The Good Shepherd. After the Lord Jesus confronted the Pharisees when He healed a man who had been born blind, He declared Himself to be the Good Shepherd. Israel was the flock, and the Most High its Shepherd.

The religious leaders, who were supposed to be faithful shepherds, chosen to care for the people and instruct them (Ezek. 34), had become corrupt. For example, they used a woman who had committed adultery as a trap to try to incriminate the Lord (8.3-11), and then they excommunicated a man He had healed.

In addition, the rituals were contaminated by the greed of those religious leaders, who showed that they were nothing more than mercenaries who exploited the people.

In light of such corruption, the Lord Jesus needed to cleanse the Temple and warn them (2.13-17). This exhortation is still valid today, since many do the Work of God for vanity and personal and obscure goals. Through this, we understand that those with bad intentions show that they are nothing but impostors.