John 10
Berean Standard Bible · Compare translations · AD 29 – AD 30 · Life of Jesus · Tap a verse to copy, share or highlight ·
42 verses · 829 words · ~4 min read · ~6 min listen
Jesus the Good Shepherd
1“Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever does not enter the sheepfold by the gate, but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a robber. 2But the one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen for his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
4When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will flee from him because they do not recognize his voice.”
6Jesus spoke to them using this illustration, but they did not understand what He was telling them. 7So He said to them again, “Truly, truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8All who came before Me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9I am the gate. If anyone enters through Me, he will be saved. He will come in and go out and find pasture. 10The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness.
11I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. 12The hired hand is not the shepherd, and the sheep are not his own. When he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf pounces on them and scatters the flock. 13The man runs away because he is a hired servant and is unconcerned for the sheep.
14I am the good shepherd. I know My sheep and My sheep know Me, 15just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father. And I lay down My life for the sheep. 16I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them in as well, and they will listen to My voice. Then there will be one flock and one shepherd.
17The reason the Father loves Me is that I lay down My life in order to take it up again. 18No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from My Father.”
19Again there was division among the Jews because of Jesusʼ message. 20Many of them said, “He is demon-possessed and insane. Why would you listen to Him?”
21But others replied, “These are not the words of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”
Jesus at the Feast of Dedication
22At that time the Feast of Dedication took place in Jerusalem. It was winter, 23and Jesus was walking in the temple courts in Solomonʼs Colonnade. 24So the Jews gathered around Him and demanded, “How long will You keep us in suspense? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.”
25“I already told you,” Jesus replied, “but you did not believe. The works I do in My Fatherʼs name testify on My behalf. 26But because you are not My sheep, you refuse to believe. 27My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me. 28I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them out of My hand. 29My Father who has given them to Me is greater than all. No one can snatch them out of My Fatherʼs hand. 30I and the Father are one.”
31At this, the Jews again picked up stones to stone Him. 32But Jesus responded, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone Me?”
33“We are not stoning You for any good work,” said the Jews, “but for blasphemy, because You, who are a man, make Yourself out to be God.”
34Jesus replied, “Is it not written in your Law: ‘I have said you are gods’? 35If he called them gods to whom the word of God came—and the Scripture cannot be broken— 36then what about the One whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world? How then can you accuse Me of blasphemy for stating that I am the Son of God?
37If I am not doing the works of My Father, then do not believe Me. 38But if I am doing them, even though you do not believe Me, believe the works themselves, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I am in the Father.”
39At this, they tried again to seize Him, but He escaped their grasp.
Johnʼs Testimony Confirmed
40Then Jesus went back across the Jordan to the place where John had first been baptizing, and He stayed there. 41Many came to Him and said, “Although John never performed a sign, everything he said about this man was true.” 42And many in that place believed in Jesus.
Footnotes (4)
- a v8 BYZ All who came
- b v22 That is, Hanukkah, the historic celebration of the Maccabean Revolt and rededication of the temple
- c v23 Literally the temple
- d v34 Psalm 82:6
Study notes on this chapter · 3
The LORD is my shepherd
David's most-loved psalm pictures God as shepherd and host: green pastures, still waters, a table in the presence of enemies, goodness and mercy pursuing the singer all life long. Jesus takes up the shepherd image for himself in John 10.
When: A psalm of David; Jesus' shepherd teaching, c. AD 30.
Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.
I said, you are gods
When accused of blasphemy for claiming to be God's Son, Jesus points to Psalm 82, where God addresses rulers as 'gods'. He argues that if Scripture can call those to whom God's word came 'gods', it cannot be blasphemy for the one the Father sent to say he is God's Son. What Psalm 82 originally means is itself debated.
When: Psalm of Asaph; Jesus at the Feast of Dedication, c. AD 29–30.
Ways people read this (3)
- Human judges or rulers of Israel are addressed as 'gods' because they act in God's name.
- Members of a heavenly council (angelic or spiritual powers) are condemned for unjust rule among the nations.
- Jesus' argument works either way: if the word can be applied to others, it is not blasphemy for the one sent from the Father.
Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.
The good shepherd who seeks the lost
Ezekiel condemns Israel's shepherds for feeding themselves, and promises that God himself will search for his sheep, and set over them one shepherd, his servant David. Jesus says 'I am the good shepherd' in John 10, contrasting himself with hirelings, and Hebrews and 1 Peter call him the great and chief Shepherd.
When: Ezekiel, c. 590–570 BC; Jesus' teaching, c. AD 29–30.
Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.