The sheep whisperer (John 10:2-3)

Here we are at the second post of the shepherd trilogy. In part two, Jesus is describing the real deal. At this point Jesus has not yet claimed to be the shepherd (he explicitly states that in verse 11). Jesus is telling everyone that the shepherd has authorized access to the pen and on top of that the sheep know his voice and follow him.

A little explanation of Middle Eastern shepherding may help illuminate the situation. The pens contain several separate flocks of sheep. When a shepherd would come in the morning to get his sheep, they would be intermingled with the other flocks. When the shepherd calls out to the sheep, his sheep follow his voice.

Just for clarification, this isn't just some Middle Eastern shepherd magic. It's prevalent throughout global sheep management. So how do you get a sheep to listen to you? The best shepherds are there for the birth of every sheep. From there on the shepherd establishes a relationship with the sheep and performs the role of caretaker and protector. So the sheep are really following the shepherd because of an established relationship, and not just because the guy has a nice singing voice. So now that you get the parable, do you see the parallels to Jesus as the good shepherd?

If you talk to sheep in your spare time: