Ezekiel 34:1-10--Prophecy Against the Shepherds of Israel

Ezekiel 34:1-10
English Standard Version

Prophecy Against the Shepherds of Israel
34 The word of the LORD came to me: 2 “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? 3 You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fat ones, but you do not feed the sheep. 4 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. 5 So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd, and they became food for all the wild beasts. My sheep were scattered; 6 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.

7 “Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: 8 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, 9 therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: 10 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.

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This is a common theme among the Prophets in general--the people of Israel are like sheep and the leaders of Israel are supposed to be their shepherds.  A shepherd is supposed to protect and care for the sheep, even at the risk of his own life, but what about when the shepherd is the one putting the sheep in danger?  What if his interest is purely in fleecing the sheep because they are too dumb to know any better?  What if he is a wolf in sheep's (or in this case shepherd's) clothing?  What does the Good Shepherd say to those entrusted with His sheep who are selfish and care nothing for His sheep?  They feed themselves instead of feeding the sheep.  They clothe themselves with the wool from the sheep.  They kill the fat sheep for food (they were not supposed to eat of the fat portions, for these belonged to the LORD and were to be sacrificed to Him).  They have left those who are weak vulnerable to attack.  They have done nothing to strengthen or defend them.

They have not tried to heal the sick or the injured.  They have not sought the lost sheep to return them to their care and protection.  The LORD sees His sheep as if they were without a shepherd and they have been scattered over the face of the whole earth to be food for the wild beasts (the Gentile nations, but all the predators that would take advantage of them).  The people started doing this to themselves though as the progression starts with them going to the top of every mountain and every high hill (the places where they engaged in their idolatrous worship and engaged in all their abominable practices).  They were never out of sight of the true Shepherd of Israel.

Because the spiritual and political and tribal and family leaders of Israel have been corrupted and failed in their responsibilities to guard and protect those under their care, the LORD will judge them--from the king to the priest to the tribal chiefs and heads of the clans to the head of each household.  They will loose their positions of power and prominence and will no longer have the responsibility of caring for the sheep of Israel.  The LORD will take care of that Himself.  The LORD will rescue His sheep from these so-called shepherds.  Keep this in mind as you read the Gospel accounts and the contentious relationship between Jesus and the religious leaders.  A lot of it stems from Jesus saying He is going to feed and care for the sheep of Israel because He is their Good Shepherd now and the religious leaders of the day who were not that different from the religious leaders of this time were upset that their leadership roles (and their ability to fleece the people with their powerful positions) was going away.  There were certainly other issues like Jesus calling them to repentance and them feeling like they needed no repentance, but many of their objections come down to a power struggle of Jesus saying He was in charge and they wanted to continue to be the ones in charge.