John 10:1-21
New Living Translation
The Good Shepherd and His Sheep
10 “I tell you the truth, anyone who sneaks over the wall of a sheepfold, rather than going through the gate, must surely be a thief and a robber! 2 But the one who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep recognize his voice and come to him. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they know his voice. 5 They won’t follow a stranger; they will run from him because they don’t know his voice.”
6 Those who heard Jesus use this illustration didn’t understand what he meant, 7 so he explained it to them: “I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. 8 All who came before me[a] were thieves and robbers. But the true sheep did not listen to them. 9 Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through me will be saved.[b] They will come and go freely and will find good pastures. 10 The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.
11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep. 12 A hired hand will run when he sees a wolf coming. He will abandon the sheep because they don’t belong to him and he isn’t their shepherd. And so the wolf attacks them and scatters the flock. 13 The hired hand runs away because he’s working only for the money and doesn’t really care about the sheep.
14 “I am the good shepherd; I know my own sheep, and they know me, 15 just as my Father knows me and I know the Father. So I sacrifice my life for the sheep. 16 I have other sheep, too, that are not in this sheepfold. I must bring them also. They will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock with one shepherd.
17 “The Father loves me because I sacrifice my life so I may take it back again. 18 No one can take my life from me. I sacrifice it voluntarily. For I have the authority to lay it down when I want to and also to take it up again. For this is what my Father has commanded.”
19 When he said these things, the people[c] were again divided in their opinions about him. 20 Some said, “He’s demon possessed and out of his mind. Why listen to a man like that?” 21 Others said, “This doesn’t sound like a man possessed by a demon! Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”
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John 10:1-21
International Standard Version
The Illustration of the Sheepfold
10 “Truly, I tell all of you[a] emphatically, the person who doesn’t enter the sheepfold through the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a bandit. 2 The one who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 It’s to him the gatekeeper opens the gate, and it’s his voice the sheep hear. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has driven out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they recognize his voice. 5 They’ll never follow a stranger, but will run away from him because they don’t recognize the voice of strangers.” 6 Jesus used this illustration with them, but they didn’t understand what he was saying to them.
Jesus the Good Shepherd
7 So again Jesus said, “Truly, I tell all of you[b] emphatically, I’m the gate for the sheep. 8 All who came before me[c] are thieves and bandits, but the sheep didn’t listen to them. 9 I’m the gate. If anyone enters through me, he will be saved. He’ll come in and go out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal, slaughter, and destroy. I’ve come that they may have life, and have it abundantly.
11 “I’m the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down[d] his life for the sheep. 12 The hired worker, who isn’t the shepherd and doesn’t own the sheep, sees the wolf coming, deserts the sheep, and runs away. So the wolf snatches them and scatters them, 13 because he’s a hired worker, and the sheep don’t matter to him.
14 I’m the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down[e] my life for the sheep. 16 I have other sheep that don’t belong to this fold. I must lead these also, and they’ll listen to my voice. So there will be one flock and one shepherd. 17 This is why the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it back again. 18 No one is taking it from me; I lay it down of my own free will. I have the authority to lay it down, and I have the authority to take it back again. This is what my Father has commanded me.”
19 Once again there was a division among the Jews[f] because of what Jesus had been saying. 20 Many of them were saying, “He has a demon and is insane. Why bother listening to him?”
21 Others were saying, “These are not the words of a man who is demon-possessed. A demon cannot open the eyes of the blind, can it?”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- John 10:1 The Gk. pronoun you is pl.
- John 10:7 The Gk. pronoun you is pl.
- John 10:8 Other mss. lack before me
- John 10:11 Other mss. read gives
- John 10:15 Other mss. read give
- John 10:19 I.e. Judean leaders
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
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