I am the door
The words I am the door are part of a picture speech of Jesus ( Joh 10,9 EU ). They are part of a series of seven “I am” words of Jesus that are recorded in the Gospel according to John .
content
The figurative word is part of the parable of the good shepherd . At the beginning Jesus spoke metaphorically of a sheepfold. A thief would not enter through the door while the rightful shepherd of the sheep would use the door. Unlike a stranger, the sheep would follow this out (10.1–5 EU ). When the audience did not understand this riddle speech, Jesus explained that he himself was the door to the sheep (10.7 EU ). Only through him can one attain bliss:
“I am the door; if anyone goes in through me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. "
Two verses later, the “I am” word from the Good Shepherd follows ( John 10 : 11-14 EU ).
interpretation
The parable depicts Jesus' relationship with believers. At the same time, every claim of his opponents on the people is rejected. The image used is based on a common practice at the time that several flocks of sheep were kept together at night in a stable or fenced area. The entrance to this stable was guarded by a doorkeeper. Jesus himself not only uses the door to enter himself (thereby identifying himself as a lawful Shepherd), but he himself is the only lawful entrance. Anyone who does not try to gain access to the sheep through him identifies himself as a thief and robber who leads the sheep to destruction and death (one has to think of false prophets with thieves). At the same time, however, Jesus is also the door for the sheep, that is, in him alone is the way to eternal life open.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Stuttgart Explanatory Bible. 2nd edition, German Bible Society, Stuttgart 1992, ISBN 3-438-01121-2 , pp. 1348f.