The Bad Shepherds

The Bad Shepherds
Zechariah 10:1-5
June 4, 2023

One of the beauties of Scripture is that it takes a transcendent, infinite, unknowable God and reveals Him to us not only so that we can know Him, but that we can understand Him.  One way the Bible does that is by taking things that we know and connecting them to the nature of God — as if to say, “You know how this works; God is like that (except infinitely greater).” 

One of the figures the Bible uses repeatedly for God is the imagery of a shepherd; you know Psalm 23 (and have likely gone there many times to be comforted).  And you know John 10.  But how about these:

• Jacob: “The God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day…” (Gen. 48:5)
• “Oh, give ear, Shepherd of Israel, You who lead Joseph like a flock; You who are enthroned above the cherubim, shine forth!” (Ps. 80:1)
• Like a shepherd He will tend His flock, In His arm He will gather the lambs And carry them in His bosom; He will gently lead the nursing” (Is. 40:11)
• “And He [Messiah] will arise and shepherd His flock In the strength of the LORD, In the majesty of the name of the LORD His God.…” (Mic. 5:4)
• “Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord…” (Heb. 13:20)
• “…for the Lamb in the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and will guide them to springs of the water of life; and God will wipe every tear from their eyes.” (Rev. 7:17)

He is a shepherd who guides, provides, corrects, and loves with great skill and tenderness.  It’s an image that resonates with us today, even if we aren’t ranchers.  But not only is God a shepherd, He also calls those who care for His people to care for them in that tender shepherding manner as well (which is why our mission statement says “GBC exists to shepherd God’s people by God’s grace for God’s glory…”). 

• “In times past, even when Saul was king, you [David] were the one who led out and brought in Israel; and the LORD your God said to you, ‘You shall shepherd My people Israel, and you shall be prince over My people Israel.’” (1 Chron. 11:2)
• “So he [David] shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart, And guided them with his skillful hands.” (Ps. 78:72)
• “Then I will give you shepherds after My own heart, who will feed you on knowledge and understanding.” (Jer. 3:15)
• “He said to him the third time, ‘Simon, son of John, do you love Me?’ Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, ‘Do you love Me?’ And he said to Him, ‘Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Tend My sheep.’” (Jn. 21:17)
• “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.” (Acts 20:28)
• “For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.” (1 Pt. 2:25)
• “…shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness…” (1 Pt. 5:2)

Unfortunately, while serving as shepherds for the Great Shepherd is a great privilege, there have been some (many) who have done it for selfish ends.  Several OT passages indict ungodly shepherds for their ungodly leadership (cf. Jer. 23; Is. 34), as does Zechariah (chs. 10-11), which is where we are this morning. 

Last time we saw God as the faithful Shepherd-King — God will come as King and serve as the Shepherd of His people.  Today we will see that theme expanded and also see the antithesis to God, the great good Shepherd.  We will also start seeing God’s particular care of His people as the Shepherd-King, and how He will restore them to their Promised Land.

Beware of the existence of and temptations offered by false shepherds.

The instruction to the Israelites about the dangers of shepherds who don’t follow God as Shepherd is instructive for us as well, since our pastors and elders serve as pointers to the Great Shepherd.  In this passage we will find four pictures of good and bad shepherds to exhort us to be attentive to whom we are following and what we are wanting:

1. The Provision of the Good Shepherd (v. 1)
2. The Deception of False Shepherds (v. 2)
3. The Consequences for False Shepherds (v. 3a)
4. The Nature of the Good Shepherd (vv. 3b-5)

Download the rest of this sermon on Zechariah 10:1-5.

The audio will be posted on the GBC website by tomorrow.

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