Good Shepherd or Bad?

In John 10:14-15, Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd. I know My own and My own know Me, even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.” Now, how would the religious leaders in Jesus day understand that statement? Would they have a context for it? And what would come to their minds?

Well, to know that, you need to know Ezekiel 34, where God condemns the leaders of Israel by saying, “The weak you have not strengthened, the sick you have not healed, the injured you have not bound up, the strayed you have not brought back, the lost you have not sought, and with force and harshness you have ruled them. So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd.” And what does He therefore promise, “I will set up over them one shepherd… and He shall feed them and be their shepherd.” So when Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd.” He’s declaring to be the promised shepherd of Ezekiel 34. Which also means that in the context of John 10, these religious leaders are the wicked shepherds, the thieves and robbers who do not know or love the sheep. Jesus Christ is the good shepherd, who willingly laid down His life for all those who will believe in Him. And for those who follow Him, He promises that you will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Something to think about from the Proclamation point of view.