When the Savior proclaimed Himself as the Good Shepherd, He was
not only describing His own character in one of its most beautiful
aspects, but was by implication suggesting very much more. The fact of
a fold implies not only protection and provision, but also restraint,
oversight, authority, and order.
A traveler who recently arrived in a remote region of Uganda,
relates how amazed he was to see immense numbers of all sorts
of wild animals, some in great herds, others in smaller groups.
That was not a fold. But if the same traveler had looked across
the great pampas or llanos of South America he would have seen
vast flocks and herds of horses, cattle, and sheep, roaming
and grazing over the immense expanse of prairie. It might seem
to him at first that those thousands of animals were wandering
about at their own will. But the spectator would quickly
discover that they were in reality under close attention on the
part of ranchmen, cowboys, and shepherds. Further, he would find
that the vast pasture-lands were enclosed by wire. So that here
is a fold under shepherds.
(1114)