I have alot of opinions about how they were treated and how I FEEL about the persons who mistreated them but I would rather focus on the fact that God encouraged the both of them by giving them a promise He made to them in Ezekiel 34. I would like to share it with all of you with the hope that if you are a Shepherd it will cause you to understand in whose name you serve under and that you do answer to the highest authority as to how you treat your flock and you will give an account.
For those of us who are sheep I pray it causes you to understand that your hope and faith cannot be in man but in God your Father because man will ALWAYS fail you, man will ALWAYS disappoint you. Understand that in doing the work of your Father EXPECT to be persecuted , EXPECT to be wronged, EXPECT to be falsely accused as was your Savior but also EXPECT your God to have a plan, EXPECT your God to come through , EXPECT your God to provide. When your are in need of anything expect and know that your deliverer is COMING!
The passage is a little long in this format but I promise it is worth the read. I chose "The Message " version just to be crystal clear.
EZEKIEL 34
God's Message came to me: "Son of man, prophesy against the shepherd-leaders of Israel. Yes, prophesy! Tell those shepherds, 'God, the Master, says: Doom to you shepherds of Israel, feeding your own mouths! Aren't shepherds supposed to feed sheep? You drink the milk, you make clothes from the wool, you roast the lambs, but you don't feed the sheep. You don't build up the weak ones, don't heal the sick, don't doctor the injured, don't go after the strays, don't look for the lost. You bully and badger them. And now they're scattered every which way because there was no shepherd—scattered and easy pickings for wolves and coyotes. Scattered—my sheep!—exposed and vulnerable across mountains and hills. My sheep scattered all over the world, and no one out looking for them!
7-9 "'Therefore, shepherds, listen to the Message of God: As sure as I am the living God—Decree of God, the Master—because my sheep have been turned into mere prey, into easy meals for wolves because you shepherds ignored them and only fed yourselves, listen to what God has to say:
10 "'Watch out! I'm coming down on the shepherds and taking my sheep back. They're fired as shepherds of my sheep. No more shepherds who just feed themselves! I'll rescue my sheep from their greed. They're not going to feed off my sheep any longer!
11-16 "'God, the Master, says: From now on, I myself am the shepherd. I'm going looking for them. As shepherds go after their flocks when they get scattered, I'm going after my sheep. I'll rescue them from all the places they've been scattered to in the storms. I'll bring them back from foreign peoples, gather them from foreign countries, and bring them back to their home country. I'll feed them on the mountains of Israel, along the streams, among their own people. I'll lead them into lush pasture so they can roam the mountain pastures of Israel, graze at leisure, feed in the rich pastures on the mountains of Israel. And I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep. I myself will make sure they get plenty of rest. I'll go after the lost, I'll collect the strays, I'll doctor the injured, I'll build up the weak ones and oversee the strong ones so they're not exploited.
17-19 "'And as for you, my dear flock, I'm stepping in and judging between one sheep and another, between rams and goats. Aren't you satisfied to feed in good pasture without taking over the whole place? Can't you be satisfied to drink from the clear stream without muddying the water with your feet? Why do the rest of my sheep have to make do with grass that's trampled down and water that's been muddied?
20-22 "'Therefore, God, the Master, says: I myself am stepping in and making things right between the plump sheep and the skinny sheep. Because you forced your way with shoulder and rump and butted at all the weaker animals with your horns till you scattered them all over the hills, I'll come in and save my dear flock, no longer let them be pushed around. I'll step in and set things right between one sheep and another.
23-24 "'I'll appoint one shepherd over them all: my servant David. He'll feed them. He'll be their shepherd. And I, God, will be their God. My servant David will be their prince. I, God, have spoken.
25-27 "'I'll make a covenant of peace with them. I'll banish fierce animals from the country so the sheep can live safely in the wilderness and sleep in the forest. I'll make them and everything around my hill a blessing. I'll send down plenty of rain in season—showers of blessing! The trees in the orchards will bear fruit, the ground will produce, they'll feel content and safe on their land, and they'll realize that I am God when I break them out of their slavery and rescue them from their slave masters.
28-29
30-31 "'They'll know, beyond doubting, that I, God, am their God, that I'm with them and that they, the people Israel, are my people. Decree of God, the Master:
You are my dear flock, the flock of my pasture, my human flock,
And I am your God.
Decree of God, the Master.'"
You are my dear flock, the flock of my pasture, my human flock,
And I am your God.
Decree of God, the Master.'"
Yeah, I can't follow that but let me just end by saying, Shepherds be good stuarts over your sheep and sheep pray for your Shepherds for they like you, are only human. Spread the love , give the love, in its highest form . His version not yours!
"Sometimes the sheep are right where they need to be and the shepherd is lost" - @joseph2dogs
"Sometimes the sheep are right where they need to be and the shepherd is lost" - @joseph2dogs
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