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Saturday, November 22, 2014

 

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The Parable of The Tares - Matthew 13


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One of the things which you might have noticed is that the disciples refer to this parable as "the parable of the tares of the field" (verse 36), and not the parable of the wheat and the tares that we often hear it referred to as by some. Why? Could it be because they were really disturbed by exactly who this enemy was that Jesus referred to and exactly what or who was the result of his labors? Obviously the sinister intent of this enemy and the ultimate end of his labors were something to worry about! Thus it would seem that it was such things that were weighing heavily upon their minds and led to their asking him to explain it to them in the above mentioned form. It is hoped that in the following analysis we can give both a satisfactory and Scripturally sound answer to these questions for all concerned.

The Lord Jesus Christ starts the parable by saying, "The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field." The verb translated "is likened" is in the aorist 1 tense and should therefore be rendered as "was likened" for it represents action that had taken place in the indefinite past. It would seem from this grammatical construction that the Lord Jesus Christ had in mind the previous parable which he had just completed, and was developing that thought along another avenue. The other avenue of development is historical. This parable is a prophesy about the ultimate end of two different classes of people that would be found in Palestine where the Lord Jesus Christ was preaching the Gospel Message. The first parable was exhortational in nature and applied in general to anyone who preached the Gospel and the results that would follow. In the first parable it is stated simply that "a sower went forth to sow" (Matthew 13:1) without any explanation, whereas in the second, Christ says "a man" did it and in verse 37 states that he was the sower. Thus this parable specifically relates to Christ and his work and his time period. If the question is asked as to whether Christ would give a parable which was prophetic of his day and age, then the answer is emphatically "yes" for he did it more than once. For example: The Parable Of The Householder (Matthew 21:33-45), The Parable Of The Marriage Feast or Royal Summons (Matthew 22:1-10). If it be asked what is its value to us, then the answer is identical for the other examples given and any other prophecy which has already been fulfilled. Fulfilled prophecy provides us with a firm foundation upon which faith can be built. It demonstrates that Yahweh has a plan and purpose with the earth and that He is working it out just as He said He would and therefore we can count on Him doing what He has said in the future. Furthermore, the parable under consideration demonstrates that Yahweh sees and knows all and will reward everyone according to their just deserts!

The next thing that is noticed in verse 24 is that "the Son of man," or the Lord Jesus Christ, which is his title of "authority to execute judgment" (John 5:27), "sowed good seed in his field." Where is "his field," and what or who are the "good seed"? Christ tells us in verse 38 that "the field is the world" or kosmos! It is at this point that so many of those who adhere to the erroneous interpretations go astray. It seems as though they completely ignore Christ's own interpretation of what "his field" was and state that it is the ecclesia. Since when is the ecclesia referred to as "the world"? If everyone of the 188 occurrences of this word are checked out through the use of a concordance, then it will be found out that kosmos is never used of the ecclesia! This fact can not be emphasized enough! Why would the spirit use the term 187 times to apply to something other than the ecclesia and just this once, supposedly by way of explanation of a symbol in a parable, would it use it differently? How could the symbol be really interpreted, since it is through the use of this term in other places that should and must guide its use here, if we discard the common usage in this particular instance? After all, when you discard the apparently common usage of this term, then what rule do you follow in order to interpret the symbol? Furthermore, Christ distinctly states in verse 41 that the tares are gathered "out of his kingdom." If "the field," or "the world," or "his kingdom" is the ecclesia, then we have the very unscriptural statement that the kingdom is the ecclesia! This statement is categorically untrue! The kingdom existed in the past and it will exist again in the future, but it does not exist right now!! Not only that, but since the tares are gathered "out of his kingdom," we have another problem if we apply this to the return of Christ, for the ecclesia is judged before the establishment of the kingdom and the tares would be dealt with prior to the establishment of the kingdom not after it as would be required if the erroneous interpretation were true. Also, if the field was the ecclesia we would end up with the tares remaining in the ecclesia even though Christ and the Apostles command us to remove them from the ecclesia in other places. This interpretation would thus lead to a contradiction which is clearly impossible since the Bible is wholly inspired by Yahweh. Thus it clearly can not be correct to call the field or the world the ecclesia. Oh! But if the tares are not clearly outside the commandments or doctrine of Christ, then we would have no contradiction and we could still state that the field is the ecclesia! Yes, that would be true if we overlooked all the other objections listed, and if we ignore what Christ says in verses 26-30 where the tares are clearly identified as such by Christ's own words! From all of the above we can safely state that the field or the world or the kingdom is not the ecclesia. Of course, we are now left with identifying what "the field," or "the world," or "his kingdom" really is, and for which no better answer can be given than that by Bro. John Thomas in Elpis Israel on pages 213-214:

In the parable of the sower (Matthew 13:37-40), the phrase "the world" is used in different senses, which are not distinguished in the English version. Jesus says there, "the field is the world." Did he mean it was "the whole habitable," "the age," or the Israelites: for world is applied to them all? If it had been the first he would have said, "The field is the whole oikoumene;" if the second, "The field is the aion;" and if the third, "The field is the kosmos." The last is the record in the case. He represents himself as the sower; and says that the seed which he sowed was "the word of the kingdom;" that it was "good seed;" and that he sowed it into the hearts of the Israelites, or "children of the kingdom," of whom there were two classes, good and bad (Matthew 8:12).

These, then, were the field, and therefore, the kosmos or nation-world. But the enemy sowed tares into this field, which were to be gathered out and burnt. This conflagration was to be at harvest-time, concerning which Jesus said, "The harvest is the end of the world." Did he mean the end of the nation-world? No; therefore he used another word; namely, aion instead of kosmos. The harvest was to be at the end of the aion, sunteleia tou aionos: and not at the end of the kosmos, or extermination of the nation of Israel from among nations. The extinction of Israel from the earth will never take place; though a full end will be made of all other nations. [Jer. 30:10-11 J.B.S.]

But at the end of what aion was the harvest to be? Jesus replies, "As the tares are gathered and burned in the fire at harvest time; so shall it be en te sunteleia tou aionos toutou, in the end of this age." That is, in the end of the aion in which he flourished. Then he would send his reapers; namely, the Romans, his angels, or messenger (aggeloi) of destruction, to "gather out of his kingdom" of Judea, all the tare-like children of Israel, and cast them into the place of the Lord, "whose fire is in Zion, and his furnace in Jerusalem" (Isaiah 31:9), where there should be wailing, and gnashing of teeth. When this should be accomplished the aion would be finished, and the commonwealth of Israel should "be no more until He should come whose right it is to reign." (Ezekiel 21:25-27). "Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.

 


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