THE EIGHT PARABLES OF THE KINGLY RULE OF HEAVEN (13:1-53). Having made clear that the Kingly Rule of Heaven is advancing forcefully (Matthew 11:12) and that through Jesus' activities as the Servant of YHWH, operating in the power of the Spirit of God (Matthew 12:18), the Kingly Rule of God has come... [ Continue Reading ]
‘On that day Jesus went out of the house, and sat by the sea side.' Note again the usual vague connecting introduction. While Jesus was possibly in a house in Matthew 12:46 it was never made explicit, although if He was He must have been preaching from the door for He was speaking to the crowds. Wh... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And there were gathered to him great crowds, so that he entered into a boat, and sat, and all the crowd stood on the beach.' In accordance with his expectations the crowds gathered in such numbers that He entered a boat and taught them from it (compare Luke 5:1, which explains where Jesus first go... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And he spoke to them many things in parables, saying,' Then Jesus spoke to them many things ‘in parables', illustrative stories. For while to His disciples He spoke plainly, as in the Sermon on the Mount, to the crowds He told stories with ‘hidden' meanings. Each could then take from them the mess... [ Continue Reading ]
THE PARABLE OF THE SOWING OF THE SEED (13:3-9). This parable compares those who hear the word, and in three ways fail to receive it successfully, with those who do receive the word, and produce fruit at three levels. It is another presentation of the two ways. It will be noted that the emphasis is n... [ Continue Reading ]
“And as he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the birds came and devoured them. The sower's ‘field' would not be like the ones we are familiar with. It would be a strip of ground, and within a larger area which was criss-crossed with pathways so that people could make their way to their own... [ Continue Reading ]
13-5-6 “And others fell on the rocky places, where they had not much earth, and straightway they sprang up, because they had no deepness of earth, and when the sun was risen, they were scorched, and because they had no root, they withered away.” Other of the seed would fall on places where there wa... [ Continue Reading ]
“And others fell on the thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.” Other seed would fall in places where, try as he would, the sower had been unable to eradicate the weeds. He had cut them back, and even possibly ploughed the ground, but he could do little else with regard to them, for his to... [ Continue Reading ]
“And others fell on the good ground, and yielded fruit, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” But some of the seed would fall on the ground which yielded to the plough, some parts better than others, and the result was that it would grow and yield fruit with various measures of success. But... [ Continue Reading ]
“He who has ears, let him hear.” Having told a story with a familiar ring Jesus then challenged His listeners to consider well how they interpreted His words. If God was enabling them to hear, or if they wanted to hear and sought a solution, then they would hear. Otherwise they would not gain the u... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And the disciples came, and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” ' The disciples, who had been listening to His stories and were obviously a little puzzled because they were clearly now more complicated and He never seemed to explain them, came to Him and asked Him why He taught th... [ Continue Reading ]
JESUS EXPLAINS WHY HE SPEAKS IN PARABLES (13:10-13A). The disciples who had had the secrets of the Kingly Rule of Heaven revealed to them in the Sermon on the Mount and subsequently, could not understand why Jesus did not speak so plainly to the crowds. Why did He only tell the crowds stories which... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And he answered and said to them, “To you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingly rule of heaven, but to them it is not given.” Jesus replied that the reason that He treated the disciples differently from the crowds was because it was given to them to know and have unfolded to them the ‘mys... [ Continue Reading ]
“For whoever has, to him will be given, and he will have abundance, but whoever has not, from him will be taken away even what he has.” So those who have already received the truth, and have repented and have come under the Kingly Rule of Heaven, will continue to receive more and more truth, becaus... [ Continue Reading ]
“Therefore do I speak to them in parables.” And it is because these truths are given to those whom He will (Matthew 11:27) that He speaks in parables. But it should be noted that it is with discrimination. There is no suggestion that some of those who ‘have' will be denied more truth, and it is cle... [ Continue Reading ]
“And to them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, which says, “By hearing you will hear, and will in no way understand, and seeing you will see, and will in no wise perceive.” Once again Matthew goes by name to Isaiah, although this time he does it in words of Jesus, and it may well be that it was f... [ Continue Reading ]
“For this people's heart is grown gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest it happen that they should perceive with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should turn again, and I should heal them.” The reason for their fai... [ Continue Reading ]
“But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear.” There are, however, those who do see and hear, and they do so because they are ‘God-blessed' ones, that is, because their ‘eyes' have been blessed by God. It is God Who had made them see and hear. And because He has stepped in... [ Continue Reading ]
“For truly I say to you, that many prophets and righteous men desired to see the things which you see, and did not see them, and to hear the things which you hear, and did not hear them.” And what is more they are especially privileged because of the time in which they live. Many in the past had loo... [ Continue Reading ]
“Hear you then the parable of the sower.” Note first how Jesus focuses attention on the sower without actually explaining who the sower is. He leaves each person to recognise who the sower is for themselves. This is typical of His way of only indirectly calling attention to Himself. But as we disco... [ Continue Reading ]
THE INTERPRETATION OF THE PARABLE OF THE SOWING OF THE SEED (13:18-23). As we look at this interpretation we will note how perfectly it fits the words of the parable without being over-allegoristic. It is simple, straightforward and telling, with its background in Scripture. There is no good reason... [ Continue Reading ]
“When any one hears the word of the kingly rule, and does not understand it, then comes the evil one, and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is he who was sown by the way side.” The sower sows the word of the Kingly Rule, the advancing of God's righteousness (Matthew 6:33). He is t... [ Continue Reading ]
“And he who was sown on the rocky places, this is he who hears the word, and immediately with joy receives it, yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.” The second example is the man in whom the s... [ Continue Reading ]
“And he who was sown among the thorns, this is he who hears the word, and the care of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.” The third type of person was the one who was like thorn-covered ground. He hears the word, but the care of the world and the... [ Continue Reading ]
“And he who was sown on the good ground, this is he who hears the word, and understands it; who truly bears fruit, and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” In contrast with these men who were represented by these three types of soil were the people represented by the good soi... [ Continue Reading ]
‘He set another parable before them, saying, “The Kingly Rule of Heaven has become like to a situation where a man sowed good seed in his field, but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares (darnel) also among the wheat, and went away.' ‘He set another parable before them, saying, “The Kingly... [ Continue Reading ]
THE PARABLE OF THE TARES/BEARDED DARNEL (13:24-30). In this parable the sower sows good seed in a field, but by night his enemy sows bad seed. However, when asked if the bad seed should be removed the householder says ‘no', lest good seed also be removed in error. Both are to be allowed to grow tog... [ Continue Reading ]
THREE FURTHER PARABLES OF THE KINGLY RULE OF HEAVEN (13:24-33). The parable of the Sower having been explained, We now have three further parables introduced, the parable of the tares (or bearded darnel, which to begin with looks like wheat but matures to have a dark head), the parable of the mustar... [ Continue Reading ]
‘But when the blade sprang up and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares (darnel) also. And the servants of the householder came and said to him, “Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? From where then has it tares (darnel)?” ' For quite some time wheat and darnel grew together with no... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And he said to them, “An enemy has done this.” And the servants say to him, “Do you wish us then to go and gather them up?” ' The householder immediately knew what the answer must be. This had been done by an enemy. So the servants suggested that they go and root out the darnel.... [ Continue Reading ]
‘But he says, “No, lest it happen that while you gather up the tares (darnel), you root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, ‘Gather up first the tares (darnel), and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather t... [ Continue Reading ]
THE TWIN PARABLES OF THE MUSTARD SEED AND THE LEAVEN (13:31-33). These two parables have very different emphases. The emphasis in the first case is on the size to which it grew from small beginnings, from a tiny seed to a great tree with birds in its branches, from a tiny band of disciples to a worl... [ Continue Reading ]
‘He set another parable before them, saying, “The kingly rule of heaven is like to a situation where a man took a grain of mustard seed, and sowed it in his field, which indeed is less than all seeds, but when it is grown, it is greater than the herbs, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the he... [ Continue Reading ]
‘He spoke another parable to them; “The kingly rule of heaven is like a situation where a woman took leaven, and hid it in three measures of meal, until it was all leavened.” ' In this parable the hidden but powerful process is in mind by which the Kingly Rule of Heaven will be established. Leaven w... [ Continue Reading ]
‘All these things spoke Jesus in parables to the crowds, and without a parable he spoke nothing to them.' So Jesus continued to preach to the crowds in parables. They were parables that clearly presented the truth to those who saw, and yet kept it shielded from those who did not see because their h... [ Continue Reading ]
WHY JESUS SPEAKS IN PARABLES (13:34-35). Here we learn of a second reason why Jesus speaks in parables. It is a way of unfolding indescribable spiritual secrets in such a way that those not ready to receive them are not aware of them, while those whose hearts are opened are enlightened. ANALYSIS.... [ Continue Reading ]
JESUS SPEAKS TO HIS DISCIPLES IN PARABLES SO THAT THEIR EYES MAY BE OPENED (13:34-52). This next part-section is also in the form of a chiasmus. ANALYSIS. a Jesus speaks in parables not only for the sake of the crowds, but also for the sake of His disciples, so that their eyes may be opened to th... [ Continue Reading ]
‘That it might be fulfilled which was spoken through the prophet, saying, “I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden from of old (or ‘the foundation of the world').” But to those whose hearts were opened the parables revealed wonderful truth. They revealed the things that had bee... [ Continue Reading ]
‘Then he left the crowds, and went into the house, and his disciples came to him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the tares (darnel) of the field.” ' The session of preaching to the crowds being over Jesus retired into the house (compare Matthew 13:1), and His disciples then came to Him and a... [ Continue Reading ]
THE EXPLANATION OF THE PARABLE OF THE WHEAT AND DARNEL (13:36-43). The parables that have now been given have gradually built up a picture of the advance of the Kingly Rule of Heaven. Firstly the seed has been sown, having different effects depending on the hearers. Secondly the Enemy has sown pseu... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And he answered and said, “He who sows the good seed is the Son of man.” ' Jesus first lesson is that the one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. This is a designation that He has clearly applied to Himself (Matthew 8:20; Matthew 9:6; Matthew 10:23; Matthew 11:19; Matthew 12:8; Matthew 12:32;... [ Continue Reading ]
“And the field is the world, and the good seed, these are the sons of the Kingly Rule, and the tares (darnel) are the sons of the evil one.” The field represents the whole of mankind (not just the Jews or the church, there is no parochialism here), and the good seed are ‘the sons of the Kingly Rule'... [ Continue Reading ]
“And the enemy who sowed them is the Devil, and the harvest is the end of the world (age), and the reapers are angels.” Like all parables not all the details can be applied. It was not of course the Devil who actually introduced men into the world. What he did from the beginning was seduce those who... [ Continue Reading ]
“As therefore the tares (darnel) are gathered up and burned with fire, so will it be in the end of the world (age). The Son of man will send forth his angels, and they will gather out of his kingly rule all things that cause stumbling, and those who do iniquity,” Thus just as at the harvest the fals... [ Continue Reading ]
“And will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be the weeping and gnashing of teeth.” And all who have been in rebellion against God, and against the Son of Man, will be tossed into the furnace of fire to be burned up (compare Daniel 3:6 which this strongly echoes). The idea of the wicked... [ Continue Reading ]
“Then will the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingly rule of their Father.” But the end result will be that Paradise is restored. The righteous will shine forth as the sun within the sphere of the Kingly Rule of their Father. They have been changed from glory into glory, even as by the Spir... [ Continue Reading ]
“The kingly rule of heaven is like to a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found, and hid, and in his joy he goes and sells all that he has, and buys that field.” Here the Kingly Rule of Heaven is likened to a treasure that a man stumbles across as he is working in a field. In the days when t... [ Continue Reading ]
TWO FURTHER PARABLES OF THE KINGLY RULE OF HEAVEN (13:44-46). Each of the next three parables commences with ‘the Kingly Rule of Heaven is like unto --.' The first two are basically parallel pictures, but in the first case the man, who would seem to be relatively poor, comes across the treasure by... [ Continue Reading ]
“Again, the kingly rule of heaven is like to a man who is a merchant seeking goodly pearls, and having found one pearl of great price, he went and sold all that he had, and bought it.” In contrast the wealthier merchant does not come across his treasure by accident. He has been looking diligently f... [ Continue Reading ]
“Again, the kingly rule of heaven is like to a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind, which, when it was filled, they drew up on the beach; and they sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but the bad they cast away.” The dragnet would be flung from a boat and be dragged... [ Continue Reading ]
THE PARABLE OF THE DRAGNET (13:47-49). This parable parallels that of the good and the bad seed, the wheat and the darnel (Matthew 13:24). But whereas in the explanation of the first parable there is a period of activity followed by a final emphasis on the glory that awaits those who are in the King... [ Continue Reading ]
“So will it be in the end of the world (age), the angels will come forth, and sever the wicked from among the righteous, and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth.” The central point behind this parable is the fate of the ‘bad' fish (compare Ecc... [ Continue Reading ]
“Have you understood all these things?” They say to him, “Yes.” Jesus' first concern is that His disciples have understood what He has been talking about. And when their reply is ‘yes' He points out what will now be their future responsibility. But He knows full well that their understanding is sti... [ Continue Reading ]
THE FINAL CHALLENGE (13:51-53). This final challenge by Jesus is often overlooked. Like the initial parable it is not directly ‘likened to the Kingly Rule of Heaven'. Nevertheless it is very pertinent to it, for it demonstrates what the responsibility is of those who have come under the Kingly Rule... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And he said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been made a disciple to the kingly rule of heaven is like to a man who is a householder, who brings forth out of his treasure things new and old.” ' The word ‘scribe' here is used in a general way and simply indicates a teacher. In this case the... [ Continue Reading ]
JESUS IS UNABLE TO DO MANY MIGHTY WORKS IN HIS HOME TOWN, BUT HIS MIGHTY WORKS IMPRESS HEROD WHO THINKS THAT HE MAY BE JOHN THE BAPTIST RAISED FROM THE DEAD (13:58-14:2). The mighty works of Jesus, which they have heard of through the tales spreading from elsewhere (Luke 4:23), have not impressed H... [ Continue Reading ]
JESUS IS CONFIRMED AS THE SON OF GOD, BEGINS TO ESTABLISH HIS NEW CONGREGATION, REACHES OUT TO GENTILES, IS ACKNOWLEDGED AS MESSIAH BY HIS DISCIPLES, AND REVEALS HIS INHERENT GLORY (13:53-17:27). The advance of the Kingly Rule of Heaven leading up to the final consummation having been made clear by... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And it came about that when Jesus had finished these parables, he departed from that place.' Having ‘completed His teaching' in parables Jesus departed from that place. This is Matthew's regular method of finalising a batch of Jesus' teaching (Matthew 5:28; Matthew 11:1; Matthew 19:1; Matthew 26:1... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And coming into his own country he taught them in their synagogue, insomuch that they were astonished, and said, “From where has this man this wisdom, and these mighty works?” Jesus arrives back in the place where He was brought up and teaches in their local synagogue where He had once learned so m... [ Continue Reading ]
JESUS IS REJECTED IN HIS OWN COUNTRY (13:54-57). This passage connects back with Matthew 12:46 where Jesus' relationship with His family came second to His relationship with those who did the will of His Father. And that is what this section is all about, that while being rejected by the Jews as a w... [ Continue Reading ]
a “Is not this the carpenter's son? Is not his mother called Mary? And his brethren, James, and Joseph, and Simon, and Judas? And his sisters, are they not all with us?” There was no doubt about the strength of the evidence against His claimed status. He was the son of the local carpenter, and there... [ Continue Reading ]
“From where then has this man all these things?” So if what was said about Him was true, from where had He obtained all these things that people were speaking about? It just could not be true. Note how in the next incident with Herod, Herod also learns of rumours about Jesus and comments erroneously... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And they were offended in him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honour, except in his own country, and in his own house.” And the result was that they ‘were offended in Him'. That is they were ‘caused to stumble' by Him. They were put off by the very fact of His familiarity, which... [ Continue Reading ]
JESUS IS UNABLE TO DO MANY MIGHTY WORKS IN HIS HOME TOWN, BUT HIS MIGHTY WORKS IMPRESS HEROD WHO THINKS THAT HE MAY BE JOHN THE BAPTIST RAISED FROM THE DEAD (13:58-14:2). The mighty works of Jesus, which they have heard of through the tales spreading from elsewhere (Luke 4:23), have not impressed H... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And he did not perform many mighty works there because of their unbelief.' Jesus was able to accomplish very little in His own home area, simply because, in their unbelief, they did not come to Him or seek His help, apart that is from a few. (Mark states it slightly differently but says the same t... [ Continue Reading ]