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Matthew Henry

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Ezekiel 34:17-31

The prophet has no more to say to the shepherds, but he has now a message to deliver to the flock. God had ordered him to speak tenderly to them, and to assure them of the mercy he had in store for them. But here he is ordered to make a difference between some and others of them, to separate between the precious and the vile and then to give them a promise of the Messiah, by whom this distinction should be effectually made, partly at his first coming (for for judgment he came into this world,... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Ezekiel 34:23

And I will set up one shepherd over them ,.... Or governor, as the Targum; an excellent one of a thousand, the only one; in comparison of whom others are not to be named; for though there are under shepherds, as magistrates and ministers of the word, he is the principal one; that is, Christ, called the good Shepherd, the great Shepherd, and the chief Shepherd, and the only one; and who became so by the constitution and appointment of Jehovah the Father; who chose him, called him, and... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Ezekiel 34:23

I will set up one Shepherd - my servant David - David, king of Israel, had been dead upwards of four hundred years; and from that time till now there never was a ruler of any kind, either in the Jewish church or state, of the name of David. This, then, must be some typical person; and from the texts marked in the margin we understand that Jesus Christ alone is meant, as both Old and New Testaments agree in this. And from this one Shepherd all Christian ministers must derive their authority... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:23

And I will set up one Shepherd over them . Here, more than ever, we have an anticipation of our Lord's teaching in John 10:1-18 . He claims to be the Fulfiller, as of the prediction of Isaiah 40:11 and Jeremiah 23:1-3 , so also of this. He, the "Son of David," is the David that inherits that among other promises. It has to be noted, however, that Ezekiel's words paint, less distinctly than those of the earlier prophets, the picture of an individual Messianic king, and seem rather to... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:23

The one shepherd. In place of the many unworthy shepherds who have fattened themselves by spoiling the flock of Israel, God will now give his people one good Shepherd, reviving the royal line of David. The shepherd of Bethlehem had been a true protector of his people. He is to appear again in his great Descendant. No doubt Ezekiel's contemporary readers would look for a restoration of the temporal monarchy, as Christ's disciples looked for it ( Acts 1:6 ). But such a restoration was... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:23

The golden age of peace. Predictions of Divine retribution, added to bitter experience of misfortune, had well-nigh filled the souls of the people with despair. And despair is a critical condition for man. It may lead to self-abandonment, to the wildest excesses of vice and devilry. Will God make no interposition on their behalf? Must their only prospect be midnight, unrelieved by a single star? No! over the black cloud God again flings the bow of gracious promise. Black midnight shall be... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:23-24

A pastor and a prince. Christians cannot fail to recognize the Messianic reference of this portion of prophecy. The language employed not only exactly depicts him who is "Immanuel, God with us;" it is so exalted that it is not possible to refer it to any inferior being, to any under-shepherd of the flock, any overseer and ruler in the Church subject to human infirmities and failings. I. THE SOLE SUPREMACY OF CHRIST OVER THE FLOCK . The "one Shepherd," God's "servant... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 34:23-24

One greater than David. Certainly this prophecy finds its fulfillment in the coming of the Messiah. He was to be the "great Shepherd," the "chief Shepherd," the "good Shepherd" of the sheep. He was to be to the people of God all, and very much more than all, that David had been in his time. We have thus before us the persons and the work of David and of his "greater Son." The Son of David excelled his human prototype in— I. THE GOOD PLEASURE HE GAVE TO THE FATHER .... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Ezekiel 34:20-31

Yahweh having promised to be a Ruler of His people, the administration of the divine kingdom is now described, as carried on by One King, the representative of David, whose dominion should fulfill all the promises originally made to the man after God’s own heart. Ezekiel does not so much add to, as explain and develope, the original promise; and as the complete fulfillment of the spiritual blessings, which the prophets were guided to proclaim, was manifestly never realized in any temporal... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Ezekiel 34:23-25

Ezekiel 34:23-25. And I will set up one Shepherd That is, the Messiah, “the true Shepherd, who hath given himself this name both in the prophets and in the gospel, and who hath perfectly fulfilled all the duties, the characters whereof have been before described. He is called David, because he sprung from David according to the flesh; because he possessed eminently and really all those qualities which the Scriptures give to David as the type of the Messiah; and because he was the person... read more

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