https://odb.org/2025/08/26/sheep-crossing
Ezekiel 34:11–16 (NIV): 11 “ ‘For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them. 12 As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness. 13 I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from the countries, and I will bring them into their own land. I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and in all the settlements in the land. 14 I will tend them in a good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. 15 I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign LORD. 16 I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.
The picture of God as our shepherd is often used in the bible because Israelites were mostly shepherds themselves, herding sheep to make a living. As a livestock, sheep provides fur, which the shepherds sell or use to make clothing, milk for self consumption, or sale, and ultimately meat for special occasions. Unlike poultry, which may be reared in situ, sheep need vast grazing land with grass. They also need water, and thus, the grazing land must have streams or rivers of water. Thus, when Psalm 23 speaks of God as our shepherd, David proclaimed that the LORD would do as follows: “He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters.” (Psalm 23:2 NKJV)
Ezekial 34 above, in addition to showcasing God’s heart as a shepherd-king, is often also cited as the verse that God will bring the Jews scattered across the globe back to their homeland in Israel one day. And that prophesy in Ezekial in ancient times was fulfilled when Israel, the sovereign state, was established on May 14, 1948.
Besides taking care of His sheep, God as the shepherd-king will go all out to search for the lost. A theme repeated by Christ in the parables of the lost sheep, lost coin, and lost son. In the parable of the lost sheep, the shepherd will leave behind his flock of 99 sheep to look for the one who got lost. This means that every single one of his flock is precious and valuable to him. They are not just a number in an Excel sheet like some of us are in our company books. Every single sheep is an air-breathing living organism that means a lot to the shepherd, so much so that he will not be satisfied until he finds the one who got lost. Not to be discarded and reported as lost, or just written off the books as a cost of shepherding (or in our modern context, the cost of doing business).
Ezekial 34 and Psalm 23 reflect the heart of our God. If we have strayed from the faith or got lost in the world or got scattered away from the flock because of our ambitions or even struggles in life, come back to the Father. Call upon the name of Jesus, our Lord, and Saviour. Pray for the Holy Spirit to work in our hearts that our hearts may not be hardened against His Word and His calling. That we will start to attend church again and fellowship with other believers. That we will repent from our sins and serve God again in church. That we discard our own selfish ambitions and plans and be selfless again for God. Let Your will be done and not mine in my life, O Lord my God, the creator of heaven and earth! I pray this prayer for all of us in the most precious name of our Lord Jesus Christ ! Amen! Indeed, let Your will be done here on earth as it is in heaven!
Ronnie's Thoughts 