Matthew 13:36

Mat 13:36-39. Then Jesus sent the multitude away — The evening probably drawing on, for the people had now been long collected together: and went — From the vessel where he had been preaching; into the house — Probably a friend’s house, that he might refresh himself a little: and his disciples came, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares — They say nothing of the two other parables, because, probably, they understood them; or, perhaps, this parable affected them more than either of the others, in regard of its dreadful conclusion. Jesus readily granted their request, pleased, doubtless, that they were desirous of understanding every part of his doctrine. He answered, He that soweth the good seed, is the Son of man — Christ sowed the good seed of truth by preaching the gospel, and thereby, through the influences of his Spirit, forming and raising up real Christians, with whom to plant his church. The field is the world — To enlighten and save the world is the great end for which the gospel is preached, and out of it believers are gathered. Or rather, as appears from the parable itself, the church in the world is meant by the field. The good seed are the children of the kingdom — That is, the children of God, the righteous. But the tares [or darnel] are the children of the wicked one — How much soever they may have of the form of godliness, and however unblameable they may appear in their outward conduct, not being justified by grace, nor renewed in the spirit of their minds, but still in a state of guilt and depravity, they are not the genuine children of God, but those of the wicked one. “The good seed,” says Baxter, “as sown, is the gospel; but as springing up in fruit, it is the faithful, who are properly the members of the Church of Christ. The tares, as sown, are evil doctrines and temptations; but as sprung up in fruit, are the children of the devil, who is the father of wickedness, and that enemy of God and man who sowed them.” The harvest is the end of the world — Even the day of final judgment and retribution; the reapers are the angels — Who shall be employed in the services of that day, and especially in gathering together the saints, and separating them from the rest of mankind, in order to their eternal salvation, and in executing the sentence of condemnation passed on the ungodly.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Section 2. (Mat 13:36-52.)

Faith’s view.

The Lord now leaves the multitude and goes into the house: the audience is changed, and He is now with His disciples only, and able to speak out. He does now give them the explanation of the parable of the darnel, carrying it further also than the parable itself had done. But to this he adds three other parables, the third of which He partially explains, but not the others. We are left to spiritual apprehension to discern these.

Between these last three and the first four we shall find the difference which the numbers indicate. Four is the number of the world, and they are spoken in the world - before the multitude. We find in them, in fact, what we can see to be the external aspect of things, - the Kingdom in the form which it has taken manifestly, even though those who see it may discern little of its import. In what is said to the disciples in the house we shall find what is for those of the present time only spiritually discerned, - what is not public fact, but either lies beyond Christian times, or else is of such a nature as only to be understood by those who have learned it from God, from His word. It is faith’s view, then, that we now are to be occupied with, and it need not be a strange thing to us to find that we have very different interpretations to consider, and which it will be necessary to consider seriously, before we shall be entitled to speak with conviction upon the subject.

(1) But first of all we have what is itself an explanation. The interpretation of the parable of the darnel finds its place with the last three parables, and for this there must be some special reason. It would not be enough to say, it is an interpretation; for the Lord had before this explained that of the sower apart to His disciples, without reserving it for the after-teaching in the house. The true reason seems to be in that which is manifest in it, that it goes beyond the parable itself, and therefore beyond the end of the Christian form of the Kingdom of heaven. It presents, therefore, what must be to us as long as we are down here a matter of faith simply: and thus it comes into the second section here, and finds its place with the last three parables.

The parable ends with the gathering of the wheat into the barn. The saints of the present are removed, while the darnel, the fruit of Satan’s sowing, is left in the field - in the world; bound in bundles for the burning, but not burnt. It is noticeable that there is nothing else but this mentioned now. There are no mere lifeless professors, but only the followers of false doctrine, - the reason for which is an unspeakably solemn one, as explained by the apostle in the second epistle to the Thessalonians: the mere professors will be swept off by that "strong delusion" which will come with the apostasy of the last days upon all that have not received the love of the truth that they might be saved" (2Th 2:7-12). The public judgment here is upon those in manifest rebellion; not upon what is hidden but what is manifest. The words in the epistle are decisive as to this.

It is with what takes place after the saints are taken home that the interpretation of the parable has mainly to do: "As then the darnel is gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be at the completion of the age. The Son of man shall send His angels, and they shall gather out of His Kingdom," - it is now His Kingdom, He is not simply sitting on the Father’s throne - "all things that offend, and those committing lawlessness, and shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the Kingdom of their Father."

Notice the contrast: the Kingdom of the Son of man below, the Kingdom of the Father above: the righteous reign in the Kingdom of the Son of man; they shine in the Kingdom of their Father. The Sun of righteousness is risen upon the earth; and this is why the righteous shine as the Sun: they are with Him, sharers of His glory; not suns - central, independent orbs, - but lustrous with the glory put upon them. But this carries us, as is plain; beyond the present form of the Kingdom, as also we shall find the parable of the net does. For us, to whom all these parables of the Kingdom belong, it is a matter of faith alone. The numerical symbolism stamps this, I doubt not, as what it so plainly is, the beginning of the reign of righteousness.

2 We come now to two parables which ought, by their evident likeness to one another, to render mutual help in their interpretation - the parables of the treasure and the pearl. They are commonly understood by Christians as portraying in somewhat different ways the value of Christianity or of Christian blessings, and the need of sacrificing all else in order to secure them. But we must take them separately.

"Again, the Kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in the field, which a man having found hath hid, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field."

An old note of Luther gives what is still the common view: "The hidden treasure is the gospel, which bestows upon us all the riches of free grace, without any merit of our own. Hence also the joy when it is found, and which consists in a good and happy conscience, that cannot be obtained by works. The gospel is likewise the pearl of great price."

"True Christianity," says Lange, "is ever again like an unexpected discovery, even in the ancient Church: the best possession we can find, a gift of free grace. Every one must find and discover Christianity for himself. In order to secure possession, even of what we have found without any merit of our own, we must be willing to sacrifice all; for salvation; though entirely of free grace, requires the fullest self-surrender."

He is naturally perplexed, however, about the purchase of the field, to get the treasure. His solution of the difficulty is so strange that it can only be of value as showing to what strange methods people have to resort to interpret consistently: "If the ’field’ refers to external worldly ecclesiasticism, the expression might mean that we were not to carry the treasure out of the visible Church, as if we were stealing it away, but that we should purchase the field in order to have full title to the possession hid in it. Accordingly it would apply against sectarianism." It is hardly worth while to go further.

In fact the interpretation is scarcely scriptural in any part. A man like Luther may speak of "buying" the riches of free grace, and so, no doubt, does Scripture; but it never speaks of selling all that one has to do it. God says rather, "Come ye, buy wine and milk without money and without price." And the Lord does indeed say, "Whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be My disciple" (Luk 14:33); but He has taught us elsewhere how to understand all such expressions, and that the would-be disciple does not by this "buy" the grace of God, but must receive that grace first to enable for such whole-hearted discipleship. Not "whosoever will lose his life," in order to find it, but he who does so "for My sake, shall find it" (Mat 16:25). For "though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not love, it profiteth me nothing" (1Co 13:3). Love must be the motive power, or there is nothing that can count; but then we cannot love in order to gain for ourselves by it: there is but one way of acquiring it, and that is. as flame lights flame. So love alone kindles love: "we love Him, because He first loved us" (1Jn 4:19).

To sell all that one has to buy the free grace of God is not according to the gospel: that alone wrecks this interpretation; but, if we inquire further, What is the "field" that is bought to get the treasure? the Lord has Himself answered, not with Dr. Lange that it is "external worldly ecclesiasticism" - a strange thing indeed to buy at such a cost! - but the "world," simply the world. That is the field in which the Word is sown; clearly; ecclesiasticism may spring up in it, but only after the sowing, and must always be a very different thing. But, if "the field is the world," are we to sell all we have to buy the world, to find the gospel in it? That is mere absurdity, of course.

This interpretation breaking down; then; it only remains to reverse the order of thought, and find in it the Saviour seeking the sinner, instead of the sinner seeking the Saviour. Divine love is first and worthiest: and then how the central figure here shines out! HE went and sold all that He had - "emptied Himself," as the word in Philippians literally is (Php 2:7, R.V.): "though He was rich, yet for our sakes He became poor, that we through His poverty might become rich" (2Co 8:9). Texts are easy enough to find in this direction, and simple enough, too, in application. Here is a view of the Kingdom which lies outside of the range of the first four parables, as the continuation of the second parable does, but antecedent, not consequent to them. But it is the foundation upon which all rests, and which could not be omitted from faith’s view of things. It is the fundamental view of the Kingdom itself, and now its being the field of the world that He buys, instead of being out of place, or difficult to understand, is most exactly accordant and most perfectly intelligible. "Even denying the Lord that bought them" is said of those who bring in "damnable heresies," and bring upon themselves swift destruction (2Pe 2:1). They are not, therefore, of His redeemed (for redemption involves the forgiveness of sins, (Eph 1:7,) and is much more than purchase); nor of the treasure, therefore, for which He buys the field; but they are purchased, as all the world is purchased, and He is Lord over them: the word used here being not the usual title of authority, but "despot" (despotes), "owner."

The world, then; belongs to Him, and the treasure He has found in it, and for which He buys it, must be His people, who are therefore His purchased ones, the people of His possession (Act 20:28; 1Pe 2:9, Gk.). Yet there are still points of difficulty about this parable, if we apply it to Christians now, as is usual and natural with those who accept the interpretation which we must believe to be the true one. For, according to this view, neither the (implied) first hiding, nor the finding, nor the re-hiding of the treasure is accounted for, and even the buying of the field does not seem fully explained, though the meaning of it in itself is clear enough. But beyond all this the parable that follows it, so similar, and which yet cannot be so close a repetition of it as it appears, needs explanation. We must go on; therefore, to this and compare the two together, before we can get a satisfactory view of the whole matter.

(3) Here "the Kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchantman; seeking goodly pearls; and when he had found one pearl of great price, he went and sold all that he had, and bought it."

Such interpretations as those of Lange need not long detain us, since they are but slight variations of what we have, in the case of the former parable, already rejected. "The following points," says Lange, "are plain: he who obtains the Kingdom of heaven is no longer represented, merely as a fortunate finder, but at the same time as an untiring searcher. He is consciously seeking and striving after goodly pearls, or precious spiritual goods. At the same time what was formerly described as a treasure is now characterized as a pearl of great price: it is presented in a concentrated form as the one thing needful, bright and glorious in its appearance, - i.e., the person of Christ and life in Him. are now all in all. Accordingly, all former possessions are readily surrendered." Surely, one would not expect two parables to present things no wider apart than these; and the buying of Christ after this manner is an unscriptural thought. If we have had to refuse, moreover, the similar interpretation of the treasure, the parallel features in the two forbid our acceptance of dissimilar explanations for them. If Christ be the Finder of the one parable, He must be also the Seeker in the other.

But why, then; the two parables? If Christ be the central Figure in each case, there must be surely difference as to the object before Him; but the general thought of those who accept this view is that it is only one and the same object, though differently presented: "The parable of the hidden treasure," it is said, "did not sufficiently convey what the saints are to Christ. For the treasure might consist of a hundred thousand pieces of gold and silver. And how would this mark the blessedness and beauty of the Church? The merchantman finds ’one pearl of great price.’ The Lord does not see merely the preciousness of the saints, but the unity and heavenly beauty of the assembly. Every saint is precious to Christ; but He ’loved the Church and gave Himself for it.’"

This, however, does not adequately distinguish between the two parables, and indeed passes over entirely some of the most conspicuous differences between them. One cannot understand, if this be all, why the "pearl" should not by itself suffice for both.

That the pearl is the Church is indeed capable of fullest demonstration. If, then; the Church, the heavenly object, be pictured in the second parable, does not this naturally raise the question whether the "treasure hid in the field" of the world is not intended to mark a contrast in this respect? If so, and in connection with the Kingdom of heaven; our thoughts are at once directed to Israel as brought before us in the treasure. Let us examine the possibility of such an application; and see whether it may not help us with regard to some of the otherwise unexplained differences between the two parables.

We have seen that the Kingdom was first announced to Israel. But they rejected the King, and on this account it passed from them. This is, no doubt, why the thought of Israel being before us here has not been more frankly entertained. The parables are "mysteries" of the Kingdom: but is not Israel’s rejection from that which according to Old Testament prophecy belongs to her (and which shall be yet hers in a day to come) part of these very mysteries? The words of the apostle of the Gentiles seem to be clearly in the affirmative with regard to this. He says: "For I would not have you to be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits, that blindness in part is happened unto Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles be come in" (Rom 11:25). Thus he names the very thing which has caused the rejection of Israel for the present time as among the mysteries of this time. Is it not, then, antecedently probable enough that among these parables Israel’s relation to the Kingdom should be found to have a place?

When we look at the parable again; we cannot but be confirmed in this. To Israel it was promised that if they obeyed Jehovah’s voice, and kept His covenant, then they should be a peculiar treasure unto Him above all people (Exo 19:5); and the psalmist would wake up their praise by the recollection that "Jehovah hath chosen Jacob for Himself, and Israel for His peculiar treasure" (Psa 135:4). Yet when the Lord came to His own this treasure as such was hid in the field of the world, - as it were, lost among the nations. He discovered it, but could not possess Himself of it. He must first purchase it as at the cross, where Caiaphas, unconscious prophecy declared He would "die for the nation" (Joh 11:51). We see also why the field must be bought: it is in the world that Israel is yet to be displayed as Jehovah’s treasure. But the purchase being made, there is nothing further done as to possession: here the parable stops; the end of this belongs not to the "mysteries;" and in the meanwhile another purpose comes into sight, and is the very thing of which the next parable certainly bears witness.

Thus the interpretation in this way fairly and fully unlocks the whole parable; and a scriptural interpretation which does this must needs be the true one; for if not, - if two interpretations, equally consistent, could be given of the same words, then the words would not distinguish, would be defective in significance, as the Lord’s words could not be. We would have no means of discerning between the true and the false: a conclusion which would be the destruction of the power and authority of Scripture: for that whose meaning cannot be known ceases by that fact to have authority.

In the pearl of great price it is no wonder that Christians should imagine the Lord to be intended. But it is the Church which is thus spoken of, and its preciousness is not only insisted on, but in measure explained also. Its value is estimated by One who knows fully what it is He values. It is now not merely a man who finds, but a merchant who is seeking goodly pearls. The thing he finds he is in pursuit of, and with the practised eye of the skilled observer. Notice, too, that it is intimated that there are other pearls. This is one, however, whose value is such that, having found it, he will sell all he has to buy it.

But what is a pearl? It is, first of all, the product of a living being: it is the only jewel, as far as I am aware, that is so; and this is the first thing, surely, that we are intended to realize in it.

A pearl is the result of injury done to the animal that produces it. Its material is the nacre, as it is called, or "mother of pearl," which lines the interior of the shell, and which is renewed by it as often as injured or worn away. A particle of sand getting between the animal and the shell, the irritation causes a deposit of nacre upon it, which goes on being deposited, layer after layer, till a pearl is formed. But "completely spherical pearls" - and these are the valuable ones - "can only be formed loose in the muscle or soft parts of the animal. The Chinese obtain them artificially by introducing into the living mussel foreign substances, such as pieces of mother of pearl fixed to wires, which thus become coated with a more brilliant material."

The pearl is thus, as we may say, an answer to an injury; and it is the offending object that becomes, through the work of the injured one, a precious and beauteous gem. It is clothed with a comeliness put upon it, as the objects of divine grace are, with the beauty and glory of Him we crucified! It is in truth nothing else that He sought in coming among us but objects of divine grace.

Between a common pearl and one of great price, the difference is only of degree. The size and brilliancy depend, not upon the grain of sand which may be enwrapped, but upon the number of layers of nacre which enwrap it. The greatness of the grace bestowed is the distinguishing feature in what is here. Different bestowals of grace there are, and Scripture asserts this in the fullest way. The calling of Israel is not that of the Church, which is Christ’s body; and though the departed saints of former dispensations will plainly be in heaven as we shall be, Scripture again makes a difference between the Church of the first-born ones whose names are written in heaven" (Israel being the first-born upon earth) and the "spirits of just men made perfect" (Heb 12:23). God is going "in the ages to come to show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus" (Eph 2:7).

Israel may be the treasure in the field, but the pearl speaks of personal adornment. Christ will have the Church in heaven with Himself, putting in the highest place what is to show most conspicuously the glory of His grace. It is one pearl; as the body of Christ is one. There cannot be, it is evident, another body of Christ. The "fullness" or complement "of Him that filleth all in all" admits of no other.

The treasure and the pearl both speak of what is faith’s view as to the Kingdom, not the external view presented in the first four parables. In the treasure we find Israel preserved for blessing, but reserved, they having in the meanwhile rejected the only possible way in which it could be theirs. In the pearl we have that in which, during this reservation, the purpose of God as to the Church comes out. It is the first expression of it, and as yet we do not realize just what it is: as the "assembly which is His body," or even as "the house of God," it is not yet mentioned, but as people for Himself, destined to display His glory - the glory of His grace: heavenly, therefore, not earthly, the earthly promises being Israel’s still. The revelation will, of course, become fuller as we go on. The light increases to the perfect day.

(4) Israel comes no more into this picture all has been said about it that needs. The rest is told. fully in the Old Testament prophets. What we have in the last parable here concerns neither Israel nor the Church, as is plain by the interpretation which our Lord Himself gives: it is the mercy to the Gentiles, after the purpose of God as to the Church is complete. A new gathering now begins with the net cast into the sea, the figure of the Gentile nations. It gathers of every kind, and is then drawn to shore, and the sorting of the good from the bad is by angel-hands alone. This is at the completion of the age, and while coincident with the final harvesting of the wheat-field, is a different thing from it. To the present time it cannot apply: the putting the fish into denominational vessels, as some have applied it, is not a possible thought here: for we are not in the "completion of the age,"* which is, as our Lord explains, the time of harvest; and the sorting in this case is not by human but angelic hands.

{*The full explanation of this term will be given in the notes on the twenty-fourth chapter, where the whole prophecy relates to it. "The end of the world" is a wrong translation.}

The net applies to the going out of the "everlasting gospel," as in Rev 14:6-7, after the Church is removed to heaven, and where the terms of it show at once the difference between it and the gospel at the present time. We cannot say, "Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment is come," and on the other hand the grace which it is ours to proclaim is infinitely fuller. The issue of what is here is, no doubt, seen in the separative judgment of the living, when the Lord appears, as shown forth in the "sheep" and "goats" of the twenty-fifth chapter. In the wheat-field of Christendom there will be at the end no separation of the wicked from among the righteous, but the righteous will be gathered first of all, and removed to heaven; after which nothing but the darnel will remain to be gathered and burnt. With the fish here and the sheep and goats in the later chapter, there is a true judicial separation of the "sheep from the goats," the wicked departing into everlasting fire, and the righteous left for blessing upon earth under the "Shepherd" rule of the Son of man now come.

This is the end of the parables of the Kingdom; and the Lord’s words that follow to His disciples are self-evident in their application to them. New things have been declared and put in connection with the old; all the latter part being such an adjustment. The scribe of the old dispensation, becoming now the disciple of the new, is brought into the fullness of the whole revelation of God.

F. W. Grant, The Numerical Bible (4th ed., 1903) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

13:36-43 These verses are the interpretation of the parable told in 13:24-30. The people of the Kingdom (wheat) coexist with nonmembers (weeds) in the world (field) until the end of history. The mystery of the Kingdom is that it is present in the world without weeding out the wicked in judgment; Jesus’ disciples must learn patience.

13:36 They went into the house (see 13:1). Jesus taught in parables publicly, but the interpretations were reserved for his disciples in private. • Please explain: Though the disciples were privileged to know the mysteries of the Kingdom (13:11-17), they did not understand the parables until Jesus explained them.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Mat 13:36. Φράσον, explain) The disciples, being teachable, ask for further instruction.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Mat_13:36. Τὴν οἰκίαν] the house mentioned in Mat_13:1.

φράσον; comp. Mat_15:15. Occurs nowhere else in the New Testament. It denotes speaking in the way of explaining, unfolding anything. Plat. Gorg. p. 463 E, Theaet. p. 180 B; Soph. Trach. 158, Phil. 555. The reading διασάφησον (Lachmann, after B א and Origen once) is a correct gloss.

Meyer — Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament — English translation by Peter Christie, edited by Frederick Crombie (T&T Clark, 1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Mat 13:36-43 . Interpretation of the Tares . Not in Apostolic Document; style that of evangelist; misses the point of the parable so Weiss (Matt.-Evang., p. 351). But if there was any private talk between Jesus and the Twelve as to the meaning of His parables, this one was sure to be the subject of conversation. It is more abstruse than the Sower , its lesson deeper, the fact it points to more mysterious. The interpretation given may of course be very freely reproduced.

Mat 13:36 . φράσον ( διασάφησον ) [85] [86] ) again in Mat 15:15 : observe the unceremonious style of the request, indicative of intimate familiar relations. Hesychius gives as equivalents for φράζει , δεικνύει , σημαίνει , λέγει , etc. διασάφ . in Deu 1:5 = make clear, a stronger expression.

[85] Codex Sinaiticus (sæc. iv.), now at St. Petersburg, published in facsimile type by its discoverer, Tischendorf, in 1862.

[86] Codex Vaticanus (sæc. iv.), published in photographic facsimile in 1889 under the care of the Abbate Cozza-Luzi.

Mat 13:36 would seem to imply that the evangelist took these as spoken only to disciples in the house. ut as the Net is closely connected in meaning with the Tares , it is more probable that these parables also are extracts from popular discourses of Jesus, which, like all the others, would gain greatly if seen in their original setting. The Treasure and the Pearl would have their fitting place in a discourse on the kingdom of God as the highest good (Mat 6:33 ).

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

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" (Luk 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 (Jam 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 Psa 2:8).

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 36. Jesus - went into the house: and his disciples came] Circumstances of this kind should not pass unnoticed: they are instructive and important. Those who attend only to the public preaching of the Gospel of God are not likely to understand fully the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven. To understand clearly the purport of the Divine message, a man must come to God by frequent, fervent, secret prayer. It is thus that the word of God sinks into the heart, is watered, and brings forth much fruit.

Declare (φρασον, explain) unto us the parable of the tares of the field.] To what has already been spoken on this parable, the following general exposition may be deemed a necessary appendage: -

I. What is the cause of EVIL in the world?

1. We must allow that God, who is infinite in holiness, purity, and goodness, could not have done it. Nothing can produce what is not in itself. This is a maxim which every man subscribes to: God then could not have produced sin, forasmuch as his nature is infinite goodness and holiness. He made man at first in his own image, a transcript of his own purity: and, since sin entered into the world, He has done every thing consistent with his own perfections, and the freedom of the human mind, to drive it out, and to make and keep man holy.

2. After a thousand volumes are written on the origin of evil, we shall just know as much of it as Christ has told us here - An enemy hath done it, and this enemy is the devil, Mt 13:39.

1. This enemy is represented as a deceitful enemy: a friend in appearance, soliciting to sin, by pleasure, honour, riches, c.

2. A vigilant enemy. While men sleep he watches, Mt 13:25.

3. A hidden or secret enemy. After having sown his seed, he disappears, Mt 13:25. Did he appear as himself, few would receive solicitations to sin but he is seldom discovered in evil thoughts, unholy desires, flattering discourses, bad books, c.

II. Why was evil permitted to enter into the world?

1. There are doubtless sufficient reasons in the Divine Mind for its permission which, connected with his infinite essence, and extending to eternity, are not only unfathomable by us, but also, from their nature, incommunicable to men.

2. But it may be justly said, that hereby many attributes of the Divine Nature become manifest, which otherwise could not have been known; such as mercy, compassion, long-suffering, c. All of which endear the Deity to men, and perfect the felicity of those who are saved.

III. But why does he suffer this mixture of the good and bad seed now?

1. Because of the necessary dependence of one part of the creation on the other. Were the wicked all rooted up, society must fail - the earth be nearly desolated - noxious things greatly multiplied - and the small remnant of the godly, not being able to stand against the onsets of wild beasts, c., must soon be extirpated and then adieu to the economy of grace!

2. Did not the wicked exist, there would be no room for the exercise of many of the graces of the Spirit, on which our spiritual perfection greatly depends.

3. Nor could the grace of God be so manifest in supporting and saving the righteous and consequently could not have that honour which now it justly claims.

4. Were not this evil tolerated, how could the wicked be converted? The bastard wheat, by being transplanted to a better soil, may become good wheat; so sinners may be engrafted in Christ, and become sons of God through faith in his name; for the longsuffering of God leads multitudes to repentance.

IV. Observe the end of the present state of things:

1. The wicked shall be punished, and the righteous rewarded.

The wicked are termed bastard - wheat - the children of the wicked one, Mt 13:38, the very seed of the serpent.

Observe the place in which the wicked shall be punished, - a FURNACE. The instrument of this punishment, FIRE. This is an allusion to the punishment inflicted only on those supposed to be the very worst of criminals. See Da 3:6. They were cast into a burning fiery furnace. The effect of it, DESPAIR; weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth, Mt 13:42.

2. Observe the character and state of the righteous:

1. They are the children of the kingdom, a seed of God's sowing, Mt 13:38.

2. As to their persons, they shall be like the sun.

3. The place of their felicity shall be the kingdom of heaven: and,

4. The object of it, GOD In the relation of FATHER, Mt 13:43. This is a reference to Da 12:2-3.

Some learned men are of opinion that the whole of this parable refers to the Jewish state and people; and that the words συντελεια του αιωνος, which are commonly translated the end of the world, should be rendered the end of the age, viz. the end of the Jewish polity. That the words have this meaning in other places there can be no doubt; and this may be their primary meaning here; but there are other matters in the parable which agree far better with the consummation of all things than with the end of the Jewish dispensation and polity. See on Mr 4:29.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(36) Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field.—The question was asked privately, probably in the house of Peter, to which our Lord had retired with the disciples after the listening crowd upon the beach had been dismissed. It implies that the disciples had thought over the parable, and had found it harder to understand than those of the Mustard-seed and the Leaven.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

36–43. Explanation of the Parable of the Tares, in St Matthew only

39. the end of the world] Literally, the completion of this æon, “the point where one æon ends and another begins.” The expression is found also in Mat_13:40; Mat_13:49 of this chapter, and in ch. Mat_24:3, Mat_28:20, and in Heb_9:26, “the completion of the æons,” not elsewhere in N. T.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The field is the world,.... That which is represented by "the field", in which the good seed is sown, is not only the land of Judea, where Christ preached in person, but the whole world, into which the apostles were afterwards sent; or the church of Christ, in the several parts of the world:

the good seed are the children of the kingdom: they which are designed by the good seed, are such, for whom the kingdom of heaven is prepared, to whom it is bequeathed, and who are appointed to it; who are possessed of the kingdom of grace here, and are heirs of the kingdom of glory; and have both a meetness for it, and a right unto it, being the children of God by adoption, and that appearing by regeneration:

but the tares are the children of the wicked one: the persons intended by "the tares", are such professors of religion, as both by their principles and practices, manifestly show that they are of their father the devil; they resemble and imitate him, and do his works; and plainly declare, that they were never born of God, and are in no better state, though under a profession, than openly profane and immoral persons; and are more hurtful and scandalous to the interest of Christ, than such are.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

36 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.

Ver. 36. Declare unto us the parable] Private conference hath incredible profit. The minister cannot possibly say all in an hour: seek settlement from his lips, who both must preserve, and present knowledge to the people. Junius was converted by conference with a countryman of his not far from Florence, Galeacius Caraeciolus, by a similitude of Peter Martyr’s in his public lectures on 1 Corinth., seconded and set on by private discourse. David was more affected by Nathan’s "Thou art the man," than by all the lectures of the law, for twelve months before.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Declare unto us - That is, explain the meaning of the parable. This was done in so plain a manner as to render comment unnecessary. The Son of man, the Lord Jesus, sows the good seed - that is, preaches the gospel. This he did personally, and does now by his ministers, his providence, and his Spirit, by all the means of conveying “truth” to the mind. This seed was, by various means, to be carried over all the world. It was to be confined to no particular nation or people. The good seed was the children of the kingdom; that is, of the kingdom of God, or Christians. For these the Saviour toiled and died. They are the fruit of his labors. Yet amid them were wicked people; and all hypocrites and unbelievers in the church are the work of Satan. Yet they must remain together until the end, when they shall be separated, and the righteous saved and the wicked lost. The one shall shine clear as the sun, the other be cast into a furnace of fire - a most expressive image of suffering.

We have no idea of more acute suffering than to be thrown into the fire, and to have our bodies made capable of bearing the burning heat, and living on m this burning heat forever and forever. It is not certain that our Saviour meant to teach here that hell is made up of “material” fire; but it is certain that he meant to teach that this would be a proper “representation” of the sufferings of the lost. We may be further assured that the Redeemer would not deceive us, or use words to torment and tantalize us. He would not talk of hell-fire which had no existence, nor would the Saviour of people hold out frightful images merely to terrify mankind. If he has spoken of hell, then there is a hell. If he meant to say that the wicked shall suffer, then they will suffer. If he did not mean to deceive mankind, then there is a hell, and then the wicked will be punished. The impenitent, therefore, should be alarmed. And the righteous, however much wickedness they may see, and however many hypocrites there may be in the church, should be cheered with the prospect that soon the just will be separated from the unjust, and that they shall shine as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

The multitude went away (as most people do from sermons) never the wiser, understanding nothing of what they heard, nor caring to understand it. But there was a more conscientious part of our Saviour’s auditory, who could not thus satisfy themselves; they follow Christ into the house, and entreat him to open to them

the parable of the tares of the field; they say nothing of the other two parables, because probably they understood them, and it may be this parable did more affect them, in regard of the dreadful conclusion of it.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

36. Went into the house — After dismissing his sea shore congregation he returned to his usual residence in Capernaum. Declare — Explain or solve. Thus was it given to the disciples to know these mysteries of the planting, the development, the growth, the prevalence, and the final issue of the Gospel kingdom. The unbelieving opponents of our Lord would have reviled, denied, perverted, and abused this; and so, being unfit to receive them, these saving mysteries were forever hidden from their eyes. Thus were these things most justly hidden from the wise and prudent, and revealed unto babes. And this was not because God had arbitrarily excluded them from salvation, but because they do most freely exclude themselves. They all might, like the disciples, have received the truth and been redeemed by the blessed Saviour.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Vers. 36-52. Christ alone with his disciples. He explains to them at their request the parable of the tares (vers. 36-43), and adds three parables the treasure, the pearl, the dragnet the first two calculated to urge them to full renunciation of everything for Christ, the third to save them from presumption (vers. 44-50). Upon their acknowledging progress in spiritual understanding, he shows them further possibilities (vers. 51, 52).

Vers. 36-43. The explanation of the parable of the tares of the field.

Then Jesus sent the multitude away; then he left the multitudes (Revised Version, afeiv); cf. Mat_26:44. And went into the house (ver. 1, note): and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare; explain (Revised Version, diasafhson); i.e. make it thoroughly clear. The verb is found elsewhere in the New Testament only in Mat_18:31, where the thought is that the man"s fellow servants brought his behaviour fully before their lord"s knowledge. (cf. also RAPC 2Ma 1:18) As compared with frason (Received Text, and Mat_15:15), it leaves room for the disciples having already partially understood it. Unto us the parable of the tares of the field. The addition, "of the field," indicates the point of the parable, considered even as a mere story, that the tares grew in no chance place, but in a piece of cultivated ground already allotted to other produce.

Vers. 36-43. The tares in the field.

(See ante, on vers. 24-30) J.A.M.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Jesus explains the parable of the tares:

v. 36. 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.

v. 37. He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of Man.

v. 38. The field is the world. The good seed are the children of the Kingdom; but the tares are the children of the Wicked One.

v. 39. The enemy that sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.

v. 40. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be in the end of this world.

v. 41. The Son of Man shall send forth His angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;

v. 42. and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

v. 43. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

The narrative reveals a respectful intimacy on the part of the disciples. When Jesus had returned home, they did not hesitate to ask for an explanation, in order that the meaning of the parable might be altogether clear to them. He was patient with them. He interpreted to them one point after another. The wide world is the harvest-field of the Son of Man, who here represents Himself as the Lord of the Church. His seed are the believers; the unbelievers are the children of the devil. At the time of harvest their unbelief will become apparent, though they have skillfully hidden it under a semblance of piety. They are called offenders that hinder the development of the good grain; they are guilty of behavior contrary to law, of a deliberate ignoring of the law. These facts should not be a matter of surprise to the Christians. "Christ not only tells us about this, but also indicates the reason where such rubbish comes from, that in the Church where the true seed is sown, that is, the Word of God is preached in its truth and purity, there are still so many noxious weeds, so many hypocrites and false Christians. But He indicates the reason to warn us against the offense, which otherwise scandalizes the whole world and causes her to say that nothing good comes from the preaching of the Gospel. Such is not the fault of the doctrine, which is pure and wholesome: neither is it the preachers’ fault, who would like to see, and apply all diligence to have, the people become more pious. But it is the enemy’s, the devil’s, fault; he does like a wicked farmer or neighbor: When people sleep and are not thinking of harm, he does not sleep, but comes and sows tares in the field. That is the point which is brought out also in the parable before this: He takes hold of the hearts that they pay no attention to the Word, and thus day by day are farther removed from it, and let the devil lead and drive them as he will, into all manner of sin and shame."

On the Day of Judgment the sifting will take place: The false Christians will receive their sentence and be condemned to suffer the tortures of hell-fire, where wailing and gnashing of teeth will be their lot. But those whom Christ has declared righteous, who are righteous in His eyes through the merits of the Savior whom they have accepted,—they will receive the reward of mercy. Their glory will be a shining, visible brightness, as of the sun. And they will have the full realization that God is their true Father in Jesus Christ, through whom they are justified in His sight and have received the adoption of sons. It is a matter of earnest, prayerful anticipation.

Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The parable of the tares of the field, Christ is pleased to explain to his disciples after this manner. The person sowing good seed was himself, The Son of man; who first planted the gospel: the field in which the seed was sown was the world; that is, the church in the world: the good seed, called, The children of the kingdom, are sincere Christians: the tares called, The children of the wicked one, are profane sinners, and unsound hypocrites: the enemy is the devil, the harvest is the end of the world, and the angels are the reapers.

Learn, 1. That the mixture of the tares and the wheat, of the righteous and the wicked must and shall remain in the church unto the end of the world.

2. That in the end of the world the angels shall perform the work of separations, gathering the righteous from among the wicked: when everyone’s harvest shall be according to his fruit; The righteous shining in the kingdom of their Father, the wicked cast into a furnace of fire.

William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

J. W. McGarvey's The Fourfold Gospel [LIV. F. The Parable of the Tares Explained].

LIV. THE FIRST GREAT GROUP OF PARABLES. (Beside the Sea of Galilee.) Subdivision F. THE PARABLE OF THE TARES EXPLAINED. aMATT. XIII. 36-43.

a36 Then he left the multitudes, and went into the house [probably Simon Peter's house]: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Explain unto us the parable of the tares of the field. 37 And he answered and said, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; 38 and the field is the world; and the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom; and the tares are the sons of the evil i one; 39 and the enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are angels. 40 As therefore the tares are gathered up and burned with fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. 41 The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that cause stumbling, and them that do iniquity, 42 and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth. 43 Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He that hath ears, let him hear. [This parable and its explanation are sometimes urged as an argument against church discipline, but such a use of them is clearly erroneous. The field is not the church, but the world, and the teaching of the parable is that we are not to attempt to exterminate evil men. Any who attempt to exterminate heretics in the name of Christ by physical force are condemned by this parable.]

[FFG 339]

J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

36–43. Declare unto us the tares of the field. The parable in verses 24–30 above. By a comparison we may learn: 1. The kingdom is likened to a man sowing good seed in his field. 2. The Sower is the Son of man, who sows by means of his kingdom. 3. The good seed is the word of God as seen in its fruits, Christ's followers. 4. The field is the world. It is Christ's field. All power is given to him in heaven and in earth. His kingdom is rightfully the whole earth, but much of it is held still by the enemy, who has to be conquered. He will prevail finally, and the kingdoms of the earth shall become the kingdom of the Lord and his Christ. 5. The wheat raised from the good seed is the “children of the kingdom,” the disciples of Christ converted by his word. 6. The tares are not bad church members, but bad men; those who have been under the influence of the wicked one. 7. The righteous and wicked are to remain in the earth together. The righteous are not to exterminate the wicked. The evil and the good will be mixed until judgment day. 8. Then all shall be gathered at the throne of judgment. The righteous shall “inherit the kingdom.” All that are wicked shall be cast out of the kingdom. An eternal separation shall take place.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

Connecting Statement:

Here the scene shifts to the house where Jesus and his disciples were staying. Jesus begins to explain to them the parable of the field that had both wheat and weeds, which he told beginning in Matthew 13:24.

went into the house

"went indoors" or "went into the house where he was staying"

He who sows the good seed

"The one who sows the good seed" or "The sower of the good seed"

the Son of Man

Jesus is referring to himself. (See: First, Second, or Third Person)

the sons of the kingdom

The idiom "sons of" refers to those who belong to or to have the same character as someone or something. AT: "the people who belong to the kingdom" (See: Idiom)

of the kingdom

Here "kingdom" refers to God the king. AT: "of God" (See: Metonymy)

the sons of the evil one

The idiom "sons of" refers those who belong to or to have the same character as someone or something. AT: "the people who belong to the evil one" (See: Idiom)

the enemy who sowed them

"the enemy who sowed the weeds"

translationWords

Jesus

disciple

parable

plant

seed

Son of Man

world

son

kingdom

Satan

adversary

harvest

reap

angel

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

36–43. EXPLANATION OF THE PARABLE OF THE TARES,

in St Matthew only

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

36-43.] Interpretation of the parable of the tares of the field. Peculiar to Matthew.

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

(EL) 36. Then having left the multitudes, He went into the house; and there came to Him His disciples, saying, Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field.] —τότε] see on 2:7.—ἀφείς] as in 26:44, 22:22.—εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν] cf. 13:1. Mt.’s references to place in this chapter are very vague; vv. 2-9 were spoken in the boat. προσελθόντες, v. 10, may or may not suggest a change of scene, but in the former case nothing is said of the disembarkation nor of the scene of the following section, 10-35. The reference here to τοὺς ὄχλους suggests that the whole of 2-35 was spoken in the boat. If so, christ now disembarks and returns to the house. Since the reference to the boat and the house are borrowed from Mk., it seems probable that τότε ἀφεὶς—οἰκίαν is an editorial insertion to introduce the explanation of the Tares.—προσῆλθον] see on 4:3.—διασάφησον].The verb occurs again in 18:31, a probable Logian passage. It is found in Deu 1:5, Dan 2:6 LXX., 1 Mac 12:8, and several times in 2 Mac.

36. διασάφησον] א* B; φράσον אo C D al S1 S2 ܦܫܩ probably implies διασάφησον.

International Critical Commentary — older volumes (1896–1929), various authors — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.