Matthew Chapter 13
Verses 13:1-3: On one of the busiest days of Jesus’ earthly ministry He gave an extended series of parables, (seven in Matthew and four in Mark, including one not given in Matthew). This is the turning point in Matthew’s gospel. Already sensing His impending rejection, Jesus now expresses the “mystery” form of the kingdom that will feature the church.
His early ministry involved a proclamation of the spiritual principles of the kingdom. To bring in a political kingdom before men were born again would be a travesty. Therefore, an interval is now announced between the Messiah’s original appearance and His final return.
That interval is the church age, during which believers are citizens of the kingdom that is within them (Luke 17:21).
This is the third of 5 discourses featured in Matthew.
Matthew 13:1-2 “The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea side.” “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.”
He had probably, been resting in Peter’s home, which was right on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. This multitude of people had probably, been waiting for Jesus to appear again out of the house. He was so pressed by the large number, that He cast out a little way from the shore. His voice would carry well across the water, as well.
Verses 3-10: The first parable is set in an agricultural context. “A sower went forth” refers to the ancient seed sower, planting a crop. Jesus later interpreted this parable Himself. The seed depicts the Word of God (verse 19), and thus the sower is the gospel evangelist.
The “way side” is the path trampled through the field. It was packed hard and the seed found no root, thus the “fowls” (demons; verse 19, wicked ones), snatched it away. Here there was no response at all to the gospel.
The second category is called “stony places” or the rocky ledge beneath a thin, shallow layer of soil. This thin crust would warm quickly causing the seed to sprout instantly but without adequate roots or moisture. Thus, the “sun … scorched” the crop and it “withered away.”
The third group of seeds fell “among thorns” that had not been plowed. The thorns (wild growth), choked out the crop. The “good ground” represents well-plowed and prepared soil capable of producing a large crop. The statement “Who hath ears to hear” goes beyond physical hearing and implies an inner spiritual reception of truth.
This prompted the disciples to ask why He had spoken to them in parables. Whereas before, He had used parables to illustrate His messages, now they formed the basis of the message.
Matthew 13:3 “And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow;”
This section introduces a new subject, a new approach, and a new method of teaching by parables. “He spake … in parables,” a common method of teaching in the Near East, used to convey spiritual truth through a series of earthly comparisons.
“Parables” were a common form of teaching in Judaism. The Greek term for “parable is “long analogy”; often cast in the form of a story. Before this point in His ministry, Jesus had employed many graphic analogies (5:13-16), but their meaning was fairly clear in the context of His teaching.
Parables required more explanation (verse 36), but their meaning was fairly clear in the context of His teaching, and Jesus employed them to obscure the truth from unbelievers while making it clearer to His disciples (verses 11-12). For the remainder of His Galilean ministry, He did not speak to the multitudes except in parables (verse 34).
Jesus’ veiling the truth from unbelievers this way was both an act of judgment and an act of mercy. It was “judgment” because it kept them in the darkness that they loved (John 3:19), but it was “mercy” because they had already rejected the light, so any exposure to more truth would only increase their condemnation.
Matthew 13:4 “And when he sowed, some [seeds] fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:”
“By the way side”: The fields were bordered by paths beaten hard by foot traffic and baking sun.
In this chapter, we will see seven parables; and we will see why Jesus spoke in parables. Parables are stories that have a deep hidden spiritual message. In this particular message, He was speaking about simple farming methods, so the educated would not discern what He was saying.
Jesus came to the common people. They would understand about sowing seeds. The explanation that Jesus gave was so excellent, that I won’t go into much detail about the meaning here.
Matthew 13:5-6 “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.”
“Stony places”: Very shallow soil atop a layer of bedrock. From the top, it looks fertile, but there is no depth to sustain a root system or reach water (verse 21).
Matthew 13:7 “And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them:”
“Thorns”: Weeds, the roots of which were still in the ground after plowing had been done.
Matthew 13:8 “But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some a hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.”
Jesus was describing the different types of people who hear the message of God and the effect it has on them. As He explained it in a few verses below, look at our church goers today, and you will be able to recognize every one you know.
The amazing thing to me, about the Bible is that it never goes out of date. It is just as current now, as was thousands of years ago. The message is the same, because God never changes.
Matthew 13:9 “Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.”
This is an unusual statement, because we all have our two ears hanging on the sides of our head. In some cases, that is the only use (to decorate the head). You see, even though we hear with our physical ears, it does not mean that we receive the message in our inner being.
Jesus was saying, listen with your understanding and receive this message in your hearts. Those of you who are capable (Christians), receive the message that the world cannot understand. In other words, He was going to tell us a secret that would help us understand Him better.
Matthew 13:10 “And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables?”
The disciples did not at first understand why Jesus did not just say exactly what He meant. Jesus did not want these unbelievers accepting the message with their minds. Jesus wants us to accept by faith (not earthly knowledge), the things of God.
This is the very reason that Noah’s Ark has not been found and photographed for the whole world to see. God does not want our heads to believe; He wants our hearts.
Verses 11-13: The Savior’s reply is that only the disciples are to know the “mysteries of the kingdom of heaven.” A “mystery” in the Bible implies a sacred secret into which one must be initiated in order to understand it. The mystery revealed would be the new form of the kingdom during the interval between the first and second advents.
Matthew 13:11 “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.”
“It has been given to you to know”: Here Jesus clearly affirms that the ability to comprehend spiritual truth is a gracious gift of God, sovereignly bestowed on the elect (verse 11). The reprobate ones, on the other hand, are passed over. They reap the natural consequence of their own unbelief and rebellion, spiritual blindness (verse 13).
“The mysteries of the kingdom of heaven”: “Mysteries” are those truths which have been hidden from all ages in the past and revealed in the New Testament. Many specific doctrines of the new Testament are identified as “mysteries” (Rom. 11:25; 1 Cor. 15:51; Eph. 5:32; 6:19; Col. 1:26-27; 2 Thess. 2:7; 1 Tim. 3:9, 16).
Jesus revealed to the people He wanted to know the mysteries. I have discovered that we never fully understand the mysteries of God. Every time I pick up the Bible and read a Scripture that I have read a hundred times before, God will reveal something brand new to me.
The more we search the Scriptures, the more we understand it seems. Some unsaved person can read the Bible over and over and still not understand. The Bible is a spiritual book, and can only be understood through the spirit.
Matthew 13:12 “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.”
To me, this Scripture above is just saying, again, that if we have the Spirit of God within us, our understanding will grow and grow. On the other hand, if we reject the teacher (Holy Spirit), we won’t even be able to retain what we read with our physical eyes.
Matthew 13:13 “Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.”
“Because they seeing see not”: Here Matthew seems to suggest that their own unbelief is the cause of their spiritual blindness. (Luke 8:10), however, emphasizes God’s initiative in obscuring the truth from these unbelievers (“to the rest it is parables, so that seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand, Isaiah 6:9”). Both things are true, of course. Yet we are not to think that God blinds them because He somehow delights in their destruction (Ezek. 33:11).
Again here, Jesus was just explaining that a saved and unsaved person can look at the same thing and get two totally different messages. The unsaved has their understanding darkened, so that they do not understand.
Matthew 13:14 “And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:”
Quoted from (Isaiah 6:9-10). God is the same God in the Old Testament as He is in the New Testament. Isaiah was just saying the same thing again.
Matthew 13:15 “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.”
You see above that these people had, on their own volition, closed their eyes and ears to the truth. They had to take the scales off their eyes and the stoppers out of their ears that they might see, hear, and understand. It all comes about at conversion to Christ.
Matthew 13:16 “But blessed [are] your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.”
It is a blessing from God to be able to see, hear, and understand the Scriptures. The Holy Spirit must be our teacher and our guide. This is a free gift from God; to the blessed of God.
Matthew 13:17 “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].”
(John 8:56; 1 Peter 1:9-12).
You see, in the Old Testament there was a shadow covering the truth. The way to the Holy place was not open to them. The temple’s curtain had not been torn. They understood only in part. They knew God only through the priest in the temple. The great High Priest of all eternity had not come to them yet.
Verses 18-19: Jesus interpreted this parable Himself (in verses 18-23). “The sower” is Christ working through the agency of His disciples to spread the gospel throughout the world. No longer is the message to be restricted to the house of Israel, but is to be declared to all people.
The “word of the kingdom” is the gospel proclamation of Jesus as King and is not to be limited to an Old Testament, Jewish-only message. These parables clearly illustrate that the church is the present-day form of the kingdom.
The key to interpreting the reception of the seed into the ground is the term “understandeth,” meaning to comprehend by believing faith (verse 23). The unsaved listener does not understand and does not receive the seed, whereas the believer both hears and “understands” the message, and his life produces fruit to prove it.
Matthew 13:18 “Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower.”
Jesus was going to show them how to understand this parable.
Matthew 13:19 “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.”
“Word of the kingdom”: The message of how to enter God’s kingdom, the sphere of salvation, i.e., the gospel (“word of reconciliation” in 2 Cor. 5:19).
“Wicked one”: Satan (1 John 5:19). The gospel never penetrates these souls, so it disappears from the surface of their understanding, seen as the enemy snatching it away.
You see, Jesus was saying when you receive the Lord; the old devil will quickly try to tell you that you didn’t get anything. The devil will also, bring numerous temptations to lure you away from Jesus. Your troubles begin when you receive the Lord.
The devil does not want you to be able to stay with your new found faith. This particular parable indicates someone who was too shallow to keep the faith.
Verses 20-23: The “stony places” are shallow-hearted individuals who “anon” (at once), receive (outwardly), the message with “joy.” This emotional convert is not truly born again, for “hath he not” root and withers away.
The one who is “among the thorns” (cares of this world), is the carnal, worldly convert, who never really breaks with his past. Worldliness and materialism “choke the word” in his life, and he is finally “unfruitful” (unsaved).
The one who received seed in the “good ground” is the one who both heard the word and understood it, “which also beareth fruit” (evidence of true conversion). While such evidence may vary in its amount, all true believers will produce some fruit.
Matthew 13:20 “But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it;”
“Stony places”: Some people make an emotional, superficial commitment to salvation in Christ, but it is not real. They remain interested only until there is a sacrificial price to pay, and then abandon Christ.
Matthew 13:21 “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.”
You see, some people who receive the Lord are on fire for God, then troubles come along, and they lose their faith. Unlike Job, who stood against all the problems Satan could throw his way, these fell at the first great problem that came, and went back into worldly living.
Matthew 13:22 “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.”
“Seed among the thorns”: These people make superficial commitments without a true repentance. They can’t break with the love of money and the world (James 4:4; 1 John 2:15-17; 19:16-21).
Matthew 13:23 “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 a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”
“The good ground”: As there were 3 soils with no fruit, thus no salvation, there are 3 kinds of good soil with fruit. Not all believers are equally fruitful, but all are fruitful (7:16; John 15:8).
Verses 24-27: This parable serves as a warning to the laborers in the field (the world, verse 38). Unlike the Jewish form of the kingdom in the Old Testament, where citizens could be easily recognized, during the church age converts will be made from all over the world and received upon their profession of faith. Thus, it will be easier to slip in some counterfeits who profess the church, which is the subject of theses parables.
The “enemy” is Satan and the “tares” (Greek zizanion, “darnel”), are false converts. The darnel was a weed that resembled wheat but did not come to fruition. The “good seed … sprung up, and brought forth fruit” again, emphasizing that true converts product fruitful lives. By contrast, false converts produce no lasting fruit.
Matthew 13:24 “Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field:”
This is the second parable (in Matthew 13). Here, is a farmer going out to plant. Of course, he plants good seed, or else it would be a waste of time to plant. We know that we reap what we sow, if we want corn out of the field, we do not plant peas.
The kingdom of heaven is built with the seed of the Word being planted and growing.
Matthew 13:25 “But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.”
“Tares”: Probably darnel, a type of weed that can hardly be distinguished from wheat until the head matures. In an agricultural setting, sowing darnel in someone else’s wheat field was a way for enemies to destroy someone’s livelihood catastrophically. It pictures Satan’s efforts to deceive the church by mingling his children with God’s, in some cases making it impossible for believers to discern the true from the false. The parable is explained (in verses 36-43).
This sentence is so sad. The wheat are the Christians; and this means that right in the midst of even the church, the enemy sneaks in and plants evil right beside the good. Probably unaware to the owner of the land or the pastor. You see, the farmer (God), would never plant tares. This was an act of the devil himself.
Matthew 13:26-27 “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?”
This parable represents the present and future state of the gospel church; Christ’s care of it, the devil’s enmity against it, and the mixture there is in it of good and bad in this world, and the separation between them in the other world.
So prone is fallen man to sin, that if the enemy sows the tares, he may go his way, they will spring up, and do hurt. Whereas, when good seed is sown, it must be tended, watered, and fenced.
The servants complained to their master; Sir, didst thou not sow good seed in thy field? No doubt he did; whatever is amiss in the church, we are sure it is not from Christ. Though gross transgressors, and such as openly oppose the gospel, ought to be separated from the society of the faithful, yet no human skill can make an exact separation.
Verses 28-30: The servants asked what could be done with these tares. To uproot them would be to damage the entire crop. “Root up … the wheat with them:” The implication seems to be that too much scathing of people’s genuineness of faith may damage the saved before it exposes the lost.
“Let both grow together” indicates that there will always be some false professors among true Christian believers until the “time of harvest” or judgment. Note that the tares are gathered, bound, and burned first, whereas the wheat is gathered into “my barn (heaven).
Matthew 13:28 “He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?”
Those who oppose must not be cut off, but instructed, and that with meekness. And though good and bad are together in this world, yet at the great day they shall be parted; then the righteous and the wicked shall be plainly known; here sometimes it is hard to distinguish between them. Let us, knowing the terrors of the Lord, not do iniquity.
You see, there was recognition right off that the devil had been to the field and sown these evil ones. Sometimes the person sitting on the pew beside you in church is not really a believer, but has been placed there by the devil to disrupt what is going on. These believers, here, are asking the Lord, should we throw them out of the church?
Matthew 13:29 “But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.”
All through the Bible, the wheat stands for the true believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. You know in a church, if you begin to throw the enemy out, some of the true believers will be hurt and leave. It is just best to leave them alone and feed them the un-watered down truth; and they will either repent and be saved, or they will leave on their own; because they cannot stand the truth.
Matthew 13:30 “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 Christians will be gathered and taken to the Master’s barn (heaven). You see, this Scripture occurs at the end of the Gentile age when God decides that it is time to reap the harvest of the Christians from the earth.
These reapers are the angels God sends to get the job done for Him. Angels are ministering spirits directly under the command of God. We will read more about this later in this lesson.
Verses 31-32: (See Mark 4:30-34; Luke 13:18-19).
The “mustard seed is unusually small and yet grows to a great size. The idea seems to be that the tiny beginning of the church will eventually culminate in great growth. “Herbs” (Greek lachanon), are garden plants or vegetables.
However, such numerical growth will come to harbor the “birds” (evil ones). The parable accordingly foreshadows the growth of the church into a world power. However, outward growth is not always a true picture of spiritual depth.
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.”
“A tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches”: Palestinian mustard plants are large shrubs, sometimes up to 15 feet high, certainly large enough for birds to lodge in. This is undoubtedly a reference to several Old Testament passages, including (Ezek. 17:23; 31:6; Dan. 4:21), passages which prophesied the inclusion of Gentiles in the kingdom.
Have you ever seen an, “on-fire-for-God Christian”, who was as small as a grain of mustard seed? When he gets saved, he cannot be quiet. The first thing you know, he has led hundreds to God. You see, we are all grafted in the tree of life (Jesus), when we get saved.
Just one true believer can add mightily to that tree. He is the vine; we are the branches. We do provide shelter for the lost of the world.
Verses 33-35: “Kingdom of heaven” is the spiritual form of the kingdom in the church. “Leaven” is a lump of old dough in a state of fermentation, which makes the bread dough rise. It is virtually always used as a symbol of evil (Matt. 16:6-12; Mark 8:15; Gal 5:9).
“Three measures of meal”, a common baking quantity (Genesis 18:6), equivalent to one-and-a half gallons. (Greek saton, Hebrew seah). The leaven is not just false profession of unsaved church members but false doctrine that they will attempt to bring into the church.
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.”
“The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven”: Here the kingdom is pictured as yeast, multiplying quietly and permeating all that it contacts. The lesson is the same as the parable of the mustard seed. Some interpreters suggest that since leaven is nearly always a symbol of evil in Scripture, it must carry that connotation here as well.
They make the leaven some evil influence inside the kingdom. But that twists Jesus actual words and violates the context, in which Jesus is repeatedly describing that kingdom itself as the pervading influence.
Matthew 13:34 “All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them:”
“Without a parable spake he not unto them”: For the rest of the Galilean ministry all Jesus’ public teaching consisted only of parables.
Matthew 13:35 “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.”
“Spoke by the prophet”: The “prophet” in this case was the psalmist (see Psalm 78:2).
You see again, that Jesus spoke in parables so the worldly people could not understand with their minds, and come to God not with their hearts, but with their minds. These secrets, that Jesus was revealing, were things of the dispensation of grace, not the law.
Matthew 13:36 “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.”
You see, at this time the disciples had not received the Spirit (teacher), and they did not understand; because parables must be understood by the Spirit.
Matthew 13:37 “He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man;”
“He that soweth”: The true sower of salvation seed is the Lord Himself. He alone can give the power in the heart to transform. He is the One who saves sinners, even through the preaching and witnessing of believers (Rom. 10:14).
Matthew 13:38 “The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked [one];”
Jesus is the Word. Believers in the Lord Jesus have to grow in the midst of evil. We must be tried, or else the Lord would not truly know if we belong to Him. You see, Satan’s crowd is all around us.
Matthew 13:39 “The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.”
You see, the devil is headed for a burning hell, and he would like to see all of us go there with him. He brings every temptation known to man to cause us to stumble and fall. Sometimes, we are unaware who the enemy is.
Sometimes he lives in a physically beautiful girl, or a handsome young man. We are nearing harvest time; the time when the trumpet will blow and the Christians will be carried away to God’s barn (heaven). Angels are ministering spirits. We Christians have been called to bring in the harvest.
Matthew 13:40 “As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world.”
“As therefore the tares are gathered” As it is represented in the parable, that in the time of harvest, the tares shall be gathered out from the wheat first; and being bound in bundles, shall be burnt in the fire, prepared for that purpose,
So shall it be in the end of this world; hypocritical and heretical men, and all formal professors, shall be gathered out from among the saints, and the several churches, among whom they have been; and shall be together cast into everlasting burnings, prepared for the devil and his angels, whose children they are.
Matthew 13:41 “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;”
“The Son of man shall send forth his angels” Meaning himself, whose ministers the angels are; who wait upon him, and are at his beck and command; even the thousand thousands that minister unto him; these will be sent forth by his orders, into the whole parts of the world.
Matthew 13:42 “And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”
“And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth”. What terrific strength of language, the “casting” or “flinging” expressive of indignation, abhorrence, contempt (compare Ps 9:17; Dan. 12:2). “A furnace of fire” denoting the fierceness of the torment: the “wailing”, signifying the anguish this causes; while the “gnashing of teeth” is a graphic way of expressing the despair in which its being without remedy issues (see Matt 8:12).
This will be a time of trouble such as the world has never known before. Just to know that we would be forever separated from Jesus would be bad enough, but to burn forever would be horrible. Jesus is the Judge. He decided which way we go. Truly though, it is our decision to follow Him in truth, or not.
Matthew 13:43 “Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.”
“Shine forth as the sun”: (Daniel 12:3). Believers already shine in that they possess the Spirit of Christ and the glorious message of the gospel (5:16; 2 Cor. 4:3-7). We will shine even more in the glory of Christ’s kingdom and eternal heaven (Rom. 8:16-23; Phil. 3:20-21; Rev. 9:7-9).
It is beyond description what is waiting for the true believer, who stays faithful to the end. It will be one eternal day with the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. We will shine, because we will be in the presence of the Light (Jesus). Here, Jesus just said one more time; don’t turn away from God. Let that still quiet voice bring you to the Lord.
Verses 44-46: These two parables have identical meanings. Both picture salvation as something hidden from most people, but so valuable that people who have it revealed to them are willing to give up all they have to possess it.
Matthew 13:44 “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.”
This Scripture above is telling us that we must be willing to give up the things of the world. Nothing is more valuable than the things of God. Whatever price we have to pay is not too much to follow Jesus.
Verses 45-46: The “merchant man” is Christ, who comes to purchase, through His atonement, sinners who shall become “goodly pearls.” The “one pearl of great price” is the church for whom Christ gave His life, that is, “all that he had.”
While we receive Christ as Savior, we also progressively continue surrendering areas of ourselves to Him as we come to know better His will for our lives.
Matthew 13:45-46 “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.”
That of the treasure hid in the field. Many slight the gospel, because they look only upon the surface of the field. But all who search the Scriptures, so as in them to find Christ and eternal life (John 5:39), will discover such treasure in this field as makes it unspeakably valuable; they make it their own upon any terms. Though nothing can be given as a price for this salvation, yet much must be given up for the sake of it.
Here again, this Scripture is saying that the greatest value in the world is Jesus. The pearl of great price here, is the most valuable item. It just means salvation through Jesus Christ. Christians must be willing to give all they have for the kingdom.
Verses 47-50: The dragnet was pulled between two boats or taken out into the water by a single boat and drawn to shore by ropes. In such a process all kinds of fish and other objects would be caught together. The “good” were put in “vessels,” while the “bad” were cast away to be burned “of fire” (in hell). The imagery is similar to the parable of the tares (in verses 24-30).
Matthew 13:47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind:”
“Net”: Some fishing was done with a large weighted net dragged along the bottom of the lake. When pulled in, it contained an assortment that had to be separated. In a similar way the visible kingdom, the sphere of those who claim to be believers is full of both good and bad and will be sorted in the judgment.
Matthew 13:48 “Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away.”
This is very interesting. Salvation is offered to everyone. The “sea” here, means masses of people. You see, Jesus has thrown the net for everyone. He died for all, but not everyone receives salvation.
At a special time, everyone will die to this world and stand before Jesus. The Christians will be the keepers in this fish net. Those cast away (those who do not believe in the Lord Jesus), will be condemned to hell.
Matthew 13:49 “So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,”
“Angels”: They serve God in judgment (verse 41; 2 Thess. 1:7-10).
Matthew 13:50 “And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”
This is just a more detailed description of the separation of the followers of Jesus and the followers of Satan. Those who reject Jesus as Savior will burn forever in hell.
Matthew 13:51 “Jesus saith unto them, Have ye understood all these things? They say unto him, Yea, Lord.”
The “them” here, means the disciples. After Jesus explained to them how to interpret these parables, it was easy for them to see.
Matthew 13:52 “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.”
“Bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old”: The disciples were not to spurn the old for the sake of the new. Rather the new insights they gleaned from Jesus’ parables were to be understood in light of the old truth, and vice versa.
In the Gospel of Matthew, the kingdom of heaven receives special treatment. The terms kingdom of heaven and kingdom of God are often used interchangeably to refer to the whole body of believers.
The seven parables in Matthew 13 prophetically describe the course of this age.
- First, there will come a period of sowing the gospel throughout the world (verses 1-23).
- Second, there will occur a counter-sowing by Satan (verses 24-30; 36-43).
- Third, there will be an outward growth of Christendom, but not necessarily of the true church. It will grow from insignificant beginnings to exert worldwide influence (verses 31-32).
- The fourth parable of leaven (principle of corruption), contrasts true doctrine with the false doctrine sown by a corrupt church to an unconverted world (verses 33-35).
- The fifth parable, pictures Christ seeking the lost in all the world (verse 44), to gather a special people to Himself.
- The sixth parable, of the lost pearl represents Christ finding the church (verses 45-46).
- The last parable, tells how God will end the age in judgment (verses 47-51).
Some believe that the seven parables, like the seven churches (Rev. Chapters 2-3), suggest a development of the gospel in this age. Even though the parables show growth of the church, each Christian should plant the seed of the gospel in the hearts of others.
I believe this probably has to do with old and new information, which is knowledge we have learned through the Spirit of God. Some things we know and have known for quite a while. Some things we learn new every day. We must write these things, so others may share in them.
Verses 53-58: Jesus then gave His disciples a firsthand opportunity to witness the truth of these parables in action by teaching at the “synagogue” in His hometown (Nazareth, not Capernaum). The people were “astonished,” that is, greatly amazed or astounded. “Carpenter’s son”, refers to the family trade of Joseph, Jesus’ legal guardian and earthly “father,” being the husband of Mary.
The word carpenter (Greek tekton), may refer to either a carpenter or a stonemason. The indication is that Jesus had learned His family’s trade. There is no valid reason for understanding “brethren” and “sisters” in any sense but the normal one. They are Jesus’ half-brothers and half-sisters, the children naturally generated by Joseph and Mary after Jesus’ virgin birth.
Two of them, James and Judas (Jude), wrote New Testament epistles and played a prominent role in the early church.
Matthew 13:53 “And it came to pass, [that] when Jesus had finished these parables, he departed thence.”
These parables and their meaning were for the disciples’ instruction.
Matthew 13:54 “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?”
“Into his own country”: I.e., Nazareth.
Notice, this said in “their” synagogue. They recognized Jesus as a great teacher and even recognized Him for His great miracles, but they really had no idea who He was. They called Him a man. They really thought anyone not taught in their schools could not possibly know anything worthwhile.
Matthew 13:55 “Is not this the carpenter’s son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas?”
“His brethren”: The fact that Joseph does not actually appear in any of these accounts suggest that he was no longer living.
Matthew 13:56 “And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this [man] all these things?”
We will hear the Lord Jesus say later that a prophet is not without honor, but in his own home town. They knew Jesus in the flesh, not in the Spirit. They could not believe that He was anyone special, because they knew His earthly family.
Had they known the Scriptures as well as they thought they did, they would have recognized Him as God’s only begotten Son.
Matthew 13:57 “And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honor, save in his own country, and in his own house.”
“A prophet … without honor … in his own country”: This is an ancient proverb paralleling the modern saying “Familiarity breeds contempt.” They knew Jesus too well as a boy and a young man from their own town, and they concluded that He was nothing special (verse 58 gives the sad result; Mark 6:4).
Isn’t this the way even with people who are called to the ministry today? Friends and family have a very hard time believing that you have been called of God. We will see the results of unbelief in the next verse. It is really difficult to minister to people who do not believe that you are called of God.
Matthew 13:58 “And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.”
Mark 6:5 “And He could do no miracle there except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them.”
This is not to suggest that His power was somehow diminished by their unbelief. It may suggest that because of their unbelief people were not coming to Him for healing or miracles the way they did in Capernaum and Jerusalem.
He had the power to do more miracles, but not the will, because they rejected Him. Miracles belonged among those who were ready to believe.
“So many times when Jesus healed someone, He would say, your faith has made you whole. Faith has everything to do with healing, and even with salvation. Without faith, it is impossible to please God.