lord’s guidance. Instead, they chose to listen to the greed of their own hearts. Many had prophesied falsely in the Lord’s name but failed to inquire of Him for a true Word for the people. The Bible says: “But which of them has stood in the council of the LORD to see or to hear his word? Who has listened and heard his word?” (Jeremiah 23:18). The Lord reemphasized the failures of Israel’s shepherds. The people lacked a good shepherd. The people became food for wolves through idolatry, sexual immorality, child sacrifice, disregarding Sabbath rest for land, ignoring the poor, and more. The shepherds did not seek out the lost because they were lost themselves.
God expects His leaders to listen to His voice and follow His commands. The Bible says: “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says” (James 1:22). Yet, when the shepherds failed to do this, God’s judgment was against them. The Lord announced His stance against Israel’s leaders. Therefore, they were going to be judged in accordance with their mayhem. God was going to dethrone them, as Israel (northern kingdom) had already experienced. The Lord promised to deliver His sheep from the mouths of the wolves who were prophets for profit, notwithstanding the spiritual condition of the nation. They would no longer be able to profit from the people, thus becoming physically rich as the people became spiritually poor.
To be continued...
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