For you were like sheep going astray, but have now turned back to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
Truth to Learn
Not only is God our Shepherd, He is the guardian of our soul.
Behind the Words
“Going astray” is translated from a form of planaō, meaning “to wander” or “to go astray.” This verb is expressed as a participle, implying continuous action. So, we could translate the first part of this verse as, “For you were like sheep continually wandering.”
The word translated “turned back” is from the Greek, epistrephō, made up of epi, meaning “upon” and strephō, meaning “to turn.” So, literally, it means “to turn upon” or “to turn around.” This verb is expressed in the aorist tense, implying a past action which occurred at a single point in time (you returned – not, you were returning.) That point in time is when you accepted Christ as savior and became a Christian.
The word “overseer” comes from the Greek word episkopos, meaning “one who oversees or takes care of others.” It is translated in some versions of the Bible as “bishop.”
Meaning Explained
Continuing from the previous verse, Peter now extends his reference to Isaiah:
All of us like sheep have gone astray; each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of all of us. (Isaiah 53:6)
One of the characteristics of sheep is that without a shepherd they tend to wander aimlessly in an attempt to satisfy their most base desire (for food) with total disregard for their own present or future safety. Sometimes they will blindly follow the rest of the flock and sometimes they are oblivious even to them. What an apt description of our condition without our shepherd. We were lost and going astray, but when we got saved, we ceased straying and returned to our Shepherd.
To this metaphor of the sheep and the shepherd, Peter adds a subtle but significant descriptor. Not only is Christ our shepherd, but He is our overseer as well. In this verse, however, He is not just the overseer of the church, but of our very souls. With him now responsible for the safety of our souls, even to the prevention of our going astray, how could one possible believe that we who are now saved could ever lose that salvation and become lost. In order to believe that, we would have to believe that Christ is not a Good Shepherd nor is he overseeing our souls.
Application
Do you sometimes feel like you have committed such a terrible sin, or so many sins, that God could never forgive you? Do you feel like you have completely strayed from God? Peter tells us that not only has Christ paid for all our sins (past, present, and future), but he is constantly guarding our soul so that we can’t be lost ever again. Thank you, Lord, for guarding my soul!
In God's service, for His glory,
Copyright © 2016 Will Krause. All rights reserved