Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost: Old Testament, Ezekiel 34:11-24                  

Ezekiel 34:11-24

There is an old gospel song which I might have previously cited. The opening line is simple enough, “Oh, how He loves you and me. Oh, how He loves you and me.” The remainder is just as simple and is powerful for its simplicity. Our Old Testament reading for the week could be a launching pad of sorts for the words of the gospel tune above. God is not ashamed, amidst the lack of care shown by human shepherds, to take on the role of the Chief or Good Shepherd. The most well-known psalm of all begins with the declaration of God as shepherd. And it is done in Hebrew construction as part of His very name. “The LORD is my shepherd” (Ps. 23:1).

In our text God declares that He will take on the care of His flock, moving in on the blessed territory He had granted human leaders to care for that same flock. They were miserable failures, caring only for themselves and looking to their own needs. Verse 15 reads, “‘I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down,’ declares the Lord GOD.” Beautiful isn’t it? Our God will step in. My inkling is that He never has truly been out of the caring mix.

John, the beloved disciple, brings this grand thought forward to God’s New Testament people in the words of the Lord Jesus, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (John 10:11). “Oh, how He loves you and me,” so says the old gospel song. Just how far does that shepherding love go? All the way. He loves His sheep.