10:1 into the sheepfold. Although Jesus did not at first call this a parable, He clearly intended it to be a symbolic use of the familiar scene of sheep tended by a shepherd, along with their sheepfold and its door. The sheep obviously represent the people of God and their sheepfold represents the place where they can rest in safety. At this time in history, the fold undoubtedly represented the covenant watchcare of God over His chosen people Israel. Then, both the shepherd and the door are said by Christ to represent Himself (John 10:7,11), as the one who leads them into the fold and by whom alone they can enter the fold. Later, John clearly called all this a “parable” (John 10:6).