10“^•I assure you: Anyone who doesn’t enter the sheep pen by the door but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a robber. ^o²The one who enters by the door is the shepherd ^pof the sheep. ^q³The doorkeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. ⁴When he has brought all his own outside, he goes ahead of them. The sheep follow him because they recognize his voice. ⁵They will never follow a stranger; instead they will run away from him, because they don’t recognize the voice of strangers.”

⁶Jesus gave them this illustration, but they did not understand ^rwhat He was telling them.

The Good Shepherd

⁷So Jesus said again, “I assure you: I am ^sthe door of the sheep. ^t⁸All who came before Me ^uare thieves and robbers, but the sheep didn’t listen to them. ⁹I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved and will come in and go out and find pasture. ¹⁰A thief comes only to steal ^vand to kill and to destroy. ^wI have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance.

¹¹“I am the good shepherd. ^xThe good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. ^y¹²The hired man, since he is not the shepherd and doesn’t own the sheep, leaves them ^zand runs away when he sees a wolf ^acoming. The wolf then snatches and scatters them. ¹³This happens because he is a hired man and doesn’t care about the sheep.

¹⁴“I am the good shepherd. I know My own sheep, and they know Me, ¹⁵as the Father knows Me, and I know the Father. ^bI lay down My life ^cfor the sheep. ¹⁶But I have other sheep ^dthat are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will listen to My voice. Then there will be one flock, one shepherd. ^e¹⁷This is why the Father loves Me, ^fbecause I am laying down My life ^gso I may take it up again. ¹⁸No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down on My own. I have the right to lay it down, and I have the right to take it up again. I have received this command from My Father.” ^h

Read in Logos

John 10:10: The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

Footnotes

•This is a phrase used only by Jesus to testify to the certainty and importance of His words; in Mt, Mk, and Lk it is literally Amen, I say to you; in Jn it is literally Amen, amen, I say to you.
u10:8 Other omit before Me
z10:12 leaves the sheep

Cross references

o10:1 Jr 7:11; Hs 6:9; 1Th 5:2, 4; 2Pt 3:10; Rv 3:3; 16:15
p10:2 Gn 4:2; Ps 23:1
q10:2 Mt 7:15
r10:6 Mk 9:32; Lk 2:50; 9:45; 18:34; Jn 2:24; 12:16
s10:7 Ex 3:14; Ps 45:8; Jn 8:24
t10:7 Mt 7:15
v10:10 Eph 4:28
w10:10 Jn 6:27
x10:11 Ps 23; Is 40:11; Ezk 34:12, 23; 37:24; Zch 13:7; Jn 21:15–17; Heb 13:20; 1Pt 2:25; 5:4; Rv 7:17
y10:11 Mt 20:28; Mk 10:45; 2Co 5:21; Gl 3:13; 1Jn 3:16
a10:12 Lk 10:3
b10:15 Mt 11:27; Lk 10:22
c10:15 Mt 20:28
d10:16 Is 56:8; Ezk 34:11–13; Mt 8:11, 12; Jn 12:32; Ac 10:34–35; 1Pt 2:25
e10:16 Ezk 34:23; 37:24; Jn 11:52; 17:11, 20–22; Eph 2:11–19
f10:17 Jn 3:35; 5:20
g10:17 1Jn 3:16
h10:18 Jn 5:19