Shepherds…the Shepherd….

 Shepherds…and the Shepherd…

A couple of years ago, I had the privilege to go to Israel with a college group from Montana…parents and grandparents were invited to travel with the college students…I would have to say, that going there was not on my radar, as so much had been  (and still is)happening…didn’t “feel like a safe place to travel”…(so much for my faith)…but, I couldn’t pass this up….we arrived in the spring after a rainy season.   The hills were lush with grass, wild flowers bloomed profusely, the promised land…

We toured site after site of ancient civilizations, noting the architecture changes, the use of the stone, the places where Bible people walked and lived…streets covered with mosaics, huge columns upright and fallen, stadiums, palaces, tombs, gardens, synagogues, excavations, ordinary homes…

I remember when I first caught sight of a flock of sheep, I was so excited, something tangible, something about the Shepherd…then we were waiting on a hillside and up over the rise comes a young man followed by his flock…I walked to get a closer look  and was soon amongst the flock as they meandered here and there eating the tender grass, all the while watching their shepherd…

I know I have written about this earlier…but was watching a video about shepherds this morning…so decide to follow through the Bible…not just psalm 23…was so blessed by this concept again…

There are many references to “Shepherd”, both positive and negative…I chose the ones that point to God being our Shepherd…Joseph in the Old Testament recognized Him…and all throughout…David …until Jesus says it of Himself…ending in the book of Revelations…shepherding through the ages…and still does…we can claim the same words as David did in Psalm 23..

Thank YOU…

And he blessed Joseph and said, “The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life long to this day,

Genesis 48:15 

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 

He makes me lie down in green pastures. 

He leads me beside still waters. 

He restores my soul. 

He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. 

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Psalm 23:1-6

The Lord is the strength of his people; he is the saving refuge of his anointed. Oh, save your people and bless your heritage! Be their shepherd and carry them forever.

Psalm 28:8-9

With upright heart he shepherded them and guided them with his skillful hand.

Psalm 78:72 

The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd.

Ecclesiastes 12:11

He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young.

Isaiah 40:11

 “‘And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.

Jeremiah 3:15 

I will set shepherds over them who will care for them, and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall any be missing, declares the Lord.

Jeremiah 23:4 

I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord God. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice.

Ezekiel 34:15-16 

10 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. 2 But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 

3 To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 

4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 

8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 

11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 

14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.

John 10:1-4,7-8,11,14-15

For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

Revelation 7:17