For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out.
Ezekiel 34:11 belongs to the rebuke of Israel's unfaithful shepherds, setting their neglect and scattering of the flock against God's promise to do Himself what they failed to do. The doubled I, even I means the Lord Himself will personally search for and seek out His scattered sheep and take charge of the flock rather than leave it wholly dependent on human ministers. He will deliver His people from misleading pastors and the places where they were scattered, gather the lost, straying, driven away, broken and sick, bring them back, feed and heal them, and judge between the flock and those who harm it. Because He has never made the flock wholly dependent on human instrumentalities, true Christians can still be found even where there are no faithful ministers, and hope remains alive amid moral darkness until God has a people pure and true. The promise is a special call to the erring, weak, trembling and even apostatized to come fully into the fold, and it lays upon God's people and ministers the duty to follow the same Shepherd pattern by personally seeking the lost in their homes and caring for each family.
Context and Divine Promise
Ezekiel 34:11 belongs to the prophecy against the unfaithful shepherds of Israel, setting their neglect of the scattered flock over against God's own work of seeking His sheep. It stands as a warning against deception and against acting the part of an unfaithful shepherd. It calls shepherds back to loyalty, to feed the flock with truth instead of rejecting God's message and trampling His law.
The doubled I, even I marks that the Lord Himself will personally search for His sheep and seek them out. When human shepherds prove unfaithful He Himself takes charge of the flock. He has never made the flock wholly dependent on human ministers or human instrumentalities.
That personal intervention delivers His people from misleading pastors and from the places where they were scattered, so that deceived souls have opportunity to hear the truth. He takes the flock from a leader who has harmed and confused them, keeps them from being spoiled, and appoints faithful teachers and physicians to care for them. The sheep are pictured as scattered and neglected in other lands, as lost and straying, driven away, broken, and sick. He promises to gather them from other lands, bring them back to their own land, and feed and care for them, to find the lost, bring back the straying, restore the driven away, heal the broken, strengthen the sick, and judge between the flock and those who harm it.
Even where there are no faithful ministers there can still be true Christians. Amid prevailing moral darkness and unfaithfulness this keeps hope alive. It leads toward God having a people pure and true in the hastening purification.
Following the Shepherd's Call
The verse is a special call to the erring, to the weak and trembling, and even to those who have apostatized from the truth to come fully into the fold, and it lays a special duty on God's people to go and search for these lost sheep. As a shepherd searches for his lost sheep, God's workers must search out people in their homes through house-to-house work. That personal, house-to-house labor is of equal importance with special public efforts, because in large cities there are certain classes that cannot be reached by public meetings. They must be found by diligent personal effort, or precious opportunities that would decidedly advance the work will be lost.
The same shepherd pattern shows how a minister should care for the church, not only by preaching publicly but by personally visiting each family. In those visits he is to learn the spiritual condition of its members and lovingly work to help parents and children. The shepherd's patient care for straying, afflicted, young, and weak sheep is the care Moses learned to give as a shepherd, and it prepared him to lead God's people. The promise to seek and care for those who are scattered, lost, driven away, broken, or sick grounds the appeal to work among the colored people.
The chapter is to be studied individually with spiritual discernment to know what the Lord requires and to form a character after the divine similitude. It calls for consecration, daily conversion, watching and trusting, rather than continuing to do as one pleases or remaining under the influence of one who has apostatized. The Lord Himself taking charge to find His scattered sheep holds hope for the future life and for preparation to meet the Lord with joy when He comes in the clouds of heaven with power and glory. It includes hope that one who has made a wrong choice may yet change that choice, shown by actions that are lawful and right, so that none of his sins are mentioned.
Ezekiel 34:11 belongs to the rebuke of Israel's unfaithful shepherds, setting their neglect and scattering of the flock against God's promise to do Himself what they failed to do. The doubled I, even I means the Lord Himself will personally search for and seek out His scattered sheep and take charge of the flock rather than leave it wholly dependent on human ministers. He will deliver His people from misleading pastors and the places where they were scattered, gather the lost, straying, driven away, broken and sick, bring them back, feed and heal them, and judge between the flock and those who harm it. Because He has never made the flock wholly dependent on human instrumentalities, true Christians can still be found even where there are no faithful ministers, and hope remains alive amid moral darkness until God has a people pure and true. The promise is a special call to the erring, weak, trembling and even apostatized to come fully into the fold, and it lays upon God's people and ministers the duty to follow the same Shepherd pattern by personally seeking the lost in their homes and caring for each family.
Context and Divine Promise
Ezekiel 34:11 belongs to the prophecy against the unfaithful shepherds of Israel, setting their neglect of the scattered flock over against God's own work of seeking His sheep. It stands as a warning against deception and against acting the part of an unfaithful shepherd. It calls shepherds back to loyalty, to feed the flock with truth instead of rejecting God's message and trampling His law.
The doubled I, even I marks that the Lord Himself will personally search for His sheep and seek them out. When human shepherds prove unfaithful He Himself takes charge of the flock. He has never made the flock wholly dependent on human ministers or human instrumentalities.
That personal intervention delivers His people from misleading pastors and from the places where they were scattered, so that deceived souls have opportunity to hear the truth. He takes the flock from a leader who has harmed and confused them, keeps them from being spoiled, and appoints faithful teachers and physicians to care for them. The sheep are pictured as scattered and neglected in other lands, as lost and straying, driven away, broken, and sick. He promises to gather them from other lands, bring them back to their own land, and feed and care for them, to find the lost, bring back the straying, restore the driven away, heal the broken, strengthen the sick, and judge between the flock and those who harm it.
Even where there are no faithful ministers there can still be true Christians. Amid prevailing moral darkness and unfaithfulness this keeps hope alive. It leads toward God having a people pure and true in the hastening purification.
Following the Shepherd's Call
The verse is a special call to the erring, to the weak and trembling, and even to those who have apostatized from the truth to come fully into the fold, and it lays a special duty on God's people to go and search for these lost sheep. As a shepherd searches for his lost sheep, God's workers must search out people in their homes through house-to-house work. That personal, house-to-house labor is of equal importance with special public efforts, because in large cities there are certain classes that cannot be reached by public meetings. They must be found by diligent personal effort, or precious opportunities that would decidedly advance the work will be lost.
The same shepherd pattern shows how a minister should care for the church, not only by preaching publicly but by personally visiting each family. In those visits he is to learn the spiritual condition of its members and lovingly work to help parents and children. The shepherd's patient care for straying, afflicted, young, and weak sheep is the care Moses learned to give as a shepherd, and it prepared him to lead God's people. The promise to seek and care for those who are scattered, lost, driven away, broken, or sick grounds the appeal to work among the colored people.
The chapter is to be studied individually with spiritual discernment to know what the Lord requires and to form a character after the divine similitude. It calls for consecration, daily conversion, watching and trusting, rather than continuing to do as one pleases or remaining under the influence of one who has apostatized. The Lord Himself taking charge to find His scattered sheep holds hope for the future life and for preparation to meet the Lord with joy when He comes in the clouds of heaven with power and glory. It includes hope that one who has made a wrong choice may yet change that choice, shown by actions that are lawful and right, so that none of his sins are mentioned.