23:1 Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my
pasture! says the LORD.
23:2 Therefore thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning the
shepherds who shepherd my people: It is you who have scattered my
flock, and have driven them away, and you have not attended to them.
So I will attend to you for your evil doings, says the LORD.
23:3 Then I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all
the lands where I have driven them, and I will bring them back to
their fold, and they shall be fruitful and multiply.
23:4 I will raise up shepherds over them who will shepherd them, and
they shall not fear any longer, or be dismayed, nor shall any be
missing, says the LORD.
23:5 The days are surely coming, says the LORD, when I will raise up
for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal
wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.
23:6 In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety.
And this is the name by which he will be called: "The LORD is our
righteousness."
Is anyone besides me confused by verse 3 where it seems that God is
saying the sheep that are scattered are where God has driven them? And
certainly this is a passage that pastors can take personally, but I
wonder if there's another way to understand it, a way that also
assigns responsibility (credit &/or blame) to laity. Also, I'm
thinking about verses 5 & 6: I'm sure that the original context (no, I
haven't yet checked the commentaries) must be about corrupt religious
leaders and the promise of a "righteous" leader who will bring about
social justice; but would it be unfaithful to the passage to think
about the righteous branch being raised up in individual hearts? and
of the people crediting God for the good life that comes from that?
Just some early ponderings from Janice in Ks.
JG in WI to Janice in Ks
I hope you get to look at this. I've been puzzling over your question
for two days. I think I have something.
The shepherds scattered the flock in v. 2. The flock, having been
scattered by evil shepherds, were driven into nations by the LORD. In
these nations, they could survive and even prosper. The Jews prospered
in Babylon during the captivity. They also learned there not to
worship other gods (as there is never any mention of this problem
after the captivity).
You're right, I think, about the context, but I don't see this as a
"social justice" issue. It's a righteousness issue; the righteousness
of God. Now this can be expressed in socially just means and ends, but
that's not the focus. The focus, I feel, is on Messiah (and Jewish
commentators do see Messiah in this passage), the righteous King, as
deity, and as the savior and redeemer of His people.
However, I'm also not sure where I'm going with this.
Peace
JG in WI.
Thanks for your response to my question. It stirs more thinking for
me. Vs. 2 also uses "driven" for what the shepherds did; but 1 way for
me to think about it, is that perhaps God's gathering, redeeming work
started immdiately, that when the sheep scattered, God was perhaps
doing some band-aid/emergency herding to keep them safe until after
God could attend to the shepherds for their "evil doings."
Also, as soon as I submitted that post, I knew it wasn't on target,
that it would be missing the point not to focus on the Righteous
Branch as Christ.
Thanks again for your response.
Grace and Peace, Janice in Ks
JG in WI
Well, here it is, Saturday afternoon, and I think I have a direction
for this passage.
In verses 1 and 2, the wicked shepherds "scatter" the flock. It's
almost a contradiction in terms, since shepherds are supposed to keep
the flock together. God does not want divisions in His flock.
In verses 3 and 4, God uses His "under-"shepherds to keep the flock
together... the purpose being, that they would scatter and none of
them will be missing. God gathers His flock and keeps His flock
together.
In verses 5 and 6, God Himself becomes their shepherd through the Good
Shepherd (this passage was understood almost universally by rabbis
before the time of Christ as a prophecy of Messiah) who would unite
the flock into one... both Judah and Israel together again. God wants
His flock to be one.
Hope this flies. Peace, all.
Are we the shepherds of verse one or verse four??!
peace, kent in Québec
Isn't it interesting that the coming Shepherd will execute justice and
righteousness in the land. Jesus in fact does this but probably not in
a way I would have imagined if I was Jeremiah. I would have expected
some kind of social justice and returning Israel to her "heyday".
Instead Jesus, the Good Shepherd and King brings justice which has
been tempered with mercy ("Father forgive them...") and a
right-standing with the Father. JAL
Kent in Quebec,
I'm not sure where I fit in, but I'm waiting and banking on the
Shepherd in vss. 5 & 6 ;-) JAL
kent and JAL,
Would my hermenuetics be flawed if I were to use the Scriptures to
identify who the shepherds in verse 1 are?
(Acts 20:29-32 NIV) I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come
in among you and will not spare the flock. {30} Even from your own
number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away
disciples after them. {31} So be on your guard! Remember that for
three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with
tears. {32} "Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace,
which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who
are sanctified.
Rick in Va
A personal note on this passage. I was in a church where the shepherd
scattered the flock. I know the damage it can do to the flock and I
also saw the shepherd who put the flock back together. I never read
this passage without the pain of that time coming back to me. I never
read it without wondering how a shepherd who is supposed to belive can
do such a thing and still claim that they believe. MR in NY
The Lord is our righteousness is so important for an understanding of
faith. The righteous branch is the one who finds the displaced,
missing, neglected, and isolated sheep. Fear and dismay will be
replaced with rejoicing. The righteousness God asks for is to join in
being a shepherd to the scattered. We have to remember what it is like
to be scattered and away from the fold. Salvation is wholeness with
God and with others. Another area to explore is the foundational truth
of our righteousness being God's gift. We overshadow such a radical
gift with an understanding that righteousness is primarily our
righteous deeds. It is both but the gift comes first. bobby , tx.
