The Righteous Branch

  • 23:1 “Woe to the shepherds” - not just kings, but priests, and prophets. A modern application would be apostate pastors (shepherds) in the Church.
  • 23:2 “I will attend to you!” - not a good thing to be threatened by God Himself.
  • 23:3 “fruitful and multiply” - they would increase. Sexual perversion always leads to declining population. “they shall commit whoredom, and shall not increase” Hosea 4:10
  • 23:4 “I will set up shepherds over them who will feed them” - initially fulfilled with godly leaders on the return from exile. Then partly with restoration of Israel as a nation - and finally when they return to their Messiah.
  • 23:5 “a righteous Branch” - Jesus the Messiah

The Lying Prophets

  • 23:11 “even in My house I have found their wickedness” - Ezekiel was brought into the temple as a fly on the wall to see these abominations. Ezekiel 8:7-12
  • 23:13 “prophesied by Baal” - the prophets of Baal openly served Baal.
  • 23:14 “walk in lies” - the prophets of Judah falsely say, “Thus saith the Lord”. This is a worse abomination. “strengthen the hand of evildoers, so that no one repents” - the hellish consequence of seeker friendly ministry.
  • 23:15 “from the prophets, ungodliness has spread throughout the land” - God holds the them responsible for leading the nation into ruin.
  • 23:16 “do not listen to the words of the prophets” - going beyond God’s instruction through Moses, “you need not be afraid of them”. Deuteronomy 18:20-22
  • 23:22 “If they had stood in My council” - God does, in fact, tell us what would have happened on occasion.
  • 23:24 “can a man hide in secret places where I cannot see?” - God can even enable other people to see.
  • 23:25 “I had a dream!” - the popular source of the false message.
  • 23:28 “let the prophet who has a dream retell it, let him who has My Word speak it truthfully”. It’s fine to have a dream - just don’t label it “thus saith the Lord”.