Shepherds of the Well

In Exodus 2, we are given a quiet but powerful picture that reveals the nature of true leadership. Moses arrives in Midian weary, unknown, and without position. He sits beside a well. And it is there that his heart is revealed.

Shepherds arrive with their flocks, but instead of serving, they drive others away. They protect what benefits them. They guard access. They use force rather than compassion. The well becomes a place of contention rather than generosity.

Moses, though, responds quite differently.

When the daughters of Jethro come to draw water, Moses rises and helps them. He does not compete for control of the well. He does not exploit authority. He uses strength to serve. He draws water not only for himself, but for others.

This moment echoes the cry of Jeremiah 3:15, where God promises to give His people shepherds after His own heart. Shepherds who lead with knowledge and understanding. Shepherds who reflect the nature of God rather than the appetite of self.

Much of the book of Jeremiah confronts impure shepherds. Leaders who are greedy, self centered, and concerned primarily with preserving their own comfort, influence, and control. Rather than feeding the flock, they feed themselves. Rather than opening access, they restrict it. Rather than helping others draw water, they drive them away.

This contrast matters.

The well represents provision. It represents sustenance. It represents access to what gives life. And how a shepherd responds at the well reveals everything about the condition of their heart.

Moses could have remained seated. He could have watched. He could have reasoned that it was not his responsibility. But instead, he stood. His heart leaned toward justice, compassion, and service long before he carried a staff or led a nation.

Moses, in this way, becomes a prototype of what Jesus would one day embody fully for humanity.

In John 4, Jesus sits at another well. Tired from the journey, He meets a woman who had been driven away, marginalized, and burdened by shame. Unlike the shepherds who guarded access in Moses’ day, Jesus does not protect the well for Himself. He invites her in.

“If you knew the gift of God,” He says, “and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”

The contrast is striking. Where selfish shepherds drive people away from the well, Jesus invites the thirsty closer. Where others restrict access, He offers Himself as the source. He does not merely help her draw water. He becomes the well.

Later, in John 7:37–39, Jesus stands and cries out to the crowd, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink.” He declares that whoever believes in Him will have rivers of living water flowing from within them. Not a guarded reservoir. Not a controlled supply. But an abundant, overflowing stream meant to bless others.

This is the heart of Godly shepherding.

Selfish shepherds hoard water. Godly shepherds become conduits.

Leadership is revealed in moments like this.

When others come to draw from the wells we steward, our hearts are exposed as well. Do we close ranks to protect what benefits us? Or do we open space so others can drink freely?

Do we guard access out of fear?

Or do we serve generously out of trust?

Selfish shepherds drive people away from the well. Godly shepherds help them draw from it. And Christlike shepherds lay their lives down so that others may drink deeply and then become wells themselves.

Jeremiah’s words are not merely a rebuke. They are an invitation. God is still searching for shepherds after His own heart. Men and women who do not leverage influence for gain, but lay down their lives for the good of others. Shepherds who understand that authority is given not to dominate, but to serve.

Moses did not become a deliverer overnight. But in this moment at the well, the kind of deliverer he would become was already visible.

So the question becomes personal. Will we hoard what we have been given for ourselves? Or will we open our wells for others?

May we be the kind of shepherds who rise when others are pushed aside. May we draw water generously. And may we steward what God has entrusted to us with hearts that reflect His own.

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