HarvestWord.org
The False Shepherds Will Be Judged
September 15th, 2014
Recently while going through various emails I received one with this partial scripture; Ezekiel 34:10b "so the shepherds will not feed themselves anymore, but I will deliver my flock from their mouth, so that they will not be food for them."
This scripture seemed to "jump out" at me in a way such that I know the Lord is trying to draw my attention to something. I started to read all of Ezekiel 34, but I was prompted by the Lord to seek Him for understanding first. The Lord brought other scriptures to mind, and gave me a sense of the larger context. I then went back and read all of Ezekiel 34.
America is a nation under impending judgement. We know from 1 Peter 4:17 that " For it is time for judgement to begin with the household of God, and if it begins with us first"...therefore we can expect this judgement to begin with the Body of Christ, for we have failed as a whole to be the "salt and light" that we are called to be. Part of the impending judgement is that 'false shepherds' have been allowed to enter in. Zechariah 11:15-16 " And the Lord said to me, "Next, take for yourself implements of a foolish shepherd. For indeed I will raise up a shepherd in the land who will not care for those who are cut off, nor seek the young, not heal those that are broken, nor feed those that still stand. But he will eat the flesh of the fat and their hooves in pieces.'" One only has to to look at the latest church news to see that many who have been leading congregations have come under what seems to be a greater scrutiny, and that scrutiny has brought to light many "whispers spoken in the inner rooms." But the time has come for many things to be shaken, and the shaking will begin with the leadership of the church; self-appointed and man appointed leaders will not be able to stand, they will fall and be exposed. "Woe to the worthless shepherd, who leaves the flock! A sword shall be against his arm and against his right eye; his arms shall completely whither, and his right eye shall be totally blinded."
Jesus warned us that "many would come in His name" but that we should cautious. In Matthew 7:15-16 he said "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits." The apostles Paul and Peter gave similar warnings (Acts 20:29, 2 Peter 2:1). The text in Ezekiel 34 describes the "fruit" of these false shepherds.
v.3 Then the word of the Lord came to me saying, "Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy and say to those shepherds, 'Thus says the Lord God, "Woe, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flock? You eat the fat and clothe yourselves the wool, you slaughter the fat sheep without feeding the flock."
Here we have the picture of certain shepherds taking care of themselves without taking care of the flock. It is Biblical for a shepherd to receive provision from the flock (1 Corinthians 9:3-12) but to take from the sheep without caring for them is theft from the Lord (Matthew 25:31-46). Also see Isaiah 56:11.
v.4 "Those who are sickly you have not strengthened, the diseased you have not healed, the broken you have not bound up, the scattered you have not brought back, not have you sought for the lost; but with force and with severity you have dominated them." Here again we see that the sheep are being ignored, making them easy prey for the enemy. Zechariah 10:2 For the idols speak delusion, the diviners envision lies, and tell false dreams; they comfort in vain. The people wend their way like sheep; they are in trouble because there is no shepherd.
v.5-6 "They were scattered for lack of a shepherd, and they became food for every beast of the field and were scattered. My flock wandered through all the mountains and on every high hill; My flock was scattered over all the surface of the earth, and there was no one to search or seek for them." When any sort of trouble arises, these 'false shepherds' flee and usually take the "fleece" with them. The broken remains of believers' trust, livelihoods and faith in fellow believers is the usual ending. Having been hurt, many are carried away captive by the enemy due to unforgiveness, bitterness, mistrust etc.
v.7-10 "Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: 'As I live,' declares the Lord God 'surely because My flock has become a prey, My flock has even become food for all the beasts of the field for lack of a shepherd, and My shepherds did not search for My flock, but rather the shepherds fed themselves and did not feed my flock; therefore you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: Thus says the Lord God,' "Behold I am against the shepherds, and I will demand My sheep from them and make them cease from feeding sheep. So the shepherds will not feed themselves anymore, but I will deliver My flock from their mouth, so that they will not be food for them"."
Jeremiah 25:34-37 gives an idea of what the judgement of these "false shepherds" will look like: "Wail shepherds, and cry! Roll about about in the ashes, you leaders of the flock! For the days of your slaughter and your dispersions are fulfilled; you shall fall like a precious vessel. And the shepherds will have no way to flee, nor the leaders of the flock to escape. A voice of the cry of the shepherds, and a wailing of the leaders to the flock will be heard. For the Lord has plundered their pasture, and the peaceful dwellings are cut down because of the fierce anger of the Lord." Part of the impression I got is that some cases of judgement will come about in a similar fashion as to what happened to Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11). The Lord will also deal with the "hireling" shepherds (John 10:12-13) during this time. Recall that cowards are the first thrown into the lake of fire. (Revelation 21:8)
The "larger context" that I got from the Lord is that as this is taking place, it will seem that more than ever that the church in America is headed for a "meltdown". As the false shepherds are removed whole flocks (congregations) will be without a leader. Some will dissolve completely and be scattered. Some flocks will be divided, with some departing to follow after the false shepherd, having never been true "sheep". However, for the "true sheep" God Himself "search and seek them out." He will bring them together and make them His own and give them rest (Ezekiel 34:11-16, John 10:1-17). Remnant flocks will join with other remnants to in some cases, continue a particular church. However, the impression I had is that out of the scattered sheep many new flocks or churches will spring up. These will be radically different than the churches based on externals (denomination, language, national origin etc.) but will be true "Bodies of Christ", joined and knit together and being under the "head" of Jesus (Ephesians 4:15-16). In these churches the five-fold ministry will once again be seen and will be "for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ" (Ephesians 4:11-12).
At the same time that the false shepherds are being exposed and judged, the true shepherds will be undergoing a refinement. For some this will mean an inward cleansing; for some this will mean moving to a different position in leadership or even a different geographic location. Be cautious to not "judge before the time" (1 Corinthians 4:5); even a 'false' shepherd who repents could be used by the Lord as a true shepherd (Acts 9).
It was my distinct impression that the timing of the beginning of all this is "Now". One should note that Rosh Hashanah (Feast of Trumpets, Jewish New Year) is just over a week away and Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) is now less than three weeks away. While doing some personal research of this season, or the 'Days of Awe', I found that a traditional greeting during this time is goes something like "May you be written and sealed for a good new year by God." It reminded me of Ezekiel 20:37-38 " I will make you pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant; I will purge the rebels from among you, and those who transgress against Me; I will bring them out of the country where they dwell, but they shall not enter the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord."