My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
What does John 10:27 mean?
All who have any thing to say to Christ, may find him in the temple. Christ would make us to believe; we make ourselves doubt.
Key themes
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Keep this verse inside John 10:27-29 and alongside a few nearby related passages.
Commentary on John 10:27
The name is given to his people because it was an illustration which would be well understood in a country abounding in flocks. There is also a striking resemblance, which he proceeds to state, between them. Hear my voice - See John 10:3-4 . Applied to Christians, it means that they hear and obey his commandments. I know them - See John 10:14 . They follow me - A flock follows its shepherd to pastures and streams, John 10:3 . Christians not only obey Christ, but they imitate him; they go where his Spirit and providence lead them; they yield themselves to his guidance, and seek to be led by him.
Context in John 10
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John 10 belongs to the middle movement of the book, especially the section often described as conflict and witness. John presents Jesus in contemplative, symbolic, and theological richness as the Word, Lamb, Light, Bread, Shepherd, Resurrection, Way, Vine, and Son. Read this chapter with the wider themes of incarnation, life, and light in view so the individual verses keep their proper weight.
Related topics
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Passages on the nature of truth, honesty, deception, the word of God as truth, and Jesus' claim to be the truth.