'The Good Shepherd Lays Down His Life for the Sheep" (John 10:11, 15, 17): Questioning the Limits of a Johannine Metaphor
Scholars have long recognized that the Good Shepherd discourse reflects a realistic picture of the ancient Palestinian shepherd and his relationship to the flock. But how far should the details in this metaphor be pressed? It is often asserted that any halfway decent shepherd would have been willing...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Catholic Biblical Association of America
[2018]
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| In: |
The catholic biblical quarterly
Year: 2018, Volume: 80, Issue: 1, Pages: 97-113 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Good shepherd
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| IxTheo Classification: | HC New Testament |
| Further subjects: | B
John
B Metaphor in the Bible B verisimilitude B Metaphor B Jesus Christ Person & offices B Shepherds in the Bible B Bible. John B SHEEPHERDING B Shepherd B Gospel B Ancient Agriculture B Paroimia B BIBLE. Epistles of John |
| Online Access: |
Presumably Free Access Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Non-electronic
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| Summary: | Scholars have long recognized that the Good Shepherd discourse reflects a realistic picture of the ancient Palestinian shepherd and his relationship to the flock. But how far should the details in this metaphor be pressed? It is often asserted that any halfway decent shepherd would have been willing to die on behalf of his flock and that Jesus' statement to that effect (10:11, 15, 17) reflects a common expectation. This scenario, however, would actually leave a flock more exposed to danger. Thus, it is appropriate to understand Jesus' pronouncement as falling outside the realm of historical verisimilitude and better to regard the "laying down of the shepherd's life" as the singular element of the discourse that is intended to advance the story's christological agenda. |
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| ISSN: | 2163-2529 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: The catholic biblical quarterly
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1353/cbq.2018.0005 |