Today we arrive at the conclusion of our Advent series, Expectations. Remember that in this series we’ve said that all people have expectations of God, of what He will do for us and be to us. And we’ve been saying the kind of expectations we have of God really matter. Whether they’re in the realm of wishful thinking or in line with what Scripture says. And in the past weeks we’ve looked at how we can expect Jesus to be our Prophet, our Priest, and our King. And it has been glorious to see. But this week we finish off the series, by turning to Jesus as Shepherd. And because the reality of Jesus as our Shepherd is so vast, we’ll spend two services on it. First, this morning from Ezekiel 34, and second, later on tonight from John 10.
So as you can see, this morning we’ll be laying much of the foundation for what comes later on tonight. And there’s purpose in this. We could just dip into John 10 right away and that would be fine and great, but much of the glory and beauty that comes out in John 10 is rooted and founded in Ezekiel 34. So in order to see more of the full picture of Jesus as our Shepherd, we must look at both OT and NT.
So let’s turn there now. Ezekiel 34 has four sections to work through. See first…
Against the Shepherds (v1-10)
“The word of the LORD came to me: “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy, and say to them, even to the shepherds, Thus says the Lord GOD: Ah, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep? You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fat ones, but you do not feed the sheep. The weak you have not strengthened, the sick you have not healed, the injured you have not bound up, the strayed you have not brought back, the lost you have not sought, and with force and harshness you have ruled them. So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd, and they became food for all the wild beasts. My sheep were scattered; they wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. My sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, with none to search or seek for them. Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: As I live, declares the Lord GOD, surely because my sheep have become a prey, and my sheep have become food for all the wild beasts, since there was no shepherd, and because my shepherds have not searched for my sheep, but the shepherds have fed themselves, and have not fed my sheep, therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: Thus says the Lord GOD, Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will require my sheep at their hand and put a stop to their feeding the sheep. No longer shall the shepherds feed themselves. I will rescue my sheep from their mouths, that they may not be food for them.”
Here Ezekiel receives the word from God to the shepherds of Israel. These shepherds would have included noblemen, elders, officers, priests, kings, and even the prophets of Israel. What is the message to them? That God is against them. Why? See it in the first few verses. These shepherds, who were expected to tend to the needs of their flock, displayed no concern or regard for them. They should have fed the sheep yet were they fed themselves. They slaughtered and ate the choicest fat portions of the sacrifice and clothed themselves with wool, implying they left the sheep unfed and exposed to the elements. They did not strengthen, did not heal, did not bind up, did not seek out the strays and bring them back. Rather than taking up these responsibilities faithfully, they ruled with force and harshness. This mention of ruling with harshness is especially worth our attention. The only other uses of this word (perek) come from the Exodus and Leviticus where the Israelite slavery in Egypt is in view (Ex. 1:13-14, Lev. 25). This word is used there to describe how they were abused by the Egyptians.[1] So, by using this word here Ezekiel dramatically clarifies that these shepherds should have known better, for this was once the harshness they experienced in their own slavery.[2] And more so, by leading the people so poorly, these shepherds have enslaved their people anew and are oppressing them with their own wicked treatment.
This leads to the only possible outcome in v 5-6. Because of such harsh brutality the people are scattered and wandering, becoming food for wild animals, isolated and abandoned because…“there was no shepherd.” And that it says “my flock” in v5-6 shows us that the party chiefly offended and grieved is none other than God himself, who owns and loves these sheep.[3] So see it Church, instead of faithfully carrying out their rule over the people with upright pastoral concern, these shepherds became enemies of the people, preying on them ravenously as the wicked kings of the surrounding nations.[4]They “are as far removed from the duties of their office as they can be.”[5]
So what will God do in response to such abuse to his sheep? v7-10 shows it. God will not only come after his own, he will oppose these shepherds. What does divine opposition look like? It looks like removal and rescue. On one hand God will remove these shepherds, while on the other hand he will rescue his people. Quite the image is at work here. The very ones who were to tend and care for the people, sadly, are now the very ones seeking to consume them. Yet, God will act, and his action carries a double edge. In the just judgment of these false shepherds also lies the needed salvation for his people.
Which is precisely the thread the next section of Ezekiel 34 begins to unfold.
The Lord as Shepherd (v11-16)
“For thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land. And I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them with good pasture, and on the mountain heights of Israel shall be their grazing land. There they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on rich pasture they shall feed on the mountains of Israel. I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord GOD. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice.”
A shift has occurred. The false shepherds, who controlled the first section of the chapter now disappear as the character and activity of the divine shepherd comes front and center.[6] The movement begins in v11 with God’s announcement that he will take up a twofold work. He will search for (darash) as well as seek out (baqar) his sheep. That God must do this clearly means what has already been stated, that his people are in danger and in need of rescue due to the false shepherds oppressive and abusive leadership.
What does God’s rescue look like? Six actions are given in v12-15.[7] First, God will arrive on the scene and examine the condition of the people. Second, he will rescue them from their enemies. Third, in such a rescue God will bring his people out of exile. Fourth, he will gather them. Fifth, he will bring back to the promise land. And lastly, God will tend and care for them there, in the land. A greater contrast could not be made between the deceptive work of the false shepherds and the wonderful work of God in shepherding his people. While the people were oppressed under the abuse of the former shepherds, now they will experience broad places. The people will be led to fair meadows, mountain heights, rich pasture, and here in these places God will “make them lie down” and give them rest.
As the second section concludes in v16, a mirror image is plain to see. Back in v4, we saw that under the false shepherds: the weak are not strengthened, the sick are not healed, the injured are not bound up, the strays are not brought back, and the lost are not sought. Now see v16 and what God will do: the lost will be sought, the stray will be brought back, the injured will be bound up, and the sick[8] and weak are strengthened. This mirror image is clear isn’t it? How encouraging is it to see…that every abuse, every injustice, every oppression, every hurt God’s people have experienced at the hands of false shepherds…God Himself will overturn, erase, and more than make up for in his own rescue.
But how will God rescue?
David as Shepherd (v17-24)
“As for you, my flock, thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I judge between sheep and sheep, between rams and male goats. Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture, that you must tread down with your feet the rest of your pasture; and to drink of clear water, that you must muddy the rest of the water with your feet? And must my sheep eat what you have trodden with your feet, and drink what you have muddied with your feet? “Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD to them: Behold, I, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. Because you push with side and shoulder, and thrust at all the weak with your horns, till you have scattered them abroad, I will rescue my flock; they shall no longer be a prey. And I will judge between sheep and sheep. And I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd. And I, the LORD, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them. I am the LORD; I have spoken.”
Beginning in v17 the Lord speaks of himself as judge over his people. The categories listed here, sheep from sheep and rams from goats, display various groups or factions among the people who seem to be engaged in infighting and competition.[9] This sad situation has developed among the people as a result of the sad situation over the people among the false shepherds. Really what’s in view is overbearing sheep seeking to domineer other sheep in the flock. These sheep, in v18-19, have witnessed how they have been led and are following their leaders footsteps by feeding themselves and ruining the pasture and waters for the remaining community.
Naturally then, v20 once again repeats the announcement of judgment heard in v17. God himself as the divine shepherd will come to judge between his people and reestablish order among them.[10] These overbearing sheep are described in v21 as domineering their neighbors, thrusting with their horns, meaning they’re using a kind of violence to get their way. And because of this a further scattering of the people occurs. Into this darkness comes v22 where a gracious rescue is announced. As God rescued his people from the false shepherds before, so too God will now rescue his people from themselves.[11] How will He do it? Answer: not by removing the office of shepherd, but by setting up over them a new shepherd, specifically, David. Wait a minute. How can David rescue them? Isn’t David long dead? He is. But, remember 2 Sam. 7, where God said a descendant of David would come a rule over God’s people forever. This is an echo of that same promise. God will rescue his people from the shepherds over them and domineering sheep within them…through the rule and reign of a new David, who will bring order from disorder and beauty from chaos.
What will the rule of this new Davidic shepherd be like? It will be one of peace.
The final section in Ezekiel 34 now comes into view.
The Covenant of Peace (v25-31)
“I will make with them a covenant of peace and banish wild beasts from the land, so that they may dwell securely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods. And I will make them and the places all around my hill a blessing, and I will send down the showers in their season; they shall be showers of blessing. And the trees of the field shall yield their fruit, and the earth shall yield its increase, and they shall be secure in their land. And they shall know that I am the LORD, when I break the bars of their yoke, and deliver them from the hand of those who enslaved them. They shall no more be a prey to the nations, nor shall the beasts of the land devour them. They shall dwell securely, and none shall make them afraid. And I will provide for them renowned plantations so that they shall no more be consumed with hunger in the land, and no longer suffer the reproach of the nations. And they shall know that I am the LORD their God with them, and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, declares the Lord GOD. And you are my sheep, human sheep of my pasture, and I am your God, declares the Lord GOD.”
The final section begins with an announcement of peace, but not peace in generic terms, God will make a covenant of peace with his people. One might imagine with a mention of covenant that the promised Davidic shepherd would reappear, but he does not. There is no further mention of the Davidic shepherd to come, but rather, v25-31 fills out the abundant blessings that will be present in the great shepherd’s reign. See them in the text.
In v25 the mention of “wild beasts” brings us back to the false shepherds of v1-10 as well as the domineering sheep from among the people in v17-24. Both groups abusively sought to devour the people. That God will banish these from the land means safety and security for his people in v26-27. Specifically, a reverse of their previous experience. The false shepherds and domineering sheep brought about a scattering of the people on the mountains, high hills, over the face of the earth, and muddied the pastures (v6, 18-19). But God will save and bring his people to safer mountains, cleaner pastures, and grander heights (v13-14), as v25-27 depict. How will he do this? v27b-29 says God will “break the bars” of their enslavers and set them free. In this freedom the people will enjoy safety, no one will terrorize them any longer, they will not hunger, or suffer reproach among the nations, and as v30-31 make plain, the people will know who they are (sheep) and who’s they are (the Lord’s).
This conclusion is fitting and tremendously encouraging to God’s people. After having been so mistreated, abused, oppressed, devoured, neglected, and plagued by the false shepherds over them and domineering sheep among them, the leadership of the Lord and his promised coming Davidic shepherd would be a welcome appearance.
Conclusion:
The implications of this chapter are weighty.[12]
First, the hopes of God’s people are not dashed. Though the present condition of God’s people is one of exile, here in Ezekiel, that will not remain because the Lord will intervene through this Davidic Shepherd to come…who will in his divine authority judge God’s enemies and bring salvation, rest, peace, and the fullness of blessing to God’s people.
Second, many false shepherds and domineering leaders will rise and fall over and among God’s people. Nonetheless, the solution to such impoverished leadership is not the abandonment of authority and leadership, but the judgment and removal of false leaders along with the installation of true leaders.[13] And though shepherds will come and go, ultimately it is the Lord himself who is the shepherd of his people. He will always have the good of his people in mind. As has already been stated, every abuse, every injustice, and every oppression God’s people experience at the hand of false shepherds, God himself will overturn, erase, and more than make up for in his shepherding of his people.
Looking back to this text from the vantage point of the New Testament gives one a robust understanding of the title ‘Good Shepherd’ Jesus takes onto himself in John’s gospel, as well as the character and conviction of all under shepherds who lead his people in his name. That glory, and beauty, and joy…is precisely what we’ll look at this evening.
[1] Duguid, Ezekiel, 394.
[2] Werner Lemke, “Life in the Present and Hope for the Future,” Interp 38 (1984) 173 n. 10.
[3] Block, The Book of Ezekiel: Chapters 25-48, 284.
[4] Laniak, Shepherds After My Own Heart, 153.
[5] Jakob Raupius, Commentarius Synopticus (1655), 254, quoted in Reformation Commentary on Scripture: Ezekiel & Daniel, 285.
[6] Block, The Book of Ezekiel: Chapters 25-48, 288.
[7] Block, 289-290.
[8] This is the only unmatched item in the mirror image. Not to mention v 16 ends with judgment on the false shepherds, which is also not present in v 4, though a description of their underhanded ways is present.
[9] Allen, Ezekiel 20-48, 162.
[10] Block, The Book of Ezekiel: Chapters 25-48, 293.
[11] Laniak, Shepherds After My Own Heart, 156.
[12] Block, The Book of Ezekiel: Chapters 25-48, 308-309.
[13] Duguid, Ezekiel, 396.
