Psalm 12:5-6 English Standard Version

⁵ “Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan, I will now arise,” says the Lord; “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.” ⁶ The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times.

As this relates to yesterday’s offering, we must look to our own behaviors to determine our condition. Do we find within ourselves a groaning behavior?

Strong’s definition of groan here is varied and could mean shrieking:—crying out, groaning, sighing. When sheep are left to feed themselves because of the neglect of their shepherds they must look to themselves and be honest with themselves about the time spent feeding on His Word.

If the Lord is leading you to green pastures, we can expect to be satisfied. If we hunger and feed ourselves without the Lord we can expect to come away unsatisfied. Even the smallest unconfessed sins have the ability to muddy the waters and hinder our spiritual insight.

2 Chronicles 29:15 English Standard Version

¹⁵ They gathered their brothers and consecrated themselves and went in as the king had commanded, by the words of the Lord, to cleanse the house of the Lord.

The good news is to be found in the gathering together and dedication of self in seeking the Lord’s Word and cleansing the house of the Lord together. It is in the sharing of our findings that clarity can be found. We do this over and over again, refining with the “furnace on the ground”. In this way the Word of the Lord shared among us helps all of us to clarify and purify our understanding.

Hebrews 2:11-12 English Standard Version

¹¹ For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, ¹² saying, “I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.”

Ezekiel 34:17-19 English Standard Version

¹⁷ “As for you, my flock, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I judge between sheep and sheep, between rams and male goats. ¹⁸ Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture, that you must tread down with your feet the rest of your pasture; and to drink of clear water, that you must muddy the rest of the water with your feet? ¹⁹ And must my sheep eat what you have trodden with your feet, and drink what you have muddied with your feet?

Here the Lord is speaking to the flock. Ezekiel 34 begins with a prophetic warning to the shepherds of Israel. They were feeding themselves and not the sheep. To have a proper understanding of any scripture and how it relates to us we need to look to the surrounding passages and put it into proper context. The warnings to the shepherds ends in the preceding passages.

Now we must decide if these passages in any way apply to us. That requires us to determine if our behaviors are directly related to those who are shepherds over us. Their neglect will leave us open to attack as indicated by verse 8; “my sheep have become food for all the wild beasts”.

We must look to our own behaviors to see if we in turn have allow sin to cause us to trodden down the rest of the pasture. This is where the sheep feed and our sins affect others in the flock.

The good news is found in verse 11; “I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out.”

The only thing left to do now is to determine if we ourselves have muddied the waters.

Psalm 12:5-6 English Standard Version

⁵ “Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan, I will now arise,” says the Lord; “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.” ⁶ The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times.