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THE GOSPEL
ACCORDING TO
MATTHEW
Commentary by DAVID BROWN
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CHAPTER 13
@Mt
13:1-52. JESUS TEACHES BY PARABLES. ( = @Mr
4:1-34 Lu 8:4-18 13:18-20).
Introduction (@Mt
13:1-3).
1. The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by
the seaside.
2. And great multitudes were gathered together unto
him, so that he went into a ship--the article in the
received text lacks authority
and sat; and the whole
multitude stood on the shore--How graphic this
picture!--no doubt from the pen of an eye-witness, himself
impressed with the scene. It was "the same day"
on which the foregoing solemn discourse was delivered,
when His kindred thought Him "beside Himself"
for His indifference to food and repose--that same day
retiring to the seashore of Galilee; and there seating
Himself, perhaps for coolness and rest, the crowds again
flock around Him, and He is fain to push off from them, in
the boat usually kept in readiness for Him; yet only to
begin, without waiting to rest, a new course of teaching
by parables to the eager multitudes that lined the shore.
To the parables of our Lord there is nothing in all
language to be compared, for simplicity, grace, fulness,
and variety of spiritual teaching. They are adapted to all
classes and stages of advancement, being understood by
each according to the measure of his spiritual capacity.
3. And he spake many things unto them in parables,
saying, &c.--These parables are SEVEN in number;
and it is not a little remarkable that while this is the sacred
number, the first FOUR of them were spoken to the
mixed multitude, while the remaining THREE were spoken to
the Twelve in private--these divisions, four and three,
being themselves notable in the symbolical arithmetic of
Scripture. Another thing remarkable in the structure of
these parables is, that while the first of the Seven--that
of the Sower--is of the nature of an Introduction to the
whole, the remaining Six consist of three pairs--the
Second and Seventh, the Third and Fourth, and the Fifth
and Sixth, corresponding to each other; each pair setting
forth the same general truths, but with a certain
diversity of aspect. All this can hardly be accidental.
First Parable: THE SOWER (@Mt
13:3-9,18-23).
This parable may be entitled, THE EFFECT OF THE WORD
DEPENDENT ON THE STATE OF THE HEART. For the exposition of
this parable, see on Mr
4:1-9,14-20.
Reason for Teaching in Parables (@Mt
13:10-17).
10. And the disciples came, and said unto him--"they
that were with Him, when they were alone" (@Mr
4:10).
Why speakest thou to
them in parables?--Though before this He had couched
some things in the parabolic form, for more vivid
illustration, it would appear that He now, for the first
time, formally employed this method of teaching.
11. He answered and said unto them, Because it is given
unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven--The
word "mysteries" in Scripture is not used in its
classical sense--of religious secrets, nor yet of things
incomprehensible, or in their own nature difficult to be
understood--but in the sense of things of purely divine
revelation, and, usually, things darkly announced under
the ancient economy, and during all that period darkly
understood, but fully published under the Gospel (@1Co
2:6-10 Eph 3:3-6,8,9). "The mysteries of the
kingdom of heaven," then, mean those glorious Gospel
truths which at that time only the more advanced disciples
could appreciate, and they but partially.
but to them it is not
given--(See on Mt
11:25). Parables serve the double purpose of revealing
and concealing; presenting "the mysteries of
the kingdom" to those who know and relish them,
though in never so small a degree, in a new and attractive
light; but to those who are insensible to spiritual things
yielding only, as so many tales, some temporary
entertainment.
12. For whosoever hath--that is, keeps; as a thing
which he values.
to him shall be given,
and he shall have more abundance--He will be rewarded
by an increase of what he so much prizes.
but whosoever hath not--who
lets this go or lie unused, as a thing on which he sets no
value.
from him shall be taken
away even that he hath--or as it is in Luke (@Lu
8:18), "what he seemeth to have," or,
thinketh he hath. This is a principle of immense
importance, and, like other weighty sayings, appears to
have been uttered by our Lord on more than one occasion,
and in different connections. (See on Mt
25:9). As a great ethical principle, we see it in
operation everywhere, under the general law of habit;
in virtue of which moral principles become stronger by
exercise, while by disuse, or the exercise of their
contraries, they wax weaker, and at length expire. The
same principle reigns in the intellectual world, and even
in the animal--if not in the vegetable also--as the facts
of physiology sufficiently prove. Here, however, it is
viewed as a divine ordination, as a judicial retribution
in continual operation under the divine administration.
13. Therefore speak I to them in parables--which
our Lord, be it observed, did not begin to do till His
miracles were malignantly ascribed to Satan.
because they seeing, see
not--They "saw," for the light shone on them
as never light shone before; but they "saw not,"
for they closed their eyes.
and hearing, they hear
not; neither do they understand--They
"heard," for He taught them who "spake as
never man spake"; but they "heard not," for
they took nothing in, apprehending not the
soul-penetrating, life-giving words addressed to them. In
Mark and Luke (@Mr
4:12 Lu 8:10), what is here expressed as a human fact
is represented as the fulfilment of a divine
purpose--"that seeing they may see, and not
perceive," &c. The explanation of this lies in
the statement of the foregoing verse--that, by a fixed law
of the divine administration, the duty men voluntarily
refuse to do, and in point of fact do not do, they at
length become morally incapable of doing.
14. And in them is fulfilled--rather, "is
fulfilling," or "is receiving its fulfilment."
the prophecy of Esaias,
which saith--(@Isa
6:9,10--here quoted according to the Septuagint).
By hearing ye shall
hear, and shall not understand, &c.--They were
thus judicially sealed up under the darkness and obduracy
which they deliberately preferred to the light and healing
which Jesus brought nigh to them.
16. But blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your
cars, for they hear--that is, "Happy ye, whose
eyes and ears, voluntarily and gladly opened, are drinking
in the light divine."
17. For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and
righteous men have desired--rather,
"coveted."
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--Not
only were the disciples blessed above the blinded just
spoken of, but favored above the most honored and the best
that lived under the old economy, who had but glimpses of
the things of the new kingdom, just sufficient to kindle
in them desires not to be fulfilled to any in their day.
In @Lu
10:23,24, where the same saying is repeated on the
return of the Seventy--the words, instead of "many
prophets and righteous men," are "many prophets and
kings"; for several of the Old Testament saints
were kings.
Second and Seventh Parables or First Pair:
THE WHEAT AND THE TARES, and THE GOOD AND BAD FISH (@Mt
13:24-30 36-43 47-50).
The subject of both these parables--which teach the same
truth, with a slight diversity of aspect--is: THE MIXED
CHARACTER OF THE KINGDOM IN ITS PRESENT STATE, AND THE
FINAL ABSOLUTE SEPARATION OF THE TWO CLASSES.
The Tares and the Wheat (@Mt
13:24-30,36-43).
24, 36-38. Another parable put he forth unto them,
saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which
sowed good seed in his field--Happily for us, these
exquisite parables are, with like charming simplicity and
clearness, expounded to us by the Great Preacher Himself.
Accordingly, we pass to: @Mt
13:36-38. See on Mt
13:36; Mt
13:38
25, 38, 39. But while men slept, his enemy came and
sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way--(See on
Mt
13:38,39).
26. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth
fruit, then appeared the tares also--the growth in
both cases running parallel, as antagonistic principles
are seen to do.
27. So the servants of the householder came--that
is, Christ's ministers.
and said unto him, Sir,
didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence
then hath it tares?--This well expresses the surprise,
disappointment, and anxiety of Christ's faithful servants
and people at the discovery of "false brethren"
among the members of the Church.
28. He said unto them, An enemy hath done this--Kind
words these from a good Husbandman, honorably clearing His
faithful servants of the wrong done to his field.
The servants said unto
him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?--Compare
with this the question of James and John (@Lu
9:54), "Lord, wilt Thou that we command fire to
come down from heaven and consume" those Samaritans?
In this kind of zeal there is usually a large mixture of
carnal heat. (See @Jas
1:20).
29. But he said, Nay--"It will be done in due
time, but not now, nor is it your business."
lest, while ye gather up
the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them--Nothing
could more clearly or forcibly teach the difficulty of
distinguishing the two classes, and the high probability
that in the attempt to do so these will be confounded.
30, 39. Let both grow together--that is, in the
visible Church.
until the harvest--till
the one have ripened for full salvation, the other for
destruction. (See on Mt
13:39).
and in the time of
harvest I will say to the reapers--(See on Mt
13:39).
Gather ye together first
the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them--"in
the fire" (@Mt
13:40).
but gather the wheat
into my barn--Christ, as the Judge, will separate the
two classes (as in @Mt
25:32). It will be observed that the tares are burned before
the wheat is housed; in the exposition of the parable (@Mt
13:41,43) the same order is observed: and the same in
@Mt
25:46--as if, in some literal sense, "with thine
eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the
wicked" (@Ps
91:8).
Third and Fourth Parables or Second Pair:
THE MUSTARD SEED and THE LEAVEN (@Mt
13:31-33).
The subject of both these parables, as of the first pair,
is the same, but under a slight diversity of aspect,
namely--
THE GROWTH OF THE KINGDOM FROM THE SMALLEST BEGINNINGS TO
ULTIMATE UNIVERSALITY.
The Mustard Seed (@Mt
13:31,32).
31. Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The
kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed,
which a man took, and sowed in his field;
32. Which indeed is the least of all seeds--not
absolutely, but popularly and proverbially, as in @Lu
17:6, "If ye had faith as a grain of mustard
seed," that is, "never so little faith."
but when it is grown, it
is the greatest among herbs--not absolutely, but in
relation to the small size of the seed, and in warm
latitudes proverbially great.
and becometh a tree, so
that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches
thereof--This is added, no doubt, to express the amplitude
of the tree. But as this seed has a hot, fiery vigor,
gives out its best virtues when bruised, and is grateful
to the taste of birds, which are accordingly attracted to
its branches both for shelter and food, is it straining
the parable, asks TRENCH, to suppose that, besides the
wonderful growth of His kingdom, our Lord selected
this seed to illustrate further the shelter, repose
and blessedness it is destined to afford to the
nations of the world?
The Leaven (@Mt
13:33).
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--This
parable, while it teaches the same general truth as the
foregoing one, holds forth, perhaps, rather the inward
growth of the kingdom, while "the Mustard Seed"
seems to point chiefly to the outward. It being a
woman's work to knead, it seems a refinement to say that
"the woman" here represents the Church,
as the instrument of depositing the leaven. Nor does it
yield much satisfaction to understand the "three
measures of meal" of that threefold division of our
nature into "spirit, soul, and body," alluded to
in @1Th
5:23, or of the threefold partition of the world among
the three sons of Noah (@Ge
10:32), as some do. It yields more real satisfaction
to see in this brief parable just the all-penetrating
and assimilating quality of the Gospel, by virtue
of which it will yet mould all institutions and tribes of
men. and exhibit over the whole earth one "kingdom of
our Lord and of His Christ."
34. All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in
parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them--that
is, on this occasion; refraining not only from all naked
discourse, but even from all interpretation of these
parables to the mixed multitude.
35. That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the
prophet, saying--(@Ps
78:2, nearly as in the Septuagint).
I will open my mouth in
parables, &c.--Though the Psalm seems to contain
only a summary of Israelitish history, the Psalmist
himself calls it "a parable," and "dark
sayings from of old"--as containing, underneath
the history, truths for all time, not fully brought to
light till the Gospel day.
36-38. 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,
&c.--In the parable of the Sower, "the seed is
the word of God" (@Lu
8:11). But here that word has been received into the
heart, and has converted him that received it into a new
creature, a "child of the kingdom," according to
that saying of James (@Jas
1:18), "Of His own will begat He us with the word
of truth, that we should be a kind of first-fruits of His
creatures." It is worthy of notice that this vast
field of the world is here said to be Christ's own--"His
field," says the parable. (See @Ps
2:8).
38. The tares are the children of the wicked one--As
this sowing could only be "while men slept," no
blame seems intended, and certainly none is charged upon
"the servants"; it is probably just the dress of
the parable.
39. The enemy that sowed them is the devil--emphatically
"His enemy" (@Mt
13:25). (See @Ge
3:15 1Jo 3:8). By "tares" is meant, not what
in our husbandry is so called, but some noxious plant,
probably darnel. "The tares are the children
of the wicked one"; and by their being sown
"among the wheat" is meant their being deposited
within the territory of the visible Church. As they
resemble the children of the kingdom, so they are
produced, it seems, by a similar process of
"sowing"--the seeds of evil being scattered and
lodging in the soil of those hearts upon which falls the
seed of the world. The enemy, after sowing his
"tares," "went his way"--his dark work
soon done, but taking time to develop its true character.
The harvest is the end
of the world--the period of Christ's second coming,
and of the judicial separation of the righteous and the
wicked. Till then, no attempt is to be made to effect such
separation. But to stretch this so far as to justify
allowing openly scandalous persons to remain in the
communion of the Church, is to wrest the teaching of this
parable to other than its proper design, and go in the
teeth of apostolic injunctions (@1Co
5).
And the reapers are the
angels--But whose angels are they? "The Son of
man shall send forth His angels" (@Mt
13:41). Compare @1Pe
3:22, "Who is gone into heaven, and is on the
right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being
made subject unto him."
41. The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and
they shall gather out of his kingdom--to which they
never really belonged. They usurped their place and name
and outward privileges; but "the ungodly shall not
stand in the judgment, nor sinners [abide] in the
congregation of the righteous" (@Ps
1:5).
all things that offend--all
those who have proved a stumbling-block to others
and them which do
iniquity--The former class, as the worst, are
mentioned first.
42. And shall cast them into a furnace of fire--rather,
"the 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 Da 12:2): "the 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 remedilessness
issues (see @Mt
8:12)!
43. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in
the kingdom of their Father--as if they had been under
a cloud during the present association with ungodly
pretenders to their character, and claimants of their
privileges, and obstructors of their course.
Who hath ears to hear,
let him hear--(See @Mr
4:9).
Fifth and Sixth Parables or Third Pair: THE
HIDDEN TREASURE and THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE (@Mt
13:44-46).
The subject of this last pair, as of the two former, is
the same, but also under a slight diversity of aspect:
namely--
THE PRICELESS VALUE OF THE BLESSINGS OF THE KINGDOM. And
while the one parable represents the Kingdom as
"found without seeking," the other holds forth
the Kingdom as "sought and found."
The Hidden Treasure (@Mt
13:44).
44. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure
hid in a field--no uncommon thing in unsettled and
half-civilized countries, even now as well as in ancient
times, when there was no other way of securing it from the
rapacity of neighbors or marauders. (@Jer
41:8 Job 3:21 Pr 2:4).
the which when a man
hath found--that is, unexpectedly found.
he hideth, and for joy
thereof--on perceiving what a treasure he had lighted
on, surpassing the worth of all he possessed.
goeth and selleth all
that he hath, and buyeth that field--in which case, by
Jewish law, the treasure would become his own.
The Pearl of Great Price (@Mt
13:45,46).
45. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a
merchantman, seeking goodly pearls.
46. Who, when he had found one pearl of great price,
went and sold all that he had, and bought it--The one
pearl of great price, instead of being found by accident,
as in the former case, is found by one whose business
it is to seek for such, and who finds it just in the way
of searching for such treasures. But in both cases
the surpassing value of the treasure is alike recognized,
and in both all is parted with for it.
The Good and Bad Fish (@Mt
13:47-50).
The object of this brief parable is the same as that of
the Tares and Wheat. But as its details are fewer, so its
teaching is less rich and varied.
47. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net,
that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind--The
word here rendered "net" signifies a large drag-net,
which draws everything after it, suffering nothing to
escape, as distinguished from a casting-net (@Mr
1:16,18). The far-reaching efficacy of the Gospel is
thus denoted. This Gospel net "gathered of every
kind," meaning every variety of character.
48. Which, when it was full, they drew to shore--for
the separation will not be made till the number of the
elect is accomplished.
and sat down--expressing
the deliberateness with which the judicial separation will
at length be made.
and gathered the good
into vessels, but cast the bad away--literally,
"the rotten," but here meaning, "the
foul" or "worthless" fish: corresponding to
the "tares" of the other parable.
49. So shall it be at the end of the world,
&c.--(See on Mt
13:42). We have said that each of these two parables
holds forth the same truth under a slight diversity of
aspect. What is that diversity? First, the bad, in
the former parable, are represented as vile seed sown
among the wheat by the enemy of souls; in the latter, as
foul fish drawn forth out of the great sea of human beings
by the Gospel net itself. Both are important truths--that
the Gospel draws within its pale, and into the communion
of the visible Church, multitudes who are Christians only
in name; and that the injury thus done to the Church on
earth is to be traced to the wicked one. But further,
while the former parable gives chief prominence to the
present mixture of good and bad, in the latter, the
prominence is given to the future separation of the two
classes.
51. Jesus saith unto them--that is, to the Twelve.
He had spoken the first four in the hearing of the
mixed multitude: the last three He reserved till,
on the dismissal of the mixed audience, He and the Twelve
were alone (@Mt
13:36, &c.).
Have ye understood all
these things? They say unto him, Yea, Lord.
52. Then said he unto them, Therefore--or as we
should say, "Well, then."
every scribe--or
Christian teacher: here so called from that well-known
class among the Jews. (See @Mt
23:34).
which is instructed unto
the kingdom of heaven--himself taught in the mysteries
of the Gospel which he has to teach to others.
is like unto a man that
is an householder which bringeth forth--"turneth"
or "dealeth out."
out of his treasure--his
store of divine truth.
things new and old--old
truths in ever new forms, aspects, applications, and with
ever new illustrations.
@Mt
13:53-58. HOW JESUS WAS REGARDED BY HIS RELATIVES. ( =
@Mr
6:1-6 Lu 4:16-30).
53. And it came to pass, that, when Jesus had finished
these parables, he departed thence.
54. And when he was come into his own country--that
is, Nazareth; as is plain from @Mr
6:1. See on Joh
4:43, where also the same phrase occurs. This,
according to the majority of Harmonists, was the second
of two visits which our Lord paid to Nazareth
during His public ministry; but in our view it was His first
and only visit to it. See on Mt
4:13; and for the reasons, see @Lu
4:16-30.
Whence hath this man
this wisdom, and these mighty works?--"these
miracles." These surely are not like the questions of
people who had asked precisely the same questions before,
who from astonishment had proceeded to rage, and in their
rage had hurried Him out of the synagogue, and away to the
brow of the hill whereon their city was built, to thrust
Him down headlong, and who had been foiled even in that
object by His passing through the midst of them, and going
His way. But see on Lu
4:16, &c.
55. Is not this the carpenter's son?--In Mark (@Mr
6:3) the question is, "Is not this the
carpenter?" In all likelihood, our Lord, during His
stay under the roof of His earthly parents, wrought along
with His legal father.
is not his mother called
Mary?--"Do we not know all about His parentage?
Has He not grown up in the midst of us? Are not all His
relatives our own townsfolk? Whence, then, such wisdom and
such miracles?" These particulars of our Lord's human
history constitute the most valuable testimony, first, to
His true and real humanity--for they prove that during all
His first thirty years His townsmen had discovered nothing
about Him different from other men; secondly, to the
divine character of His mission--for these Nazarenes
proclaim both the unparalleled character of His teaching
and the reality and glory of His miracles, as transcending
human ability; and thirdly, to His wonderful humility and
self-denial--in that when He was such as they now saw Him
to be, He yet never gave any indications of it for thirty
years, because "His hour was not yet come."
And his brethren, James,
and Joses, and Simon, and Judas?
56. And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence
then hath this man all these things? An exceedingly
difficult question here arises--What were these
"brethren" and "sisters" to Jesus?
Were they, First, His full brothers and sisters?
or, Secondly, Were they His step-brothers and
step-sisters, children of Joseph by a former marriage? or,
Thirdly, Were they cousins, according to a common
way of speaking among the Jews respecting persons of
collateral descent? On this subject an immense deal has
been written, nor are opinions yet by any means agreed.
For the second opinion there is no ground but a vague
tradition, arising probably from the wish for some such
explanation. The first opinion undoubtedly suits
the text best in all the places where the parties are
certainly referred to (@Mt
12:46; and its parallels, @Mr
3:31 Lu 8:19; our present passage, and its parallels,
@Mr
6:3 Joh 2:12 7:3,5,10 Ac 1:14). But, in addition to
other objections, many of the best interpreters, thinking
it in the last degree improbable that our Lord, when
hanging on the cross, would have committed His mother to
John if He had had full brothers of His own then alive,
prefer the third opinion; although, on the other hand, it
is not to be doubted that our Lord might have good reasons
for entrusting the guardianship of His doubly widowed
mother to the beloved disciple in preference even to full
brothers of His own. Thus dubiously we prefer to leave
this vexed question, encompassed as it is with
difficulties. As to the names here mentioned, the first of
them, "JAMES," is afterwards called "the
Lord's brother" (see on Ga
1:19), but is perhaps not to be confounded with
"James the son of Alphæus," one of the Twelve,
though many think their identity beyond dispute. This
question also is one of considerable difficulty, and not
without importance; since the James who occupies so
prominent a place in the Church of Jerusalem, in the
latter part of the Acts, was apparently the apostle, but
is by many regarded as "the Lord's brother,"
while others think their identity best suits all the
statements. The second of those here named, "JOSES"
(or Joseph), must not be confounded with "Joseph
called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus" (@Ac
1:23); and the third here named,
"SIMON," is not to be confounded with Simon the
Kananite or Zealot (see on Mt
10:4). These three are nowhere else mentioned in the
New Testament. The fourth and last-named,
"JUDAS," can hardly be identical with the
apostle of that name--though the brothers of both were of
the name of "James"--nor (unless the two be
identical, was this Judas) with the author of the catholic
Epistle so called.
58. And he did not many mighty works there, because of
their unbelief--"save that He laid His hands on a
few sick folk, and healed them" (@Mr
6:5). See on Lu
4:16-30.
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