John 10:3

John 10:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.
• New International Version (NIV)The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
• English Standard Version (ESV)To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
• New King James Version (NKJV)To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.

Context of John 10:3

1“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief and a robber. 2But he who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4When he puts forth all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5A stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers.”

John 10:3 word by word

τούτῳ ὁ θυρωρὸς ἀνοίγει, καὶ τὰ πρόβατα τῆς φωνῆς αὐτοῦ ἀκούει, καὶ τὰ ἴδια πρόβατα φωνεῖ κατ᾽ ὄνομα καὶ ἐξάγει αὐτά.Read the interlinear

• To him the doorkeeperθυρωρόςthurōros · gatekeeperG2377
• opensἀνοίγωanoigō · to openG455
• hearἀκούωakouō · to hearG191
• his voiceφωνήphōnē · voice/sound: voiceG5456
• and he callsφωνέωphōneō · to callG5455
• his ownἴδιοςidios · one's own/privateG2398
• by nameὄνομαonoma · nameG3686
• leadsἐξάγωexagō · to lead outG1806

Cross-references for John 10:3

• Isaiah 53:10But the Lord was pleased To crush Him, putting Him to grief; If He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, And the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in His hand.
• 1 Corinthians 16:9for a wide door for effective service has opened to me, and there are many adversaries.
• Colossians 4:3praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned;
• 1 Peter 1:12It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven--things into which angels long to look.
• Revelation 3:7“And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: He who is holy, who is true, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, and who shuts and no one opens, says this:
• John 10:4When he puts forth all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice.
• John 6:37All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.
• John 10:14I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me,
• Exodus 33:17The Lord said to Moses, “I will also do this thing of which you have spoken; for you have found favor in My sight and I have known you by name.”
• Romans 8:30and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.
• Philippians 4:3Indeed, true companion, I ask you also to help these women who have shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel, together with Clement also and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.
• 2 Timothy 2:19Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Everyone who names the name of the Lord is to abstain from wickedness.”
• Revelation 20:15And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
• Psalms 23:2He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.
• Psalms 78:52But He led forth His own people like sheep And guided them in the wilderness like a flock;
• Psalms 80:1Oh, give ear, Shepherd of Israel, You who lead Joseph like a flock; You who are enthroned above the cherubim, shine forth!

Commentaries on John 10:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3To him the porter openeth - Sir Isaac Newton observes that our Lord being near the temple, where sheep were kept in folds to be sold for sacrifices, spoke many things parabolically of sheep, of their shepherds, and of the door to the sheepfold; and discovers that he alluded to the sheepfolds which were to be hired in the market place, by speaking of such folds as a thief could not enter by the door, nor the shepherd himself open, but a porter opened to…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3To him the porter openeth - The porter is the doorkeeper. It seems that the more wealthy Jews who owned flocks employed some person to take charge of the flock. At first all shepherds attended their flocks personally by day and by night, and this continued to be commonly the practice, but not always. The sheep hear his voice - The voice of the shepherd. A flock will readily discern the well-known voice of one who is accustomed to attend them. The meaning…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3the sheep listen for his voice: The Middle Eastern shepherd is well known for having intimate knowledge of the sheep. Sheep are led with flute tunes, songs, or verbal commands.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. To him the porter openeth--that is, right of free access is given, by order of Him to whom the sheep belong; for it is better not to give the allusion a more specific interpretation [Calvin, Meyer, Luthardt]. and the sheep hear his voice--This and all that follows, though it admits of important application to every faithful shepherd of God's flock, is in its direct and highest sense true only of "the great Shepherd of the sheep," who in the first five…Read the comment

Topics related to John 10:3

• Character
• God Continued...
• Jesus Continued
• Jesus, the Christ
• Minister, Christian
• Sheep
• Shepherd

In the dictionaries

• Fold
• Lay
• Parable
• Sanctify
• Sheep
• Thief
• Allegory
• Doorkeeper
• God
• Jesus Christ

Commentaries on John 10

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Catena Aurea
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings