Jeremiah 23:1-8
with Tony W. Cartledge Nov. 24, 2013
Poor Shepherds and Grand Hopes
P
olitical leaders can have a huge influence on the health and well-being of the people in their countries. The news is replete with examples of heartless dictators who think nothing of killing their own citizens, or elected leaders who cater to lobbyists or special interest groups who line their campaign coffers with cash. On the other hand, some leaders truly care for all their constituents and work toward a just and prosperous society. For good or bad, political leaders are the shepherds of society. On a hot day in the rocky hills of Gilead several years ago, I watched a local shepherd go about his work with a flock of shaggy goats. It was a bit disconcerting, given that the man was wearing desert camouflage army fatigues along with sandals and a flowing white headdress that set off his dark face and bushy beard. He carried a shepherd’s crook no taller than a walking stick, and when he wanted to draw an outlier closer to the herd, he would throw a rock to the other side of the wandering goat, chasing it back. I don’t know if he was a good shepherd or a bad shepherd, but he appeared to be doing an effective job. That was not the case with a string of kings over the ancient nation of Judah, and the prophet Jeremiah called them to task for it, describing them as shepherds who scattered the flock rather than uniting them.
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Jeremiah 23:4 – “I will raise up shepherds over them who will shepherd them, and they shall not fear any longer, or be dismayed, nor shall any be missing, says the LORD.”
Shepherds both bad and good (vv. 1-4) Today’s text begins with a summary statement about the country’s run of ineffective kings. Jeremiah pronounces woe upon them, describing the kings as shepherds “who destroy and scatter the sheep” of God’s pasture (v. 1). Jeremiah’s words drip with sarcasm. If he had spoken them today, he would probably use his fingers to make “air quotes” while speaking of “the ‘shepherds’ who ‘shepherd’ my people Israel” (v. 2). The oracle of judgment against the derelict rulers whose “shepherding” had not only scattered the sheep but also driven them away is found in a pointed wordplay: the shepherds had failed to “attend” to their flock with care, and so God would “attend” to them with a suitable punishment. But God would also attend to the people as the kings had not. Jeremiah promised that God would gather the scattered remnants of the flock and bring them home, where they would be fruitful and multiply (v. 3).
Notice an interesting switch in language: While v. 2 charges the reckless shepherd-kings with scattering and driving the people away, in v. 3 Yahweh speaks of bringing them back “out of all the lands where I have driven them.” Jeremiah’s terminology suggests that, while God had driven the people into exile, it was done in part because the kings had inspired them to grow increasingly corrupt, setting an example of injustice or irreligion that the people had followed, to their ruin. Even when things looked bleak, the prophets typically held to the hope that a “remnant” of faithful people would remain, and would be restored to their homeland in Israel. Thus, the oracle of judgment gives way to three oracles of salvation. In the first (vv. 4-5), Jeremiah proclaimed a day when God would gather the scattered children of Abraham, described as “my flock.” They would be free not only to return home, but also to “be fruitful and multiply,” an apparent reference to both creation (Gen. 1:28) and to earlier promises made to the patriarchs Abraham
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