“Thus says the Lord GOD, ‘Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will demand My sheep from them and make them cease from feeding sheep. So the shepherds will not feed themselves anymore, but I will deliver My flock from their mouth, so that they will not be food for them.’ … ‘Because you push with side and with shoulder, and thrust at all the weak with your horns until you have scattered them abroad, therefore, I will deliver My flock, and they will no longer be a prey; and I will judge between one sheep and another. Then I will set over them one shepherd, My servant David, and he will feed them; he will feed them himself and be their shepherd. And I, the LORD, will be their God, and My servant David will be prince among them; I the LORD have spoken’” (Ezek. 34:10, 21–24).
God’s anger toward the false shepherds is directly proportional to His love for His sheep. Out of love for His sheep, God will replace bad shepherds. It is, however, completely contrary to His character that He would replace His sheep. For if He did, He would no longer be a good shepherd.
And the good shepherd of Israel will not stop seeking until He finds and regathers all His lost sheep. This good shepherd not only seeks after the lost sheep of the house of Israel, but He also seeks lost sheep from other flocks. To be clear, the flock is not replaced; it has grown to include weak, lost, hurting, and hungry sheep from all over the world.
And the good shepherd of Israel will not stop seeking until He finds and regathers all His lost sheep
And this good shepherd knows exactly where we are today, and He is lovingly seeking after me and after you!
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and is not concerned about the sheep. I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me, even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one shepherd” (John 10:11–16).
