TEXT: Ezekiel 34

SUBJECT: Christ in the Old Testament #30: The Good Shepherd

Today, with God’s blessing, we’ll continue our study of Christ in the Old Testament. Ezekiel 34 is nowhere quoted in the New Testament, but if you’ve read John’s Gospel, you’ll know it is one of the most striking prophecies in the Hebrew Bible. In no place is our Lord more clearly seen than here.

The outline is very simple. In the first ten verses, Ezekiel describes the shepherds of Israel. In vv.11ff, he tells us what God is going to do with them.

By "shepherds", of course, He doesn’t mean men who tend sheep. He’s using it figuratively. He means the leaders of Israel. In those days, they were the Royal Family, the Priests, Levites, Elders, and so on. Later, they go by different names: Scribes, Pharisees, Sadducees. They were the men responsible for taking care of God’s People.

But they weren’t doing it.

Do you know why? It’s not because they lacked the ability or the calling. It’s not because the People were impossibly stubborn. No, it was a failure of character. The leaders of Israel were falling down on the job because they were…selfish, v.2,

They thought the flock existed for the sake of the shepherds instead of the other way around. Instead of caring for the sheep, they fleeced and butchered them, v.3,

Because they lived for themselves, the shepherds ignored the Flock of God. They didn’t protect them or care for them, keep them together, or seek them when they wandered away, v.4,

To these men, leadership wasn’t about service, but power. They didn’t lead to help God’s People, but to boost they own egos, v.4b,

The results were catastrophic. The People God loved, whom He redeemed from Egypt were starved, scattered, and torn to pieces,

Note the word, "My". In vv.1-5, God says, "the flock" or "the sheep". But in vv.6-10, He starts saying, "My sheep" and "My flock". Nine times He says that in five verses. God’s People are not statistics to Him; they’re His flock and His family.

He is offended—personally offended—by the way they’re being treated by the rulers of Israel.

This is a key doctrine: We must not mistreat other believers because—no matter how messed up they are—they’re part of God’s Flock. And He loves them. Ignoring and abusing God’s People is a hideous sin. You may not believe that now, but one day, you will. One day, the Lord Jesus Christ is going to say this to people who thought they were saved,

The shepherds of Israel posed as men of integrity. But the Lord knew better. He was not impressed with high-sounding titles or devout poses.

Knowing the shepherds are bad is one thing. Doing something about it is another. Eli knew his sons were scoundrels, but he didn’t have the guts to depose them from their place of authority. He let them stay on—and God killed the lot of them!

Is the Lord like Eli? Is He going to wring His hands forever? Or is He going to do something about the Butchers of His Flock?

You know the answer, don’t you? The Lord is going to do something. Not right away, of course. The men and their successors would stay on for many years. But one day the Lord is going to act.

What’s He going to do?

He’s going to get rid of the bad shepherds. But that’s not all He’s going to do. Malcontents always want to pull down what is, but they can never tell us what they want to replace it with.

But the Lord does tell us. He’s going to fire the old shepherds and give their jobs to someone else. Who?

Himself.

God loves His flock so much that He’ll never let anyone mistreat them again. He will take charge of them—Personally.

It’s been said, If you want something done right, do it yourself. That’s exactly what the Lord is promising here. There will be no more Jeroboams, no more Ahabs, no more Herods, no more Caiaphas’. One day, God is going to take His people away from these Butchers and Shepherd the Flock Himself!

Did He make good on the promise?

He did. Jesus Christ said, "I am the Good Shepherd".

He proved it. He

He did it at the greatest possible cost,

This means we’re safe, v.25,

You can trust Jesus Christ. He won’t wave a magic wand and make all your problems disappear. He’ll do something better than that. He’ll face your problems with you, and "His Rod and Staff will comfort [you]".

This is what the saints in the Bible believed. Their faith was tested and proven. Here’s a sample,

The believer is safe in Christ. Not free from problems, but safe in spite of them all.

It also means we’re provided for, v.29,

The Lord provides everything we need. If He doesn’t give it, we don’t need it. Psalm 84:11,

Underline the word "no". He withholds from us "no good thing"—not one. We don’t always feel that’s true, but it is. The crucifixion proves it, Romans 8:32.

If this is true, how do you explain the setbacks of life? We pray for good things and we don’t get them. Some of those things are objects of lust—and we shouldn’t get them (cf. James 4:3). But what about the other things? We pray for healing so we can serve the Lord better. But He gives no relief. Has He let us down? Has He not kept His word?

That cannot be. We’re children. He’s an Adult. He knows more than we do. Sometimes, we simply have to take His word for it. Whether we seems so or not,

We’re provided for.

In the third place, we belong, v.31,

This has always been precious, but never more so than now. With the rise of great cities, the breakdown of communities, the decline in family life, the constant moving around, and so on, most people feel displaced.

To counter this feeling of "not fitting in", people do different things. Some join gangs. Others become inordinately proud of their race or ethnic group. Some join the cults. Others research their Family Tree. And so on.

The believer is not free from this feeling. But he can be. We know who we are and where we belong,

Finally, it means we owe our final allegiance to Christ and no one else. Should we be loyal to men? Of course we should be. Loyalty is an act of love and gratitude. But our final allegiance belongs to Christ.

If Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd, it means your pastor is not. And neither is the Man on the Radio, your Favorite Author, or anyone else. Respect other men, listen to them, love them, of course. But give your heart to no one but Christ. The best men are but "undershepherds". Jesus Christ is