Shepherds After My Own Heart: Pastoral Traditions and Leadership in the Bible (New Studies in Biblical Theology, vol. 20 | NSBT)
Digital Logos Edition
Overview
“I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will lead you with knowledge and understanding” (Jeremiah 3:15). Most of Israel’s pastoral imagery is grounded in two traditions: Moses as God’s under-shepherd and David as shepherd-king.
Timothy S. Laniak explains these traditions provided prototypes for leaders that followed. He forms the background for the ministry of Jesus, the good shepherd. He argues the pastoral role was central to the ongoing life of local churches in the Christian movement, and today’s pastors are still called to be shepherds after God’s own heart to lead his people, living on the margins of settled society, to their eternal home. He draws on a wide range of Old and New Testament texts to develop the biblical theology of “shepherd” imagery. He concludes with some principles and implications for contemporary pastoral ministry.
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Key Features
- Contains scholarly and accessible volumes written by well-respected Biblical scholars
- Includes notes that interact with the best of recent research and significant literature
- Engages the immense challenges facing today’s church
- Offers new insights and challenges established positions
- Encourages Christians to better understand their Bibles through biblical theology
Contents
- Metaphors for the Moment
- Shepherds in the Ancient World
- Shepherd Rulers in the Ancient World
- YHWH, Moses, and the 'flock' of God in the Wilderness
- YHWH, David, and the Royal Traditions
- Isaiah: The Davidic Messiah and a Way in the Wilderness
- Jeremiah: Righteous Shepherds
- Ezekiel: The Faithful Shepherd
- Zechariah: The Militant and Suffering Shepherd
- Mark: The Shepherd King and the Second Exodus
- Matthew: The Compassionate Davidic Shepherd
- Luke: The Seeking and Saving Shepherd
- John: The Self-Sacrificing Shepherd and Passover Lamb
- 1 Peter: On Being Aliens and Shepherds
- Revelation: The Slain Lamb and Ruling Shepherd
Top Highlights
“The condition and growth of a flock depends greatly on the care, attentiveness and skill of the shepherd. The primary verbs for shepherding (Heb. rā‘āh; Gk poimainō) can mean feeding, leading (i.e. to pasture) and general tending (oversight).” (Page 53)
“One of the primary metaphors by which biblical authors conceptualized leadership is shepherding.” (Page 21)
“Each in their own way, the Gospels depict a shepherd who has come to lead God’s flock in the promised new kingdom. Mark focuses on the shepherd of the second exodus. Matthew reveals the compassionate Davidic shepherd. Luke presents the seeking and saving shepherd. John describes the self-sacrificing shepherd.” (Page 25)
“To face these various challenges a shepherd carried two simple but versatile implements. His staff (maṭṭeh) was useful for support, picking off branches, snagging a trapped animal with the crook, or redirecting misbehaving members of the herd. The staff became a symbol for the protective presence of the shepherd (Ps. 23:4).” (Page 56)
“The second point is closely related. Bad or ‘false’ shepherds are those who use their position to serve their own needs. They forget whose flock they serve.” (Page 248)
Praise for the Print Edition
This book is a must-read for both ministers and scholars.
—Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society
- Title: Shepherds after My Own Heart: Pastoral Traditions and Leadership in the Bible
- Author: Timothy Laniak
- Series: New Studies in Biblical Theology
- Volume: 20
- Publishers: IVP, Apollos
- Print Publication Date: 2006
- Logos Release Date: 2015
- Pages: 313
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
- Subjects: Leadership › Biblical teaching; Pastoral theology › Biblical teaching; Pastoral theology (Judaism)
- ISBNs: 9781844741274, 1844741273, 0830826211, 9780830826216
- Resource ID: LLS:NSBT20
- Resource Type: Monograph
- Metadata Last Updated: 2024-09-24T16:34:47Z
About Timothy Laniak
Timothy Laniak is associate professor of Old Testament and coordinator of the Urban Ministry Certificate Program at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, Charlotte, North Carolina. He has written several books, including Handbook for Hebrew Exegesis, Finding the Lost Images of God.
Sample Pages from the Print Edition
Reviews
2 ratings
Dapo Olaoye
10/17/2019
Allen Browne
10/3/2017
Timothy Laniak provides an impressive survey of the shepherd metaphor in the ANE world, in Israel under Moses and the Davidic kings, in the hope of restoration of the postexilic prophets, in the person of Jesus, and in his servants who live and die in the service of his people as did “the slain Lamb and ruling Shepherd.”
