Our Great Shepherd-King

God Will Give His People Protection and Provision (34:11-16)

When I was a child, one of my favorite TV shows was The Dukes of Hazard. At least once every week Uncle Jesse would grab his CB radio and call to his two nephews, “Shepherd to lost sheep. Shepherd to lost sheep. Y’all got your ears on?” Though God is chastising Israel’s shepherds in Ezekiel 34, He will also comfort His people. He has a message for His lost sheep.

God may have given Israel different leaders, but He never gave Israel up. They were always His sheep, and He was always their ultimate Shepherd. Unlike their earthly leaders, God always led for their good. Through His prophet God informed His people that He would search for them (vv. 11-12,16), rescue them (vv. 10,12,22), gather them (v. 13), bandage them (v. 16), feed them (v. 14), strengthen them (v. 16), provide for them (vv. 14-15,29), and protect them (vv. 16-17,20,22,25,28). Can anyone remind me again why Israel wanted a different king than God?

What about us? God has authority over everyone and everything everywhere (Ps 95:3-5), but He uses His authority for our best (Ps 96:6-7). Instead of ruling like a harsh tyrant, God has chosen to relate to His people like a shepherd who leads his sheep. Because He always leads for our good, immediate obedience to Him is always in our best interest, and disobedience is always at our own peril.

What is staggering is that we do not deserve this type of leadership. In case we are viewing ourselves as defenseless, fluffy, innocent sheep who are worthy of a sacrificial leader, we should remember that, like Israel, we have often rejected God’s leadership. Perhaps we have even hated it. In fact, every sin we commit is a profession we are really in charge. Each sin is an assertion of our reign and a demotion of His. And we are all guilty of it: “We all went astray like sheep; we all turned to our own way” (Isa 53:6).

Despite all of our rebellion and rejection, God has never wavered. He has rescued us and reconciled us to Himself. No other leader has loved us and led for our good like our God. Also, no other leader has sacrificed as much as God has in giving us His Son.

God Will Give His People a Prince (34:23-24)

On top of all the other blessings, God promised to give His people a true shepherd. He would appoint over them a single shepherd, His servant David, and he would shepherd them. The One Yahweh designated would tend God’s people himself and would be their shepherd. Yahweh would be their God, and His servant David would be a prince among them. About this promise, Duguid asserts,

The change to be wrought in Israel’s situation is not so much a change in the nature of the office as in the nature of the occupant. God’s solution to a history of bad shepherds is not to replace shepherding with a better system, but to replace the bad shepherds with a good shepherd. (Duguid, Ezekiel, 396)

What do we know about the shepherd God is describing? First, we know He will be appointed. There will not be an election by the people. God knows best, and He will give His people the best. Second, because He will be the single shepherd, He must be a sufficient one. Yahweh will not give His people many leaders but just one. Third, we know the shepherd will not be David because David is dead at the time Ezekiel is prophesying. That would be a bummer, would it not? Imagine God saying, “Hey, I’ve got this really great leader I’m going to give you. Only catch is, he’s dead.” So if David is not going to be resurrected to rule, then why is he referenced? I believe God is talking about David’s lineage and also his legacy. David was Israel’s greatest king. One will come from his line but will be even greater than David. Lastly, the One Yahweh appoints will not be aloof but will be among His people. He will not just exercise His reign above them but will establish His residence with them.

For the exiles in Babylon, this had to be wonderful news. They and their ancestors had suffered under ungodly leaders for generations. God would give them hope. God’s words were not empty rhetoric on a campaign trail. He would provide a prince for His people who would reign with His heart.

What was good news for the exiles is even greater news for us. Unlike Ezekiel we know who the Shepherd-King is that God gave to His people. Luther wrote, “Dost ask who that might be? Christ Jesus it is He!” (“A Mighty Fortress Is Our God”). Jesus Himself has told us, “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11). As our good shepherd, He is everything God told those in exile He would be. First, He is personal (John 10:1-6). He knows His sheep and helps them. Second, He provides for his flock (John 10:7-20). To His sheep He gives access (John 10:7-9) and abundance (John 10:10). For His sheep He makes atonement (John 10:15-18) for the purpose of their adoption. Finally, He protects His sheep (John 10:25-30). As the good shepherd He will never let His sheep perish, and He will never let them go. He will always be our shepherd (Rev 7:17).

Jesus is also our true Senior Pastor. After

raising Him from the dead and seating Him at His right hand in the heavens, . . . [God] put everything under His feet and appointed [Christ] as head over everything for the church, which is His body, the fullness of the One who fills all things in every way. (Eph 1:20,22)

God has given His people the greatest leader the world has ever known. The One who has all authority is the One who has been appointed to be our Shepherd. This truth brings us to some important questions: Is it evident Jesus is the senior pastor of your faith family? Can people tell that He is your shepherd or does it look more like you are leading Him? Based on the description we have seen in Ezekiel 34 and John 10, why would we think anyone would be a better leader for us than Jesus?

God Will Give His People Peace (34:25-31)

God not only promised His people a prince but also peace. Yahweh would protect them (v. 25) and provide for them (vv. 26-27). They would be secure and feel safe because they would no longer have to fear (v. 28). Though at one time Israel had much reason to be anxious (12:17-20), God would make a covenant with them so they could live securely in the wilderness and sleep in the forest (34:25).

How would God give His people peace? By giving them His prince. Through Micah, God told Bethlehem,

One will come from you to be ruler over Israel for Me. His origin is from antiquity, from eternity. . . . He will stand and shepherd [God’s people] in the strength of Yahweh, in the majestic name of Yahweh His God. They will live securely, for then His greatness will extend to the ends of the earth. He will be their peace. (Mic 5:2,4-5)

Do you see it? He will not just bring them peace. He will be their peace because He is the Prince of peace (Isa 9:6).

One of the first verses I memorized as a child in Bible drill was Psalm 56:3. David says, “When I am afraid, I will trust in You,” which is a bold claim considering he had been seized by the Philistines in Gath. I fear that too many of God’s people live in fear today instead of peace. One reason they lack peace is because they lack prayer. They do not take advantage of the Lord’s nearness and bring their requests to Him but would rather cling to their anxiety (Phil 4:5-6). I believe a second reason they lack peace is they have not grasped the full implications of the gospel. Maybe they believe there is some sin that is too wretched for the blood of Christ to cleanse. Perhaps they believe Jesus did a great work on the cross, but on top of that they just need to add their giving, and Bible study, and serving, and on and on. Christ, however, said, “It is finished” (John 19:30). For God’s people every sin has been atoned, and the only work necessary has been achieved. May each of us rest in this gospel truth: “Therefore, since we have been declared righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom 5:1). Our Prince is our peace.

God Will Give His People a Place (34:27,29)

In addition to protection, provision, a prince, and peace, God promises to give His people a place. God said, “My flock will be secure in their land,” and “I will establish for them a place renowned for its agriculture.” In the land all the promises would accomplish their appointed purpose so God’s people “will know that I, Yahweh their God, am with them, and that they, the house of Israel, are My people” (v. 30). Goldsworthy asserted that the main point of the Bible is the kingdom of God, and by this He means God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule (Gospel and Kingdom, 54). Vaughn Roberts has amended Goldsworthy’s definition to include God’s blessing, for those under God’s rule will certainly be blessed (v. 26) (God’s Big Picture, 21).

Through Ezekiel, God will give His people in exile hope that Babylon will not be their final dwelling place. God will bring His people back to their land and will make them and the area around His hill a blessing (v. 26). The greatest blessing, however, will not be the place but His presence. John saw the ultimate fulfillment of this passage in the vision he received while on the isle of Patmos:

I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and the sea no longer existed. I also saw the Holy City, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband. Then I heard a loud voice from the throne: Look! God’s dwelling is with humanity, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. (Rev 21:1-3)

What John sees is exactly what God described to Ezekiel. What a place!

Godly Leaders Are Still Needed Today in Both Our Families and Our Faith Families, and God Is Still Providing Them

God Continues to Provide Leaders for His People

Though Christ is our ultimate leader, He has continued to provide undershepherds for both our families and our faith families. To our congregations,

He personally gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, for the training of the saints in the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ, until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of God’s Son, growing into a mature man with a stature measured by Christ’s fullness. (Eph 4:11-13)

To our homes He has given husbands who are to love their wives “as Christ loved the church and gave Himself for her to make her holy, cleansing her with the washing of water by the word” (Eph 5:25-26). To our homes He has also given fathers who are not to “stir up anger” in their children, “but bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord” (Eph 6:4).

As They Hear Us and See Us, Our Families and Faith Families Should Know What Jesus Is like as a Leader

Whether we shepherd an entire faith family or just our own family, those we lead should be able to see what Jesus is like as a leader. Just as Christ shepherds, so should we. Thomas contended,

Christian ministers are to fashion their ministry on the standards set by the Chief Shepherd. They, too, are to give their lives in service, recalling that God’s flock has been purchased by Christ’s blood (Acts 20:28). They, too, are to lead their flock by the example of their own godliness and devotion (1 Peter 5:2-3). They, too, as Jesus exhorted Peter, are to feed their flock with the finest of the wheat (John 21:17). They, too, are to rule over their flock; the sheep are to “submit to their authority” (Heb 13:17). They, too, are to protect their flock from danger, refuting those who oppose sound doctrine (Titus 1:9). And they, too, are to seek the lost . . . God’s “under-shepherds” are to be evangelists (2 Tim 4:5). (Thomas, God Strengthens, 226–27)

In order to lead for the glory of God and the good of our people, every elder at our church, with the help of the Holy Spirit, commits to the following:4

As a pastor I rarely have a day where I do not consider Hebrews 13:17. In this verse the author of Hebrews exhorts his audience, “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account.” As the Lord’s undershepherd, I never forget I am to keep watch over those entrusted to me and I will be held accountable to the task I have been charged. I take the charge so seriously that I encouraged the church where I currently serve to clarify our membership list when I first arrived because I wanted to know for whom I would be held accountable.

Every leadership opportunity is a stewardship, particularly ministry. God entrusts His message and His means to pastors for the maturity of His people. The flock belongs to God (Acts 20:28; 1 Pet 5:2). He purchased it with the blood of His Son (Acts 20:28). So I remind myself as often as possible, it’s His church, His plans, His funds, and His glory. Nothing is more dangerous than a pastor who forgets these truths. As pastors we must be careful to build His kingdom and not our own.

My initial question to you was, “Who comes to mind when you hear the phrase godly leader?” Now I want to ask you, “Will anyone remember us as godly leaders?” What is the legacy we will leave behind? I heard someone say recently, “My father was the same man in the pulpit as he was at home, and I was drawn into the ministry.” May we leave such a legacy of influence on those we lead!

Reflect and Discuss