Ezekiel 34 Devotional

He Searches for His Sheep

“I will seek the lost, bring back the strays, bind up the broken, and strengthen the weak; but the sleek and strong I will destroy. I will shepherd them with justice.’”Ezekiel 34:16 (BSB)

God's charge against Israel's leaders is simple. Shepherds are supposed to feed the flock, and these fed only themselves (34:2-3). They took the wool and the meat, did nothing for the weak, the sick, the injured, or the lost, and ruled with harshness instead (34:4). The sheep scattered and became food for wild animals, with no one searching for them (34:5-6).

So God takes up the work himself. He will search for his sheep, and make them lie down in good pasture (34:11-15). He will go after the lost and tend the broken, and he will also judge between sheep, because some of the strong shove the weak aside and muddy the water (34:16-22). Then he promises one shepherd over them, his servant David (34:23). Jesus later called himself the good shepherd, who gives his life for the sheep, knows each of his own, and brings other sheep into one flock (John 10:11-16). The care those leaders refused is the care Christ gives. Whatever has scattered you, he is still searching.

To think about: Where do you feel scattered or worn down right now, and what would it mean to let Christ the good shepherd find and tend you there?