Mateus 13
A.T. Robertson · Citado em PreceptAustin
Mateus 13
Robertson observes that "this group of parables is placed by Matthew on the same day as the blasphemous accusation and the visit of the mother of Jesus. It is called “the Busy Day,” not because it was the only one, but simply that so much is told of this day that it serves as a specimen of many others filled to the full with stress and strain.' (Word Pictures) Broadus agrees that "The Parable of the Sower, and apparently all those in ch. 13, were delivered on the same day (v. 1) with the discourse occasioned by the blasphemy against the Spirit." Jesus went out of the house and was sitting by the sea - He went out of (presumably) Peter's house in Capernaum and was sitting by the sea of Galilee. Matthew 13:2 And large crowds gathered to Him, so He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd was standing on the beach. NET Matthew 13:2 And such a large crowd gathered around him that he got into a boat to sit while the whole crowd stood on the shore. GNT Matthew 13:2 καὶ συνήχθησαν πρὸς αὐτὸν ὄχλοι πολλοί, ὥστε αὐτὸν εἰς πλοῖον ἐμβάντα καθῆσθαι, καὶ πᾶς ὁ ὄχλος ἐπὶ τὸν αἰγιαλὸν εἱστήκει. NLT Matthew 13:2 A large crowd soon gathered around him, so he got into a boat. Then he sat there and taught as the people stood on the shore. KJV Matthew 13:2 And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went into a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore. ESV Matthew 13:2 And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. NIV Matthew 13:2 Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. ASV Matthew 13:2 And there were gathered unto him great multitudes, so that he entered into a boat, and sat; and all the multitude stood on the beach. CSB Matthew 13:2 Such large crowds gathered around Him that He got into a boat and sat down, while the whole crowd stood on the shore. NKJ Matthew 13:2 And great multitudes were gathered together to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore. NRS Matthew 13:2 Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach. YLT Matthew 13:2 and gathered together unto him were many multitudes, so that he having gone into the boat did sit down, and all the multitude on the beach did stand, NAB Matthew 13:2 Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd stood along the shore. NJB Matthew 13:2 but such large crowds gathered round him that he got into a boat and sat there. The people all stood on the shore, GWN Matthew 13:2 The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat. He sat in the boat while the entire crowd stood on the shore. BBE Matthew 13:2 And great numbers of people came together to him, so that he got into a boat; and the people took up their position by the sea. large crowds - Mt 4:25 15:30 Ge 49:10 Lu 8:4-8 so - Mk 4:1 Lu 5:3 Matthew 13 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Parallel Passages Mark 4:1-2+ “He began to teach again by the sea. And such a very large crowd gathered to Him that He got into a boat in the sea and sat down; and the whole crowd was by the sea on the land. 2 And He was teaching them many things in parables, and was saying to them in His teaching Luke 8:4+ When a large crowd was coming together, and those from the various cities were journeying to Him, He spoke by way of a parable: PRESSED BY MULTITUDES POSITIONED TO TEACH This verse reveals the growing attraction to Jesus’ ministry. People were drawn by His miracles, His authority, and the uniqueness of His teaching (cf. Mt 7:28–29+). This verse sets the stage for the Parables of the Kingdom. It illustrates that while many gather to Jesus, true understanding requires more than proximity. One can be near Him physically, even fascinated by Him, and yet miss the truth He is about to unfold. And large crowds gathered to Him - Even though the antagonism of the religious leaders was significantly increasing, Jesus was at the height of His popularity and thus able to gather large crowds. As we shall see the size of the crowds belied the size of their heart response to His message and His person. Very few were receptive to His message that He had come not to conquer Rome, but to suffer and die and conquer a far great enemy, Sin! So - Term of conclusion. The crowd forced Him to set up His "podium" in a boat near the shore. He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd was standing on the beach - In many places along the seashore, the hills would rise around the shore and in effect produce a natural amphitheater. Thus Jesus transformed the shoreline into an open-air auditorium. Sitting down was the customary posture of a rabbi when teaching, signaling that what follows is authoritative instruction, not casual conversation. In any event, there is no doubt that despite "standing room only" every one was able to hear Jesus' words. It reminds me of the stories of John Whitefield in the days of the first Great Awakening in America where it was not uncommon for him to speak to crowds as large as 20,000 (or even greater) without electronic voice amplification! We do not know how large the crowd was but it is reasonable to speculate that it was many thousands. Matthew 13:3 And He spoke many things to them in parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow; GNT Matthew 13:3 καὶ ἐλάλησεν αὐτοῖς πολλὰ ἐν παραβολαῖς λέγων, Ἰδοὺ ἐξῆλθεν ὁ σπείρων τοῦ σπείρειν. NLT Matthew 13:3 He told many stories in the form of parables, such as this one:"Listen! A farmer went out to plant some seeds. KJV Matthew 13:3 And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow; ESV Matthew 13:3 And he told them many things in parables, saying: "A sower went out to sow. NIV Matthew 13:3 Then he told them many things in parables, saying: "A farmer went out to sow his seed. ASV Matthew 13:3 And he spake to them many things in parables, saying, Behold, the sower went forth to sow; CSB Matthew 13:3 Then He told them many things in parables, saying: "Consider the sower who went out to sow. NKJ Matthew 13:3 Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: "Behold, a sower went out to sow. NRS Matthew 13:3 And he told them many things in parables, saying: "Listen! A sower went out to sow. YLT Matthew 13:3 and he spake to them many things in similes, saying: 'Lo, the sower went forth to sow, NAB Matthew 13:3 And he spoke to them at length in parables, saying: "A sower went out to sow. NJB Matthew 13:3 and he told them many things in parables. He said, 'Listen, a sower went out to sow. GWN Matthew 13:3 Then he used stories as illustrations to tell them many things. He said, "Listen! A farmer went to plant seed. BBE Matthew 13:3 And he gave them teaching in the form of a story, saying, A man went out to put seed in the earth; in parables - Mt 13:10-13,34,35,53 22:1 24:32 Jud 9:8-20 2Sa 12:1-7 Ps 49:4 78:2 Isa 5:1-7 Eze 17:2 20:49 24:3-14 Mic 2:4 Hab 2:6 Mk 3:23 Mk 4:2,13,33 12:1,12 Lu 8:10 12:41 15:3-7 Joh 16:25 a sower - Mk 4:2-9 Lu 8:5-8 Matthew 13 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Parallel Passages: Mark 4:3-4+ “Listen to this! Behold, the sower went out to sow; as he was sowing, some seed fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate it up. Luke 8:5+ ““The sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell beside the road, and it was trampled under foot and the birds of the air ate it up. Van Gogh's "The Sower" And He spoke many things to them in parables, saying (Mk 4:2-3+, Lk 8:4-5+) - This is the first mention of the term parable in Matthew's Gospel. This mode of teaching with parables marks a significant change in the way He would teach the audiences from now on. From this point on, most of His teaching (many things) would be in the form of parables. Parables (symbols) (3850)(parabole from para = beside, near + ballo = throw, cast; English "parable") is literally a throwing beside or placing of one thing by the side of another (juxtaposition as of ships in battle in classic Greek). The metaphorical meaning is to place or lay something besides something else for the purpose of comparison. A spiritual or moral truth would often be expressed by laying it alongside, so to speak, a physical example that could be more easily understood. A common, observable object or practice was used to illustrate a subjective truth or principle. In simple terms something which was well known was verbally "laid alongside" something which was not known in order to explain it. In short the known truth explained the unknown truth. A parable is a way to make abstract truth more concrete, interesting and easier to remember and apply. Here in Mark 4, Matthew 13 and Luke 8 we see that the parable takes on a different function, in essence hiding the truth from those who do not have ears (hearts) to hear the truth. To His disciples Jesus disclosed the hidden meaning, because their hearts were open to His truth. But to all others the unexplained parable became in effect an impossible riddle whose meaning could not be guessed. (See Daniel Akin's summary points on parables). A parable is a story that seeks to drive home a point by illustrating it using a familiar situation of common life. A parable is a teaching device in which a principle is concealed and a truth revealed, giving the hearer first sight then insight! It is like a mirror and a window, where we see through to truth about God, but like a mirror it forces us to look at ourselves. Paul made a similar statement writing that "But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.." (1 Cor 2:14+) Adrian Rogers - The word parable and our word parallel are related words. A parable is a story that is laid parallel down alongside a great truth. I suppose the greatest illustration, or the greatest definition or description, of a parable is just simply this: A parable is an earthly story with a heavenly meaning. That is, Jesus told a very common story; but there was more to the story than met the ear, and you had to be paying attention. Warren
Mateus 13
Robertson - "He has gone off and sold." The present perfect indicative, the dramatic perfect of vivid picture. Then he bought it. Present perfect, imperfect, aorist tenses together for lively action. (Word Pictures in the New Testament) Bob Utley on went and sold all - This shows the radical nature of discipleship. The paradox is (1) a free salvation comes by God’s grace alone and is therefore absolutely free (cf. Ro 3:24; Ro 5:15; 6:23; Eph. 2:8–9), but (2) it costs the disciple everything (cf. Mt 10:34–39; Mt 13:44, 46). I agree with D A Carson who writes that "Walvoord recognizes that this parable is roughly equivalent to the last. But here, he says, the pearl represents not Israel but the church. The church, like the pearl, is formed organically, and “there is a sense in which the church was formed out of the wounds of Christ.” This does not take us much beyond patristic allegorizing. The real connection with the last parable is the supreme worth of the kingdom." (BORROW The Expositor's Bible Commentary : abridged edition: 1994). Bruce Barton on went and sold all - The kingdom of heaven is so valuable that it calls for a total investment (radical discipleship) from those who find it.(LAC) For example listen to Paul's willingness to in effect "sell all" “But I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, so that I may finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God. (Acts 20:24+) But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. (Gal 6:14+) Jesus addressed Peter's concern about the "cost" of following Jesus... Peter began to say to Him, “Behold, we have left everything and followed You.” 29 Jesus said, “Truly I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or farms, for My sake and for the gospel’s sake, 30 but that he will receive a hundred times as much now in the present age, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and farms, along with persecutions; and in the age to come, eternal life. 31 “But many who are first will be last, and the last, first.” (Mk 10:28-31, cf Lk 18:28-30+) Stuart Weber - Despite its appearance to human eyes, the kingdom is well worth the investment of a person’s life. These parables answer two closely related questions from the surrounding context. First, why should we give our lives for a kingdom we cannot see? Second, can the kingdom truly be the answer to our search for ultimate fulfillment?...In Matthew 10, Jesus projected even farther into the future, predicting even worse happenings for those who stayed by him. These timid souls needed assurance that the price they were paying was worth the kingdom they would receive. Believers today need exactly the same reassurance. The rewards are worth the price! (HNTC-Mt) Knox Chamblin- This man’s holdings would far exceed those of the worker in the previous parable. Nevertheless, to acquire a single pearl he too sells all his possessions—which shows that the pearl is valuable to the point of being priceless, and that no price is too great for so precious an object. (Mentor Commentary - MT) Tony Evans - Discoverers are willing to give up everything they possess in order to gain their prizes because they recognize their incalculable value (13:44, 46). Similarly, men and women who discover and recognize the worth of living life under the rule of God will sacrifice anything of earthly value for participation in his kingdom. Life holds no greater treasure.(Tony Evans Bible Commentary) Gil Rugh has some very interesting comments on these parables suggesting that they apply to both Jews and Gentiles and also addressing the thorny issue of what it means to sell all to buy land or pearl. Read his logic to see if you agree. He quotes a number of interesting passages to make his argument. - In order to be consistent in the interpretation, the pearl of great price represents the kingdom and the King. The kingdom is of great value and of great beauty. Some find it as they are searching for costly pearls; this is a picture of those seeking for the Messiah. They responded to the message of John the Baptist as he introduced Jesus Christ to the nation and became Christ’s followers. Individuals have experienced salvation by both means. Some have met someone at work who shared the gospel with them and they believed even though they were not looking for it. They were not consciously thinking about such an experience, but were exposed to it. They recognized it to be the truth, and in the grace of God they believed. Others had an emptiness, a recognition that something was missing, and were seeking for truth. Again, that is the result of the work of God in drawing people to Christ. Such individuals were in a pursuit of truth and were looking for an answer. God addressed Israel many times in this way instructing them that when they wandered from Him and became confused and lost in their wickedness, they were to turn again and search diligently for Him. Israel is instructed in Deuteronomy 4 that if they pursue after other gods, they will be judged and scattered throughout the world. Then He instructs them in Deuteronomy 4:29, “But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul.” If there is hunger in the soul for God, they are to seek for Him and they will find Him. This will happen in the Tribulation as the events of that period are used by God to bring pressure upon Israel and drive them to a hunger for their Messiah (see Zech 12:10-14+, Zech 13:1+, Zech 13:8-9+). As a result they will begin to search for Him so that when the message of the gospel of the kingdom is proclaimed, multitudes in the nation will believe in the Messiah and find Him and His salvation. God instructed the nation Israel in Isaiah 55:6, “Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near.” That is what is pictured in Matthew 13 as a man searches for a costly pearl. Then God speaks of His plan to restore Israel in Jeremiah 29:11-13: “For I know the plans I have for you (THIS IS ADDRESSED TO ISRAEL),‟ declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.‟” This passage shows the diligence that should characterize Israel in their search for God. The parable of the costly pearl shows the nation hungering after the kingdom. Amos 5:4,5 provides similar instruction: “For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel, „Seek Me that you may live. But do not resort to Bethel and do not come to Gilgal, nor cross over to Beersheba; for Gilgal will certainly go into captivity and Bethel will come to trouble.‟” In the parable of the costly pearl, the picture seems to be depicting those who would be searching for the Messiah and His salvation. If you are going to make a distinction between Israel and the Gentiles in these parables, the parable of the hidden treasure fits the Gentiles while the parable of the costly pearl seems to fit Israel. The Gentiles were not searching for the King or the kingdom, yet many of them were privileged to believe in the Messiah. However, the Jews supposedly were searching for the kingdom, yet that kingdom was hidden from their view. In the coming Tribulation, a great number like the sand of the seashore from every tribe, tongue, people and nation will believe the message of the gospel of the kingdom even though by and large they are not searching for the Messiah or for His coming kingdom (Rev 7:9, 14+). The parable of the hidden treasure fits the Gentiles, because Isaiah 65:1 speaks of God’s being found by those who were not searching for Him, a reference in the context to the Gentiles finding salvation in Jehovah as those who will come to Christ even though they are not looking for a Messiah. They, in effect, stumble upon Him. But by the events God is using in the lives of the people of Israel, they will be driven to seek after Him until they recognize that Jesus is indeed the Messiah. As a result of their search for Him, they will believe in Him because of the grace of God. At that time there will be the national conversion of Israel which is referred to in Romans 11:25-28+. The conclusion of both parables is identical. The one who finds the hidden treasure or the costly pearl sells all he has in order to buy the prize. This interpretation of these two parables of Matthew 13 leaves one major problem that bothers many. In both parables the individual goes and sells everything he has and buys the field with the treasure or the pearl. For many, such an approach is incompatible with our concept of salvation. Entrance into the kingdom is only by being born again. Jesus said to Nicodemus in John 3:3+, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Salvation in every dispensation is a result of the grace of God. In order to experience God’s righteousness, it has been essential for man to believe in the revelation God has given of Himself. As far back as Genesis 15:6+, Abraham believed God and God credited it to Abraham as righteousness. Anyone who has ever been saved from the beginning of time until eternity is saved by faith in the revelation God has given of Himself. That revelation centers in the person and work of God’s Son, Jesus Christ. When a person believes in Christ as the One who loved him and died for him, he experiences God’s salvation. That is true whether you are talking about entering the kingdom or about salvation for people who will become part of the Church today. Then how does it fit to give up everything and purchase your salvation? Can one purchase entrance into the kingdom of heaven? When you understand the analogy that is being drawn, it is not so hard to understand. Follow me closely on this interpretation so you do not think that I am a heretic saying you can buy salvation. That is not what these parables are saying. The point in buying or purchasing something is in securing it for yourself, having it as your possession. The point Jesus is driving home in these parables is that when one sees the overwhelming value of the kingdom and its King, there is a desire to obtain that for yourself no matter what the cost. Salvation, of course, is free. The point of buying in this parable is to secure the item for yourself . We say the same thing today when we tell someone that we bought an item. We are not speaking of the price we paid but rather the fact that the item has become our possession. If you ask someone if he is buying the car he drives or leasing it, the question you are asking relates to whether the car belongs to him or someone else. Behind the concept of purchasing in this parable is the concept of securing it for yourself. This parable pictures a person who will let nothing stand in the way of his coming into possession of the King and His kingdom. This analogy is drawn from the Old Testament. Solomon wrote in Proverbs 23:23, “Buy truth, and do not sell it, get wisdom and instruction and understanding.” He is not saying that if you come up with enough money, you can acquire the truth. If you read the opening chapters of Proverbs, you will see that wisdom and truth are not purchased with money. Solomon is making the point that if you buy the truth, you acquire it for yourself and you should not give it up for any reason. The goal is to get wisdom, instruction and understanding for yourself. You are instructed to keep it in your possession and not to sacrifice the truth for anything. The emphasis on buying the truth is not on paying money for it necessarily, but rather the emphasis is on doing whatever is necessary to secure the truth. It may cost you to stand for the truth. That is fine. Do whatever is necessary to secure it for yourself. The invitation is given to Israel in Isaiah 55:1 to secure for themselves the blessings of God without paying any money: “Ho! Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.” In this verse, the idea behind buying is really securing for yourself. When Jesus was addressing the disciples in these parables, they understood that they must do whatever was necessary to secure this precious possession for themselves. Jesus used this same approach in Revelation 3 as He wrote to the church at Laodicea. This church thought it was wealthy and needed nothing. Yet Christ said they were “wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked” (Rev. 3:17+). So He tells them in Revelation 3:18+, “I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.” Can these things be purchased from Christ? No. His salvation is a free gift, but you can buy it from Him from the standpoint of securing it from Him. You can acquire from God whatever is necessary for you to be righteous before God. 6. The Overwhelming Importance of Securing Possession As has been demonstrated, the point of buying the field or the costly pearl in Matthew 13 is to secure it for yourself. What is the emphasis of selling all that one has? The point is to recognize the overwhelming importance and value of the King and the kingdom so that nothing keeps you from it. In the context of true biblical faith, there must be the realization that Jesus Christ alone is the One in whom you place all your confidence and trust for your salvation. Apart from that there can be no salvation. Until you recognize the overwhelming importance of the King and His kingdom, you cannot possess the kingdom because you are not willing to trust Christ alone. T his emphasis appears several times in Matthew’s Gospel. Jesus said in Matthew 5, “If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell” (Mt 5:29,30+). The point of this passage is not to throw away your eye or cut off your hand. Rather, the emphasis is that you should not let anything–not any of the parts of your body, nothing at all–keep you from the life that is found only in Christ. You must see that He is more important than your body. Jesus said in Matthew 6, “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Mt 6:33+). Jesus must take priority over our physical needs of shelter, food and clothing. We are to seek His kingdom first. That means He must take priority and precedence over everything else. We must recognize that He is that important. Matthew 10 also emphasizes that Jesus Christ must be first. “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me” (Mt 10:37,38+). Family members cannot take precedence over Jesus Christ. He must take priority. You must sell all to secure the kingdom. You must see Him as the One who has priority or you are not willing to trust Him. Jesus does not offer Himself as one of many options or as added security to the other things you may be trusting. Some people trust their riches, their family, their church, their baptism or their good works. They also try to add Christ into what they are trusting thinking that cannot hurt anything. It is as though He is just another block to be added to the things they are trusting. But that is not acceptable. Jesus Christ says you must see Him as first and foremost. When you place your trust in Him, you must abandon your trust in anything and everything else. You cannot place your faith in Christ as your Savior and also have your faith in your baptism, your good works or your family ties. The Book of Galatians deals with that concept. If you are trusting Christ plus anything else, you are under the curse. You must be willing to abandon everything because your faith is in Him alone. You must see the overwhelming importance of Christ, His kingdom and His salvation. Again in Matthew 19 the rich young ruler comes to Christ with a question. I understand this passage to be in the context of salvation. This young man does not ask Christ what he can do to be a better follower of Him. He asks in Matthew 19:16, “Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may obtain eternal life?” The issue is the acquisition of eternal life. Jesus Christ said to him in Matthew 19:21, “If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” Jesus told him to abandon everything and place his total confidence in Him. He was to let go of everything else and rest only in Christ. This young man experienced a tragedy. “But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property” (Mt 19:22). It is amazing that this rich young ruler came to the Messiah of Israel to find out how he could have eternal life as his own possession. Jesus told him to abandon everything and place his faith in Him alone. The young man said that was too much. Can you imagine a person saying that is too much to pay for eternal life? Ask yourself how much that rich young ruler was worth. How much does he have today? Did he make a good choice? His choice was ridiculous! Jesus is saying there must be a willingness to sacrifice everything in order to have eternal life. He asked that young ruler if he really understood who Christ was and if he was willing to trust Him. Jesus does not ask everyone to give away everything to become His follower. But Scripture indicates that He demands of everyone the same attitude. A person cannot be saved until he recognizes that Jesus Christ alone is the Savior and trusts Him alone as the One who loved him and died for him. 7. Assuring Participation in the Kingdom It is not clear to me how much detail one must go into in his mind before he can trust Christ in this way. When I was saved as a young person, I did not stop and figure out if I would have to give up my bedroom or anything that I owned. But I did know at that point that Jesus Christ was the most important thing in the world to me and that whatever else transpired, I wanted Him to be my Savior. I believe there must be that kind of commitment to Him. It is not possible to trust Him partially while holding on to riches in case it does not work out. Neither can one hold on to church membership or baptism in case Christ is not adequate. You must recognize who Jesus Christ is and what the issues really are. When a person comes to salvation in Christ, he must recognize that Christ is most important. As the message of the kingdom is proclaimed to people by His followers, they must recognize that this is more valuable than anything else. It does not matter what else happens, the most important thing in all the world must be that they belong to Jesus Christ and have their life in Him. This was true of the Apostle Paul. He related the glory that was his before he became a follower of Christ in Philippians 3. Before he was saved he was powerful and honored and he had prestige, influence and probably a degree of wealth. But when he met Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus, everything was downhill for him from that day on humanly speaking. He wrote, “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith” (Phil. 3:7-9+). Paul said that Christ was the most important thing in his life. It was essential that he have Christ’s righteousness. To him everything else was nothing and worse than nothing. He was glad to lose it all to have Jesus Christ. That is the attitude Christ is talking about in these two parables of Matthew 13. We saw in our study of the parable of the soils that one of the things that keeps people from Christ is persecution and pressure from family members. Another is hearts that are full of the lusts of the world: the love of money and the cares of this life. Those things choke the Word of God so that it cannot bear fruit. Those were the things that kept the rich young ruler from trusting Christ in Matthew 19, and those things still keep people from believing in Jesus Christ. (ED: I SHARED CHRIST WITH A DOCTOR FRIEND OF MIND. HE LISTENED ATTENTIVELY IN HIS LIVING ROOM. AND THEN HE LOOKED AT ME WITH ALL SINCERITY AND SAID "I CAN'T BELIEVE IN JESUS, BECAUSE IF I DO IT MEANS I WILL HAVE TO GIVE UP MY HUNTING DOGS AND ALL THE TIME THAT THAT INVOLVES!" I WAS SHOCKED. I LEFT HIS HOUSE VERY SAD.) Jesus goes on to talk about how difficult it is for a rich man to be saved (Lk 18:23, 24, 25+). That is true because it is hard to quit trusting yourself and your accomplishments and abandon yourself without reservation to total trust in Jesus Christ. This is what Jesus is talking about in Matthew 13. The subject is the kingdom of heaven. It is like a treasure hidden in a field. Some stumble upon it. This may describe your condition. You may not have been looking for anything as you started reading, but now you have been confronted with the reality that Jesus Christ is the Savior, and you can have eternal life from Him at this very moment. On the other hand, you may be one who has an intense longing. You may have been searching for something to fill the void in your life for as long as you can remember. You need to recognize that Jesus Christ is the Savior. He is the One who can bring meaning and purpose to life. If you really understand the issue that you are a sinner and apart from Christ there is no salvation, then you will be willing to trust Jesus Christ alone as your Savior whatever the cost (ED: AND THIS COST CAN BE VERY HIGH IN MUSLIM AND HINDU NATIONS - WHICH MAY EXPLAIN WHY THERE ARE OFTEN NO KNOWN BELIEVERS IN LARGE HINDU PEOPLE GROUPS - SOMETIMES WITH AS MANY AS 7 MILLION PEOPLE! THIS IS SHOCKING AND INCREDIBLY SAD! SEE Mahratta Kunbi in India). If you have not trusted Him yet as your Savior, what stands between you and Christ? What do you think is more important than eternal life? Your family, your job, your prestige, your influence, the pleasures you now enjoy? Looking back now, it is clear that the rich young ruler make a bad choice two thousand years ago. Whatever he had then is gone, and he has nothing now. In two thousand years what difference will it make what you now have? Will it matter how your family treated you, what kind of job you had, whether life treated you well or harshly? No. But it will matter if you had a personal relationship with Christ. There is nothing so costly as that for which we exchange eternal life. For those of us who have trusted Christ, this kind of abandonment to Him is to characterize us throughout our lives and not just when we make the decision to believe in Him. That is how we are to live our lives every day. He is to be more important to us than anything else, more important than life, family or possessions. Our relationship with Him is to be evidenced by faithfulness. He is to take precedence over everything else in our lives. We are to love Him most and honor Him with our lives.(Sermon) Matthew 13:47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet cast into the sea, and gathering fish of every kind; NET Matthew 13:47 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was cast into the sea that caught all kinds of fish. GNT Matthew 13:47 Πάλιν ὁμοία ἐστὶν ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν σαγήνῃ βληθείσῃ εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν καὶ ἐκ παντὸς γένους συναγαγούσῃ· NLT Matthew 13:47 "Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a fishing net that was thrown into the water and caught fish of every kind. KJV Matthew 13:47 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: ESV Matthew 13:47 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind. NIV Matthew 13:47 "Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. ASV Matthew 13:47 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: CSB Matthew 13:47 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a large net thrown into the sea. It collected every kind of fish, NKJ Matthew 13:47 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind, NRS Matthew 13:47 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; YLT Matthew 13:47 'Again, the reign of the heavens is like to a net that was cast into the sea, and did gather together of every kind, NAB Matthew 13:47 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea, which collects fish of every kind. NJB Matthew 13:47 'Again, the kingdom of Heaven is like a dragnet that is cast in the sea and brings in a haul of all kinds of fish. GWN Matthew 13:47 "Also, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea. It gathered all kinds of fish. BBE Matthew 13:47 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net, which was put into the sea and took in every sort of fish: kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet - Mt 4:19 Mk 1:17 Lu 5:10 gathering fish of every kind - Mt 13:26-30 22:9,10 25:1-4 Lu 14:21-23 Joh 15:2,6 Ac 5:1-10 Ac 8:18-22 20:30 1Co 5:1-6 10:1-12 11:19 2Co 11:13-15,26 2Co 12:20,21 Ga 2:4 2Ti 3:2-5 4:3,4 Tit 1:9-11 2Pe 2:1-3,13-22 1Jn 2:18,19 4:1-6 Jude 1:4,5 Rev 3:1,15-17 Matthew 13 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries A DRAGNET COMPARISON TO A DRAGNET Weber - The parable of the net teaches the same lesson as the parable of the weeds—that the righteous must endure some period of coexistence with evil, until God’s final judgment brings justice and reward. (HNTC-Mt) Again, the kingdom (basileia) of heaven (note) is like - How interesting for Jesus to use this comparison which would have been very familiar to His disciples, several of which had been fishermen when He first called them... Now as Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon who was called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting (ballo cf related verb in Mark's version - amphiballo) a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. And He said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men." The disciples had personal experience with this parable, but soon the literal fish would be figurative fish in the form of the souls of men." (Mt 4:18-19+) Comment - The net in this passage is a smaller net (amphiblestron from amphiballo from amphi = around + ballo = throw) which describes a net that was cast from over the fisherman's shoulder standing either on the shore or in a boat. As he spotted a school of fish he would cast the net, the throw causing the net to spread out in a circle on the water, sinking rapidly because of weights on the edges and trapping whatever was below. The net would be drawn up by a cord on the center of the net and draw in the catch in the form of a sack that could then be examined. Like (same)(3664) see preceding note on homoios A dragnet cast into the sea, and gathering fish of every kind - This large net would bring in a catch of all manner of fish, some of which were not edible or not big enough to eat. Dragnet (4522)(sagene; English = seine) describes a long fishing net lowered into the water and hanging vertically with floats along the top and weights along the bottom. "A seine, a long-drawn net or sweep-net, the ends of which were spread out by boats so as to cover a large portion of open sea, then drawn together, and all which they contain is taken." (Zodhiates) "The dragnet was an expensive piece of equipment, sometimes immense in size (PICTURE). It was used in two different ways. It could be stretched between two boats and then dragged through the water, or it may have been weighted on one side to hold it on the bottom of the lake while the other side was held at the surface by floats. A single boat could then drag it along, pushing everything ahead of the vertical wall thus formed. In either usage, fish of any size were trapped in this net." (Gilbrant) Sagene - All uses in Bible, most in the Septuagint - Eccl. 7:26; Isa. 19:8; Ezek. 26:5; Ezek. 26:14; Ezek. 47:10; Hab. 1:15; Hab. 1:16; Matt. 13:47
Mateus 13
Robertson - “They stumbled at him,” “They were repelled by him” (Moffatt), “They turned against him” (Weymouth). It was unpardonable for Jesus not to be commonplace like themselves.
Mateus 13
Robertson - This is a proverb found in Jewish, Greek, and Roman writers. Seen also in the Logia of Jesus (Oxyr. Papyri i. 3). Gilbrant on without honor - The “lack of respect” held for Jesus by the townspeople of Nazareth was a tangible expression of their lack of faith (as Matthew observes, Mt 13:58). Is this proverbial statement not a commentary on Isaiah's description of the Messiah.... For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, And like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him. 3 He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, (Hebrew = bazah = despise; Lxx = atimos) and we did not esteem Him. (Isa 53:2-3+) Prophet (4396)(prophetes from próphemi = literally to tell beforehand in turn from pró = before, in front of, forth, on behalf of + phemí = speak, tell) is primarily a forth-teller or one who speaks out God’s message, primarily to their own generation, usually always calling the people to God's truth for them at that moment. Although we commonly think of the prophet as predicting future events (foretelling) generally this was secondary to his work of forth-telling. When they functioned as predictors or prognosticators, the Biblical prophets foretold the future with 100 percent accuracy. The Jews should have recognized Him because Moses had prophesied that the Messiah would be a Prophet and warned Israel to listen to Him because God would put His words in His mouth in the famous prophecy in Dt 18:15, 18 "The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen, you shall listen to him....‘I will raise up a prophet from among their countrymen like you, and I will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him." Jesus was that prophet like Moses! The people refused to believe and instead were scandalized! When He spoke the Word of God, it antagonized the people of His own hometown. Without honor (820)(atimos from a= negates thus without + time = value, honor) means literally without honor, unhonored, dishonored, despised , of low character or reputation. Another nuance is less respectable, more insignificant (1Cor 12.23) BDAG - pert. to being considered relatively unimportant, insignificant of things that do not elicit special admiration or attention, comp. held in less esteem 1 Cor 12:23 (of parts of the body also Aristot., Part. An. 3, 672b, 21 ‘more esteemed … less esteemed’, a distinction made in terms of dependency, lower members being at the service of upper ones." Liddell-Scott - (1) unhonoured, dishonoured, Il., Trag.; Comp. less honourable, Xen.; c. gen. without the honour of. . , not deemed worthy of. . , Aesch.; also, no unworthy return for. . , Id. 2. at Athens, deprived of privileges, Thuc.; deprived of the right of advising, Dem. II. without price or value, thou devourest his substance without payment made, Od. 2. unrevenged, Aesch. III. Adv. dishonourably, ignominiously, Id., Soph." Atimos - 4x in NT - less(1), less honorable(1), without honor(3). Matt. 13:57; Mk. 6:4; 1 Co. 4:10; 1 Co. 12:23 Atimos in Septuagint - Job 30:4; Job 30:8; Isa. 3:5; Isa. 53:3 Job uses it of “dishonorable” names in apposition to “foolish sons”. And in his own household - In this case it included His own brothers, for John tells us "not even His brothers were believing in Him." (Jn 7:5) THOUGHT - A spokesman for God does not find honor among his own people. Even though we no longer have prophets per se, those who share the Word among unbelievers within their own household or family do not find a welcome or receptiveness. That is why you may face difficulties when you share the gospel with your family members. Often it will be your changed life that will make the greatest impact. They will not be able to deny the reality of your changed life. But it may be the testimony of others that is used to bring even our own family members to Christ....This is a good reminder that Jesus Christ was not acceptable to the nation. He was not even acceptable to the people of His own town and His own household. He came to His hometown to minister to the people of His own family and community, yet He was rejected. They were offended by Him. Should we be surprised when we carry the message to those we are closest to and get a similar response? (Rugh)
Mateus 13
Robertson - The “disbelief” (apistian) of the townspeople blocked the will and the power of Jesus to work cures. Unbelief is the only thing that will drive Jesus away from you. - Brian Bell J C