So Jesus said again, "I am telling you the truth: I am the gate for the sheep.

I am the gate. Those who come in by me will be saved; they will come in and go out and find pasture.

So keep watch over yourselves and over all the flock which the Holy Spirit has placed in your care. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he made his own through the blood of his Son.

A church leader must be without fault; he must have only one wife, be sober, self-controlled, and orderly; he must welcome strangers in his home; he must be able to teach;

he must be able to manage his own family well and make his children obey him with all respect.

He must be mature in the faith, so that he will not swell up with pride and be condemned, as the Devil was.

Do not neglect the spiritual gift that is in you, which was given to you when the prophets spoke and the elders laid their hands on you.

I left you in Crete, so that you could put in order the things that still needed doing and appoint church elders in every town. Remember my instructions:

Here is the secret meaning of the seven stars that you see in my right hand, and of the seven gold lampstands: the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

"To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: "This is the message from the one who holds the seven stars in his right hand and who walks among the seven gold lampstands.

"I am the good shepherd, who is willing to die for the sheep.

When the hired man, who is not a shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees a wolf coming, he leaves the sheep and runs away; so the wolf snatches the sheep and scatters them.

I am the good shepherd. As the Father knows me and I know the Father, in the same way I know my sheep and they know me. And I am willing to die for them.

The LORD is my shepherd; I have everything I need.

Listen to us, O Shepherd of Israel; hear us, leader of your flock. Seated on your throne above the winged creatures,

The sayings of the wise are like the sharp sticks that shepherds use to guide sheep, and collected proverbs are as lasting as firmly driven nails. They have been given by God, the one Shepherd of us all.

He will take care of his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs together and carry them in his arms; he will gently lead their mothers.

But then they remembered the past, the days of Moses, the servant of the LORD, and they asked, "Where now is the LORD, who saved the leaders of his people from the sea? Where is the LORD, who gave his spirit to Moses?

I will give them a king like my servant David to be their one shepherd, and he will take care of them.

and he will bring peace. When the Assyrians invade our country and break through our defenses, we will send our strongest leaders to fight them.

The rulers cry out in grief; their glory is gone! Listen to the roaring of the lions; their forest home along the Jordan is destroyed!

Their owners kill them and go unpunished. They sell the meat and say, 'Praise the LORD! We are rich!' Even their own shepherds have no pity on them."

I lost patience with three other shepherds, who hated me, and I got rid of them all in a single month.

The LORD Almighty says, "Wake up, sword, and attack the shepherd who works for me! Kill him, and the sheep will be scattered. I will attack my people

God has raised from death our Lord Jesus, who is the Great Shepherd of the sheep as the result of his blood, by which the eternal covenant is sealed. May the God of peace provide you with every good thing you need in order to do his will, and may he, through Jesus Christ, do in us what pleases him. And to Christ be the glory forever and ever! Amen.

You were like sheep that had lost their way, but now you have been brought back to follow the Shepherd and Keeper of your souls.

And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the glorious crown which will never lose its brightness.