New Testament · Gospel

John 10:5

The Good Shepherd

But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will flee from him because they do not recognize his voice.” John 10:5 · Berean Standard Bible
What It Means

John 10:5, in plain English

But they will never follow a stranger—in fact, they'll run away from him because they don't recognize his voice.

Why it's here

Jesus is saying that His true followers have an instinct for His voice. They can tell the difference between truth and deception.

Who's speaking

Jesus describes how sheep naturally reject unfamiliar voices.

Where it sits in the story

There's something comforting here. If you belong to the Good Shepherd, you have an inner sense that can distinguish His voice from the noise of everything else.

A Closer Look

The scholarly reading

The sheep will never (ou mē) follow a stranger but will flee, because they do not recognize (oidasin) a foreign voice—the negative complement to the positive recognition in verse 4.

Language and setting

The double negative 'ou mē' expresses the strongest possible denial in Greek. The sheep's instinctive flight from unknown voices parallels the discernment that characterizes true believers in Johannine theology.

Voice

Jesus completes the contrast between the shepherd's voice and a stranger's voice.

Significance

Jesus assures that genuine sheep possess an innate spiritual discernment: they are drawn to the true shepherd's voice and repelled by counterfeit voices.

In context

John 10:3–7

3The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen for his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.

4When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice.

5But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will flee from him because they do not recognize his voice.”

6Jesus spoke to them using this illustration, but they did not understand what He was telling them.

7So He said to them again, “Truly, truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep.

Read all of John 10 — Jesus describes a shepherd who knows every sheep by name and lays down his life for them. The hired hand runs; the good shepherd stays.

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