Ezekiel 34:11-22

B. The Divine Shepherd 34:11-22

TRANSLATION

(11) For thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, Here am I, and I will search for My sheep, and seek them out. (12) As a shepherd seeks out his flock in the day he is in the midst of his flock that are separated, thus I will seek out My sheep; and I will deliver them from all the places to which they have been scattered in the day of clouds and thick darkness. (13) And I will bring them out from the peoples, and gather them from the lands; and I will bring them unto their land; and I will feed them upon the mountains of Israel, by the streams, and in all the habitable portions of the land. (14) In a good pasture I will feed them, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be; there shall they lie down in a good fold, and in a lush pasture shall they graze upon the mountains of Israel. (15) I will feed My sheep, and I will make them to lie down (oracle of the Lord GOD). (16) That which is lost I will seek, and that which has strayed I will bring back, the broken I will bind up, and the sick I will strengthen; and the fat and the strong I will destroy, I will feed them in justice. (17) As for you, O My sheep, thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am about to judge between stock and stock, between ram and he-goats. (18) 1s it a small matter to you to have fed upon the good pasture, but you must trample the rest of your pastures with your feet? and have drunk of the settled water, but you must stir up the rest with your feet. (19) And as for My sheep, they eat that which you have trampled with your feet, and they drink that which you have stirred up with your feet. (20) Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD unto them: Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat cattle and lean cattle. (21) Because you push with side and shoulder, and with your horns you shove about all the weak, till you have scattered them abroad; (22) therefore I will save My sheep, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle.

COMMENTS

God's people would not be left without a shepherd. The hirelings having been removed from office, the Good Shepherd Himself would take over direct responsibility. He would begin His task by searching out His sheep. His sheep are those who hear and respond to His word (John 10:27). So the searching process was that of proclaiming the prophetic word among the exiles (Ezekiel 34:11). What a beautiful picture! The Lord God takes the initiative in reclaiming His own. Wherever they have been scattered the Faithful Shepherd would find them. The day of clouds and thick darkness, i.e., calamity, is past. The age of regathering and restoration had begun (Ezekiel 34:12).

First will come the gathering of the dispersed sheep into an identifiable and dedicated band. Then comes restoration to Canaan, the Promised Land. There God would feed His flock upon the mountains and by the streams. Israel would occupy all the land which was capable of supporting population (Ezekiel 34:13). Lush pasture and secure fold awaited the flock of God in Canaan (Ezekiel 34:14). The flock, torn and driven about by beasts of prey (adversary nations), would at last lie down under the watchful care of the Good Shepherd (Ezekiel 34:15).

Unlike the faithless shepherds of the pre-exilic era, the Good Shepherd would devote special attention to the weak and Vulnerable members of the flock. Those which were lost through foolish straying would be retrieved. Those sheep hurt and sick as a result of the neglect of their shepherds and the attacks of adversaries would be nursed back to health. But on the other hand, those which were fat and strong the wealthy land owners would be destroyed. Previous shepherds had shown favoritism to these powerful persons, but God would feed them in justice. He would care for them, but they would receive no more than is due them. Thus, as a class within the flock the fat and the strong would be eliminated (Ezekiel 34:16).

God would judge between members of the flock, between the oppressed poor and their rich oppressors. The latter are referred to here as the rams and the he-goats, those which ruthlessly shove the others aside during grazing time (Ezekiel 34:17). These leaders among the flock by force had appropriated all the good pasture and clear water for themselves. But they had done yet more. They had spoiled the rest of the pasture and muddied the rest of the water with their feet (Ezekiel 34:18) thus depriving the weak among the flock of adequate sustenance (Ezekiel 34:19). But all that would change. God repeats in Ezekiel 34:20 His intention to judge between fat and lean cattle the prosperous and the poor among the people (Ezekiel 34:20). By the exercise of brute force the fat and strong animals had scattered the others. That is to say, the fat cattle had been responsible for the dispersion of Israel (Ezekiel 34:21). But God would save His flock from the bullying of such tyrants. Class distinctions would disappear from the flock as the Good Shepherd judges between cattle, i.e., treats all the flock with absolute equity.