John 10:8 All That Ever Came Before Me Are Thieves and Robbers: but the Sheep Did Not Hear Them.?
Jesus is saying He alone is the Door and the true Shepherd, and every one who tries to lead God’s people without coming through Him and His Word is a thief and a robber. The true sheep don’t follow such voices.
Now notice the context. The Bible says, “He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber” (John 10:1). Then He declares, “I am the door” (John 10:7,9) and “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11). So when He says, “All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers,” He is not condemning the prophets God sent, because those prophets pointed to Him. He Himself said, “Search the Scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me” (John 5:39), and, “Had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me” (John 5:46). John the Baptist was also sent from God (John 1:6–8). So who are the thieves and robbers? Those who “climb up some other way”—self-appointed leaders, false messiahs, and religious systems that bypass Christ the Door and the revealed Word. That’s exactly what the Lord rebuked in passages like Jeremiah 23 and Ezekiel 34—shepherds who feed themselves and scatter the flock.
“You see,” the proof that the sheep are God’s own is this: “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27). The elect have an ear for the Word; they won’t be carried by strange voices. Christ leads by His Word and Spirit. Anyone who draws attention to himself, adds another door, or offers life apart from the new birth through Christ is robbing the flock.
Simple logic makes it plain. The same Lord who affirmed Moses and the Scriptures would not call His own sent servants thieves. The “all” of John 10:8 is qualified by the context—“all” who came another way, not through the Door.
Clear conclusion: John 10:8 exalts the exclusiveness of Christ as the only Door and exposes every leader or system that bypasses Him as theft and robbery. The true sheep do not hear them; they follow the Shepherd’s voice in the Word.
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What did the Laodicean Church Age (our age) Angel (- messenger) Say about this?
Ranked passages from the local William Branham sermon and Church Age Book database. Relevance is relative, not a statement of doctrinal certainty.
The Good Shepherd of the sheep
57-0308 §32
"Yes. But," he said, "the way to tell which is his, when the nighttime comes and it gets dark," he said, "the shepherd will make a call, and every sheep on the field will come to him, and he will take those sheep into the barn ... or, the corral, lay down in the front of them. But the mules, the cattle, and the goats will stay in the field." I said, "Excuse me, brother; I just want to speak a word to my Shepherd right now." I don't care about any theology, any great degree or great person. All I want to be is a hum...
The Supernatural
56-0129 §5
One time while going through the country, I noticed in the far east, of a little... In India how that they had a shepherd came down and was bringing his sheep, and I thought of that parable there where it said, "My sheep know my voice. A stranger they will not follow." Now, that sheep was born under the tutorship of this shepherd. He learns that voice; he'll never pay attention to anybody else's voice. He learns that shepherd's voice. Another shepherd might call, they might do whatever they want to, but there's som...
Wisdom versus Faith
62-0401 §172
Who is the door? Christ said, "I am the door to the sheepfold," as I read in my text. "My sheep will hear My voice. A stranger they'll not follow." You'll never twist one in those organizations out there. He'll come out of it as sure as the world. "I'll take them from the fold, and I'll lead them. I'll go before them." Amen! "They'll know it's Me. No one can walk like Me. No one can do the things that I do," He'd say. Amen! "Rabbi, now we know thou comest from God, 'cause no man could do these miracles that You do,...
Blind Bartimaeus
60-0713 §113
...sir, this way. Just a minute. I perceive this man has got a deaf spirit. Bow your heads just a minute. O Lord God, creator of heavens and earth, author of life and giver of every good gift, open the ears of this man and make him to hear, Lord. He cannot hear. His faith comes by hearing (it's a deaf spirit on him) open it up, Lord. I pray in Jesus' name. Satan, turn him loose. How long has he been this way? Long time? All right. Can you hear me now? [Unclear words.] All right. Do you hear me now? ["Yes."] You say, "...
A Greater Witness than John
55-0609 §52
Come. You believe, lady? You got an abscess, and that's on the female gland. You got a female trouble. And you believe Jesus makes you well now? In the name of Jesus Christ, I ask it to leave. Amen. Let's say, "Praise be to God." Now, would you bow your head, again? Here is deafness hanging at the woman. O God! Not able to hear; but Thou can do all things. She can't hear the message, so "Faith cometh by hearing." That's why I stop her, Lord. Not for any other purpose, but that faith might be known, that, "Faith com...