Numbers 27:17

Which may go out before them, and which may go in before them, and which may lead them out, and which may bring them in; that the congregation of the Lord be not as sheep which have no shepherd.

Cross-reference

Numbers 27:21 details how Joshua will lead (through Eleazar), providing the practical means for the shepherding role Moses requested.

Deuteronomy 31:2 uses the same 'go out and come in' phrase as Numbers 27:17—Moses declares he can no longer lead, directly citing his own earlier words.

John 10:9 Allusion

In John 10:9, Jesus says the sheep will go in and out and find pasture, echoing the 'go out and come in' of the leader in Numbers.

John 10:4 Parallel

In John 10:4, Jesus goes before his sheep and they follow, mirroring the leader who goes out before the people in Numbers.

Mark 6:34 Citation

Mark 6:34 directly quotes 'sheep without a shepherd', showing Jesus' compassion fulfills the need Moses expressed for a leader.

In Matthew 9:36, Jesus sees the crowds as sheep without a shepherd, directly applying the OT phrase to his compassion.

In Zechariah 13:7, striking the shepherd scatters the sheep, showing the consequence of losing the leader.

Zechariah 10:2 Related theme

In Zechariah 10:2, the people wander like sheep afflicted for lack of a shepherd, repeating the theme.

In Ezekiel 34:5, the sheep are scattered for lack of a shepherd, using the same metaphor for Israel's leaders' failure.

In 2 Chronicles 18:16, the same prophecy as 1 Kings 22:17 repeats the 'sheep without a shepherd' imagery.

In 2 Chronicles 1:10, Solomon asks for wisdom using the same 'go out and come in' language, echoing the need for a leader to guide God's people.

In 1 Kings 22:17, Micaiah prophesies Israel scattered like sheep without a shepherd, directly quoting the phrase from Numbers.

1 Kings 3:7 Citation

1 Kings 3:7 has Solomon lament he does not know 'how to go out or come in,' directly quoting Numbers 27:17 to express his inadequacy as leader.

2 Samuel 5:2 repeats 'led out and brought in Israel' from Numbers 27:17, affirming David as shepherd—an exact verbal and thematic fulfillment.

1 Samuel 18:13 says David 'went out and came in before the people,' directly echoing Numbers 27:17's description of a leader’s public activity.

1 Samuel 18:16 uses the exact phrase 'went out and came in before them' about David, showing him as a shepherd leader fulfilling the pattern.

In 1 Chronicles 11:2, the same 'lead out and bring in' phrase describes David's shepherding role, echoing Moses' prayer for a successor.

1 Samuel 8:20 has Israel demand a king who will 'go out before us' and fight—similar to Numbers 27:17's language of a leader going in and out before the congregation.

1 Peter 2:25 uses straying sheep imagery to describe believers, echoing Moses' concern about Israel being shepherdless and pointing to Christ as Shepherd.