Author’s Note: Interested readers can find all previous volumes of this series here.
Welcome to our Bible study, especially if you are joining for the first time.
Today we explore the word “shepherd,” how it was used, and what it symbolized. I was inspired to write about this topic after hearing the magnificent hymn “Shepherd Me, O God.” This version is sung by its composer, Marty Haugen.
Let’s begin with the secular definition of shepherd from Merriam-Webster: “A person who tends sheep.” “A pastor” and the transitive verb “to guide or guard in the manner of a shepherd.”
Bible definitions from a variety of sources include “someone who watches over, looks after, or guides somebody.” A “metaphor used for God, especially in the Judeo-Christian tradition.” BibleStudyTools explains how “This word is used figuratively to represent the relation of rulers to their subjects and of God to his people.”
The Holman Bible Dictionary says shepherd or shepherding is “mentioned over 200 times in the Bible,” mainly in the Old Testament and only “16 times” in the New. However, as we will read below, the word is central to the identity and ministry of Jesus.
Starting with the shepherd verses in the Old Testament (Hebrew Bible), the most famous is Psalm 23 (upon which the “Shepherd Me, O God” hymn was based). Here are the Psalm’s first three verses:
“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake” (Psalm 23: 1-3).
Next, the prophetic verses in Ezekiel 34:1-24 are subtitled “The Lord Will Be Israel’s Shepherd” but references Israel’s leaders as shepherds. God speaks through Ezekiel, excoriating these leaders for caring more about themselves than their flock. What follows are the first three verses of Divine scolding:
“The word of the LORD came to me: ‘Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy and say to them: This is what the Sovereign LORD says: “‘Woe to you shepherds of Israel who only take care of yourselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock? You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock.’” (Ezekiel 34: 1-3).
Ezekiel’s prophecy ends with God declaring David is His choice to shepherd over Israel:
“‘I will save my flock, and they will no longer be plundered. I will judge between one sheep and another. I will place over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he will tend them; he will tend them and be their shepherd. I the LORD will be their God, and my servant David will be prince among them. I the LORD have spoken’” (Ezekiel 34: 22-24).
Note that David, credited with Psalm 23, writing “The Lord is my shepherd,” perfectly connects with God’s anointing David as Israel’s shepherd.
Due to space considerations, I must be shepherded away to review New Testament verses beginning with the iconic Christmas Eve scene. The Bethlehem shepherds were first to receive the “good news” of Jesus’s birth, but it was somewhat dramatic:
“And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified” (Luke 2: 8-9).
Indeed there is a heavenly link between the shepherds first being notified and Jesus’s symbolic personification of a shepherd leading his flock. Here is a small sample of these Gospel passages in order of appearance. The first verse was spoken by Jesus shortly before he was betrayed:
“Then Jesus told them, ‘This very night you will all fall away on account of me, for it is written: “I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered"'" (Matthew 26:31).
Jesus takes on the role of shepherd in this verse from Mark:
“When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things” (Mark 6:34).
Jesus uses shepherd imagery in a famous lesson about repentance:
“Then Jesus told them this parable: ‘Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, “Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.” I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent’’’ (Luke 15:3-7).
The Gospel of John has the most prophetic, Jesus-voiced, shepherd references:
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (John 10:11).
“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me — just as the Father knows me and I know the Father — and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd” (John 10:14-16).
“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27).
“‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him [Peter], ‘Feed my sheep’" (John 21:17).
Finally, a non-Gospel shepherd reference:
“Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant…” (Hebrews 13: 20-21).
Today we have read about a new way to think about our relationship with Lord Jesus — we are His sheep, and He is our Shepherd. To hear His voice, we must follow Him so that He can shepherd us. And we must feed the sheep that don’t hear Him.
Now, ask yourself, “Is the Lord my shepherd?” Then, while contemplating your answer, listen to another inspiring rendition of “Shepherd Me, O God.”
Amen!
Myra Kahn Adams is a media producer and conservative political and religious writer with numerous national credits. She is also Executive Director of www.SignFromGod.org, a ministry dedicated to educating people about the Shroud of Turin. Contact: MyraAdams01@gmail.com or Twitter @MyraKAdams.