1.
In the Bible, “shepherd” is a
royal metaphor
, not a priestly one (Ps. 80:1). Moses, Joshua, David, and Cyrus are shepherds, but not Aaron. Jeremiah’s and Ezekiel’s polemics against the “shepherds of Yahweh’s pasture” are directed against abusive civil rulers. Ezekiel’s oracle ends with the promise of “one shepherd, My servant David” (Ezek. 34:23). The Good Shepherd guides the nations with an iron rod (Rev. 2:27; cf. Ps. 2:7–9).