"In the ancient Near East, in royal inscriptions from both Sumer and the area of Babylonia and Assyria, the king refers to himself as the shepherd instituted by God. 'Pasturing sheep' is an image of his task as a ruler. This image implies that caring for the weak is one of the tasks of the just ruler. One could therefore say that, in view of its origins, this image of Christ the Good Shepherd is a Gospel of Christ the King, an image that sheds light upon the kingship of Christ.
"Of course, the immediate precedents for Jesus' use of this image are found in the Old Testament, where God himself appears as the Shepherd of Israel. This image deeply shaped Israel's piety, and it was especially in times of need that Israel found a word of consolation and confidence in it. Probably the most beautiful expression of this trustful devotion is Psalm 23... The image of God as Shepherd is more fully developed in chapters 34--37 of Ezekiel, whose vision is brought into the present and interpreted as a prophecy of Jesus' ministry both in the Synoptic shepherd parables and in the Johannine shepherd discourse. Faced with the self-seeking shepherds of his own day, whom he challenges and accuses, Ezekiel proclaims the promise that God himself will seek out his sheep and care for them."
--Benedict XVI, Jesus of Nazareth--Part One: From the Baptism in the Jordan to the Transfiguration (New York: Doubleday, 2007), pp. 272--273
"Christians who live in this city are like the river that springs
from the temple: they bring a Word of life and of hope that can make
fruitful the desert of hearts, just like the stream described in
Ezekiel’s vision which fertilizes the Arabah desert and heals
the salty and lifeless waters of the Dead Sea. The important thing is
that the course of the water leave the temple and flow towards hostile
looking lands. The city cannot but rejoice on seeing Christians becoming
joyful proclaimers, determined to share with others the treasures of
the Word of God and to devote themselves to the common good. The terrain
that seemed destined to be arid, reveals an extraordinary potential: it
becomes a garden with evergreen trees and leaves and fruit with healing
properties. Ezekiel explains the reason for such fruitfulness: 'the
water for them flows from the sanctuary' (Ez 47:12). God is the secret
of this new life-giving power!"
--Pope Francis, Homily, November 9, 2019
