This passage was a staple Bible study in a campus ministry I worked for. I understood it as a standalone passage on the difference between good and bad leaders. But it's not. The religious authorities just kicked a disciple of Jesus out of their synagogue. Now Jesus publicly confronts them. He explains that everyone left in their sheep pen is being overseen by thieves and robbers. The same word for "they expelled him" is the one Jesus uses to describe how he "leads them out." Jesus needs to make the contrast clear because no one else can see what he does. After all, these leaders wear the robes, quote the Scriptures, and run the synagogue. All the language and symbolism identify them as God's holy representatives. Jesus is unmasking them. He uses a variety of unexpected symbols to communicate that these gatekeepers use religion for themselves. They look for those who are vulnerable and steal their lives away from them. Once they're captured, they kill and destroy them. If someone stops listening to their voice, they kick them out. Everyone knows who decides who's in and who's out with God. It's the people with the keys to the synagogue doors. Jesus disagrees. He says, "I am the gate for the sheep." That is, the doorway out of the synagogue is the doorway into life with God. No wonder the leaders didn't understand him. They couldn't imagine that their holiest place was outside the kingdom of God. Jesus isn't like them. He isn't the kind of gate that suffocates and restricts us. When we come into God's pasture through him, we find abundant life. While we feast, Jesus stands guard to protect us from the thieves and robbers.