The Good Shepherd in Early Christian Art
The motif of a shepherd carrying a lamb on his shoulders is based on a parable Jesus told about Himself: “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.
“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me — just as the Father knows me and I know the Father — and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. (John 10: 11–16).
This motif became popular in the art of the catacombs, from the 2nd to the 6th century. It was depicted on frescoes, sarcophagi and funerary slabs. The motive is not meant to depict Jesus in person, but is a metaphor that points to Jesus, just as He Himself used it as a metaphor for Himself.
Jesus` own parable was in turn based on a prophecy of Ezekiel, which was well-known among the Jews:
