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THE MUSTARD SEED PARABLE Matthew 13:31-32 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.' Most commentaries interpret this parable from the miracle of life aspect, that the power to produce great and wonderful things comes from within the smallest of seeds. This is an undeniable truth, the mystery kingdom will start small (12 disciples), and will become a large and wonderful kingdom. What often follows, however, is an analogy to the power of faith as small as a mustard seed that accomplishes such great works, and that the birds symbolize the work of Satan as in the first parable. But there are problems with that interpretation on both counts. For one thing, it's not the faith itself that accomplishes the great works, it's the power of God through the Spirit of Christ that does the great works. In a word, it's by grace. Also, associating the birds with Satan belies the image projected by lodging in the branches, i.e., a place of shelter where the birds of the air may come and safely nest. Jesus seldom, if ever, introduced extraneous details into His parables, so the birds should not be ignored; neither did He use repetition as a teaching method, so to suppose that Jesus would speak two successive parables about the presence of evil is highly unlikely. Rather, Jesus plainly and succinctly spoke these seven mysteries of the kingdom, later asking His disciples if they understood and they responded in the affirmative. The image of the birds is entirely positive, for they "come and lodge" in the branches, implying a shelter of some sort. Thus, it is much more likely that the birds represent some such positive aspect of life. Prof. Pentecost rejects any notion of negative symbolism here and suggests that a better answer is found in the writings of Daniel. He relates the tree and bird symbolism to a dream of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon which he interpreted for the king. The dream involved a great and enormous tree which touched the sky itself and was visible to the whole earth, and it had birds nesting in its branches. Daniel first described the tree, “Whose leaves were fair, and the fruit thereof much, and in it was meat for all; under which the beasts of the field dwelt, and upon whose branches the fowls of the heaven had their habitation,” and then revealed its meaning to the king, “It is thou, O king, that art grown and become strong: for thy greatness is grown, and reacheth unto heaven, and thy dominion to the end of the earth,” (Dan 4:21-22). The tree and the birds were interpreted to be Nebuchadnezzar’s kingdom and the protection it afforded to lesser nations. And Nebuchadnezzar’s dream was not the only example of such symbolism in scripture; there was another great kingdom which was described with a majestic tree image, the Assyrian empire. And birds were a prominent part of this one as well, “All the birds of the air nested in its boughs, all the beasts of the field gave birth under its branches; all the great nations lived in its shade. It was majestic in beauty, with its spreading boughs, for its roots went down to abundant waters.” (Ezek 31:6-7). Thus, the scriptures used the image of a majestic tree with birds nesting in its branches to symbolize two great kingdoms adjacent to Israel. Therefore, this image would surely signify a great and powerful kingdom to the disciples, and they in turn would naturally associate it with the restored kingdom of David. Kingdom thoughts were so much on their minds that when they first saw the risen Christ they were compelled to ask again, “ ...they asked of him, saying, ‘Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?’” (Acts 1:6). Jesus often included Davidic kingdom symbols in His parables. The Promise was made sure in this way; it was only a question of when, not if, it would come. Being the disciples’ Rabbi, Jesus certainly must have known the images they would quickly associate with the Promise. And if He didn’t intend for them to equate this parable to the Promised kingdom, He surely would have made it known to them. Yet He did not. Dr. Pentecost said the next question on the disciples’ minds might be about Satan’s tactics. In other words, since it was clear that he would not be able to stop the kingdom from forming, would he be able to interfere in any significant way with its growth? ________________________________________ THE LEAVEN PARABLE ` Matthew 13:33 Another parable spake he unto them; 'The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.’ A common interpretation in the commentaries describes the leaven (yeast) along the same lines as for the mustard seed; that is, the leaven was said to symbolize the rapid spread of the gospel, working pervasively until all the world had heard the Word. Some even suggest that this implies the conversion of the entire world to Christianity. But such interpretations presented problems to other authors, especially Scofield. According to Scofield’s commentary, relating the leavening of dough to the spread of the gospel fails for the following reasons: (1) it does violence to the unvarying symbolical meaning of leaven, and especially to the meaning fixed by our Lord Himself. Matthew 16:6-12; (2) The implication of a converted world in this age ("till the whole was leavened"), is explicitly contradicted by our Lord's interpretation of the parables of the Wheat and Tares, and of the Net. Our Lord presents a picture of a partly converted kingdom in an unconverted world; of good fish and bad in the very kingdom-net itself. (3) The method of the extension of the kingdom is given in the first parable. It is by sowing seed, not by mingling leaven....Leaven is the principle of corruption working subtly; is invariably used in a bad sense... and is defined by our Lord as evil doctrine (Matthew 16:11,12) .... A woman, in the bad ethical sense, is always a symbol of that which, religiously, is out of its place. The "woman" in (Mat_13:33) is dealing with doctrine, a sphere forbidden to her (Zec 5:6) ... Interpreting the parable by these familiar symbols, it constitutes a warning that the true doctrine, given for nourishment of the children of the kingdom...would be mingled with corrupt and corrupting false doctrine.... (Scofield Commentary) Scofield here takes the corrupting view of leaven, but, in the context of the four parables thus far, this seems like a bit of overkill. These parables were not intended as a set of moral lessons; they are the keys to under- standing Christ's rule over His new kingdom during His physical absence. And if leaven should again be made to symbolize evil, it would credit Satan with more power than he was allowed. In other words, it's not reasonable that he should be able to interfere with every aspect of kingdom building thus far, i.e., the birds in The Sower and the Soils, the tares in The Wheat and the Tares, the birds again in The Mustard Seed, and the corruption of leaven here. This would be counterproductive to the purpose of Jesus in teaching His disciples the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven. My second point is that parables normally move from the familiar to the unfamiliar, and it simply doesn't make sense to utilize such complex religious imagery in the place of something that was supposed to be familiar to the listeners. On the other hand, consider the familiar image of everyday bread making, symbolized by the woman and the three measures of meal (a normal amount per household for making daily bread). Such a positive sense is much more suitable here, since the parable was spoken to those who lived on leavened bread, and the fact that Jesus called himself the Bread of Life. As leavening works irreversibly until the whole lump is leavened, so gospel truth spreads continuously until the age of the gentiles is made full! In other words, nothing shall prevent God from gathering a people for His name from the gentile nations in this age. Professor Pentecost has a very systematic approach to parable interpretation, which in my opinion reveals the very heart of this lesson. He first defines the problem that needs to be addressed, then proceeds to show how the parable points to the solution: THE PROBLEM The parable of the weeds sown among the wheat raised the question of whether Satan can interrupt the progress of the kingdom. The answer is to be found in a study of the nature of yeast.... THE SOLUTION Christ...was not using yeast to teach that the kingdom will be corrupted...the emphasis is not on the nature of yeast that could represent evil but rather on the way yeast works when it is once introduced into the mixture...a process that is irreversible and that will continue to work pervasively, persistently, and unseen until the entire mixture is made ready for the oven. The housewife has no way of interrupt- ing or reversing the process when once it has begun. Thus Christ...was teaching that when the new form of the theocracy begins, it will work persistently, pervasively and irreversibly. The sowing of the Word will produce irresistible growth. (Pentecost, pp. 58-59) Since leaven does its work internally and irreversibly, it means that nothing could stop it from its appointed purpose, that is, to leaven the whole lump. Translated, it means that Satan would NOT be able to interfere with the kingdom's progress, a meaning which Paul employed as well, “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ...”(Phil 1:6). Therefore, Jesus most assuredly chose leaven to represent the hidden, irresistible working of His Spirit in sustaining the growth of His kingdom until the fullness of the gentiles is brought in. Thus, leaven was not symbolic of corruption but represented the hidden working of gospel truth in the hearts of men. And the fact that it does not stop its work until the lump is fully leavened symbolizes the total sovereignty and power of the Father’s will in completing His purposes. The four parables spoken to this point were about the kingdom's building and growth aspects, the first two about creating kingdom children in the face of satan’s interference, the second two about the kingdom's great size and unstoppable growing power. Jesus had been addressing the multitudes, but after speaking The Leaven parable He sent them away and entered a house, no doubt symbolic of His rejection by the house of Israel (a living parable, if you will). The disciples followed in after Him and asked to have The Tares parable explained, whereupon He answered them (as discussed previously) and spoke the remaining three parables in private. _______________________________________ HIDDEN TREASURE and GREAT PEARL PARABLES Matthew 13:44-46 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it. The majority of commentaries treat these two mysteries as they did the others, looking from the outsider’s point of view. Thus, the treasure and the pearl were looked upon as gospel blessings so valuable that every- thing must be sacrificed to obtain them. But this creates the thorny challenge of trying to justify the implied salvation by works. Not only that, but what does it mean to sacrifice everything? Thus, we have countless allegories trying to explain the unexplainable. They have not found the key. According to Pentecost, the key to these two parables lies in looking at them from a divine perspective. It had been prophesied that God would glorify Himself before the world through Israel, His chosen people (see Ezek 36:23-36, for one). But the house of Israel did not know her Messiah nor her day of salvation; so the next step was to reveal to the disciples how God was to glorify Himself without Israel. A. THE HIDDEN TREASURE Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. (Matt 13:44) Israel and King David were the central focus in God’s Kingdom plans from old, a fact which is reiterated many times in scripture, such as with Israel, “For the LORD’S portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance. He found him in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness; he led him about, he instructed him, he kept him as the apple of his eye.” (Deut 32: 9-10). Again God said of Israel, “For thus saith the LORD of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye.” (Zech 2:8). And again, “Thus saith the LORD; If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the LORD.” (Jer 31:37). And again, “Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation.” (Exodus 19:6-7). Then about David, revealed as a man after God’s own heart; he also was known as the apple of God’s eye, “Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings.” (Psalm 17:8). So both Israel and David are the apple of God’s eye, and both are considered a treasure in God's sight, one His chosen people and the other His chosen king. Indeed, both are required in the promised land to establish a great nation. But that’s not all. When Jesus came, He testified that He had been sent only to the house of Israel, as He told the woman of Canaan, “But he answered and said, 'I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.'”(Matt 15:24). Following are two prophecies which involve lost sheep: one is from Jeremiah, (1)“My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away on the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten their restingplace.” (Jer 50:6); the other is from Ezekiel, (2)“Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, 'Thus saith the Lord GOD unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks?'” (Ezek 34:2). Lost sheep, then, were those who were led astray, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way.” (Isa 53:6a). They were lost because they followed the selfish shepherds of Israel rather than heeding the voice of the Good Shepherd. So Jesus came to the lost sheep of Israel, “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.”(Luke 19:10). And in terms of fulfilled prophecy, it is abundantly clear that the scribes and Pharisees were the shepherds who had led the sheep astray. This was the crucial turning point in Christ’s earthly ministry; the prideful shepherds had turned the house of Israel against Him. They accused Jesus of casting out devils by Beelzebub, and He warned them, “And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.”(Matt 12:32). When they continued to plot against Him, Jesus withdrew the kingdom offer, “Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.”(Matt 21:43), and later He condemned them with seven woes, “But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in,” etc. (Matt 23: 13...33). So from God's position of sovereignty, The Hidden Treasure was the house of Israel through which He promised to glorify His name before the rest of the world. But the wayward shepherds of that adulterous generation would not believe the signs of Messiah and refused to have Him rule over them. Thus, the kingdom offer was withdrawn and given to those who would bear its fruit in this age, Jerusalem was left desolate with no king and no temple, and the houses of Israel & Judah were dispersed as so many dry bones. The symbolism of this parable is as follows: TREASURE = the house of Israel, to be redeemed as a special people for His name and priests of the most high God, and prophesied to show forth His glory to the nations, HID IN A FIELD = dispersed and scattered over the earth, the lost sheep of Israel were led astray by the wayward shepherds of Israel, MAN = Jesus, Son of David, Seeker of the lost sheep of Israel, FOUND TREASURE = Jesus presented Himself to Israel on the Sunday before crucifixion, they shouted Hosannas and hailed Him as their King, the lost sheep had been found, HID TREASURE = but the ruling council (Sanhedrin) rejected Jesus as Messiah, essentially cutting off Israel from the promised kingdom, so Jesus withdrew the kingdom offer, SOLD ALL HE HAD = as High Priest forever Jesus lawfully offered Himself as the Lamb of God, the perfect, unblemished sacrifice and total propitiation for sin, BOUGHT THE FIELD = paid the full penalty of spiritual and physical death and rose in victory to resurrection life, and Jesus purchased atonement once for all forever. There is no better example of an earthly treasure in God’s sight than the house of Israel, for God chose them to be a special people for Himself, “For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth. The LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people:”(Deut 7:6). “Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation.”(Exodus 19:6-7). B. THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it. (Matt 13:45-46) If the Hidden Treasure be Israel, the gathered children of Abraham, then the Great Pearl ought to be children of the kingdom gathered out of Gentile nations. The disciples, first generation children (firstfruits) of the mystery kingdom, made it clear that God intended from the beginning to take out a people for His name from the Gentiles, as follows: God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name... "'After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up: That the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called,' saith the Lord, who doeth all these things.” (Acts15:14-17) Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed. But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy. (1 Pet 2:6-10) It's very appropriate that a gentile people should be symbolized by a pearl. Pearls were highly prized by the Jews, but shellfish (like oysters, wherein pearls are created) were forbidden by Mosaic Law. So pearls likely were obtained through a Jewish merchant man who employed fishermen, but the obvious fact that they had to be gathered from the sea was a can't-miss symbol for the apostles. They were well aware that the sea was a symbol for the Gentiles, since it was commonly used in rabbinical story telling. The Great Pearl symbolism is as follows: MERCHANT MAN = Jesus, Contractor of fishers of men, SEEKING FINE PEARLS = seeking gentile sons of the kingdom, GREAT PEARL = a people for His name gathered out of gentile nations, SOLD ALL HE HAD = humbled Himself and gave His life on the cross, BOUGHT THE PEARL = paid the sin debt for all, both Gentiles and Jews. The parable lesson is along these lines. Jesus, the Mediator between God and men (the merchant man), estab- lished a new form of God's kingdom (the kingdom of heaven), sent the twelve disciples (the fishers of men) into the world (the sea) to gather sons of the kingdom (goodly pearls), in order that He might create a people for His name (one Great Pearl). Jesus freely gave His life (sold all He had), thus paid the penalty of sin so that many might receive the gift of eternal life (bought the Great Pearl, a people for His name). This new theocratic kingdom is ruled by authority of the shed blood of Christ, “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.”(Rev 13:8), in order that the promises of God should be fulfilled in this age as well as the age to come. Previous rule over the earth had been through the seed of Abraham by the shed blood of promise (unblemished sacrifice) that provided temporary remission; but now, rule is by the shed blood of the promised Seed that redeems forever. Thus, while the remnant of Israel (the re-hidden Treasure) awaits Christ's second appearance, the sons of Abraham in this age are brought into a new and better covenant, the blood of the new covenant, whereby Jew and Gentile alike are made one in Christ, making up the body of Christ on earth. And this represents a major point of departure between the replacement school and the dispensational school of theology. Replacement folks insist that Israel has been cast off forever and has been replaced by the Church, that the nation of Israel shall not be restored to a great nation in the last days. Instead, the millennial kingdom is thought to be upon us already, and at the next appearance of Christ, one of two things shall occur: (1) He shall descend from heaven to receive the Church to himself; or (2) He shall raise up all believers into the new heaven (streets of gold, etc.) forever. And by this doctrine, all other prophecy is assumed to have been fulfilled before His coming (also known as the Preterist view). But in dispensational thinking, the remnant of Israel shall be redeemed in the Day of the Lord and shall be a great nation of priests (the Treasure). At the same time, the glorified saints shall return with Christ to rule in the millennial age to come. This kingdom shall be established in God’s name before the eyes of the world; then Jews shall shine forth in the glory of the Lord God before all the nations, like the Church went forth as the Lord’s ambassa- dors in the Gentile age, as Paul testified in 2Cor 5:22, "Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, 'be ye reconciled to God,'" and in Romans 1:5, “By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name.” The Apostles became the first sons of inheritance in the kingdom of heaven. This was according to the election of grace, as Paul affirmed in Romans, “God hath not cast away his people which he foreknew. Wot ye not what the scripture saith of Elias? how he maketh intercession to God against Israel, saying, 'Lord, they have killed thy prophets, and digged down thine altars; and I am left alone, and they seek my life.' But what saith the answer of God unto him? 'I have reserved to myself seven thousand men, who have not bowed the knee to the image of Baal.' Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace. ....What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded ....unto this day.” (Rom 11:3-8). Thus, what has been obtained by the believing remnant has been hidden from the rest of Israel until this day, but God has not cast them away, only blinded them for the age of the Gentiles . Dr. Pentecost says the next question would involve how the kingdom of heaven would be ended. _______________________________________ THE NET PARABLE Matthew 13: 47-50 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. The familiar part of this parable was of a net drawn through the water to catch all manner and kind of fish, then was dragged up on shore to separate the catch. And they sat down to gather the good fish into vessels and cast the bad away. Now the good catch is retained, but that’s not the central truth here, it’s about what happens to the cast away fish. So Jesus compares this to the judgment at the end of the age, saying that angels shall separate the wicked and cast them into a furnace of fire (Matt 13:49-50, 24:36-51). The symbolism works out as follows: NET = the everlasting gospel preached during the Tribulation, CAST INTO THE SEA = gathering from the Gentile nations (sea), GATHERED EVERY KIND = sons of righteousness and sons of the wicked one, WHEN IT WAS FULL = the fullness of the Gentile age, DREW IT TO SHORE = gathered Gentiles for judgment, SAT DOWN = being seated implies judgment, SEPARATE GOOD AND BAD = separate the wicked from among the just, CAST THE BAD AWAY = cast the wicked into the furnace of fire. Prof. Pentecost provides an interesting backdrop to this parable by noting that, “Every previous form of the theocracy {rule of God on earth} had ended in judgment: the expulsion from the Garden of Eden, the catas-trophe of the Flood, the scattering from Babel, and the Exile.”(Pentecost, p.62). Thus, catastrophic judgment defines the end of a theocratic age, as this parable symbolizes, how that the kingdom of heaven will be concluded in a period of judgment (seven years of tribulation), the last days of which will be that great and terrible Day of the Lord (see Mal 4:5), the consuming wrath of God. Jesus warned His disciples about a catastrophic end of this age, “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.” (Mat 24:21-22). The great purpose of God’s plan of redemption in this mystery age is to fulfill the new covenant promise in a new form of the kingdom that will gather a people for His name out of the gentile nations. Hidden in Old Testament prophecy, this kingdom represents an unknown theocratic age beginning with Israel’s rejection of Jesus as Messiah and lasting until they finally accept Him at the second coming. Daniel's vision revealed that Messiah would be “cut off, but not for himself.” Just so, the kingdom of heaven is the rule of Messiah from heaven while He is cut off from Israel, even until the consummation of Jacob's trouble. Jacob’s trouble involves the seven years of tribulation culminating in the great Day of the Lord, as Daniel so testified, “And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.”(Dan 12:1-3). Israel thus shall be delivered, as revealed by the prophets and Paul, “And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob” (Rom 11:26). But what does it mean that "Israel shall be delivered" or that "the elect shall be saved?" It means that the LORD shall deliver Israel from her enemies that have surrounded Jerusalem in that day, a distinctly different concept than being delivered from sin. The deliverance from sin took place at the cross, once for all time; here, Israel’s deliverance is from annihilation by surrounding armies. The Lord Jesus shall return in great power and glory and deliver His remnant people en masse; they shall be preserved (saved) in the flesh and become a great nation once again. The LORD has promised that He will deliver His people: The burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him. Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. (Zec 12:1-2) The LORD shall pour upon His people the spirit of grace and supplication, and they shall mourn in repentance as they look upon their Messiah whom they have rejected and pierced: And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. (Zec 12:9-10) __________________________________________ THE HOUSEHOLDER Matthew 13:51-52 Jesus saith unto them, 'Have ye understood all these things?' They say unto him, 'Yea, Lord.' Then said he unto them, 'Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old.' Having completed His explanation of the mystery kingdom, Jesus verified that His disciples had understood His parables; having received affirmation, He then closed with a word of comfort, making reference to the bountiful blessings awaiting them in the promised kingdom. This pseudo parable is interpreted as an allegory in most commentaries, portrayed as Christ’s wise counsel to teach the disciples how they should carry out their duties as administrators in the church age. Adam Clarke’s comments—the underlined portions below—are typical of such interpretations: Every scribe—Minister of Christ: who is instructed—taught of God; in the kingdom of heaven—in the mysteries of the Gospel of Christ; out of his treasury—his granary or store-house; things new and old—a Jewish phrase for great plenty. A small degree of knowledge is not sufficient for a preacher of the Gospel. The sacred writings should be his treasure, and he should properly understand them. (Clarke's Commentary) Curiously, Prof. Pentecost’s exposition was also allegorical: Since some from among the hearers would be administrators in the new form of the kingdom,Christ may have had them in mind as well since they were instructed in the new truths concerning the new form of the kingdom. Their responsibility would be to share that knowledge the same way the owner of the storeroom shared his wealth with those for whom he was responsible. (Pentecost, p. 64) With all respect to Dr. Pentecost, this seems like the least opportune time to give instruction about church leadership for several reasons. One, Jesus signalled the end of His teaching by asking if they understood these things, so it doesn't follow that He would immediately add more instructions! Such amended comments are for imperfect souls who cannot clearly state their case on the first attempt. More importantly, this was Christ's first discussion with the disciples since the leaders of Israel had utterly rejected Him. Until He spoke these parables, Jesus had been silent about how He would send the disciples into the world, or even about what message they should preach; they were at that point very much in the dark about the crucifixion, the resurrection, or the empowerment of the Holy Spirit, much less about an assembly that Paul would much later call the body of Christ. It's safe to say the apostles knew little or nothing about the church when they heard these parables, so to suppose they could have comprehended such a reference is a really big stretch. Quite to the contrary, it's apparent to me that this closing remark was intended to comfort with something familiar, to the end that by following Him they would ultimately abide in the promised kingdom. And concerning the disciples’ depth of understanding, it’s worth recalling (from The Tares parable) that when Jesus said that the wheat shall be gathered into His barn (a mystery reference to gathering up the righteous into His heavenly sanctuary), the disciples evidenced confusion and asked for further explanation (they were not ready to understand such a new testament concept). Only when the Lord spoke of the righteous shining forth as the sun in the Father's kingdom (a familiar reference to shining with the Lord's glory in the promised kingdom) were the disciples satisfied with the explanation. It goes without saying that doctrinal assumptions play a large part in how parables are interpreted. Most expositors do not accept the millennial kingdom in a literal sense; so an allegory is the only way for them to make sense of such metaphorical statements. In other words, if one doesn’t accept future fulfillment of prophecy, then by definition such comments must be spiritualized. As I looked for a definition of allegory in the Holman Bible Dictionary (1991 edition), I came across the following: ALLEGORY .... As a general phenomenon, allegorical interpretation is adopted when sacred traditions are challenged by advances in knowledge and thought. When no longer able to interpret the traditions historically, and being unwilling to discard the traditions themselves, followers of the traditions probe for deeper, symbolic meanings. . . . In general, however, parables are to be distinguished from allegories because of their simplicity, sharp focus, and direct imagery. Contemporary scholarship generally prefers the plain and obvious point of the parable over the veiled and obscure meanings that often characterize allegories. (Holman, p. 35) And it was this plain and obvious point of parables that Jesus utilized to reveal the nature of the kingdom of heaven, a new and unexpected form of the kingdom. This kingdom would deliver the light of salvation to the gentiles and would be a bridge of promise for the apostles (the believing remnant). [See Isa 42:6 & 49:6.] The bridge of promise was given to the apostles (at the Last Supper and Mat 19:28) that they would sit as judges over the twelve tribes of Israel in the Father's kingdom. It's clear that He was referring to the promised kingdom at the Supper, and so likewise here, that He is the long awaited Messiah and the only way into the eternal kingdom of God. The Gospel books reveal that the disciples were consumed with knowing how and when the kingdom would be restored to Israel. As for the church age, Jesus had not instructed His disciples about it until these seven parables; His kingdom references were mostly about restoring Jerusalem and the house of Israel. But Jesus knew that the disciples would be gripped with fear and would scatter when He was arrested and crucified. So it occurs to me that He refrained from being too specific about the coming church age in order that they might not be burdened with more guilt than they could bear from exhibiting such weakness of faith. In short, the less they knew the less would be their culpability. In light of the two rather divergent interpretations, I wanted to contrast the literal kingdom meanings with Clarke’s allegorical interpretations. So listed below are key words and phrases, with their kingdom interpretations alongside Clarke’s allegorical extrapolations (underlined in parentheses): understood all these things, understood the mysteries of the kingdom (N/A) scribe, one who is an householder (a minister of Christ). instructed, taught by Jesus (taught of God). kingdom of heaven, the theocratic kingdom of Christ (mysteries of the Gospel of Christ). householder, property owner responsible for many (a minister of Christ). bringeth forth, brings out of storage (preaches the Gospel). from his treasure, store house of goods (gospel store-house). things new and old, his great plenty of stores (great plenty of knowledge). Since I am making the kingdom case here, let me offer a pertinent kingdom prophecy: For I will have respect unto you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, and establish my covenant with you. And ye shall eat old store, and bring forth the old because of the new. And I will set my tabernacle among you: and my soul shall not abhor you. And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people.” (Lev 26:9-12) This prophecy is framed in the language of a householder whose stores will be overflowing, so much so that he will have to clear out the old stores to make room for the new, likely a symbol of the abundant blessings to be enjoyed in the promised land. Then comes the comforting benediction, “And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people.” Such is the image that would have been brought to the Jewish mind by the terms old store and new store. This was straight from their sacred Torah, something every Jew would have heard multiple times. Such reminders would have been a great comfort to the apostles. King David himself described such hopes in the Psalms, for example: The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the LORD that seek him: your heart shall live for ever. All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the LORD: and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee. For the kingdom is the LORD’S: and he is the governor among the nations. . . . (Ps 22:26-28) Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever. (Psa 23:5-6) And the Apostle Paul was motivated by these same visions of kingdom blessings. He was enthusiastic to report that all children of God, not just the Jews, shall be heirs to these promises, “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Gal 3:26- 29). Thus, Paul affirms that God’s promise to Abraham would be fulfilled in those gentiles who put on Christ. For a Jew of that day, there was no greater blessing in the whole earth. _________________________________________ CONCLUSION The disciples understood the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven in their own way, but not the way that Jesus would bring it to pass on the cross. What this means is that their knowledge of the kingdom was limited to seeing it as their passport to the promised land. Thoughts of Messiah’s death and resurrection never entered their mind, else they would not have scattered like frightened sheep after the cross. They were so disheartened that Peter was going back to his fishing and the others to their former occupations. After three years of learning under the greatest Rabbi, how could the disciples have misconstrued the gospel message? To plumb the depths of this issue, we need to address the meaning of kingdom to the Jew compared with that of a gentile. To begin with, the gospel of the kingdom and the gospel of Christ present the kingdom in two different lights. Jews understood the kingdom as the-Messiah-Son-of-David-come-to-dwell-amongst-them, the Christ descended from heaven to rule as King from David's throne. But the Apostle Paul preached a different kingdom, Christ-the-ascended-Son-of-God-and-the-Holy-Spirit-sent-to-dwell-within-us, In the kingdom of heaven, Christ Jesus the ascended Redeemer rules the earth from the right hand of the Father in heaven. He empowered the Apostles to build the Church and form His body on earth. Next is to understand that the first generation church, being almost exclusively Jewish, no doubt would have focused on the restored Davidic kingdom and the ultimate physical return of the King, simply because the idea of raising the church to heaven was not revealed until Jesus spoke through Paul. In contrast, the contempor- ary church, being mostly gentiles, perceives the kingdom as Paul described it, the body of Christ on earth with Jesus sitting in heaven at the right hand of the Father. Christians look forward to the heavenly mansion that Jesus promised. Christ is King in both cases but He rules His kingdom from different locations. And upon His second coming the house of Israel shall be restored to be the greatest nation, and saints shall be co-heirs and rule over all nations with King Jesus. Only the Apostles shall rule over the twelve tribes, because they are the original remnant of Israel. For the first generation Jewish church, the appearance of Christ meant walking alive with the King into the promised land. Under intense persecution and suffering, they perceived that Jacob’s trouble (the seventieth week of Daniel) was already upon them, for they knew nothing of a rapture. It was Paul who revealed the mystery of the rapture, but that was several decades after the church was founded. Even for several centuries, while the church remained predominantly Jewish, this perception of the Lord coming to set up the restored kingdom endured. As a case in point, Paul wrote to the church at Thessalonica to comfort them. Because of the intense persecution of their church and the continuation of temple sacrifices, they had come to believe they had missed the rapture and began to doubt their salvation. Many of them wanted to return to Judaism and prepare to meet the Lord and enter the kingdom, so Paul wrote to assure them that the rapture had not yet occurred and to encourage them to endure in the faith. The gospel to the gentiles has a foundation in Hebrew prophecy. The seed of Messiah would be inherited from King David and would include the gentiles, “And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious.” (Isa 11:10). It has been prophesied many times that a people for His name would be gathered out of the gentile nations, “And many nations shall be joined to the LORD in that day, and shall be my people: and I will dwell in the midst of thee, and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto thee.” (Zech 2:11). It was the sum and substance of new covenant blessings, as was made clear in Hebrews: But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second..... “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” saith the Lord; “I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people: And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord:' for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.” In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away. (Heb 8:6-8,10-13) Sadly, there seems to be little appreciation among contemporary Christians for the fact that our destiny is rooted in the olive tree. Paul described it in Romans, “And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert graffed in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree; Boast not against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee.” (Rom 11:17-18). The conclusion is inescapable: if we be the wild branches and Jews be the natural, then the Church is sustained by the same root as is Israel. How then can we boast about being the body of Christ on earth and despise the natural branches? Paul declares both to be sons of Abraham! Again, it seems Christendom has lost all sense of the Jewish origin of our faith, and, I must say, the silence of most commentaries on this issue shows the pervasiveness of this view. Not only that, but when we remove from church doctrine the roots of our heritage in Israel, I submit that we have removed a significant part, if not the core, of what it means to be part of the body of Christ. [See Matthew 25:31-46, and know that "the least of these my brethren" refers the Jewish brethren of Jesus.] Prof. Pentecost has developed a kind of kingdom doctrine from all the parables (not limited to those of Matt 13), which makes a fitting conclusion for this review. In the Beatitudes (Matt. 5:3-12), Christ gave the characteristics of righteous people. From the features that characterize life in the kingdom as revealed in the parables, we observe that those characteristics required in the Beatitudes will be realized in those who are citizens of the kingdom. Thus I develop a doctrine of the theocratic kingdom from the parables, tracing the offer by Christ, its rejection by Israel, its consequent postponement to a future time, the resultant judgment on the generation that rejected Christ’s offer, the new form of the theocracy to be developed in the present age, the events preceding the establishment of the coming messianic kingdom as well as the characteristics of those who are in the kingdom.” (Pentecost, pp. 179-80) Amen and Amen. Return to Home Page |
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Return to Home Page The Kingdom of Heaven (from the Parables of Matthew 13) A Review of Selected Commentary INTRODUCTION The framework for this review is based primarily upon the writings of J. Dwight Pentecost in his book, The Parables of Jesus, published in 1982 by Zondervan Publishing House. At the time of publication the author was Professor of Bible Exposition at Dallas Theological Seminary. He defined “kingdom” as used in these parables to be God’s system of sovereign rule on earth, which has existed in some form or another since God appointed Adam to rule as His representative in the Garden. The kingdom of heaven is understood to be the theocratic rule of Jesus Christ over the earth and the affairs of men until He comes again. Prior to the Lord's first advent, the rule of God since Abraham had been exercised through the nation of Israel. Such rule was by Covenant Promises, first to Abraham, that he and his seed would be greatly blessed and all nations would be blessed through him; then later to King David, that Messiah would come from his seed, defeat their enemies, restore the kingdom, and reign over the nations in glory from David’s throne. Then all nations shall know that the LORD God of Israel is the only God in heaven and earth. BACKGROUND Professor Pentecost’s methodology for parable exposition reveals a unity of design in these parables such that they combine to form one coherent doctrine of kingdom truth. And his expositions do not contradict other doctrines of the faith. He teaches that each parable or set of parables is Jesus’ way of clarifying a specific area of confusion in the minds of His disciples. But beware that well known cliché that describes a parable as an earthly story about a heavenly truth. That may be helpful in some cases, but these Matthew 13 parables do not describe things as they are in heaven. They describe an earthly kingdom, how it shall be formed as a small assembly yet grow into a great and mighty kingdom, the relationship between the kingdom's children and their King in heaven, and, at the end of the age, the judgment that shall befall its unrighteous children. According to Pentecost, Matthew Chapter 13 parables reveal a new form of the kingdom of God that was unknown in the Old Testament. But before trying to unravel the mysteries, it might be good to establish what the kingdom of heaven (or, of God) IS NOT. It is NOT the kingdom that the Jews expected, that is, a substitute for the kingdom of David, although it is their pathway to it. Also, this kingdom is NOT another name for the visible church, although many assume that it is. Finally, it is NOT a kingdom exclusive to heaven, i.e., one does not need to die to enter in. Nevertheless, there is one commonality—members of the church are also children of the kingdom (but not vice versa). Prof. Pentecost teaches that we need first to understand the general context in which these parables are presented in Matthew. In Chapters 1-11, Jesus is presented to Israel as Messiah by fulfilling many prophecies and performing many miracles of healing, yet speaking very few parables. Matthew 12 is the pivotal chapter, where it becomes evident that Israel will not accept Him as Messiah; thereafter, the context shifts from fulfillment of known prophecy to revelation of new truths and mysteries. Chapter 12 is where the Pharisees had dug in their heels, plotted to kill Jesus, and began to harass the multitudes who followed Him. They threatened to expel from the synagogues anyone who professed Jesus’ teachings. Those not willing to suffer expulsion became silent listeners, not willing to bear the cross of rejection, meaning that they were uncommitted and unbelieving hearers. From this crucial divide, Jesus revealed that the Kingdom offer would be withdrawn from Israel, because they did not know their "day of visitation." Instead, they would be left desolate, their temple of God's presence would be taken away, not one stone would be left standing. Jesus thereafter began to teach through parables to reveal the new form of His kingdom. As He explained to the disciples, this allowed Him to publicly speak kingdom truths to His true followers while veiling the minds of unbelievers. Shortly afterwards, the Pharisees brazenly accused Him of using Satan’s power to remove demons, and Jesus warned them, “...but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.” (Mat 12:32b). Then Jesus harshly rebuked the Pharisees, calling them hypocrites and vipers and told them, “But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.” (Mat 12:36-37 KJV). Some take this to mean that the Pharisees stepped over the line of forgiveness with their brazen accusation, although this is not accepted by all expositors. Noted Chinese evangelist Watchman Nee fully supports this view, stating that the sin of the Pharisees was the main cause of bringing God’s judgment upon Israel in A.D.70, in a sense the straw that broke the camel's back. In any case, the leaders of Israel made a public profession of their stiff-necked opposition to Jesus as Messiah in Chapter Twelve. It was an insolent proclamation of their rejection of Christ, from which they could not retreat without sacrificing their lofty positions of power and authority. As for teaching through parables, Professor Pentecost said it was to their benefit that unbelievers did not understand the message of the parables. Unbelief in the face of understanding would only bring more judgment upon themselves, so hiding the kingdom truths from them was an act of mercy. The reality was that those not willing to face the rejection of men were committed to the bondage of Pharisaism. Alas, Israel as a nation had always rejected the Word spoken through the prophets that were sent to them, for they were a stiff-necked people. I have long been a believer in the ultimate restoration of the Davidic kingdom, and my reasoning is along this line. God’s grace was at work in the Old Testament as well as in the New. Jesus was a Jew, not only because He was born and raised a Jew, but also because He was completely obedient to the Father and fulfilled the Law in every respect. No one could accuse Him of violating any aspect of the Law. Jesus was the perfect man, the perfect Jew whose names include the Last Adam, Lamb of God, Great High Priest, the Good Shepherd, Messiah, among others, all of which have some connection to the people of Israel. In fact, much of what Jesus spoke in the Gospels was revealed first in the Old Testament. Indeed, the disciples had heard from childhood the prophecies about Messiah, the Anointed One who would lead God’s Chosen People into the promised kingdom. Today there seems to be a pervasive ignorance concerning the Church’s historic bonds with Israel. It seems that the Christian community has lost a sense of brotherhood with Jews, despite thses Jewish roots. This is disheartening in view of Paul’s clear teaching that there is no distinction between Jew and Gentile in the kingdom of heaven. In fact, without some understanding of Jewish culture and religion there is little hope of understanding these parables. Except for a few proselytes, the Church was exclusively Hebrew for the first 12-15 years. Even when Paul took the gospel to the Gentiles, he was instructed to preach it first to the Jews wherever he went. The phrase “gospel of the kingdom” was in common usage in those early years. In the Matthew account Jesus introduced His Gospel that way, using the phrase throughout His ministry, “And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom.....” (Mat 4:23 KJV); and it shall be preached again in the end times, “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” (Mat 24:14). In the process of doing this research, it dawned on me how strange it would have sounded to Jewish ears if Christ had preached the gospel message that He gave to Paul (i.e., the crucified and risen Christ) as He walked among His brethren. Much of the Jewish hope for Messiah and a restored kingdom came out of the Book of Daniel, one of Israel’s greatest prophets; God revealed through Daniel all the great kingdoms to come, including the con-summation of the ages in the covenant kingdom, “...and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.” (Dan 2:44b KJV). We need to appreciate this perspective. Yet the tendency in many commentaries has been to ignore Jewish influ- ence altogether and to impose a contemporary view of the church on these kingdom parables. It is clear that the book of Matthew was written from a Jewish perspective. What separates the book of Matthew from the others is its heavy emphasis on the kingdom aspects, that Jesus was the Son of David, Israel's promised Messiah and King. ________________________________________ THE SOWER AND SOILS PARABLE Matthew 13: 3-9 Behold, a sower went forth to sow; And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up: Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth: And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them: But others fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. Jesus opens His first parable to the multitudes with a simple phrase, “Behold, a sower went forth to sow.” Note that Jesus did not identify or say much about the sower, but focused attention on how the production of fruit was dependent upon the depth and composition of the soil. What unbelievers heard was a familiar story about a farmer’s plight in raising a good crop. The desired result, of course, was to harvest manifold quantities of fruit. Then He concluded with, “Who hath ears to hear, let him hear,” which tells us that there is more to this story than the problems faced by a local farmer, that there was a new truth to be found in His preceding words. But for them without ears to hear, the parable was a simple story about a sower, or a farmer, something very familiar to the audience, who likely would have interpreted it as follows: SOWER = A sower sows SEED = good seed SOILS = in his field of various soils CROP = and expects to harvest a crop GOOD SOIL = the deep and well tended soil. In Proverbs 24:30-32, we see that the person who fails to tend the ground properly will fail to get a crop, “I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding; And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down. Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction.” So in every situation there are objective facts to be observed, that cannot be denied, but there are also deeper lessons to be learned by those with understanding. Likewise, those who knew Jesus as Messiah were given the insight to look beyond the superficial, to grasp His deeper meanings, i.e., the new truth aspects of His kingdom. Jesus revealed that His disciples had been given hearts for understanding, that they would receive the Word and be fruitful. He also said that the multitude had been blinded and deafened to the Word, and boldly proceeded to explain the parable to the disciples in the hearing of the multitude: But blessed [are] your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them. Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower. When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side. But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended. He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful. But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. (Matt 13:16-23) An outline of this symbolism follows [my comments are in brackets]. SOWER = [not identified, but could only be Jesus Himself] SEED = the Word of the kingdom, [also Jesus, His Gospel] SOILS = hearers of the Word, [having hearts of varying understanding] : HEART of the waysider: this one has no understanding; and the wicked one comes and snatches away that which had been sown [his heart is too hardened to receive the Word] ; HEART of the stony soil: this one hears and receives the Word with immediate joy; yet his heart has no depth, and the heat of tribulation or persecution soon offends him [his understanding has shallow roots, the heat of the sun soon withers away the new life of the Word] ; HEART of the thorny soil: this one receives the word also, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches chokes out the Word and he becomes unfruitful [his heart is never fully separated from worldly treasures]; HEART of the good soil: these receive the word with understanding and bear much fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty [these are dead to the world and alive in Christ, new creatures and children of God]. Four types of hearers were described with different depths of understanding. Only one produced the desired result – a manifold harvest of fruit. Those who receive and understand the Word are the true children of the kingdom; by coming to Christ they will bear much fruit to enlarge and sustain the kingdom. On the other hand, those who hear with little understanding will not turn and come to Christ and will bear no fruit; they will be worthless or even a hindrance to the kingdom. The disciples likely knew that Jesus was referring to them as future children of His kingdom. Although everyone has some idea of what it means to understand, it’s crucial to know what the author means. The method I employ is to see how the Lord used the word understanding in the scriptures which spoke of Him. Through the prophet Isaiah the Lord spoke this admonition to Israel, “Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me.” (Isa 43:10). Through Jeremiah God revealed, “But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the LORD...” (Jer 9:24). Through King David, He said, “God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, that did seek God.” (Ps 53:2). And through Solomon came the Word of wisdom, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.” (Pr 9:10). By these scriptures we conclude that spiritual understanding carries with it a willingness to seek and to know God, having an attitude of trust in the greater knowledge and higher ways of God. In the vernacular of this parable, it is a desire to receive and embrace the Word with a hunger to know God, nurturing it so that it forms deep roots in one’s heart. Knowledge of the Holy One is an understanding that enlightens the soul and issues forth in multiple harvests of the Word of life. Again, this was not hidden knowledge; it was first recorded in Proverbs, “My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding. ...Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God.” (Pr 2:1-2,5). In His explanation, Jesus revealed the truth of the parable from the perspective of one who receives the Word of the kingdom. Thus the focus has shifted from sowing seed in His original telling over to receiving seed in His explanation. It seems this would point to His being both the Sower and the Seed, the Giver and the Gift, the Alpha and Omega of life. It also points to the reality of Jesus being the very essence of the scriptures. The parable of the sower is all about Christ as the source of life itself; He is at once the Creator and Sustainer of life in the kingdom of heaven. As Paul said in Colossians 1:15-16, “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him.” Therefore, the Sower is preeminent in all things– without Him nothing can exist. Obviously, then, life in the kingdom of heaven is by and for Jesus, the Christ. Therefore, this first parable is the Gospel of the kingdom, the very Rock upon which Jesus builds His kingdom and His church. “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto life.” (John 5:24). In other words, this parable reveals how the Word is freely offered to man, to be received with understanding or not, depending upon his willingness to seek after God and receive the Gift of life. And what would be the reward? Jesus had already laid it out, “That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them. Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower.” Unless hearers had ears to hear, they would not understand this reward; yet it's not a mystery – it's what all prophets and righteous men of Israel would have desired to see and hear – it’s the blessings of life in the promises of God. And those blessings are laid out in the beatitudes, which begin and end with kingdom of heaven blessings. But only a true son of Abraham would understand the Word. Once the disciples were instructed in receiving the Word, they needed to learn the mysteries of the kingdom hidden from men until Jesus. The next lesson was about the difficulties they would face while sowing the Word under the nose of Satan, which He revealed in the Tares parable. _____________________________________________ THE WHEAT AND THE TARES PARABLE Matthew 13:24-30 The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, 'Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?' He said unto them, 'An enemy hath done this.' The servants said unto him, 'Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?' But he said, 'Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, "Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn."' Now the hearers of this familiar story were well aware that tares looked so much like wheat during the growing season that they could not be identified. Only at harvest time could the tares be easily spotted by the absence of any fruit, and then they were gathered and bundled for burning, at which point the wheat was promptly harvested. Looking ahead for a moment, Jesus told this parable and two more (The Mustard Seed and The Leaven) to the multitude and dismissed them, whereupon He and the disciples moved into a house. The disciples had heard four parables at that point, apparently had understood all except for The Wheat and Tares parable, so they asked Him to explain. Now, in order to wrap up this analysis, we will review Jesus’ Tares explanation before examining The Mustard Seed and The Leaven parables: He answered and said unto them, 'He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.' (Matt 13:37-43) Jesus identified the symbols as follows: SOWER = Jesus, the Son of man, FIELD = the world, GOOD SEED = first generation children of the kingdom (disciples), TARES = children of the wicked one, WHEAT = regenerated children of the kingdom, REAPERS = Christ’s angels, HARVEST = at the end of this age, angels gather up the wicked and cast them into a furnace of fire. The focus here was on the end-of-the-age judgment on the children of the devil. Since resurrection was not involved, this judgment falls only on those who are alive at the end of the age, which also means they will have lived through the Tribulation. Those who die in their sins before the end of the age go directly to Hades, whereas those who are alive in unbelief at the end will be gathered by the angels and cast into a furnace of fire. I understand this to mean that they will be cast into Hades, the abiding place of those who choose not to believe and receive the gift of eternal life. At the same time, Jesus said that the righteous children will enter the kingdom of their Father. This is surely a reference to the kingdom that the Father promised to David, one that would last forever, as prophesied in Daniel, “And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to ever- lasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament.” (Dan 12:2-3a). One more point: the parable in its original telling revealed that tares were bundled for burning at the harvest, but it did not indicate when this burning should occur. Many commentaries avoid this issue, but Jesus left no doubt in His explanation that it would be without much delay. He said that the angels appointed to gather up the wicked would also cast them into a furnace of fire; again, probably a refer- ence to the fires of Hades rather than the Lake of Fire. My understanding is that this gathering probably occurs at the same time as the harvest judgment of Rev. 14:17-20, an event prophesied by Joel as follows, “Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about. Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great. Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining.” (Joel 3:12-15). Note that Joel said, “for the day of the LORD is near,” so it seems it must occur immediately before the Lord steps down on Mt. Zion. Although both of these accounts refer to a winepress and God’s wrath, it is interesting to note in the Revelation account that the angel from the heavenly altar who is in charge of the reapers also had power over fire! This may be a symbolic reference to the fiery fate of the wicked ones in this parable. In summary, the central truth in this parable is about the judgment on the children of Satan within the Kingdom. In the original telling, the disciples were instructed not to weed them out, that their judgment shall await the end of the age. At the time of harvest, the Lord shall send forth His angels with sickles to reap the kingdom of all things that offend and cast them into a fiery furnace. Although the Joel prophecy was about the heathen gathered to wage war against Israel, it seems reasonable that both they and the wicked sons of the kingdom should be cast into the same furnace of fire. Since the disciples had been told that they should not attempt to eliminate Satan’s children, their next question might have been: Will his children be able to hinder the formation or growth of this mystery kingdom during the course of its administration? The next two parables address this issue. _____________________________________________ |