John 10:10-30
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
The hired hand, who is not the shepherd
nor the owner of the sheep, sees the wolf approaching, and he leaves the sheep and runs away, while the wolf catches and scatters them.
He runs away because he is only a hired hand and he has no concern for the sheep.
“I am the good shepherd. I know my own,
and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father.
And I lay down my life for the sheep. “I have other sheep too that do not belong to this fold. I must lead them as well,
and they will hear my voice.
Thus, there will only be one flock,
one shepherd. “This is why the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it away from me. I lay it down of my own free will.
And as I have the power to lay it down, I have the power to take it up again.
This command I have received from my Father.”
Once again, these words provoked a division among the Jews. Many of them were saying, “He is possessed and out of his mind. Why should we listen to him?” But others said, “No one possessed by a demon could speak like this. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”
At that time, the feast of the Dedication was taking place in Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple along the Portico of Solomon. The Jews gathered around him and asked, “How much longer will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus replied,
“I have told you, but you do not believe.
The works that I do in my Father’s name
bear witness to me, but you do not believe
because you are not my sheep. “My sheep listen to my voice. I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they will never perish.
No one will ever snatch them from my hand. My Father who has given them to me
is greater than all, and no one can snatch them out of the Father’s hand. and the Father are one.”