Similitudes of the Kingdom, Part 2: February 2021
Table of Contents
Theme
In Matthew 1 it is recorded, “All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us” (Matt. 1:22-23). The long-promised Messiah has been born. He grows up quietly in Nazareth. When the time arrives, as Isaiah had prophesied, the forerunner, John the Baptist, presents him to the nation with the message, “Repent ye: for the kingdom of the heaven is at hand.” With preaching and works of power, the King presents Himself, for the nation to repent of their sinful ways and receive their king. Sadly, led by their religious leaders, they reject their king, stating, “We will not have this man to reign over us.” As a result, the kingdom on earth is deferred. Being presently rejected, He returns to heaven after his mighty work of redemption on the cross is done. Presently the kingdom is a “kingdom of the heavens,” as the king is in heaven while those who accept Him are on earth. And those who now accept Him as Savior are destined to be with Him in heaven as His bride when He comes again to reign. This issue explains some of what has been happening since His rejection, while waiting for the time to return in power, putting down any who oppose Him and establishing a kingdom of power and glory that will never be replaced.
Treasure Hid in a Field
The Lord had told His disciples that the righteous should shine as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Had our Lord not been rejected, all the righteous would have been established in the Messiah’s kingdom on the earth. But the rejection and death of Jesus has had two consequences (we do not say only two): It necessarily brought judgment and vengeance upon Israel, but it has also called into existence glories and positions of glory which otherwise could not have been. His own people having put it from them, the kingdom could not now be of this world.
The present heirs must have their position elsewhere, and according to the principles of divine grace, a better place than the one on earth is provided for them. When evil has come in and set aside the grace of God, the blessing is never restored in precisely the same way. If God delays the promised blessing, that which He gives instead always exceeds the first promise. So here, when the kingdom could not be immediately set up, another and a better thing is provided for those who did believe. They shall shine as the sun in the kingdom of their Father — a reward outside the world.
The Lord’s Treasure
This leads the Lord Jesus to show how they are viewed while yet in this world; they are a treasure. They are in contrast with the field as a whole, which is not a treasure. They were once children of wrath, even as others, but are now separated, though as in the body still in the field. But the old connection is broken, and a new one subsists between them and their Father; their place now is to witness to the grace that saved and the power that keeps them, and to endure patiently the persecution which necessarily follows. Accordingly, it is with sole reference to the righteous that this parable is spoken.
I do not think that the “righteous” are confined to the church. It is the kingdom of the Father which is in view, and all that inherit that heavenly kingdom are included in the “righteous.” Of course, the church is among them with a peculiar position. But in this parable, it is evident that the kingdom of the heavens presents a very different aspect from that of the previous similitudes. There is no power and dominion here; no branches to support birds; no energy of leaven permeating the mass. The treasure and the pearl represent the good seed — the real heirs of the kingdom. The wondrous fact presented to us is not the value or greatness of those whom the Lord calls His treasure, but His love to it.
The Field
There are three things in this parable — the treasure hid in the field, the purchase of the field, and the immense cost. The word here rendered “field” is generally used for uncultivated, wild and unproductive land. In this unpromising place a treasure is found, but Jesus alone could discover it. Of course, we know that there could be no treasure here, any more than good ground in the first parable, without the Spirit of God first producing it. Nothing but grace has made us different from others, and nothing but the preciousness of the sprinkled blood makes us a treasure. The field at large partakes of His bounties, but the righteous alone are a treasure. The treasure is in contrast with the field, just as the wheat was with the tares. And if the field eventually comes under the judgment of God, we know that no saint, whether of Old or New Testament times, will be judged. They all then must necessarily be of the treasure, and all are included in the name “righteous.”
The Kingdom in Mystery
The treasure is “hid in a field.” This gives no foundation whatever for the notion of an invisible church. Rather, this is a similitude of the kingdom as it now exists in mystery, and as a treasure it is hidden; it is not now manifested as such. That is, the condition of the righteous ones, who form the true kingdom here below, does not show to men the reality and nature of it. That which man has made is certainly manifested. The idea of a great tree giving shelter to birds, or of three measures of meal completely leavened (I speak here of its developed presence), is not a hidden thing. But those who are now in the kingdom are for the most part the humble and poor, and sometimes the persecuted and martyred. That such are the true representatives of the kingdom and a treasure to Christ never occurs to the world. Men know that there are believers in Christ, and they are shrewd enough to discern between a real believer and a mere professor, but that such should be a kingdom is to them fanaticism.
It is only when He appears that we shall be displayed in all the glory His grace has conferred upon us. At present, the real character and destination of the “treasure” is hidden. The world sees only a poor, despised and downtrodden company who, in the midst of scorn, endeavor to keep aloof from the world. Jesus says they are His treasure. We are in the kingdom that shall never be moved. And we are there, not as subjects, but as kings and priests, for Jesus is gathering now out of this world those who shall be heirs, not subjects, of the future kingdom. Is it a marvel that the world knows us not? We have not yet put on our royal robes. The world, having no hope beyond this life, says of us, “Of all men most miserable”; Jesus says, My hidden treasure! The treasure for which the field is bought is hid. It was for its sake alone that the field was bought. He could have it in no other way.
Words of Truth, Vol. 3 (adapted)
The Treasure
“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).
Most persons have had their hearts set upon a treasure of some kind. “Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Luke 12:34). In the Scripture before us, Matthew 13:44, the Person is the Son of Man, and the treasure is the church, which is hid in a field. It could not be Israel, for they were not hidden. A Man, having found the treasure, hid it, as we read in Colossians 3:3 — “Your life is hid with Christ in God.” His eye had caught sight of something that filled His heart, and He sold all that He had and bought the field (the world) in which the treasure (the church) was found. The Father is preparing each soul to be the means of display of glory, and for eternal companionship with Jesus.
“Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name. And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him” (Mal. 3:16-17). Malachi speaks of the time when the Lord will make up His jewels. Preparation is made now in view of that day.
Holy Jerusalem
“And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal; and had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates ... And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass. And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst” (Rev. 21:10-12,18-20).
Stones exemplify beauty, rarity, durability, and fixed color and are named because of color, not from their source. Each of the twelve stones of Revelation bears a different color or hue, and all speak of the glory of God, for color typifies glory shining through a variety of prisms. Each precious stone will display through a prism, in varying shades as a spectrum of color, the glory of God to all created intelligence.
The Manifold Wisdom of God
Ephesians 3:10 speaks of the “manifold wisdom of God.” This could be translated, “the multi-colored wisdom of God.” “Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen” (Eph. 3:21). This verse seems to take us farther into eternity than any other. What an effect this should have on us now, to cause us to walk carefully that we might adorn the doctrine of God our Savior. We marvel as the counsels of God are opened to us, revealing coming things and the preparation being made now in each believer during the allotted span of life, a lasting work that only the Father of spirits can produce in our spirits.
All the history of the saints is an exhibition of the hidden eternal counsels of the divine bosom to be revealed later. The art of educating man’s spirit to the finest temper lies only with the Father of spirits.
Who but God can read the motives of the heart? Who but God can prepare man — the heart of man, for an environment that is wholly of God? We shall be at home there as natives in our own country. Treasure may be composed of many pieces, usually gold, silver, or precious stones, each having its own history. There were times when kings or noblemen, when visiting one another, would bring forth their treasures for display. Days may have been spent telling the history of each gem. Some were gained in battle, some purchased, others found in the lower parts of the earth in mines. When jewels are displayed, they have already been prepared. Color is the most important consideration, especially in precious stones, although shaping and chiseling are also required. Some, such as the sardius, excel in depth of color. To arrive at the proper color in each stone, infinite skill is required, accomplished by God Himself, through affliction under His government. Some cringe when the term “government of God” is used, but every believer is under the government of God, even as a child is under a governor. To miss this is to miss the very center of all God’s ways with us.
Afflictions and Trials
“O Lord, by these things men live, and in all these things is the life of my spirit: so wilt thou recover me, and make me to live” (Isa. 38:16). In Isaiah 54:11 we see the government of God in operation for our blessing — “O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colors, and lay thy foundations with sapphires.” It is through suffering that each color is formed and will transmit the light of the glory of God. Color is produced under a combination of pressure and heat in the lower parts of the earth. We feel the suffering — the pressure — the heat, but God tells us how it all takes place and provides the answer to the question, “Why?”
As we pass through deep trials, sometimes without comfort, let us, as believers in the Lord Jesus, remember the One who experienced many more times the suffering we have, and was also forsaken of God, as He made atonement for us. How our spirits are cheered to know that each pain we feel He has felt, and He sympathizes with us. Little do we realize as the hours of suffering slowly pass, that skillfully, with the Master hand, the stone is being formed to its proper hue, just right for its eternal purpose. Not a tear will ever fall, not a groan will be uttered, but that which is necessary in order that the color in the prism might be perfect.
“When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then thou knewest my path,” said David in Psalm 142:3.
The Future Creation of God
Everything in the future creation of God will perfectly harmonize. The groans here, in the meantime, are by the earnest of the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. How the knowledge of all this gives light to our souls and strength on the bed of languishing so that we can suffer cheerfully just a little longer that the true color might fully form. Should there be a blemish in the stone, iron oxide or whatever, the lapidary places the stone in the fire, heated at the proper temperature to erase the iron oxide stain and leave a clear color. This is chastening. “By these things men live” (Isa. 38:16). How the thought of chastening is so much better understood when we realize that it is a necessary part of the eternal purpose!
However, a stone cannot be placed in the fire without a covering. It would break in pieces. Christ is our covering, for His work covers our whole history. It was Christ who bore the wrath of a sin-hating God and as a result has brought us to God in all the perfection of His finished work. The lapidary makes a solution of boric acid powder and water, completely enclosing the stone which is to pass through the fire. It is the same fire that Jesus went through without a covering. When dry, the stone, with covering, is placed in the fire and as it reaches the exact temperature the stone will come forth free of all defilement and with its proper color, being itself unaffected by the fire. Such is the operation of God, preparing each believer and removing morally all that which would spoil the color and the stone.
But it is said, “I will ... lay thy foundations with sapphires” (Isa. 54:11). Sapphires stones and also rubies come from a base of corundum, or aluminum oxide. This material has no color and is practically worthless as far as gems are concerned, but the processes of heat and pressure in the deep places of the earth prepare the pieces of corundum, which in itself is worthless, into comely gems. These will be part of the foundations of the heavenly city. When we behold the spectrum with its varied hues, our spirits are awed at the excellence in exhibition. So it will be to earth and to all creation when the glory of God will finally be seen in the church by Christ Jesus.
C. E. Lunden (adapted)
The Pearl
“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).
“Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in Thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them. How precious also are Thy thoughts unto me, O God! How great is the sum of them” (Psa. 139:16-17).
Although the kingdom of heaven is likened to both the treasure and the pearl, the important lessons differ.
The Formation of a Pearl
A treasure may be composed of many pieces, as gold, silver and precious stones, but the pearl is one, not composed of many pieces. As precious stones pass through the fire, different colors are formed, each its own color as designed by the Father of spirits. By contrast, the pearl is formed in living tissue inside an oyster.
Because of constant irritation from foreign matter deposited in the flesh of the oyster, either naturally or by a culturer, the pearl begins to develop. “Nacre,” the secretion which accumulates upon the foreign matter, the “seed,” forms evenly throughout, and the original shape of the “seed” remains. The moment the irritation begins, the secretion begins to make the pearl.
The inside of the oyster shell is sometimes referred to as pearl, and it is composed of the same nacre as the pearl. If there is no irritation, the oyster will spend its life for present advantage, garnishing its shell inside, only to rot at the close. Likewise, if man’s conscience is not awakened, he never begins to prepare for the future.
The Memory of the Just
“The memory of the just is blessed: but the name of the wicked shall rot” (Prov. 10:7).
He closes his life as he starts it — worthless, dying as he lived. When the life of the oyster that has formed a pearl is over, it leaves something of worth. It is sad indeed to see souls pass on their way who will leave nothing but a vessel of clay when they die.
In a natural setting, pearls have been found in the bottom of the Sea of Japan and the Indian Ocean. For our purpose, we would rather speak of the cultured pearls, because they are produced under an orderly procedure.
The Production of Pearls
Pearls are formed only in the sea. A small seashell, round in shape, having the same specific gravity as the material in the pearl, is mined in the lower Mississippi River Valley. It is minutely small but perfectly round. What a lesson for parents! The beginning of life has much to do with its end. This small shell or seed is shipped to the Sea of Japan where most cultured pearls are formed. One seed is placed in each newborn oyster but never until the oyster opens its shell of its own accord. Is this not so in the work of God with each individual soul, as to salvation? Each oyster with seed implanted has a hole drilled in the shell through which a small dacron line is secured and hung free from a rope let down into the sea to a depth of proper temperature where there is food (plankton) for the oyster. This food is a compound of calcium and protein. If too much of either nutrient is given, an undesirable shade is produced.
Discipline is a necessary part of the culture, as we have noticed with the implantation of the irritating seed.
In the book of Proverbs, the second verse begins with the words “to know.” “To know” is the experience of a wise man corrected and disciplined. The pearl is a picture of the individuals who form the church, and unless there is correction and discipline, one will never know spiritual things. Repentance is the starting point.
Regularly each oyster is scrubbed and kept clean. If the poisonous living substance called “red tide” floats past, the oysters are removed from the sea until the danger is over. All of this speaks of the Lord’s constant care for the church and its discipline while here on the earth. It takes years of patient handwork, for only God’s sovereignty can produce pearls in His church.
A Symbol of Feminine Graciousness
An oyster may live as long as five years. Most pearls are harvested before that time because they may be expelled from the oyster if not removed. They are harvested in different sizes. In a pearl necklace there is a gradation from a large middle front pearl to small ones at the back. How comforting for one who loses a young child to know that the little one is safe in Christ! The material of which the large one is made is the same as the small — Christ formed in each believer. “As for God, His way is perfect” (Psa. 18:30). When pearls are nearly ready for gathering, the oysters are moved to the deep cold waters to bring out the luster with the hue. The lustrous pastel shades of the pearl represent the beauties of Christ formed in us by the Spirit down here, but for heaven. The pearl is a symbol of feminine graciousness. The church has that character, being the bride of Christ.
The pearl is an emblem of worth, elegance, effulgence, delicacy, intrinsic value, and depth of beauty. These delicate feminine graces are formed within the oyster in the pearl through suffering. There will never be a pearl where there has been no suffering, a necessary element of the Christian life.
Oh, precious pearl, the fruit of sorrow, toil and wasting,
The constant sore, the bitter grief of emptiness here tasting:
I cannot close the shell to pain and nacre’s flowing,
Lest, haply, in the harvest, naught but the shell be showing.
The Individual Character
It is rather interesting to observe that pearls are much like persons. Each has its own character and attraction. There are no two alike. One may be acquainted with many, but there comes a time when one person catches the eye, and that is the one who is really beyond all others — the one desired.
It is so with the Lord Jesus. The church cost Him all that He had, but He bought it. Never throughout eternity will we know how much we cost Him and how much He loves us. There should be a response in our hearts in keeping with such love. The pearl now being formed will be just fitted for His eternal joy and satisfaction. It will be the beauty of the one pearl which will satisfy His heart.
After the pearl is purchased, it must be worn or it loses its beauty and luster; it should be washed with soap and water regularly to keep the lustrous beauty intact. All this speaks of exercise of soul and the consciousness that we represent Christ here in this world.
The Gates of One Pearl
Each of the twelve gates of the heavenly Jerusalem will be fashioned of one pearl. What a display of glory meets the eye of anyone approaching the heavenly city in the millennial day! That heavenly city will come down over the earth in administrative excellence, an exhibition of the unveiled glory of God seen in the church by Christ Jesus. The glory will be seen throughout eternity!
How our hearts and voices will swell with praise and worship as the shout opens heaven to receive the church, ushering her into the presence of God, into the Father’s house!
C. E. Lunden (adapted)
The Pearl Is the Church
“And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass” (Rev. 21:21). In the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven in Matthew 13 we get the figure of a pearl of great price, which when a merchantman found, he went and sold all that he had and bought it (verses 45-46). The merchantman sets forth Christ, while the pearl of great price is the church in her moral beauty, value and unity. Christ, though rich, became poor that He might purchase it. The great price was His own precious life’s blood. He gave Himself for it (Eph. 5:25). In the coming day the twelve gates of the holy city on high are twelve pearls. “Each one of the gates, respectively, was of one pearl” (JND). The moral beauty of the church shines at every gate. “And the street of the city” is, so to speak, paved with purity, righteousness and holiness. It was of “pure gold.” There is no alloy there. Like the city generally in verse 18, the pure gold of the street is as clear as transparent glass. Perfect transparency wholly characterizes it.
E. H. Chater
Christ Found the Church
In the parable of the pearl of great price, we have again the same idea as the treasure hid in a field, but it is modified by others. A man was seeking goodly pearls. He knew what He was about. He had taste, discernment, knowledge, as to that which He sought. It was the well-known beauty of the thing that caused His research. He knows, when He has found one corresponding to His ideas, that it is worthwhile to sell all that He may acquire it. It is worth this in the eyes of one who can estimate its value. And He buys nothing else with it. Thus Christ has found in the church by itself a beauty and (because of this beauty) a value, which made Him give up all to obtain it. It is just so with regard to the kingdom. Considering the state of man, of the Jews even, the glory of God required that all should be given up in order to have this new thing, for there was nothing in man that He could take to Himself. He was not only content to give up all for the possession of this new thing, but that which His heart seeks for, that which He finds nowhere else, He finds in that which God has given Him in the kingdom. He bought no other pearls. Until He found this pearl, He had no inducement to sell all that He had. As soon as He sees it, His mind is made up; He forsakes all for it. Its value decides Him, for He knows how to judge, and He seeks with discernment.
I do not say that the children of the kingdom are not activated by the same principle. When we have learned what it is to be a child of the kingdom, we forsake all that we may enjoy it, that we may be of the pearl of great price. But we do not buy that which is not the treasure, in order to obtain it, and we are very far from seeking goodly pearls before we have found the one of great price. In their full force, these parables only apply to Christ. The intention in these parables is to bring out that which the Lord was then doing, in contrast with all that had taken place before, with the Lord’s relations to the Jews.
Present Testimony, Vol. 7
What the Church Is to Christ
It is good sometimes to see the saints, the church and people of God in their own beauty as viewed of God; it elevates our thoughts, gives God’s mind of what is lovely, and shows what we ought to be. But all this is according to what is in God’s mind, so that His affections and delight are revealed to us. Surely it will humble us as to our practical state. Thus in the parables of the treasure hid in the field and the pearl of great price, we have what they are to Christ. He sells all He has to have them, gives up His life, everything, to have them, for joy thereof; what a place to have with Him! Indeed, in a higher scene, when in the form of God, He gave up the outward glory, made Himself of no reputation, and took on Him the form of a servant. When He was rich, for our sakes He became poor, that we through His poverty might be made rich. But doubtless the parable specially refers to His giving up what He possessed as Messiah, but not excluding higher glory. So He shall see the fruit of the travail of His soul in us and be satisfied. In the parable of the pearl of great price, He was looking for what was especially lovely and beautiful; He understood it, was seeking it, according to His estimate of what was beautiful, and that was according to Himself. He found one especially lovely and sold all to have it — the saints in whom He could delight and be satisfied; He gives up all for them. How lovely they must be in His mind, for they are indeed according to it! He loved the church and gave Himself for it, to sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the Word, to present it to Himself a glorious church, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish — a pearl of great price. Hence He will be, in the end, glorified in His church and admired in all them that believe. How blessed, and what rest it gives the heart! But even now He says, “I am glorified in them” (John 17:10).
J. N. Darby
Every Several Gate Was of One Pearl
Regarding the heavenly Jerusalem, it is not righteousness maintained in power, but grace that will be its characteristic. There is nothing more instructive than taking that which is to be the character of the heavenly Jerusalem and comparing it with that of the church now. We ought to be now anticipating what we shall become actually in the day when the Lord gives us glory. Nothing that defiles was to enter into that heavenly city: The leaves of the trees were for the healing of the nations. This should be the character of the church now — purity, love and grace towards the world. Our place is that of drawing down now the character of grace that will be displayed in the glory. We do not see in the heavenly Jerusalem the security of righteousness exhibiting itself in power against others, but in grace. Paradise in the Garden of Eden knew nothing of grace; innocent man might live in it, but there was no tree of life there for those who had failed. In the New Jerusalem, we read that “the street of the city was pure gold.” Gold is that of which the mercy-seat and girdle were made. Righteousness is the very walking place of the saints there. Instead of its defiling us, as the world does now, and making our feet need the washing of our High Priest, the very place on which they walk will be the righteousness of God. “Transparent glass” denotes true holiness. The character of the divine purity is aimed at in the laver, ministering death and resurrection. Then, the place of our conversation — that on which we stand and walk — will be righteousness and true holiness. In us the world will see that glory which we shall see immediately. “Every several gate was of one pearl.” They will discern in us then the beauty and comeliness which Jesus will have put on us.
The Character of the Goodly Pearl
We read of the church under the character of a goodly pearl, which when the merchantman found, sold all that he had for it. Its comely beauty is thus exhibited, and its desirableness to the merchantman, which made him willing to sell all that he had for it. Christ, for that loveliness with which God clothed the church, did the same. The doorway of the city has the character of grace in the flowing forth in the river of the water of life. Here are no plagues and curses. It is most profitable to bring the light of the glory of the coming dispensation to the circumstances in which they are, so that the character of that light may be expressed in these circumstances. The case of the Jews who walked in the light of the coming dispensation — those who had faith and hope in that which was not present and who thus obtained a good report through faith (Heb. 11) — brought the energy of the divine thoughts into their circumstances, though walking obediently to the dispensation they were in.
The Earthly, Millennial Kingdom
I would refer to a passage in Psalm 145, speaking of the blessing of that day, where we have brought before us the blessing of the saints on earth when Messiah takes His place in the kingdom. It is a conversation between Messiah and the Jewish saints in that day, stating what their happiness will be. The deliverance of Israel and God’s dealings with them will make them competent to declare His acts to the people which shall be born. Messiah and His saints speak of these things together, and they tell the nations what their God is (Psa. 145:11-12); then we have the character of the kingdom. Israel’s business will be that of learning the character of God, to make it known to the Gentiles, and this should be the business of the saints now. The world cannot know God, but we are called to be the “epistle of Christ, known and read of all men” (2 Cor. 3:2). The church has to be Christ’s letter of recommendation to the world. The church, being made a partaker of grace, can rise above all law demands. Innocence could not do this. There was no healing tree in the garden of Eden, but the church being made a partaker of grace now, the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
The Love Between Christ and the Church
The greatest part of the church’s blessing consists in being united with the Lord Himself. It is not merely that it is glorified and loved, but that the Father loves us as He loves Jesus. The best proof of this love is that He has given Jesus for us. That love which is brought out through the glory associates the church with the Son: He comes in the glory, and the glory which it will have is consequent on love. The source of the glory which will be displayed is more blessed even than the manifestation of it. It is blessed to be manifested in favor, and why? Because the favor of the person is precious to me. In John 17:23 the Lord prays that the world may know that “Thou hast loved them as Thou hast loved Me.” While the Lord has obtained all for us, yet, when He comes to give His bride her glory, He does not say that it is a proof that He has loved her. Rather, in the blessed self-hiding of love, He says that it is the Father’s love: “Thou hast loved them as Thou hast loved Me.” This is exceedingly blessed and beautiful. The Lord gives witness before the world, not that He loves her, for this was shown in His meeting her need, in the necessity of her sinfulness. There is nothing more precious than the love between the church and Himself, but to the world He exhibits the church as loved by the Father, which gives it honor, not in connection with sin and shame. We see the same principle brought out in the history of the prodigal son. However touching that love may be between the ruined sinner and the Father, which causes Him to fall on his neck and kiss him, yet before the servants He takes him home in honor, with the best robe on and the ring on his hand.
We have to understand the depth of the love of Christ in meeting the sinner. This brings out the costliness of His love, but there is something besides this. When He loved the church before the world, it is as the Father’s giving her glory and taking delight in her. The love of our Lord Jesus is perfectly blessed, touching, and considerate towards us; there the heart’s affections learn to delight in Him. I would now merely refer to one passage, Ephesians 5:27: “That He might present unto Himself a glorious church.” As God took Eve and presented her to Adam, so the last Adam will present the church unto Himself. There will be all the divine delight in doing it. The church is called the Lamb’s wife, because He suffered for her. It is impossible without suffering to bring out the fullness and savor of love.
The Divine Source
The heavenly Jerusalem is shown (in Rev. 21) to be really of divine source, “descending out of heaven ... having the glory of God.” When we think about sin, without reference to the glory of God, we come short of a right estimate of it. The moment we have tasted of the “glory of God,” compared with this everything is sin. The blessing of the church must not come short of this glory. The Father has loved the church and given it to the Son. The bride is taken out of Christ and has the “glory of God.” Man, having got the knowledge of good and evil, must either be miserable in using knowledge against God, or by faith rise above the evil as God is above it. Hence it is this which is the place of the church in union with Christ, and grace is wrought into glory. We see that “the glory of God did lighten it” and that the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it, not the Father. While God unfolds Himself in His various characters, in His wisdom, in different dispensations, the very place of the worship of the church is that which is the whole display of God’s wisdom and power. “The Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.” In Ephesians 3:21 we read, “Unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end.” This seems to raise the church as the crown of all dispensations, set up as over, and the link of God with, all dispensations. The glory will then be His: “To Him be glory in the church,” according to the power which works in us.
J. N. Darby (adapted)
A Net Cast Into the Sea
Matthew 13:47 says, “The kingdom of heaven is like unto a net that was cast into the sea and gathered of every kind.” In this last parable the kingdom is again presented as comprehending the whole of Christendom, as it is in its effects and purpose in the eye of God. The means used for this is likened unto a net cast into the sea. The net is evidently the preaching of the cross of Christ, while the sea speaks of the inhabitants of the earth in a state of tumult and lawlessness. It is into such a world that the gospel net has been cast, and fishes of every kind are enclosed. Within the bounds of Christendom there are real and false disciples of Christ.
What a different view is taken of the kingdom, according as we look at it from the earth or from the heavenly places! From the former we get only its external features — a great wheat field, but spoiled by tares; a great tree, with its vast branches shooting out on every side; and a mass of meal with leaven working till the whole was leavened. It is a system adapting itself to the characteristics of the different nations among whom it is established, for it is the intent of Satan to bring such men under the control of a priestly, quasi-spiritual bondage, in utter contravention of God’s purpose in establishing His church in the world. God calls to separation from the world, and it is only when in ‘‘the house,” and our minds under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, that we see the extreme contrariety between the true position of the saint and that which is assumed by the professing world. In the parable of the tares, the reason is given why, or how, tares came to be mingled with the wheat. Here we have no reason given why the net encloses bad fishes as well as good ones; it is simply the fact. The net is God’s means for gathering out His own.
The Mixed Character of the Kingdom
This parable of the net and that of the tare-field bear this resemblance, that they both present to us the mixed character of the kingdom. They differ in that the latter views the kingdom during the continuance of the present age; the former discloses that which, for the most part, takes place at the end. Thus, in the parable of the net, the great thought is in the act of the fishermen selecting the good and putting them into vessels, and in rejecting the bad. The fishermen are not the active agents in punishing the bad: They simply leave them, casting them away. The angels here, as in the parable of the tares, are the executors of God’s vengeance. It is a picture of the whole as it appears to God, as He would have His saints view it, and the means He has adopted in calling out His people from the world. It is the winding up of the present age.
The good are first taken care of and put into vessels by those fit for that work; after that selection (how long is not said), the angels do their work. The putting of the good into vessels is not confined to one act, but rather gives the character of the time which will elapse from the first separation to the establishment of the millennial kingdom. And we know that the rapture of the church will take place before judgment descends upon the wicked, for the church of God is ever directed to expect the coming of the Lord Jesus at any moment. His disciples are always to be waiting, always expecting. But there are many prophecies which must be fulfilled before His (and our!) appearing can take place; there are signs given which shall usher in the great and terrible day of the Lord.
The Floor Purged
The gathering of the good fish into vessels by the fishermen is evidently an act distinct from the separation of the wicked from among the just. The fishermen gather the good into vessels, to take care of and preserve them — an act of interest and value. The angels sever the wicked from among the just. It is the contrast of those who sought out the good; these seek out the bad for punishment and “cast them into the furnace of fire” — an act of vengeance and wrath. The term “the just,” then, comprehends more saints than those standing in full Pentecostal privilege; some of them are slain, having a share in the first resurrection; some are not slain, but preserved to form the living nucleus of the millennial kingdom. At the very end of the tribulation, the beast and the false prophet are cast alive into the pit. Then the angels come forth and go through the length and breadth of the kingdom to gather out all things that offend. Then will the floor of the kingdom be purged; earthly friendships, gender and association will be unheeded by these messengers. Two men shall be in the field, and two women at the mill: The one shall be taken and the other left. Whether abroad or at home, the angels shall sever the wicked from the just.
Two Aspects of the Kingdom
To sum up, we have in these parables an epitome of the history of the religious world, from the Lord’s first advent to His second, given under two general aspects. There is the gift of salvation by grace to man, and then what man has made of it. There is also what God has done, in spite of the perversity of man, and the termination of the whole, bad and good. We stand at the starting point, and look through the scene right up to the end, having a bird’s-eye view of the whole. Man and the enemy having to do with it, the character of the kingdom soon degenerates; the tares spread and give character to the field. The crop is spoiled, though the Son of Man had sown! But though the tares have ruined the work of God, the wheat is there also. These two coexist until the end, when the great separation takes place. In the parables of the tree and the leaven, the evil is developed; in the hid treasure and the pearl, the accomplishment of God’s purpose appears, notwithstanding the baneful influence of Satan. But God does not forego His design. The treasure is found and secured. All is given up for the pearl, which shows forth His grace and love, and He is glorified.
The last parable, the net, brings out conspicuously the time of the end. The two parties in the kingdom are seen together again, but only to be forever separated, when the end of the age comes, and judgment falls upon the wicked. The history of Christendom is over; the millennial kingdom begins. “Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father” (Matt. 13:43).
R. Beacon (adapted)
The Gospel Net
The gospel net has been cast into the sea of the nations and has enclosed of all kinds. After this general gathering, which has filled the net, the agents of the Lord, having to do with the good, gather them together, separating them from the bad. Remark here that this is not the primitive gathering together of the church, but a similitude of the kingdom. It is the character which the kingdom assumes, when the gospel has assembled together a mass of good and bad. At the end, when the net has been drawn, so that all kinds are enclosed in it, the good are set apart, because they are precious; the others are left. The good are gathered into vessels. The saints are gathered, not by the angels but by the work of those who have labored in the name of the Lord.
The execution of the judgment is another matter. The laborers have nothing to do with that. At the end of the age, the angels shall come forth and sever the wicked from among the just and shall cast them into the furnace of fire, where there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Here, nothing is said about the just. Gathering them into vessels was not the angels’ work, but that of the fishermen. The public result had been given, whether during the period of the kingdom of heaven or afterward in the parable of the tares. It is not repeated here. The work to be done with regard to the righteous when the net is full is added here. The destiny of the wicked is repeated, to distinguish the work done with respect to them, from that wrought by means of the fishermen who gather the good into various vessels. Still, it is presented under another aspect.
Present Testimony, Vol. 7
The Dragnet
“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” (Matt. 13:47-48). Here we have the final results of the operations of God, man and Satan during the period called Christianity. As a net cast into the sea, the gospel has gone forth into all the world, with its touching appeal to men of every nation. It has achieved results which are manifest to the eyes of all. Both good and bad have been gathered in: the good fish representing those who, having humbly acknowledged their guilt and ruin, have been cleansed from their sins by the Savior’s precious blood; the bad being those who profess and call themselves Christians, but with no love for the Savior’s person and no living faith in the gospel. Although mistakes in discernment are only too possible, all those who truly belong to Christ are solemnly responsible to distinguish, in godly fear, between those who are good and those who are bad, companying with the one and avoiding the other.
The End of the Age
When the gospel net is full, it will be drawn to shore. How soon this will take place is known to none but God, though everything around us is suggestive that the end of the age is drawing near. Then will ensue the great separation, which will sever the ungodly from even the outward communion of the godly forever. According to the teaching of the parable, the fishermen’s duty was to care for the good fish. This is the present responsibility of those who in this day serve the absent Christ. The fishermen merely cast the bad fish out of the net; they were not the ones they had been fishing for. The judgment of God upon false professors will be meted out, not by human hands, but by angelic power. “So shall it be at the end of the age [not ‘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” (Matt. 13:49-50). Such is the end of Christendom, as described by God Himself; not the whole world subdued to Christ by the operation of religious agencies, but eternal ruin for many who have passed among their fellows as Christians. The Savior will undoubtedly have His own, though the final discrimination by His unerring hand will reveal an appalling amount of unreality and hypocrisy in the circle of those who, in one way or another, bear His holy name.
W. W. Fereday (adapted)
Things New and Old
After having laid out the parable of the sower, which gives the basis of God’s dealings with man in the kingdom of heaven, and then six of the similitudes of the kingdom, our Lord asks His disciples, “Have ye understood all these things?” (Matt. 13:51). They immediately reply, “Yea, Lord.” No doubt they did have more intelligence than those around them, for they not only heard the parables, but were privy to the explanations which our Lord gave to them. He could say to them, “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” (Matt. 13:16-17). However, when the Holy Spirit came down on the day of Pentecost and indwelt those same disciples, they must have realized how little they really had understood. It was not until the Holy Spirit came down and indwelt every true believer that there was real intelligence in divine things.
Thus our Lord was looking on to that day when they, being “instructed in the kingdom of heaven,” would be able, out of their treasures, to bring forth “things new and old.” This is a remarkable expression, which ties together the revelations God had given in the Old Testament and those He has now given consequent upon the full display of His grace in His beloved Son. The “old things” had already been given, but now God was going to utter “things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world” (Matt. 13:35). Another has expressed it very well:
“Earthly” and “Heavenly”
“Now we know that the Lord Jesus Christ took the place of the distinguished Prophet — the Prophet of new things, and so, in measure, does every one instructed in the kingdom of heaven (Matt. 13:35,52). In this sense the least one there (in the kingdom of heaven) is greater than John the Baptist (Matt. 11:11). Paul was eminently among these instructed scribes, being conscious that he was bringing forth the new things (see 1 Cor. 2; Eph. 3; Col. 1), things kept secret, or hidden mysteries. And no scribe is duly instructed in the kingdom of heaven or a due teacher in the present dispensation who does not discern between the things ‘new and old.’
“But the old things as well as the new are of grace. The difference is rather in the old being Jewish or earthly; the new being of the church or heavenly (John 3:12). This is the difference. But the old or Jewish things very distinctly tell of final grace and salvation. Israel having destroyed themselves through disobedience, God at the last will arise in grace for their help and recovery. They are now a scattered and judged people, but again they will be gathered and blessed under the true David, the true King of Zion, the true Lion of Judah. And in the integrity of a heart that never can swerve and in the skillfulness of a hand that never can err, He will keep and feed His Jewish flock on their native mountains” (J. G. Bellett).
New Things
These new things are mentioned later, when we read, in Ephesians 3:8, the phrase “the unsearchable riches of Christ.” Surely they are unsearchable, for all eternity will not exhaust those riches! How much less can we get to the end of them during our lifetime down here! However, in another sense, those riches were unsearchable in the Old Testament, for they were not revealed until an ascended Christ gave them to Paul by divine revelation. They are searchable now, for they have been revealed, although our apprehension and enjoyment of them may be very limited. But we are entitled now to have all those treasures — “things new and old” — not only for our own enjoyment, but to be brought forth for the blessing of others.
Instructed in the Kingdom
It is important to be “instructed unto the kingdom of heaven” in things both new and old. But we notice an order here; the new are mentioned before the old. This makes it clear to us that, while there are indeed many treasures in the things which are old — the things given to us in the Old Testament under Judaism — they are fully revealed only by our having a knowledge of the new things — those things now revealed by the Holy Spirit, while the rightful King is absent. Many principles and truths given to us in the New Testament are illustrated for us by various lives and incidents recorded in the books of the Old Testament. Likewise, the prophecies given in the Old Testament dovetail and complement those given in the New Testament. However, in order to understand and put those prophecies in their right place, New Testament truth must be understood.
Thus Daniel, when he had received the wonderful prophecies about the future of his people, had to say at the end, “I heard, but I understood not” (Dan. 12:8). The only answer he received was, “Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end” (Dan. 12:9). It remained for those of a future day, who would understand the new things, to be able to put Daniel’s prophecies into a right perspective. Truly we, who live in this time of the kingdom of heaven and in the time of God’s grace, are a most privileged people! All things, both new and old, are there for our instruction and enjoyment.
W. J. Prost
The Pearl of Great Price
From high the Lord beheld, ere worlds began,
As though it were the residence of man,
This teeming earth, by sin and hate defiled
Estranged from God, perverted, lawless, wild.
But underneath the mass of sin and vice
He saw a pearl of untold, matchless price;
On it He set His yearning heart, and then
Gave all He had and bought the peerless gem.
Of it possessed, His gracious purpose is
To make it shine in everlasting bliss;
To polish it is now His constant care,
His image on its beauteous face to bear.
A. M.