After railing against the bad shepherds of Israel, which could refer both to the leadership in government as well as the leadership in the Temple, Ezekiel makes reference to a future "good shepherd". The Lord states that this Shepherd would be His servant David, but since he had long been dead at the time of this prophecy, it cannot have a literal interpretation. Since Messiah had been prophesied to come from the line of David, the "good shepherd" passage is understood to refer to Jesus.
What about the covenant of peace? Israel is certainly not enjoying anything resembling peace. The words "they will live in safety and no one will frighten them", do not apply. While some commentators would argue that the promise of restoration was fulfilled when the israelites were set free by Cyrus in 535 BC and returned to their homeland, those circumstances pale in comparison with what is described in chapter 34. Though they were allowed to return to their land and rebuild the temple, they were never truly a free people. Israel lived under the control of every world-dominating power including Medo-persia, Greece, and finally Rome, before her destruction in AD 70.
The promised peace and prosperity is yet to be fulfilled and expected to be realized when Israel makes a spiritual return to God and accepts His New Covenant in Jesus.
Tomorrow's reading: Ez. 37-39:29; Ez. 32:1-16
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