John 10:1-10 Jesus the Good Shepherd. Lectionary Gospel for 30th April, 2023

John 10:1-10, Jesus the Good Shepherd (Version: NRSV)

‘Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.’ Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.

So again Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

Alternative translation: John 10:1-10, Jesus the Good Shepherd (Version: The Gospels for Hearers)


1 "I tell you the truth:
the one who does not come into the sheepfold through the door,
but gets in some other way, is a thief and a robber.
The one who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
The doorkeeper opens to him
and the sheep listen to his voice
and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
When he has taken all his own sheep out,
he goes on ahead of them and the sheep follow him
because they know his voice.
They will not follow a stranger,
but will run away from him
because they do not know the stranger's voice."

6 Jesus told them this parable
but they did not know what he was talking about.
7 So Jesus spoke again:
"I tell you truly, I am the door of the sheep.
All who came before me were thieves and robbers,
but the sheep did not listen to them.
I am the door.
If anyone comes in through me,
he will be kept safe
and will go in and out and find pasture.

10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.
I have come so that they may have life and have it overflowing.

From “The Gospel of John”, Chapter 10, verses 1-10, in The Gospel for Hearers
(Translated from the Koine Greek by Elizabeth B. Edwards, Formatted by the Rev William Johnston, LLB, BA, BD), 2013, Diangellia Press.

Some questions raised by the text:

  • Who is Jesus talking to?
  • Who was the evangelist talking to?
  • Who (metaphorically) are the sheep?
  • Do we decide to be a shepherd, or is it a calling?
  • If we are (metaphorically) the sheep, how do we get to know and recognise the voice of the shepherd?
  • In Australia there are many sheep, but few shepherds (in the biblical sense). Can this story mean anything to us?
  • Again, in Australia the notion of a personal relationship between the shepherd and the sheep makes little sense. Does that change how we read this story? Could an Australian version of the story be written and told? Who would tell it? Who would listen?
  • What do you consider to be the main point of the story?
  • What helps us to "get the point?"
  • What stands in the way of us getting the point?

 


 


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts

Interrogation 16-07-2023 Sunday, 2 July 2023 1:49 PM   Gospel reading for this Sunday Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23   Theme The Parable of the Sower   NRSV version   The Parable of the Sower 13That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the lake.   2Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach.   3And he told them many things in parables, saying: ‘Listen! A sower went out to sow.   4And as he sowed, some seeds fell on the path, and the birds came and ate them up.   5Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up quickly, since they had no depth of soil.   6But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and since they had no root, they withered away.   7Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.   8Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.   9Let anyone with ears  
Read more
Interrogation 30-07-2023 Monday, 3 July 2023 12:27 PM     Gospel reading for this Sunday Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52   Theme What the Kingdom of heaven is like: (A mustard seed; Some yeast; A treasure; A pearl; A net; A householder)   NRSV version The Parable of the Mustard Seed 31 He put before them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field ;   32it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.’   The Parable of the Yeast 33 He told them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with   three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.’   …………………………………….   Three Parable s 44 ‘The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a fiel d, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys
Read more
Interrogation 23-07-2023 Monday, 3 July 2023 9:58 AM   Gospel reading for this Sunday Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43   Theme The Parable of Weeds among the Wheat   NRSV version The Parable of Weeds among the Wheat 24 He put before them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field;   25but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away.   26So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well.   27And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, “Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?”   28He answered, “An enemy has done this.” The slaves said to him, “Then do you want us to go and gather them?”   29But he replied, “No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them.   30Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Colle
Read more