Our Lord is often
referred to as a shepherd. This particular parable alludes to the messianic
prophecy of Ezekiel (34:11-31) in which God Himself would come down and
shepherd His people, seeking them out and rescuing them:
Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them
out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock when some of his sheep have been
scattered abroad, so will I seek out my sheep; and I will rescue them from all
places where they have been scattered…
The parable
is understood allegorically by St Anselm and St Hilary of Poitiers (both
Fathers of the Church). The lost sheep represent mankind who had strayed
through sin. The 99 sheep on the hills are the angels of God in heaven. In the
Incarnation, God the Son descended ‘from the hills’ (i.e. from heaven) to seek
the lost souls of men and to rescue them through His death and resurrection.
And so Christ restores men to grace and leads them back to the company of
angels in heaven (see Heb 12:22).
This
shepherding of lost souls to safe pastures continues in the Church, for Christ
continues to operate through the Church, His mystical Body. As the parable
reminds us, “it is not the will of my Father who is heaven that one of these
little ones should perish (v.14)”. So too in the Church, we must never cease to
reach out to the lost, and be ready to shepherd them and provide them with the
grace won by Christ in our redemption. As we await our coming Saviour, we have
been given the gift of time in order that the lost may be found.
