4.28 · Animals · Animals

flock a collective for a group of sheep πρόβατον and/or goats αἴγειος In instances in which the reference is to a flock of sheep or goats, one can normally employ a designation for any group of animals, though there are often distinct terms for groups of domesticated animals in contrast with groups of wild animals. And in many languages there are a number of different terms for such groupings of animals depending upon the particular animals in question, for example, in English swarm, school, drove, pack, and bevy.

MAT 26:31 · LUK 2:8 · 1CO 9:7 · 1CO 9:7

11.31 · Groups and Classes of Persons and Members of Such Groups and Classes · Socio-Religious

people who are like a flock (a figurative extension of meaning of ποίμνη[a] ‘flock,’ 4.28) the followers of Christ constituting a well-defined membership group It is often impossible to reproduce the figurative values of ἀρνίον[b] (11.29), πρόβατον[b] (11.30), ποίμνιον, and ποίμνη[b], since such metaphors cannot be employed in areas of the world in which sheep serve primarily as scavengers around villages (something which is generally true in many parts of the tropics). It may be possible in some instances to preserve something of the metaphorical value of these four terms by translating in some such manner as ‘take care of my people as you would sheep’ or ‘take care of my people, who are like sheep,’ or ‘take care of my helpless people,’ but frequently one can only translate as ‘take care of my people.’

JHN 10:16