11 For this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, I Myself will search for My flock and seek them out.

12 As a shepherd looks for his scattered sheep when he is among the flock, so I will look for My flock. I will rescue them from all the places to which they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness.

13 I will bring them out from the peoples, gather them from the countries, and bring them into their own land. I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines, and in all the settlements of the land.

14 I will feed them in good pasture, and the lofty mountains of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in a good grazing land; they will feed in rich pasture on the mountains of Israel.

15 I will tend My flock and make them lie down, declares the Lord GOD.

16a I will seek the lost, bring back the strays, bind up the broken, and strengthen the weak…

— Ezekiel 34:11-16a

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding;

— Proverbs 3:5

Thoughts on Today’s Reading

Grace, mercy and salvation from Christ to you.

Shepherding is a relationship based on grace and mercy, and trust. It’s a relationship between many, who are weak, and the one who is strong that the weak ones can depend upon. It’s a relationship of tender care and love. When a sheep decides to leave its shepherd to go its own way, and if its shepherd doesn’t hear the faint cry of this astray weak, then a life is lost. There are some tactics shepherds use in an attempt to try to teach the wandering sheep to follow but in the end such things can’t be forced. In the end every soul must choose to either be with God or without Him. In the end every soul must choose between life and death.

In Ezekiel 34, God says, “My sheep have become food for all the wild animals since there was no shepherd. I Myself will be the shepherd of My sheep. I will seek the lost and bring back the strayed.” In fulfillment of this Jesus said of Himself: “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost. Whoever hears My word and believes has crossed over from death to life.”