“You are my sheep, the sheep of my pasture and I am your God, declares the Sovereign Lord.”

-Ezekiel 34:31

The 23^rd Chapter of the Book of Psalm is the most well known and familiar of the Psalms. It declares that God is our Shepherd. This is an easy image to conceive, more so, because of the idyllic agricultural setting in which it is portrayed. In societies where sheep, goats, or herds are raised, it is not hard to know the role of the shepherd and the pastoral care he discharges in taking care of his flock.

In the Book of Ezekiel, this imagery is reiterated. God proclaims to His people  that they are His sheep, the sheep of His pasture, His flock, His human flock.

In the pasture land, we know that the shepherd takes care of the sheep. Shepherding is no ordinary work or occupation. The Shepherd has to account for all the sheep. He would seek out those which go stray or wayward and bring them back to the fold. He would protect the flock from predators and wild animals, and would even risk his life in defending them. The shepherd tends the flock bringing them to feed in good land where there is abundant grass to graze and water to drink.

This picture painted by the Prophet Ezekiel showing God’s people are His flock is a great message. Here we see the nature of God as loving, caring, patient, vigilant, forgiving, generous, and most of all our savior and deliverer.