Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

A Davidic Psalm.

The Lord Shepherds His People

Israel’s False Shepherds

34 A message came from the Lord for me, and it had this to say: ² “Son of Man, prophesy against Israel’s shepherds. Tell those shepherds, ‘This is what the Lord God says:

“Woe to you shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves and not the sheep. Shouldn’t shepherds feed the sheep? ³ You’re eating the best parts,^[a] clothing yourselves with the wool, and slaughtering the home-grown sheep without having fed the sheep! ⁴ You haven’t strengthened the weak, treated the sick, set broken bones, regathered the scattered, or looked for the lost. Instead, you’ve dominated them with brutal force and ruthlessness.

⁵ “Since they have no shepherd, they have been scattered around and have become prey for all sorts of wild animals. How scattered they are! ⁶ My sheep have gone wandering on all of the mountains, on all of the hills, and throughout every high place in the whole world, with no one to look for them or go out in search of them.

⁷ “Therefore listen to what the Lord says, you shepherds: ⁸ ‘As certainly as I’m alive and living, my sheep have truly become victims, food for all of the wild animals because there are no shepherds. My shepherds did not go searching for my flock. Instead, the shepherds fed themselves, and my flock they would not feed!’

⁹ “Therefore, you shepherds, listen to what the Lord says: ¹⁰ ‘This is what the Lord God says: “Watch out, I’m coming after you shepherds! I’m going to demand my sheep back from them^[b] and fire them as shepherds. The shepherds won’t be shepherds anymore when I snatch my flock right out of their mouths so they can’t be eaten by them anymore.”’”

The Coming True Shepherd

¹¹ “This is what the Lord says: ‘Watch me! I’m going to search for my flock. I’ll watch over them myself. ¹² Just as a shepherd looks after his flock during the day time while he is with them, so also I’m going to watch over my sheep, delivering them from every place where they’ve been scattered during the times of gloom and doom.^{[c] 13} I’m going to bring them out from foreign^[d] nations and from foreign lands. Then I’ll bring them to their own land and feed them in Israel—on the mountains, in their valleys, and in all of their settlements throughout the land. ¹⁴ I’ll feed them in excellent pastures, and even the very heights of Israel’s mountains will serve as verdant pastures for them in which they’ll rest and feed—yes, even on the fertile mountains of Israel! ¹⁵ I will feed my sheep and give them rest,’ declares the Lord God. ¹⁶ ‘I’m going to seek both the lost as well as the scattered, and bring them both back so their broken bones can be set and the sick can be healed. But in righteousness I’ll exterminate the fat and the stiff-necked.’”

The Parable about the Faithful Shepherd^(A)

15 Now all the tax collectors and sinners kept coming to listen to Jesus.^{[a] 2} But the Pharisees and the scribes kept complaining, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” ³ So he told them this parable:

⁴ “Suppose one of you has 100 sheep and loses one of them. He leaves the 99 in the wilderness and looks for the one that is lost until he finds it, doesn’t he? ⁵ When he finds it, he puts it on his shoulders and rejoices. ⁶ Then he goes home, calls his friends and neighbors together, and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me, because I’ve found my lost sheep!’ ⁷ In the same way, I tell you that there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous people who don’t need to repent.”