A Brief Reflection on Ezekiel 34: Faithful and Unfaithful Shepherds

by Rowland Femi Gbamis
via Unmasking Sophistry, Vol. 5, No. 1, January-March 2025

Over the years, God has blessed me by working and interacting with many leaders in the Lord's Church in Nigeria, Canada, and the United States. I have seen the finest sides of these men as they serve in the vineyards of the Lord. However, as I read through Ezekiel 34, I do not want to assume that all shepherds are good leaders or faithful stewards of God's people, especially as evidenced by our text. Ezekiel 34 is a prophetic chapter where God, through the prophet, addresses the leaders of Israel, the shepherds.

The chapter strongly rebukes these leaders for failing to care for the people, likening them to shepherds who neglect their flock. Instead of tending to the needs of the sheep, these leaders have exploited and abandoned them, leading to their scattering and suffering. Indeed, while many leaders of God's people were shepherds whom God had entrusted with His flock, they were not necessarily good shepherds with a compassionate heart to lead in the right direction. Hence, those who took their responsibility lightly harmed the people of God.

Leadership Failure

"The weak you have not strengthened, nor have you healed those who were sick, nor bound up the broken, nor brought back what was driven away, nor sought what was lost; but with farce and cruelty you have ruled them. So they were scattered because there was no shepherd; and they became food far all the beasts of the field when they were scattered. My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and on every high hill; yes, My flock was scattered over the whole face of the earth, and no one was seeking or searching for them" (Ezekiel 34:4-6).

The prophetic messages of Ezekiel revealed how the leaders had failed their people by degrading them through bad leadership (cf. Ezekiel 19:1-14), which resulted in the exile of God's children from their land. Thus, to demonstrate the importance of good leadership, Ezekiel made a vivid comparison between the evil shepherds of the past and God, who would become their shepherd. God condemned the leaders for their selfishness and neglect. They had failed to care for the downtrodden, poor, oppressed, widows, and orphans (Ezekiel 34:4-6). These evil shepherds were compassionless, merciless, indifferent, and cruel. Consequently, God told Ezekiel to rebuke the shepherds of His people for their transgressions (Ezekiel 34:1-3).

God's Divine Intervention

God's Initiative to Seek and Rescue

"For thus says the Lord God: 'Indeed I Myself will search for My sheep and seek them out.' As a shepherd seeks out his flock on the day he is among his scattered sheep, so will I seek out My sheep and deliver them from all the places where they were scattered on a cloudy and dark day" (Ezekiel 34:11-12).

God declares that He will become the shepherd of His people. He will seek out the lost, bring back the strays, bind up the injured, and strengthen the weak. God's intervention underscores His commitment to caring for the children of Israel, contrasting His faithful shepherding with the neglect of human leaders.

Gathering and Providing for the Flock

"And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land; I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, in the valleys and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them in good pasture, and their fold shall be on the high mountains of Israel. There they shall lie down in a good fold and feed in rich pasture on the mountains of Israel" (Ezekiel 34:13-14).

The fact that God promised to restore and gather His people from all the places they have been scattered back to their land reveals God's unwavering care and protection of his children. Even when lost, God keeps seeking us to return to Him.

Healing and Justice

"'I will feed My flock, and I will make them lie down,' says the Lord God. 'I will seek what was lost and bring back what was driven away, bind up the broken and strengthen what was sick; but I will destroy the fat and the strong, and feed them in judgment'" (Ezekiel 34:15-16).

Indeed, God is the great shepherd! He always cares for the sheep of His pasture (Psalm 100:3). God promised to seek the lost, bring back the strayed, bind the injured, and strengthen the weak. These traits highlight His compassion and commitment to healing and restoring His people because He does not want anyone to perish. Consequently, God visited His wrath upon the leaders of His people with justice and righteousness.

Lesson Derived: Call to Duty

By considering the responsibilities these leaders neglected, we can learn much about the work of elders as the shepherds of the Lord's Church today.

1. Elders are to strengthen the spiritually sick and take the Lord's healing teaching to those diseased with sin (cf. Titus 1:9).
2. They must bind up and encourage the broken and discouraged (Psalms 147:3).
3. They must seek those who have left the body of Christ and lovingly lead them back to the safety of the Lord's Church (II Thessalonians 3:10-15).
4. They should be zealous in seeking the lost, recognizing that souls are precious in God's sight (Luke 15:15ff).
5. Just as God promised to care for His people (Ezekiel 34:16), shepherds in the Lord's Church must seek to bring back, bind up, and strengthen the weak (I Thessalonians 5:14). Those who refused to be kind to the people of God would encounter God's judgment ( cf Hebrews 13:7, 17).

Lesson Derived: Traits of a True Shepherd

Although Ezekiel did not discuss shepherds in the Lord's Church, we can apply the characteristics of these men in the Lord's Church today by how they care for the sheep.

1. He puts his flock before himself. He does not live off the sheep; he lives for the sheep and is ready to lay down his life for the flock (I Samuel 17:34-36).
2. He wins souls at all costs (Luke 15:4-7; cf. I Corinthians 9:22).
3. He acts with compassion toward those in trouble. When he sees a wounded lamb or sheep, he immediately cares for it, and with tender compassion, he binds up its wounds and restores them to life (I Thessalonians 5:14).
4. He sees that the flock is properly fed as he leads them from evil, not only by watching for wolves from without but also by protecting it against tragedy from within (Acts 20:30-31).
5. He sees himself as doing the work of God because God is working through him as a steward- a superintendent for the Lord (cf. Titus 1:7; II Corinthians 5:20).
6. He recognizes that his responsibility is God's given and thus will account to God (Hebrews 13:7, 17).

Lesson Derived: Strong Leadership Needed

As seen in Ezekiel 34, God condemns the unfaithful shepherds of Israel and promises to shepherd His people Himself. This stresses the importance of leaders genuinely caring for and guiding their congregation, reflecting God's shepherding nature. God expects elders in the body of Christ to provide spiritual guidance and teaching, helping the congregation grow in their faith and understanding of God's Word. It is no accident that the Lord says, "Elders must be apt/able to teach" (I Timothy 3:1). I love the way it was rendered in Titus 1:9, "holding fast the faithful word as he has been taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convict those who contradict." It means God expects shepherds in His body to be men who love the Lord and hold tenaciously to the undiluted word of God.

Sometimes, elders assume that equipping the saints with the word is the evangelists' responsibility, but that is incorrect because shepherding connotes not only caring but also "feeding" and "nurturing" in the word of God. Apostle Paul emphasizes that leaders are given to the Church to equip the saints for the work of ministry and to build up the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:11-12). Remarkably, leaders in the Lord's Church are to be examples of Christlike behavior, demonstrating love, humility, and integrity. Peter urges elders to shepherd the flock willingly and eagerly, not for personal gain, but as examples to the flock (I Peter 5:2-3). Therefore, one of the most crucial ways elders can lead by example is by demonstrating strong leadership in providing the congregation with the appropriate spiritual nourishment.

Conclusion

Ezekiel 34 serves as a powerful reminder of the sacred duty of Church leaders to shepherd or feed their flock with love, care, and integrity, following the example of God Himself. When this is done, it brings about strong leadership vital for the health and growth of the Lord's Church. While Ezekiel 34 depicts God as a shepherd who loves, nurtures, feeds, and seeks the lost (Luke 19:10; John 3:14-16; I Timothy 1:15), still, it is man's responsibility to respond to God's call (cf. Isaiah 55:6; Matthew 7:7; Acts 2:37).

What a great example of Jesus we see as He demonstrated the ultimate care in being our good shepherd by being willing to lay down His life for the sheep (John 10:15-18; I John 3:16). Therefore, it is incumbent to understand that as the Lord places men in authority in His Church, God expects them to lead honorably. He will hold accountable leaders who fail in their God's given responsibility to His people (II Timothy 4:1-5). Good leaders care for the whole flock despite its varied problems and weaknesses. Hence, wise leaders address every one of those needs as a good shepherd would to his flock (I Thessalonians 5:14). Elders are the shepherds of God's flock today (Acts 20:28; Hebrews 13:17). They, in particular, are to watch over and care for the congregation's souls because God will hold them responsible for people's souls.