REAL SHEPHERDS (B: 16th Sun in Ord Time)

First Reading: Jer 23:1-6 (18 July 2021)

“Doom for the shepherds who allow the flock of my pasture to be destroyed and scattered − it is the Lord who speaks!” (Jer 23:1)

Jeremiah spoke against the irresponsibility of those entrusted to be leaders of the land. He was particularly addressing King Zedekiah (ca. 598–587 BCE) against his decision of politically affiliating with the Egyptians, who were waging a war against mighty Babylon, without consideration of its outcome to the poor. Thus, he told all leaders with the same mentality, “You have let my flock be scattered and go wandering and have not taken care of them” (v. 2).

Despite this reprimand of the king of Judah, Jeremiah prophesied about the arrival of a just and righteous leader from their own,

“I will raise a virtuous Branch for David, who will reign as true king and be wise, practising honesty and integrity in the land” (Jer 23:5).

This formula is repeated in Jer 33:15, suggesting its prime importance. According to Jeremiah, there is a concrete way to be an authentic and wise ruler, and that is by practicing the closely-related virtues of honesty and integrity. It is worth exploring the meaning of these two words to serve as a fitting barometer of our community leaders’ worthiness to be true shepherds of our society.

First is honesty. The Hebrew word used in the Septuagint is mishpat, which semantically means “a decision, judgment” which is a “fair decision, pronouncement” especially in matters of litigation and the application of the law (cf. HALOT). Other bible versions capture its same sense with the translations “justice” (KJV, NRSV), “fair” (GW, ICB, NCB), or “just” (NIV, NLT). Jeremiah used mishpat frequently, occurring 32 times in the book attributed to him. He employed it in reference to the injustice done by the rich (e.g., 5:4-5; 17:11; 22:13), the powerful (e.g., 5:28; 21:12; 22:3), and those given authority over the people (e.g., 26:11, 16). Notably, he used strong words to condemn these people, saying,

“O house of David! Thus says the Lord: Execute justice (mishpat) in the morning, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor anyone who has been robbed, or else my wrath will go forth like fire, and burn, with no one to quench it, because of your evil doing” (21:12).

This observation only hints at God’s abhorrence of the actions of those who perform injustice to the weak sectors of the society.

Second is integrity, or righteousness as seen in most English bible versions (ASV, AMP, CSB, ESV, NASB, NCB, NRSV). In the Hebrew Bible, the word used here is tzedaqah, which is lexically defined as “loyalty to the community,” which includes “the elimination of anything breaking the peace and preservation of good order” (cf. HALOT). Its adjective tzedek refers to “accuracy, what is correct” or “equity, what is right” (cf. HALOT). Jeremiah used this term only five times, but always attached it with the word mishpat, viz., Jer 9:24; 22:3, 15; 23:5; and 33:15. In other words, for Jeremiah integrity or righteousness is inseparable with justice, as if saying that one’s credibility and trustworthiness are offshoots of one’s fairness in his/her judgments. It is because Jeremiah perceives God as having the same dual attributes of justice and righteousness:

“I am the Lord; I act with steadfast love, justice (mishpat), and righteousness (tzedaqah) in the earth, for in these things I delight, says the Lord” (9:24).

May these two virtues of honesty/justice and integrity/righteousness be present in all community-services today. May we also wisely select leaders with these indispensable traits.

- Rex Fortes, CM