The Metaphor of Shepherd in the Gospel of Mark

This book takes a close look at the theme of the shepherd in the Gospel of Mark and how it relates to different motifs in the narrative. Jesus’ seeing the condition of the crowd and his teaching and nourishing the crowd in the wilderness, allude to the shepherding activities of Yahweh in the Old Testament. The motif of nourishment continues, when Jesus extends his care towards the Gentile woman and later to a crowd in a Gentile region. Interestingly, the motif of «way» introduced in the prologue merges with the theme of the shepherd in the epilogue of the narrative, when Jesus leads his disciples, the «scattered sheep», to Galilee.