Leaders of God's people will be held more severely accountable to God due to their important influence (James 3:1, Hebrews 13:17). Their responsibility is serious because false teaching can lead many sheep astray. We don't like God's strictness, but we need it (Jeremiah 52:10). He requires a return on His investment in the shepherds who are to tend His sheep (cf. John 21:15-17, Matthew 25:14-30). Sometimes, He will cause these wolves in sheep's clothing to fall so that they stop fleecing and even devouring the flock (Acts 20:29-30).
Thank God He remains our True Shepherd when His representatives fail. He promises to save His chosen sheep from their own rulers; to seek, find, bring back, care for, and feed His lost sheep before giving them rest. He will comfort the hurting (Psalm 147:3) and strengthen those who have been made ill by these irresponsible shepherds. God will destroy the leaders who have misused their power to get so selfishly comfortable that they forgot God and others (cf. Deuteronomy 32:15, Jeremiah 5:28). They will be fed with God's harsher judgment instead for their abuse.
Not only do these shepherds partake of their wealth, but they leave nothing leftover of the flock's provision. They clothe themselves with fleece robes made from the flock's wool. They corrupt biblical truth for their own gain while their sheep lose what little they have applying the same false teaching.
God promises to judge between the sheep who make themselves fat by lording it over others and the sheep who are made skinny by having their rights trampled. These shepherds are full of themselves and push their sheep away into danger instead of protecting them. Through Jesus, the True and Good Shepherd (John 10:1-5, 11), God's flock is sacrificially rescued from being a prey to the deceits of false shepherds and their true leader Satan. Unlike a hireling (John 10:11-16), the Good Shepherd puts the well-being of His sheep over His own. Jesus, the second David, came to feed and care for God's flock. He showed that those who thought they saw were actually blind and He made those who were literally blind see.
God makes a promise to give His sheep peace so they may freely sleep in the woods where they will be showered with blessings (cf. Psalm 23). Not only will they be safe from the irresponsible shepherds, but also from the beasts outside of the fold. They will feed on His truth and have their souls satisfied (John 6:35). Others will no longer believe that the sheeps' suffering means they've been forsaken by God, but the sheep'll genuinely live out their beliefs so that others will have nothing evil to say against them (Titus 2:7-8, 1 Peter 2:12, Philippians 1:27-30, 2:14-16).
We are lambs among wolves (Luke 10:3). Instead of fleecing us, our shepherds should be: truthfully feeding us, selflessly protecting us, humbly leading us, and prayerfully caring for our needs while lovingly disciplining offenders.
