“I am the gate.  Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.” (John 10:9) That’s the way the New Revised Version translates the more familiar words of Jesus, “I am the door.” Let us consider these words in the light of the customs and pastoral imagery of Jesus’ day to see if new light can be shed upon them. 

We might begin by considering a Palestinian shepherd.  In the East, the shepherd goes before the sheep, leading them, not driving them from behind.  The shepherd leads the sheep into the shelter of the sheepfold in the valley where they will spend the night.  The sheepfold is made of four high, rough walls, with thorns placed around the top to keep out thieves who might otherwise attempt to climb over.  In one of the walls there is a space a littl…