January
19th Matthew 13 The Parable of the Sower
1: The same day went Jesus out of
the house, and sat by the sea side. 2: And great multitudes were gathered
together unto him, so that he went into a ship, and sat; and the whole
multitude stood on the shore. 3: And he spake many things unto them in
parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow; 4: And when he sowed, some
seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up: 5: Some
fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung
up, because they had no deepness of earth: 6: And when the sun was up, they
were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. 7: And some
fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them: 8: But other fell
into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold,
some thirtyfold. 9: Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.
The
purpose of Parables
10: And the disciples came, and said
unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? 11: He answered and said unto
them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of
heaven, but to them it is not given. 12: For whosoever hath, to him shall be
given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall
be taken away even that he hath. 13: Therefore speak I to them in parables:
because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they
understand. 14: And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith,
By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see,
and shall not perceive: 15: For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their
ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time
they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand
with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. 16: But
blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. 17: 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.
The
Parable explained
18: Hear ye therefore the parable of
the sower. 19: 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. 20: But he that
received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and
anon with joy receiveth it; 21: 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. 22: 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. 23: 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.
The
wheat and tares
24: Another parable put he forth
unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good
seed in his field: 25: But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares
among the wheat, and went his way. 26: But when the blade was sprung up, and
brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. 27: 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? 28: He said unto them, An enemy hath
done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather
them up? 29: But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up
also the wheat with them. 30: 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.
The
mustard seed
31: 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: 32: 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.
The
leaven hid
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.
Parables
explained
34: All these things spake Jesus
unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them:
35: That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will
open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from
the foundation of the world. 36: Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went
into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the
parable of the tares of the field. 37: He answered and said unto them, He that
soweth the good seed is the Son of man; 38: The field is the world; the good
seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the
wicked one; 39: The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end
of the world; and the reapers are the angels. 40: As therefore the tares are
gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. 41:
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; 42: And shall cast
them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 43:
Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.
Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.
The
buried treasure
44: 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.
The
pearl of great price
45: Again, the kingdom of heaven is
like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: 46: Who, when he had found one
pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.
The
large net
47: Again, the kingdom of heaven is
like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: 48:
Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the
good into vessels, but cast the bad away. 49: So shall it be at the end of the
world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,
50: And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and
gnashing of teeth. 51: Jesus saith unto them, Have ye understood all these
things? They say unto him, Yea, Lord. 52: 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.
Christ
rejected at Nazareth
53: And it came to pass, that when
Jesus had finished these parables, he departed thence. 54: And when he was come
into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, insomuch that they
were astonished, and said, Whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty
works? 55: Is not this the carpenter's son? is not his mother called Mary? and
his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? 56: And his sisters, are
they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things? 57: And they
were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without
honour, save in his own country, and in his own house. 58: And he did not many
mighty works there because of their unbelief.
Now the Lord takes a major change in
his ministry. The Religious leaders had rejected him. He will not teach them
anymore. From now on Christ’s teaching is almost exclusively focused on the
Messianic kingdom. And he speaks only in Parables. The First Parable is the
Sower. In this parable Christ is explaining the fourfold response to the Gospel
of the kingdom. The Ministry of John is the seed on the wayside. The ministry
of Christ is the seed on the shallow soil. It springs up quickly but withers
soon when the sun gets up. The Ministry of the Apostles is fruitful but there
are so many thorns and weeds. In a future day after a time of deep ploughing
the seed will be abundantly fruitful. As so Christ reveals the secrets of the kingdom
of heaven. The Lord is questioned regarding his use of parables and he says l
speak in parables so that those who hear will not understand. The teaching of
Christ comes through parable after parable. None of these parables are about
church truth they all convey some aspect of the Messianic kingdom. For example.
- The waiting of the reapers until the judgment of the living nations. The
treasure of very great price hidden in a field. In Nazareth Christ is rejected.
They cannot see beyond Christ’s childhood and family.
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