C. In the Holy Land There Being a Habitation
of Shepherds Making Their Flock Lie Down,
and the Flock Again Passing under the Hand
of the One Who Counts Them

Verses 12 and 13 say, "Again there will be in this place which is a waste, without man and without beast, and in all of its cities, a habitation of shepherds making their flock lie down. In the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the lowland and in the cities of the south and in the land of Benjamin and round about Jerusalem and in the cities of Judah, the flock will again pass under the hand of the one who counts them." This is a picture of the church life. In the church life shepherding is a crucial matter. In the church we need to count the flock. In both the Old Testament and the New Testament, God paid attention to the number of His people. In Numbers God numbered the tribes of Israel; in the Gospels the Lord sent first twelve and then seventy; and in Acts 2 three thousand were saved, and in Acts 4 "the number of men came to about five thousand" (v. 4). If we neglect the number of our "flock," we will neglect our duty, and our flock may remain small in number. However, if we care for the number of the flock, eventually the Lord will multiply our flock to the extent that we will not be able to count them (Jer. 33:22). This should be the situation in the church life.

D. Jehovah Establishing the Good Word
Which He Has Spoken
concerning the House of Israel
and concerning the House of Judah

Jehovah will establish the good word which He has spoken concerning the house of Israel and concerning the house of Judah (v. 14). He will cause to shoot forth a Shoot (Christ) of righteousness unto David, who will execute justice and righteousness on the earth (v. 15). This word regarding Christ as the Shoot of righteousness unto David is related to the new covenant, the center of which is the inner law of life. This law is the Shoot of David, and the Shoot of David is Christ. Christ is the inner law; He is the center, the reality, and even the essence of the new covenant.

Verse 16 continues by saying, "In those days Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will dwell securely; and this is the name by which she will be called: Jehovah our righteousness." In 23:6 it is Christ who is called Jehovah our righteousness, but here it is the city of Jerusalem which is called by this name. The fact that both Christ and Jerusalem are called by the same name seems to indicate that, just as Christ and the church are one today, so in the restoration Christ and the city of Jerusalem will be one.