The key idea of Jesus being the Good Shepherd is that Jesus is not simply a "hired hand" who doesn't have a personal investment in his sheep and abandons them at the first sign of danger. Jesus is the Good Shepherd who cares for His sheep and lays down his life for them. Jesus said, "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep" (John 10:11-15).