JESUS IS THE GATE

JOHN 10:1–18

The inspired authors of the Bible frequently mention sheep and shepherds. Abraham, Moses, and David all took their turn at the head of the flock. When David left his family’s sheep on the hillsides to lead Israel as their king, his new occupation was pictured in terms of his former life’s work. God told him, “You will shepherd my people Israel” (2 Sam. 5:2). Of course God’s people awaited their ultimate King, whom God also depicted as a shepherd through his prophet Ezekiel (Ezek. 34:11–16, 23–24). So from time to time Jesus spoke of himself and his role in pastoral terms. Perhaps the most striking example of that comes to us in John 10 where Jesus called himself the Good Shepherd who is the gate of the sheepfold.

This particular discussion was motivated by the circumstances of an unfortunate man who had been born blind, was healed by Jesus, and then was threatened with expulsion from the local synagogue by the religious leaders (John 9). These men conducted rigorous interviews designed to undermine the impact of this healing and discredit Jesus, the Light of the World (John 9:5), for helping the blind man on the Sabbath. While being interrogated, the parents of the man Jesus healed feared the Pharisees would expel them from the synagogue, which was a powerful threat because it would make them social outcasts in Jewish society.30

This is where Jesus referred to the cultural experience of tending sheep. His listeners knew that sheep were defenseless, which made them easy prey for the predators that roamed the open country where the flocks grazed.31 Because nighttime posed the greatest risk, the shepherd brought his vulnerable flock into a protected and enclosed area referred to as a sheepfold. The sheepfold in the open country was either a natural cave or a circular enclosure built from fieldstones. Of course the space restrictions imposed on the flock by such an enclosure limited movement of the animals and therefore made it easier for thieves or predators to do their worst. That is why the shepherd remained with the sheep; after herding them into the sheepfold, he slept in the entry, functioning as its gate.

Shepherd taking sheep to the sheepfold.
© Direct Design.

As Jesus spoke to the man who had his blind eyes opened, he used images from pastoral life. Note that he related the Pharisees who had expelled this man from the synagogue to hired shepherds who had gone bad.32 He used even more critical language by likening them to thieves and robbers who made an illicit entry into the sheepfold (John 10:1). Their calloused attitudes and hostile behavior reflected an attempt to rob this believing and seeing “sheep” of his position within Jesus’s fold. These men were not at all like the good shepherd who was committed to the security of his flock (John 10:11).

Referring to himself as the gate, Jesus guarded access to his beloved sheep, not allowing entry to anyone who meant them harm. He alone was the one who controlled the gate that led to life, protection, and eternal rescue. “I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved” (John 10:9). Thus the man who had been expelled from the synagogue was now offered reassurance by the Good Shepherd.

Sheep entering the sheepfold.
© Direct Design.

Sheep enter the opening of the sheepfold, where the shepherd then sits or lies down, thus becoming the “gate” of the sheepfold.
© Direct Design.