The Lord Will Be Israel’s Shepherd

Ezekiel 34:1-22

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? 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. 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.

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.

For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them. As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness. I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from the countries, and I will bring them into their own land. I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and in all the settlements in the land.

I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign Lord. I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.

Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says to them: See, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. Because you shove with flank and shoulder, butting all the weak sheep with your horns until you have driven them away, I will save my flock, and they will no longer be plundered. I will judge between one sheep and another.

Why?

The Lord will be Israel's Shepherd because the shepherds of Israel did not take care of the flock, the sheep of the Lord wandered over all the mountains and every high hill. 

So the Lord against all Shepherd of Israel, and the Lord will be shepherd of God's sheep. and the Lord will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep.

The Lord will take care of His own flock and they will no longer be plundered. This is the good news, this is the gospel to everyone.

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神親自成為好牧人，因為神曾按立的牧人，卻沒有好好看顧羊，反而羊養肥了牧人。如果把牧人看成職業，只是為了交差了事。神給我們工作，就有使命感！羊是神的羊，牧人是被托付者。神也託付給每個信徒使命。每個人領受恩賜，同時也領受使命。

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How?

I am a sheep in God's pasture, my shepherd is the Lord Himself.