34  A charge against the shepherds of Israel, Eze 34:1-6.
Their dismission from their trust, Eze 34:7-10.
A promise, that God would take care of his flock, Eze 34:11-16.
Another charge against the strong of the flock, for their injuring the weak, Eze 34:17-22.
A promise of the Messiah, the great and good shepherd, Eze 34:23-31.

34:12 In the cloudy and dark day - In the time of general distress.

15 

15:20 But now - St. Paul declares that Christians "have hope," not "in this life only." His proof of the resurrection lies in a narrow compass, Co1 15:12-19. Almost all the rest of the chapter is taken up in illustrating, vindicating, and applying it. The proof is short, but solid and convincing, that which arose from Christ's resurrection. Now this not only proved a resurrection possible, but, as it proved him to be a divine teacher, proved the certainty of a general resurrection, which he so expressly taught. The first fruit of them that slept - The earnest, pledge, and insurance of their resurrection who slept in him: even of all the righteous. It is of the resurrection of these, and these only, that the apostle speaks throughout the chapter.

15:22 As through Adam all, even the righteous, die, so through Christ all these shall be made alive - He does not say, "shall revive," (as naturally as they die,) but shall be madealive, by a power not their own.

15:23 Afterward - The whole harvest. At the same time the wicked shall rise also. But they are not here taken into the account.

15:24 Then - After the resurrection and the general judgment. Cometh the end - Of the world; the grand period of all those wonderful scenes that have appeared for so many succeeding generations. When he shall have delivered up the kingdom to the Father, and he (the Father) shall have abolished all adverse rule, authority, and power - Not that the Father will then begin to reign without the Son, nor will the Son then cease to reign. For the divine reign both of the Father and Son is from everlasting to everlasting. But this is spoken of the Son's mediatorial kingdom, which will then be delivered up, and of the immediate kingdom or reign of the Father, which will then commence. Till then the Son transacts the business which the Father hath given him, for those who are his, and by them as well as by the angels, with the Father, and against their enemies. So far as the Father gave the kingdom to the Son, the Son shall deliver it up to the Father, Joh 13:3. Nor does the Father cease to reign, when he gives it to the Son; neither the Son, when he delivers it to the Father: but the glory which he had before the world began, Joh 17:5; Heb 1:8, will remain even after this is delivered up. Nor will he cease to be a king even in his human nature, Luk 1:33. If the citizens of the new Jerusalem" shall reign for ever," Rev 22:5, how much more shall he?

15:25 He must reign - Because so it is written. Till he - the Father hath put all his enemies under his feet. Psa 110:1.

15:26 The last enemy that is destroyed is death - Namely, after Satan, Heb 2:14, and sin, Co1 15:56, are destroyed. In the same order they prevailed. Satan brought in sin, and sin brought forth death. And Christ, when he of old engaged with these enemies, first conquered Satan, then sin, in his death; and, lastly, death, in his resurrection. In the same order he delivers all the faithful from them, yea, and destroys these enemies themselves. Death he so destroys that it shall be no more; sin and Satan, so that they shall no more hurt his people.

25 This chapter contains the last public discourse which our Lord uttered before he was offered up. He had before frequently declared what would be the portion of all the workers of iniquity. But what will become of those who do no harm? Honest, inoffensive, good sort of people? We have here a clear and full answer to this important question.

25:31 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him - With what majesty and grandeur does our Lord here speak of himself Giving us one of the noblest instances of the true sublime. Indeed not many descriptions in the sacred writings themselves seem to equal this. Methinks we can hardly read it without imagining ourselves before the awful tribunal it describes.

25:34 Inherit the kingdom - Purchased by my blood, for all who have believed in me with the faith which wrought by love. Prepared for you - On purpose for you. May it not be probably inferred from hence, that man was not created merely to fill up the places of the fallen angels?

25:35 I was hungry, and ye gave me meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink - All these works of outward mercy suppose faith and love, and must needs he accompanied with works of spiritual mercy.But works of this kind the Judge could not mention in the same manner. He could not say, I was in error, and ye recalled me to the truth; I was in sin, and ye brought me to repentance. In prison - Prisoners need to be visited above all others, as they are commonly solitary and forsaken by the rest of the world.

25:37 Then shall the righteous answer - It cannot be, that either the righteous or the wicked should answer in these very words.What we learn herefrom is, that neither of them have the same estimation of their own works as the Judge hath.

25:40 Inasmuch as ye did it to one of the least of these my brethren, ye did it to me - What encouragement is here to assist the household of faith? But let us likewise remember to do good to all men.

25:41 Depart into the everlasting fire, which was prepared for the devil and his angels - Not originally for you: you are intruders into everlasting fire.

25:44 Then will they answer - So the endeavour to justify themselves, will remain with the wicked even to that day!

25:46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into life everlasting - Either therefore the punishment is strictly eternal, or the reward is not: the very same expression being applied to the former as to the latter.The Judge will speak first to the righteous, in the audience of the wicked. The wicked shall then go away into everlasting fire, in the view of the righteous. Thus the damned shall see nothing of the everlasting life; but the just will see the punishment of the ungodly. It is not only particularly observable here,

1. That the punishment lasts as long as the reward; but,
2. That this punishment is so far from ceasing at the end of the world, that it does not begin till then.