AT 13{
Introduction
In Matthew's gospel, the Lord Jesus is sent to "the lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Matt. 15:24). From the beginning, both John the Baptist (Matt. 3:2) and the Lord Himself (Matt. 4:17) preach the nearness of the kingdom. Accordingly, they call upon the people to repent. Their hearts must be morally prepared by repentance if they are to receive the King when He appears. In addition, the Lord presents Himself to the people with many miraculous proofs of His Messiahship. Nevertheless, they refuse both Him and His testimony.
By the time we come to Matt. 12 then, things have come to a head. The Jews have gone so far as to ascribe the Lord's mighty works of power to that of Satan. (Matt. 12:24.) Therefore, when, in their unbelief, they ask Him for still one more sign, He tells them they'll get no sign but that of Jonah the prophet. (Matt. 12:38-40.) As Jonah had been sent to the Gentiles after having spent three days and three nights in the fish's belly, so the rejected Christ would turn to the Gentiles after having spent three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. In the process of time of course, both of these developments have taken place. Three days after He was crucified, the Lord was raised from among the dead; and He has now turned to the Gentiles.
Accordingly then, when the Lord was raised from among the dead, the Jews should have known; but as we know, even that wasn't enough to overcome their unbelief. (See also Luke 16:27-31.) To this day, it is rumored among the Jews that the Lord's disciples came by night and stole His body away and then claimed He had been raised from among the dead (See Matt. 28:11-15.). Today therefore, that is where things stand with that people.
In view of this state of things therefore, chapter 13 of Matthew begins with the Lord's going out of the house, a figure in the Scriptures for the nation of Israel. (As we have already noted, He had come to "the lost sheep of the house of Israel" [See also Zech. 13:6.]). Having left the house, He goes to the sea, a figure in the Scriptures for the restless and unstable nations of the Gentiles. It is from there that He teaches His doctrine and sets forth the seven parables of our chapter.
In them, He speaks of the kingdom of heaven, but in a mysterious form—that is, as a thing hidden and unseen. (See Matt. 13:11.) This expression is intended to convey the idea that, unlike the kingdom the Lord would have set up if the Jews had received Him as their Messiah, it is presently a heavenly one and, therefore, spiritual and unseen. When Christ comes though "with power and great glory" to set up His millennial kingdom, it will be neither mysterious nor hidden, but rather, earthly and, therefore, visible and material. (See Matt. 24:30.) In the meantime then, the kingdom is a thing for faith and not for sight; hence, its "mysterious" character.
Verses 3-8,18-23: the Parable of the Sower AT 13:3-8{AT 13:18-23{the Seed That Is Sown Is the Word of God. There Are Four Kinds of Soil Into Which the Seed Falls. They Are by the Wayside, in Stony Places, Among Thorns, and Upon Good Ground. in Each Instance, Those Places Are Really the Hearts of Men. When the Seed Falls by the Wayside and It Is Not Understood, the Fowls, Figurative of Satan or His Emissaries Come and Snatch It Away. When It Falls on Stony Ground Though, Because It Doesn't Have Depth of Root, It Springs up Quickly; but As Soon As the Sun Becomes Hot, Figurative of Tribulation or Persecution, It Withers Away and Dies. When It Falls Among the Thorns, Figurative of the Cares of the World or the Deceitfulness of Riches, It Grows up With Those Thorns and Is Eventually Choked off by Them and Becomes Unfruitful. When It Falls Upon Good Ground Though, Necessarily Figurative of a Heart in Which There Is Living and Active Faith, It Bears Varying Measures of Fruit, Some a Hundredfold, Some Sixty, and Some Thirty.
The issue then is not whether this one or that one has faith and, therefore, divine life. Instead, it is the effect produced by the Word in any given heart. Any one of the first three may or may not be a believer. The last one however has to be a believer, because only a believer can bring forth fruit for God's glory and pleasure.
Verses 24-30, 36-43: the Parable of the Tares AT 13:24-30{AT 13:36-43{This Parable Is the First of Ten Parables That Are Said to Be Likenesses of the Kingdom of Heaven. Six of the Ten Are Found in This Chapter and the Remaining Four in the Following Passages: Matt. 18:23-35; Matt. 20:1-16; Matt. 22:1-14; and Matt. 25:1-13. As Might Be Expected, Since These Parables Have to Do With the Kingdom in Its Mysterious Aspect, They Have to Do Primarily With This Present Dispensation, During Which God Is Taking Out a Heavenly People for Himself.
Although the explanation of the parable of the tares does extend on into the millennial kingdom, the parable itself is a characterization of what is taking place morally in the world at this present time. A man sows good seed in his field. Then, as men (not the householder) sleep, the sower's enemy comes and sows tares among the wheat. The wheat and the tares both grow up together and the householder's servants offer to take the tares out from among the wheat. Fearing they might uproot the wheat as well as the tares though, he tells them they should leave them alone. When the wheat is fully mature, he will have his reapers gather the tares into bundles for the burning; and the wheat will be gathered into his barn. At the time of harvest then, he will send forth the reapers to cast the tares into the furnace for the burning.
At this point, the Lord Himself explains the parable to His disciples alone. He, the Son of man, is the sower; the field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the tares are the children of the wicked one, which professing to be Christians, are nevertheless without faith; the enemy is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age in which the Lord was then speaking; and the reapers are the angels.
He goes on to explain further. At the end of the world (or "the age" in which He was then speaking), the Son of man will come and will send forth his angels to gather out of His kingdom all things that offend and do iniquity. The unbelieving apostates, left over from the "assembly age," will then be taken, one here and one there, and cast alive into the lake of fire for the burning. There shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. (See also Matt. 24:40-41.) After that, the heavenly saints will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father as they reign with Christ above the earth for a thousand years. (See Rev. 21:9-22:4.)
Verses 31-32: the Parable of the Grain of Mustard Seed AT 13:31-32{the Lord Compares the Kingdom of Heaven With a Grain of Mustard Seed, Which Is the Smallest of Seeds, but Grows Into the Greatest of Herbs. a Man Sows It in the Field, and It Grows Into Such a Great Tree That Even the Birds of the Air Find Ample Lodging in Its Branches.
Already in this chapter, the Lord has given us enough information to understand the force of this parable. The field, as we have already seen, is the world, and the birds, wicked emissaries of Satan, come to subvert the truth of God's Word in the hearts of men (See also Gen. 15:11 and 2 Sam. 21:10.). They use whatever means they might in accomplishing their ends. One of their commonest tactics is to corrupt the truth while maintaining the form of the Word itself.
Now, what is there in the New Testament that might answer to these symbolic representations? On the day the assembly was first formed, there was only a handful of souls present—perhaps, 120. Then, as a result of Peter's preaching, some 3000 more souls were saved and added that same day. As time passed and the gospel seed was sown throughout the region and on to the uttermost parts of the earth, more and more souls were added to those first few thousand. Since then and down through the centuries, we have no way of knowing how many more souls have been saved. At any rate though, there have doubtless been millions and millions of them and, perhaps, more. What started out very small therefore has grown disproportionately into a great multitude of saved souls.
At the same time though, there have also been many souls, who, though not saved, have nevertheless professed to be Christians. Accordingly, what began as the house of God and the assembly, composed of a few real believers on the Lord Jesus Christ, has now grown into a great house, consisting not only of real believers, but also of false professors as well. (See 1 Tim. 3:15; 2 Tim. 2:19-20; 3:1-5.) As men became careless then, and even perverse, moral, doctrinal, and ecclesiastical evils were introduced into the house, where they were allowed to flourish until it became a great house. As such therefore, the house of Christian profession has become very large indeed and highly corrupted in both doctrine and practice. What is left of this house after the true assembly's rapture to heaven will be characterized as "the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird" (Rev. 18:2).
Verse 33: the Parable of Leaven in Three Measures of Meal AT 13:33{This Time, It Is a Woman That Is Featured. She Hides Leaven in Three Measures of Meal (Flour) Until the Whole Thing Is Leavened. Again, the Word of God Is Its Own Interpreter. Throughout the Scriptures, Leaven Is Employed As a Figure for Evil, Whether Moral, Doctrinal, or Ecclesiastical. It Is so Whether in the Political, Legal, or Rational Arenas of Thought and Action.
Furthermore, as already observed, it is a woman that introduces leaven into this loaf. It is however not permitted that a woman teach or exercise authority over a man, whether in the assembly or elsewhere. (See 1 Cor. 14:34-5 and 1 Tim. 2:11-12.) Now then, in the New Testament Scriptures, the assembly (whether true or false) is depicted everywhere as a woman. Doubtless therefore, this woman represents any system that takes the place of being the assembly and, therefore, of a woman. Nevertheless, she assumes the place forbidden to women and becomes a teacher of spiritual things. (It is often said, "the assembly teaches this or that." The assembly, however, doesn't teach, it is taught. It is taught by the teachers given it by its ascended Head. See Eph. 4:11) In doing so then, she introduces both doctrine and practices that are contrary both to God and to His Word.(See Rev. 2:18-23.). Thus, evil is introduced into the profession of Christianity, which evil will continue on and will spread until the whole thing is leavened.
The ultimate realization of this condition of things though will take place only after the rapture. At that point, every true believer will have been taken out of the world and up into heaven, leaving only those whose profession of Christianity is false. Then, while there will still be that in the world that claims to be Christian, the profession will be altogether empty. There won't be a single true believer left in it. Accordingly, the entire thing will have become leavened and an object for the judgment of Christ (See Rev. 17-18 in their entirety.).
Verse 44: the Parable of Treasure Hidden in a Field AT 13:44{in This Parable, the Kingdom of Heaven Is Likened to Treasure Hidden in a Field, Whose Whereabouts and Existence Is Altogether Unknown to Anyone. Then, a Certain Man Finds It and, Having Hidden It, Goes and Sells All He Has, in Order to Buy the Field, so He Can Get the Treasure That's in It.
Once more, by now, we know what the field is. It's the world. There's a treasure in it however, which has never before been seen, but which a man now discovers and will spare nothing to get it. He sells everything he has and spends all, in order to possess the treasure his heart craves.
Surely, Christ is the man; and you and I are the treasure. So great was His love for each one of us individually that He gave up everything He had, in order to get us for Himself. The cost though was so great that it also paid for the purchase of the whole world. Accordingly, He not only has sole rights over us, but He also has sole rights over the whole world too, as well as over everybody that's in it. Moreover, so complete is His ownership of all things that, believers and unbelievers alike are His possessions and come under His lordship. (See 1 Cor. 6:19-20; 2 Peter 2:1; etc.) Therefore, when He sets up His earthly kingdom, it will be, in effect, His redemption of the possession already purchased. (See Eph. 1:10,13-14.)
Verses 45-46: the Parable of the Pearl of Great Price AT 13:45-46{in the Previous Parable, the Treasure Found Has All Individual Vessels of God's Mercy in View. in This One Though, the Kingdom of Heaven Is Compared to Just One Thing, a Single Pearl of Great Price. ("Many Members, yet but One Body" [1 Cor. 12:20.]) a Certain Merchantman Is Looking for Goodly Pearls; and When He Finds This One, Its Beauty Is Such That It Ravishes His Heart. He Goes and Sells All He Has, in Order to Buy It for Himself.
There is no field here, no world, but just the pearl. (Note, however, that a pearl is harvested from the seas, typical, as we have already seen, of the restless nations of the Gentiles.) Even before the foundation of the world, the assembly was in the eternal counsel of God and will continue when there is no longer any world left at all. (See Eph. 1:4; 5:25-7; and Rev. 21:2.) There is nothing more precious to the heart of Christ than His assembly, which is His body. In heaven and throughout all the ages of eternity, His bride will hold the nearest place to Him. There will be the earthly redeemed; but while near, they will not share the closeness that will be hers. What is more, even in heaven, there will be various families of angelic beings and redeemed souls; and while they will all enjoy His presence, none of them will enjoy the nearness that she will enjoy.
Verses 47-50: the Parable of the Net Cast Into the Sea AT 13:47-50{the Kingdom of Heaven Is Likened to a Net Cast Into the Sea. Then, When It Is Full of Every Kind of Fish, They Pull It to Shore and Put the Good Fish Into Vessels and Cast the Bad Away. Likewise, at the End of the World (or "the Age" in Which the Lord Was Then Speaking), the Angels Will Sever the Wicked From the Just and Cast the Former Into the Fire. There Shall Be Wailing and Gnashing of Teeth.
As always, the Word of God is its own interpreter. As we have already noted, the sea is a commonly used figure in the Scriptures for the restless, turbulent, and unorganized masses of Gentile nations in contrast with the land, a figure for a settled sphere of things, where order is maintained. Further, when the Lord first calls Peter and Andrew to follow him, they are fishermen mending their nets. He tells them that, if they will follow Him, He will make them "fishers of men.”
The net therefore is the "gospel net." The gospel has been going out to the Gentiles now for nearly 2000 years. As to the fish, which are of "every kind," they are men from all nations, not merely those from among the Jews. Those who separate the good fish into vessels and cast away the bad fish are those whose responsibility it is to exercise discerning oversight in the local assembly. (Not everybody that professes to be a Christian really is a Christian.) The "vessels" are the local assemblies themselves. Then, after the assembly has been raptured away and the end of the Mosaic age arrives, then it will be that the angels will sever the wicked from the just and cast the former into the lake of fire.
Summary These Parables Give Us the Full Range of Events From the Time of the Lord's Ministry Here on Earth to the Time of His Setting up of the Millennial Kingdom and of Its Heavenly Side. None of Them However Takes Us Beyond the Millennium or Into the Eternal State. What Began on Pentecost As a Very Small Thing Has Now Grown Into a Great Edifice, Where Wicked Men Find Accommodations for Themselves and for Their Corrupting Influences Upon the Truth of God. Evil Doctrines and Practices Have Already Leavened the Loaf of Christian Profession, Whose Leavening Will Be Total After the Rapture. at His Appearing Though, When He Comes to Set up His Earthly Kingdom, the Lord Will Both Judge and Destroy the Entire Thing.
Nevertheless, in the meantime, God is also working. He acknowledges what He is doing as His own workmanship. There is the treasure, found by Christ in the world, the acquisition of which has also resulted in His obtaining present and future ownership of the whole created universe. Furthermore, there is that one pearl of great price, so costly and ravishing in the beauty of its oneness that He gives all He has to gain it for Himself. Finally, there is the gospel net as the means by which men are brought into blessing; and there are the solemn implications for those who will not have it.
Now, last of all, God has not given us this outline of things merely to satisfy our natural intellects or idle curiosity. He has given these things to us that our hearts might be affected by them. Therefore, may He grant our hearts to understand them in such a way as to have a moral effect upon our walk and ways. (See again vs. 8, 23.) The way in which we receive them will have its eternal consequences. True Christians are not of this world or its moral order. They are a heavenly people and, therefore, have nothing to say to this world, whether political or religious. They are, after all, only "strangers" in this world and "pilgrims" passing through an alien land on their way to their eternal home above. (See John 14:2-3; 17:16-18; Phil. 3:20-21; Col. 3:1-4; 1 Thess. 4:16-17; Heb. 3:1; 11:8-16; 13:14; 1 Peter 2:11-12; and Rev. 3:10.)