The Purpose of Parables
(Matt. 13:10–17; Luke 8:9, 10)
10 But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable. 11 And He said to them, “To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, 12 so that Seeing they may see and not perceive, And hearing they may hear and not understand; Lest they should turn, And their sins be forgiven them. ”
V10 “But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable.” All could have asked, but only His disciples asked Him to explain the meaning. The disciples were teachable. Being teachable is very important (Mark 10:10, Mark 13:4, Luke 3:12, and Luke 11:1). We also need a readiness to pray for wisdom (James 1:5) and spiritual understanding (Ephesians 1:17-19).
V11 “And He said to them, “To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables…” The ones who seek will find (Jeremiah 29:13-14 (to the Jews but applicable to all) and Matthew 6:33). A mystery in Scripture is not a puzzle to solve but a truth not fully revealed until the proper time. The mystery here is what the kingdom of God is, and the complete principles of that kingdom. Other mysteries in Scripture: 1) blindness in Israel because of rejecting the Gospel—Romans 11:25-28, 2) the Gospel was only a shadow in the Old Testament until the Lord Jesus came and the Apostles wrote about it—Romans 16:25-27, 3) Messiah’s death and purpose of His death—1 Corinthians 2:7-10, 4) the Rapture of living believers and resurrection of dead believers—1 Corinthians 15:51-53, 5) the plan of salvation for any and all humans starting with Adam and Eve is the same; it is faith in God—Ephesians 1:7-13, 6) there are not Jewish Christians and a separate Gentile part; there is only one church, one body of Christians—Ephesians 3:3-6, 7) the understanding of marriage as an illustration of the body of Christ—Ephesians 5:32-33, 8) lawlessness especially at the end of the age—1 Thessalonians 2:7-12, 9) Jesus Christ being both God and Man—1 Timothy 3:16, 10) some interpretations of Scripture—Revelation 1:20, and 11) what Babylon is and its principles—Revelation 17:5-7. “Those outside” are those who have no interest in knowing the interpretation of this parable. Jesus was now teaching in parables because, as a whole, people had rejected Jesus as Messiah (Jesus explains this in Matthew 13:10-17).
Comments:
Matthew 13:11 (Holman Commentary) “These people, because of their faith, had received God’s gracious favor. However, those who had consciously rejected the Messiah would receive only judgment, beginning with Jesus’ withholding of insight by the use of parables. These outsiders had enough knowledge of the truth to be hostile against Jesus, but even that insight would be further clouded by their disbelief. Jesus’ teaching style was designed to give them little help as long as they persisted in their rebellion.
“This has application even today. It is a dangerous thing to hear and understand God’s truth, and then to consciously choose to disbelieve it. Such people will become less and less aware of their own doom, as they slide deeper into denial of the Messiah. However, those who respond to God’s word with open hearts will find an ever-widening road to further insight and reward.”
Matthew Henry: “To this question Christ answers largely, Mat 13:11-17, where he tells them, that therefore he preached by parables, because thereby the things of God were made more plain and easy to them who were willingly ignorant; and thus the gospel would be a savor of life to some, and of death to others. A parable, like the pillar of cloud and fire, turns a dark side towards Egyptians, which confounds them, but a light side towards Israelites, which comforts them, and so answers a double intention. The same light directs the eyes of some, but dazzles the eyes of others.”
JFB: “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.”
V12 “…so that seeing they may see and not perceive, and hearing they may hear and not understand; lest they should turn, and their sins be forgiven them. Let us be sure to study the Bible. With the grace of the Holy Spirit and diligence, the Bible can be understood.
We learn:
- The purpose of parables.
- About Bible mysteries.
- The necessity of asking God for wisdom.
Questions:
- Do we ask God to help us understand the Scriptures?
- Are we seekers wanting to learn Jesus’s teachings or not?