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Nazarene Commentary 2000©

21^st Century Paraphrase of the Hebrew Scriptures© –
21^st Century Version of the Christian Scriptures© [NCMM]

THE GOSPEL OF JOHN

CHAPTER TEN:
THE DOOR AND THE SHEPHERD – ONE WITH GOD

[“A Unifying Shepherd”]
Key Word: Sheep

John 10:1-6 – Enter The Sheepfold by the Door

JN10:1 “I tell you this truth: the person who does not enter the sheep-pen through the gate, 555 but climbs in another way, that person is a thief and a robber.

555

Does not enter the sheep-pen through the gate: Or, door; sheepfold. Jesus introduces an analogy or comparison where he is the Good Shepherd, the Jewish hierarchy the thieves and robbers, and the sheep from among “the lost sheep of the House of Israel.” [Matthew 10:6; 15:24] Though some make specific applications of this analogy, Jesus only compares himself to the Gate and the Good Shepherd.

JN10:2 However, the person entering through the gate is a shepherd of the sheep. JN10:3 To this [shepherd] the gatekeeper opens [the door], and the sheep listen to his voice. 556 [The shepherd] calls his own sheep and accordingly he leads them out.

556	The sheep listen to his voice: Sheep will immediately respond to the known voice of the shepherd, and though another use the same words, they will not come.

JN10:4 When [the shepherd] gets all of his own [sheep] out, he goes before them, and his sheep continue to follow [him], because they recognize his voice. JN10:5 They will never follow a stranger, but rather will flee from him, because they do not recognize the stranger’s voice.” JN10:6 Jesus told [the Jews] this analogy, 557 however, these did not understand what he was telling them.

557	Jesus told [the Jews] this analogy: Or, comparison, parable, similitude, figure, allegory, illustration. It seems clear Jesus calls these Jews thieves and robbers.

John 10:7-15 – “I Am The Door and the Good Shepherd”

JN10:7 Therefore, Jesus said again: “I tell you this truth: I am the Gate of the Sheep. 558

558	I am the Gate of the Sheep: Or, door. [John 14:6] Some of the language that follows echoes or alludes to Isaiah 49:8-12.

JN10:8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. JN10:9 I am the Gate. If ever anyone should enter through me, 559 that person will be saved, and will enter and leave and shall find pasture. 560 [Isaiah 49:9, 10]

559	Enter through me: By receiving and accepting the person of Jesus as Christ and the Son of God and remaining in his teachings. [John 1:12, 13]

560	And shall find pasture: Or, pasturage. The language is likely drawn from Isaiah 49:9, 10.

JN10:10 The thief only enters [the sheep-pen] to steal and slay and destroy 561 [the sheep]. I came so that [the sheep] may have Life, and have it beyond measure. 562

561	To steal and slay and destroy: The attitude and treatment of the common Israelites by the Jewish hierarchy. [Matthew 7:15]

562

And have it beyond measure: Or, more abundantly, more fully. Hebrews and Jews of the past, before the coming of John the Baptist [Matthew 11:12], could expect to be resurrected to life on earth following their judgment. [Revelation 20:12-14] These Jewish sheep who followed the Shepherd would possess a higher form of life, immortal life in the heavens. [1 Corinthians 15:50-52]

JN10:11 I am the Good Shepherd. 563 The Good Shepherd lays down his soul 564 in behalf of the Sheep. 565

563	Good Shepherd: Or, fine, excellent. The language may echo Ezekiel 34:23. [Matthew 9:36]

564	Lays down his soul: Or, surrenders, sacrifices, gives. [Matthew 20:28] As Isaiah 53:7 foretold. [Hebrews 13:20]

565	The Sheep: Specifically here the “lost sheep of the House of Israel.” [Matthew 10:6; 15:24]

JN10:12 The hired-man 566 – not being the shepherd and to whom the sheep do not belong – when he sees the wolf 567 coming, he deserts the sheep and runs away – and the wolf snatches and scatters [the sheep].

566	The hired-man: The Jewish clergy.

567	The wolf: Compare Acts 20:29, 30.

JN10:13 This is because he is a hired-man and the sheep do not matter to him. JN10:14 I am the Good Shepherd, and I continue to recognize my own [sheep], 568 and my own [sheep] recognize me.

568	I continue to recognize my own [sheep]: Or, know.

JN10:15 It is just as my Father knows me 569 and I continue to know the Father, and I am laying down my soul 570 in behalf of the Sheep.

569	It is just as my Father knows me: The comparison is with the Shepherd knowing his Sheep, the Sheep knowing the Shepherd. Compare Matthew 11:27. The word “know” suggests an intimate relationship and not just an intellectual awareness. [John 17:3]

570	I am laying down my soul: Or, life. Jesus surrenders or sacrifices his “soul” [PSYCHEN].

John 10:16-18 – “I Have Other Sheep”

JN10:16 “I have other sheep 571 [Isaiah 49:12; 56:8] that do not belong to this sheep-fold. Those [sheep] I must lead also, and they will listen to my voice, and they will become one flock, 572 one Shepherd. 573 [Ezekiel 34:23]

571

I have other sheep: Jesus likely echoes either Isaiah 49:12 or Isaiah 56:8, or a conflate of both. Jesus came to call “the lost sheep of the House of Israel” [Matthew 10:6; 15:24] and with but rare exceptions he does not witness to non-Jews. Later some Greeks want an audience with Jesus but he does not arrange for such. [Compare John 12:20] It is likely these Greeks were included in Jesus’ words at John 12:32 that after his ascension to heaven he would draw people of all kinds. It is these who are the “other sheep” who are not naturally part of the Jewish sheepfold. Compare these two groups becoming one in Ephesians 2:11-22. Some arbitrarily, and without any support, apply these “other sheep” to another class of Christians, the American Indians.

572	One flock: Or, one fold. The same union among Jews and non-Jews described in Ephesians 2:11-22.

573	One Shepherd: An exact allusion to Ezekiel 34:23, 24 where the Messiah-type David is the parallel. [1 Peter 5:4]

JN10:17 This is the reason the Father continues to love me, because I am laying down my soul so that I should receive it again. 574

574	So that I should receive it again: This echoes Psalm 16:8 where Messiah’s “soul” does not remain in Hades. Though his life is sacrificed in his fleshly body and blood, his “soul” – what he is as an individual being – will be raised again. Compare Acts 2:26, 29, 31, 32.

JN10:18 No one takes [my soul] from me, but rather I lay it down of my own accord. 575 [This] authority I possess to receive [my soul] again. 576 I have received this commandment [when I was] beside my Father.” 577

575	I lay it down of my own accord: Or, KJV: I lay down of myself; PME: own free will; WMS: giving it as a free gift; BER: voluntarily lay it down.

576

[This] authority I possess to receive [my soul] again: Or, WEY: I am authorized to. The Son must receive this authority from someone. He cannot lay down his life without this authority. The suggestion is that the authority comes from his Father. Jesus expects to “receive his soul again.” [Psalm 16:8] Jesus’ words explain his metaphor at John 2:19. There is not text of Scripture which clearly and directly states that Jesus resurrected himself. For details on this see Error of the Trinity in Nazarene Commentary 2000© under John 2:19.

577

I have received this commandment when I was beside my Father: Or, NOR: this authority I received from; BER: this injunction; PME: this is an order that I have received. If the Father had not given the Son this authority, he could never “receive his soul again.” It is likely Jesus alludes to his pre-existence.

John 10:19-21 – “A Demon Cannot Open Blind Eyes!”

JN10:19 Again a schism 578 occurred among the Jews because of these words.

578	Schism: Or, division. The Greek is SCHISMA.

JN10:20 But, many from among them were saying: “He is demon-possessed! 579 He is crazy! 580 Why do you listen to him?”

579	He is demon-possessed: See notes on John 8:48.

580	He is crazy: Or, mad, out of his mind, insane. See Mark 3:21. [Acts 12:15; 26:24]

JN10:21 Others were saying: “These are not the words of a demonized man! 581 Is a demon able to open the eyes of someone blind?”

581	A demonized man: Or, demoniac.

John 10:22-30 – “I and the Father Are One”

JN10:22 It was winter and at this time the Festival of Dedication [Hanukkah] 582 occurred.

582	It was winter and at this time the Festival of Dedication [Hanukkah]: Around December 25. A festival in memory of the re-dedication of the Temple.

JN10:23 Now Jesus was walking about in the Temple area among the columns of Solomon. 583

583

In the Temple area among the columns of Solomon: Or, porch, portico, colonnade, arcade. According to Josephus built by Solomon and still existing in the year 32 AD. It is cold in the shadows at this time of year in Jerusalem, and in the early and late hours we see the breath of those speaking. Smoke rises from warming braziers in the sunlight.

JN10:24 Therefore the Jews surrounded Jesus and asked him: “How long do you keep our souls in suspense? If you are the Christ tell us plainly.” JN10:25 Jesus answered them: “I told you [Jews] and yet you do not believe. The works I do in the name of my Father, 584 these testify about me.

584	In the name of my Father: Compare John 3:2; 5:36, 42; 10:38. Jesus knew God’s sacred Name was Yehowah [Jehovah] as he was the Angel of Yahweh speaking to Moses when His name was explained. [Exodus 3:13, 14]

JN10:26 But you do not believe, because you are not my Sheep. JN10:27 My own Sheep listen to my voice and continue to follow me. 585

585	My own Sheep listen to my voice and continue to follow me: Christ’s Sheep are identified as those who hear and obey his teachings and continue to walk as his disciples. Note that the end-time Saints are so described. [Revelation 14:4]

JN10:28 I am giving to them endless Life, 586 and never shall they be destroyed throughout all future periods of time. 587 No one will ever snatch them from my hand. 588

586	I am giving to them endless Life: The Son has been given “life within himself” just as the Father possesses such. Therefore, he may give everlasting Life to those he pleases. [John 5:24; 17:2]

587	Never shall they be destroyed throughout the Age: Or, perish; everlasting Life.

588	No one will ever snatch them from my hand: Or, pluck, tear them out, wrest them. The word “snatch” is from HARPASEI which means to “grab quickly” as in rape, a Latin word which comes from this Greek word. Compare 1 John 5:18.

JN10:29 What my Father has given to me is greater than all things, 589 and no one is able to snatch from the hand of the Father. 590

589	What my Father has given to me is greater than all things: Or, all. Some manuscripts have a variant: “My Father, who has given me them, is greater than all others.”

590	No one is able to snatch from the hand of the Father: Or, pluck, tear.

JN10:30 I and the Father, we are in perfect unity.” 591

591

I and the Father, we are in perfect unity: Or, in union, agree perfectly, one. Most render this: I and the Father are one. The Greek is EGO [I] KAI [and] HO [the] PATER [Father] HEN [one] ESMEN [we are]. The subject is the protection of the Sheep, and on this matter the Father and His Son are perfectly unified, working for the salvation of these sheep. Compare a similar wording which includes the Nazarene’s disciples at John 17:22, “… so that they may be one just as we are one.” [Compare notes on John 17:21, 22.]

John 10:31-39 – Gods and the Son of God

JN10:31 Again the Jews gathered stones so that they might stone Jesus. 592

592	Again the Jews gathered stones so that they might stone Jesus: Against Roman law, the hatred is so great.

JN10:32 Jesus responded to them: “I showed you [Jews] many excellent works originating from the Father. For which of these works are you [Jews] going to stone me?” JN10:33 The Jews answered Jesus: “We are not stoning you regarding excellent works, but regarding blasphemy! Because you as a human are making yourself a god!” 593

593

You as a human are making yourself a god: Or, KJV: makest thyself God; BEC: claim to be God. Nowhere has Jesus made such a claim. He has called God “my Father” and that is all. The charge is from the hateful Jewish hierarchy and is a false one. As Jesus is to go on and answer this he only calls himself “the Son of The God.” [Or, “a son of The God.”]

JN10:34 Jesus answered them: “Is It not written in your Law, 594 ‘I said, “You are gods.”’ 595 [Psalm 82:6]

594	Your Law: It is the Jewish Law and Jesus includes Psalms in the statement.

595

I said, “You are gods.”: Jesus quotes Psalm 82:6. The Hebrew Text of Psalm 82:6 uses ELOHIM, while the Jewish Greek LXX has THEOI showing the 3rd Century BC Jews understood the plural ELOHIM to sometimes mean “gods.” Now, in this same section, Irenaeus passes on to the term “God.” Quoting Psalm 45:6, 7, Irenaeus argues there are two Gods: “For the Spirit designates both of them by the name, of God –- both Him who is anointed as Son, and Him who does anoint, that is the Father.” He does this again, using verses quoted by the Nazarene himself (John 10:30-36), that is Psalm 82:1: “‘God [Father] stood in the congregation [Greek LXX = synagogue] of The Gods, He [Son] judges among The Gods [the Church].’ He here refers to the Father and the Son, and… the Church.” Again, Irenaeus quotes Deuteronomy 10:17 with a most interesting application: “‘The God of gods, the Lord hath spoken, and hath called the earth.’ (3) Who is meant by God?… The Son… But of what gods does he speak?… To those, no doubt, who have received the unmerited favor of the ‘adoption, by which we cry, Abba Father.’” Clearly, here Irenaeus is henotheistic in his theology. For, he calls God the Father, as well as the Son, as well as the members of the Church. In VI, 3 he explains this: “When, however, the Scripture terms them gods which are no gods, it does not, as I have already remarked, declare them as gods in every sense, but with a certain addition and signification.” This is earlier explained in Book II, chapter I, 3: “But then that which is greater is also stronger, and in a greater degree Lord; and that which is greater, and stronger, and in a greater degree Lord – must be God.” He does something similar in this book when he comments on John 14:20: “We may learn through Him [Christ] that the Father is above all things. For ‘the Father,’ says He, ‘is greater than I.’ The Father, therefore, has been declared by our Lord to excel with respect to knowledge.” (Against Heresies, Book II, chapter 28.8) Again, explaining the degrees or qualifications to the term God, Irenaeus quotes 1 Corinthians 8:5, 6 regarding “many gods” he writes: “And Moses himself, being a man of God, was indeed given as a god before Pharaoh.” (See Exodus 7:1, 2) Often Irenaeus qualifies his term by referring to the “Supreme God.” He makes it quite clear that it is only the Father who is Creator. However, he shows the Son was an agent in this Creation when he writes: “For that all things… created by Him who is God over all, through His Word.” Then quoting John 1:3 he continues, “Whom, therefore did He command? The Word, no doubt, ‘by whom,’ he says, ‘the heavens were established.’… So that he indeed who made all things can along, together with His Word, properly be termed God and Lord.” We note the holy spirit is not included in this declaration, as if the spirit could be called God and Lord.

JN10:35 If He said ‘gods’ against whom the Word of The God occurred 596 – and the Scripture cannot be broken –

596	If He said ‘gods’ against whom the Word of The God occurred: In Psalm 82:6 Yehowah is speaking to the judges of Israel whom he calls ELOHIM, or gods. Compare also Psalm 82:1 in the LXX.

JN10:36 are you [Jews] saying of the One whom the Father sanctified and sent forth into the world of humankind, ‘You blaspheme,’ because I said I am a son of The God? 597

597

Because I said I am a son of The God: Or, the Son of God. The Greek for “son” is without the article and thus “a Son.” Jesus has actually only done this in the third person and by referring to “my Father.” [Compare John 5:18.] He does this over two dozen times in the Gospel of John. No one else in the Christian Bible ever says of God, “my Father.” The Messiah is to use such an expression according to Psalm 89:26. The Jews addressed God as “our Father” thus claiming a sonship. Likely the more intimate phrase “my Father” is understood by the Jews as a declaration that the Nazarene is claiming to be the Messiah, and thus God’s Word or Spokesman. The angels are called “sons of God.” [Genesis 6:1ff; Job 38:7] Yehowah calls the judges of Israel not only “gods” but also “sons of God” in Psalm 82:6. So it would seem Jesus is playing off the entire verse.

JN10:37 If I am not doing the works of my Father, do not believe me. JN10:38 But if I am doing [them], and if you do not believe me, [you Jews] believe the works. [Believe] so that you may realize, and continue to realize, that the Father is in me and I in the Father.” 598

598

The Father is in me and I in the Father: Or, WMS: the Father is in union with me; GDS: and I am in union with the Father. The Greek word EN can hold a variety of meanings: in harmony with, incorporate, in union with, in, at, during. Some read into this word a Trinitarian bias. However, from John 17:21 one can see that Jesus’ disciples are include in this EN: “So that everybody may be one – just as you, Father, in me and I in You, so that they may also be in us.” [See also John 17:26] In these cases the word EN infers a unified relationship in which all parties want the same thing.

JN10:39 Therefore, they sought to get hold of him again, but Jesus got away from their reach.

John 10:40-42 – Many Believe in Him

JN10:40 Then Jesus departed again to the other side of the Jordan into the area where John was originally baptizing, 599 and he remained there.

599	Where John was originally baptizing: Compare the notes on John 1:28.

JN10:41 And many people came approaching him and were saying: “For sure John performed no sign, but everything John said about this person was true.” 600

600	Everything John said about this person was true: Compare John 1:29; 3:30.

JN10:42 So many believed in Jesus there.

Review Questions on Chapter Ten