John 10
1 “Truly, truly, I’m telling you, the one who doesn’t go into the sheepyard by the gatea but instead climbs in somewhere else, that person is a thief and a robber. 2 The one who goes in through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls the sheep that are his by name and brings them out. 4 When he gets outb all the ones that are his, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they recognize his voice.c 5 But they would certainly not follow a stranger and instead run away from them because they don’t recognize strangers’ voices.”d
6 Jesus told them this proverb,e but they didn’t understand what he was telling them.
7 So Jesus said again, “Truly, truly, I’m telling you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8 Everyone who came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep didn’t listen to them. 9 I am the gate; if anyone comes in through me, they will be protectedf and will come in and find pasture.g 10 The thief only comes so they can steal, slaughter, and destroy. I came so they could have life and have more than enough.
11 “I am the selflessh shepherd.i The respectable shepherd sets aside his very beingj for the sake of the sheep. 12 The hired staff who is not a shepherd, and the sheep don’t belong to them, they see the wolf coming and abandon the sheep and run away—and the wolf snatches them and causes them to scatter— 13 because they are hired staff and don’t carek about the sheep.
14 “I am the selfless shepherd, and I know the ones that are mine, and the ones that are mine know me, 15 just like the Father knows me, and I know the Father, and I set aside my very being for the sheep. 16 I also have other sheep that are not from this sheepyard. It’s necessary for me to bring them, and they will listen to my voice, and it will become one flock and one shepherd. 17 This is why the Father loves me: I set aside my very being with the result that I can receive it again. 18 No one carries it away from me, but I set it aside myself. I have the right to set it aside, and I have the right to receivel it again. I received this direction from my Father.”
19 Again, there was a split between the Judean authorities because of these conversations.m 20 Many of them were saying, “He has a demon and is deranged! Why do you listen to him?” 21 Others were saying, “These are not the statements of someone who is haunted by demons. A demon can’t open blind people’s eyes, can it?”
22 Then during the winter, Hanukkahn arrived in Jerusalem, 23 and Jesus was walking in the sacred grounds, in Solomon’s Walkway.o 24 Then, the Judean authorities surrounded him and started saying, “How long will you hold us in suspense?p If you are the Christ, tell us openly.”q
25 “I told you and you don’t trust me,” Jesus answered them. “The actions I am doing as my Father’s representative vouch for me. 26 However, you don’t trust me because you are not my sheep. 27 My sheep listen to my voice. I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them agelong life, and they absolutely cannot be destroyed indefinitely,r and there isn’t anyone who snatches them from my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is more powerful than anything, and no one can snatch them from the Father’s hand. 30 The Father and I are one.”
31 The Judean authorities picked up stones again, so they could stone him to death.
32 “I’ve shown you many selflesss actions from the Father.” Jesus responded. “Which of these actions is why you are stoning me?”
33 The Judean authorities answered him, “We aren’t stoning you because of selfless actions. Just the opposite, it’s about pretentiousnesst and because you—a human—are making yourself out to be God!”
34 Jesus answered them, “Isn’t it written in the Torah,u which you follow, ‘I said, “You are gods”’?v 35 While it calls those ones gods—the conversationw of God emerged among them— (and scripture cannot be disregarded), 36 you say about the one which the Father dedicated for sacred purpose and sent to the whole world, ‘You are being pretentious,’ because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’? 37 If I don’t do my Father’s work, don’t trust me. 38 But if I do, and if you don’t trust me, then trust the work so that you can learn and know that the Father is in me, and I am in the Father.”
39 Then they tried to capture him again, but he got out from their grasp.x
40 He left again across the Jordan River to the place where, earlier, John was submersing people, and he stayed there. 41 Many people came to him and were saying, “John didn’t produce any sort of sign, but everything he said about this man was true!” 42 And many people trusted Jesus there.
FOOTNOTES:
a Traditionally, ‘door.’ The word is thura, which most often would be translated door, instead of pule, which is the more common word for ‘gate’ (see Matthew 7:13-14). However, in English, the difference between a door and a gate is what kind of structure into or through which it provides passage. In this context, it is talking about the fence around a yard where the sheep are kept (a ‘sheepfold’). Entry points in fences in English are called ‘gates.’
b This is the same Greek word translated here as ‘gets out’ is translated as ‘expel’ in 9:34 and ‘throw out’ in 9:35. It most literally means ‘throw out.’
c Or ‘call’ in the sense of calling out with one’s voice
d The first instance of ‘stranger’ in this verse is singular, but the second instance is plural, ‘strangers.’ However, ‘voice’ remains singular, so it can be translated as “stranger’s voice” or “strangers’ voices” in English. Greek often uses a singular for something belonging separately to multiple people, but English requires it to match.
e Many translations use ‘parable’ here, but that is a different Greek word, parabole. This word is paroimia, and is the same word the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible uses in Proverbs 1:1. They do seem to be used interchangeably, with Matthew, Mark, and Luke using ‘parable’ and John using ‘proverb.’
f Traditionally, ‘saved.’ Other words, such as ‘rescued,’ and ‘liberated’ could be appropriate ways to translate this.
g See Psalm 23, Psalm 79 (especially verse 13), Psalm 95 (especially verse 7), and Psalm 100. See Jeremiah 50.
h Traditionally, ‘good.’ The word kalos can be translated in many ways, all of them positive, so one way to summarize it would be ‘good’; however, the basic meaning is pleasing in someway, whether in appearance or character. The context matters and must be taken into consideration. This section contrasts the shepherd who does their job, who cares for the sheep even at the cost of their own life, with the hired staff who leaves when things get dangerous. It also seems to be a reference to the shepherds of Zechariah, one who is God and cares for the sheep, and the other being the human leaders who abandon their sheep. This seems to be a respectable and trustworthy, altruistic shepherd who gives themselves for the sake of the sheep. The primary risk of translating it as ‘selfless’ is the possible inclination that one’s own needs should be ignored, that boundaries should be maintained, and that any thought of oneself is bad. That is absolutely not what is in view here or anywhere. The idea here is that the shepherd is generous, altruistic, kind, and dedicated to the care of those whom he loves, even when the cost is high.
i See Zechariah 11:7 and context
j Traditionally, ‘lays down his life.’ The word translated traditionally as ‘life’ and here as ‘very being’ is psuche. It historically has been translated as ‘soul.’ It has to do with the life-energy connected with existence as a living being. It is a different word than life (zoe) used in verse 10. The word psuche is the same as what is used in Matthew 10:39 regarding losing and finding one’s very being. ‘Life’ is good in some ways. This word includes ‘life’ in the sense of being a living being, but it also includes the identity of who someone is at their core, which ‘life’ doesn’t indicate.
k Or ‘aren’t concerned’ or ‘aren’t interested in’
l Or ‘take.’ The word lambano can be translated as ‘receive,’ ‘take,’ ‘pick up,’ ‘claim,’ ‘get hold of’
m Greek, logos. See note in John 1:1.
n Traditionally translated as ‘Feast of Dedication.’ The word enkainia literally means ‘dedication,’ but it’s also the word used to translate the Hebrew word chanukka. It refers to the celebration commemorating when Judas Maccabeus rededicated the temple after it was reclaimed from Antiochus Epiphanes in December 164 BCE. The English version is spelled a number of different ways, including a common spelling of ‘Hanukkah’ referring to the rededication. It is celebrated every December by Jewish communities. The only reason to call it the Feast of Dedication instead of Hanukkah is because of Christian scholarship’s long history of antisemitism.
o Or ‘portico’ or ‘colonnade.’ The word is the same as John 5:2. It refers to a covered walkway with a roof held up by columns to protect people from weather. This area was the only part of the temple where people who were not Jewish men without health conditions or physical injuries were permitted.
p This sentence is a Greek idiom. Literally, it says ‘Until when are you carrying/lifting our being/life/soul?’
q Or ‘publicly’
r Literally, ‘for the age.’ Traditionally, ‘forever.’ Traditionally, the word for ‘age,’ when it’s in an adjective form has been translated as ‘eternal’ or ‘everlasting.’ It means ‘a really long time’ without specifying the precise length.
s This is the same word traditionallyl translated as ‘good’ in the phrase, “I am the good shepherd.” See the footnote on verse 11.
t The Greek word is blasphemia, where we get the English word ‘blasphemy.’ However, the meaning of the word is broader than the religious crime of blasphemy and does not directly carry the definition of claiming to be God. It means ‘slander’ or ‘belittling’ or ‘irreverent language’ and seems to be used against Jesus when he claims identity or authority that goes against the religious leaders views of what and who is important, so they claim he is setting himself against God—since they see themselves as the arbiters of what God thinks.
u The following quotation is from Psalm 82, which is not technically in the Torah. However, the way we refer to the Hebrew Bible was not as finalized at the time, and the Hebraic way to refer to what Christians traditionally call the “Old Testament” is the Tanakh. The word TaNaKh comes from an acronym, T.N.K. It stands for Torah (Instruction), Nephiim (Prophets), Ketuvim (Writings). These are the names of the three sections as they are organized in the Hebrew Bible. The practice of using this acronym was developed after John was written, and sometimes during this period, the whole Hebrew Bible was referred to in shorthand as ‘The Torah’ or ‘Torah and the Prophets’ or ‘Torah and the Prophets and Psalms.’
v Quotation of Psalm 82:6. In it, the judges of the land are referred to as gods, as Sons of the Most High, since they serve a function to carry out God’s work of overseeing justice in the land. Jesus seems to be challenging their understanding of what he is claiming or their justness in punishing comparison with God since it is done in scripture with others and determined to be appropriate.
w Greek, logos. See note in John 1:1
x Literally, ‘their hand’