Christ is the Promised and Chosen Shepherd of the Israel of God, whose heart so burned with divine purpose and love that He was willing to enter the desert hell-scape of this fallen world system in order to live for, fight for, die for, rise for, search out, rescue, and eternally give drink to His perfect seven-fold Bride and her flock.

So they said, “An Egyptian delivered us from the hand of the shepherds;
and what’s more, he even drew the water for us and watered the flock!”
Exodus 1:19

If pressed, I might well identify John 5:39 as my life verse: “You search the (Old Testament) Scriptures, because in them you think you possess eternal life. But these are they that testify of Me!” No, I never tire of peering through the OT veils, hoping to receive, by God’s grace, some fresh glimpse of the Person and Work of Christ!

And so it was as I came upon today’s text. Moses, recently escaped from Egypt, has made his way to the deserts of Midian, where he rescues the seven daughters of Reuel, the priest of Midian, from some decidedly unchivalrous shepherds who are trying to drive the girls and their flocks from the village well. The worthless shepherds should have thought twice about that! But far more importantly, we ourselves should think twice about that, for here we can discover some precious truths about Moses’ anti-type: our Lord Jesus Christ.

Let me cite four.

First, he is a strong deliverer. You don’t scatter a gang of rough shepherds unless you are built for it. In film versions of the Exodus, I have seen Moses portrayed both by Ben Kingsley and Charlton Heston. Our text persuades me that Charlton filled the role much better than Ben! Despite many appearances to the contrary, the Lord Jesus Christ—through whom are all things, for whom are all things, and by whom all things are held together and make their way to the Consummation—is way strong! We seven daughters of Reuel (Friend of God) need always to believe and take comfort in that fact; and fake shepherds everywhere would be wise to discover it before it’s too late.

Read More