The Good Shepherd: Part Two

Good Shepherd vs. Bad Shepherd
Jesus contrasts the good shepherd with a hired hand. The sheep belong to the shepherd. He works very hard not to lose a single one of them. The hired hand, however, really could care less. The sheep belong to someone else. Why should he risk his life for someone else’s sheep? We’ve all known people who have the attitude of the hired hand.

In Jesus’ day, a shepherd was born to the task. He was sent out to his flock as soon as he was old enough to go; the sheep became his friends and his companions and it became second nature to think of them before he even thought of himself, even at the risk of giving his life in order to save theirs. But the false shepherd came to the job, not as a calling but as a means of making money. He was in it simply and solely for the pay he could get.

Jesus says, "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."

This is a radical doctrine. A shepherd who cares so much for his sheep that he dies for them. You and I probably have never focused before too closely on Jesus' exact words. Jesus says that he lays down his life for his sheep because he cares for them. We can understand the shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep because his family and his livelihood depend on those sheep. If wolves attack those sheep, he would combat those wolves because that is his job. The wolves might be dangerous, but this is his responsibility. He knew the risks; it goes with the territory.

But that is not what Jesus is saying. Jesus says he is the good shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep – not because that is his job, but because he cares that much for the sheep. He values the lives of the sheep more than he values life itself.
Notice that he contrasts himself with a hired hand. "The hired hand," he says, "who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away – and the wolf snatches them and scatters them." Then he adds, "The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep."

That's understandable. No sheep is worth dying for. They are dumb, smelly animals. Who in the world would die for a sheep? Only Jesus, the good shepherd. Shepherds Lead their Flock
It was customary for shepherds to lead their flocks instead of driving them, as is done in the West. Even today, shepherds in the hills of Judea can be heard calling in a strange language to their sheep which hasten to follow.

The shepherd had to lead the sheep to forage and water, and if the sheep fell into a rocky crevice, the shepherd had to climb down to it to pull it to safety with his curved staff.

If the sheep is hurt in the fall, the shepherd stretched the animal over his shoulders, carried it to a safe place, and tended to its injuries.

There was a party of English tourists visiting Palestine and the tour guide was describing some of the customs of the Middle East.

“Now,” he said, “you are accustomed to seeing the shepherd driving his sheep through the English lanes and countryside. But here in the East, things are different. The shepherd always leads the way, going before the flock. And the sheep always follow him, for they know his voice.”

As the party reached Palestine, the tourists couldn’t help but notice that almost the first sight to greet them was a flock of sheep being driven – not led – by a man. Well, the tour guide was astonished and angry. Immediately he went up to the shepherd and said: “How is it that you are driving these sheep? Shepherds in the east do not drive their sheep, they lead their sheep.”

The man replied, “You are quite right, sir. The shepherd does lead his sheep. But you see, I’m not the shepherd, I’m the butcher!” There is a difference between the interest of the shepherd and the interest of the butcher. Jesus is described as the gentle shepherd, a shepherd who knows his sheep and is known by them. A shepherd even willing to lay down his life for his sheep.

There was once a tourist who wanted to see for himself that sheep won’t follow a stranger – as Jesus said – “because they do not know his voice” (John 10:5). He arranged with a shepherd to put on the shepherd’s outer cloak and turban. Then he went outside to the flock. He yelled, “Manah!” (Arabic for “come!”). But not a single sheep budged. Impressed, the tourist asked, “Will your sheep ever follow anyone other than you?”  “Yes,” said the shepherd. “Sometimes a sheep will get so sick, it will follow anyone.”  Think about it!

Now, without a shepherd nor leader, sheep are distracted, and scatter in every direction. It is a peculiarity of sheep that while they are so easily led by one whom they know, they are driven with difficulty. They huddle together as if frightened, and the more they are pressed, the more frightened they seem; but if the leaders start forward, the flock follows.

Another noteworthy trait is their memory of kindness. They never forget a little present of salt or grain, or a kind act of protection from danger; every benefit they repay with affection, confidently expecting renewals of it. Sheep are remarkable also for their mutual affection. They love to feed with their heads close together, two or three of them frequently keeping their heads so close as to seem like parts of one animal. The sudden start of a single member of a flock affects the whole, as if they were connected by nerves of mutual affection. When accidentally separated from its companions, the cries of a sheep or lamb, as it runs anxiously about, are pitiful. Affection for their shepherd is stronger than their mutual love. They will follow the shepherd away from their friends, and, I believe, even from their young. Their affection for their young, also, is stronger than their love for one another. The sounds of affection which a mother sheep makes over her little lamb are of the most tender of all.

Shepherd Protects Sheep at Night
Shepherds usually kept their sheep in caves at night. But they departed from this practice during lambing season. Crowded caves made poor birthing places for lambs. This would explain why the shepherds were spending the night in the fields during the birth of Jesus. It would also explain why Joseph and Mary might seek shelter in a cave. They knew it would be empty at this time.

It would be fitting for Jesus to be born at the same time that lambs destined for sacrifice in the Temple were born. Jesus himself was destined to be the sacrificial “Lamb of God.”

But at other times, outside birthing season, at night the sheep had to be protected from thieves and from wild animals. The hills around Bethlehem were full of predators, including bears, leopards, jackals, and occasionally hyenas. The shepherd was usually armed with only a slingshot and a rod (a wooden club embedded with flint or nails). The sheep’s sole protection against sudden and violent death was the shepherd. In fighting off wild animals or thieves, a shepherd might lose his own life.

To help them protect the animals under their care, shepherds often built a sheepfold. This was an enclosure of high, mortarless stone walls topped with thorn branches to keep out wild animals. The fold had no gate, so the shepherd acted as a human gate by lying across the open entryway. When shepherds shared a sheepfold, they could take turns sleeping.

During the night, sheep from different flocks were put together in the communal sheepfold in which there was but one way in and one way out. The shepherd laying across the entrance was the gate. The shepherd would be awakened by a sheep straying out or perhaps by a marauder trying to break in and steal some of the sheep.

Sheep Know Shepherd’s Voice
And the good shepherd knows his sheep. The individual sheep in a flock all look alike to the untrained eye. A good shepherd, however, can tell them apart – often because of their defects and peculiar traits. A man who was tending a large flock explained this to a Christian friend who expressed surprise at his familiarity with each animal. “See that sheep over there?” he asked. “Notice how it toes in a little. The one behind it has a squint; the next one has a patch of wool off its back; ahead is one with a distinguishing black mark, while the one closest to us has a small piece torn out of its ear.” Observing all of them, the believer thought about Christ, the chief Shepherd, who also knows the individual weaknesses and failings of his flock and watches over the members with discerning love and sympathetic understanding.

When Jesus named himself the Good Shepherd, he was telling us that he does not look upon us merely as a bunch of stupid sheep, even though, quite frankly, I think we act that way. He knows our name as all good shepherds know the names of their sheep.

It might sound strange to us that a shepherd knew the names of his sheep. To a stranger, all sheep look pretty much alike. But not to a good shepherd. He knows them by names such as Square Jaw, Crooked Horn, Blind Eye, Long Neck, Lame One, and so forth. What Jesus had in mind is not so much a matter of knowledge, but a matter of love which results from that knowledge. The knowledge of each of us – Lonely One, Broken Hearted, Depressed Soul, Angry Heart. Our Good Shepherd cares about us and about our weaknesses. A false shepherd does not.

The relationship of the shepherd to his sheep was so close that while the shepherd of a flock could distinguish among his sheep, any sheep could recognize his master’s voice. A stranger could try to emulate the call, but it was difficult to fool the sheep, as they knew their master's voice.

In the morning, the shepherds would return to the sheepfold to gather their own flocks. The sheep were not branded or marked in any way. They had been all mingled together for the night. Each shepherd simply knew his sheep, and they knew him.

The sheep would recognize the master’s voice, and assemble behind him to be led out to pasture. They would not respond to the call of a stranger, nor, much less, follow such a person. The sheep have full confidence only in their shepherd.

Jesus is the shepherd and the sheep gate. He contrasts himself with the thief, who is not a true shepherd, nor does such a person have access to the entrance of the sheepfold. As he says, whoever does not enter through the gate is a thief and marauder. We have many thieves who do not enter by the sheep gate and who try to lead the sheep astray.

The whole point of this is that Jesus will save his people from harm and death. The sheepfold is always open to those who would enter in good faith. But sheep are weak and need protection from themselves. They would wander off if not properly guided and continuously protected from harm. Jesus is the gatekeeper that holds us true to our faith and keeps us safe in his care.

Jesus is the gate through which we must pass to enter God’s kingdom of the spirit. There is no other way to enter God’s kingdom of the spirit. There is no other way to get in, despite the pretensions of false teachers and prophets who claim ability to lead people to happiness another way. It is only Jesus himself and those shepherds whom he has designated who can lead us through the gate.
It is obvious that Jesus was not really talking about sheep. He was talking about people and about himself. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that one. He was telling his disciples that he would not run away from danger. He would stand his ground, even if it meant sacrificing his own life in order to save them. Why would a man do that, sacrifice himself for his friends?

Clearly enough, the answer is not money. No amount of money could convince a person to give up his own life. The only possible answer is love. Jesus, the Lamb of God sacrificed himself for love. 

(Father Michael Bergeron is a retired priest of the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux.)